Mayor Monroe Nichols

The rain is coming down hard across the area. If you’re on the road, please slow down, turn on your headlights, and leave plenty of space between your vehicle and others. If you encounter standing water on a roadway, do not drive through it. The depth and condition of the road beneath the water may not be visible. Turn Around, Don’t Drown. Give stormwater infrastructure time to do its job and move water away from streets as the storm passes. A few extra minutes of patience can help keep you and others safe. Please use caution, stay alert, and travel safely.

I was happy to welcome 15 of the newest United States citizens at this month's Naturalization ceremony! I am excited to watch them thrive in our community and am honored they have chosen to call Tulsa home.

Today, we turn a page in Tulsa's history. For 104 years, the Tulsa Race Massacre has left a wound on the very soul of our city - hampering progress, opportunity, and hope. And while we can't undo the past, we can seek righteousness in this moment. That's why earlier today, I announced the creation of the Greenwood Trust - a private charitable trust that will raise and direct $105 million (raised by this time next year) toward affordable housing, historic preservation, economic development, and education for descendants of the Race Massacre and the residents of Greenwood and North Tulsa. This is not the final step in our road to repair, but it's a start - and a start that brings to bear what we're able to do right now, which is to create an avenue and a funding source for our reconciliation efforts in response to the needs the community has identified over the last several years. Earlier today, I also reaffirmed my commitment to the 1921 Graves Investigation and Genealogy work; and announced the City is releasing more than 45,000 historic records tied to the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre to ensure the truth continues to stay out of the shadows and is put into the hands of Tulsans. Ultimately, this work is rooted in the belief that reconciliation, repair, and renewal are not just ideals - they're actions that we must continue to take if we want to move Tulsa forward. There is much work to do, and this is not the end – but I’m excited at the promise of progress. I invite you to learn more about the Trust, read the historic documentation surrounding the Massacre, and learn more about everything we're doing to unite our community on a path forward at: cityoftulsa.org/RoadToRepair

Today during the city of Tulsa's first Tulsa Race Massacre Observance Day, we reflect on the events of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre that happened 104 years ago, while at the same time looking forward to bringing about additional healing in the years ahead. Today, we express gratitude for those who came before us, for those who have fought for so long for justice and reconciliation, and for those who continue to fight for the values we all share here in Tulsa - opportunity; freedom; justice; and repair. Later today, I will announce what the road ahead may bring and some of the initial steps my administration is taking to achieve further reconciliation and unity within our community. You can join in watching online at theblackwallsttimes.com/ at 3:30 p.m.

As we've been talking with the National Weather Service about the storms expected in Tulsa today and tomorrow, we've decided the best course of action is to move the North Tulsa Community Conversation from tomorrow to Thursday, May 22 - same time, same location. If you're going to be out this evening or tomorrow, please stay weather aware and watch the forecasts before you head out. Stay safe, and we'll see you Thursday!

One of my top priorities is our relationships with our tribal partners, the Cherokee, Osage, and Muscogee Nations. My Director of Tribal Policy and Partnerships, Amanda Swope, has been working on setting up tours with all our tribal partners. Our first stop was in Okmulgee, where we met one-on-one with the leadership of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation to discuss how we can work together to achieve our shared goals and hopes for the people we serve. I want to thank Chief Hill for his hospitality and the wonderful afternoon in Okmulgee. Mvto!

As we gear up for our fourth Community Conversation this week in Midtown Tulsa on Thursday, I wanted to provide an update on a change of location for our final Community Conversation in North Tulsa next Monday, May 19. Due to feedback and demand, we've moved the North Tulsa Conversation to a bigger location at Crossover Community Impact. Big thanks to Educare for their willingness to originally host us, as well as Crossover for their quick hospitality. I'm excited for our final two conversations and I can't wait to meet you there! **Midtown Conversation** Thursday, May 15, 5:30-7 p.m. OU-Tulsa's Founders Hall, 4502 E. 41st St., Tulsa, OK, 74135 **North Tulsa Conversation** Monday, May 19, 5:30-7 p.m. Crossover Community Impact, 1010 E. 36th St. N., Tulsa, OK, 74106

This week is National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week and I was happy to present a proclamation alongside the City Council recognizing our 911 team for the amazing work they do to serve the residents of Tulsa. These employees are often the first piece of the public safety response system and the first point of contact for those experiencing an emergency. Their job is stressful and not often publically recognized but I am excited to honor them this week and am thankful for their dedication to this community. Please help me to thank them for their commitment to helping Tulsans!

