Purple Sash benefits YWCA Oklahoma City
All-Star teachers Our 2018 All-Star Leaders and Scholars tell us about the teachers who have had the greatest influence on them. Page B4.
Purple Sash Event Chairman Jonna Kirschner and her husband Bruce Scambler. The 15th annual gala was billed as a “Night of Elegance.” Page 2
OKC FRIDAY Vol. 52 No. 11 • Two Sections • 18 pages July 13, 2018
www.okcfriday.com facebook.com/okcfriday Serving affluent far north Oklahoma City, Nichols Hills and The Village for 44 years
NHills addresses ‘poor soil,’ sewage backups in revised building codes
Hooray for the Red, White and Blue!
By Mike W. Ray Staff Writer The Nichols Hills City Council adopted a host of changes to building regulations that will affect residential construction in the municipality. The modifications and updates were recommended by a Building Code Committee appointed last December to review building material regulations, exterior construction standards, plus building- and safety-related codes. One new mandate is that “geotechnical evaluations” of soils must be performed prior to construction of structures comprising 3,000 square feet or more of air conditioned space, including additions of 3,000 or more square feet to existing buildings. Nichols Hills has “poor soil,” said architect Larry Herzel, chairman of the Building Code Committee, so soil tests will help determine the proper footing, or perhaps a need for piers, to adequately support those houses. Another provision is that all new and replacement sanitary sewers for homes and businesses alike must be protected from sewage backups by the installation of backflow preventers. In the future, residences built in Nichols Hills must be designed to resist wind speeds of 90 miles per hour and garage doors for all new homes must be rated for 135 mph winds. Permissible materials for exterior walls in residential districts will include, but not be limited
- Photos by Fran Kozakowski and Vicki Clark
Quail Creek Parade watchers above are John Eric, Baby Nia and Barbara Munneke, above. At left: Nichols Hills’ Uncle Sam Russ Walker and Leopold Vleugels during the city’s annual parade. For more photos, see Pages 10 & B1.
See NHILLS, Page 7
Education, violence, environment, Businessman, civic leader dies mental health top All-Stars’ concerns Bradley Z. Naifeh of his golf buddies and By Jamie Ellsbury Student Intern Education was top of mind for OKC FRDAY’s All-Star Scholars and Leaders, whether it was with Oklahoma’s education system or impending debt students are faced with by choosing to continue their education. The students were members of OKC FRIDAY’s All-Star Leadership and Scholarship Teams,
which were included in our Class of 2018 special edition. The All-Stars were graduates of nine Fridayland high schools. They were asked, “What is the greatest concern facing your generation?” With more and more jobs requiring college degrees, the cost to attend college is also rising. Students are eager to learn and strive to make the world a
better place, but by doing so they are also choosing to spend most of their adult lives paying off student loan debt. “I believe that the greatest concern facing my generation is the gradual erosion in education funding,” said Tara Ramakrishnan, Casady School graduate. “Society seems reluctant to invest in education because See CONCERNS, Page 7
died June 29 in Houston’s Methodist Hospital of an extremely rare blood disease, Amyloidosis. His services were held Monday in the St. Elijah Antiochian Orthodox Christian Church. After the graveside service, his family hosted a dinner and celebration of his life at the Oklahoma City Golf & Country Club. Friends and relatives talked from a stage and told, “Brad stories” in remembrances at the gathering.
Longtime municipal judge to retire After 32 years of faithful service to the City of Nichols Hills, Municipal Judge Charles B. Lutz, Jr. has announced his retirement from the municipal court bench. Judge Lutz, a lifelong resident of Nichols Hills, was first appointed by the City Council to serve as a municipal judge in July of 1986. The final Nichols Hills Municipal Court docket over which he
will preside is Sept. 5. Judge Lutz is a graduate of the University of Oklahoma and the University of Oklahoma College of Law. He was admitted to the Oklahoma Bar in 1968, admitted to the United States Tax Court in 1970 and was honored by the Oklahoma County Bar Association for 50 years of membership. Judge Lutz has had a storied career in law, litigating matters in dis-
trict court, the Western and Eastern Districts of Oklahoma courts and even before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, wherein matters he has represented resulted in published court opinions. As a municipal Judge, Lutz said he was particularly proud of the Court’s approach in dealing with juvenile offenders. See JUDGE, Page 7
BRAD NAIFEH
The large Naifeh family is best known as owners of Central Liquor Company, but Brad’s civic and charitable activities were extensive. He loved to play golf and literally hundreds
friends packed the church to overflowing and standing. His wife, Valerie Naifeh, concluded the club dinner with a few Brad stories of her own. His inability to order at drive-thru windows was legendary. Even his mother, Jeaneen Naifeh, and sister, Jenee Lister, were laughing and nodding their heads about it. “Life isn’t as much fun without him in it,” concluded Valerie. See obituary on Page 3.
FRIDAY’s
Dog of the Week Talie is an extremely loving, smart and sweet mini Australian Labradoodle. She loves playing frisbee, running in the park, rolling in the grass and even snuggles in the closet while her human Sydney Carey is getting ready for work. She loves being hugged and always up for long tummy rubs. Send Dog of the Week, Cat of the Week and Baby of the Week nominations with complete descriptions to rose@okcfriday.com.
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