I know there's probably a thread for this already but could't locate it.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/williamhider/sets/72157634244435268/

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7353/9099054638_76e42c6dba_b.jpg

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5505/9099051900_2eacbea79f_b.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7407/9096805681_6505defa34_b.jpg

http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2814/9096967521_1215799c7c_b.jpg

http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2850/9099348720_53dd4f90aa_h.jpg

http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2857/9099347646_9ac42369f6_h.jpg

http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2875/9099346874_75a063b28c_h.jpg

It was very loud this day with all the construction at the Main Street Parking Garage area next door.


http://youtu.be/JUEpLimDy-Y

Bicentennial Park (June 18 2013) - YouTube (http://youtu.be/JUEpLimDy-Y)

I really like how this park turned out. Very nice.

Yes, it's beautiful.

But notice, there isn't one person there (other than our Will). The lack of mature shade trees has a lot to do with that, although that will change with time.



Thanks so much Will!

Yeah I sure noticed... I stopped here before I went home. I actually was on Film Row and stopped at Chopt after this and they offered me a drink on the house. There were three other people there besides me and all were sitting in the shaded chairs. The empty space between the north and south is pretty hot. It was afternoon in the summer so that has a lot to do with it.

You have a fine eye sir! Many thanks for all you bring here.

The traffic in that area will change in the coming weeks. Lyric Theatre starts their summer season this week and with shows running Tuesday through Saturday every other week until mid-August so there will probably be more people there in the evening.

Yes, it's beautiful.

But notice, there isn't one person there (other than our Will). The lack of mature shade trees has a lot to do with that, although that will change with time.



Thanks so much Will!

There is no diversified land use encompassing the park. That may change too as this park revamp may have made some of those surface parking lots attractive for development, and also as the parking garage being built will be able to serve Civic Center events.

My opinion may change, but this project looks pretty pedestrian to me at this point.

This park works as a public lawn, but it is not a recreational park. After maturing, it will be a very, very nice park, but not exceptional. I think it is appropriate and pleasant for where it is and for what it is intended to be.

It's pretty to look at but I have yet to see someone using the park since it opened last Fall.

I'm not going to lie, this park has grown on me a lot more.

Grown on you like a fungus?

It's pretty to look at but I have yet to see someone using the park since it opened last Fall.

Because it's not that kind of park. It's not for recreation, it's a public lawn. And it looks really good.

To be fair, were there many people at the park before they redid it?

To be fair, were there many people at the park before they redid it?

Truuuuuuuuuuuue

To be fair, were there many people at the park before they redid it?

There were always at least a few homeless people there before. If the park is designed to look pretty and not be used why all the benches? City staff assured citizens that the use of the park would increase because of the redesign, that's how they justified cutting down those trees.

Yeah, I would just join the chorus of those defending this park. There was one minor design flaw, and that is with the parallel parking that obscures the periphery, but that's just personal taste because for me the periphery is the most important element in a park, and it's essential to establish an active edge to facilitate flow in and out of the park and lay the ground for interaction with the surrounding urban fabric.

THAT said, this is a good park that is a beautiful lawn and it's inactivity is primarily due to the land uses around it being all either underdeveloped or institutional. That will change and we will see this park's activity increase as that happens.

Yeah, I would just join the chorus of those defending this park. There was one minor design flaw, and that is with the parallel parking that obscures the periphery, but that's just personal taste because for me the periphery is the most important element in a park, and it's essential to establish an active edge to facilitate flow in and out of the park and lay the ground for interaction with the surrounding urban fabric.

THAT said, this is a good park that is a beautiful lawn and it's inactivity is primarily due to the land uses around it being all either underdeveloped or institutional. That will change and we will see this park's activity increase as that happens.

He's right.

self deleted

Not sure exactly where this should go, but this seemed appropriate:

Arts Council sculpts plans for 2015, 2016 festivals

By: Molly M. Fleming The Journal Record January 23, 2015

OKLAHOMA CITY – Arts Council of Oklahoma City Executive Director Peter Dolese has two Festivals of the Arts on his mind, 2015 and 2016. The event will move to Bicentennial Park in 2016, requiring that water and electric lines be put into place.

