[{"_1":2,"_87":-5,"_88":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6561492,"mediaKeyId","3289817-b781a0b11e1ae802d2436532776e1b23","parentId",3289817,"title","Rudasill Regional Library: new two‑story Greenwood‑area branch to include maker space, large event hall and children’s courtyard","audioSeconds",1424,"startMs",18376000,"endMs",19800000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=3289817-b781a0b11e1ae802d2436532776e1b23&start=18376&end=19800","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3289817-b781a0b11e1ae802d2436532776e1b23/thumbnail_18376000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6561492/Tulsa/Tulsa-County/Oklahoma/Rudasill-Regional-Library-new-twostory-Greenwoodarea-branch-to-include-maker-space-large-event-hall-and-childrens-courtyard","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6561492-51256eb274b39b24517c94c2a6ea5f5f/orig.mp4?Expires=1770933211&Signature=fEzQ8PBimNTTf-fOw6m2KQCFbmowdbnIcl5pzIf7nVj-B3SzUvbYHXpCqPvuXLh2KzDNWA4DeHSNxflYNgHhhGaTuUKIRFCyLKYux8GagzUi7LV5AZki8jibNWd6Jhw1jHACyyd2ekEInQdbeEhM3XfZrfYOIMEHrhR1UvdFtXaWXzpzV7PPKLO2VaOboBkg8y6Qywm9A2xTNdXIZ0o5Hx7nh5qSw7JOA8wqIswvs9fTzMFwAAvR-r1ExfUY3yMbeOGgPx9L~LemosrHSDiBzCglTG6xO0lY5JZ2snX6bulZcEEl6LhlLmtJBsZ8ieIN3rObrN~hTX5xHnnpXB7AbA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Tulsa","date","2025-05-13T13:00:00Z","article","Keith Jemmerson, manager of the Rudasill Regional Library, presented the design and program plan for the replacement of the existing North Tulsa branch during the Tulsa African American Affairs Commission meeting. The new two‑story Rudasill facility is part of a multi‑branch capital program (phase 1 included Brookside and Rudasill; phase 2 will add additional branches) funded through a $58 million library capital campaign that combines city capital savings with private philanthropy.

Jemmerson described features of the proposed Rudasill Regional Library: a two‑story building with a large, classroom/banquet‑style BOK Harmony Hall (Bank of Oklahoma provided major philanthropic support), a dedicated maker space and an audio studio, a children’s courtyard with tricycle/scooter play area, separate teen space, genealogy and African‑American Resource Center collections, meeting rooms, a coffee/gift/shop area selling library‑related items, and a drive‑through/curbside material pickup window. Renderings shown to the commission depict extensive glazing, a ground‑floor children’s patio and an upper‑level prefunction patio adjacent to the Harmony Hall. Several donors and contributors were acknowledged; staff also noted plans to solicit artists for public artwork on the site.

Project status and timeline
Jemmerson told the commission the contractor mobilized in December and that construction was underway; he said, “it should be finished by this time next year.” The site sits near BS Roberts Park and Langston University‑Tulsa; the design team coordinated on visibility, traffic flows and park access. Jemmerson said the project team had consulted neighborhood stakeholders in a multi‑step public engagement process and emphasized that the branch is intended to be a multiuse community resource and an economic‑development amenity for Greenwood and North Tulsa.

Commission reaction and next steps
Commissioners asked about the disposition of the existing Rudasill building on Greenwood; Jemmerson said the library system has not finalized plans for resale or reuse of the current building and that potential buyers or reuse proposals will be coordinated to ensure neighborhood compatibility. Commissioners also raised site questions (stormwater and creek proximity) and were told the project’s geotechnical and civil studies had been completed and that artifacts found during site work will be evaluated and, where appropriate, displayed as part of the library’s local history interpretation. The library staff said artist‑call announcements, community programming plans and donor recognition pages would be posted at mylibraryourfuture.org and on the library’s capital campaign pages.

