Mini Vegas in the Adventure District?

[Plutonic Panda]

Could OKC support something like that? I saw someone mention this in Steve's chat and I think that would be awesome. I cluster of 5-15, 10-40 story hotels and casinos clustered around Remington Park. There is a huge amount of surface parking that could be turned into structured and we could have a light-rail line running from downtown to this area. We could turn Frontier City into a more adult centered park and build a new major theme park somewhere else in the city. Perhaps out by El Reno, somewhere in Logan county, or south of Norman.

The economic impact would be huge and this would be a major tourist drawl, esp. for the region. I think this is doable and OKC could achieve this. Tons of new casinos and adult entertainment venues, something that would put Dallas to shame.



Just imagine that scaled down to something more like this

[Plutonic Panda]

Heck, I know this has been mentioned before that this would likely not happen, but I think if this is successful enough, we could support an artificial ski resort.





Now I do remember the last conversation I had about this, but I think it could work with a joint hotel-casino operation.

[Achilleslastand]

Hey that's a great idea I am all for it. Id bet with all the Indian Casinos around that we would see pot legalized here first before this though.

Otherwise bring it on.....I need somewhere to play BJ close where I don't have to pay the house 50 cents per hand.

[metro]

What exactly is a tourist drawl? I didn't know there was a specific tourist accent.

[soondoc]

I think these ideas are great. OKC must become a tourist attraction or a destination place if we are ever going to have the amenities we all desire. We need to be more than just a flyover city, and a reason for people to come here. It would give us more flight options and choices and put us on the map even more than we are. Could someone please mention this in tomorrow's chat with Steve Lackmeyer?

[bchris02]

I think these ideas are great. OKC must become a tourist attraction or a destination place if we are ever going to have the amenities we all desire. We need to be more than just a flyover city, and a reason for people to come here. It would give us more flight options and choices and put us on the map even more than we are. Could someone please mention this in tomorrow's chat with Steve Lackmeyer?

Completely agree with this. More tourist dollars coming through will help improve the quality of life for permanent residents as well. OKC is a major pass-through destination for cross country travelers, but its just that - a pass-through city. It's an excuse to stop for gas and a bathroom break before starting the next leg of your journey down I-40. Let's give them a reason to stop, stay, and spend money. To this day I don't understand why OKC doesn't have a real amusement park.

[zookeeper]

Completely agree with this. More tourist dollars coming through will help improve the quality of life for permanent residents as well. OKC is a major pass-through destination for cross country travelers, but its just that - a pass-through city. It's an excuse to stop for gas and a bathroom break before starting the next leg of your journey down I-40. Let's give them a reason to stop, stay, and spend money. To this day I don't understand why OKC doesn't have a real amusement park.

With all due respect, because you DO seem intelligent on a lot of these issues, but why do you live here? There is very little you seem to like about Oklahoma City.

[zookeeper]

It's an interesting idea PluPlan...but Achilleslastand already stated why it will never happen. Indian tribes wouldn't let it happen.
They have enormous influence in this state (and rightfully so I might add).

[PWitty]

Completely agree with this. More tourist dollars coming through will help improve the quality of life for permanent residents as well. OKC is a major pass-through destination for cross country travelers, but its just that - a pass-through city. It's an excuse to stop for gas and a bathroom break before starting the next leg of your journey down I-40. Let's give them a reason to stop, stay, and spend money. To this day I don't understand why OKC doesn't have a real amusement park.

I'm sorry, but I couldn't disagree more with this.

There are SO many major cities in this country that are successful and aren't huge tourist draws. You don't have to have a huge tourism industry to be successful and have the amenities that are discussed on this forum. KC, Indy, your beloved Charlotte, even bigger cities like Dallas and Houston. Not a single one of them are talked about as being a huge tourist destination. Yes, they may have some museums or attractions that draw folks from the area but they aren't major national tourist destinations. People don't take a week off of work to visit those cities for no reason. There are very few MAJOR (top 50) cities who have tourism as a notch on their belt as a big part of their city's culture. I could count the major cities who have huge tourism industries on both hands. Other than that handful of cities the major tourist destinations in the US are smaller beach or mountain towns.

Yeah, having extra tourism in the city will be nothing but a positive. But to say that the city can't develop without being a major tourist destination is ridiculous.

[Plutonic Panda]

I'm sorry, but I couldn't disagree more with this.

There are SO many major cities in this country that are successful and aren't huge tourist draws. You don't have to have a huge tourism industry to be successful and have the amenities that are discussed on this forum. KC, Indy, your beloved Charlotte, even bigger cities like Dallas and Houston. Not a single one of them are talked about as being a huge tourist destination. Yes, they may have some museums or attractions that draw folks from the area but they aren't major national tourist destinations. People don't take a week off of work to visit those cities for no reason. There are very few MAJOR (top 50) cities who have tourism as a notch on their belt as a big part of their city's culture. I could count the major cities who have huge tourism industries on both hands. Other than that handful of cities the major tourist destinations in the US are smaller beach or mountain towns.

