Population Growth for OKC

[HangryHippo]

I think more than snagging a big ticket relocation, it would be better for the city to fund a strong startup culture or entice mid-sized companies to relocate here. This would allow the city to responsibly allocate funds and create realistic incentives that benefit both parties rather than giving away $100 million to build a small city that will just end up deserted the next time the economy dips.

Scott Meachem preaches this in his weekly column in the newspaper and he makes good arguments for why the state legislature should restore (and increase) their funding. Unfortunately, seems like he's just pissing in the wind with our legislature.

[bchris02]

Bchris, Just a quick post of encouragement. I wish I was your age again as I would do so many things differently. One is recognizing that youth is the time to go out on the edge and see the country (or the world!). I think you know what you need to do. I completely understand the need to get away from ghosts, too. Old hauntings, with memories everywhere, can do a number on your psyche. A fresh start sometimes is the clear choice, and especially when you are young.

Thanks for the encouragement. I've been trying to force myself to be happy in OKC for years. There's a lot to be excited about here, but like you say, ghosts are a legitimate thing. Issue is I've not wanted to take the risk to just pack up and leave for somewhere else being that I had a good job and overall decent life here. But sometimes you have to do what you have to do. I just got out of a relationship with somebody who did the same thing I'm about to do (except for him, OKC was his dream city). In my opinion, OKC is an alright place to live if you want a medium-sized market that is up-and-coming with a low cost of living and can also tolerate the crazy weather and politics, but it just isn't for me. I'll be back once or twice per year likely to visit friends and family.

Fresh starts are good; however if you allow yourself to fall into the same trap you found yourself in OKC; no city (Phoenix, Denver, or Dallas) will be large enough for you to hide.

Spent four years in the Fort Worth-Arlington area; kept running into some of the same people I thought were left behind in OKC--felt like the Twilight Zone.

Best of luck Bchris, you deserve happiness...

Thanks! And that will not be a worry. My issues with OKC are unique to my past and won't be issues anywhere else.

And the more I consider where I really want to end up, the more DFW becomes more of a fallback option.

[Rover]

According to this site, OKC is doing well in growing small business:
https://www.biz2credit.com/research-...25-cities-2019

[soonerguru]

BTW, judging best places to start a business is dependant on the criteria. According to Fortune Magazine in an article a year ago, OKC was the TOP large US city to start a business in. #2 was Austin. Business environment and costs was great... "Access to Resources" (read "capital") was poor.

Interesting note, but not at all relevant to the discussion here.

[Rover]

Interesting note, but not at all relevant to the discussion here.

The discussion earlier was regarding growth through small business growth vs move ins etc. I know it deviated from the LGBT discussion, but the thread is actually about OKC growth. Actually, I think it is bringing it BACK to topic. But thank you for pointing out how it is important to stay on thread topic.

[jonny d]

Interesting note, but not at all relevant to the discussion here.

But ironically enough, it is highly relevant to the thread title. Most of this thread recently has been tangentially relevant.

[bchris02]

Nm

[G.Walker]

New census estimates looks like OKC added 6,000 persons from 2017-2018, pretty good, as it is double growth from 2016-2017.

https://www.census.gov/data/tables/t...and-towns.html

[bchris02]

Report: More college graduates are choosing to leave Oklahoma

https://www.tulsaworld.com/business/...223ed5e01.html

[Rover]

Report: More college graduates are choosing to leave Oklahoma

https://www.tulsaworld.com/business/...223ed5e01.html

I wonder how many came into the state just for going to school here and then left after getting their degree, moving back where they came from.

[mugofbeer]

I wonder how many came into the state just for going to school here and then left after getting their degree, moving back where they came from.

.... or if DFW were taken out of the equation, how much it would change the numbers.

[Rover]

.... or if DFW were taken out of the equation, how much it would change the numbers.

I believe over 30% of OU undergrads and about 25% of OSU’s are from Texas, heavily from Dallas. When our brilliant legislature started squeezing money from the universities, it forced them to recruit and admit lots more out of state students who pay more than double the tuition rates of in state students. High acceptance rates (see “low qualifications needed”) attracts out of state students as well... the wrong kind. We need out of staters coming here to receive GREAT education, not cheap education and degrees for any who will pay.

[Laramie]

OU heavily recruits merit scholars in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. They have pulled back on the program since 2018--OU & OSU are schools that attract Texans who want to get away from home--out of state; yet close enough to drive home on occasions.

[gopokes88]

So 5300 people left in the years 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017.

Oil bust was 2014.

A massive chunk of that is directly correlated to the oil bust. Chk and Devon alone have shed 3,000+ jobs. Permanently. Those jobs won’t ever come back. Just those two alone. Pretty reasonable to assume a handful of those moved elsewhere. There aren’t a lot jobs that pay as well as energy in Oklahoma but a bunch in Texas.

It’s not all doom and gloom. The national trends are pretty clear, rural is shrinking and urban is growing. Fortunately, OK has two metros that can keep up.

[Jersey Boss]

I wonder how many came into the state just for going to school here and then left after getting their degree, moving back where they came from.

And how many ex pats did not come back after graduating out of state?