Yet that’s a year away. This year, the council must figure out what to do now that Stage Center is gone, as well as the plush, green grass surrounding it. The 2015 Festival of the Arts runs April 21 to April 26.

“Many of the areas that were there have been moved to different places in the Myriad Gardens,” he said. “We get to use the Myriad Gardens in different ways.”

The gardens will be embraced by the event, but traffic will not be interrupted any further. South Hudson Avenue will be the only closed street, which is where the artists’ tents will be set up as in the past.

The park’s southwest area will be the new home for some exhibits that were once on the Stage Center site. The Sculpture Park will be near the Thunder Fountain, while the Youth Art Sale will be inside the pavilion near the fountain. The Pottery Place that was previously near the Cafe Stage will now reside at the corner of Ron Norick Boulevard and W. Reno Avenue.

“People have been coming and doing that with their kids for years,” Dolese said. “They always love that.”

The Children’s Art Field, Artful Experience and the Young at Art Mart will move near Sheridan Avenue. At the art mart, children can shop for low-priced art without the advice of their parents.

Myriad Botanical Gardens Executive Director Maureen Heffernan said the gardens always look forward to the increase in visitors the festival brings.

“Anytime you get lots of people coming to your grounds it’s wonderful,” she said. “Our mission is to create and maintain a beautiful place for the city for events.”

She said the gardens want to continue to be a part of the festival when it moves in 2016.

“We enjoy being a part of it,” she said. “We’d love to be a satellite site.”

The remainder of the 2015 festival setup will not change, with the food court and performance venues staying on Hudson Avenue’s west side. Even the chain-link fence around the former Stage Center site will be artistically embraced. Canvases will be hung on the fence’s east side, and people will be allowed to paint them as part of a mural project.

While the Arts Council could make Myriad Botanical Gardens work this year, the 2016 festival will come with a new challenge, which is why it had to move to Bicentennial Park. Dolese said the streetcar will eventually have a track down Hudson Avenue.

“Not only are we losing our property where we have the food court and the cafe stage, after this coming year, we’ll be losing Hudson,” he said. “That’s an awful lot to reconfigure.”

Oklahoma proposes penalties for thefts of livestock, equipment | News OK (http://newsok.com/oklahoma-proposes-penalties-for-thefts-of-livestock-equipment/article/5392273)

Oklahoma proposes penalties for thefts of livestock, equipment | News OK (http://newsok.com/oklahoma-proposes-penalties-for-thefts-of-livestock-equipment/article/5392273)

Hmmm? Bicentennial Park - Theft of Livestock?

Sleep, plupan, sleep.

Hmmm? Bicentennial Park - Theft of Livestock?

Sleep, plupan, sleep.
Unless I just completely lost my mind, I am 99% certain I just read an article about some restored park markers that have been sitting in a horse arena. This is insane. I know I read it somewhere and I can't find there article now.

Unless I just completely lost my mind, I am 99% certain I just read an article about some restored park markers that have been sitting in a horse arena. This is insane. I know I read it somewhere and I can't find there article now.

That's certainly possible,plupan, but maybe you were thinking about this.

Forgotten history: OKC park's markers soon could return home (http://m.newsok.com/video/4041498902001)

This is absolutely crazy. Maybe I'm going crazy. I can't find it and I know for a fact that I read it... tonight.

That's certainly possible,plupan, but maybe you were thinking about this.

Forgotten history: OKC park's markers soon could return home (http://m.newsok.com/video/4041498902001)
Thanks. I was about to lose my mind and check into a psych ward.

Thanks. I was about to lose my mind and check into a psych ward.

Let me know if you need any references when you apply. :)

Here's a look at the plans for the Festival of the Arts, running 4/19-24.

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/artsfestival.jpg

honestly, it appears as if the Arts Festival is working out better at Bicentennial Park than it did at MGB. Seems to be a more natural fit AND it certainly gives live and purpose to the Oklahoma City Civic Center - which is the entire three block area of and adjacent to the park.

At MGB, the festival seemed very hodge podge like you had MGB then you had some tents and food carts in hudson. ... Not very creative and if not for MGB, it wouldn't have been good at all.

