Bartlesville outlines five Feb. 10 ballot propositions, council staff says package focuses on streets, safety and parks

City staff presented an overview of five propositions that will appear on the Feb. 10, 2026 city ballot and described how the measures would fund streets, public safety, parks, municipal facilities and economic development.

"We're going to walk through what's on the ballot, how the funding works, and what kinds of projects are included," said Larry Curtis, the city's community development director, in a presentation to the Planning Commission. He emphasized the measures are structured as renewals rather than new tax rates.

Curtis said the total package shown to commissioners is $35,000,000, with the largest portion (about $18,275,000) dedicated to streets, bridges and drainage. Municipal buildings and equipment were listed at about $7,362,500, public-safety equipment at roughly $5,362,500 and parks and recreation around $3,500,000.

Curtis outlined each funding tool and what it would support. Three propositions are general-obligation (GO) bond questions intended to pay for long-term capital projects such as street reconstruction, major facility upgrades and large equipment. Two measures are sales-tax renewals: a capital improvement project (CIP) sales tax intended for preventative street maintenance, storm-siren upgrades and park assets, and a 1.4' economic-development sales tax for business incentives and site preparation.

On street work, Curtis said the city uses a Pavement Condition Index and a citizen street-and-traffic committee to prioritize major reconstruction and preventative maintenance. He listed roughly $5,050,000 from CIP sales-tax funding for preventative maintenance plus $550,000 proposed from bonds for that purpose.

Parks projects highlighted included a $1,200,000 artificial turf installation at Pricefields, $400,000 in restroom renovations, $400,000 for park safety lighting, $300,000 for playground equipment replacement and smaller irrigation and amenity upgrades across city parks.

Public safety items included planned fire apparatus replacements of about $1,550,000; a phased police-vehicle replacement program totaling about $1,960,000 for roughly 10 vehicles; vehicle equipment outfitting (about $1,067,500); 75 tablets for police and fire staff; and a $190,000 upgrade to the 911 CallWorks dispatch system, along with body-camera upgrades and replacement less-lethal devices.

Curtis also described municipal-technology and facility items such as a library elevator modernization estimated at $300,000, a storm-siren system upgrade at $800,000, community-center lighting at $800,000 and server replacements at $800,000. He said two dump trucks with snow equipment (about $600,000) and a general-fund vehicle-replacement program (about $1,500,000) were included for operational resilience.

On economic development, Curtis said the 1.4' sales-tax fund has historically operated on five-year sunsets and supports business attraction. He cited past projects — Blue Whale Materials, Lincoln Electric, ABB and others — as examples staff attributes to prior economic-development activity.

Commissioners asked for logistical details about the election. Curtis and the chair confirmed the election is Feb. 10, 2026, with early voting beginning the week before at City Hall.

The presentation materials, Curtis said, list projects tied to each proposition so voters can evaluate items individually. For more details, the city directed residents to the election webpage and the project materials posted online.

The Planning Commission heard the presentation for information; no vote on the propositions occurred at the meeting.