State Capitol Building

[Just the facts]

Apparently...so does Mary according to the daily Oklahoman article this week. It is amazing now that we have all three branches controlled by the same party and there is more division than before all three were GOP controlled.

Remember the movie Night at the Museum: Battle for the Smithsonian when Richard Daily asks Ivan the Terrible, Darth Vader, Al Capone, Napoleon Bonaparte, and Kahmunrah whose in charge and they all claim to be in charge... it is just like that. Same thing happened to the Dems in Obama's first 2 years.

[Plutonic Panda]

Concrete chunk falls into Okla. Capitol office - News9.com - Oklahoma City, OK - News, Weather, Video and Sports |

[Plutonic Panda]

This is getting bad

OKLAHOMA CITY - State officials are describing Oklahoma's State Capitol Building as a dangerous place to work, while lawmakers continue debating over how best to pay for a fix.
On Tuesday, Oklahoma's Department of Labor opened an investigation concerning employees' safety. John Estus with Management and Enterprise Services tells News 9 something falls apart on the building about every week. On the outside, large gaps and cracks can be seen. On the inside, the smell of raw sewage fills the halls of the basement.

"We have things falling from the ceiling and things coming up from beneath the floor," said Estus.

Estus helps manage the iconic state government building. He says lawmakers have kicked the can down the road for more than four years. Now is the time, according to Estus and his peers. They say the building is a safety hazard.

Plumbing, electric work and structural concerns are all part of an estimated $160 million price tag. Experts warn the dollar amount will only go up if something isn't done now. On Monday, money was no longer the main concern -- people's lives are at risk.

"Had he been in here when this fell, it would have been a bad situation," Estus said.

A four-pound chunk of rock came crashing through the ceiling onto a staffer's desk Monday. No one was injured, according to state officials. The same office reeks of water mixed with feces. At times, the smell is similar to that of an outdoor toilet on a hot summer day. The sewage has been found on floors and has soaked carpet in some areas.

- OK Dept. of Labor Investigates State Capitol Workers' Safety - News9.com - Oklahoma City, OK - News, Weather, Video and Sports |

[David]

Whoever is in charge of building maintenance should just condemn the entire building, that might get the politicians to do something about it.

This could easily turn into a story where we are ridiculed in the national press, and I'm not sure I could argue that it wouldn't be deserved.

[KenRagsdale]

Our Capitol building is an art museum masquerading as a seat of government. To allow maintenance to go on this long without remediation is both unconscionable and embarrassing. State bonded indebtedness is low as are interest rates for borrowing. It should be fixed now.

[shawnw]

I've live here for 23 years and never set foot in the capitol building until this past fall. And I was astonished by all the art. I had no idea. How many others like me are out there?

[CuatrodeMayo]

I've live here for 23 years and never set foot in the capitol building until this past fall. And I was astonished by all the art. I had no idea. How many others like me are out there?

I've made a visit every couple of years since childhood and I still find it so fascinating. It is absolutely beyond me how this building is not getting the attention is deserves. To me, it is emblematic of our attitude towards our built environment.

[DavidD_NorthOKC]

Let's think - we are in Oklahoma where a lot of people think the government should be run like a business. If a business had a 100 year old building falling down around them, they would probably salvage and sell whatever they could, bulldoze it and build a nice, new cheap one.

Maybe we should put our legislators in a tilt up concrete panel building with minimal facilities and comfort for them. No offices, just one big cubicle farm. After all, that's a what business would do. Right?

The concept of public goods is foreign to many people, including a very large percentage of the members of the legislature. They know the cost of everything and the value of nothing.....their inability to accomplish something as basic as funding the maintenance and repair of the state capitol is indicative of the dysfunction in that body created by how people vote. So ultimately, the responsibility lies with the voters who evidently do not place a very high value on public infrastructure other than pavement.

[KenRagsdale]

Sorry DavidD, you are way off the mark. Those legislators who vote against a bond to remediate our capitol to its glory should be assigned office space in Valley Brook trailer homes.

[hoya]

Let's think - we are in Oklahoma where a lot of people think the government should be run like a business. If a business had a 100 year old building falling down around them, they would probably salvage and sell whatever they could, bulldoze it and build a nice, new cheap one.

Maybe we should put our legislators in a tilt up concrete panel building with minimal facilities and comfort for them. No offices, just one big cubicle farm. After all, that's a what business would do. Right?

