OKC Mayor Race 2014

[Edgar]

Do you read the articles that you post? First of all, the article is from April, 2011. Here are a few snippets from your link that prove how weird and uneducated you really are:

Second paragraph: The Boston Convention and Exhibition Center, opened just seven years ago, is so short of exhibit space and hotel rooms, the consultant said, that officials need to consider a mammoth taxpayer-funded expansion.

So you are basically making the case for a new convention center and a CC hotel. Good job.

He blamed the economic downturn — which, he said, his firm could not have foreseen — for the financial trouble at some halls. Moreover, performance figures reported by convention centers, Kaatz said, do not account for all the spending facilities bring to their local economies. For example, he said, Washington hotel numbers don’t include rooms booked outside of those reserved by event planners.

As for Minneapolis, Kaatz said, the center’s deficits are high because of out-of-control expenses, not lower-than-expected revenues.

Thomas Hazinski, the HVS consultant working in Boston, noted his firm’s findings have persuaded some communities to not pursue building projects, including Plano, Texas and Monterey, Calif. He too said the recession — not his firm’s research — are to blame for problems at hotels in Phoenix, Baltimore, and Austin.

While the recession has certainly hurt the convention center business, the industry’s leaders acknowledge their troubles were brewing before the economy fell.

Despite those findings four years ago, Convention Sports & Leisure and HVS have since issued studies for Dallas, Miami, New Orleans, Boston, San Antonio, and other cities that supported construction of new or bigger facilities.

In Boston, HVS’s preliminary finding is that a 1,000-room hotel near the convention center could trigger visitors to book 140,000 rooms from events at the seaport district facility. Massachusetts officials have said the hotel may need up to $200 million in public subsidies.

The consultants say the lack of hotel rooms near the center is a major drawback to luring conventions to Boston. Convention Sports also said Boston’s exhibit space of 516,000 square feet compares poorly with the more than 1 million square feet available at centers in New Orleans, Atlanta, Orlando, and Chicago.

recession, glut of space, modern communication, whatever you want to point to- what's apparent is the new cc will produce millions in operating deficits taxpayers will be on the hook for, while the chamber crowd reaps the benifits. Public risk, private profit. You know the song.

[warreng88]

recession, glut of space, modern communication, whatever you want to point to- what's apparent is the new cc will produce millions in operating deficits taxpayers will be on the hook for, while the chamber crowd reaps the benifits. Public risk, private profit. You know the song.

We just had the worst recession in modern history and because of that, we don't need a new convention center... You do know that the convention center is going to be debt-free when it is built and that any business it books after that will be profit, right? So, the operating expenses can be paid from that profit. The chamber crowd will reap the benefits? How? By bringing people in who will spend money at restaurants, bars, shops, theatres, museums, etc? Won't the people who work at those places reap the benefits? What private entities are going to profit from this that are not restaurants, bars, shops, theatres, museums, etc? No, I don't know the song. Is it "You drive me crazy" by Britney Spears?

[Urban Pioneer]

Personally I think that this city needs a new "living room" to host our out of state friends and local functions. It fits perfectly within the "Maps mold". Would I rather it have gone to public transit, sure. But thats not the mandate the citizens endorsed via their elected leaders.

Regarding the CC hotel, either Cathy O'Connor solves that problem or the free market it does.

Ed just wants to create an issue to run on by poaching "current events". He needs to get over it. The "Not this Maps" crowd lost remember?

[OKVision4U]

This is not a race, ...it's a formality. The only way Mick does not win, would be if he ran the race like the Bayor QB when he gets to the goal line. ( tackles himself )

[Edgar]

We just had the worst recession in modern history and because of that, we don't need a new convention center... You do know that the convention center is going to be debt-free when it is built and that any business it books after that will be profit, right? So, the operating expenses can be paid from that profit. The chamber crowd will reap the benefits? How? By bringing people in who will spend money at restaurants, bars, shops, theatres, museums, etc? Won't the people who work at those places reap the benefits? What private entities are going to profit from this that are not restaurants, bars, shops, theatres, museums, etc? No, I don't know the song. Is it "You drive me crazy" by Britney Spears?

problem seesm to be a glut because Interantional Sports Leisure and Convention has ben going around the country warning people of all the business they're losing without a bigger hall. we'll never know because the report for OKC is a closely guarded secret- no notes, screenshots. Now whose paranoid.

[OKVision4U]

Personally I think that this city needs a new "living room" to host our out of state friends and local functions. It fits perfectly within the "Maps mold". Would I rather it have gone to public transit, sure. But thats not the mandate the citizens endorsed via their elected leaders.

