Jenks Natural Gas Power Plant
A Northeast Oklahoma electric utility is taking steps to purchase a power plant in Jenks.
Public Service Company of Oklahoma is asking the state’s Corporation Commission for approval to purchase an existing natural gas power plant in Jenks for $730 million dollars.
To cover the purchase, PSO plans to incrementally raise consumer costs. By June of next year, the average PSO power customer would see an increase of about $7 on their monthly bill. The company also plans to request another rate hike in 2025.
The plant, Green Country Energy, began operations in 2002 and is currently owned by J-Power USA. PSO says purchasing it will help the company meet its customers’ projected power needs.
Ninnekah Public Schools Sexual Abuse Settlement
A small school district south of Oklahoma City is paying $7.5 million to settle a lawsuit over alleged sexual abuse by a basketball coach. The suit was filed by 14 women and girls who say the abuse spanned seven years.
First reported by nonprofit news outlet Oklahoma Voice, the agreement with Ninnekah Public Schools was finalized in Oklahoma City federal court Wednesday. Former basketball coach Ronald Gene Akins pleaded guilty to 10 felony counts and is currently serving a 15-year prison sentence.
The lawsuit, filed three years ago, accused the district of negligence, violating Title IX and the Fourteenth Amendment, and inflicting emotional distress. Per the settlement’s terms, the five former district employees named in the suit for failing to report the abuse were dropped from the case.
The lawsuit spurred an overhauling of Ninnekah’s Title IX policies and a downgrading of its accreditation status from the State Department of Education. Attorneys say the settlement sets a state record for payouts in school abuse cases.
Cherokee Film Institute Sound Stage
Indigenous stories are increasingly prevalent in film, and one of Oklahoma’s tribes just added a new sound stage.
The soundproof studio building is 10,000 square feet with RV hookups, production offices, and spaces for classes hosted by the Cherokee Film Institute. It’s the second building at the tribe's film studio grounds in Owasso.
Senior director of Cherokee Film Jennifer Loren said the studio space is almost 10 years in the making.
"We’re looking to support our communities and create economic development opportunities wherever we can, but it’s always a win-win. So when we do that for ourselves, we do that for our communities," she said.
The tribe’s film office expansion comes in the wake of Native representation in Oklahoma through TV shows like Reservation Dogs and Echo, and movies like Killers of the Flower Moon. Loren said the sound stage continues these efforts, and will help Native filmmakers control how their stories are told in film.
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