It seems pretty clear that downtown Tulsa is going to be the new home of the Tulsa Drillers baseball team. The recent announcement by Mayor Kathy Taylor that a Tulsa Stadium Improvement District will be formed along with the generous contributions of many Tulsans make this all but a done deal.
The Tulsa City Council still has to sign off, but this is too good for them to ignore or oppose.
Now, get ready for the complainers. I can tell you what they will say. They will say that downtown is dead and always will be. They will say that downtown is dangerous and always will be. They will say it's too difficult to get around downtown. They will say there is no parking available and never will be. They will say there is nothing to do downtown.
They make the same claims concerning the new BOK Center that will open in September. And they will be wrong on all accounts.
Here's one of the discussions I recently had. It was about downtown safety and the new arena. The worried concert-goer's argument went something like this:
If you had parked say 10 walking minutes from the arena and you were the last one to leave, it would be scary or even dangerous out there all alone. What if you had to walk by the jail? What if homeless people asked you for money?
First, let's assume for a moment that the concert my friend went to was not even sold out. Instead of 18,000 people, let's say there were 12,000. How long would he have to wait to be the absolutely last person to leave the arena? Even if he was one of the last there still would be at least 20 other concertgoers on the street. You are not likely to be completely alone.
And why in the world would you park near the jail? The jail is at least three blocks north of the arena. OK, say it was the only place to park. What could be safer than the jail? There are cops all over the place and most of the bad people are behind walls.
With the addition of the baseball park, whether it is in the East Village or farther north, there will be a corridor that will build up between the ball park and the arena. There likely will be large and small restaurants and clubs that will be open before and after games and concerts.
One of the great things about thriving downtowns is that people can feel safe. Having restaurants and clubs open means having a safe place to duck into if you do feel threatened or concerned. And there likely will be shuttles moving from the arena and stadium to parking areas.
And does anybody think the Tulsa police are going to ignore crowds before, during and after concerts and ball games? Already on the weekends there are police bicycle patrols all over the Brady and Blue Dome districts.
As far as parking, the Tulsa World pretty much put that myth to rest in a recent story. There are parking garages well within walking distance and there are plenty of on-street spaces and surface lots. This is not going to be a problem.
Those who expect their own personal parking space within 20 steps of the door are living in a dream world. Where does that happen? Those who think it might too cold or too hot or too wet or too dry or too windy simply need to stay home and keep their hair in place and their feet dry.
Besides, foot traffic will encourage more commercial development. And that means more people on the street and that means a greater sense of security.
Whether all these plans for downtown will be successful is still anyone's guess. But downtowns are the heart and soul of cities. They are the gateway. They are the first impressions for visitors.
I think it's going to work. Already there is a good nightlife downtown. Those who don't believe that simply haven't taken the time to come and see. They would rather sit at home on their computers and complain.
And we don't need them downtown anyway. We'll be having too much fun at a concert or a ball game or a restaurant or a nightclub or at a friend's loft or at an art studio or …