Regarding the CC hotel, either Cathy O'Connor solves that problem or the free market it does.

Ed just wants to create an issue to run on by poaching "current events". He needs to get over it. The "Not this Maps" crowd lost remember?

...and that "living room" needs to be a place that carries a more Iconic Look for OKC. The current renderings make that "living room" look too boxy for our out-of-state friends. imo.

[warreng88]

problem seesm to be a glut because Interantional Sports Leisure and Convention has ben going around the country warning people of all the business they're losing without a bigger hall. we'll never know because the report for OKC is a closely guarded secret- no notes, screenshots. Now whose paranoid.

And yet the only thing "The Doctor" has come out against in regards to the MAPS projects is the streetcar. He has come out against the CC hotel, which I understand but why is he not opposed to the building of a new convention center, park, whitewater rapids or state fairground improvements?

You are going to say something that you have no proof of that I can't refute to try to make your point. I cannot prove that there was a report and neither can you because "alledgedly" it is a closely guarded secret. That is basically the embodiment of a conspiracy. And the answer is you. You are paranoid that there are a ton of back room dealings to get a publicly funded (much needed I may add) convention center and only a handful of people are going to profit from this. You need to take off your Shadid colored glasses and examine the information that is out there, not come up with new theories about what is being done.

[BoulderSooner]

problem seesm to be a glut because Interantional Sports Leisure and Convention has ben going around the country warning people of all the business they're losing without a bigger hall. we'll never know because the report for OKC is a closely guarded secret- no notes, screenshots. Now whose paranoid.

Our current convention center is an embarrassment for a city our size. We need a new one. Period

[soonerguru]

This is not a race, ...it's a formality. The only way Mick does not win, would be if he ran the race like the Bayor QB when he gets to the goal line. ( tackles himself )

The other way he loses is if people read your comments that the election is "in the bag" and fail to vote. I agree that if the people who think this city is on the right track (which is about 75 percent of citizens) actually show up and vote, it will be a slaughter in Mick's favor. Problem is, sometimes the people who think everything sucks are more passionate to vote. So if you're feeling fat and happy in OKC, don't forget to extend your happiness to the voting booth, because the angry and disillusioned folks most certainly will be voting.

[soonerguru]

And yet the only thing "The Doctor" has come out against in regards to the MAPS projects is the streetcar. He has come out against the CC hotel, which I understand but why is he not opposed to the building of a new convention center, park, whitewater rapids or state fairground improvements?

You are going to say something that you have no proof of that I can't refute to try to make your point. I cannot prove that there was a report and neither can you because "alledgedly" it is a closely guarded secret. That is basically the embodiment of a conspiracy. And the answer is you. You are paranoid that there are a ton of back room dealings to get a publicly funded (much needed I may add) convention center and only a handful of people are going to profit from this. You need to take off your Shadid colored glasses and examine the information that is out there, not come up with new theories about what is being done.

That's because that's been the only major public vote so far. I'm hearing he's agitating against the Park now, too, and will most certainly be against the Convention Center. He has idiotic supporters claiming the city is getting screwed on the MAPS sidewalks, when money has already been approved to build the amount of sidewalks that were promised. It's sad when a candidate's only real chance to win is to have spokesmen like Edgar speaking on his behalf and / or to completely snow people on the facts.

He should start passing around the bong at his next major public event; he's going to need a very stoned electorate to win.

[warreng88]

That's because that's been the only major public vote so far. I'm hearing he's agitating against the Park now, too, and will most certainly be against the Convention Center. He has idiotic supporters claiming the city is getting screwed on the MAPS sidewalks, when money has already been approved to build the amount of sidewalks that were promised. It's sad when a candidate's only real chance to win is to have spokesmen like Edgar speaking on his behalf and / or to completely snow people on the facts.

He should start passing around the bong at his next major public event; he's going to need a very stoned electorate to win.

I understand if someone is against the projects to come out and be against them from the very beginning, but to try to get every single project voted down when all the work as already begun is just mind-boggling to me. If he had his way, we would have already spent millions of dollars acquiring the areas for the park to have them torn down but then it gets voted down by the council and so we have 40 acres of nothing in front of the Union Station. Same can be said on the Whitewater Rafting course, State Fairgrounds and the convention center. Why not man up and say you are against it from the very beginning instead of waiting until the very last minute to get it derailed?

Do we know what the next project will be voted on by the city council?

