Justin Hackney
Lawton City Council candidate Justin Hackney thinks the council would benefit from someone who is willing to consider a fresh approach to issues.
“I think we need someone with their own ideas, capable of coming up with their own plans and capable of disagreeing when the time is needed,” he said.
Hackney is one of five candidates running for the Ward 2 seat on the council in this fall’s municipal election. The winner will replace Councilman Keith Jackson, who is term-limited and cannot run again.
The other four candidates in the race are Kelly Harris, Mark Malone, Richard Strickland and Shelli Fox.
Southwest Ledger recently interviewed Hackney about his decision to run. Here are questions and answers from the interview, edited for clarity and length.
Q: Why did you decide to run for city council?
A: Over and over again, I see people running on the same thing – streets, sidewalks. That’s great. We already have approvals on sidewalks. It’s just getting everything kicked into gear and all that, but I never hear anyone talking about our juvenile programs and things that we actually don’t have.
My biggest issue is when a juvenile offender steals a car, robs a house – whatever – and gets arrested, they go home to mom and dad. Juvenile detention center is only for violent offenders. And the police cut mom and dad a summons. That’s it.
Used to, we had CIC (Community Intervention Center), which I know that wasn’t a city program, but it was a great tool for law enforcement. They could take the youth there.
We need that again, and it needs to be a city-run program.
Q: So, Lawton used to have one of those but doesn’t anymore?
A: No, it does not. I think it was a state-run program, if I remember right.
That’s something that we need 100%, and just about any law enforcement officer is going to tell you the same thing. They have no resources to deal with the juvenile offender. Everybody talks about crime rates and “What can we do?” Well, that starts at the youth level. If they’re just going to keep getting away with it, why are they going to stop?
I think that’s one of the biggest things we need to focus on. I think it’s going to help all around, because I think it’s going to help bring down our crime rate. I think it’s going to help make future generations more productive as well. So, it’s a win all the way around. I’d much rather see that than sidewalks everywhere. Don’t get me wrong; I’m all for sidewalks, but we need a future.
I’ve never seen anyone talk about that, and I think that’s one thing that needs to be pushed.
As far as city issues, I’m all for sidewalks in some areas. I think we need to revisit how they’re done, because I don’t understand why we have sidewalks 12 feet, 10 feet into people’s yards in some residential areas.
I guess on an arterial street, maybe further from traffic. But in a residential neighborhood, where they’re going 25 miles an hour anyway, it seems like that’s a waste.
I think we need to revisit how some of that’s done, because those are some complaints in some areas.
Streets – we definitely need to do something on the streets. A more efficient system, I guess – I don’t have any ideas for that. Maybe someone can help with that.
What I see is things like Elm Avenue. I have a rental property on Elm Avenue. It’s been in my family for 30 years; I’ve owned it since 2012. For 20 years or better, that street has just – We go down Liberty three blocks and then cut over and come around and go to the house, because driving down Elm is ridiculous. Nothing’s been done about it. Things have been said, but it’s still not on the list. I understand it’s not a main road, but we can’t just repair the main roads.
Parks and Rec: Maybe they’re short-staffed. I’m sure they probably are – a lot of places are. But you drive around, and you see some of the city parks are getting pretty tall on the grass. But then they’re cutting summonses or warnings to residents. If you’re not keeping up, why are you expecting the citizens to keep up?
I want to make that more efficient. … I don’t know if we need a better system or if we just need more people. Maybe both.
Q: Would you say you are satisfied or dissatisfied with the city’s current direction?
A: Well, there’s multiple ways to look at that. You’re always going to be dissatisfied about something and satisfied about something else. I’m dissatisfied with the performance. Again, going back to the sidewalks, road repair, things like that. It’s not very efficient.
How do we make that more efficient? Do I know? No, but I think we need to figure it out. So that I’m dissatisfied with.
I do like – you know, a lot of people are against the sports complex or stuff like that. The sports complex is a great thing. It’s great for our youth. It’s going to be a good deal for our community, absolutely. And so, I’m actually very satisfied about that. I think that was a good move. Let’s just see how it plays out though.
Q: What skills do you have that would make you an effective council member?
