Local & Regional

A man and a woman are shot outside of the Incredible Pizza on 71stacross from Woodland Hills Mall.

Tulsa police think  the late afternoon shooting  may have been a drug deal gone bad.

Police are looking for a suspect. 

An outgoing Tulsa City Councilor has a new job. District 5 Councilor Karen Gilbert will become the next head of the Tulsa Crime Stoppers program.

The program pays cash awards to tips leading to the arrests of suspects.

Gilbert did not seek re-election to the council and lost a race for a state house seat last month. 

Oklahoma residents looking to invest in the state's upcoming medical marijuana industry are anxiously awaiting the passage of business regulations.

The Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority has received nearly 1,300 business licenses as of Sept. 5. Those applications include 452 for dispensary, 662 for cultivation and 184 for processing.

Would-be business owners and startup companies want to get an early foothold in the medical marijuana industry. That means investing in groundwork and business plans despite no state standards set in stone yet.

The Gathering Place is being challenged by the Oklahoma Second Amendment Association.

The group claims the park is violating Oklahoma state law by not allow people to carry firearms there.

While built by the private sector as a gift to the city, at issue is whether the Gathering Place is a private or public space.   If it is private then gun can be prohibited. The $465-million park opened last weekend.

Several people have been turned away from the park because of weapons. 

The former Dollar Thrifty Plaza is full up on tenants.

Family & Children’s Services and OSU Center for Health Sciences will occupy 13 floors of the west tower at Legacy Plaza, the social services–centered redevelopment on 31st Street east of Yale Avenue led by the Anne and Henry Zarrow Foundation.

Executive Director Bill Major said they join east tower tenants Mental Health Association Oklahoma, CAP Tulsa, LIFE Senior Services and Oklahoma Center for Nonprofits, and Assistance League of Tulsa, which occupies a three-story building on the site.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Collections to Oklahoma's main state operating fund exceeded the official estimate by nearly 7 percent in August, buoyed mostly by better-than-expected individual income tax collections.

The Office of Management and Enterprise Services released figures on Tuesday that show collections to the General Revenue Fund totaled $455 million last month. That's an increase of 6.6 percent from the monthly estimate and nearly 10 percent over collections during the same month last year.

The Oklahoma Department of Transportation’s latest eight-year construction plan includes a major Tulsa project.

An $80 million project on I-44 west of the Arkansas River should go out for bid sometime in federal fiscal year 2021.

"The plan right now for I-44 for the widening between Union Avenue and the Arkansas River will be adding in an extra lane in each direction and also making some operational improvements at the U.S. 75 junction," said ODOT's Kenna Mitchell.

The project was awarded a $45 million dollar federal infrastructure grant.

PERRY, Okla. (AP) — Two earthquakes recorded within less than one minute of each other have rattled an area of northern Oklahoma.

The U.S. Geological Survey says each of the earthquakes was recorded Tuesday about 16 miles west-southwest of Perry.

Geologists say a 3.3 magnitude earthquake that was recorded at 11:11 a.m. was preceded by a 2.7 magnitude temblor in the same area about 30 seconds earlier. The earthquakes were recorded at a depth of about 2 miles.

No injuries or damages were reported. Geologists say damage is not likely in quakes below magnitude 4.0.

A federal grand jury has indicted a Missouri man accused of having a pipe bomb at an apartment in northeastern Oklahoma.

Prosecutors said Monday that 36-year-old Richard C. Cole of Joplin, Missouri, was indicted by a grand jury in Tulsa with possession of an unregistered destructive device.

Authorities say Delaware County sheriff's deputies were called to Cole's apartment in Afton after the landlord discovered a suspected improvised explosive device.

The Tulsa Route 66 Commission is considering an update to the corridor’s master plan, last touched in 2005.

"The citizens have approved through the Vision Tulsa package some dollars to help our work in making Route 66 all it can be in Tulsa. So, we want to have a new strategic plan that guides that work, that invests that money in meaningful ways that will give us the best return," said Chairman Ed Sharrer.

An update would give the commission an opportunity to pencil in new projects. The 11th Street bridge over the Arkansas River is a priority.

A fatality crash takes two lives in south Tulsa. The horrific crash happened last night at 41stand Yale in front of the Promenade Mall. 

The roadway was blocked while police sorted through the details of the crash.

It appears a passenger car turned left in front of an on coming pick-up. The car’s driver and a passenger were killed in the crash.

Construction crews are preparing to replace the Oklahoma Capitol's copper roof, which officials consider to be the biggest unexpected expense so far in the building's years-long restoration project.

The Oklahoman reports that replacing the 45,000 square feet of copper will cost the state $9.3 million. Project manager Trait Thompson says he doesn't plan to ask lawmakers for more money because the restoration plan has built-in funds for unforeseen expenses.

A judge in Oklahoma has decided to move the rape case against four former Bixby football players to juvenile court, which will close the proceedings to the public.

 Tulsa County Special Judge April Seibert ruled Monday that the four teenagers presented adequate evidence they were amenable to treatment in the juvenile court system.

