Courtesy of Madill Record On Wednesday, a meeting was held in Oklahoma City to discuss blue-green algae at Lake Texoma and the development of Pointe Vista. Present at the meeting were the Governor Mary Fallin, Senator Josh Brecheen, Reprentative Dustin Roberts, Durant Chamber of Commerce, Leadership Durant, Marshall County Chamber of Commerce and representatives from the Lake Texoma Association.

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On Wednesday, the Durant Chamber of Commerce, along with Leadership Durant, traveled to Oklahoma City for Durant Chamber Legislative Day. While at the state capitol, the chamber met with Senator Josh Brecheen, Representative Dustin Roberts and Governer Mary Fallin. Also present at the meeting were representatives from Marshall County and the Lake Texoma Association.

“The topic of the meeting was the blue-green algae situation and the development of Pointe Vista,” said Chamber Executive Director Janet Reed. “We focused on advisories that would reflect the toxicity levels, which are the ones that can affect human health.”

Reed said the meeting lasted approximately 30 minutes and was “very positive.”

“We spoke about future development for Pointe Vista and we were assured by the governor that she was as concerned about moving the project forward as we are. We were also assured by the director of the Department of Tourism, Deborah Snodgrass, that the blue-green algae situation is being addressed,” she said.

Reed added that there will be a future meeting that will further address the blue-green algae situation at Lake Texoma.

“We appreciate the opportunity to meet with the governor, under the direction of Senator Josh Brecheen and Representative Dustin Roberts,” she said. “All in all, it proved to be a very beneficial day for our Chamber of Commerce and a very informative day as well.”

Matt Mickle, legislative committee chair for the Durant Area Chamber of Commerce, said, “I appreciate our legislators and the governor meeting with us. I hope we’re able to move forward in changing the way the court handles blue-green algae warnings and further the Pointe Vista development process.”

Tourism committee chair Cindy Kirkpatrick added, “I appreciated the candor of the governor and thought she was very positive and appreciated what she said. She is very aware of our plight and supportive of what we’re trying to do down here.”

Chamber President Darrell Mendez said, “The governor was really aware of the issues we brought up. She understands where we’re coming from.”

Reed said the meeting was all related to tourism. “I want people to know the lake is open for business and we want people to utilize it as a full recreational resource and feel safe while they’re doing it.”