As long as in reality it doesn't look like a 30' tall chain link fence, I'm cool with it.

Went down today and snapped some pics of the area:

Standing right underneath the behemoth.
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8516/8442865663_9779fb8480_b.jpg

Devon Tower is short.
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8329/8443958466_a42e98380e_b.jpg

Looking through the extension tunnel from the south.
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8186/8442868581_91c1f5da48_h.jpg

Since they killed the jogging trails around the old inlet, they're building this bridge to reconnect them just to the west of the Chesapeake Boathouse.
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8227/8442871569_f5df66ba0e_b.jpg

On the Bricktown Canal side looking down to where the riverboats will turn around.
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8183/8442872907_26e7eeaa83_b.jpg

Great photos, lots of progress it looks like! I guess I'm just slow, but is the canal not actually going to connect to the extension? So that from bricktown to the river it's all one water way

No...the canal is something like 40 or 50 feet higher than the river extension. There will be stairs and ramps for pedestrian access only.

No...the canal is something like 40 or 50 feet higher than the river extension. There will be stairs and ramps for pedestrian access only.

17 feet

17 feet

Looks like more than 1 3/4 basketball goals when you're up on the sidewalk looking down to. Of course, I was looking at the base of the turnaround--which is what, another 8-10 feet below where pedestrians will be getting on off the riverboats?

The actual river extension looks done except for the trails, grading, and landscaping. They can probably let the river start filling back up as soon as the sewer line is complete.

A nice article by Steve. Ties strengthen between Oklahoma River, downtown | News OK (http://newsok.com/ties-strengthen-between-oklahoma-river-downtown/article/3751973)

Sky Trail staff training on the north tower zipline:

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qTT_ubdz8Xs/URR1xoJdMDI/AAAAAAAAD0E/DQHcMvvSqH0/s1600/GRR_SkyTrail_Training_D70_010.jpg

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-j9hwVa6E6g8/URR1yv9I4_I/AAAAAAAAD0Y/YXhXchg_6PY/s1600/GRR_SkyTrail_Training_D70_021.jpg

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7hGeeWEfR90/URR1-JGbxII/AAAAAAAAD1A/zl9kfOga6-0/s1600/GRR_SkyTrail_Training_D70_079.jpg

H O L Y M O L Y ! ! !


More pics here:

Boathouse District Development: Sky Trail Staff Training - An Exciting New Oklahoma River Attraction! (http://boathousedistrictdevelopment.blogspot.com/2013/02/sky-trail-staff-training-exciting-new.html)

More info on the Sky Trail and zipline here:

Youth Pavilion, Sky Trail & Zip Line « Boathouse District (http://boathousedistrict.org/youth-pavilion-sky-trail-zip-line)

About the Sky Trail:


Safety features include a full body harness that connects to a overhead track securing patrons start to finish.


Phew! Thank goodness for that.

And, coming up.....

A surf park!


The newest addition to the plan is a surf park. .....
The surfing venue will be a unique water feature for people of all ages to enjoy and will serve as a venue for world-class boarding competitions.


Kewl!
:cool:

Ya gotta love the resourcefulness of this community....

I mean, we've got no mountains or valleys or ocean sides here in the OKC land. And our lake fronts, river front are practically all man-made in some manner. And yet we're boating, skiing, kayaking, and... preparing for white water rafting, sky trails, ziplines, surfing...

By jove, we're not going to let being a land-locked city on the prairie keep us from having some fun, dad gummit!
:)

That last picture looked like the perfect setup for a Harlem Shake video.

Okay, you just gave me an idea Sid.

But that does look really fun.

I don't know what they've got planned for the surf park, but it could be something like this:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLndbHSIlUc

This is the Flowrider at the Radisson Water Park in Albuquerque.

Or maybe we'll get a multi-flowrider thingy like this:

http://www.waveloch.com/sites/default/files/wave-attractions-flowrider-double.jpg

Note: I don't know what they have planned, these are just speculations on my part.
:)

It looks like it was put together with tinker toys... Lol

Can't wait to try this thing out!

No helmets? How much slack do these harnesses have? lol

Praedura, there was once a rendering of the surf setup when the project was first announced. It pretty much looked like your picture in post #571 ;)

No helmets? How much slack do these harnesses have? lol

If you are not wearing a helmet you are also depending on anyone above you not to drop anything.

If you are not wearing a helmet you are also depending on anyone above you not to drop anything.

I don't think pennies do damage from 80 feet, lol.