The four teens are accused of attacking a 16-year-old boy with a pool cue last summer in an assault captured on cellphone video. They each have pleaded not guilty to second-degree rape by instrumentation.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Construction crews are preparing to replace the Oklahoma Capitol's copper roof, which officials consider to be the biggest unexpected expense so far in the building's ongoing restoration project.

Replacing the 45,000 square feet of copper roofing will cost the state $9.3 million. Project manager Trait Thompson doesn't plan to ask lawmakers for more money because the restoration plan has built-in funds for unforeseen expenses, the Oklahoman reported.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The operator of a Florida-based animal sanctuary says she was the target of an Oklahoma zookeeper who was indicted last week on federal murder-for-hire charges.

Carole Baskin of Big Cat Rescue said she's clashed in the past with Joseph Maldonado-Passage, who goes by the nickname "Joe Exotic."

"He's been threatening me for many, many years," Baskin told The Oklahoman after Maldonado-Passage's arrest last week.

The Tulsa Development Authority is looking to our neighbors to the northeast for some inspiration.

Commissioners and staff recently journeyed to Kansas City, Missouri, to take a look at their transit systems and recent downtown economic development efforts.

Missouri’s second-largest metro area is years ahead in transit, with two bus rapid transit lines in operation and leaders now eyeing an extension of the downtown light rail service dubbed KC Streetcar.

Oklahoma U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe is suddenly holding a lot of cards in Washington.

Inhofe, recently named as chairman of the Senate Committee on Armed Services, said he’s been approved for a waiver and will continue chairing the Environment and Public Works Subcommittee on Transportation and Infrastructure.

"Those are the two things we’re supposed to be doing up there, defending America and infrastructure. So, that’s what I’ll continue to do," Inhofe said.

Tulsa has even more cause for celebration following this weekend’s opening of the Gathering Place: Riverside Drive has reopened.

A two-mile stretch from 21st Street to 41st Street was closed more than three years while the Gathering Place was under construction. The drive will definitely be smoother. The stretch of road previously rated just 46 out of 100 on the City of Tulsa's pavement condition index.

The U.S. Geological Survey has recorded three small earthquakes in northwestern Oklahoma during the weekend.

The U.S.G.S. reports all three occurred Saturday about 10 miles southeast of Waynoka and about 100 miles northwest of Oklahoma City.

The largest was a magnitude 3.7 quake, with the others measured at magnitudes 3.3 and 2.4.

No injuries or damage are reported. Geologists say damage is not likely in quakes below magnitude 4.0.

An old friend is back this morning… albeit with a face lift. Riverside Drive reopened this morning to traffic. The roadway had been closed during the first phase construction of the Gathering Place. 

City engineer Paul Zachary says the new roadway will be much safer. The roadway will feature new, wider medians. It has also been elevated to reduce flooding issues. 

New Land bridges are in place to connect the Gathering Place with the River Parks.

An Oklahoma organization is proposing the state add a bilingual certification on diplomas given to high school graduates who speak more than one language.

Thirty-two states include a Seal of Biliteracy on a student's diploma or transcript, confirming the graduate is proficient in English and at least one other language.

Gasoline prices in Tulsa have risen 6.7 cents per gallon in the past week, averaging $2.61/g yesterday, according to GasBuddy's daily survey of 321 stations in Tulsa. This compares with the national average that has increased 1.6 cents per gallon versus last week to $2.84/g, according to GasBuddy.

Average gasoline prices on September 10 in Tulsa have ranged widely over the last five years:
$2.40/g in 2017,

$1.94/g in 2016,

$2.09/g in 2015,

$3.20/g in 2014 and 

$3.41/g in 2013. 

Dry and mild weather will prevail early this week with a gradual warming trend from mid to late week. Low thunderstorm chances return for southeast Oklahoma and northwest Arkansas beginning mid week and continuing into the weekend.

A Saturday parade and concerts marked the opening of the $465 million Gathering Place. The 100-acre stretch along the Arkansas River will include bike and walking trails and sports courts. Admission is free, but equipment rental will cost.

The public park has been built with private money, led by billionaire philanthropist George Kaiser. Funders and city leaders say the park will be a space for recreation and culture but also an ambitious model for inclusivity.

Their lead and momentum nearly gone, Texas turned to the arm and legs of sophomore quarterback Sam Ehlinger to avoid a potentially crushing home loss.

Ehlinger, who had already run for a touchdown and thrown for another in the first half, engineered a 13-play drive to a fourth quarter score that proved to be the game winner in a grinding 28-21 win over Tulsa Saturday night

Oklahoma voters wanting to change their party affiliation or their address can now do so online for the first time starting Monday.

The Oklahoman reports that the Oklahoma State Election Board is releasing a new online form for registered voters to update their information. Voters can use the form to change their affiliation to one of the state's three recognized political parties or to be independent. They can also update their residential or mailing address as long as it's within the same county.

Thousands of people gathered for the opening of a $465 million park — one of the largest in the country — along the Arkansas River in Tulsa.

The public park, known as the Gathering Place, is about 66 acres in size but will grow to cover 100 acres. It features bike and walking trails, athletic courts and lawns for concerts.

Gathering Place was built with private money from the foundation of billionaire philanthropist George Kaiser, who joined Mayor Bynum and throngs of people Saturday to mark the park's opening.