Monday afternoon, the Bristow Tag Agency announced via social media platform Facebook that it will permanently close after end of business this Friday, August 27th. The notice stated the owner’s desire to retire and to allow additional family working for the business to spend more time with their families. The four-day notice of closure concerned many within the community, leaving them to wonder why and how far they may be required to travel for agency services.
As word of the impending permanent closure spread throughout the community, residents appeared shocked. While a majority expressed gratitude for the staff ’s assistance, many were left questioning why the business was being closed rather than sold and how far they might need to travel as early as next week. Given that tag agencies are privately owned, state-subsidized businesses, several people expressed disbelief the business could not have been sold to keep the service and employment opportunity available locally. Of particular concern to some was the final sentence of the notice: “Okla Tax Commission will decide if/when they want to open another tag office in Bristow.” Although I reached out to secure answers, I received no response by the time of submission.
Regarding how far residents will need to travel for tag agency services, the answer means traveling a minimum of at least 17.3 miles to the Stroud Tag Agency at 402 West Main Street, located in Lincoln County. The second and third nearest offices are the Drumright Tag Office at 330 East Broadway and the Sapulpa Tag Office at 713 South Mission Street, requiring travel of 20.5 miles and 21.4 miles respectively. Visit http://oktagagent.com/ to locate additional agencies and offices within the state.
In the meantime, feel free to send farewell wishes of gratitude or other parting messages with the employees and business owners for their 8.5 years of service to the community. In her notice of closure, Rachel Dowty shared a parting message: “We have enjoyed the last 8 ½ years serving Bristow, Depew, Kellyville, Slick, Mason & surrounding areas. A big thank you to all our customers we will miss seeing you all!”