Norman council unanimously accepts JAG grant, revises historic COA rules and hires city attorney

The Norman City Council on Jan. 14 unanimously approved acceptance of a $46,700 Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant allocation, adopted changes to the cityhistoric certificate of appropriateness procedures, approved an ordinance fixing the city attorneycompensation and authorized an employment contract for Ricky J. Knighton II.

The grant hearing and votes took place after a public hearing was opened and closed with no public speakers. Chief Foster of the Norman Police Department described the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant as a recurring, formula-based award: "We get it every year. It's a formula based grant. They just base it off your crime rates and your population," he said, adding Norman's share will largely fund crime-scene processing equipment, cameras, scales and training. The council voted to accept the total grant award of $46,700 that will be shared with Moore Police Department and the Cleveland County Sheriff's Office; Norman's portion was listed in the packet as $30,205.

In separate action, the council unanimously adopted ordinance amendments to streamline the historic district certificate of appropriateness (COA) application and notification process. Anna Eastar, historic…