[Bellaboo]

Maybe Ed's meeting some of his supporters in rehab ? j/k

[Edgar]

Our current convention center is an embarrassment for a city our size. We need a new one. Period

as embarrassing as public transit? Oh that's right, according to Mick everyone in OKC has atleast one car.

[warreng88]

as embarrassing as public transit? Oh that's right, according to Mick everyone in OKC has atleast one car.

You do know that implementing the streetcar is just the start of a fully integrated transit system including buses and rail, right?

[bradh]

I can't stand this rhetoric. It wreaks of really poor intelligence as to exactly who the "Chamber crowd" are. I've rented space at the convention center for a conference I hosted there. Am I evil in some way? There are more than 5,000 local businesses proudly putting their stickers on their doors and calling themselves members. These are the lifeblood companies of this community. Berating them or making them look evil or manipulative in some way further highlights the ludicrousness and ignorance of Shadid's campaign. I'd stand behind these 5,000 businesses any day before I'd stand behind Shadid.

Businesses sometimes need large meeting spaces, and it helps if they are state-of-the art. We aren't breaking new ground here and the demand is obviously there. I'd rather invest and even take risks for these 5,000 companies rather than invest the money in a myriad of other ways simply because you've got nothing if you don't have a strong local economy.

This is such a critical thing that Ed needs to grasp. As I said recently, "Good urban design may not cause a good community to happen, but bad design will prevent it." So Shadid and I agree, we need great urban design. But for some reason, he doesn't realize that we have lots of places in this nation that have good urban design but horrible community. Why? Because their economy is in the tank.

Should we be spending more money on urban design oriented projects? You bet. And we are. Maps 3 was significant progress in that direction. I suspect Maps 4 will see a continuing and probably even a dramatic increase over Maps 3 allocations in this area.

We could probably quibble about whether the CC is the appropriate amount or even the right time. But we really aren't. Instead, the antics are about demonizing the "Chamber" -- the largest business coalition in the state.

Outta the park Sid, well said man.

[OKVision4U]

The other way he loses is if people read your comments that the election is "in the bag" and fail to vote. I agree that if the people who think this city is on the right track (which is about 75 percent of citizens) actually show up and vote, it will be a slaughter in Mick's favor. Problem is, sometimes the people who think everything sucks are more passionate to vote. So if you're feeling fat and happy in OKC, don't forget to extend your happiness to the voting booth, because the angry and disillusioned folks most certainly will be voting.

100% correct. This is why I will bring 1,000 of my other Fat-n-Happy friends to vote. Great minds think alike. We like where we are, and we want more. And I feel it is more 90 / 10. ...

[Midtowner]

as embarrassing as public transit? Oh that's right, according to Mick everyone in OKC has atleast one car.

Friend, you are not helping Shadid's cause one little bit. He doesn't do himself any favors, but you're very uninformed and have just been lobing low and slow balls over home plate for Cornett supporters to knock out of the park. You've been here awhile, so I know you're a real person as you've kind of always had this low-wage earner inferiority disaffected voter complex thing going on. I know you think Shadid's your best bet to stick it to the man, much as that Taco Bell guy was last go-round, much as "Not this Maps" once was.

But imagine what happens after Shadid gets elected. Do the Tea Party/disaffected voter/public safety unions/etc. all end up with what they really want? How on Earth would such a coalition govern?

[soonerguru]

I can't stand this rhetoric. It wreaks of really poor intelligence as to exactly who the "Chamber crowd" are. I've rented space at the convention center for a conference I hosted there. Am I evil in some way? There are more than 5,000 local businesses proudly putting their stickers on their doors and calling themselves members. These are the lifeblood companies of this community. Berating them or making them look evil or manipulative in some way further highlights the ludicrousness and ignorance of Shadid's campaign. I'd stand behind these 5,000 businesses any day before I'd stand behind Shadid.

Businesses sometimes need large meeting spaces, and it helps if they are state-of-the art. We aren't breaking new ground here and the demand is obviously there. I'd rather invest and even take risks for these 5,000 companies rather than invest the money in a myriad of other ways simply because you've got nothing if you don't have a strong local economy.

This is such a critical thing that Ed needs to grasp. As I said recently, "Good urban design may not cause a good community to happen, but bad design will prevent it." So Shadid and I agree, we need great urban design. But for some reason, he doesn't realize that we have lots of places in this nation that have good urban design but horrible community. Why? Because their economy is in the tank.

Should we be spending more money on urban design oriented projects? You bet. And we are. Maps 3 was significant progress in that direction. I suspect Maps 4 will see a continuing and probably even a dramatic increase over Maps 3 allocations in this area.

