B.A. Councilor Sees Bright Future
By EMILY RAMSEY
Managing Editor
NEWLY ELECTED: Scott Eudey speaks in March at a Broken Arrow City Council election forum, with city council incumbent Jill Norman. Eudey unseated Norman in the April election.
Scott Eudey, Broken Arrow’s newest city councilor, may not have grown up in Broken Arrow, but his affection for the community and the city as a whole is clear.
Eudey’s time in the greater Tulsa area began when he attended college at the University of Tulsa.
Growing up in western Oklahoma, “I just wanted to come to college in Tulsa,” says Eudey. “When we drove to Tulsa to visit, Tulsa looked beautiful, so green with rolling hills.”
After college graduation, Eudey and his wife moved to Dallas while he attended law school; they returned to the Tulsa area after law school 17 years ago and chose to settle in Broken Arrow due to its affordability and high quality of schools for their two children, he says.
Upon moving to Broken Arrow, Eudey approached Jack W. Ross for a job with his law firm – a job in an office that he has never left. “I have only worked in this office,” he laughs.
He is now managing partner of the firm. The focus of Eudey’s practice is in the areas of estate planning, business and real estate.
Eudey reflects fondly over his years working closely with Ross, who Eudey credits as the person who most encouraged his community involvement.
“Jack has a contagious love for Broken Arrow,” says Eudey. “He told me, ‘When you have a business in the community and you expect that community to support you, you need to give back.’”
Eudey served as chairman of the Broken Arrow Chamber Board of Directors in 2012. He served on the Rooster Days committee for 13 years, six years as chair. He is a member of the Rotary Club of Broken Arrow, a founding member of the Board of Directors for Keep Broken Arrow Beautiful, and is in his second three-year term on the board of Broken Arrow Seniors, Inc., where he serves as president. He also recently began serving on the Broken Arrow Arts Council.
Eudey was elected to the Broken Arrow City Council in April. He replaced incumbent Jill Norman.
As Eudey begins his first months as an elected official, he has outlined his priorities, one of those being economic development: “Raising taxes should be the last resort; therefore, we want to increase the opportunities for things that generate sales tax.”
A large part that makes up that increase in sales tax revenue is the creation of the Rose District and downtown’s revitalization. “If we don’t take advantage of our downtown, it dies,” says Eudey. “We’ve got a great start so far.”
Part of the future plans for downtown include extending Main Street’s streetscaping and landscaping, with the help of Vision 2025 funds.
As downtown draws more visitors, another area of focus will be on increasing parking options and working with business owners to generate new ideas.
Also seeing much growth potential is south Broken Arrow, which has experienced an upswing in activity with the opening of the Broken Arrow Warren Theatre in December.
“We wanted an anchor that would cause growth in the area,” he says regarding local officials’ efforts to attract Warren Theatre. “It was partly strategic because south Broken Arrow was going down.”
Although, Eudey is positive regarding the future of the area. “I envision a vibrant south Broken Arrow,” he says, “that will grow while still preserving the high value of the community.”
Another area expected to see continued growth is the area surrounding Bass Pro Shops, including the soon-to-be-constructed conference center.
However, any city can expect to experience some challenges with its growth.
“We run the risk of losing how special we are as a city if we don’t do it the right way with our growth,” he says. “We want to keep the best of our traditions while still moving forward.”
Those traditions include the 85-year-old Rooster Days celebration, which “is special to Broken Arrow.”
There is also the city’s focus on safety (“We have extraordinary fire and police departments”), its parks system and its people, he continues.
“We have nice people, and we have people who are willing to step up and work together. Every city can say they have great people, but I think Broken Arrow can say it just a little bit more.”
Updated 05-25-2015
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