Tulsa's 3rd Penny

Tulsa's 3rd penny sales tax package is up for renewal May 9th. It's how the city pays for most major projects - ranging from street repairs and flood control to new police cars and sidewalks.

Thursday, April 27th 2006, 10:26 am

By: News On 6

Tulsa's 3rd penny sales tax package is up for renewal May 9th. It's how the city pays for most major projects - ranging from street repairs and flood control to new police cars and sidewalks.

News on 6 reporter Emory Bryan says the city has a long list of public improvements that Tulsa needs.

Jobs like widening the 81st and Delaware intersection were planned years ago, but money ran out before it was done.

The new sales tax package would put those old projects first. Paul Zachary with the City of Tulsa: "It wasn't that the old projects went over budget, they all came in on budget, but the money didn't come in, we just didn't have the sales tax revenue."

Tulsa's 3rd penny sales tax package touches every corner of the city, and every kind of public improvement.

Much of it is street projects. The 61st and Peoria intersection would be modernized and the road widened over to Riverside, for a cost of $9-million.

The sales tax plan has $5-million in it to replace a downtown bridge. The Boulder Avenue bridge closed years ago because engineers decided it wasn't safe to carry traffic. The bridge crumbles a little more every day, and the closure cut off a convenient way into downtown over the railroad tracks.

Another $5-million from the third penny would complement improvements from the Vision 2025 plan. The money would pay for work to stabilize and clean up the east bank of the Arkansas River.

It would help prepare the land around Zink Lake for future development.

81st Street, from Mingo to Memorial, is another of the uncompleted projects that will be the top priority if voters approve extending the tax.

And downtown, 38 blocks of neglected streets would be resurfaced over the next year.

Paul Zachary: "We're going to be doing the main streets that connecft with the expressways and the goal is to be done by april 2008 when the arena opens, so we're going to be pushed."

There are a total of $463-million worth of projects. This tax, if approved, would last until the full amount is collected - instead of expiring before the money comes in. That should take about five years.

To check out the list of projects, visit www.cityoftulsa.org web site.