TURLEY, Okla. — Turley is in a rut.
It doesn’t have a solid leadership figure, many roads are crumbling, and the business presence in town is sparse. Many of its problems stem from its status as an unincorporated community.
Meanwhile, a group of citizens is trying to advance the place they call home. Coincidentally, the ringleader, Jason Turley shares a name with his hometown.
Besides the fire chief, everyone attending the Nov. 12 meeting inside a local church was just a regular citizen wanting to improve their town. Through their efforts, they have run into some challenges.
“We sat in here a year ago, and a room full of people said yes to incorporation,” Turley said, “We sit today, and little has been done on it.”
Take this, for instance. Chief Nelson Sager said the volunteer fire department should operate on a budget of about $500,000. In 2024, he said, they made about $30,000.
He said they can’t get funds from anyone else but citizens unless they incorporate.
“It seems like they’ve been kind of steadily divesting from [Turley],” Estevan Vezelici told 2 News Oklahoma.
2 News started listening to concerns in Turley when Vezelici brought them to 2 News’ listening booth at the Tulsa State Fair.
Local News
TOUGH TIMES IN TURLEY: Listening to community concerns
He mentioned the bumpy roads, the rundown houses, and the sparse business presence.
As Mr. Turley puts it, the appetite to incorporate the town is weak, “Even when I came and told the people it cost $6,000, I didn’t get one single dollar from anybody."
Still, these grassroots folks are trying and seem resolved to keep trying.
“We’re still Turley, Oklahoma, there’s no breath of anybody talking about annexation, or incorporation right now,” Turley said, “So I think we need to celebrate and be in that moment.”
An unincorporated town does not have a local government; it has an association like Turley. Being incorporated means the city can have more control over funding by controlling tax revenue.
According to Oklahoma Statutes, a petition must be filed with the county to become an incorporated town. Then, an election must be announced for registered voters to vote in.
If the majority of the votes favor the incorporation as a city, the town board would adopt the resolution and declare the city incorporated.
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