Norman Ward 7 race features two hopefuls

Two candidates are seeking the Ward 7 city council post: incumbent Stephen Tyler Holman and challenger Traci Baker.

Baker, 18, a University of Oklahoma freshman majoring in political science and pre-law, is the youngest candidate ever to file for city council.

Baker said she believes in more liberty and personal freedom, and is running on a platform of pro-freedom. She is the Libertarian Caucus chairman for Oklahoma, the secretary of the National Outright Libertarians Organization and was Gary Johnson’s state volunteer coordinator.

As an openly transgender woman, Baker said she is interested in “maximizing freedom and quality of life for all Norman residents.”

Baker said she favors deregulation of zoning and would like to work toward lowering Norman’s sales tax.

Water — and protecting water quality — is one of the biggest issues Baker believes the city council will face in the future. She also supports efforts to build a stand-alone senior citizens center.

Holman, 32, is seeking his third term on the council. He served on the Norman 2060 Strategic Water Supply Committee and has served as liaison for the city in organizing the Norman Music Festival, as well as being the Main Stage emcee.

As a member of the council, Holman serves on the community planning and transportation committee, is chairman of the city council oversight committee and served on the animal welfare oversight committee.

“Stormwater and how to manage it is probably the biggest challenge facing the council,” Holman said. “I’m also very involved in the center city visioning committee, which looks at development policies that impact Norman. Not all new development is bad. The challenge is looking at it and deciding if it fits in with the neighborhood where it is being built,” he said.

Ward 7 is unique in that it includes much of core Norman, as well as OU student housing and rural residents, Holman said.

He said he favors building a stand-alone senior citizens center, but finding a way to finance it is a challenge.

“The city council hasn’t come up with a silver bullet,” he said. “But I figure the senior citizens have taken time to get involved, and they’ve paid taxes all their lives, so they deserve a new center.”

The council also faces a challenge in getting Norman Forward projects built, including a new east-side library, a central library and a new municipal water park, Holman said.

The former manager of Friendly Market, Holman is currently charged with one felony count of acquiring proceeds from drug activity, as well as 12 misdemeanor counts of possession of drug paraphernalia, all stemming from his employment at the now defunct Friendly Market.

Holman said he is optimistic that he will be found not guilty of the charges “or I wouldn’t be running for re-election. I have received tremendous support from residents and was encouraged to seek a third term on the council.”

Holman said he has a tentative trial date set in May.