Remarks by James Cooper
100 remarks on the record, newest first · Page 1 of 4
- Play at 27:04
“If I might, I do want to add, I've had some time to think about this item and when I vote no, I want people to know why. I am hopeful that voters over the next several months when they have an opportunity to support light rail to the airport and commuter rail between OKC, Edmond, and Norman that we will reduce the need for all those cars to park at the airport. And some of these congestion issues won't be there as much. People might still drive and park there, of course, because we should have all of the above approach to transit in this city. But I can assure you there are a lot of people…”
City Council · Sep 29, 2026
- Play at 35:39
“Yes, Mayor, first, good morning. Good morning. Item AC, I'd like to hear a little bit more about, and I would also request a separate vote. OK. Also, I'd like to hear just a little bit more on item AU and AV. I'm sorry, counselor. I heard AV as in Victor. AV as in Victor, yep. You're welcome, and then finally, item B.J. we'd like to hear. Only a separate vote on that first one, though. Everything else would be just to hear an update.”
City Council · Sep 29, 2026
- Play at 39:10
“tell me stories of interacting with that team i just have to thank you for um for taking yeah taking that on and just not being um intimidated to try something totally new so thank you thank you yeah chief selfishly and i've said it before on this horseshoe but when the thunder won the championship and my mother participated in the parade and the heat started getting to her the attentiveness with which you dedicated the rest of your time to her, to making sure she was okay. That is just, I felt so bad. It's like, no, Chief, you have a whole city to go take care of. You would not leave my…”
City Council · Sep 29, 2026
- Play at 48:34
“Thank you, director. I don't really have questions or comments for you, so you're welcome to not have to waste your precious energy and time in that way. That's good.”
City Council · Sep 29, 2026
- Play at 48:55
“May I just briefly share my screen? My concern with this project and why I won't be supporting it ultimately is everything I've been reading in the news, briefings I've received, is that one of the reasons, and I am to understand that we've been piecing together parcels of land as city leadership for what we call job development in this part of Oklahoma City. just west of Yukon. I mention this to my students at Oklahoma City University because they're learning argument and Aristotle and ethos, pathos, and logos. And I mentioned to them in the news that we were looking at buckies coming to…”
City Council · Sep 29, 2026
- Play at 58:46
“When I say that there has to be a moment where we can say no, I understand in this moment this is state dollars, but we could say no in this moment to saying this is not the vision that we have for how to generate those sales tax dollars. When this infrastructure improvement happens here, that is going to induce the development that we're seeing in Melissa. That development is going to happen on the far west side of the city past Yukon. With it will come all of the responsibilities that I just named for further infrastructure improvements that those residents will ask for once we induce this…”
City Council · Sep 29, 2026
- Play at 1:08:13
“Yes, Mayor, and again, thank you for the respectful back and forth there, always appreciate that. And then, yeah, I just wanted to hear an update, wanted the public to hear an update on these couple items here. Please.”
City Council · Sep 29, 2026
- Play at 1:09:05
“It's great, and I'm glad to know that, of course, that work is ongoing. I'm sure the public is happy to hear that as well. Take us to A.V.”
City Council · Sep 29, 2026
- Play at 1:10:25
“I think that's wonderful. Will council, being the we here, be receiving updates on the work that you just described?”
City Council · Sep 29, 2026
- Play at 1:10:52
“That's great. And congrats again on these different grants that are coming our way.”
City Council · Sep 29, 2026
- Play at 1:11:24
“Yes. Of course, we're all excited about the Olympics coming here, but there are some public transportation improvements that I think that, or some conversations happening around that, and I just wanted to hear a little bit more, wanted the public to hear a little bit more about that.”
City Council · Sep 29, 2026
- Play at 1:12:40
“I think it's great, and I'm looking forward to what the final version of this is going to look like in terms of that enhanced public transit options heading into, and I believe even kind of lingering after the Olympics. That's all from me for now. Thank you. Thank you.”
City Council · Sep 29, 2026
- Play at 1:14:47
“Okay, I was looking at the proposal, and I think it's going to be fine, so I would move for approval.”
