Quail Creek Home Tour
INSIDE TODAY
The Fourth Annual Quail Creek Home Tour is set for Saturday, May 4. Featuring six homes spanning both north and south Quail Creek, the Home Tour offers a fresh look at houses recently renovated in this established neighborhood in north Oklahoma City. Last year the Quail Creek Home Tour raised over $40,000.00 for the Quail Creek neighborhood beautification project. For tickets and more information, visit quailcreekhometour.com.
Nichols Hills, Gaillardia, Quail Creek and The Greens Community Magazine featuring “Beauty, Brains and Grace at Every Age” and celebrating the 30th anniversary of the YWCA OKC.
OKC FRIDAY Vol. 52 No. 51 • Two Sections • 18 Pages April 26, 2019
www.okcfriday.com facebook.com/okcfriday OKC’s only locally-owned newspaper with all local news Serving Oklahoma City, Nichols Hills, The Village, Quail Creek, The Greens and Gaillardia for 45 years
Village to make first payment
NHills 2nd safest city in Oklahoma
By Mike W. Ray Staff Writer
By Mike W. Ray Staff Writer
The first interest payment on capital improvement bonds that voters in The Village approved last year is due May 1. The $228,300 payment to bondholders will be made with proceeds from the ad valorem (property) taxes that feed the “sinking fund” which is earmarked for paying principal and interest charges on the bond issue. “The good news is that we have the funds on hand to meet this payment,” City Manager Bruce Stone told the City Council. The first principal payment, $360,000, is not coming due until May 1, 2020, along with another $228,000 interest payment, ledgers reflect.
There were 7,000 eggs on the putting green at the Quail Creek Golf and Country Club for the children to gather. The event included a cookout, games and pony rides. Above: Tom Elledge and his grandson Brady Stone get into the spirit. At right: Charlotte Hulse gets a big hug from the Easter bunny himself.
See VILLAGE, Page 8
For more photos, see Page 11.
garten through fourth grade. All four of those are now conventional elementary schools whose student body consists of children in pre-K through sixth grade. In a related matter, principals throughout the school district will be reassigned or retire. Dr. Jan Matthews, long-time principal at Quail Creek Elementary School, is retiring after a 44-year career in education. She is being replaced by Stephanie Spears, who has 20 years of experience in education: 15 years in Edmond and the last five years as principal at Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary School in Oklahoma City.
Nichols Hills has been ranked by Safeties as the second safest city in Oklahoma for the second consecutive year. “We’re thrilled with this recognition,” Mayor Peter Hoffman said. “This is an honor and a testament to the hard work and excellence of our police department led by Chief Steven Cox and Assistant Chief Casey Nix, under the capable leadership of City Manager Shane Pate. And we thank our residents for their general civility, sense of community, and the quality of their character.” In its fifth annual “Safest Cities” analysis, Safeties reported that crime rates in the Sooner State exceeded national averages in 2017 (the latest year for which data was available). However, the 20 safest cities in Oklahoma “bucked that trend.” Oklahoma averaged 5.32 violent crimes per 1,000 population and the violent crime rate nationally was 4.49 incidents per 1,000; in comparison, Nichols Hills, with a population estimated at 3,940, recorded a rate of 0.51 per 1,000. The property crime rate in Nichols Hills was 14.21, or about half the national rate of 27.11 property offenses per 1,000 population. “I think it was a combination of factors: our officers being present and being seen throughout the community, and residents calling us when they see something that doesn’t seem to be right,” Cox said. “We’re very proactive and we patrol such a small area.” (Nichols Hills
See SCHOOLS, Page 3
See NHILLS, Page 11
- Photos by Rose Lane
Somebunnies are having Easter fun
OKC Public Schools making some major changes By Mike W. Ray Staff Writer Oklahoma City Public Schools will be vastly different when the 2019-20 school year starts on Aug. 12. The biggest change is that 15 schools are slated to shut their doors for the last time when the current school year ends May 24. Among them will be Andrew Johnson Elementary School (ES), at 1810 Sheffield Road in The Village. Average daily attendance at Johnson in the 2016-17 school year (203.3 students) was the third-lowest among the district’s 54 elementary schools. The 68-year-old Johnson building is expected to be “repurposed” as an early-childhood center, according to
OKCPS Superintendent Sean McDaniel. Another major change is that under the Pathway to Greatness (P2G) plan proposed by McDaniel and endorsed by the school board, enrollment in elementary schools is limited to students in pre-kindergarten through fourth grade and middle schools accommodate students in grades five through eight. OKCPS elementary schools currently teach students in pre-K through sixth grade. For example, Nichols Hills ES, 1301 W Wilshire; Quail Creek ES, 11700 Thornridge Road; Ridgeview ES, 10010 Ridgeview Drive; and Britton ES, 1215 NW 95th, are set to accommodate students in pre-kinder-
Show House is postponed The Symphony Show House has been a longstanding Mother’s Day tradition for countless families in Oklahoma City. But this year, it is Mother Nature herself who has ended the 45-year streak. Portions of the historic Sunbeam Family Home were flooded during spring rains. The almost 90-year-old property is being converted to modern apartments and was slated to open for tours to the public on May 11. “The good news is the Symphony Show House is
delayed, but not canceled,” said Lisa Reed, executive director of the OKC Orchestra League, which hosts the Symphony Show House each year. “Perhaps we will be starting a new Father’s Day tradition instead.” The Symphony Show House is to be held on June 8-16, ending on the Sunday of Father’s Day. Hours for the Symphony Show House are 11 a.m.-7 p.m. daily. Tickets are $15 if
FRIDAY’s
Dog of the Week Beasley is Hunter and Emily Dinkines’ sweet border collie puppy who loves to learn agility routines, play with her dog friends and apparently enjoys decorating her bed with streamers. Email Dog of the Week, Baby of the Week and Cat of the Week submissions to rose@okcfriday.com. Submissions are used in the order they are received.
Sponsored by Paulette and Leo Kingston of WePayFast.com See SHOW HOUSE, Page 3