A: I do what I say I’m going to do. I don’t make promises when I know I can’t deliver.
I know I can say, “Hey, I’m going to push for this.” I can’t say, “I’m going to make this happen.”
One of the things I see about the candidates is, “We’re going to do this. We’re going to do that.” You’re one vote out there. There’s nothing that you can do. It’s got to be a full-on team effort. And so, you can’t make any promises.
But my track record, I believe, speaks for itself. Because I took the Vaska Theatre over when it was in pretty poor condition and pretty run down, and we did some fundraising campaigns and made some promises. Told people, “If you get behind it, this is what we’re going to do.” And now, I feel like I have an excellent venue. A lot of people love the place. It’s completely turned around. The seats, the floor – everything’s nice. Digital equipment, sound. I did exactly what I said I was going to do. And so, I feel like my track record speaks for itself in that.
Kelly Harris
Lawton resident Kelly Harris has spent the past 32 years serving the community, whether through his company or through various civic groups.
Now, Harris is hoping to take his interest in public service to a new level by serving on the Lawton City Council.
Harris, who founded the Lawton-based company Oklahoma Mobile X-Ray Inc. said he decided to seek a seat on the council because the city needs a worthy successor to Councilman Keith Jackson. Jackson, who was last elected to the Ward 2 seat in 2018, did not file for re-election this year.
“Mr. Jackson’s done a great job as long as I’ve been here,” Harris said in an Aug. 12 interview. “Keith’s been involved in this community, and I just think that we needed to have a quality replacement for him.”
Southwest Ledger interviewed Harris about his decision to seek a seat on the council. Here are questions and answers from the interview, edited for clarity and length.
Q: Was there a specific issue or set of issues that made you decide to run?
A: No. There’s plenty of issues that we’re facing now. The mask issue’s a big deal. FISTA (the Fires Innovation Science and Technology Accelerator) is kind of a big deal. But all of these are solved not by one person, but by the entire council. So, to think I’m going to walk in and change anything by myself is a little Don Quixotean.
Q: So, you mentioned trash, FISTA and masks. Tell me a bit about what your understanding of each of those issues is and what your position is, starting with trash.
A: When I moved here, you could put out all the trash you wanted in bags, and we picked it all up and it was twice a week. A couple of times a year, they did the cleanup. And everyone seemed happy with that.
Then they said, “Oh, we’re going to go to these containers, but it’s still going to be twice a week.” As a single man, I don’t generate that much garbage, but I can see where a family of four, it might be difficult.
And then we said, “OK, we’re going to raise your fees and we’re going to cut back to once a week.” That kind of was a tipping point for a lot of people.
In visiting with the city manager, some of that issue is we just don’t have the manpower. We’re 90 people down, and they raised the pay to $17 an hour and they still can’t get people to sign up.
So, our manpower is depleted. It’s hard to collect trash twice a week right now. And ultimately, when we do hire back the 90 full-time and 40 part-time employees, we’re going to have a real problem because the increased wages we have to pay is going to be a budgetary issue.
My overall feeling is, there are a few things that any city is mandated to provide to its people: water, sewer, trash pickup, public safety. Public safety being number one.
As much as we have problems, I don’t think that we’re doing a good job of educating the public as to “Hey, these are the issues. This is the way this is.”
On the other hand, with 10 or 12 percent of our people being disabled, retired military, they don’t pay sales tax or property tax, so we have less funding.
We have the highest percentage of retired military of any town in Oklahoma, so it affects us unevenly.
People say, “We want these services; we want those services.” But that limits the services, to some extent, that we can provide. Just because of the budget.
I don’t know what the other cities pay. Edmond does it only once a week – they have once-a-week trash. They get by with it. They’re OK.
Sometimes this community – and myself, especially – we don’t like change. … We don’t like the whole mask deal. We don’t like being told what to do.
But to some extent, I think most people understand that. There are a few people that are always going to complain, no matter what.
My goal is to be a voice of reason on the council. To work with the other council members to solve these issues. To work with the city manager on those issues.