Civic Center just seems so natural for this; plenty of space, very much OKC's front lawn event.

Prep work well underway:



http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/festival041016a.jpg


http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/festival041016b.jpg


http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/festival041016c.jpg

And we are underway!

Thanks to frittergirl for the great photo:

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/festival041916.jpg

And we are underway!

Thanks to frittergirl for the great photo:

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/festival041916.jpg

That looks awesome! I think this venue shift is going to work out wonderfully for the Arts Festival.

It's just sad that the Myriad Gardens isn't being utilized, especially after all the upgrades.

Walking over in a bit for a big ol' Indian taco.

Spent a couple hours there tonight and it was *dead*. Don't know if it was due to threat of rain but sure hope things pick up. Eerily quiet.

That looks awesome! I think this venue shift is going to work out wonderfully for the Arts Festival.

Someone I know is under the impression that the OKC Arts Festival was originally held at this location and then moved to where I knew it had always been during the mid 1980s and on.

Spent a couple hours there tonight and it was *dead*. Don't know if it was due to threat of rain but sure hope things pick up. Eerily quiet.

We worked one of the smaller drink tents from 5:30-9:00 last night and there was hardly anyone coming through. It's a much different feel (can't tell which one I like better), but I think the storm played a big part. We normally work in the tent on Saturday which is always slammed so I wasn't really sure what to expect, but it was definitely much slower than expected.

It was definitely the threat of rain. This weekend the weather looks spectacular, expect big crowds for Friday and Saturday.

I hope the food waiting/ordering is much less chaotic with the new setup. It had gotten pretty irritating the last couple of years.

I haven't made it down yet.. I may tonight or tomorrow evening, but visually it looks like a great fit! seems like a great use of space and allows for more movement around the park to see the vendors.

Went today and it was bustling. I was prepared to not like the new location for sentimental reasons, but it's actually pretty great. Also, it is correct that this was the original location before the move to the MBG/Stage Center site.

^^Thanks for the confirmation, Urbanized! Can't imagine it anywhere else.

Went last night and I absolutely love the new location. It feels more incorporated into a park instead of on a huge piece of concrete next to a park. the civic center is a great divider for two separate stages so they don't overpower each other and the tents in single rows down each side is easier to maneuver without being distracted by the next row of art. the food court being split on each side of the building made it hard to figure out what you wanted to eat but there was a lot more seating to enjoy your food. That seemed to always be a struggle at the old location to find a comfy spot to eat. parking seemed easier to find as well and with the new parking garage right there I am sure many used it. I know that the pottery and interactive art stuff has always been there but with this set up you seemed to notice it more so that was a bonus as well.

^

I was there last night and it was definitely more lively than Tuesday evening.

However, I don't like the separation of the food areas.

Having the two areas with the Civic Center in between makes each of the stages and general areas feel very dead. I was by the north stage last night from 7:30 to 9 and there was hardly anyone there on a gorgeous evening with a great band playing.

At the same time, the main part of the park was very busy. It feels too cut-off for my tastes.


Having said all that, it may just be a short-term adjustment as people learn to gravitate towards the two far ends where the stages are located.

I do think they have the stages pushed too far west on each side.. push them further east and I think that would help.
I agree the separation of food is not the best layout because people like to see all the options before choosing. but those are my only complaints really.
I did think though.. the other location where the food was located you walked just as far to get from one end to the other to compare the wares but having the separation does make it odd. but all in all I like it.

Someone I know is under the impression that the OKC Arts Festival was originally held at this location and then moved to where I knew it had always been during the mid 1980s and on.

Yes, at one time in the '70s at least, if not before, it was in front of and around the civic center. It was large and eclectic, more accommodating to whoever wanted to show their art, with displays and booths set up how the artists wanted to display. The furnished tents and more organized layout came later, and I think entry became more difficult, in the '80s when it was moved.

Although I wish the two food lanes didn't have to be separated by a block, I'm good with them feeling somewhat isolated and dead in comparison to the old location. For years the FoA has at times seemed like a festival of the food with a nice art component on the edge of it.

