City parking meter contract found illegal and is declared to be void

From the files of Your Sequoyah County Times

25 years ago

(From the Feb. 25, 2001, issue of the Sequoyah County Times) —Billy Yandell, mayor of Moffett, said the Moffett City Council met two weeks ago and decided to annex the businesses along U.S. Highway 64 from the Roland city limits east to the Arkansas River Bridge.

Yandell said Oklahoma state statute Title 11, 21-104 indicated the next step toward annexation will be between the businesses and the city council.

Dave Redden, Roland city manager, voiced his concern about the possible annexation. “If they are going to maintain the highway, they will need funds from those businesses, but my concern is what will the City of Moffett offer those businesses.

50 Years Ago

(From the Feb. 26, 1976, 1975, issue of the Sequoyah County Times) —A tornado apparently hit north of Sallisaw near Akins Friday night at about 9:30 p.m.

Extensive damage was reported on property owned by I.J. Dirks, who lives west of Akins.

Damage was done to fences and a number of other farm structures in a path that went northeast in the direction of Nicut.

There were reports of other wind damage to other parts of the county, but there apparently weren’t any injuries.

There were no reported sightings of the tornado.

75 Years Ago

(From the March 2, 1951, issue of the Sequoyah County Times) —City officials of Sallisaw and the Magee-Hale Park-O-Meter Company of Oklahoma City Monday were given a double-barrel jolt in District Court that all but shook the “meter stubs” from Sallisaw’s sidewalks when the court ruled that the purchase contract between the City and Company for the meters was illegal and therefore void.

Judge Carroll found that under the contract, which the city had signed, that an unlimited number of meters could be installed here. Carroll said the agreement between the city and Magee-Hale Park-O-Meter Co. provide that 200 meters, “More or Less” would be installed at $61.50 each. The court held that this was indefinite and left to the company’s discretion how many meters could be installed, that under the terms of the contract the citizens of the town would be at the mercy of the company and therefore the contract was void.

“I’m amazed at the terms of the contract as testified to by Mr. Weathers, the company’s representative, who said in his testimony here this morning that his company can install from 1 to 10,000 parking meters as the contract leaves to his company’s discretion how many meters can be installed in Sallisaw,” said the Judge.

“Ten thousand meters are a lot of meters: that would mean several around every house in town. At their cost of $61.50 each, the 10,000 meters would place a debt burden of $610,000.00 on the citizens of the town. Yet that is what the Company’s representative told this court this morning when he testified that the “200 Meters, More or Less,” as specified in the contract meant that they could install either one meter or ten thousand meters at a cost of either $61.50 or six hundred and ten thousand dollars.

—Work, under the supervision of Sherman Goff, is progressing rapidly on the new theatre building being built by Carl Phillips.

The lobby and balcony are showing a very speedy progress and Mr. Phillips expects to open his new theatre in the near future.

100 years ago

(From the Feb. , 1926, issue of the Sequoyah County Democrat) —The volunteer fire department did some mighty good work last Friday, Feb. 19, when the large residence belonging to Otis Romans and located in the south part of the city, caught fire and burned the roof almost entirely off of the rear rooms. The fire started about 8:00 a.m. and was discovered by neighbors, “Soda,” who is assistant chief of the local department ran outside to find where the fire might be, discovered his own residence on fire. The department made quick response and did some excellent work the fire was held to the upper story and the first floor rooms were not damaged materially. The kitchen was badly damaged. All of the household effects in the lower rooms were taken out, with but a small amount of damage. The loss is covered by insurance, and repair work upon the home will probably start next week. The family is residing temporarily in the residence occupied several years ago by Luther Kyle and located in the west part of the city.