The Osage County Election Board Office has announced that February 5 will be the last day to apply for voter registration, in order to vote in the Presidential primary on March 1, 2016. October 14, will be the last date to register for the Presidential General Election.
Upcoming elections also include the Annual School Board elections, which will take place for much of the state on February 9. Candidates in Pawhuska are Michael Tolson & Jeffrey Swan, for Woodland Public Schools Gabriel Graham and Kimetha Mitchell-Bennett, and for Caney Valley Public School District Clayton Ullrich and Andy Young are running for a School Board positions. Additionally Hominy and Skiatook will be holding special elections on February 9. In Hominy a $700,000 bond has been proposed to make improvements to the Hominy Public Schools, and Skiatook is proposing a five-tenths of one percent sales tax for road improvement. Sample ballots are now available on the Oklahoma State Election Board’s Online Voter Tool at www.ok.gov/elections/ You can contact the Osage County Election Board Office at (918)287-3036 for questions concerning upcoming elections and voter registration. Due to the observation of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr day the Osage County Courthouse will be closed and the Osage County Board of County Commissioners will be meeting on Tuesday.
On the agenda for the Tuesday meeting are Clair Wood, from the Osage Nation, to discuss the Donation of the Osage County Fairgrounds Woman's Building and Clarence Brantley Indoor Arena for a Young Child Event; also Myron Red Eagle to discuss the Windmills in Osage County. Additionally on the agenda are several administrative items, including the discussion of signing a contract with RECtec for High Speed Fiber Internet for the Osage County Courthouse. The discussion regarding High Speed Internet has been a reoccurring topic for the Commissioners and County Officials for several months. The Osage County Board of County Commissioners will meet Tuesday, January 19, at the Osage County Courthouse in Pawhuska at 10am. This week the Barnsdall Chamber of Commerce met for their first meeting of 2016. During the meeting, the Chamber welcomed the Barnsdall Students of the Month which were for January, Senior Derrick Wilson, Senior Taylyn Harrison, and 8th Graders Hayden Renfrow and Hope McCullough.
Chamber President Claud Rosendale discussed the progress of Eagle Medical Transport, they officially began operating in Osage County on January 1, 2016 and are housed out of Barnsdall. Additionally discussed was the upcoming Easter Egg hunt on March 26, at the Assembly of God Church in Barnsdall. The Chamber has previously sponsored the event by providing volunteers and funds for eggs and candy/prizes, and this year the Chamber approved $200 for the event. The event is also sponsored by American Heritage Bank and the Assembly of God Church, and the church agreed to match the Chambers $200 for the event. The last item of the Chamber Meeting was a presentation from Lindel Fields, the Superintendent of Tri County Tech, where he discussed current programs offered to students and adults. Fields also discussed other services offered by Tri County Tech including their Incubator Centers in Bartlesville and Pawhuska, for small businesses and start up companies, as well as their Event Space in Bartlesville. The Barnsdall Chamber will meet again on January 26. This week at the meeting of the Osage County Board of County Commissioners the Commissioners approved the purchase of a new 2016 Freightliner Snow Plow/Sander, approved Bruce Carter to the Osage County Industrial Authority Board of Trustees, discussed and approved funding for the County Courthouse/Building Review Committee, and made a decision regarding tobacco use at the County Courthouse in Pawhuska.
