While art pieces are being installed and an invite-only grand opening looms for late 2026, details about the public financing components of Edmond’s Uncommon Ground Sculpture Park remain scant, with project leaders declining to release documents about their budget, which is either $50 million or $72 million, depending which numbers are on display.
Under construction at the northwest corner of North Coltrane Road and East 2nd Street, the park carries a $50 million construction price tag, according to Melissa Pepper, executive director of The Uncommon Ground Sculpture Park Inc., a nonprofit entity dedicated to fundraising for the project.
At least four chunks of funding are being derived from public sources. The City of Edmond has pledged a $10 million forgivable loan to support construction costs, which is now expected to be captured by the developer in one large draw when work is complete. Meanwhile, a surprise $5 million allocation from the Oklahoma Legislature’s Progressing Rural Economic Prosperity Fund — which raised rural lawmakers’ eyebrows in May — also sits unclaimed.
In House Bill 2794, the Oklahoma Legislature surprised city leaders and representatives by telling the Department of Commerce to use up to $5 million “to construct a municipal park located north of I-344 and west of I-35.” But according to a representative of the state agency, The Uncommon Ground Sculpture Park Inc. has yet to complete its application to claim those funds.
In February, the Oklahoma Board of Commissioners approved $50,000 to support installation of the park’s centerpiece sculpture. Most recently, the Oklahoma Department of Transportation has pledged $2.6 million from its Lake Access Program to reimburse UGSP Inc. for constructing about a half mile of park access road from Coltrane.
Edmond Mayor Mark Nash, himself a financial professional, acknowledged that understanding the Uncommon Ground project’s many revenue streams could be difficult for the general public.
“Some of this stuff (…) I don’t know how you write a story about it, because it gets so confusing so fast. This is one of those. And if you can figure out what the story is, there’s some good stories here,” Nash said. “It’s just, how do you write one that people are going to follow?”
Despite the project’s long and winding road to liftoff, key financial questions remain, such as exactly how much the City of Edmond will incur for utility costs, road improvements and a water drainage project.
“How much are we spending? I’d love to know that,” Nash said. “I’d love to know exactly what it’s costing us, but until it becomes part of our system, we have no right to get that information.”
Making sense of that statement involves unpacking the unusual dynamics and components of the public-private partnership at hand.
For now, the 62-acre tract of land is owned by the French Family Charitable Trust. Longtime Edmond businessman Hal French, a petroleum and real estate entrepreneur, purchased the property for $4.5 million in December 2021. Along with Debby Hampton, Dave Lopez, Teresa Rose and David Thompson, French is one of five board members for The Uncommon Ground Sculpture Park Inc., which received IRS determination as a 501(c)3 nonprofit in July. The entity had been established in September 2021 as the Route 66 Sculpture Park Foundation before being renamed.
In October 2021, French formed a trio of limited liability companies — Sculpture Park, LLC; Sculpture Park Construction, LLC; and Sculpture Park Operations, LLC — in support of his plan. While two of those companies may represent a prior iteration of the development concept, Sculpture Park Operations is designated in the project’s operating agreement as manager of the park.
Eventually, the nonprofit is slated to turn the property over to Edmond’s Park Conservancy Trust, a public body created in November 2021 and funded by the city. The project’s development agreement requires UGSP Inc. to “market, lease or sell” some of the property for restaurant and retail development, with “all net proceeds” of any sale or lease being donated to a new endowment to support annual operations of the park.
The operating agreement requires Edmond’s Park Conservancy Trust to pay no more than $899,360 each year to Sculpture Park Operations, which would also receive about $385,000 of endowment funding to cover its estimated $1.28 million budget, according to the document. The trust must invoice the City of Edmond and the Edmond Public Works Authority quarterly to fund its payments to Sculpture Park Operations, LLC.
Meanwhile, the city is obligated under the development agreement to “be responsible for all future road improvements including engineering and/or widening along Coltrane and 2nd Street.”
That component became more complicated last November after Edmond voters roundly rejected a general obligation bond package that would have included funding for the intersection work, which does not face a deadline in the development agreement.
Nash, who opposed the GO bond package, said the city “has to walk a fine line” as it navigates “the complexities” of having a private citizen who wants to “do a big thing” and “give it to you.”
“They want to do it their way, and we just have to make sure that they’re following code,” Nash said. “But you don’t want to get so heavy handed involved in it that it slows the deal down.”
‘We’re doing it because we love art’
Uncertainty about the city’s obligations constituted the primary reason former Edmond Mayor Darrell Davis chose to abstain from votes that green lit the project in 2024 — a welcome development for many community members after the effort appeared defunct in late 2023.
“Guess what? I support the development of the park,” Davis said before a May 2024 vote. “In my mind, in my experience, if we don’t have this evaluation, this risk assessment, this type of documentation — which is going to be a guestimation — but we’ve got to have something to go forward for the next councils to figure out what is what.”