Yeah, having extra tourism in the city will be nothing but a positive. But to say that the city can't develop without being a major tourist destination is ridiculous.

I think Bcrhis means it would help OKC move forward very quickly and develop faster if it became a tourist hotspot, which I agree with.

[ljbab728]

I think Bcrhis means it would help OKC move forward very quickly and develop faster if it became a tourist hotspot, which I agree with.

There are just too many gambling locations now in the US for anything like this to make OKC a tourist hotspot. It just wouldn't work even if it were possible (which under current regulations for Indian gambling, it isn't.).

[ljbab728]

Tourist dollars are wonderful. Tourist economies are frightful. I think focusing on quality of life is a really smart goal for OKC for the foreseeable future.

I totally agree, Sid. I think any tourism dollars OKC attracts is wonderful but I don't think we want to rely on that to be a viable, growing city.

[bchris02]

With all due respect, because you DO seem intelligent on a lot of these issues, but why do you live here? There is very little you seem to like about Oklahoma City.

Why do I live in OKC? Mostly because of my job and family. If I could easily move back to Charlotte or down to Dallas tomorrow I wouldn't think twice about it but I am cemented here for the foreseeable future. I really think I am giving OKC its fair due and honestly it isn't as bad as I make it out to be sometimes, but as a place to live the negatives here seem to outweigh the positives, at least for me personally having come from Charlotte. Everybody is different though and one person's paradise may be another's hell and vice versa. I hope to see OKC continue to grow and progress though and one day become a more diverse place with more well-rounded urban and suburban amenities.

[PWitty]

Not to be disrespectful in any way, but the way I see it there are two kinds of people. There are people who, no matter what situation they're put in, will live their life and be positive no matter what situation they're in and what they have going for them. Then there are people who will focus on the negatives and find things to complain about no matter how good they have it. It's pretty clear from some of your completely irrational posts both on here and on City-Data which camp you fall into. The "grass is greener" mentality has never been more apparent. It doesn't matter what OKC does or has going for it, you always point out the negatives even if there aren't any to be seen, and there is always another city that does it better. I'm convinced that you could live in Manhattan or Chicago and still find a long list of things to gripe about.

That's all I'll say. I don't want to be rude but someone needs to say it.

[Urbanized]

The OKC metro is ALREADY a significant tourism draw regionally, bringing people from throughout Oklahoma and surrounding states on a daily basis. During the summer season, OKC is also a major stop for European and Asian visitors traveling Route 66. Most OKC residents are simply ignorant of these facts. Of course, most citizens of most cities generally underestimate the tourism impact in their hometown, and take for granted or even outright dismiss what it offers visitors.

If you want to find out more about what OKC and the surrounding area offers, you might try the following websites and then actually get out and experience some of the museums, events and attractions before forming and rendering an opinion:

www.visitokc.com (OKC Convention and Visitors Bureau)
www.oktourism.com (tourism marketing for OK's 12 central counties)
www.travelok.com (State Tourism & Recreation Dept)

Or, don't bother to click through or visit, like most people, and then just believe what you want to believe.

[bchris02]

Not to be disrespectful in any way, but the way I see it there are two kinds of people. There are people who, no matter what situation they're put in, will live their life and be positive no matter what situation they're in and what they have going for them. Then there are people who will focus on the negatives and find things to complain about no matter how good they have it. It's pretty clear from some of your completely irrational posts both on here and on City-Data which camp you fall into. The "grass is greener" mentality has never been more apparent. It doesn't matter what OKC does or has going for it, you always point out the negatives even if there aren't any to be seen, and there is always another city that does it better. I'm convinced that you could live in Manhattan or Chicago and still find a long list of things to gripe about.

That's all I'll say. I don't want to be rude but someone needs to say it.

Not rude at all. I admit I am many times a glass half empty person and it's something I am working on. One last thing I will say though. I would be willing to bet that somebody accustomed to and who preferred OKC's culture and level of urbanity would have trouble adjusting and would have complaints if they ended up somewhere like Amarillo or Wichita Falls.

[Plutonic Panda]

The OKC metro is ALREADY a significant tourism draw regionally, bringing people from throughout Oklahoma and surrounding states on a daily basis. During the summer season, OKC is also a major stop for European and Asian visitors traveling Route 66. Most OKC residents are simply ignorant of these facts. Of course, most citizens of most cities generally underestimate the tourism impact in their hometown, and take for granted or even outright dismiss what it offers visitors.

If you want to find out more about what OKC and the surrounding area offers, you might try the following websites and then actually get out and experience some of the museums, events and attractions before forming and rendering an opinion:

Oklahoma City Hotels, Restaurants, Events, Things to Do & Guides (OKC Convention and Visitors Bureau)
Welcome to Central Oklahoma Frontier Country - Central Oklahoma Frontier Country (tourism marketing for OK's 12 central counties)
TravelOK.com Homepage | TravelOK.com - Oklahoma's Official Travel & Tourism Site (State Tourism & Recreation Dept)

Or, don't bother to click through or visit, like most people, and then just believe what you want to believe.

That's awesome! Never really thought about that, but it makes sense.