WHAT IS ONE SAFE SKIATOOK?
On August 23, 2022, voters in the city limits of Skiatook will have the opportunity to approve a one-penny sales tax to create a dedicated source of revenue for improving our public safety infrastructure. If passed, this sales tax will be used to build new, centrally located police and fire stations to better serve all of Skiatook and purchase new equipment for both our police and fire services. One Safe Skiatook does not have an end date. It is designed to be an ongoing funding source for public safety efforts.
WHY DOES SKIATOOK NEED NEW PUBLIC SAFETY FACILITIES?
Modern, built-for-purpose public safety facilities are critical to better serve our current and future citizens and businesses in an emergency. Our police and fire departments are at or beyond capacity, and their current buildings cannot accommodate additional personnel, modern technology, or even current equipment – limiting their ability to meet the needs of our community in the future. Their location no longer makes the most sense to serve our entire community with fast response times, so new facilities are necessary.
Download Sample BallotHOW CAN SKIATOOK FUND NEW PUBLIC SAFETY FACILITIES?
Skiatook’s general fund budget is mostly composed of local sales tax and utility fees, and that fund must support the existing operating expenses of the City, including public works and public safety operations. There is no existing source of revenue that can be dedicated solely to building new police and fire stations. Cities can fund expenditures like this via property taxes or sales taxes. Here’s a look at that impact:
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What does my current $10 Public Safety Fee support?
WHAT HAPPENS IF ONE SAFE SKIATOOK IS NOT APPROVED BY VOTERS?
If One Safe Skiatook is not approved by voters, nothing will happen in the immediate future. Our police and fire departments will continue to operate in their current facilities and do their best for our community, despite the operational challenges of the current situation.
However, retrofitting our current existing buildings is not a permanent solution. Because the police station is more than 80 years old and cannot be brought up to current codes in some areas, and the main fire station is over capacity, not built-for-purpose, and cannot support additional people or equipment, the time will come when building new facilities is the City’s only choice. The City will have to create a revenue source to do it. If this project does not happen at this time, funded via a sales-tax backed debt, what happens when we no longer have a choice about building a new facility?