Today, 20 of Tulsa's newest U.S. citizens took their oaths of allegiance in a naturalization ceremony at City Hall. It’s always a privilege to speak to our newest citizens and their families and learn about their incredible journeys. Tulsa welcomes you!

It was an honor to talk with @NewsOn6 this morning about some really exciting and important things going on here at the City. From our upcoming Community Conversations, to new management at our Golf Courses, to what we're doing to address homelessness here in Tulsa - there was a lot to talk about and work is underway! newson6.com/story/67f68de036…

Today, I had the privilege of joining @TulsaPolice Chief Dennis Larsen, City Council Chair Phil Lakin, Jr., and other City leaders to celebrate the ribbon-cutting of the Tulsa Police Department’s new hangar and heliport facility. Located near our Tulsa Police Academy, this new facility represents a major step forward for public safety in Tulsa. Made possible in large part by generous contributions from the Hardesty Family Foundation and the Chapman Foundation, the hangar and heliport will support the critical work of our TPD Aviation Unit, giving our officers more space to maintain and protect the aircraft that help protect us. The hangar and heliport ultimately improve our response to high-risk calls, search and rescue missions, and large-scale emergency situations. Infrastructure like this not only helps our officers do their job at the highest levels, it is helping us on our goal to become the safest big city in the country.

I'd like to report that I've accepted a new position as School Crossing Guard! My schedule is now blocked off starting at 6:50 a.m. and 2:20 p.m. on school days. Okay…. April Fools' Day. I love being mayor too much, but being a Crossing Guard in Tulsa is definitely no joke! As you may know, the City has, for decades, been tasked with hiring and training crossing guards for Tulsa Public Schools and certain locations at Jenks and Union Public Schools. And despite our best efforts every year to get these positions filled, including pay raises, we have never been able to fill all of the vacancies.   So when I took office, our team put our heads together to see what more we could do to fill this gap. We had the idea to have City staff volunteer to fill in from time to time if their schedules allowed. Over the past several weeks, the Mayor's Office staff has been piloting this idea and you may have seen them around town at different Tulsa Public Schools locations (hence why I'm out at Marshall Elementary today). The ultimate goal is to create a formalized process for City employees to volunteer as Crossing Guards during work hours if gaps need to be filled.   Next school year, we hope to formalize this pilot program with City employees. The PSA for the day is we are hiring for school crossing guards! Guards work during the school year for two hours per day and currently earn $45.50 per day. If you're interested, please fill out a job application at cityoftulsa.org/jobs. Join us!

I am excited to share that I will host a Community Conversation series in April and May to hear from you. I look forward to conversing with you and sharing the work we've started at City Hall while gathering feedback and gaining ideas on how we can create a stronger community together. City Councilors and the City Auditor will be joining me, and we will also have all of our City Departments represented so we can get as many questions answered as possible. The meeting locations can be found below, and each meeting will start at 5:30 p.m. and end at 7 p.m. I can't wait to see you there! ‣South Tulsa - Tuesday, April 22, Hardesty Regional Library, Frossard Auditorium, 8316 E. 93rd St., Tulsa, OK 74133 ‣East Tulsa - Monday, April 28, Hannah Hall, 1801 S. Garnett Rd., Tulsa, OK 74128 ‣West Tulsa - Monday, May 5, Tulsa Dream Center West Campus, 4122 W. 55th Pl., Tulsa, OK 74107 ‣Midtown - Thursday, May 15, OU Tulsa, Founders Hall, 4502 E. 41st St., Tulsa, OK 74135 ‣North Tulsa - Monday, May 19, Tulsa Educare at Hawthorne, 3420 N. Peoria Ave., Tulsa, OK 74106

