FYE 14 Budget prelim - City of Norman

CITY OF NORMANHistory of Norman, OklahomaIn 1870, the United States Land Office contracted with a professional engineer to survey much ofOklahoma territory. Abner E. Norman, a young surveyor, became chairman and leader of the centralsurvey area in Indian Territory. The surveyor’s crew burned the words “NORMAN’S CAMP” into anelm tree near a watering hole to taunt their younger supervisor. When the “SOONERS” (those whoheaded west before the official Land Run date, April 22, 1889) and the other settlers arrived in theheart of Oklahoma, they kept the name “NORMAN.” Today, with an estimated 116,255 residents,Norman is the third largest city in the State of Oklahoma.Norman was primarily developed around the Santa FeRailroad. Home to a passenger depot as well as a freightstation, Norman became the headquarters for the railway.As business grew, it was necessary to expand the depot threetimes in the first few years of its existence. The lastexpansion was announced by J.E. Hurley, General Managerof the Santa Fe Railway, in 1909. The Santa Fe Depot wasdeeded to the City in 1972 and has had major renovationsover the past ten years.The City of Norman has agreed to preserve and maintain the Santa Fe Depot as a historical landmarkand use the building in a manner as to benefit the entire community. Performing Arts Studio, Inc.leases the building for rental of meetings, banquets and parties. Daily Amtrak passenger service isprovided at the depot as well.The railroad laid the foundation for Norman to flourish into a prominent city. While other Oklahomatowns were battling to be the capitol, Norman’s Mayor, T.R. Waggoner, directed a bill through theTerritorial Legislature to become home of the state’s first institution of higher learning. In 1890,Norman was chosen as the location for the University of Oklahoma (OU), contingent upon the countypassing bonds to construct a building. Town and country residents were also required to donate 40acres of land for a campus site. The residents of Norman were successful in all their plans to be OU’shome and by 1895, the university enrolled 100 students. Today, the Norman campus has an enrollmentof approximately 24,144.Today, OU and the City of Norman are still making history. Norman is recognized as one of the mostprogressive cities in the state and the Norman Public School system is acknowledged as one of the topschool systems in Oklahoma.Norman’s rich history plays an important role in citizen’s lives and we continually make our historybook more exciting with each passing year.ANNUAL BUDGET1