What it means locally
Commissioners and staff called the facility a major cultural and civic investment for North Tulsa—combining event and meeting space, children’s programming, archival/genealogy resource capability and modern maker/audio production facilities. The commission encouraged continued public engagement during the construction process and noted the branch’s potential to host programming tied to Greenwood history and the Tulsa Race Massacre remembrance initiatives.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Tulsa - Board of Adjustment - May 13, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","The Tulsa African American Affairs Commission heard detailed plans for a new two‑story Rudasill Regional Library near Greenwood and Langston University‑Tulsa, designed to include a maker space, audio lab, large divisible event hall (BOK Harmony Hall), and an expanded children’s courtyard.","taxTitle","Tulsa, Tulsa County, Oklahoma","taxId",2682,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6561497,"Tulsa Board of Adjustment grants multiple variances and special exceptions, denies one sign-area request; several items continued",2326,692000,3018000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3289817-b781a0b11e1ae802d2436532776e1b23&start=692&end=3018","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3289817-b781a0b11e1ae802d2436532776e1b23/thumbnail_692000.jpg","/articles/6561497/Tulsa/Tulsa-County/Oklahoma/Tulsa-Board-of-Adjustment-grants-multiple-variances-and-special-exceptions-denies-one-sign-area-request-several-items-continued","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6561497-9c33e04f2f5d3e58522cf9e8cb2cd62f/orig.mp4?Expires=1770933211&Signature=VNwjk6Rk9NDg81nVvIE-iDfdhBj7rI9C-NvUuBa73ylJkDbr9RL9g9h7o7h9aql0smC4ZDU1NreR56~-prDmwbWPUysV6dTToDyFVmg5BpMxk05n1MnOTWQHvBpCpq8RYjv-A8wxhm2Q3moGtH6DVRoynBkoygVJzZjG-Ulryq1e8FByVrvF1WM4UfJn1eJZNLfgyL4zUpTUZmR6FcRBqANH9SaiomnELrD1x0QZiLxXMjRkqm7z7cDUmmJN-0RJPzSPd6Q-Y-BkOdzhf7gDHtxA7Rwr2E7pa-nVtjs9e2vuceIpbv3WcxYg7TqwI3ondFDRd08bq3gUMsInJWyt7A__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Tulsa Board of Adjustment met in a public hearing and approved a package of variances and special exceptions spanning sign relief, driveway widths, detached accessory buildings and setbacks, and assembly and building-service uses across the city.

The most contested item involved BOA 23877 (10010 S. Riverside Pkwy), an application by Claude Neon/Federal Signs to modify and rebrand multiple freestanding and monument signs, including rules on dynamic (electronic) displays. The board denied one variance request that would have increased the maximum dynamic-display area on the pole sign, then approved the remaining variances needed to legalize and modify the existing freestanding signs (including allowing one dynamic display sign limited to the monument sign and allowing existing pole/monument heights and areas to be made legal). Nearby property owners objected, arguing the site is visible from the Arkansas River and that larger/ truck‑stop style signage is inappropriate in the River District overlay; the applicant said the changes respond to branding and visibility constraints and that some sign cabinets had been replaced without permits. The board’s approvals included findings that the site’s placement relative to the highway and the signs’ preexisting condition created practical difficulties.

Other items approved (most unanimously) included:
- BOA 23857 (1519 E. 201st St. S.) — special exception to allow an increased driveway width in RS‑3 (approved; applicant withdrew a parallel variance request after Historic Preservation Commission approval).
- BOA 23883 (778 S. 1001 E. Ave.) — special exception to permit a building‑services use in CS (approved).
- BOA 23884 (525 S. 308 W. Ave.) — special exception to permit a 33‑ft driveway width for a proposed duplex in RS‑3 (approved).
- BOA 23885 (6308 E. 109th St. S.) — variance to reduce a rear setback in RS‑2 (approved).
- BOA 23886 (6004 S. Richmond Ave.) — special exception to permit an accessory dwelling unit (ADU) in RS‑3 (approved).
- BOA 23887 (3387 N. Garrison Ave.) — special exceptions to permit a horizontal expansion of a nonconforming structure in a street yard and to allow a carport in the street yard (approved).
- BOA 23888 (5085 S. 76 E. Ave.) — special exception to permit a large (over‑250 capacity) indoor assembly use in CS for an event/banquet venue (approved; applicant provided on‑site parking plans showing more spaces than code minimum).
- BOA 23889 (2506 E. 57th St. S.) — variances for front and side street setbacks for a house addition/garage conversion (approved).
- BOA 23890 (12025 E. 15th St. S.) — special exception to permit a religious assembly use at an existing church site; the commission noted the use is long‑standing and approved site improvements and expanded parking (approved).
- BOA 23893 (1251 E. 301st Ct. S.) — special exception and variance to allow vertical/horizontal expansion of a nonconforming structure in a street setback for an attached addition/second story (approved).
- BOA 23894 (3255 S. Florence Ave.) — variance to permit a decorative fence within the public right‑of‑way because of site topography and an adjacent floodplain (approved; subject to standard right‑of‑way licensing).

One item was continued: staff asked to continue BOA 23892 (4747 S. Columbia Pl. E.) because of a notice mailing error; the board continued the minutes for a prior meeting to the May 27 agenda to allow legal review. Another application (BOA 23891, a large detached accessory building request) was continued by motion at the applicant’s request so the applicant can rework the proposal and consult neighbors; the board noted concerns about the apparent use and scale of equipment stored on the property and asked the applicant to return with a smaller footprint or an attached garage option and with more neighbor outreach.

Because most items were approval motions with little drawn‑out discussion, the board handled several items as bundled motions; where votes were recorded the transcript shows the three members present voting in the affirmative (the board noted that, with only three members present, approvals required unanimity).","At a public hearing the Board of Adjustment approved a bundle of variances and special exceptions including sign and driveway relief, denied one request to increase dynamic-sign display area, and continued at least one case to the May 27 meeting. Most votes were unanimous among members present.","actionData","errors"]

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Rudasill Regional Library: new two‑story Greenwood‑area branch to include maker space, large event hall and children’s courtyard

Tulsa Board of Adjustment grants multiple variances and special exceptions, denies one sign-area request; several items continued