Also, the food court in a semi-circle was convenient to cruise while deciding, but lingering eaters and socializers made it too crowded, cramped and difficult. The new setup seems to discourage lingering around the booths themselves, and instead encourages quick choices and then a move to the AMPLE seating that now exists. In the past it was very difficult to find a place to sit and enjoy you're food; now such seating is abundant. Tons of tables, chairs, street furniture and even the many steps surrounding the Civic Center.

But I think the real bonus is that now it truly feels like art is at the forefront, which hopefully will be good for sales, without negatively impacting food sales, which is important from a revenue standpoint.

I also agree about the stages being far enough away from one another that they do not interfere with each other. I do agree that the two stages on the sides of the Civic Center are pretty remote, and that is probably the worst liability of the layout. But the stage in front of City Hall is absolutely killer.

dup

I went Tuesday evening and again for lunch today. As others said it was dead Tuesday evening. However, there were a ton of people there at lunch today. I do like the art set up in the park better than on the street by the Myriad Gardens. But, I am not a big fan of the food configuration. It was ok when there weren't many people there but I am afraid it will be too cramped for large crowds. When I walked back to my office I went east through the new park in front of city hall which mirrors the Civic Center park style-wise. I wonder if there is a way to incorporate that park into the festival in the future? Walker is already closed so that should not be a problem. Maybe it is a security issue?

^^^^^^^^
I thought the same thing when I had a meeting yesterday at City Hall. I walked into the building on the FoA side, but walked out on the east side and it immediately occurred to me that it could make eventual sense to expand part of FoA around the building. Some might say that is too detached, but it's not like there isn't precedent for FoA to sprawl a bit. For years the children's portion was on the east side of MBG and FoA events/installations were all over the gardens themselves. That's much more far flung than this would be. Plus, you could then perhaps better engage with the OKCMOA. It is an ART museum, after all...

Went again on Saturday night and there was a very big crowd, of course.

Of the four times I went, the only music was on the two stages at the far end of each food row. I like the way the art booths are in the middle part of the park, but the muisc being so far removed made the whole environment feel a bit dull. And in all instances there weren't that many people down at the end listening to the music.

One of the best things is they had lots of tables and chairs out in front of the Civic Center then in the roped-off bar area. Really made it nice to sit down and relax and people watch. But again, very far from any music.

I really like the new setup, just would like to see them bring more music out into the park itself.

Seems they need to utilize the stage that's at the end more which would fill the front space with music..

I also didn't care for the food being split and the two stages on either side of the civic center seemed somewhat isolated. I spoke with one of the artists located near the main stage and he said it was too loud when bands were playing to talk with potential customers. I didn't witness that, but if true, something that will need to be considered next year.

I liked the new location okay, may take another year to fully grow on me. I was there Friday afternoon and it was very warm. I certainly did miss the large, cool grassy areas and trees of the MBG where you could grab a beer and sit and relax. No places like that at the civic center, or none that I found anyway.

I really like the setting. A few of the booth locations sucked from an artist perspective but there are always bad locations at every show. Good mix of artists and mediums but did seem a bit heavy on equestrian art. I attend and/or participate in art festivals all over the region (I was an artist at the Lubbock Arts Festival the week before OKC) and it is unusual that I see a new art style. OkC has done a great job the last two years bringing in different art styles that are new and not being done by everyone. The level of skill and artistry displayed by some of these artists was outstanding and shows why OKC is considered one of the top shows in the region. The other top shows in our region are Main Street in Ft Worth and Bayou Arts Fest in Houston. (I have been an artist at Bayou and it is a great show.)

As far as food, it seemed the catfish place was very popular based on the lines when we went. (We went most every day). Missed Sammy's Pizza being there. Tried the new pizza place but wasn't the same. The food seemed uninspiring this year and most everything we tried tasted prepackaged frozen,,,especially the meatballs in the moinks,

Jeep, because you're experienced in this let me ask you a question about pricing of the art. Everything seems so expensive! I've heard that the show takes a 25% cut of all that's sold. Is that correct? If so, do the artists generally raise their prices for when they travel? Or (and I can take it, really, if you need to say it) are we just cheap and the prices are all right? :)

I reported this to the Action Center:

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/bicentennial012824a.jpg


http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/bicentennial012824b.jpg