It’s been 25 years since Tulsa adopted the council-mayor form of government.
"The city council has so matured, grown and educated itself over these years, and so it's nice to see — on the occasion of the 25th — that we have one of the best city councils that we have ever had," said former Mayor Rodger Randle.
Voters approved the change on Feb. 14, 1989, and the first city council was sworn in May 8, 1990. Randle was the first mayor under that system. He declines to take credit for the change.
"What we see when we look back in history is that in the 1950s, we started a process that took a long time to reach fruition 25 years ago," Randle said during his remarks at a 25th anniversary luncheon Thursday.
Many former councilors were in attendance to celebrate the anniversary. Former District Four Councilor Gary Watts honored those who have passed away.
"The words that came to mind were hard-working, committed to their district and the citizens they represented, knowledgeable about their districts, civil in their discourse at council meetings, and very approachable by the citizens," Watts said.
Before the change, Tulsa had a city commission. That system originated in Galveston, Texas, after a hurricane at the turn of the 20th century.
