how do rates differ between the two cities?
Those in Enid charged with attracting new industry cannot obsess over the lost opportunity, but they can and must learn lessons from this experience to be effective in their roles in the near future. For example: The city’s TIF and location approval process took an exceptionally long time, with new issues and new city ordinances developing throughout. Meanwhile, the construction price shot up from $71 million to about $100 million. While some Enid city commissioners publicly were criticizing the plant’s traffic and location, Blackwell officials were taking notes and quietly preparing a competing offer. What can be done to be fair but speed up the approval process? Water and sewage treatment likely are to be demands of other potential industries, including the proposed Orion Ethanol plant. Capacity and rates need to be addressed proactively. Energy and ag processing activities likely are prospects for Enid industrial growth, so we’ll likely see those concerns again. How aggressively and
