EDITORIAL: Communication key in Expo fight
Aug. 5—Both sides in the fight over the Expo Center continue exercising their rights despite a lack of effective communication.
Pittsburg County Commissioners terminated a lease agreement with the city of McAlester in order to reclaim ownership of the Expo Center — which they were justified in doing since the county owns it.
The county agreed in 2001 to lease the Expo Center and some adjoining land to the city for 30 years at the cost of $1. Commissioners voted to terminate that agreement in June. City officials told us they wouldn't contest the commissioners' decision.
That means the county would reclaim operation and management of the facility that city officials have said averages an annual $300,000 deficit before taking into account sale tax revenue from Expo attendees.
Commissioners then voted to send a letter to the city saying they will not pay $4 million for city equipment at the facility.
Commission Chairman/District 3 Commissioner Ross Selman criticized the city's management of the Expo Center in the letter and claimed McAlester City Manager Pete Stasiak demanded the county pay for the roughly $4 million in city-owned equipment at the facility.
Stasiak told us he made no such demand, but provided Selman an estimate of how much the city's equipment at the facility would cost.
Commissioners gave the city until Aug. 15 to move out.
This week, city employees continued moving city-owned property out of the Expo.
Think of it like renting a house.
A landlord has the right to kick a renter out of a house with cause.
But a renter also has the right to collect their belongings for which they paid with their own money before moving out.
Even a landlord who wins an eviction lawsuit still can't claim your belongings — your computer, your trash cans, your cleaning supplies, etc. — or start moving your stuff out of the property for you.
Similarly, the city of McAlester has the right to collect everything that it bought to maintain and run the facility.
We believe effective communication could have resolved a lot of tension between the two sides fighting over the Expo.
One side didn't realize there were events booked at the facility through February 2022. The other didn't effectively articulate how much it costs to operate it.
So now we can only hope for future cooperation and planning to continue capitalizing on the Expo Center's potential.
—McAlester News-Capital Editorial Board
