Colonel William A. Phillips

Kirk Humphreys (born September 13, 1950) is an American politician who served as Mayor of Oklahoma City from April 9, 1998, to November 3, 2004.[2] He was considered a favorite candidate of the Republican party establishment for U.S. Senator in 2004,[3][4] losing to former Congressman Tom Coburn, MD in the primary.[5] Humphreys was appointed to The Oklahoma City Public Schools Board as Chairman, but was later unseated by former state Sen. Angela Monson.

Humphreys is the Executive Chairman of Humphreys Capital, a real estate investment fund management company based in Oklahoma City.[6]

Education

Humphreys graduated from the University of Oklahoma in 1972 with a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance.[6]

Career

From 1972 until 1989, Humphreys built a distribution business with his brothers that specialized in the distribution of beauty products and other non-food items to leading retailers across the United States.[6] In 1989 he founded The Humphreys Company, a real estate development and investment firm. Among the company's current projects are Carlton Landing, a 1,800-acre new town development on Lake Eufaula in southeastern Oklahoma, and The Wheeler District, the redevelopment of the 150-acre site of the former Downtown Airpark on the Oklahoma River near downtown Oklahoma City.[6]

Humphreys is Executive Chairman of Humphreys Capital, which manage real estate investment funds with more than $700 million in assets in 15 states.

Humphreys is vice-chairman of the Oklahoma City Airport Trust, vice-chairman of the Oklahoma Industries Authority and serves on the board of the Hough Ear Institute. He is a former trustee of the Urban Land Institute and was founding chairman of the Oklahoma District Council of ULI.

From 2008 until 2019, Humphreys was co-host of "Flash Point," an award-winning locally-produced Sunday morning political talk show on Oklahoma City NBC affiliate KFOR-TV (channel 4), alongside co-host Mike Turpen and moderator Kevin Ogle.

Religious Liberties Controversy

On December 10, 2017, in his capacity as a "Flash Point" cohost, Humphreys made comments about his personal beliefs, the "me too" movement, homosexuality, and his belief in the existence of universal truth in a culture of moral relativism. His comments prompted calls for his resignation from the University of Oklahoma Board of Regents by the LGBTQ Alumni Society and Freedom Oklahoma.[7][8][9] In addition, Paula Lewis, the chair of the Oklahoma City Public Schools board of education, issued a statement calling for Humphreys to resign from the board of John Rex Charter Elementary School, located in downtown Oklahoma City.[10] A few dozen John Rex parents held a protest December 15, 2017, also demanding Humphreys' resignation from the school's board. In January, 2018, more than 2,000 parents of John Rex students and citizens of Oklahoma City signed a letter of support for Humphreys, demanding that he remain in a role of leadership for John Rex and defending his religious liberties http://m.news9.com/story.aspx?story=37220732&catId=112032 [11][12] On December 21, 2017, at the end of a special meeting of the OU Board of Regents, Humphreys announced he would resign from the board of regents at the beginning of the spring semester in January 2018.[13]

Politics

Humphreys was elected to the Putnam City School Board in 1987 and served until 1995.[6] In 1998, he was elected mayor of Oklahoma City and served two terms. As mayor, he changed the popular opinion of the downtown revitalization effort, known as Metropolitan Area Projects (or MAPS), to a more favorable view. This resulted in increased economic development and improved quality of living in the downtown Oklahoma City area and a move toward a second project, known as MAPS for Kids, aimed at a revitalization of the area's public schools.[14]

In 2004, Humphreys was a candidate in the Republican primary for the U.S. Senate and was considered a favorite for the party's nomination as he was endorsed by incumbent Don Nickles and Oklahoma's other U.S. Senator James Inhofe.[3][4] However, he was defeated by Tom Coburn with a vote of 61% to 25%.[5]

Personal

In 1972, Humphreys married the former Danna Kircher of Stroud, Oklahoma. He and Danna have three children and 15 grandchildren.

References

  1. ^ "Kirk Humphreys". City of Oklahoma City. Retrieved July 16, 2018.
  2. ^ "Previous Mayors of Oklahoma City". City of Oklahoma City. Archived from the original on September 28, 2007. Retrieved August 21, 2007.
  3. ^ a b Lois Romano (July 12, 2004). "In Oklahoma, GOP Race Not a Given". Washington Post. Retrieved August 21, 2007.
  4. ^ a b "Watts, Cole endorse Humphreys in Senate race". The Journal Record. November 26, 2003. Retrieved August 21, 2007.
  5. ^ a b John Skorburg (September 1, 2004). "Fiscal Conservative Wins GOP Senate Nod in Oklahoma". Budget & Tax News. Retrieved August 21, 2007.
  6. ^ a b c d e "About Us". Humphreys Real Estate Investments. Archived from the original on May 6, 2007. Retrieved August 21, 2007.
  7. ^ Jaschik, Scott (December 12, 2017). "Anger Over Oklahoma Regent's Anti-Gay Comments". Inside Higher Ed. Retrieved December 12, 2017.
  8. ^ Causey, Adam Kealoha (December 11, 2017). "Former Oklahoma City mayor chided for anti-gay comments". The Oklahoman. Retrieved December 12, 2017.
  9. ^ Bauer-Wolf, Jeremy (December 13, 2017). "Calls Escalate for Oklahoma Regent to Quit". Inside Higher Ed. Retrieved December 13, 2017.
  10. ^ "OKCPS board chair calls for Humphreys to resign". Oklahoma City Free Press. December 12, 2017. Retrieved December 23, 2017.
  11. ^ "John Rex protesters seek Humphreys' resignation from OKC board". NewsOK.com. December 15, 2017. Retrieved December 23, 2017.
  12. ^ "Home". humphreysresign.wordpress.com.
  13. ^ Miller, Ken (December 21, 2017). "Oklahoma regents vice chair to resign after anti-gay comment". Archived from the original on December 22, 2017. Retrieved December 23, 2017 – via www.WashingtonPost.com.
  14. ^ Bill May (January 30, 2002). "Humphreys: Oklahoma City has a competitive edge". The Journal Record. Archived from the original on June 16, 2011. Retrieved August 21, 2007.