Comments on: "Downtown belongs to everyone …"

By: Mark

Mark — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 18:07:14 +0000

http://mtpokc.com/video_citycouncil.html

By: Matt

Matt — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 17:35:32 +0000

I want to see the meeting. Anyone know where I can? I don’t feel like conducting research today…

By: Nick Roberts

Nick Roberts — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 21:18:18 +0000

Interesting because Walters represents the highest per capita income zip code in the OKC metro and yet he is railing against basically the rest of OKC. This is called ignoring a social responsibility, and it’s a big thing that has prevented OKC from blossoming into a city that is great.

By: Steven

Steven — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 15:24:15 +0000

Well said by all posters, I agree.

By: Philip

Philip — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 01:43:17 +0000

In regards to Michael’s comments about south OKC, we were very well represented for many years by Jerry Foshee. Walters replaced him and has been a completely ineffectual incompetent. In a position where consensus building is key to getting anything done, he has isolated himself by being on the wrong side of almost every issue. He is a mistake that we in south OKC will correct when he comes up for reelection.

By: Ronnie

Ronnie — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 19:05:44 +0000

Brent you hit a bullseye!

By: Brent

Brent — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 17:23:33 +0000

At least this partially answers my questions as to where other council members may stand on a new MAPS vote. To think that improving downtown does not benefit the entire city is the height of naivete. Surely he can’t be serious. With that logic, we should be able to completely demolish everything downtown without harming the entire city either. How can you possibly argue with such flawed logic?!? You can’t so I won’t…but if this is what passes for our city leaders, I am getting a little scared. With comments like this it makes me want to run for office myself to “throw the bums out.”

By: Michael

Michael — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 16:55:47 +0000

I figured he represented some portion of suburban living.

What’s funny is, that portion of OKC, the far southside, is extremely well taken care of. He is very ignorant to the situation at hand. Unless he didn’t notice, the downtown core is just now beginning it’s major revitalization while the suburban portions of OKC have never experienced such a depression that our “jewels” have endured. They need and deserve to be remediated and taken care of. Downtown is the beginning of OKC, it is our essence, and Bezdeck is right, it’s our cultural heart.

By: Ronnie

Ronnie — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 15:34:00 +0000

For anyone to say the the MAPS projects haven’t or don’t help the city as a whole, well thats pure ignorance! It seems to me that Councilman Walters is a bit selfish or perhaps slow? What tourists want to come to OKC to see the southside? I’m almost positive that they would want to see all the wonderful things that we’ve made a reality in the last 10 years. I think that they would want to see more of the same. I’m 24 and thought for part of my life that i wanted to move away to someplace more exciting and now that someplace has come to fruition before my eyes! I’v never been more proud of my hometown, nor do i want to leave for ‘someplace more exciting’ any longer. I am so excited to see what we can pull out of our hat next. And Steve, I love your blog! I check it everyday and i love all of you coverage of downtown.

By: Brian

Brian — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 13:56:33 +0000

From day 1 Walters has been extremely territorial. If memory serves me correctly the first big thing he was upset about was more roads were being resurfaced in other districts and he threatened to vote against it, but when other council members reminded him that his district had the best roads in the city (based on when they were built or last resurfaced), he finally backed down.

Not long after he got elected I also remember him basically warning that he could not (probably) support another MAPS unless it had a project in his district. It was the whole “southside has been left out” argument.