OPINON: Next step is prioritizing the CIP

The Lawton City Council will be tasked with setting priorities for new projects after voters approved an extension to the Capital Improvements Program last week.

The issue passed by almost 56 percent with just under 6,000 votes cast. The proposal will extend the existing Capital Improvements Program’s 2.125 percent sales tax through Dec. 31, 2040, and will provide funding for projects and programs in 13 categories.

Projects and programs in those categories range from street and road repairs to upgrading local parks, building a new aquatics center in Elmer Thomas Park, repairing and renovating Carnegie Library Town Hall and the Museum of the Great Plains and establishing a STEM Discovery Lab.

City officials have indicated their No. 1 priority was building a new aquatics center in Elmer Thomas Park. The project has a price tag of $19.4 million and will be paid for with a $40 million loan approved last month. Officials want to have the center open by July Fourth weekend 2025, so they must move quickly.

Council members are expected to award a contract for the project at their Sept. 10 meeting. Construction is expected to take about a year.

Their second priority is a $6 million project to repair the Museum of the Great Plains to stop leaks from a deteriorating roof and windows. We think the city needs to move quickly on this project. It is more urgent than trying to get an aquatics center built by next summer, which would be a stretch. Construction projects of that magnitude sometimes take longer than expected.

Meanwhile, the city already knows exactly what needs to be done at the museum to protect Lawton’s historical artifacts. They have just been waiting on the funds. City Manager John Ratliff said he expects the museum project to begin this Fall, with work to take about a year.

In our view, the city can’t move fast enough on this project with Lawton about to enter (we hope) its rainy season. We hope rainy weather won’t cause a delay in the project, causing further damage to the artifacts and exhibits.

We encourage the city to make repairs to Carnegie Library Town Hall a priority, also before that historic structure sustains more damage.

The CIP also contains some dedicated funding to upgrade existing parks. The category is worded such that funds can be spent on “recreation.” We hope the council makes funding upgrades to existing parks a priority rather than sinking a large portion of the funds into the proposed indoor youth sports center in east Lawton.

The indoor youth sports center is a long-term project that will benefit some. Upgrades to Lawton parks, with added amenities, will benefit a greater number of citizens.

The City has made great progress in the past year on fixing and repairing city streets, which have been neglected for years. Motorists have begun complaining how hard it is to get around Lawton for all the road construction. That is music to our ears. We anticipate the city continuing its aggressive street and bridge repair campaign.

The projects contained in the CIP have the ability to change the face of Lawton by getting caught up on repairs and adding new features to our town.

We will be curious to see how the Council prioritizes the list of projects.