Chapman returns

By: J. David Chapman/April 18, 2019

I am back.

Soon after announcing my candidacy for Edmond City Council Ward 1, I received a call from Russell Ray, editor of The Journal Record. He informed me that The Journal Record had a policy of not allowing political candidates to write columns in the newspaper.

I have had the honor of writing the Lot Lines column since the unexpected death of Darren Currin in May 2016. Darren was extremely popular in real estate circles, and so was his column – Lot Lines.

I have done my best to uphold the quality information that Darren brought every week to Journal Record readers. I have now written approximately 150 articles for The Journal Record Lot Lines column. It is not easy to produce a weekly column and I depend on our readers to tell me what they want to hear.

When Russell called to tell me I was unable to continue writing this column until after the election, I immediately started thinking about who I would trust to bring you information every week while I was unavailable. It did not take long for me to put a call in to my colleague Bert Belanger. I have trusted Bert to teach real estate law and real estate principles for us at the University of Central Oklahoma. I have recommended Bert to many clients in need of legal, brokerage, or development advice and consultation. Bert is a talented attorney, excellent broker, and a pretty darn good writer as you have witnessed. Thank you, Bert, for carrying the torch for the last few months as I ventured into politics.

So, about that. I did, in fact, win. After nearly six months of campaigning for the primary and general election, I am humbled and honored to serve Edmond on our City Council. The swearing-in ceremony will be held May 6 and my first council meeting will be on May 13.

Some of you have asked me why I ran for Edmond City Council. It is simple. City council is just another way to serve the community that I love. It is public service and, frankly, my experience and education have uniquely prepared me for this community service. My goal is also simple. Edmond is great, but I hope to listen to our citizens and help make it even better.

J. David Chapman is an associate professor of finance and real estate at the University of Central Oklahoma (jchapman7@uco.edu).