(Part 2) Top products from r/okc
We found 2 product mentions on r/okc. We ranked the 22 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the products ranked 21-40. You can also go back to the previous section.
We found 2 product mentions on r/okc. We ranked the 22 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the products ranked 21-40. You can also go back to the previous section.
Right on man - I absolutely LOVE your documentary. I've lived here all my life and I'm 48 now and I think your video really captured a lot of the cool things we have going on in this city. It's honestly amazing the transformation we've undergone.
From the bottom of my heart - Thank you for your work!
I think the story of this transformation is quite interesting and unique and I don't think it's been covered by any documentarian. hint hint I would love to see you do another documentary on this story.
Here's a very brief review of what's happened but just know that this story is filled with political maneuvering, shady contractors, corruption and the rise of the "good people" over the corruption to create some amazing things! What is so amazing about this transformation is HOW we've done it.
The story starts with the collapse of Penn Square Bank back in the early 80s. It literally plunged our city into a deep recession that took a decade or more to recover. Housing prices plummeted, unemployment skyrocketed, business closed and we had strip mall after strip mall that were like 90% empty. The city was in horrible shape. The collapse was also covered in a couple of books. One named Belly Up and the other named Funny Money
The recovery didn't really happen until we realized that no one was coming to save us - we were on our own. If we wanted new things and a better city in which to live, we were going to have to do something about it because no one else was.
It all started with the passage of MAPS 1 in the early 90s, which imposed a 1 penny sales tax, for a fixed term. There were numerous projects identified and publicized but people were skeptical. We hadn't really been in a "growth" mindset for over a decade and were more in survival mode.
There were lots of people that said things like, "We don't need a ditch through Bricktown." and when people mentioned San Antonio's river walk, they still weren't moved. After all, our govt hadn't really done anything to help the citizens out so the pessimism was VERY high. Lots of people thought the money would be squandered or lost and we would be right back where we started.
They had good reason to think this way because way back in the 70s and 80s there was a massive urban renewal program pitched to the city where lots of old buildings would be knocked down with new ones put up in their place. Well they knocked down the buildings but never built the new ones. SOOOOOOO many people were skeptical.
But MAPS 1 passed and we were on our way!
We built a brand new ballpark for our AAA baseball team, we built the bricktown canal and purchased the boats - hard to believe the canal didn't used to be there. We cleaned up and damed the North Canadian river and renamed it the Oklahoma River, where those olympic hopeful rowers come to train. We built the Chesapeake Arena and revamped our convention center. I think there might have been a few more projects but I can't recall exactly.
Now here's the best part - we got all that new stuff DEBT FREE! Most cities issue bonds to build things like this but we paid cash for them. This is still something people from out of town have a hard time believing.
However all of that progress could have been derailed because of corruption and shady contractors. Once money started flowing into the coffers and projects were started, there were rumors of some seriously shady shit going on. It seemed to me, as an ordinary citizen, that it was quite possibly on the verge of being one big boondoggle. However there were a few people that stepped in and got it all straightened out. Men like Ron Norrick and many, many others took control and there was a MAPS oversight board created and the projects got back on track.
It was so successful we passed MAPS2 (dubbed MAPS For Kids) that paid for brand new schools, upgraded equipment in the classrooms and much, much more.
In 2009 amid the worst economic downturn since the great depression, we passed MAPS 3. It seems to be moving quite slowly but there is traction. This is amazing to me because at the time many people were worried about their jobs, Aubrey McClendon was the highest paid CEO in the nation and had made some VERY controversial moves, the OKC Thunder were on their way to OKC from Seattle amid many rumors of shady dealings, leaked emails and all that and the police officers were wanting MAPS 3 to provide some much needed funding for their future and many people thought we simply shouldn't be doing any of this when the economy has just crashed....but we passed it!!
We're now building a first class white water rowing facility, we're going to be putting in a light rail system, we'll expand the Myriad Gardens down to the river, build a new convention center and more.
I could go on and on but seriously - the story from the early to mid 80s up to now is one that a lot of people don't know about but it quite compelling.
Anyways - would love to see your documentary on that story!
So, there are actually a couple of books about this that may be to your interest. You can either buy them (Amazon or Full Circle), or I'm pretty sure get a copy from one of the libraries.