We recognise you are attempting to access this website from a country belonging to the European Economic Area (EEA) including the EU which enforces the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and therefore cannot grant you access at this time e-mail us at web@mcalesternews.com or call us at 918-423-1700 A McAlester man pleads guilty in federal court to stealing a training missile and other items from the McAlester Army Ammunition Plant The US Attorney for Eastern Oklahoma charged Garland Seay with two counts of theft of government property and entering a military installation for a purpose prohibited by law A plea agreement filed in federal court outlines the case Prosecutors told the court Seay stole the following items from the ammo plant: The US Attorney’s Office told the court that Seay admitted to stealing over a five-day period in July 2024 and again in September of the same year A judge will sentence Seay at a date to be determined and general news updates from News on 6 delivered right to your inbox McAlester students and staff are returning to a normal schedule on Friday after an anonymous threat caused a lockdown at two schools in the morning The district said an anonymous call about a weapon on campus caused the lockdown The call was received after students were on campus The Randy Hughes Middle School and McAlester High School campuses were closed while police went room-to-room to search for any weapons and give the all clear this process took some time," the district shared this process took some time,\" the district shared — McAlester citizens are wondering what the holdup is with the Youth Emergency Shelter’s expansion project 2 News was in McAlester getting answers from city and shelter leaders [They] still haven't broke ground,” a McAlester man told elected officials at April 22’s City Council meeting The Youth Emergency Shelter was supposed to break ground on an expansion project in March of this year “Our facility still looks just like a home,” YES assistant director Kristy Cusher told 2 News as she gave us a tour of the living quarters “This whole wall is covered in handprints of the children that have come through.” YES primarily provides emergency shelter to kids who can’t live in their homes for different reasons Executive Director Greg Contreras told 2 News they also “provide the shelter to our community parents who might need help with their kids.” He recalled to us how the pandemic made them realize how much more room they needed to accommodate the need a lot of places and a lot of agencies didn't have anywhere to go to do group meetings because there just wasn't a facility that could accommodate them,” Contreras explained we built into the ARPA program a ventilation system through our HVAC systems updating that so that it's more air purification to it.” The more than $1.8 million federal grant will help them especially with constructing a third building to serve multiple purposes Those purposes include hosting an auxiliary office for the Oklahoma Department of Human Services’ Office of Juvenile Affairs or cooling stations during the summer the clock is ticking on completing the project and it's affecting youth emergency shelter,” a McAlester man told city councilors before hitting the podium with a rolled-up piece of paper between sentences After seeing those comments at that city council meeting we reached out to city and shelter leaders to get more clarity on where things stand When asked if there have been any setbacks that's what you look at when you're doing construction.” He said the most recent setback involves the shelter wanting to keep the exact floor plan it proposed this conflicts with local property statutes The city’s spokesperson sent us a statement saying they “understand that any delay is frustrating” and that “city staff are actively working with the shelter’s development team to address this issue as quickly and efficiently as possible while ensuring compliance with local zoning and safety regulations.” “We've been working with the city for the last couple of days,” said Contreras “They're doing an excellent job at helping us try to expedite this and we think that it's been resolved to where we're gonna get through this process pretty quickly.” He said he expects everything will be completed before the June 2026 deadline — Dream City Church in McAlester prides itself on helping those in need — whether it be through its bi-monthly soup kitchen 2 News spoke to a church leader about how they’re stepping up efforts to help neighbors “We’ve seen the homeless population really explode here in McAlester the past few years there’s definitely a need,” lead pastor Mark Hennen told 2 News Dream City Church wants one room in a massive abandoned building in town to be a seven-day-a-week soup kitchen it has much grander plans for the structure “I'm willing to do anything short of sin to reach somebody in need,” said Hennen Hennen has big dreams for a 27,000-square-foot property they recently bought in the downtown “The ultimate dream is that no matter what somebody's need is — however far-reaching that might be — when they come in this building He wants this place to be a one-stop shop for anyone in need “from a soup kitchen to a free grocery store The counseling will range from addiction and finances to marriage