A current city councilor and a manager working for the Cherokee Nation will face off to be mayor of Tahlequah.

Councilor Jason Nichols and Todd Enlow are on the April 5 ballot for Tahlequah mayor.

Nichols said his past work for the city gave him insights to fill the seat vacated by two-term Mayor Ken Purdy.

“I have 11 years experience with the city of Tahlequah,” Nichols, who was elected to the city council in 2005, said. “I also worked for the city for five years as their Information Technology director. The job involved me going out to about every city department to work on their computers. I learned a lot about how each one operates. My having learned about those different perspectives, that’s unique.”

Nichols already has a list of ideas about improvements to how the city does business.

“We need to make some specific efforts to reach out to specific groups in Tahlequah,” he said. “A lot of times people talk about the city’s relationship with Northeastern State University, and that’s good. But we need to also give some attention to the smaller civic groups who have been overlooked some of the time.”

Nichols said critical issues facing the city include long-overdue repairs to roads.

He plans a watch party that will be open to the public, but hasn’t settled on a location.

Enlow said the main reason he decided to run for mayor is to just serve the city of Tahlequah and help out however he can. He sees the need for some changes.

“A couple of things that I have seen as I go around is the need to place our priorities on our projects,” Enlow said. “We have a lot of projects that were started, but because of funding we can’t complete all of the projects that we have.”

Enlow also sees other areas that need attention.

“We’ve got a pretty stable economy, but I would like to pursue economic development and getting some businesses into the industrial park and work very hard to get more businesses in retail, especially in the downtown and industrial park area,” he said.

Enlow said the most critical item facing the city is a lack of adequate funding.

“So, I think that’s going to be a challenge for anyone in the mayor’s office, but I think managing the budget effectively over the next three our four years is going to be very important,” Enlow said. “I think it’s going to get harder as we move forward. Trying to bring in some additional grant dollars to help with the things we have to have to move forward as a city.”

Enlow said his experience sets him apart from his opponent.

“My experience has been in management and administration for the last 18 years,” Enlow said. “My experience has been managing 250 employees and a $20 million-plus yearly budget where I have direct control and guidance over expenditures and staff to complete tasks the same as a mayor would have. The focus on growth also separates us. With my focus on economic development and trying to attract businesses but do it in a controlled manner.”

Enlow said his watch party will be held at 7 p.m. April 5 at the Iguana Cafe, 500 N. Muskogee Ave. It will be open to the public, helpers, friends.

Todd Enlow

OFFICE SOUGHT: Mayor of Tahlequah.

SALARY FOR OFFICE: $16,800.

TERM OF OFFICE: Four years.

AGE: 40.

HOMETOWN: Tahlequah.

FAMILY: Wife Lori; children Noah, Ethan and Avery.

OCCUPATION: Group leader of leadership at the Cherokee Nation.

EDUCATION: Bachelor of Science in engineering design from Northeastern State University.

RELIGIOUS AFFILIATION: Crescent Valley Baptist Church.

HOBBIES: Cycling (road and mountain bikes), playing with his children.



Jason Nichols

OFFICE SOUGHT: Mayor of Tahlequah.

SALARY FOR OFFICE: $16,800.

TERM OF OFFICE: Four years.

AGE: 36.

HOMETOWN: Tahlequah.

FAMILY: Wife Jennifer, children Cara and Gemma.

OCCUPATION: Information technology director for the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokees.

EDUCATION: Bachelor of Arts in history, Northeastern State University; almost done with a master’s degree in American Studies from NSU.

RELIGIOUS AFFILIATION: First United Methodist Church.

HOBBIES: “I don’t have much time for hobbies. I used to play and coach soccer, and I currently fiddle with computers at home.”

Reach Keith Purtell at (918) 684-2925 or kpurtell@muskogeephoenix.com.