On August 7, 2025, the Cleveland County Recreation and Entertainment Facilities Trust held an the 8- minute, special meeting regarding the "Cleveland County arena". Once again, there was no opportunity for public engagement. The Authority's legal counsel, David Floyd, gave a brief presentation after which the 3 County Commissioners and a member that they appointed (with one member absent) approved issuing a Request for Proposal for a builder, designer and operator of the "Cleveland arena project."
The Commissioners/Authority members have not seen a draft of the RFP. There was no discussion of what the RFP should include. Once again, the Commissioners provided no opportunity for public comments.
Attorney Floyd noted that the referendum petition to put the arena project to a public vote is at the State Supreme Court. There is a disagreement about if the arena process is on hold due to the referendum. Attorney Floyd argues that the petitioners did not request an injunction so none exists. Attorney Robert Norman (for ORED) has argued that there is a defacto injunction until the referendum is determined.
After the meeting, I asked Floyd why the County Trust/Commissioners didn't request a delay due to the litigation. He said it wasn't the county's place claiming they "play a small role in the project."
Yes, the Trust is a separate legal entity. It is a creation of the Commissioners and the Commissioners make up 3 of 5 board members (the other 2 were appointed by the Commissioners). The Commissioners role on the authority is to protect the interests of the County.
Floyd also tried to claim that the Commissioners have a small role because a third-party operator will be hired. Who has the responsibility to oversee the operations and management? The Trust/Commissioners. If they choose to hire a third-party operator, the Trust/Commissioners are still responsible for the arena. The County Trust will own the public arena.
It is hard to have faith in County oversight of third-party operators based on the problems at the Cleveland County Detention Center, including troubling health inspection reports and several inmate deaths.
Bottom line - the County has played a HUGE role in steamrolling the arena TIF project forward. The County set up a trust. The Trust will take on massive debt obligations, as well as responsibility for building, maintaining, and operating the facility.
News Articles:
Ana Barboza, OU Daily: Cleveland County requests entertainment district services | News | oudaily.com
Sam Royka, Normant Transcript: County seeks proposals, quotes for Rock Creek Arena Project | News | normantranscript.com
Media Coverage:
John Hayes, Kfor. com: Cleveland Co. moves forward with requests for proposals tied to Rock Creek project
Matt McCabe, news9; Q&A: What’s next for Norman’s Rock Creek Entertainment District?