Several different organizations will also deal in foster care Community gathering spaces will also occupy spaces -- like one where children can spend time after school and one for live music and other large events Hennen said they’ll open up the different spaces in phases “I think a lot of churches do it backwards,” he said For more about the church, click here. (KTUL) — A McAlester man entered a guilty plea to two counts of theft of government property 38-year-old Garland Leon Seay is accused of stealing property from the McAlester Army Ammunition Plant The property included an inert training missile The indictment also alleged Seay stole items between July 2023 and Sept District Court Judge will determine the sentence SIGN UP FOR THE CHANNEL 8 NEWSLETTER — City leaders announced on December 4 that an Amazon delivery Station is coming to McAlester at Steven Taylor Industrial Park off the Indian Nation Turnpike and Highway 31 Amazon Delivery stations are where orders are sorted and prepared for delivery to customers in the area Dianna Banta Lives in the area and said the new Amazon delivery station will make life easier "It's going to be awesome to be able to create more jobs help the people of McAlester get their packages faster and create more opportunities for this town," said Banta City leaders said it will create about 40 new jobs They said this would differ from Amazon's fulfillment centers This delivery station will be 40-80 thousand square feet "I think it is going to be a great location because it won't be right in town but it's still going to be a good distance from town," said Banta City Manager Dave Andren said it needs to be earlier to predict the economic impact on McAlester But they expect it will bring in tax dollars to grow the area people like Melodee Chapman question how Amazon will care for their employees "If they treat them right and pay them decent then that would be my question," said Chapman "We do know from Amazon's releases that the national average of pay is $22 an hour We have not confirmed what that pay will be for us here," said Andren which said it has no current information about pay for potential employees at this delivery station Banta says she's looking forward to seeing more Amazon smiles at her door I think it's going to continue to bring business to town and I think it's going to continue to bring opportunities," said Banta City leaders said they expect the facility to open in 12-18 months. To learn more about the announcement, click here McAlester has a new mayor for the first time in nine years Justin Few is about two months into his new role after serving as a city council member It's not a far move from the city council seat to the mayor's chair but Few will tell you the roles are very different sitting there trying to get ready for the next thing the soil’s definitely a little bit more of a task,” said Few The McAlester native says he hears questions from voters about what’s being done to fix city infrastructure “We have a block-by-block playbook of how to maintain our roads and I think that’ll definitely help us,” he said Few also lobbies on behalf of the Army ammunition plant to leaders in Washington The goal is to ensure it remains in McAlester for the long haul “We want to make sure that we’re on par with the Pentagon that we’re doing everything they need us to do that they understand our needs here locally.” Business is also booming around town with several new additions The mayor says the city will continue to be proactive in attracting new businesses He points to the addition of the new Starbucks as just one example of how it’s a win-win for both the economy and quality of life Few supports the potential return of the prison rodeo at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary and hopes any upgrades will bring new faces to town year-round “A lot of nostalgia around the community where people really want to see it If we can bring that tourism and show a little something different in our community Related: Reviving The Rodeo: State Lawmakers Look To Bring Back Prison Rodeo Few hopes the city will be in a better place by the time he finishes his tenure A native Oklahoman and Emmy-award-winning reporter Day grew up in Owasso and graduated from the University of Oklahoma Related: Reviving The Rodeo: State Lawmakers Look To Bring Back Prison Rodeo and general news updates from News 9 delivered right to your inbox This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page — McAlester’s city council recently approved moving forward with a new tax increment financing district 2 News listened to area residents’ thoughts and sought more answers from city leaders “We've needed it for quite a long time,” said John Browne Once McAlester’s newest TIF district gets underway “I lived in California in San Diego for 40 years and I worked for a company based outta here for a while As for if he thinks the new TIF district will disrupt that quiet You can't put 127 or eight townhouses in without disrupting a little bit.” That’s short for “tax increment financing district.” A city can define a geographic area where they can collect future property tax increases from new development on that land The city can then use those tax dollars for infrastructure projects When asked why they need the new TIF district TIF committee