Founders District

[Celebrator]

Looks as if we will soon have a new official "district" in OKC--Founders District. This new district, centered around the Founders Tower, is bound by NW 59th to the north, N. May to the East, Independence to the west, and NW Expressway to the south.

Businesses, organizations, and residents (in the Tower) have formed a neighborhood association in the last year and have already completed and are planning on completing more projects to improve the neighborhood--lots of trees have been planted along the bountries of the neighborhood,the medians on the interior have been completely re-landscaped and irrigated, and they are working on more street lights for safety and visibility on the interior streets of the area. It is very exciting to the see the cooperation between all of these groups for the betterment of the area.

It really has a diverse gathering of national and local businesses and organizations with some buildings being renovated and improved in recent years...


-Crowne Plaza Oklahoma City Upscale Hotel in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma | Crowne Plaza -recent interior renovations

-Cimarron Alliance Cimarron Alliance | For a fair and just Oklahoma! -Recently moved into a suite in the Bank of America (Founders Bank building)

-Founders Tower Founders Tower - Welcome -renovated from offices in last 5-6 years with The George Prime Steakhouse to open in the fall in the restaurant space on the top floor

-Daystar Foundation and Library Daystar Foundation & Library: Home » Daystar Foundation & Library -completely renovated the former Bankers Bank/Kodak building in 2011

-People Source Corporate HQ Contact Us | People Source -recent complete renovation


Just great to keep seeing areas of the city improving due to grass-roots efforts! Positive momentum all around us!

[Plutonic Panda]

Just curious, do districts get any kind of financial perks or are they just deemed districts to help people find their way around easier?

[Fantastic]

Just curious, do districts get any kind of financial perks or are they just deemed districts to help people find their way around easier?

If I had to hinder a guess, I would say any financial "perks" would be in the form of promotion, development and the overall raising of awareness/interest in a specific area. I personally have a bizzare (possibly unhealthy obsession) with the concept of "districts" due to what they add to an area's identity and community pride (seriously... ask my wife... she gets so annoyed with my hours and hours of working on self-produced blank maps for absolutly NO REASON).

That being said... raising awareness to a particular area often times will lead to financial perks. Like with Bricktown, for instance. When Horton and Brewer came in and started to develop a new identity for the old "Wholesale District" or "Warehouse District" (whichever title you perfer), other developers, city leaders, citizens, etc. all started to take notice, and now BT has become what it is today. Some of that development has been organic, some manufactured... some public, some private. The point is, creating or changing any given "district's" identity can lead to many forms of "financial perks" through both public and private investment.

I really don't think that the identifying of a "district" is designed simply to help people find their way around easier. (I'm no stranger to sarcasm, by the way... but I will take the question seriously nonetheless) I truely believe that identifying "districts" (and neighborhoods, for that matter) is a show of community pride and shared vision, as well as a way to increase development opportunities and resourses... the idea that "districts" help people "find their way" is just a happy coincidence

Now, if you will excuse me, I have to upload some screen shots from Google Maps into paint... it's gonna be a long night of picking colors and clicking the "fill" icon...

[Spartan]

Just curious, do districts get any kind of financial perks or are they just deemed districts to help people find their way around easier?

Fantastic is right. A lot of districts don't have any FT professional staff, especially fledgling ones. Once you get FT professional staff then you have people who are good at grant writing, project conception, etc etc... then you get the federal funding, so you can build another wing.

[Chicken In The Rough]

IMO, this pushes the concept of districts. There's nothing in this district that remotely resembles a district. I can only think of expansive parking lots, big box stores, fast food, a couple suburban-style office complexes, etc. I see potential, but little urban fabric.

[Teo9969]

Why does something have to be "urban" for it to be a district?

[Celebrator]

IMO, this pushes the concept of districts. There's nothing in this district that remotely resembles a district. I can only think of expansive parking lots, big box stores, fast food, a couple suburban-style office complexes, etc. I see potential, but little urban fabric.

I have been in on the grass-roots efforts of the making of this district, and I will kindly disagree with you. Perhaps "neighborhood" would be more to your liking, but it is simply semantics. The Founders Tower is the centerpiece of the district, as it was developed around this major building. Although the mix of businesses has changed, the tower still holds together the neighborhood as an iconic landmark building. So, to me, it is a district because of its unique identity due to this significant piece of architecture that gives the area a distinct and cohesive identity. And now, with the active pulling together of both residents and businesses, positive things are getting done. THAT is the most important result of this cooperative activity.

