A special election will be held concurrently with our general municipal election on April 2 to determine whether our community wants a city charter. At that time, voters will also elect eight “Freeholders” to draft the prospective charter.
This is only a first step, and will not determine if Altus will change to a charter.
If the people vote to pass this measure on April 2, the real work will begin, and the candidate-charter will be drafted over a period of a few months. There will be a time for the people to review and discuss the charter draft, and a date will be set for the community to vote on whether to adopt the charter or not.
There will also be a candidate’s forum on Monday, March 25, sponsored by the Southwest Oklahoma Republican Women, where candidates will address and spar over the most important campaign issues - including the City Charter Initiative. There will also be time set aside for questions and answers. The event will be held from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. at Western Oklahoma State College.
“Charter for Progess” is a community initiative undertaken to explore and advocate moving Altus forward through the adoption of a city charter. They are a non-profit grassroots group of people who are passionate about seeing our community be the best that it can be for all of it’s citizens, businesses and organizations. A group of volunteers have committed their time and expertise in an effort educate and inform our community on the 2013 Altus Charter Initiative. Charter for Progress steering committee volunteer members are: Jed Winters, Lisa Greenlee, Mayor David Webb, Altus City Clerk Debbie Davis, Chris Riffle, Tal Oden, and Nub Smith.
Committee Volunteer Debbie Davis said that she and other members of the group will be speaking at various upcoming clubs and organizations about the charter. These include groups such as Rotary and Kiwanis, and the local Democrat Women and Republican Women’s groups.
If you have questions, comments or concerns, visit www.charterforprogress.com, or email grassroots@charterforprogress.com
The group also has a facebook page, which can be found by typing “Elect Altus 2013” in the search bar after logging into facebook.
FREEHOLDERS
When voters go to the polls on April 2 for the City of Altus Special Municipal Election, they will also be given a separate ballot for Freeholders. According to County Election Board Secretary Jennifer Wilson, a precinct official will be on hand to help voters decided which ward they live in, and from there, they will be given a second ballot to vote for two Freeholders for that Ward. These Freeholders will help write the charter for the proposed charter form of government if decided upon.
Wilson added that these Freeholders are different from Council position. “The position is only for 90 days,” Wilson said. “And is only to help write the charter.”
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