How can anyone complain about a person who takes action to get the best value for their family as they are being forced to sell their home and property?
Normally, this is not something of concern, but one might see red flags when the buyer is a government entity and the seller is a state representative, who receives $100,000 above appraisal price, rent-free living for the next 12 months, and moving expenses of almost $26,000.
That’s what happened in Newcastle, according to a story that was published on Sunday in the Oklahoman, written by veteran journalist Steve Lackmeyer, when the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority negotiated with State Representative Sherrie Conley and her husband for the sale of their property, which was in the path of the OTA’s Access Oklahoma proposed east-to-west corridor connecting Newcastle to Norman.
According to the story, Rep. Conley said she did not receive any special treatment; however, her property was the first to be negotiated and purchased. There were compelling arguments for the purchase price to be raised by OTA including a new comparable property brought to the OTA’s attention, the value of pecan trees on their property, and the value of a new pool which the Conleys had installed, but never got the opportunity to use.
In defense of the pool’s valuation, OTA Director Joe Echelle told the Oklahoman, that an appraisal of a home with a pool would not equal the cost of installing a pool and the return on investment in a pool is the utilization of the pool. In this case, he said, “The pool was newly installed and never had a chance to be utilized by the homeowner. The OTA covered the new pool’s cost to make the homeowner whole.”
Conley told the Oklahoman she felt like it was important to go through the OTA acquisition process so they could help other residents and business owners.
Conley said, “My initial thoughts were about how the projects were going to impact the residents and business owners of my district and how I could best support them as they navigate through the process. Our conclusion since my husband and I were being impacted, was to walk through the process of negotiating with OTA.”
Since the OTA Access Oklahoma east-to-west toll road was of significant news interest to the Newcastle residents, the Newcastle Pacer was covering as much as possible and had already published significant stories in February and March 2022. In late April 2022, we wrote a lengthy article with Mayor Karl Nail, who shared both his understanding of the need for an easier way to travel east to west across the South Canadian River, and the personal impact the proposed route would have on his family-owned property in the path.
At the same time, we attempted to contact Conley a couple of times and left at least one message saying we had heard her home was in the path of the proposed route and would like to talk with her about it. Conley did not return the Pacer’s calls. This would certainly have been a way to discuss the impact both on the community and personally.
If she had full intentions of helping her constituents wouldn’t it have been important to talk with her local hometown newspaper to discuss the process?
At the end of the day, the Conleys had to go through the discussions with the OTA. They understood their home was in the proposed route and reached out to OTA early on in the process. We believe they understood they were being forced from their home and they had to try to get the best value for their home.
On the other hand, because Conley is a state representative and serves on the house transportation committee and because of the priority that the Conley property received, it certainly gives the appearance of impropriety.
Was it all handled above board and with the best intentions for all involved? Only Representative Conley and the OTA officials know. We all just have to make up our own opinions.