There is lots of potential and announcing ourselves as a district, helps our identity take shape and the interest grow among stakeholders in keeping the momentum we have gathered in the last year gather more steam. Have you been to our district lately? Yes our steps have been small, but wonderful things are happening there...you should come by and see. And the way people have responded and taken interest in making this area of our city better is gratifying, inspiring, and fills me with pride.

[Teo9969]

Celebratory, what are the boundaries the district currently supports and what are the final.boundaries the group.hopes to.attain?

[Celebrator]

I stated the current boundaries in my first post at the top of the page...and as far as I know we have no plans to expand them.

[Fantastic]

I have been in on the grass-roots efforts of the making of this district

And the way people have responded and taken interest in making this area of our city better is gratifying, inspiring, and fills me with pride.

Keep up the good work!

[Celebrator]

Keep up the good work!

Thanks, will do!

[Dynamite]

I love the Founders Tower, but wish somehow the Continental Theater hadn't been demolished and replaced with another parking lot.

[TheTravellers]

I love the Founders Tower, but wish somehow the Continental Theater hadn't been demolished and replaced with another parking lot.

Agree with this very much, it would make a great theater to rival the big screens at the Warren and Harkins, might've even been able to turn into an IMAX. Saw "2001: A Space Odyssey" there under the influence of some, um, stuff, wooooooooooow......

[Celebrator]

Hotel flag change: Crowne Plaza at NW Expressway and May is, starting today, a Wyndham. New signs are up on the building. Is this a rung or two up from the Crowne Plaza brand?

[Bullbear]

Hotel flag change: Crowne Plaza at NW Expressway and May is, starting today, a Wyndham. New signs are up on the building. Is this a rung or two up from the Crowne Plaza brand?

maybe one rung up.. . both under standard traditional category of properties.

[aDark]

IMO, this pushes the concept of districts. There's nothing in this district that remotely resembles a district. I can only think of expansive parking lots, big box stores, fast food, a couple suburban-style office complexes, etc. I see potential, but little urban fabric.

My gut response is to agree with you. I don't want to take any wind out of Celebrator's sails, as there is clearly passion for the effort.

Is it fair to ask at what point labeling some area a "district" begins to water-down the term for established districts? "District" itself a broad term, but as used in OKC it seems pretty specific. I know I've heard Steve Lackmeyer complain that we are already overusing the term. I'm not saying I agree with him or the argument against creating districts, but I do think it might be worth discussing.

[Celebrator]

My gut response is to agree with you. I don't want to take any wind out of Celebrator's sails, as there is clearly passion for the effort.

Is it fair to ask at what point labeling some area a "district" begins to water-down the term for established districts? "District" itself a broad term, but as used in OKC it seems pretty specific. I know I've heard Steve Lackmeyer complain that we are already overusing the term. I'm not saying I agree with him or the argument against creating districts, but I do think it might be worth discussing.

Sigh, guess we have to discuss this every time I post here....

[Plutonic Panda]

Sigh, guess we have to discuss this every time I post here....

+1

[Pete]

Took this yesterday:

[Celebrator]

Another beautiful shot, thanks Pete. In the last year we have established a 501(c)(3) and an endowment fund at Oklahoma City Community Foundation to support the perpetual maintenance of the public land in the district, chiefly the medians. People should take a drive down United Founders Blvd. and see how nicely landscaped they are and how much it beautifies the neighborhood.

[PaddyShack]

If only someone could make the numbers work to build an OAK type development that started along NW Expressway and wound back between Embassy and Founders Tower...

[rezman]

I love the Founders Tower, but wish somehow the Continental Theater hadn't been demolished and replaced with another parking lot.

And Founders bank.

[Celebrator]

Continental Theater was replaced with the Residence Inn and Founders Bank will eventually be an OnCue. But I would rather have both mid-century buildings still standing and done an adaptive re-use on both. Trust me, I work in this neighborhood every day and so wish the bank was still there, especially.

[Teo9969]

And Founders bank.

And what?

[GoGators]

If These building were preserved, this would have been one of the best Mid Century architectural districts in the entire country. This list of award winning MCM buildings in one small(ish) OKC area is beyond impressive.

Founders Tower
Continental Theater
Founders Bank
Medical Tower
Ackerman Building
Dunn-Reynolds Urology Clinic
Hilton Inn
Shoppers World
Local Federal Savings & Loan building.

If these buildings were still standing as designed, the Founders district would be an absolute destination location that would draw people from all over.

Sadly, out of all of those mentioned buildings, only founders tower remains relatively original. Such a shame. I hope this area does well moving forward, but the damage done to the district is practically a death sentence.