Widgets Magazine
  • City to spend $3 million on new park along OK River

    Oklahoma City continues to invest in recreation facilities along the Oklahoma River.



    An area along the south side of the river between Robinson and the Lightning Creek inlet will soon receive over $3 million of upgrades and has been christened Manuel Perez Park.

    The new park will incorporate parts of Wiley Post Park including the popular action sports complex named after local BMX champion Matt Hoffman.



    Currently, most of the area is open space with little improvements. Under the plans put forth by the Parks and Recreation Department and funded by 2007 general obligation bonds, Perez Park would receive a memorial plaza and water feature, landscape / hardscape elements, a family-sized pavilion; restroom building, futsal courts and expansion of the action sports park.

    Manuel Perez (1923-1945) was an Oklahoma City native who received the Medal of Honor for his heroics in World War II.

    The project comes in advance of completion of the MAPS 3 funded park which includes an upper section (recently named Scissortail Park) and a lower section that will ultimately stretch from the central business district to the north side of the river.

    A much smaller park at 301 SW 14th was once named after Perez but is now unnamed park property.

    Also as a part of MAPS 3, the river trail system that runs through Perez Park and on both the north and south side of the Oklahoma River, now stretches all the way to Lake Overholser.

    At the east end of river on the southern shore, the American Indian Museum and Cultural Center is set to resume construction later this year. And to the west also on the south side of the river, the Wheeler District development has started construction on its first homes and the City has proposed a large equestrian center closer to the Stockyards.


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