The County approved the purchase of the 2016 Freightliner for $137,694.00 for District 2. The vehicle was financed through Welch State Bank. Bruce Carter is the owner of the Tallgrass Art Gallery in Pawhuska, Carter has been working diligently to bring the Western Art Scene to Pawhuska and Osage County. In Carter's efforts to boost tourism in the Osage he has also successfully recruited the Western Woman's Art Association to hold their 2017 exhibition in Pawhuska, and has plans to establish an Art Academy in Pawhuska. OCIA Chairman Eddy Red-Eagle brought the recommendation before the County Commissioners, they agreed that Carter would be a good choice for the OCIA and approved the nomination. The Commissioners approved a motion to authorize the County Courthouse/Building Review Committee to bring in Snowden Engineering Inc. to perform site observations for multiple building locations in Pawhuska, including the Kennedy Building, the Whiting Building and the County Courthouse. The site observation will give the Engineers an idea of what to look for structurally to determine the feasibility of repairing any of the three building for County use. Lastly the Commissioners approved the motion to purchase a small building, i.e. three sided bus stop, to be used as a smoking location at the County Courthouse in efforts to get smokers away from the entrance. The building will be purchased and installed as a first measure to keep citizens away from the hazards of smoking inmates and second hand smoke while doing business at the Courthouse. The next step would be to outlaw smoking at the Courthouse if issues continue to arise. The Osage County Board of County Commissioners will meet again next Monday at the Osage County Courthouse in Pawhuska at 10am. On Monday, January 11, 2016 the Osage County Board of County Commissioners will meet and discuss signing an agreement with Welsh State Bank for a new 2016 Freight-liner Snow Plow and Sand Spreader. The Commissioners will also discuss the result of the Courthouse/Building Review Committee site observations of the Kennedy Building, the Whiting Building, and the Osage County Courthouse. The Commissioners will also sign several of the County offices reports for December and possibly take action on the previously discussed topic of tobacco use at the Courthouse. The Osage County Board of County Commissioners meet each Monday at 10am at the Osage County Courthouse in Pawhuska.
This week at the first meeting of the Osage County Commissioners in 2016 the Commissioners nominated and elected a new Chairman and Vice-Chairman, discussed tobacco use at the Courthouse, and received an update regarding high speed internet in the Courthouse.
The first action item for 2016 was the election of a Chairman, Vice-Chairman, and 2nd Vice-Chairman for the Board of County Commissioners and this year Commissioner Darren McKinney was nominated and elected Chairman for the Osage County Board of County Commissioners, this will be the first time McKinney has served as Chair for the Board since his appointment to the County Position; Scott Hilton, the previous Chairman was nominated and elected as Vice-Chair, and Bob Jackson will serve as 2nd Vice-Chairman. Osage County Judge David Gambill brought before the Board the discussion of smoking in front of the Courthouse. Judge Gambill informed the Commissioners of a personal security experience where while leaving the Courthouse an inmate, who was outside smoking, got into the vehicle with the judge. Judge Gambill recommended that the smoking area in front of the Courthouse be moved further away from the main entrance to reduce the security risk and limit the exposure of the public to second hand smoke. The Commissioners agreed with the recommendation and are working relocating the smoking area. Lastly, the Commissioners received an update from Shane Burgess from RECtec regarding a High Speed Internet. The discussion began several weeks ago regarding upgrading the Courthouse to fiber internet and this week Burgess returned with contract estimates. For the Courthouse to receive the fiber drop, with initial construction cost, the County would need to pay $1,300 a month, or $12,000 down and $700 a month. The service would provide internet to the entire building, whereas the Courthouse is currently working on individual internet provider plans ranging from $40 to $130 dollars a month for each of the County's offices. The County did submit for a second bid for fiber from other companies, however RECtec was the least expensive. The Commissioners agreed that they should look into the contract but would need the District Attorney's approval before moving forward. The Osage County Board of County Commissioners will meet again next Monday at the Osage County Courthouse in Pawhuska at 10am. The Washington County and Osage County Election Board Officials have announced that January 15 will be the last day to apply for voter registration, in order to vote in the February elections.
Upcoming elections include the February 9, Annual School Board elections for much of the state; in Pawhuska Michael Tolson & Jeffrey Swan are running for a School Board position and in the Caney Valley Public School District Clayton Ullrich and Andy Young are running. Other important dates include February 5, which is the last date to register in order to vote in the Presidential primary on March 1, and October 14, will be the last date to register for the Presidential General Election. You can contact the Washington County Election Board Office at (918)337-2850 and the Osage County Election Board Office at (918)287-3036 for questions concerning upcoming elections and voter registration. |
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