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Jazz Hall Pays Electric Bill, County Says It Owes Legal Fees

KWGS File Photo

The Oklahoma Jazz Hall of Fame is up to date on its utilities bill, and other fees it owes the county, according to the Tulsa County Industrial Authority.

“As far as the public, the citizens of Tulsa County, are concerned, the Jazz Hall of Fame has paid all of the bills that concern the taxpayers directly,” said John Smaligo, Industrial Authority chairman.

The county notified the Jazz Hall today that it will also likely have to pay at several thousand dollars in legal fees, incurred by the Authority as it dealt with the Jazz Hall’s debts.

The lease for the Jazz Depot building says some of those fees are the responsibility of the tenant.

“The Jazz Hall of Fame was notified that a certain amount of legal expenses had been incurred throughout the course of the last several weeks,” Smaligo said, “related to their non-payment of their electric bills, the downtown ballpark assessment, and the insurance on the building.”

He said the Authority will be working with the Jazz Hall on getting those additional legal fees paid.

The Jazz Hall says it did not know until the Industrial Authority meeting Monday that it would be expected to pay the Authority's legal fees.

The Jazz Hall says it has paid around $70,000 in fees and expenses to the County in the last few weeks.

Deborah Brown

Meanwhile, the Industrial Authority says the Deborah Brown Community School may remain in the Jazz Depot building.

The Authority granted permission for the school to get a permanent certificate of occupancy from the City of Tulsa.

“We do still have the issue of the lease,” said Millard Jones, with Deborah Brown, “and we are hammering that out at this time, as we speak, and it’s going good.”

That lease will have to be approved by the Tulsa County Industrial Authority.

In the meantime, the school can continue operating inside the Depot building.