Editor’s note: This story is part of Oklahoma Voice’s “Whatever Happened To …” end-of-year series that provides updates to some stories that captured the interest of Oklahomans in 2023 and 2024.

State officials still aren’t certain what they plan to do with 240 acres of land in the middle of Norman that currently house one of the state’s in-patient mental hospitals. 

Officials plan to transition care from Griffin Memorial Hospital to a new facility being built in Oklahoma City, but a spokesperson from the state Mental Health Department said no official decisions have been made yet on what will be done with that land. The opening of the facility was originally slated for 2026, but could be pushed back to 2028. 

But Norman city officials said they remain interested in acquiring it, though disagreements continue over what to do with it. 

In July, Norman city officials said they were considering moving the emergency homeless shelter to land on the hospital’s campus but nearly five months later no agreement has been reached. 

Darrel Pyle, Norman’s city manager, said the city is “working diligently” with the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services to acquire the land in order to develop a permanent homeless shelter. 

He said the city is involved in weekly calls with the Oklahoma Management and Enterprise Services Department, or OMES, to discuss progress with the agency that has been tasked with selling the land.

“OMES indicated that they are waiting on appraisals and a land survey needed for the sale of the land,” Pyle said. “Since none of the land has ever been platted it will need to be sold by legal description, which requires the land survey. The plan remains the same. We are simply waiting on the survey and appraisals to move forward.”

Christa Helfrey, a spokesperson from OMES, said the agency has partnered with the Mental Health Department regarding the future land sale, but that the Mental Health Department has information on the appraisals and timeline. 

OMES will help sell the property once the requirements are complete, the spokesperson said. It’s still not clear what it will cost to purchase the land.

Mental health officials plan to use money from the sale of the Norman land to help pay for the new facility in Oklahoma City. 

If the current Norman shelter at James Garner Avenue and West Gray Street were to move to the hospital’s campus, the shelter’s capacity could double. 

Norman City Councilor Austin Ball for Ward 1 said he doesn’t support moving the shelter, but supports acquiring the land for other uses, like a sobering center, if Cleveland County were involved. A sobering center gives individuals dependent on alcohol or drugs a place to safely recover and be connected to recovery resources. 

“I think it should still be a county issue because it’s like our county jail … the city of Norman doesn’t need to pay for the whole county’s problems,” he said. “But at the same time, I’m all on board for a TIF district there. I think that area (has) a lot that can be done there. I just don’t want a low barrier shelter there. I don’t want a low barrier shelter anywhere in Norman.”

A TIF district, or Tax Increment Financing, uses newly generated tax dollars to support development in certain limited areas of a city, town, or county.

Ball said he thinks low barrier shelters are unsafe. A “low barrier shelter” refers to a shelter that has limited requirements for entry, such as no background checks or screening of guests. 

“There’s so many people involved with this, and I don’t know if any of them are on the same page,” Ball said. “… There’s a lot of pieces and a lot of people in the dark.”

Helen Grant, who uses they/them pronouns and is the city councilor for Ward 4, said they support moving the shelter to the hospital’s campus, but that they want to see the land used for more than that. 

“There is a thought that we could have a sobering center and urgent care recovery located in the same area, potentially a homeless shelter and maybe some permanent supportive housing,” Grant said. “Those are things that are envisioned, but not solidified.”

They said the city has been in talks with the Mental Health Department for over two years about what will happen to the hospital campus. 

“It’d be amazing if it wrapped up by the end of the year, but I think we could be looking at the beginning of next year to find out what the state would like for the land,” Grant said.

Jason Olsen, director of Norman Parks and Recreation, estimated in July that if the city acquired the land for the shelter, repairs could cost between $100,000 and $500,000 and last three to six months as the air conditioning and fire suppression systems need to be updated. 

The City of Norman has interest in the Griffin Soccer Park land, Sutton Wilderness Area and some small footprint south of Main Street for future Shelter Development, the Norman city manager said. 

The Governor’s Office did not respond to requests for comment by the time of publication.

STILLWATER — The Oklahoma State women’s basketball team opened Big 12 play with an upset of Iowa State before the holiday break.

Now, after 10 days off, OSU will try to recapture that momentum with a road trip to face Baylor at 3 p.m. Wednesday in Waco, Texas.

As the Cowgirls embark on 2025, let’s take a look back at how they got here, with an 11-1 record and a 1-0 start in Big 12 play. 

Here are three things we learned about the Cowgirls prior to the new year:

More: What will 2025 bring for Oklahoma State athletics? We make 25 bold predictions for Pokes

Bombs away from 3-point range

Entering the week, OSU was second nationally in 3-point percentage at 40.3%, and only two teams in the top 15 have attempted more than OSU’s 310 shots from 3-point range.

Micah Gray made 10 3-pointers in one game earlier this season, setting the OSU record. 

At one point, Stailee Heard made 13 consecutive 3s over a three-game span, which set the OSU and Big 12 record, coming up one shy of matching the NCAA mark.

In a 76-point win over Alabama State, OSU made 20 3-pointers, which tied the Big 12 record as well.

And this effort isn’t led by one or two players. OSU has six players averaging at least one 3-point attempt per game, and five of them are hitting at least 38.5% or better. 

Under third-year coach Jacie Hoyt, the Cowgirls have stressed up-tempo offense and a strong attack from 3-point range, but this team has taken that up a notch. They set the program record for points in a game with 113, then broke it soon after with 125.

More: Big 12 women’s basketball power rankings: Oklahoma State Cowgirls are on the rise

Multiple scoring options

On Dec. 6, Heard scored 32 points in the win over Alabama State. With that she became the fourth Cowgirl to score 30 points in a game this season — in the 10th game of the year.

Macey Huard opened the season with a 31-point effort, setting the record for points in a Cowgirl debut. Anna Gret Asi had a 33-point game and Gray dropped 36 in the aforementioned game with her 10 3-pointers.

But the Cowgirls’ scoring prowess goes beyond that. Six players are averaging at least eight points a game and two more are not far behind.

Gray leads the way at 17.4 per game, with Asi at 13.8 and Heard at 13.4.

Depth inside and out

Hoyt has grown tired of referencing back to the injury battles her team faced last year, when her team was basically playing with six mostly healthy bodies by the end of the season.

The Cowgirls can almost double that right now, with 10 players averaging at least 10 minutes a game.

While the roster is loaded with gifted perimeter players, the most important development has been the addition of some athletic bigs to play in the middle. 

Tenin Magassa, a 6-foot-6 super-senior, is averaging 8.4 points and 5.6 rebounds per game, while 6-3 Praise Egharevba and 6-1 Stacie Jones each provide valuable minutes in the frontcourt. 

Freshman Maria Anais Rodriguez, who is 6-1, continues to grow her role as well, having played some impactful minutes at times.

And the Cowgirls have size on the perimeter as well, with Huard, who is 6-2 and the 5-11 Heard, who leads the team in rebounding at 8.0 per game. 

More: Oklahoma State women’s basketball coach Jacie Hoyt gives birth to daughter

Oklahoma State at Baylor

TIPOFF: 3 p.m. Wednesday at Foster Pavilion, Waco, Texas (ESPN+)