Back in Town - '12 FoA Photos

It is, truly, an almost surreal feeling to be back in town occasionally and know this may be one of my last times to call OKC home, even if I do so distantly. Oklahoma City is looking mighty pretty, as Huey Lewis once put it. Springtime in Oklahoma is interesting - it's rainy, it's hot, it's muggy, and it's extremely busy. One of my biggest complaints, the lack of abundant urban greenery a la Tulsa or points further east, is certainly staying at bay during this Spring.

Here is a set of photos I took while enjoying the Festival of the Arts, a true Springtime rite of passage for OKC. Some of these pics are taken in the wonderfully-redesigned Myriad Gardens, some are taken from the top of the Walker/Sheridan COTPA garage, others highlight the new P180 streetscapes. As much as I bemoan the epic mismanagement of the P180 cluster, this besieged program has nonetheless produced some excellent park redesigns, and some excellent new streetscapes.

View of Mid-town from the Walker garage

Chesapeake Arena geared up for the Playoffs, taken just an hour or so before the epic 99-98 win over Dallas.

The detail in the flower beds in Reno, in this picture right in front of La Luna, is impeccable

Again, the vibrant greenery makes a world of difference, actually conjuring up images of a booming city

The xeroscaping of some of the Myriad grounds is also stellar.

This is a better vantage point of the grand lawn..

..and a better vantage point of the skyscraper wall behind the stage.

This is a view.

Film Row "skyline" - is that Miami-style deco theatre being renovated?

West facade of the Montgomery

Somewhere a clock is ticking, or maybe two clocks, and an architect is weeping; maybe a preservationist, too.

Architectural contrast IS a good thing.

New tents modeled after the Outlet Mall "teepees" ?

Re-re-name change

Apparently it will now be the Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark instead, which is a major improvement obviously, not to mention a major PR disaster for the city and Bricktown..averted! This would have not happened without the outcry from the public, particularly being engaged through social media.

Yikes

Bricktown Ballpark to become Newcastle Casino Ballpark!

Holy crap.

Hubcap Alley?

Does anyone know anything about a mostly-complete streetscape project along South Robinson from the new I-40 all the way across the river, down to Capitol Hill? I have not seen this personally myself yet, but I have been told that it actually looks pretty good and highlights the enormous potential of this area of Core2Shore.

I've also been told that there is red branding signage attached to new street lamps that look really similar to Automobile Alley, and they say "Hubcap Alley" on them. This, along with historic-themed black streetlamps (interesting, I distinctly remember a C2S presentation with Hargreaves looong ago in which city officials were all in unanimous agreement on the need for modern branding in C2S) arranged 2-per-block, which also required the sidewalks to be rebuilt between I-40 and the river. Also interesting considering that the Film Row streetscape didn't get street lighting until lately and only after public pressure, and yet the much-more dubious South Robinson gets them under the radar.

Apparently this was budgeted into the 2000 G.O. bond projects, and with the black hole created in downtown traffic circulation created by ongoing capital projects, it's no surprise that this streetscape went in so under the radar.