While explaining the operating agreement that obligates the city to pay up to $899,360 annually for maintenance, attorney Todd McKinnis said at the next council meeting that the city is expected to face between $400,000 and $500,000 of yearly utility costs. Additional park operating costs are expected to be paid by the new endowment, which UGSP Inc. will create through leasing or selling a portion of the property for restaurant and retail sites adjoining the park.
Pepper told NonDoc by text message Sept. 26 that the nonprofit needs to raise and endow about $22 million to fund operating expenses under the agreement.
“[$50 million] is needed to complete (the) park build,” Pepper said. “If you include endowment and first year annual operating budget, it’s $72 million.”
As construction progresses, the project could also see some funding recovered through the city’s sales tax rebate agreement, which the Edmond City Council also approved in May 2024. Essentially, all local taxes paid on construction materials could be returned to the developer after documentation is submitted, although McKinnis said he does not believe much sales tax will ultimately be rebated. That agreement’s terms require the park to be free to the public.
Attorney and former Edmond Mayor Randel Shadid represented French during his initial effort to reach a deal with the City of Edmond. While French has declined interview requests and once suggested his name not need be mentioned in articles about the project, Shadid spoke to his friend’s philanthropic intent.
“He’s not making a dime on this, nor am I,” Shadid, who has donated sculptures for installation, said Aug. 14. “We’re doing it because we love art and thought it was a great project, great use of this land.”
Of $50 million build budget, public funds total $17.65 million so far
If all goes to plan, the park will meet its October 2026 opening goal to align with the centennial celebration of Route 66.
“Our grand opening is themed ‘Celebrate 66,’ and that’s 66 different park-related activities to introduce the park to the community and the community to the park,” Pepper said Aug. 20 while providing a tour of the property.
The Route 66 celebration events will be invite-only to allow landscaping to mature and to manage traffic flow, Pepper said, adding that the park will be totally free and open to the public starting in the spring of 2027.
While she pointed out sculpture installations and the site of the Edmond Fine Arts Institute’s new facility, Pepper was less forthcoming on the Aug. 20 tour about the project’s complicated financial arrangements, instead asking that specific financial details be requested by text message. The Uncommon Ground Sculpture Park website features a list of supporters and a colorful thermometer proclaiming that $37.53 million of the $50 million park construction budget has been raised.
“Still working with $38 million raised,” Pepper texted Sept. 26, although she declined to provide a breakdown of the funding sources.
Pepper suggested she could create a pie chart outlining the project’s funding, but she said it would not be ready ahead of the publication of this article. Asked again Oct. 14 for a clearer breakdown of the $38 million, Pepper expressed concerns about discussing details for fear the project’s complex nature would be published inaccurately or misunderstood by readers.
Ultimately, Pepper opted to offer a percentage-based statement because “it’s so complicated” it would take her “an hour” to explain the details.
“We’ve raised nearly 80 percent of our fundraising goal to complete the build of the park. Once 100 percent is raised, we will begin fundraising for our first year annual operating funds and our endowment to support operations and maintenance,” Pepper wrote Oct. 14. “Contributions include gifts from individual donors, foundations, corporations and government entities such as Oklahoma County, the City of Edmond’s $10 million pledge and $5 million in PREP funds.”
An accounting of the project’s documented revenue sources offers a glimpse of the situation. Funding commitments totaling nearly $26 million include:
- The $10 million forgivable loan from the City of Edmond;
- The $5 million Progressing Rural Economic Prosperity Fund grant from the Oklahoma Department of Commerce;
- The $2.6 million of reimbursement for access road pavement from the Oklahoma Department of Transportation;
- A $50,000 award of American Rescue Plant Act funds by Oklahoma County to support the Eagle’s Nest, a large stairway and platform to anchor the park; and
- About $8.28 million of “contributions, gifts, grants and other similar amounts” received by UGSP Inc., according to its Aug. 20 filing with the Oklahoma Secretary of State.
The Aug. 20 filing with the state notes $111,114 in organizational expenses, as well as another $9,000 of fundraising expenses.
As the project nears completion, UGSP and the French Family Foundation will ultimately have to present the city with evidence of a “total financial commitment” of at least $20 million, as outlined in the development agreement. The park is ultimately expected feature at least 60 sculptures, a pond, dog parks and a playground.
In the center of the park, the Edmond Fine Arts Institute is working to build its new “art and event center” with galleries, “state-of-the-art education spaces for all ages” and a venue “for performances and community gatherings.” That project’s $16 million budget, Pepper emphasized, is being calculated and raised separately from UGSP Inc.
Another entity involved
The Edmond Visual Arts Commission helps purchase art for the Uncommon Ground Sculpture Park through its matching program. Donors may present a piece to the commission for which they are willing to pay half of the asking price, and the commission can vote to pay for the other half. The commission’s payments are capped at $30,000 per piece.
Nash, whose mayoral campaign focused on increasing budget transparency for the City of Edmond, said the park project’s financial structure is “tough” to unravel, partially owing to the involvement of so many entities, some of which are not required to produce documentation to the city. In addition to being mayor, Nash said he is also a member of the UGSP’s fundraising committee as a private citizen, but he said he has not been able to attend as many meetings as he would like.
