OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) — The Oklahoma Supreme Court ruled Tuesday the City of Norman can move forward with a controversial tax-increment financing plan for a massive entertainment district and new University of Oklahoma basketball arena without putting the decision to a vote of the people.
The ruling clears a major legal hurdle for the planned Rock Creek Entertainment District along Interstate 35.
The project includes thousands of square feet of retail and restaurants, along with a new arena for OU basketball.
In 2024, the Norman City Council approved creating a tax-increment financing, or TIF, district for the project.
State Supreme Court ruling moves proposed $1 billion Norman entertainment district forward
The TIF allows developers to keep sales tax revenue generated within the district to pay for up to $600 million of the project’s roughly $1 billion cost over the next 25 years.
Some Norman residents strongly opposed that decision.
“All the revenues and property taxes and sales taxes from activity there will—instead of going to the city and the county and the schools—that will go to pay off the debt for the arena,” Cynthia Rogers said.
“This city lives and dies on sales tax revenue,” Paul Arcaroli said. “And, quite frankly, the bank account is really low. So we need we need the money more than we need an arena.”
Arcaroli and Rogers helped organize the group ‘Oklahomans for Responsible Economic Development’ (ORED), which gathered signatures to force a public vote on the TIF district.
“In order to submit this petition, in this case, it was 6000 was the number. We ended up with 10,500 verified,” Arcaroli said. “And that would have on its face gotten us a vote.”
A separate group later sued, arguing—among other things— the petition’s ballot language inaccurately described how much TIF money the project would use.
A Cleveland County District Court judge agreed and blocked the vote.
ORED appealed that decision to the Oklahoma Supreme Court.
In an almost unanimous ruling Tuesday, the Supreme Court upheld the lower court’s decision, finding the petition language was inaccurate and that a public vote could not proceed.
“You can always find a reason. You missed a comma, you weren’t clear enough,” Rogers said. “You can always find a reason to reject it.”
“Clearly the referendum petition is not really a tool,” Arcaroli said. “It’s not available to those people who are the most vulnerable—and that’s our neighbors. We’re the most vulnerable.”
Oklahoma referee ejects entire section of fans during boys basketball game
Economic development leaders praised the ruling.
The Cleveland County Economic Development Coalition’s board chairman called the decision a victory in a statement, writing, “For too long, this project has been stalled by legal maneuvers that ignored the long-term benefits this district will bring to our residents, our students, and our local businesses. With the Supreme Court’s decisive ruling, we can finally stop litigating and start building.”
Cleveland County Commissioner Rod Cleveland also applauded the decision.
“This development represents smart, responsible growth that does not raise property taxes while delivering significant benefits to our community’s quality of life,” Cleveland said. “OU Athletics stands as the largest economic driver for Cleveland County, and this project will further amplify its impact, drawing even more visitors, investment, and vitality to Norman.”
The ruling allows construction on the project to move forward at any time.
Opponents of the TIF district said they are meeting with attorneys and exploring their next legal options.
Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KFOR.com Oklahoma City.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.yahoo.com ’
