Tulsa City Council District 1: Elect Corinice Wilson, retire Vanessa Hall Harper

There are only two ways for City of Tulsa voters to express their disappointment in city government in this election.

Every Tulsa voter can say no to the Tulsa Regional Chamber's money grab, the proposed doubling of the hotel tax that will nearly double the revenue the Chamber gets for convention and tourism "services."

The second method is available only to residents of Council District 1. Those voters have the opportunity to retire Councilor Vanessa Hall-Harper after 10 years in office.

Back before the first stage of the City of Tulsa election in August, I wrote:

If we're to have any hope of returning Tulsa city government to sanity, the first step is to break up the Mean Girl Clique on the City Council.

At a recent City Council meeting, while a citizen spoke about the need for independent ethics oversight of the Council, Councilors Vanessa Hall Harper, Jackie Dutton, Lori Decter Wright, Laura Bellis, and one redacted non-councilor engaged in ridicule of the speaker over a group chat, giggling and trading looks.

Their behavior appalls former councilors across the political spectrum. This isn't the first time they've been caught in this childish behavior. They're on the record labeling conservative Tulsans as "actual fascists," but Bellis, Hall Harper, and Decter Wright teamed up with GT Bynum to keep one of their council colleagues from working for a living because he dared to oppose a tax increase. That seems pretty fascistic to me. If Hall Harper, Dutton, Decter Wright, and Bellis lack the impulse control to wait until after the meeting to share their snarky comments, they don't belong on the City Council. Bellis, alas, is unopposed, but defeating the other three would be a good start.

Sadly, Dutton and Decter Wright won re-election in August. The only remaining hope of change is to replace Hall-Harper with her runoff opponent, Corinice Wilson.

Ten years ago, the proposed Vision Tulsa tax claimed northside benefits, but delivered nothing of substance specifically for the residents of north Tulsa. All the "north Tulsa" projects involved major institutions like Gilcrease Museum, the Tulsa Zoo, and the Tulsa International Airport, which exist in bubbles of their own. Vanessa Hall-Harper was one of many citizens who felt the northside had been sold out by long-time councilor Jack Henderson, and she opposed the low-water dam taxes.

Later that year Hall-Harper challenged Henderson and made it to the November runoff, and I endorsed her election:

I was sad to see Jack Henderson work against the interests of District 1 by backing the regressive sales tax for dams in the Arkansas River. Burdening Tulsa's poorest neighborhoods with higher taxes so residents of our wealthier neighborhoods can look at water in the river is unjust, and the Jack Henderson I thought I knew used to understand that. Vanessa Hall-Harper does understand that. She stood against the dam sales tax. While I would never expect a conservative to win District 1, we can at least hope for a city councilor who wants to help her constituents to conserve their own hard-earned funds.

Since that first election, I haven't noticed Hall-Harper doing anything to protect her constituency, which includes some of the city's poorest neighborhoods and most neglected civic infrastructure, from higher taxes for projects that won't benefit them. She has backed every new city tax proposal since her election. The hoped-for improvement has not materialized.

In addition to Hall-Harper's participation in the Mean Girls Caucus, BatesLine readers will recall Hall-Harper's shameful, racist slur against U. S. Senator Tim Scott (R-South Carolina) after Sen. Scott's response to the 2021 State of the Union address.

Just last month, Hall-Harper's proposed commission to second-guess police officers using 20/20 hindsight nearly passed with a 4-4-1 vote. Reality Snark on X has the clip and a transcription of Hall-Harper's racist rant when the vote did not go her way:

"...but, then you got to understand.. from an historical perspective in this country that's intentional...That's why only historically who can engage and participate in government, WHITE MEN WITH LAND" That is the history...cause I'm a history teacher... That is the history...You obviously haven't read a book (to audience member who disagreed). History bears that out, and it still is apropos today---thats just the reality of it and we are still reeling from it today."

Hall-Harper's involvement in moving money from the Kirkpatrick Heights project has raised a lot of ire from other northside leaders. Before the primary, candidate Mareo Johnson pointed out yet another sales tax bait-and-switch involving incumbent Hall Harper:

District 1 doesn't just need another person who knows how to sit at City Hall. District 1 needs someone who understands how taxpayer dollars are supposed to be monitored, how voter-approved funds should be protected, and how to hold government accountable.

This year an ordinance proposing that $5 million associated with Kirkpatrick Heights/Greenwood be amended to District 1 economic-development projects. The official council documents specifically identify the proposed $5 million change.

This is important to know because Tulsa voters approved $5 million in the Improve Our Tulsa sales-tax extension for future investments in the Kirkpatrick Heights-Greenwood Master Plan area.

When voters approve money for a specific purpose, a Councilor shouldn't move that money.

While publicly advocating moving the 56 acres into the Greenwood Trust rather than Greenwood Legacy CDC, arguing that the Trust would be community-led. That's interesting. Couldn't move the 56 acres into a trust, so the next thing is to try to reallocate the money from, which is voter approved for the certain project. Not cool at all.

Here's more about the City Council's vote to move control of the $5 million.

Corinice Wilson is the challenger. She is assistant professor of sociology at Tulsa Community College. Many years ago, she served as community outreach coordinator for Community Action Project Tulsa County (CAPTC). In 2016-2017, Wilson was a leader in neighborhood protests against GKFF's industrial park development at 36th Street North and Mohawk Boulevard.