Comments on: Devon Seeks to Change Downtown

By: Beth

Beth — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 15:14:03 +0000

Yesterday my husband I had an errand to run downtown. Downtown is really nice, clean, and attractive. However, the drive to get into downtown was anything but pleasant. Eyesores are within just a block or two of the attractions. Drive west on Reno, north on Penn, anywhere south of I-40, and east. I cringe when I think of the visitors who drive under I-40 and see some of the most blighted parts of town. I know this will change (hopefully) after the new I-40 is completed in about 4 years but in the meantime, what kind of impression do they get of OKC?

Is the city doing anything to encourage property owners to modernize, clean-up, dress up their businesses outside of downtown proper? Some of these properties look as if they haven’t been touched in 50 years. Will improvements be made to all parts of the city, especially that within blocks of downtown?

I am proud and well-pleased with our leaders who have pulled OKC out of the doldrums it was in for decades. I’m proud of what OKC is now. It’s too bad I won’t be around in another 30-40 years to see what it will become.

By: Jess M.

Jess M. — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 05:44:17 +0000

I would really like to see more done at the street level. More openness, cafes, coffee shops, fountains, artistic improvements. When visitors come to OKC, especially with the NBA now, downtown is what they will remember and rate us by. If we have a vibrant, artistic downtown, that will carry all over. I also agree with the rest on here that it is nice to see a corporation not asking for money and is attempting to better others around them. I hope this sets a good example of how charitable corporations should be.

By: slackmeyer

slackmeyer — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 23:13:21 +0000

What you need to take into account is the city can issue a revenue bond for the $135 million up front. It doesn’t need to wait 25 years to do all the work being requested.

By: Jason

Jason — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 19:22:11 +0000

Hmm. That doesn’t sound like very much.

By: Mitch

Mitch — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 18:08:21 +0000

What’s a few million here or there?

By: slackmeyer

slackmeyer — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 01:23:43 +0000

It’s the amount the TIF would raise over 25 years using what the city calls “conservative numbers.”

By: Mitch

Mitch — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 22:17:23 +0000

Steve, the $135 million is the projected total TIF collection, right? It’s not an annual fund, is it?

By: Kris Bryant

Kris Bryant — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 20:50:32 +0000

I guess time will tell, but I’m curious about the meaning of “spruce up.” And I’m wondering how all of those seemingly cosmetic changes will translate into a greater influx of real people to downtown. I hope this is a catalyst for other investment groups besides “Big Alternative Oil” to spur on retail, housing, and culture.

By: Chad

Chad — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 20:32:54 +0000

Truly fantastic. A company decides to build a massive corporate headqurters – the largest building project in state history – in downtown Oklahoma City, bring hundreds if not thousands more high-paying jobs, and doesn’t ask for a dime in public assistance to do it?

Asking for public funds to sweeten a large project is standard, yet they take a pass on doing so. Their only request is that the city use the new property taxes THAT THEY WILL GENERATE to spruce up the neighborhood. And not just the area immediately around their property, but ALL of downtown — EVERYBODY’S neighborhood. Larry Nichols and Devon continue to amaze.

I know sidewalks, landscaping, public art and schools might not have the same publicly-perceived sizzle as MAPS did, but this will be the glue that ties all of the those projects — and the private projects since — together. it will fundamentally change the way residents, visitors, and potential investors view downtown and by extension the whole city. It will let young families consider downtown or near-downtown living as a real possibility. And it will lure new investment and potential relocations, perhaps as much as the original MAPS.

What a great day for OKC.

By: stanson

stanson — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 16:05:08 +0000

In Feb. I leave for 27 months to Madagascar (Peace Corps). I am very excited about the direction our city is headed and am looking forward to the changes that will take place over that time. Your blog is one of the things I will miss the most, well besides running water and electricity. Keep up the good work!