NEWS UPDATES

Public Works director retires. The March 31 retirement of longtime Public Works director Charles Hardt led Mayor Dewey Bartlett Jr. to appoint Clayton Edwards to replace him in an interim capacity.

Edwards is the deputy director of environmental services for the city and a professional engineer. He will have signature authority for documents requiring approval by the Public Works director.

Edwards will report to Jeff Mulder, the city's director of transportation and infrastructure, who will continue to oversee the Public Works Department.

The mayor said Mulder will assist the Public Works Department through the transition and be more involved in the day-to-day management activities and the further evaluation of the department's core services and processes.

Buying Alliance. A joint city-county committee has announced agreements that will allow the two entities to work together on purchasing and public works.

Representatives of the Tulsa City-County Collaborative Committee said the two entities will be sharing vendor lists, which officials hope will encourage greater competition among suppliers. The city and county also are researching purchases for product similarities and the potential for making joint purchases.

City and county public works officials also are exploring ways to work together to ensure they have adequate supplies of sand and salt during winter storms, and to repair roads after excavation to work on water lines. According to officials, the city and county plan to expand a system they have used in the past for street work on common intersections, with the city supplying the materials and the county providing the labor.

The committee will continue to meet monthly through June, when the current fiscal year ends. The next meeting is scheduled for 3:30pm on April 26 at the Indian Nations Council of Governments headquarters.