Our Pride Shows? The Hertlnd yle
Does this sign make the best impression?
Photos courtesy of Pete Brzycki, administrator at www.okctalk.com.
Over at www.okctalk.com, the discussion this weekend is about the old Santa Fe Train Depot at Broadway and E.K. Gaylord. Owner Jim Brewer is apparently nearing the end of a three-year-long renovation. Pete Brzycki took a grand tour of downtown with his camera this past week while searching out a place for a reunion. As he notes, Oklahoma City may not be making the best impression on visitors coming through the old depot to ride the Heartland Flyer to and from Fort Worth.
Note that this very simple upkeep is being neglected as city voters have agreed to spend more than $100 million to turn Ford Center into a world-class statement that says that Oklahoma City is a major league city.
- Steve
The Answer?
Purely Sinful is apparently history, if one is to take notice of the removed sign and empty storefront along Sheridan Avenue. The bar, along with the neighboring Spyce, which is still in business, drew large late night crowds on summer evenings. Critics claimed the bars attracted a bad element to the entertainment district and may have contributed the gang violence two years ago. The bar owners dismissed that criticism and provided me with a tour of their operations that showed no signs of trouble inside their establishments. They also welcomed a police crackdown outside the clubs, as shown in this photo I took at the time.
It’s interesting to note the pattern of property owners taking the following approach to juvenile crime and loitering:
QUEENS (CBS) ― Teenagers who hang out inside one apartment building in Jamaica, Queens are getting an earful these days.
A new security device called “The Mosquito” has been installed in the lobby of a building on 170th St. where there have been chronic problems with noisy teens.
The wall-mounted device emits a high-frequency screech that can only be heard by people aged 13 to 25. Most older people cannot hear it.
“It sounds like when you put a microphone close to the TV,” said Jerry Brown, one of the younger residents, who admits the noise bothers him “a little bit.”
Another teen added, “it’s annoying.”
But one young adult said, “it doesn’t bother me.”
The building superintendent said the mosquito has kept the lobby free of loitering teenagers, so far.
(© MMVIII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
Of course, by doing this, one must wonder if it could dent the social lives of the self described “young, amazing and strikingly attractive” Lost Ogles, who have discovered this fascinating vintage campaign commercial for an Oklahoma City bond issue from some 40 some odd years ago.
Can You Spare a Dime?
Couple of thoughts today…
Expect the city council to consider once again a sale of space inside the Journal Record Building to the Oklahoma City Public Schools administration. This will fill up a large amount of space that has sat vacant since the city bought the building after it was damaged by the 1995 bombing of the nearby Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building.
The sale will bring hundreds of workers to north downtown, and will almost certainly be a nice bump for nearby businesses like Markee’s Deli.
Today’s Main Street column looks at panhandling and how downtown Oklahoma City is trying to do away with what is regarded by most merchants as a threat to continued development. And in many cities, enforcement to eliminate such solicitation is stepping up as far as the courts will allow.
I’ve provided some examples of what’s being done in other cities. What have you seen that you think might be effective in Oklahoma City? Or do you think panhandling should be allowed?
-Steve
