Business Briefs (Week of Aug. 26)
Monday, August 29, 2022
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Looking for business briefs? This week's roundup (for the week of August 26) from The Journal Record.
Worst drought in a decade threatens more crops
Oklahoma is enduring the most severe drought in a decade, coupled with a heat wave that started in June and topped out July 19 when all 120 Mesonet sites recorded at least 100 degrees. Part of the state has been experiencing drought since August 2021, said State Climatologist Gary McManus with the Oklahoma Climatological Survey. When “the spigot turned off” in mid-June, much of the eastern two-thirds of the state soon caught up, he said. The combination of hot weather and lack of significant moisture plunged Oklahoma into a “flash drought” that covered the entire state by the end of July, he said. Farm ponds evaporated, soil dried out and baked, and vegetation either went dormant or died. Everything from summer crops on farmland to water lines in the city have been damaged by the heat.
Griffin Communications staff, News 9 moving downtown
As renovation of the former Century Center winds down, Griffin Communications’ corporate staff is preparing to move into its new downtown Oklahoma City location the first half of October. President and CEO David Griffin said the first News 9 broadcast from the building – renamed 100 West Main – is scheduled for the Sunday after the Nov. 8 election. The company is leaving behind the building at 7401 N. Kelley Ave., which has been home to News 9 for 70 years.
Smoothie King sees growth potential in Oklahoma
Smoothie King has targeted Oklahoma for growth with plans to open shops in more than 30 new locations in the state in the next five years. The Dallas-based company – with 1,100 locations in 33 states – opened its first Oklahoma franchise 20 years ago and today has four Oklahoma City metro locations and one in Tulsa. Four new franchises are under contract in the Oklahoma City metro area – including one in Norman, said Shawn Caric, vice president of franchise development. In addition, the company is recruiting franchisees for 30 more targeted intersections in the two metro areas and in places like Ardmore, Enid, Lawton and Muskogee.
Proponents of recreational marijuana call for November vote
Voters in Oklahoma will decide whether marijuana should be legalized for recreational use after signatures on a recent petition calling for a state question on the matter were validated in sufficient numbers, petition organizers reported. In a release, proponents of State Question 820 said that the office of the Oklahoma secretary of state validated more than 117,000 signatures of registered voters – well more than the 94,911 required to secure a place for SQ 820 on voter ballots. However, questions remain as to whether the question will make it on ballots to be voted on in November.
Conference: All-Black towns could become tourism draw
No other state had in the past or currently has as many all-Black towns as Oklahoma, presenting a unique historical draw for tourism and an opportunity for economic development, according to participants in of the 2022 Oklahoma All-Black Towns Conference. Held at the Oklahoma History Center in Oklahoma City on Aug. 20, the event allowed presenters representing each of Oklahoma’s 13 all-Black towns to highlight their communities’ history and what they have to offer today. Oklahoma’s unique history of all-Black towns may be leveraged to secure federal funding for an adventure park, cultural museum and other development in the Muskogee area that could create hundreds of jobs and generate millions of dollars for a public trust that would reinvest in the area.
Experts: In a crisis, management needs a plan
Recent news reports illustrate that any and every business is susceptible to experiencing an incident of workplace violence. Every business should have a plan in place for how to respond if such a crisis occurs, according to the panelists who participated in The Journal Record's Crisis Management Forum on Aug. 18. Isaac Monson, senior risk consultant with HUB International's Risk Services Division, and attorney Victor Albert with the Ogletree Deakins law firm assured attendees at Oklahoma City Community College that putting a plan in place and training employees to follow it is not as difficult as some might fear, and well worth the effort. The best plans include policies designed to prevent such an incident from occurring in the first place, Monson said.
Feds, state at odds over marijuana and firearms laws
The state of Oklahoma protects medical marijuana patients’ right to possess a firearm, in direct opposition to the federal government’s assertion that allowing them to do so presents a “risk to society.” The issue is being debated in federal court, as Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried, who is campaigning for governor of the Sunshine State, sued the federal government for barring medical marijuana patients from owning firearms. On Aug. 1, the U.S. Department of Justice asked the federal court to throw out Fried’s lawsuit, claiming marijuana use results in impaired judgment that makes users too dangerous to own firearms. The federal government’s stance on firearms effectively bars medical marijuana users from legally obtaining a gun license, specifically asking applicants if they use marijuana. Answering falsely is a crime; however, some question remains as to how the law may or may not be enforced.
More women than ever on state ballots
Tuesday’s election results confirmed that more women than ever before will vie for the top spots in Oklahoma government this November. Female representation in government is a key indicator as to the status of women in the state, according to a study released in April by Oklahoma State University’s Spears School of Business and Missouri-based research and advocacy group United WE. The study found only about one-fifth of Oklahoma legislators were women in 2021, a smaller share than the U.S. average of about 30%. In the U.S. Congress in 2022, women held 27.1% of a total 535 seats.
Death penalty debate flares after execution
The execution of James Coddington on Thursday morning added further energy to the growing voices of Oklahomans from varied political backgrounds who are coming to question the state’s use of the death penalty and the reputation Oklahoma is giving itself on the national stage. Coddington’s execution was the first in a string of executions planned to occur roughly once a month for the next two years.
Study: Appraisal bias is modern-day redlining
It’s common knowledge that owning a house – the largest purchase most people will ever make – is an important way to build wealth. But what may be surprising is the significant influence race and ethnicity still have today on who buys a house and what it’s worth. The federal task force on Property Appraisal and Valuation Equity (PAVE) reports in 2021 the Black homeownership rate reached 44%, while the white homeownership rate was 74%. Given that homeownership contributes to wealth accumulation and the homeownership rate is lower among minority groups, the net worth for these groups is also lower. The latest National Association of Realtors research shows that in 2019 the net worth of a typical white family was $188,200, nearly eight times greater than that of a Black family ($24,100).
Software engineering school Holberton adds to campus in Tulsa
Holberton, a software engineering school that defers tuition payments until after students have graduated and landed jobs, has expanded its footprint in Tulsa. A 17,000-square-foot annex has been added as a supplement to the school’s downtown Tulsa campus, located at 15 N. Cheyenne Ave. Founded in California’s Silicon Valley, the Holberton School was recruited to Tulsa in 2019 by the George Kaiser Family Foundation.
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