Property owners in and around historic Downtown Jenks are upset at plans by Jenks City Government to change the zoning to restrict what can be built and limit categories of commercial growth.

The Jenks City Planning Director has said that the aim of the plan is to keep the historic aspect of downtown Jenks and to promote growth.

Many property owners disagree.

Ronda Bender, whose parents opened Ragland’s Riverside Drug drugstore in 1973, graduated from Jenks High School in 1985. Her parent sold the pharmacy to Reasor’s in 1998.

“My dad bought land in Jenks through the years and spent enormous time and resources rezoning from agriculture to commercial general (CG),” Bender said. “I believe he helped improve the overall infrastructure of Jenks by selling property to Tulsa Teachers Credit Union, Louie’s strip center and Walgreens. He also donated several parcels of land over the years to the City of Jenks, at their requests.”

Just days before a December 9, 2021, hearing, she was notified that the city was voting to rezone her family’s parcel adjacent to the Jenks Bridge from CG (commercial general) to RTC (riverfront tourist commercial).

She spoke at that meeting and asked the Planning Commission not to rezone the property.

“Rezoning typically occurs when a landowner applies to rezone – which we had not,” she said. “I was able to demonstrate to the planning commission that my current  CG zoning provided 79 uses and demonstrated how their proposed RTC rezoning would reduce my uses by approximately 50%. Additionally, I provided a brokers’ opinion that showed that the value of the land was reduced by 50%.”

She asked that the commission hear from an independent appraiser and a previous planner for the city, Robert Bell, disagreed because it might set a precedent.

Bender did some research and found that the city was proposing three new zones that could affect property owners and 300 parcels of land. Apparently, the city had been holding meetings about these changes over the course of three years. Seven meetings had been posted but those postings on social media were not clear that rezoning would be discussed.

“I began going door to door on Main Street,” Bender said. “I handed out the rezoning chart I had received from the city. I could not find 1 business or residence that knew anything about the proposed rezoning. Some city personnel, planning commission board members and councilors have claimed hundreds attended these meetings. I  made an open records requesting the social media posted events to obtain a sign-in sheet and minutes of the meetings. Zero sign in sheets or minutes were received from 2019 to fall of 2021 meetings. The only ones they could produce were the ones I attended after I received the public hearing notice in late November, 2021.”

She met with the city planner and other city officials and repeated her request to not change the zoning or instead remove her parcel from the proposed RTC rezoning. She showed them a covenant that stated that the property would be zoned CG until 2038. She said they “blatantly disregarded this covenant.”

“Many business owners, landowners and residential owners have met with the City of Jenks,” Bender said. “We have attempted to meet with city councilors. We collectively were able to influence the city planner to make a few changes and add a few uses back to the UDO.

“Even after a few concessions have been made, what does not change is that the City of Jenks (was) still proposing and taking a final vote on April 5 to rezone somewhere in the neighborhood of 150 parcels that owners have not applied for.”