Oklahoma State Senator Josh Brecheen and Commissioners of Land (CLO) Secretary Dr. Harry Birdwell held a public meeting Thurday afternoon to discuss the ongoing Pointe Vista Development project.
The meeting was held at 1:30 p.m. at the Kingston Multipurpose Facility. The meeting was originally set for July but had been pushed until September in order to provide more information to the public.
Eight years ago the state sold approximately 750 acres to a private development firm with the agreement that they must build a resort equal to or greater in value than the park that was already in place.
Birdwell said that both he and Governor Mary Fallin have been reminding the developers of their contractual obligations.
Fallin has also been giving the developers ideas on where to find financial assistance for the project, according to Birdwell.
Birdwell said he believes the largest setback in the project was caused by the economic downturn at the time the project began.
He said that in 2008, lenders were not willing to lend to resort developers. He also gave examples of others who had similar issues at that time.
Birdwell said he feels there has been progress in the market over the last six months, and that since the developers have invested more than $40 million, he believes they will complete this project as planned.
Birdwell said that the CLO wants to not only enforce the contract but help the developers succeed.
“All of us are better off if they succeed” said Birdwell.
While Birdwell said that the developers realize project is behind schedule, as of today they are in accordance with the contract.
The contract stipulates that Pointe Vista Development had to begin the project within two years of the closing of the land. The developers began the project when the lodge was torn down.
The contract also stipulates that the hotel promised has to be substantially complete by May 2014. To be substantially complete means the hotel has to be able to serve the public.
While developers were not able to begin work on the hotel 18 months ago as planned, Birdwell said they do have the resources and credit to get the project complete on time.
Because the developers are still in accordance with the contract, there have been no penalties brought against them.
Birdwell said that if the plans are not complete on time “there are specific remedies within the contract.”
The main investors of the project remain Mark Fischer and his son Scott Fischer, as well as power company executive Aubrey McClendon.
Although rumors had arisen that McClendon wanted out, Birdwell insisted that there was no information saying he was bowing out at this point.
Another update meeting is being planned for after the winter months at which time Brecheen and Birdwell hope to have more information on the progress being made on the project.
The State of Oklahoma under Governor Fallin is trying to set legal precedents which appear to subvert both state and federal laws. These are laws enacted to protect public lands, water quality, fish and wildlife including the Bald Eagle, and our public access to the water. Here are some examples I am talking abou:
The Army Corps of Engineers failed to update their Shoreline Management Plan (SMP) for Lake Texoma since 1978. They previously said that any revision of the SMP will require a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) for the entire lake to address the cumulative impacts of development that has occurred since then. Their current efforts to sell-off public lands at Denison, TX and Kingston, OK, are based on ignoring their obsolete Shoreline Management Plan.
In 2005, state Tourism Department officials contracted three separate appraisals of Lake Texoma State Park on what they described as “750.07 acres of vacant land.” The results were unanimous. The “current” best use of the land is as a public park. The future “highest and best use” was described as “poised for development” over the long term. So far, it’s been five years.
Former Commissioners of the Land Office (CLO) Secretary Clifton Scott told area residents in 2005 that “developers will be given a long-term lease” because leasing will continue to generate money for the state School Lands Trust.
CLO Real Estate Director, Keith Kuhlman, stated that the land containing the lodge and two existing 18-hole golf courses “would be leased,” to “maximize the return on investment for the state.” (11/06) Two weeks later, Kuhlman announced the sale of the entire 758 acres to Pointe Vista. He also announced 12/01/06 as the closure date for the state park lodge and 70 park cabins, and added that “approximately 45 employees could be affected by the closure.”
If the Corps of Engineers’ 2005 Environmental Assessment on the land transfer had addressed the sale of the park, it would have required a full Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and would have studied the potential negative economic impacts to the entire lake area. But they didn’t study the sale of the park, according to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Field Director Jerry Brabander. They studied “expanding” the park.
The Water Resources Development Act (2007) removed a “reversionary clause” which protected just over 27 acres, the site of the Lake Texoma State Park Lodge. That means the land would have reverted to federal ownership if not used for public recreation. But the entire park was already protected from development by the Public Trust Doctrine.
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Lake Texoma State Park was additionally protected by seven signed contracts between the National Park Service and the OK Tourism Department. They agreed to protect the entire park for public recreational use in accordance with federal Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) grants worth over $1.6 million.
Last year, CLO Communications Director Terri Watkins, and Secretary Harry Birdwell claimed Pointe Vista was still in compliance with their 2008 land purchase contracts. State Senator Josh Brecheen told area residents last April that if Pointe Vista didn’t begin construction by September 1st that they would not be able to complete a required new hotel by May, 2014.
According to Corps Environmental Officer, Ken Singleton, they have to complete a full EIS required on the third land parcel (“Area C”) to make up for the lack of an EIS on the federal land transfers to Pointe Vista in 2008 (“Areas A & B”). He said Tourism officials put that EIS “on hold” over 18 months ago. If the State and Pointe Vista refuse to fund and complete the EIS, they can’t possibly comply with their 2008 land sales contracts.
These are a few of the reasons that make it reasonable for CLO to go ahead and void the 2008 contracts and restore Lake Texoma State Park. Or, for Pointe Vista to donate the park land back to the Corps of Engineers and work to gain funding to fully restore The Park.
Stephen Willis
Kingston Resident
(1) Wikipedia: Lake Texoma, Recent transfers of public land to private developers.]
(2) Schmook Appraisal, Market Data Research, and Integra Realty Resources. (5/05)
(3) Daily Ardmoreite, Residents unhappy over proposed sale of lake property, 2/03/05
(4) Field Director, Jerry Brabander, USFWS, Tulsa - 2009 letter received under FOIA ]
(5) U.S. Senator James Inhofe sponsored language removing the reversionary interest
(6) Seven LWCF Contracts received from OK Tourism Dept., January, 2009.