chairman John Brown told 2 News the way it works is they have to earn it,” he explained And then we would return 90% to the developer.” This setup would run for nine years (June 30 The City Council agreed to forgo $10 million of tax collections in return for the developer’s anticipated investment of $48 million in the project with no risk placed on the city for the project will be directed to the Frink-Chambers school district One local business owner we listened to told us he’s very much in favor of the TIF district “I think it's the only way when you talk about a stagnant town in terms of economic development it's the only way to attract developers to come in,” said Caleb Woten “'Cause Other towns are gonna do that for them.” “The main thing I don't like,” said Cornett We brought Cornett’s main concerns to McAlester’s former mayor “Why not do the things that every city in the country needs done because you have to have revenue to do it,” said Browne the only tax revenue that cities get is sales tax.” He told us McAlester has some long-term bond debt that hurt the city financially that's really limited what we've been able to do as far as not even doing new infrastructure but maintaining the old infrastructure,” he explained 2025 Achievers Under 40 By : Journal Record Staff//April 23 A new housing project in McAlester will provide safe affordable homes for domestic violence survivors and their children in Pittsburg County 47,000-sq-ft gym in Midwest City in fall 2025 Norman delays vote on Rock Creek arena plan amid pending Oklahoma Supreme Court ruling on referendum tied to $[...] Casady School plans $9.5M renovation to expand and upgrade its performing arts center with new tech Edmond City Council OKs legal action over years of code violations at Elmwood Drive home and Ayers Street apar[...] House shame is rising as social media fuels home envy Experts say perfection isn’t the goal—comfort Central Oklahoma Habitat and Malarkey Roofing celebrate 500 donated roofs for affordable homes with volunteers[...] Sign up for your daily digest of Oklahoma News Homeland Security defends an Oklahoma City raid tied to migrant smuggling Supreme Court weighs Oklahoma religious charter school; Roberts’ vote could determine if public fu[...] An OKC woman says federal agents raided the wrong home traumatizing her family and seizing phones Isidore school divides Republicans on whether states can fu[...] AG Gentner Drummond urges denial of clemency for George John Hanson convicted in the 1999 murders o[...] Bill to let Oklahoma appellate judges carry firearms in courthouses heads to the governor’s desk a[...] restoring 400 jobs after the [...] launching a 2025 season that spans 12 citi[...] Ronald McDonald House breaks ground on a second OKC location expanding support for families of seri[...] OMRF won a $710K VA grant to study immune cells’ role in Alzheimer’s OKC airport will offer nonstop American Airlines flights to Cancun every Saturday from Nov Air Force’s next-generation stealth fighter Alaska Airlines and Frontier Airlines are adding new nonstop flights from OKC to Seattle and Atlanta[...] Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy announced pay raises and hiring boosts for air traffic c[...] Oklahoma aviation teachers explored flight simulation techniques at a FlightSafety event The Journal Record is an award-winning daily general business and legal publication that includes a daily print newspaper and a 24/7 website Both focus on local and statewide business trends and in-depth stories that convey the voice of the Oklahoma business community Get our free e-alerts & breaking news notifications Subscribe for access to the latest digital and special editions McAlester saw some of the highest snowfall totals overnight The roadways are where we're seeing a lot of the impact which is one of the main roads right through McAlester there is a lot of slush and it's got a lot of snowpack at this time That has created some trouble for some drivers The city of McAlester says it has three plows that are working to treat and clear these city roads The city manager says the snow accumulated quickly once it started falling and the city crews did wait until there were about two inches on the roadways before they started treating the roads The condition of the streets has deteriorated quickly and has forced some closures around town especially on those roads that have some big hills here in McAlester The city's asking folks to just stay home if they can A McAlester couple tells us they just could not resist getting out and enjoying the snow We haven't seen this in a while here," they said so we just turned around and pulled them to the gas station." The Oklahoma governor has now deployed some Oklahoma National Guardsmen to help out with stranded motorists You can see a lot of them out there in Humvees and in other heavy-duty vehicles We haven't seen this in a while here,\" they said so we just turned around and pulled them to the gas station.