[mugofbeer]

I believe over 30% of OU undergrads and about 25% of OSU’s are from Texas, heavily from Dallas. When our brilliant legislature started squeezing money from the universities, it forced them to recruit and admit lots more out of state students who pay more than double the tuition rates of in state students. High acceptance rates (see “low qualifications needed”) attracts out of state students as well... the wrong kind. We need out of staters coming here to receive GREAT education, not cheap education and degrees for any who will pay.

While l appreciate your stats, I'm not sure l exactly agree with your reasons. DFW has an enormous number of OU Alumni. Their kids, like mine, have "developed" an allegiance to the Oklahoma schools. The schools, to get that out of state tuition are more than happy to accept the students. I don't know about OSU, but OU has an awful lot of dorms to fill.

As far as tuition, the published rates are about double in-state but its pretty easy to push them down. Acceptance levels are no different for Oklahoma schools as any other big 12 school with the exception of UTexas. That's a special case and frankly, all bias aside, l wouldn't necessarily want my son there (unless he had special STEM skills). Its a huge school in a now very overcrowded downtown area and it's really just too impersonal. I don't think you really get the college experience there. Even if he had the STEM skills, I'd rather see him go to Colorado. Much smaller and much more study conducive.

[Rover]

For a more complete look:
https://www.kansascityfed.org/public...ma-brain-drain

[G.Walker]

I received my undergrad & graduate degree from OU, and I can attest a lot of my classmates were from the Dallas metroplex, rural north Texas, or Houston. One of the reasons is that it was cheaper to go to OU than UT & the distance about the same between the two schools from Dallas, granted this was between 1999-2003.

Most of my classmates from Texas were studying chemical or petroleum engineering and moved back to Houston or Dallas once they received their degrees to make $60,000 - $70,000 a year from a big oil companies like ExxonMobil or Shell. Not a bad salary for fresh out of college.

[G.Walker]

They would also go back in the summer time and do internships at these big oil companies & then had a full job offer in place before they even graduated.

[Mike_M]

Went to OU from 03-08, lots of friends who traveled from DFW to attend. Not one of them even entertained the idea of staying in Oklahoma after graduating.

[BG918]

Went to OU from 03-08, lots of friends who traveled from DFW to attend. Not one of them even entertained the idea of staying in Oklahoma after graduating.

I was at OU at the same time and would say that is pretty accurate. I know a few from DFW that landed energy jobs in either OKC or Tulsa, and one at Paycom in OKC. For the most part they all returned home to DFW or moved somewhere like Chicago, Denver, Houston or Austin. Most of the people I knew who were from Oklahoma though still live in Oklahoma though the ones from rural towns have settled in either OKC or Tulsa.

[G.Walker]

I also had a lot classmates that were from Oklahoma move to Dallas after receiving their OU degrees. It wasn't that they didn't like Oklahoma, it was just better job opportunities in Dallas/Houston...its all about having good jobs. Granted there were also a handful of students from Dallas or Houston who stayed in Oklahoma and started families & are still here to this day. But the ones I know are not in the energy industry, most of them have jobs in the education system or tech.

I was different, lol. I received my MPA, so I have only worked for a state department & University of Oklahoma.

[ChrisHayes]

It sounds to me like it's just graduates wanting to go back to their home state. I can understand that to a degree. I'm different though. I graduated high school in Ohio in 1998. During my high school years it was my dream to go to OU for their meteorology program after graduating. The reality of math hit me and it didn't occur. Had I gone to OU though, I don't think I would have moved back to Ohio afterwards. Back on topic. Attracting better paying jobs is certainly something the state needs to do. From what I've read though, the state hasn't really made huge pushes for companies to relocate or open up shop here. We also need to decide what kind of state we want to be. I'd like to see more tech firms open up shop here, but I'm a believer that tech isn't the only route. We've got a growing aerospace sector and we should pursue that a lot more. Also, for the blue collar guys, we should look at expanding our manufacturing status. Manufacturing can mean really good paying jobs, as well as engineering jobs. One thing we have for marketing in regards to manufacturing is our huge network of career tech schools; many of which have manufacturing related programs. There's that big industrial park near Tulsa. I'd like to see a couple thousand acres near OKC be designated for a new industrial park.

[HangryHippo]

It sounds to me like it's just graduates wanting to go back to their home state. I can understand that to a degree. I'm different though. I graduated high school in Ohio in 1998. During my high school years it was my dream to go to OU for their meteorology program after graduating. The reality of math hit me and it didn't occur. Had I gone to OU though, I don't think I would have moved back to Ohio afterwards. Back on topic. Attracting better paying jobs is certainly something the state needs to do. From what I've read though, the state hasn't really made huge pushes for companies to relocate or open up shop here. We also need to decide what kind of state we want to be. I'd like to see more tech firms open up shop here, but I'm a believer that tech isn't the only route. We've got a growing aerospace sector and we should pursue that a lot more. Also, for the blue collar guys, we should look at expanding our manufacturing status. Manufacturing can mean really good paying jobs, as well as engineering jobs. One thing we have for marketing in regards to manufacturing is our huge network of career tech schools; many of which have manufacturing related programs. There's that big industrial park near Tulsa. I'd like to see a couple thousand acres near OKC be designated for a new industrial park.

It’s pie in the sky, but I wish OKC could land a Boeing or Airbus manufacturing plant.

[G.Walker]

TTEC Holdings establishing customer center in OKC

https://oklahoman.com/article/563612...reate-350-jobs