“You’ve got [Hal French] and what he’s doing and what he’s paying for. You’ve got the (Park) Conservancy Trust here. You’ve got the city over here. You’ve got Edmond Fine Arts (Institute) here, and all of that has to come together to make it work,” Nash said. “[French] doesn’t have to give [financial information] to anybody. I mean, if he doesn’t give it to that committee, if they ask for it, it might impact donations, right? But that’s just kind of the way it works. If it was a publicly traded company, once again, it would be a different scenario, but it’s not. It’s a citizen who’s been here in Edmond forever who wants to do something good for the community, and he’s doing it. And I’m going to do everything I can to help make it happen.”
In multiple conversations about the project in October, McKinnis said French’s plan for accessing the $10 million forgivable loan from the city has changed slightly. Instead of drawing it down expense-to-expense like a traditional construction loan, McKinnis said French intends to submit all of his expenses later in 2026.
“He’s just looking to reimburse up to $10 million of expenses as he gets closer to the end,” McKinnis said Oct. 7. “It’s really a matter of a lack of administration and simplicity on his behalf. He doesn’t want to keep turning in receipts all the time.”
McKinnis said the loan repayment and ownership exchange will likely happen at the same time.
“The condition to getting the reimbursement is not just to give the receipts, but also to transfer the park, so it will become an asset of the City of Edmond, all at the same time,” McKinnis said. “When he turns in receipts, they’re verified as legitimate expenses, and he executes a deed — or the foundation does — to transfer it to the City of Edmond.”
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‘Rural economic prosperity’ at an urban intersection
The Uncommon Ground Sculpture Park Inc. is in line to receive a $5 million grant from the Oklahoma Department of Commerce, once a necessary application is completed and approved. A spokesman for the agency said earlier this month that UGSP had not submitted its paperwork to access the money.
The Legislature revealed the expenditure in its budget deal as session came to a close in May, with lawmakers dedicating the $5 million from the Progressing Rural Economic Prosperity Fund created in 2022. Multiple legislative leaders identified Sen. Adam Pugh (R-Edmond) as the lawmaker who requested the project, but Pugh seemed hesitant to take credit for the appropriation to his district.
“I mean, it’s just part of PREP,” Pugh told NonDoc on May 27. “It’s just 450 jobs. A million visitors a year. Part of the Route 66 centennial. (…) I think it’ll be great.”
Pugh’s job estimation must have included construction work, because Pepper said she expects the park will “run lean” on employees.
“My boss, when I told him how many we needed, he about fell out of his chair. He said, ‘No, I want to run lean.’ And I’m like, ‘Oh my gosh, Hal, 25 to 30 employees is lean for a park like this’ — landscapers, maintenance, education and all that,” Pepper said Aug. 20.
Referencing Oklahoma City parks for perspective, Pepper said the 15-acre Myriad Gardens has 60 employees and the 70-acre Scissortail Park has 75. Uncommon Ground will span about 62 acres.
Pepper said the Department of Commerce’s PREP funding will impact rural communities despite the park being located in Edmond.
“This is a park for central Oklahoma, and this is going to reach people from 300 miles in every direction, and the economic impact will be felt 50 miles. So it’ll definitely have impact for our rural community. But I would definitely not say that the gift is a controversial one,” Pepper said. “It’s just for those that didn’t get the gift, it could be controversial. But we are very grateful for all those that helped work on the park being a recipient of it. This is something that’s going to have statewide impact.”
During the Senate Joint Committee on Appropriations and Budget meeting May 19, some senators questioned Pugh about HB 2794‘s use of PREP dollars to build the Edmond park ($5 million), move a battleship in Muskogee County ($4 million) and expand an industrial site in rural southwest Oklahoma ($1.8 million).
Sen. Casey Murdock, a Panhandle legislator representing rural northwest Oklahoma, punctuated his confusion about the project’s funding source by asking multiple rhetorical questions during the meeting.
“Where are these projects happening, where are we doing these?” Murdock (R-Felt) asked Pugh, who was presenting the measure.
Pugh confirmed the park project is located in Edmond.
“What is the term ‘PREP?'” Murdock asked as a follow-up. “What’s that stand for? What’s that acronym for?”
Pugh responded: “It stands for (…) Progressing Rural Economic Prosperity Fund.”
“Progressing rural economic prosperity,” Murdock repeated, again asking where the Edmond and Muskogee-area projects were taking place. Pugh confirmed their locations once more, and Murdock later voted against the bill.
Other legislators, including Senate Minority Leader Julia Kirt (D-OKC) and Sen. Carri Hicks (D-OKC), questioned how the park and submarine relocation projects fell under the PREP Fund’s intended purpose. Hicks wondered whether the project would not be more appropriately funded through the Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation Department.
“I would assume they’re primarily tourist attractions, is that correct?” Hicks asked.
Pugh said he believes the projects “are economic development opportunities in and of themselves.”
“Perhaps tourism is a part of it, but it’s much more about economic development than just the tourist attraction itself,” he said.
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