Cooper to seek Ward 2 seat on Oklahoma City Council
James Cooper, a public school teacher and transit authority trustee, said Thursday he would run for the Ward 2 seat on the Oklahoma City Council.
Cooper, 36, lives in the Paseo District. He ran for the seat and lost in 2015, when Ed Shadid won his second term with 59.1 percent of the vote in the primary.
Shadid, who was first elected in 2011, has said he will not seek a third term.
Cooper teaches a college prep curriculum and creative writing at Jefferson Middle School in south Oklahoma City. He took part in Oklahoma’s teacher walkout in April.
“I’m ready to fight for better schools, safer and stronger neighborhoods, reliable public transit, and to preserve and revitalize our diverse historic districts,” he said.
On the Central Oklahoma Transportation and Parking Authority board Cooper has advocated for Sunday bus service and regular Sunday streetcar service.
“Millennials — my generation — want to live where we can walk, bike and take public transit to where we need to go,” he said. “Baby boomers want to age in place with dignity.”
As he did four years ago, Cooper said he would advocate for connectivity — safe sidewalks, streetlights, frequent bus service — to enhance neighborhoods.
Former Mayor Mick Cornett appointed Cooper to the transit authority in May 2015.
Cooper’s advocacy has contributed to decisions to expand evening bus service and to plans for Sunday bus routes, beginning next year.
Cooper earned his bachelor’s degree in film studies with a minor in political science from the University of Oklahoma in 2007.
He is an adjunct professor of film studies at Oklahoma City University. His master’s degree in English is from Oklahoma State, where he was a columnist for the student newspaper.
Paseo’s history as an early commercial district informs Cooper’s desire for revitalized neighborhoods.
He said the district was designed with the intent that shopping be within walking distance for residents, with downtown just a trolley ride away.
“Our city’s founders understood the importance of living in walkable neighborhoods,” he said.
Cooper noted MAPS 3 sales tax revenue and interest have exceeded the program budget, set back in 2009, by an estimated $31.9 million.
With advisory committees beginning to focus on how to spend the money, he said priority should be placed on building a fifth senior health and wellness center, more sidewalks and trails, and renovating historic Union Station in the MAPS 3 downtown park.