The concept of public goods is foreign to many people, including a very large percentage of the members of the legislature. They know the cost of everything and the value of nothing.....their inability to accomplish something as basic as funding the maintenance and repair of the state capitol is indicative of the dysfunction in that body created by how people vote. So ultimately, the responsibility lies with the voters who evidently do not place a very high value on public infrastructure other than pavement.

Sorry DavidD, you are way off the mark. Those legislators who vote against a bond to remediate our capitol to its glory should be assigned office space in Valley Brook trailer homes.

We need like buttons on this thread.

[Dubya61]

... should be assigned office space in Valley Brook trailer homes.

As a money-saving measure. Think of the reduction in transportation costs to all the strip clubs!

[shawnw]

Unfortunately, if it's even possible, I think we might get less attention to the issues if there were distracted by the proximity of such things.

[RadicalModerate]

The juxtaposition of a (relatively new) Dome, on top of a crumbling Capitol Building, somehow reminds me of an old Homer and Jethro Tuneparody . . . (or . . . perhaps . . . it's more akin to something from Weird Al Yankovic or Bob and Ray . . .) [insert Youtube Vids of Choice]

In any--or either--case, it stands outside of my Circle of Influence and is just over the border into my Circle of Concern. =)
(yup: Olde School Non-MormonMason StephanCoveyite. =)

[RadicalModerate]

The juxtaposition of a (relatively new) Dome, on top of a crumbling Capitol Building somehow reminds me of an old Homer and Jethro Tuneparody . . .
(or . . . perhaps . . . it's more like something from Weird Al Yankovic or Bob and Ray . . .) [insert Youtube Vids of Choice]

Whatever. It certainly isn't a battle I can win and clearly stands outside of my circles of influence and concern. sort of. =)

Sorry for the redundant post. Really.

[shawnw]

Did you just argue with yourself?

[DavidD_NorthOKC]

I think he did.

[Plutonic Panda]

Another 'plan'... -___-

Plans to fix the crumbling state Capitol appear to be advancing in the Oklahoma Legislature.

The House previously rejected a Senate bill for a $160 million bond measure to fix plumbing, electrical systems and parts of the building’s facade, but House leaders are now discussing a similar but slightly smaller proposal.


The new plan envisions a $120 million bond measure. The bonds would be retired in 10 years to save on interest

- read more here: Crumbling Oklahoma Capitol: New plan emerging to fix crumbling building | News OK

[Plutonic Panda]

I think he did.

I think he noticed there was an argument within his original argument and needed to address the issue before it got out of hand(not foot, there is a difference). That's my take anyways.

[DavidD_NorthOKC]

I think he noticed there was an argument within his original argument and needed to address the issue before it got out of hand(not foot, there is a difference). That's my take anyways.

Are you arguing with yourself now?

[Plutonic Panda]

Are you arguing with yourself now?

Maybe it's contagious?

[sethsrott]

Meantime, the biggest repair and refurbishment project in the history of the 96-year-old state Capitol is to be accomplished through a $120 million, 10-year bond measure. Longstanding problems in the plumbing, electrical system and facade of the landmark building would finally be fixed.

A four-pound chunk of concrete nearly hit a worker’s desk recently in a basement office, a backed up pipe in the same area spewed smelly water into the carpet and parts of the grounds outside the building are blocked off to prevent people from being hit by falling pieces of the building’s crumbling facade.

House Speaker Jeff Hickman called the repairs long overdue and noted that an oversight committee would ensure the project is completed “in an efficient and fiscally conservative manner.”

Oklahoma Finance Secretary: Indian museum funding proposal 'dead' | News OK

[Plutonic Panda]

Didn't really know where to put this....

This new building is for the Oklahoma Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Mental Health and Substance and Abuse Services.

Lawmakers unveil $40M plan for new state building - News9.com - Oklahoma City, OK - News, Weather, Video and Sports |

[Plutonic Panda]

As for the actual capitol building itself

Several key issues are unresolved as Oklahoma Legislature speeds to adjournment | News OK

[DavidD_NorthOKC]

Didn't really know where to put this....

This new building is for the Oklahoma Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Mental Health and Substance and Abuse Services.

Lawmakers unveil $40M plan for new state building - News9.com - Oklahoma City, OK - News, Weather, Video and Sports |

The OK DVA is in the shack east of the old 45th Brigade Headquarters on 23rd St. That place looks like it is going to fall down any minute.

[Plutonic Panda]

Hopefully they tear it down and don''t just put surface parking on it.