We could probably quibble about whether the CC is the appropriate amount or even the right time. But we really aren't. Instead, the antics are about demonizing the "Chamber" -- the largest business coalition in the state.

Great point. As someone who has worked closely with the Chamber on and off over the years, I can attest that the majority of the members are small business people -- not plutocrats. If you're going to rail against the Chamber -- as Shadid and his campaign associates do -- you are also railing against a host of small, mom and pop businesses. Additionally, there are numerous non-profit organizations that are involved with the Chamber.

Railing against the Chamber is about as stupid as railing against the government. In both cases, they are US.

[Edgar]

I can't stand this rhetoric. It wreaks of really poor intelligence as to exactly who the "Chamber crowd" are. I've rented space at the convention center for a conference I hosted there. Am I evil in some way? There are more than 5,000 local businesses proudly putting their stickers on their doors and calling themselves members. These are the lifeblood companies of this community. Berating them or making them look evil or manipulative in some way further highlights the ludicrousness and ignorance of Shadid's campaign. I'd stand behind these 5,000 businesses any day before I'd stand behind Shadid.

Businesses sometimes need large meeting spaces, and it helps if they are state-of-the art. We aren't breaking new ground here and the demand is obviously there. I'd rather invest and even take risks for these 5,000 companies rather than invest the money in a myriad of other ways simply because you've got nothing if you don't have a strong local economy.

This is such a critical thing that Ed needs to grasp. As I said recently, "Good urban design may not cause a good community to happen, but bad design will prevent it." So Shadid and I agree, we need great urban design. But for some reason, he doesn't realize that we have lots of places in this nation that have good urban design but horrible community. Why? Because their economy is in the tank.

Should we be spending more money on urban design oriented projects? You bet. And we are. Maps 3 was significant progress in that direction. I suspect Maps 4 will see a continuing and probably even a dramatic increase over Maps 3 allocations in this area.

We could probably quibble about whether the CC is the appropriate amount or even the right time. But we really aren't. Instead, the antics are about demonizing the "Chamber" -- the largest business coalition in the state.

That litle ole humble mom and pop chamber-lol as the kids say. Days of yore perhaps- the current chamber is a nationwide no holds barred agressive lobbying outfit with it's hand out trying to extort concessons, intimidating judges who don't rule in their favor, working our ignorant lege to get freedom from any liability, trying to undermine public ed because they're salavating over all the coin to be madeonce the sharks get into the tank, and they duped silly Okies into voting themselves a property tax increase with the intangible vote. The chamber's participation in Norman's recent mayoral electon was hateful and mendacious. Tell some more fairy tales.

[soonerguru]

That litle ole humble mom and pop chamber-lol as the kids say. Days of yore perhaps- the current chamber is a nationwide no holds barred agressive lobbying outfit with it's hand out trying to extort concessons, intimidating judges who don't rule in their favor, working our ignorant lege to get freedom from any liability, trying to undermine public ed because they're salavating over all the coin to be madeonce the sharks get into the tank, and they duped silly Okies into voting themselves a property tax increase with the intangible vote. The chamber's participation in Norman's recent mayoral electon was hateful and mendacious. Tell some more fairy tales.

You're confusing the OKC Chamber with the US Chamber. Chambers of Commerce around the country have very different priorities; the US Chamber is a right-wing political organization.

But you're simply lying by claiming the Chamber is not made of small businesses. I'm guessing you've never attended a meeting. This makes you like a "hateful and mendacious" person, to use your words.

[David]

You're confusing the OKC Chamber with the US Chamber. Chambers of Commerce around the country have very different priorities; the US Chamber is a right-wing political organization.

But you're simply lying by claiming the Chamber is not made of small businesses. I'm guessing you've never attended a meeting. This makes you like a "hateful and mendacious" person, to use your words.

So, Ed(gar) has no Idea what he is talking about, again? Big surprise.

[BoulderSooner]

You're confusing the OKC Chamber with the US Chamber. Chambers of Commerce around the country have very different priorities; the US Chamber is a right-wing political organization.

But you're simply lying by claiming the Chamber is not made of small businesses. I'm guessing you've never attended a meeting. This makes you like a "hateful and mendacious" person, to use your words.

If by "right wing" you mean pro business and jobs than you would be correct

[soonerguru]

If by "right wing" you mean pro business and jobs than you would be correct

Yes, because only Republicans care about business and jobs.

[warreng88]

Saw a ton of ES campaign signs in and around Penn Square Mall today.

[boscorama]

A few months ago I friended ED on FB. This week he's accelerated his FB activity with lovely holiday photos. Prepare for the onslaught, I figure.