Or maybe we'll get a multi-flowrider thingy like this:

http://www.waveloch.com/sites/default/files/wave-attractions-flowrider-double.jpg

Note: I don't know what they have planned, these are just speculations on my part.
:)

I've done one of these and they're a blast, but they suck WHEN you fall, basically it's 2" of foam over concrete, with water jetting about 40+ mph. I surfed on the one in Mission Beach in San Diego several years ago, and to this day my shoulder blade has issues from it.

Ya gotta love the resourcefulness of this community....

I mean, we've got no mountains or valleys or ocean sides here in the OKC land. And our lake fronts, river front are practically all man-made in some manner. And yet we're boating, skiing, kayaking, and... preparing for white water rafting, sky trails, ziplines, surfing...

By jove, we're not going to let being a land-locked city on the prairie keep us from having some fun, dad gummit!
:)

DOWNTOWN, no less!

The "ropes course" at HeyDay in Norman is configured exactly the same way as the course being built at the river. There is no slack at all in the harness you wear; it's connected to a track over your head and slides along as you walk. My 7 year old enjoys it but it's not exactly what I'd call a hair-raising experience. Though I'm sure that the height of the tower at the river will add to the excitement, along with the zip line. I'm guessing that whoever built this course was also responsible for the HelmZar Challenge Course in Tulsa (http://www.tulsaschools.org/6_Community/01_HelmZar/photos1.shtm). They're very similar.

A nice write-up about the OKC river developments:

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma: Oklahoma City's Big River Future | Sports Destination Management (http://www.sportsdestinations.com/destinations/oklahoma/oklahoma-city-oklahoma-oklahoma-citys-big-river-fu-5852)

There wasn't anything in there that was new to me, but then again I've been following this pretty closely on this forum. Good exposure for the city.

One interesting thing I did catch near the end:



International athletes compete at the Oklahoma River on a regular basis, including the 2007 and 2011 USA Rowing World Challenge, which returns in 2015.


That 2015 event should see an even further improved boathouse area. Gonna be sweet.

I was at the dedication for the new BCBS kids zone at the river next to the Devon Boathouse. It is an awsome place to take the kids. My 5 year old was worn out. They even have a mini zip line for the small kids. The new tower is also open now. At 80 feet tall it is quite the work out to get to the top. They will have a zip line off of it by june as well as the tallest slide in the US. This thing is awesome.

They really are doing a great job of creating enough activities down there to make it a destination. There are so many more options on the way. I'd love to see a restaurant take a chance. Also, maybe some beach volleyball and a couple basketball courts could fit in somewhere... They'd be easy to do.

Beach volleyball WAS in the master plan at one point. Not sure if it still is. I really wish a restaurant would come to the area. That monsterous vending machine can only do so much.

Not sure where else to put this, or if it's been posted, but the boathouse district is heavily featured, so...

Velocity Magazine Volume 6 (posted by the chamber on their Google Plus page today):
VeloCity Vol. 6 (http://viewer.zmags.com/publication/2284f06d#/2284f06d/1)

That's a pretty cool magazine!

They really are doing a great job of creating enough activities down there to make it a destination. There are so many more options on the way. I'd love to see a restaurant take a chance. Also, maybe some beach volleyball and a couple basketball courts could fit in somewhere... They'd be easy to do.


Beach volleyball WAS in the master plan at one point. Not sure if it still is. I really wish a restaurant would come to the area. That monsterous vending machine can only do so much.

A beach vollyball court and a basketball courts were only added a couple months ago to the plan, they also have been looking into having a restaurant for a while.

Youth Zone opens in Oklahoma City's Boathouse District | News OK (http://newsok.com/youth-zone-opens-in-oklahoma-citys-boathouse-district/article/3765196?custom_click=pod_headline_oklahoma-city-news)

A nice article by Steve. Ties strengthen between Oklahoma River, downtown | News OK (http://newsok.com/ties-strengthen-between-oklahoma-river-downtown/article/3751973)

I just now read this and it got me thinking about the new boulevard. We've kind of focused on the west end to date, but it seems the whole project has the potential to simply recreate the barrier that was removed when I-40 came down. It would really be sad to lose any of the benefits of moving I-40 outlined in this article with a bloated and poorly designed boulevard that doesn't place a priority on being pedestrian friendly.