\" — Those who suffer most from extreme weather are always those without a place to live the community came together to make sure those in need were warm 2 News Oklahoma witnessed that at a local church and listened to the homeless about weathering the storm When asked if he was scared that he might freeze or suffer medical issues McAlester native Johnny Luna has been staying at an all-men's shelter called Good Samaritan Outreach (20 E Cherokee Ave.) for more than a week now as he looks for work He told us local homeless usually sleep there overnight and before having to go outside between 8am and 5pm Luna says the shelter's graciously been letting them stay inside longer I've got a place where I could go," he said "It's really too cold to be out here,” said Luna people don't realize this time of year how many people are actually homeless and how small the shelters actually are." One official at Good Samaritan Outreach told 2 News that the organization could always use more mattresses There's also an all-women's shelter called Hope House located just down the street (1210 E Cherokee Ave.) All Saints Episcopal Church (325 E Washington Ave.) is welcoming anybody affected by the winter storm — housed or unhoused — inside for shelter during the storm unloaded literal truckloads of items donated by local residents and businesses: clothing "With all of the outpouring of donations and love and effort and manpower we at our heart want to respect the dignity of every human being," Janie Hoch told 2 News "This is what that love and that grace looks like in action," she added she told us what they need most is more food and water bottles saying they're not sure their current supplies can outlast the storm Anyone who still wants to donate to All Saints can just drop any items All Saints’ warming shelter will be open through 10 am Saturday McAlester head football coach Forrest Mazey is charged with pointing a gun at an assistant coach during a retreat over the summer Mazey is on leave from the district and says he did nothing wrong The probable cause affidavit says several people saw Mazey point a gun at the assistant The affidavit says Mazey fired a shot outside of the cabin the coaches were staying at in McCurtain County Attorney Tod Mercer is representing the assistant coach Mercer says Mazey and the assistant coach had no issues before the incident The affidavit says several witnesses heard Mazey making jokes while pointing the gun at the victim made fun of him for being scared,” said Mercer Mercer says it happened during a coach’s retreat last July He believes it finally came to light after someone made an anonymous tip “Between the time period that it happened and the time period that it came to light I think there was a lot of pressure put on these coaches not to say anything,” said Mercer Mercer says this is not something the victim ever expected to go through “His goal in life is to help young men become better young men and to coach football,” said Mercer “He doesn’t want anything to do with this situation and wishes he would have never have been thrusted into it.” Mazey has led the McAlester Buffaloes football team since 2019 He denies the accusations and tells News On 6 he and his attorney will fight the charges in court “He may suffer some consequences in between now and then that will hopefully prevent him from doing anything like that ever again,” said Mercer McAlester Public Schools says Mazey is on paid leave The district says it cannot make any additional comment because it is a personnel issue Artwork will be carefully selected for its significance and connection to the vision of the project We are seeking artwork that portrays nature Artwork created with natural materials is also welcome Artwork with calming imagery or an abstract feel is encouraged High-quality works with similar or complementary themes are appreciated The vision for the McAlester Clinic expansion is to curate a collection of Choctaw-driven artwork that reflects these themes The invitational call is open to Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma tribal members or Choctaw CDIB It is also open to registered and non-registered Choctaw artists The selection committee will notify chosen artists by December 2024 The Choctaw Nation is the third-largest Indian Nation in the United States with more than 225,000 tribal members and 12,000-plus associates This ancient people has an oral tradition dating back over 13,000 years its historic reservation boundaries are in the southeast corner of Oklahoma “Living out the Chahta Spirit of faith family and culture,” is evident as it continues to focus on providing opportunities for growth and prosperity Contact Kristina Humenesky for any media relations needs at [email protected]. © 2025 BVM Sports. 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We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it OK Privacy policy The City of McAlester says a new Amazon delivery station is coming to the area McAlester says the distribution warehouse will be at the Steven Taylor Industrial Park just west of downtown The facility will help get packages from larger facilities to people's doorsteps faster "It's been a happy secret that we've had in the community that we've really been wanting to share but they finally just got to the point of releasing it," said McAlester Mayor Justin Few The city says construction has already started but plans for the station are still in the early stages \"It's been a happy secret that we've had in the community that we've really been wanting to share but they finally just got to the point of releasing it,\" said McAlester Mayor Justin Few