People seem to think that a city councilman can just go down into the trash department and fix things. Well, in reality, in our form of government I’m supposed to go to the city manager. I can’t go talk to the employee directly. I’m supposed to talk to the city manager, who’s supposed to go talk to the department head. Now, I can call the department head and ask questions, but I have no power to go down and direct him, “Well, you’re going to pick up this garbage today or else.”
Q: Masks?
A: COVID’s coming back.
I’m certainly in favor of the indoor mask wearing, where people are exposed. I think outdoors, we’re probably still OK. I know several people who are fully vaccinated who have gotten COVID. I see two or three patients a week that have COVID.
And so, if I’m going to lean one way or the other, I’m going to lean toward the mask and hand washing. Because it did a pretty good job the first time around, then we kind of relaxed. And then this delta variant came around. …
From a health care professional’s standpoint, I’m all for it. From a public rights standpoint, I’m kind of a libertarian. I think people should have the choice to wear that or not.
But my statement is that people need to understand if you don’t wear the mask, you’re endangering your own life and not only yours, that of your family and that anyone you come into contact with.
Q: FISTA?
A: Our mall was dying. It had been sold in a tax auction previous to being bought by the city. Where it used to run at about 97 percent occupancy, it was down considerably. The opportunity comes along to bring in over 100 high-paying jobs of $100,000-plus. The citizens had just voted for a CIP for economic development. This is economic development. It’s economic development that will be directly related to Fort Sill, and therefore – I’ve seen the dream, and the dream is that we want to be like Huntsville (Alabama) or the other defense contractor cities. It’s a risk, but I think it’s a risk worth taking.
Q: Are you satisfied or dissatisfied with the city’s current direction?
A: I’m cautiously optimistic that we are headed in the right direction.
Q: Why do you say that?
A: Because of the two CIP issues that we passed – one for recreation.
If we want people to move here, we’ve got to have things for them to do. And one of the biggest complaints that the realtors hear is that we have a lot of parks, but we don’t have a lot of things to do in the parks. We have this beautiful gem – Elmer Thomas – which could be so much more, and Parks and Recreation and Arts and Humanities are working, even now, to bring more events to that park.
The economic development, I think, is a good start. I’m disappointed in the county side of that from when we voted a few months ago to divert money from the Comanche County Industrial Development Authority to the jail. The Comanche County Industrial Development Authority has had a huge track record of success, and we cut their money down by, I think, two-thirds. I think that’s going to cost us in the end.
I believe we’re headed in the right direction. I think we have good people in the right positions.
Q: What skills do you have that would make you an effective council member?
A: I’ve owned and operated three or four businesses. Not only the secret to business, but the secret to life, is being able to communicate and negotiate with people and to see both sides of an issue.
I am really good at being able to see both sides of the fence and to understand both sides’ argument. I may not always agree, but I’m not someone who is just going to say, “No, no, there’s no way we’re going to do that.”
When I make up my mind, I’m pretty stubborn, but I am willing to listen and at times say, “You know what? I was wrong. I’m going to change my opinion.” I’m willing to be educated.
The other thing is that I’ve been here long enough I know the community. And so, when there’s something I don’t know, I can just pick up the phone and call and say, “Hey, what do I need to know about this?” I think you need that because sometimes, things get presented in just one light and that’s not always true.
Mark Malone
For the third time in five years, Mark Malone is seeking the Ward 2 seat on the Lawton City Council.
Malone’s first campaign was in 2016, when he lost to Councilman Keith Jackson. He ran against Jackson again two years later, but was unsuccessful.
Jackson is not seeking re-election this year due to term limits. Five candidates, including Malone, are hoping to claim Jackson’s seat.
Southwest Ledger recently interviewed Malone about his decision to mount a third campaign for the seat. Here are questions and answers from the interview, edited for clarity and length.
Q: What made you decide to run again this year?
A: A lot of promises have been given and, I believe, have not truly been kept. Maybe not by any fault of their own – I’m not aware of the problems with the system – but I just think that the local government should follow through on what they told the citizens they were going to do.
If unable to do at least at a minimum, my plan is to hold meetings and forums with the Ward 2 citizens at a minimum, and be available for anyone to ask a question and get an answer.