March Madness is here! Who do you have winning it all? 🏀 For all of the basketball fans out there, Tulsa landed the first and second rounds of the Mens NCAA basketball tournament for 2028. I can’t wait to welcome teams to Tulsa in just a few years! Wishing all of the women's and men's teams luck as the madness begins! 🏀

Praying for Tulsans and our neighbors impacted by the fires due to Friday’s weather.🙏🏿 A huge thanks to our firefighters and public safety teams both in Tulsa and across the region as they worked to help save lives, homes and businesses. 🚒 #TulsaStrong

Today marks 100 days since I took office, and I wanted to thank you for entrusting me to be your mayor. It's a privilege I do not take lightly, but I am here to tell you that my team and I are giving this job all we can to create better outcomes for all Tulsans. These first 100 days have helped lay the foundation for the hard work ahead as we focus on increasing our housing stock, ending homelessness by 2030, creating a better future for our children, creating more economic opportunities in all parts of our city, improving public safety with a focus on neighborhoods, and strengthening relations with our tribal nations. But there's still more work to do in the days, weeks, and months ahead, and I am excited about the future work we can do together as a community. That is why I'm launching Community Conversations—a series of public meetings in the coming months where I and other City leaders will be available to discuss the work we are doing to address the issues facing our community, hear your perspectives, and answer any questions you have as we work together to create stronger outcomes for Tulsa. I look forward to meeting many of you at these events and will share the meeting schedule soon. Today, we celebrate a great first 100 days, and here's to many more to come! youtu.be/cJg1FxqBJmA?si=jTNt…

This morning, I was joined by Councilor Bellis, former Councilor McKee, and other community leaders as I signed an Executive Order that will create a new Sustainability Task Force. We want to create a more sustainable, resilient and economically efficient city and this group will focus on developing actionable recommendations that we can implement right here in Tulsa to do that. In the coming weeks, I will appoint 15 members to this task force from a variety of industries, organizations, and City Departments, along with representatives from the Muscogee, Cherokee and Osage Nations. The task force will ultimately identify successful sustainability initiatives of other cities, identify and leverage what we’ve already identified in the planitulsa comprehensive plan, and submit a final report within the year that details actionable strategies and a roadmap for implementation. I look forward to hearing from our task force on a wide range of issues that can set Tulsa on a positive trajectory when it comes to sustainability.

Please welcome our new Chief Resilience Officer, Dion'trae Hayes, to the City of Tulsa! Dion'trae will oversee the Department of Resilience and Equity and lead our citywide resilience strategies. With a focus on community and civic engagement, I have the utmost faith in Dion'trae to take on this new role, as she is a natural leader and a change agent in our community. Welcome to the team, Dion'trae!

It's time housing takes a front seat in Tulsa. That's why today, community partners joined me for an announcement as we solidify our work to make housing a priority in Tulsa with a goal of increasing our affordable housing stock by 6,000 units and reducing blight and unsafe properties by 60% by 2028. To help reach these goals, I issued an executive order to: ⦁ Create a Housing Acceleration Team that will develop permanent improvements to all building permit, inspection requests, and zoning applications ⦁ Launch a Housing Permitting Tracker on the City's website this spring to identify the progress the City is making on increasing affordable housing stock ⦁ Launch a Community Builder Pilot Program to encourage housing rehabilitation efforts by partnering with, and rewarding, developers for their efforts to increase housing stock, and, ⦁ Present a path forward on best funding mechanisms to leverage public and private dollars for housing related to the latest Improve Our Tulsa program. There's more coming on this front, but these initial steps show our commitment to meeting our housing goals. For more details, visit cityoftulsa.org/press-room/m…