Lawton Council Broadens Economic Development Policy in 5-3 Vote, Opening Door to Smaller Retail Projects

The Lawton City Council voted 5-3 Monday to amend the city’s economic development policy, broadening eligibility so smaller retail development and redevelopment projects can qualify for incentives. The policy had been in place for more than a decade, and Deputy City Attorney Tim Wilson told the council it was simply past due for an update. Epps, Brown, Dimery, Hampton and Vice Mayor Warren voted aye; Hooton, Wager and Williams voted nay.

The change was tied to a specific application from Chaddar’s Scratch Kitchen, a regional restaurant chain looking at the former Furr’s Cafeteria site at Cache Road Square. The proposal calls for demolishing the existing building and replacing it with a new structure, a project type the old policy wasn’t built to accommodate. Council members who supported the change noted the policy includes public-benefit criteria that must be weighed before any assistance is granted.

The debate doesn’t end with this vote. Each incentive request still comes back to the council, and one councilman who voted yes raised concerns about the optics of the proposal. That means the real test of the policy will play out application by application, with questions of fairness to existing merchants in the balance. What would you like to see happen at Cache Road Square? Let us know.