City Council · Sep 29, 2026
- Play at 1:20:58
“Yes, Mayor. However, is the applicant or the representative here? Oh, lucky me. Would you tell me, tell us a little bit about what's going on here, please?”
City Council · Sep 29, 2026
- Play at 1:21:22
“I saw that. And I see this. And I'm, of course, happy to see redevelopment of parcels like this, properties even like this.”
City Council · Sep 29, 2026
- Play at 1:21:35
“It might require an amendment, I'm not sure. All this parking I see, and I looked at the map and see that this is pretty comparable to what's there. trees? Can we do trees in the parking lot? Like, way more trees? Because that's just going to be like a giant, well, you see there, I mean, that is what it looks like. And I would very much, I don't think summers are going to be getting any cooler. And I'd like to see what I could do to at least amend this.”
City Council · Sep 29, 2026
- Play at 1:22:47
“Do we have any, I just have some pause here. I'm glad that I saw that TE, but I have no renderings of what that's going to look like, no sense of what open space will look like. I see this, but what I see around that building, as everyone else can see, is just a sea of parking. And I don't mind the parking. I guess what I'm asking is for some sort of shade covering throughout that parking lot and or interruption of the parking with more green spaces. I just really don't feel comfortable approving something that looks like this.”
City Council · Sep 29, 2026
- Play at 1:23:53
“are you yes as we're working through our i hear you i understand what current law is as we're working however through our zoning update right now there are proposals serious proposals to add more tree infrastructure requirement when a developer is doing Something like this with the parking like that's coming and I understand the existing law right now allows for something like this I'm asking can we amend this further to add some more trees within this parking lot? So and one more thing I hear what you're saying of course we have an affordable housing crisis and need, I don't feel comfortable…”
City Council · Sep 29, 2026
- Play at 1:25:22
“I just think there could be some redoing of this parking lot.”
City Council · Sep 29, 2026
- Play at 1:25:47
“Reducing down the parking doesn't do anything. All it's doing is your, it's paint. It's just different spots. You still have this, see, all the white you see here is asphalt. and it's going to allow the sun, think in July and August, the sun will hit that asphalt. It will warm it up. The mother and the child and the grandparent who lives at this place will be walking out onto this asphalt with the sun pouring down on them. I am asking us, the developer, to figure out how they can intervene here to reduce that effect on who's gonna live there. That is literally all I'm asking, especially…”
City Council · Sep 29, 2026
- Play at 1:27:09
“The planning directors here, do you have any thoughts on what are we going to be doing going forward when a person comes forward with something like this? I'm not approving this is where I'm going. And if the council wants to approve it, they can. But I am tired of putting these sorts of things into existence for our people and be like, oh, my hands are tied. They deserve better. People deserve better.”
City Council · Sep 29, 2026
- Play at 1:29:10
Not quoted here: it may name a member of the public. Hear it at the meeting.
City Council · Sep 29, 2026
- Play at 1:30:48
“My suggestion would be that we defer this item for two weeks so that we can talk with our planning team to figure out what are some, what are the most cost effective ways to do this for your client, because right now I don't feel comfortable doing this. I'm not just in the habit of just saying we have to meet our housing crisis needs by just putting up whatever. We're trying to undo decades worth of problematic development, at least I am. So that'd be my suggestion.”
City Council · Sep 29, 2026
- Play at 1:35:34
“I would like to sit down for two weeks. And lest anyone think this is just, again, my whim, this is work I am doing behind the scenes with our department to move toward what best practices are. And also, I hear what you're saying, counselor. I understand. But I want to try and, in the in-between time, mitigate any harm. And I don't want to just approve things. So yeah.”
City Council · Sep 29, 2026
- Play at 1:36:46
“I appreciate that perspective. I appreciate the support in deferring it. one way going forward, and I keep saying this, one way to help bring those costs down is when developers are doing these sort of affordable housing projects, they could be working in partnership with the city to tap into our affordable housing dollars that the voters approved. That is a way to help mitigate some of those costs too. I don't know if your developer has spoken to Economic Alliance, but I just think we need to be way more intentional when we're doing affordable housing projects instead of just putting them…”
City Council · Sep 29, 2026