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EDC reports $418 million in new investment; city monitoring potential data‑center inquiry
Summary
James Bell of the Broken Arrow EDC reported $418 million in capital investment and 2,525 jobs supported under the Amplify Broken Arrow strategy; city staff also updated the council on outreach from a data‑center representative and said staff is preparing pre‑development questions and due diligence under HB 2992 ratepayer‑protection concerns.
At the May 19 meeting, James Bell, president and CEO of the Broken Arrow Chamber and Economic Development Corporation, presented the EDC’s biannual report covering Oct. 2025–March 2026 and said the program had supported roughly $418 million in new capital investment and 2,525 new jobs through employer attraction and retention efforts.
Bell highlighted Project SAM (an Amazon last‑mile facility reported as about $61 million with ~100 jobs), Project Sapling (a $32 million expansion with 52 new jobs), and progress on AeroForge and site‑readiness work. The EDC also reported business retention/expansion visits, entrepreneurship programming and workforce outreach that connected tens of thousands of students to career activities.
Separately, city staff updated the council about a prior press release regarding outreach from a group representing a potential data‑center interest. The city noted the legal and regulatory context (House Bill 2992 was cited in the staff summary) and said staff and EDC representatives are preparing a list of pre‑development questions—covering traffic, noise, environmental and ratepayer implications—should an applicant request a pre‑development meeting. The city emphasized it will continue to provide periodic updates as more information becomes available.
What’s next: The EDC will continue contract deliverables and progress updates; city staff and EDC said they will return with answers should a formal pre‑development request for a data center arrive.
