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Edmond City Council
The Edmond City Council Monday approved a consulting agreement with COAlign Group LLC for development of General Obligation bond and Sales Tax election strategies for up to $88,500.
City Manager Scot Rigby said the City is looking at the potential of calling a general obligation (GO) bond election which would help diversify the revenue sources available to the city to be used to fund capital improvements such as roads, parks, and public safety.
During the November 2023 City Council Strategic Meeting, the City Council identified the strategic goal in 2024 to appoint a citizens' committee to recommend appropriate projects and funding levels for a possible GO bond election.
The City currently uses only sales tax revenues to fund capital improvements, which limits available funding for both capital improvements and operating expenses.
The City's temporary one-cent sales tax used for General Fund expenses and a one-half cent sales tax used for capital improvements are scheduled to expire in 2027.
Rigby said these funding sources are essential to the ongoing operations of the City and consideration of the timing of the renewal of these tax levies is an important decision to make.
The COAlign Group LLC, will work in a three-part approach and at the end of phase one there will be a report and recommendations delivered to the City. After receiving the phase 1 report, the City will determine if it desires to continue the scope of work in phase two and three. If the city decides not to move forward with phases 2 and or 3, the contract will terminate.
Rigby said the COAlign Group was recommended for this work due to the qualifications of its founder, Cathy O'Connor.
O'Connor served as president of the Alliance for Economic Development of Oklahoma City for 10 years. She helped design this non-profit corporation to coordinate public participation in economic development projects.
She also led the efforts to create the NE Renaissance Urban Renewal Area and Tax Increment Finance district, the Core to Shore Tax Increment Finance District and to develop the Omni Convention Center Hotel to complement the new MAPS 3 Convention Center and Scissortail Park.
“Cathy O'Connor and her team will lead that effort because of their background to help that citizens committee navigate what's the appropriate sizing, the type of projects, and (using) her experience about what tends to have higher levels of success for considerations for projects,” Rigby said.
O’Conner said she looks forward to helping Edmond achieve its future goals.
“I look forward to working with the city of Edmond on this important issue. I think it's a really important step that takes a lot of careful thought and planning,” she said. “I really appreciate the approach that you all have asked me to look at. That is a series of steps along the way where you all get to decide if you want to go further and really try to get some input and transparency from the community on this important issue.”