See what Frank Keating left us with? The dome was supposed to be payed for with private funds. Now the state is trying every way to come up with the remaining money needed to pay for it. Hmmmm....will the capitol building be repossessed? lol!

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"Attorney challenges Capitol dome debt


By The Associated Press

An attorney filed a formal challenge Tuesday to plans to issue $5 million in bonds to pay part of the cost of the state Capitol's new dome, describing it as "a mortgage on an existing state building."
Jerry Fent of Oklahoma City filed the challenge with the Oklahoma Supreme Court, which in 2003 rejected bond financing for $175 million in state projects including the dome.

The court invalidated the bond program because the Legislature did not specify the projects to be funded. Fent was one of several taxpayers who objected to the bond plan.

The Oklahoma Capitol Improvement Authority has proposed a $5 million, 10-year bond debt to pay Capitol dome costs through a grant of title to another state agency, the Oklahoma Capitol Complex and Centennial Commemoration Commission.

Fent argues in a 22-page petition that the commission cannot participate in a 10-year bond issue because the commission expires in 2008 - the year after Oklahoma's centennial celebration on Nov. 16, 2007.

Fent also argues that construction of the Capitol dome in 2001-2002 was illegally exempted from competitive bidding and that total costs could exceed $34 million - far more than the $21 million that officials said it would cost. Current debt for the dome is between $16 million and $18 million, Fent said.

Fent said all past and future actions by the commission may be invalid because some of its members are lawmakers who are serving on the commission, an executive-branch agency, allegedly in violation of the separation of powers and dual office holding statutes. "

This is kinda... embarassing.

What would be even more embarassing is if the contractor that built the dome put a lien on the dome.......and the capitol building ended up getting repossessed!

That's what I meant, as in chopped off the state capital.

We could allow Viagra to paint advertising on it. We could use the advertising revenue to retire the bond! Who is with me!?

And NOW!!! Every 7th order of Viagra is FREEEEE!!!!!!!

Remember that comercial? LOL.

A tax exempt foundation was established as debtor... that extended a loan of 13 million
half way through the project, that loan would be repaid as pledges
were fulfilled. The second loan for 5 million was established after the supreme
court nullified the bond issue in 03....so.....the contractors did indeed get paid...
there are no dome workers still waiting for their checks and there will be no
reposession unfortunately.....

Currently the 5 million dollar loan has an agreed repayment of July of this year,
that would have to be renegotiated should the latest round of lawsuits
be successful.....as it stands now, the repayment would stand at 5.5 million......
and if extended, could crawl as high as 6

The dome overall was a public relations nightmare, first because Frank spearheaded it.....
mark my words......if David Boren had been the one cheering for it, there wouldn't
have been backlash at all......then we engrave all the corporate donors names
in the "ring of honor".......basically glorified naming rights.....which was a big mistake!

My take on it?

Oklahoma is very much against the dome for various reasons and for the most part
the naysayers are really full of s#it when we really look at the facts!
We got a 25 million dollar asset for what will in worst case end up to equal a 70 percent
discount........furthermore, we employed a hundred or more people for the construction
of the dome, not to mention suppliers, vendors being supported as well......all of which
poured as much back into our economy as the state had to pay for their part.....

so donors give 70 percent, state gives 30 percent and people whine their heads off
that kids are starving in the streets because of our lack of frugality......
can't we do both???? can't we support our infrastructure, even cosmetically,
while also supporting education, the roads, getting rid of prostitutes, and making
all the Indians happy?

Does our state government really need to work out of metal prefabs just to be able to
say that we are "frugal for education?"

What the hell was this MAPS for kids if it wasn't us giving money for education.............
we all said yes to that didn't we? so let's stop thinking of Oklahoma as a subsistence
level environment and nothing more than the bare basics.......Bricktown's not that,
neither is the downtown renaissance and neither is the new dome......
I'm proud of it, I'm proud everytime I drive by it..........I'm only ashamed that it took
the generosity of big corporations and big money donors to make it even close
to a real prospect........

I think the next pretty and useless object we build
in this town needs to be a statue honoring welfare recipients.....maybe a big
giant stone food stamp or something.......just something to let the low income folk
know that just because we want a few adornments around our state, that we're
not going to let them starve and wither away.....