Q: What are some examples of promises that you feel the city has made but not kept?
A: The CIPs (community improvement plans). In the past, citizens voted on and approved money for CIPs. And the CIP money has in some cases diverted, delayed and used as the council deemed fit, and not what was promised to the citizens that they voted on.
Some of the CIPs today, dating back to 2018, have not been performed. Why?
And so, if I can’t solve the problem, at least I believe the citizens are owed an answer. In general, not just in a city council meeting. But in general, it should get back out to the public.
Q: Apart from that, was there a specific issue or issues that made you decide to run again?
A: There’s a lot of issues, as we all know, with any organization or government entity. But there are three that I’d like to focus on in this election and possibly help solve.
The first one is public safety. By “public safety,” I mean both police officers and firefighters. I believe that by managing personnel and positions correctly, there could be more patrolmen on the streets and firefighters in the stations. But there’s a lot of overhead.
I’m not asking for increases, but I think if funds were appropriately managed, there would be more employees per se on the ground, working.
The second one would be the roads. Everybody always talks about roads. Got it. And we have a lot of problems with roads in Lawton.
An example: A mile of four-lane road would cost about $1 million. And we do need to take care of the arterial areas and roads. But the ones that are forgotten, I think, are the residential areas, which are most driven.
Ward 2 – the Lawton Heights area – is one of the particular areas. Those roads are just horrible.
I brought up before to some members of leadership about the way the county approaches a road, i.e., chip rock. So, we don’t lay a regular road, like we have here, but a chip rock road, which works well in the county.
I think that would work well in a residential area. Not on a main thoroughfare, but on a residential area, which is a lot cheaper. Maybe we can get a little more bang for the buck.
So that’s how I would like to tackle roads. Or at least have a master plan that lays out, “These are the ways that we’re going to get at the roads.” Because we need about -- I think the last number I heard was around $250 million to repair all the roads that are needed in Lawton right now. Well, that’s just going to keep going up.
And lastly, I’d like to tackle the water and trash issues.
The water goes back to the CIP I stated earlier. We the citizens years ago were sold a bill of goods that we were going to build water wells into the Arbuckle Aquifer which is underneath Lawton. That money was allocated, and so there were 10 water wells that were dug, but they’re capped. But the money was built to build the wells. Where’s the money?
OK, we’re not going to use that because of the fluoride content. Can that water be sold? That’s another source of income. I don’t know, but that’s something that I don’t think has been talked about.
And then lastly, the trash. … I’m not totally against once-a-week trash pickup, but I don’t think it was completely thought through.
And the bulk trash pickup that is currently in process. Well, once a week cannot be done in a timely manner. Normally, they’ve been running up to a week behind. Again, I don’t think that was completely thought through.
Maybe they’re working on a fix, but it’s not being communicated to the citizens that they’ve got a plan for a fix.
I told a group last night, “If you were someone who was going to buy a house and you drove into Lawton unbeknownst, and you drove through a neighborhood and you and your wife – or your spouse – were looking around for a house and you saw all of this bulk trash along the streets, would you buy a house in that area? Probably not.”
We need to get that fixed.
Q: Would you say you are satisfied or dissatisfied with the city’s current direction?
A: I guess a little bit of both.
I’m not opposed to some of the things that they’re doing. I just think that some of the things that they are doing could be done a little more efficiently or a little better streamlined.
But the mentality of “I was born in Lawton, I know what’s best for Lawton” is probably not the right mindset. Because there are people who have been around the world and seen other things that may be useful to help Lawton move forward.
Q: What skills do you have that would make you an effective council member?
A: Well, I think two of them are, I have a logistical background. Over 30-plus years, that’s all I’ve done is either manage logistics, manage money. Budgets. Currently helping manage a 65-plus million-dollar budget out on post. So, I’m not unfamiliar with managing budgets and staying within timelines.
The second part and the most important, I believe, is to be an effective listener. I’ve had people tell me that they’ve reached out to leadership – ward leadership, government leadership – and either not gotten a callback, not gotten a follow-up, weren’t satisfied.
Again, I’m not saying I can fix every problem. But I’d like to at least fix that one.