A Tulsa-based group accuses a Sand Springs property owner of violating a 2013 agreement by agreeing to annex his land for the Project Spring data center.
Author Archives: Phillip Jackson
Phillip Jackson is the government reporter at the Tulsa Flyer. Phillip’s journalism career has taken shape at both national and local levels. After graduating from Hampton University, he went on to cover City Hall and the district attorney’s office in Philadelphia, police and breaking news in Memphis and criminal justice at the Baltimore Sun before becoming a social justice reporter for HuffPost. He is a proud alum of the 2024 National Press Foundation’s Paul Miller Fellowship and the 2021 Reporting on Criminal Justice in the Age of George Floyd Fellowship. Now, his reporting is focused on how decisions by government officials affect Tulsans.
Posted inGovernment
Tulsa has a citywide sidewalk shortage. Residents say it’s time for that to change.
Tulsa has long tried to solve its sidewalk shortcomings. But the flurry of policy changes hasn’t led to a long-term solution.
Posted inGovernment
In Tulsa’s newest housing investment, which communities could benefit the most? Developers chime in
As city officials figure out where to spend $47 million in housing investment, Tulsans say they don’t want underinvested parts of the city forgotten.
Posted inGovernment
Tulsa officials will consider a year-long moratorium on data centers. Here is what that could mean.
As AI infrastructure floods northeastern Oklahoma, a Tulsa councilor wants to pause construction on hyperscale data centers.
Posted inGovernment
Tulsans point to police shootings and past payouts in new calls for an independent monitor
The City of Tulsa was meant to get an independent police monitor under the previous mayor, but the effort stalled.
Posted inGovernment
South Tulsa councilor has nearly $1M to spend. Here’s where it could be headed.
District 8 Councilor Phil Lakin still has close to a million dollars left to spend on capital projects. Here are some ways those funds can be used.
Posted inGovernment
Tulsa mayor’s sales tax proposal is all but dead, with an unclear timeline of return
Councilors pushed against Mayor Monroe Nichols’ proposed sales tax hike last year. Now they’re shifting attention to a hotel/motel tax increase, amid other revenue options.
Posted inGovernment
Tulsa weighs changing zoning code for data centers. More action could be on the horizon.
As data center proposals flood Tulsa, city officials are weighing all options — from changing where the centers can be built to implementing a moratorium on new centers.
Posted inGovernment
As data centers boom, Oklahoma lawmakers consider new restrictions and regulations
From increasing oversight of the industry to proposing a moratorium on new data centers, here’s which bills are on the table in Oklahoma.
Posted inGovernment
Sand Springs council votes 6-1 to allow giant data center along Highway 97
Close to 300 people in the crowd reacted with both jeers and cheers.
Posted inGovernment
A Tulsan’s guide to participating in Oklahoma’s 2026 legislative session
From attending committee hearings to contacting your representatives, here’s what Tulsans can do to get involved during the legislative session.
Posted inGovernment
200K+ Oklahomans sign petition to vote on opening the state’s primary elections
State Question 836 would allow any registered voter to cast a ballot — and it would send the top two vote-getters straight to the general election, regardless of political party.