Tulsa City Council Holds Last Meeting Before New Council Takes Office

The Tulsa City Council held its last meeting before a new council takes office next week. Only two of the nine city councilors will remain in office.

The largely voter-initiated turnover at the city council is forcing several of the current councilors out of office.

Council Chairman Maria Barnes closed out the final meeting, ending what former chairman Rick Westcott says was a productive two years.

"This council still accomplished a lot over the last two years," Westcott said.

"Not at all," Westcott responded when asked if he had any regrets.

"I always did what I thought was best, and did what I thought was proper for the citizens of Tulsa. Some people disagree, but I have a clear conscience."

Tulsa Mayor Dewey Bartlett didn't appear at the last council meeting, but earlier in the day, he was backed up by the new councilors in announcing a new food drive.

The current council had its share of arguments with Bartlett, which current - and continuing Councilor GT Bynum says was unfortunate.

"Mobile vendors are regulated. We got the highway lights turned back on. We got the police helicopters back in the air, but people don't remember any of that stuff because of the personal bickering," Bynum said.

Mayor Bartlett's office says he was out of state tonight for meetings. The new council will be sworn in Monday morning, and Bartlett says he has several important announcements that will quickly follow that transition in power.