'I'm Uniquely Positioned': Karen Keith Explains Why She Is Running To Be Mayor Of Tulsa

Voters will head to the polls next week to decide who will become the next mayor of Tulsa. We are inviting candidates to share their plans ahead of the election. Karen Keith joined News On 6 with her plan for the first 100 days and why she feels her background will help her as Mayor.

Tess: Why it is that you're running for mayor?

Keith: Well, I love this city, and there's some things that I would like to do, and I feel like I'm uniquely positioned, having 16 years under my belt at Tulsa County, and then for having worked in the mayor's office, that I can really hit the ground running. And there's some things I want to tackle. IE, we have a permitting and inspections department that over the years, every mayor has said, I'm going to try to fix this. And I've been working with developers for the past year, and I've been listening, and now I've, you know, I've got a group of them that are going to help me find solutions. I said, OK, let's we've done this now we've got to find this solution. So that's going to be number one, because it's so important, because we can't get affordable housing out of the ground. I mean, think about Habitat for Humanity. They have the same plan. Those should be pre-permitted. It saves a whole lot of money.

Tess: Well, and speaking about housing, homelessness is a big issue, and I know that's a big topic in this election, what are your plans to address that?

Keith: Well, getting the permitting done. Because you know, if you're building an affordable house, and it takes so long to get those permits, it costs too much money, and the homes are no longer affordable. And I mean, habitat is just one great example of that. But there's two other developers. There's many more, but who are trying to work in that they have just suffered too many issues with the city, so we got to help them be partners to development.

Tess: What are some of your other plans for the first 100 days in office, if elected?

Keith: Well, I'd love to work on our streets. And there's some low-hanging fruit. There's a group called Action Tulsa, and they brought some things in. And these are things I think we can accomplish. There's new lighting is needed in some of our neighborhoods in North Tulsa, it's important that we address that. We need to make sure we have crossing guards, and I know the city is trying very hard to make that happen at this point, and as a matter, it's hard to get people to do those jobs. It's kind of a retirement gig, right? But it's really important, especially on high-traffic streets where our children are. But there's some low-hanging fruit that we can do. But right away, I'd like to, I really want to open a remote permitting site to help our developers get some of their work done without all the hassle.

Tess: I know you have a good relationship with Mayor GT Bynum. What are some of the things that he's doing in office now that you'd want to carry on in office if elected?

Keith: Well, you know, Tulsa is a welcoming city, and I would love to continue those efforts and really promote our very cultures because I think that's something that we should all celebrate. It makes us stronger. And I I just think he's done a remarkable job, you know, through some pretty tough times, and the two of us stood side by side during the flood, the two of us, you know, stood side by side during the pandemic. And, you know, I have a lot of respect for what he's done, but I will do, you know, I'll be my there's some things that you know. And he said you're going to think a few things. And he's been very open and forthright and really helpful.

Tess: Well, that was the question on the flip side, what are some things you might do differently?

Keith: Well, one would be looking at our street specs and trying to upgrade those. We need to bid things a little bit different. I mean, we wonder why a project is out here, and, you know, it's not being finished. Well, got an O dot contract, that same contractor, and they get done early, they get a reward. If they're late, they get fined, get to pay it additional so they leave our project. So some of those things we have to bid out our street work a little bit differently.

Tess: You've spent 16 years as Tulsa County Commissioner. How has that prepared you for a role as Mayor of Tulsa?

Keith: Well, I think being the mayor of a city is all about collaboration, working across party lines, and knowing who to go to when you need to get something done, and that's what I've been able to do these past 16 years. There's been so many projects I've worked on successfully, but I haven't done any of those by myself, and so I look forward to what's next for Tulsa. I got the opportunity when I worked in the mayor's office to be part of the team that did Vision 2025, and you know, our downtown was dead 20 years ago, and I like to remind people, that this didn't happen magically. We invested in ourselves, and that's how our city came back. And you know what's next for us? And I'm really excited about the opportunity to see what that is and then help make that happen as well.

Karen Keith, thank you so much for joining us this morning.

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