TAHLEQUAH, Okla. — Tahlequah voters will vote on two separate taxes that, if approved, would keep the same total sales tax rate after March 2028 in order to fund various new buildings and improvements.
Mayor Suzanne Myers hopes voters approve keeping the existing rate after spring 2028 for two categories: .25% for a general city improvement fund, and .5% lasting 15 years for 12 selected projects finalized earlier this year in community surveys.
"From cemetery upgrades to senior citizen (center) upgrades to potentially a new fire station, to a new community center which would also house City Hall, an amphitheater that would be an absolute plus for this community," Mayor Myers listed off to 2 News Oklahoma on Aug. 12. "We're a tourist attraction, and to have something like that in downtown in a natural setting... (The tax plan) is quality of life."
- WATCH>>> Tahlequah mayor previews August 25 tax props vote
Tahlequah mayor previews Aug 25 tax props vote
Tahlequah Fire Department chief Mark Whittmore considers his department's wishlist to be more of a needs list.
“We’re really short on offices here," Chief Whittmore said of the downtown fire station.
A portion of the quarter percent funding would help the main fire station, which the chief is quick to point out is 50 years old. Firefighter quarters need to be doubled in size and adjusted for holding both men and women firefighters, he said.
“We’re shooting for a new station," Whittmore said. "A new station would be helpful. Things have changed, science has changed, the apparatus has changed, the technology. So we’re changing everything about the fire service and the health benefit of it."
The public library building is also a half-century old. Its managers told 2 News visitors have needed more space for a long time.
“We keep our meeting rooms filled," Peggy Glenn of Eastern Oklahoma Library System said. "A lot of times we end up having meetings actually on the floor of the library because the other meeting rooms are filled up. It’s a popular place for different groups to come to meetings because it is free of charge."
Residents reportedly said on city surveys a new community center would also be popular, though a location for it would be TBD.
- Previous coverage>>> Why the next upgrades in Tahlequah could come from your mouse
Craig Clifford said a center like that could also host the Tahlequah Community Playhouse.
“The city needs more space for weddings and receptions and that kind of thing," Clifford said. "It wouldn’t be our home, but we would be one of the prime users of the space."
Election Day is August 25. You can view more about the city sales tax propositions here.
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