I just now read this and it got me thinking about the new boulevard. We've kind of focused on the west end to date, but it seems the whole project has the potential to simply recreate the barrier that was removed when I-40 came down. It would really be sad to lose any of the benefits of moving I-40 outlined in this article with a bloated and poorly designed boulevard that doesn't place a priority on being pedestrian friendly.

Or, it has the ability to make it more easily accessible by more people if done right.

Or, it has the ability to make it more easily accessible by more people if done right.

Maybe, but it's certainly not hard to access with what we got.

Besides, the boulevard will probably actually make it more of a pain to get to by car as well, since it'll basically be taking all the East/West traffic going through downtown and put it on one street. It will be a stretch of road to avoid for locals for sure.

Maybe, but it's certainly not hard to access with what we got.

Besides, the boulevard will probably actually make it more of a pain to get to by car as well, since it'll basically be taking all the East/West traffic going through downtown and put it on one street. It will be a stretch of road to avoid for locals for sure.

LOL. You seem to think that the boulevard is going to be a traffic magnet. What you're suggesting is just not true.

LOL. You seem to think that the boulevard is going to be a traffic magnet. What you're suggesting is just not true.

Perhaps not for locals who will know of Reno and other access to the area. But, for those traveling from out of state, or town, it will seem to be the route to downtown venues. Maybe this is a good thing as it will split the volume of traffic on the main avenues for locals and decrease potential congestion for any 1 route.

I just now read this and it got me thinking about the new boulevard. We've kind of focused on the west end to date, but it seems the whole project has the potential to simply recreate the barrier that was removed when I-40 came down. It would really be sad to lose any of the benefits of moving I-40 outlined in this article with a bloated and poorly designed boulevard that doesn't place a priority on being pedestrian friendly.

It will be less pedestrian friendly than the elevated I-40, because you could walk under it and didn't have to deal with traffic. I-40 was development unfriendly, not pedestrian unfriendly. I do think it's going to create a barrier. If there is a long enough stretch that is truly 25 mph and that speed limit is enforced, then that will help, but we all know about the people who ignore speed limits and make road crossings a nightmare for pedestrians. I think they should admit that it's going to be pedestrian unfriendly and put underground walkways beneath it on Robinson/Shields and perhaps Walker. I've mentioned that in meetings with the park people and city planners and have generally been ignored. I don't really think a lot of people who are in a position to do something about it think about pedestrians much in this city. There's far more emphasis given to moving traffic. And, I do think the boulevard has the potential to impact Core to Shore negatively. We'll see.

I guess the issue sometimes comes down to if it is a downtown amenity and asset or an Oklahoma City asset. What percentage of users does everyone believe will come from downtown citizens vs elsewhere?

Rover, I think you're right about the fact that most of the customers for river amenities will come from outside of downtown, but it would be a shame to make it so that they would have to participate in their river-related activities and then drive participate in downtown activities. I think it's accurate to state that the boulevard will stifle some of that synergy.

Well right now their is no synergy between downtown and the boathouse district until the tunnel going under I-40 and the railroad is completed. Also, the co-op mill more of a barrier than anything (besides the new I-40 anyway). I would like to see that gone and new developments on the co-op site that will help to funnel people to the boathouse district. The whole west side of the Bricktown canal south of Bass Pro is going to waste right now.

Rover, I think you're right about the fact that most of the customers for river amenities will come from outside of downtown, but it would be a shame to make it so that they would have to participate in their river-related activities and then drive participate in downtown activities. I think it's accurate to state that the boulevard will stifle some of that synergy.

THIS I agree with. However, given the distance it is doubtful that many people would come park their cars there and then walk to downtown with the family...seems a little far. With some shuttles or other ways to get their, maybe. There are many other barriers too, like 1-40, the co-op mill, the railroad, etc. Perhaps people will be able to take the canal boats to downtown or walk along the canal to downtown from the boathouse. That will still go under the boulevard, won't it?

I think this is a difficult piece of real estate to connect well to downtown right now anyway. Maybe what we can hope for is the co-op mill site gets leveled and a great mixed use area is developed which might also serve as the bridge to downtown.

This video shows the ropes course in action!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZqY8lU478U

Found some nice pics of rowers training on the river.

http://24.media.tumblr.com/33f0264b4967df0e952e1084bf2fd1bc/tumblr_mjkqb3lrVk1s0u3c8o1_1280.jpg

http://24.media.tumblr.com/a4a7c895d7415b29e9328f24cfdd19c2/tumblr_mjnl2afymQ1s0u3c8o1_1280.jpg

http://25.media.tumblr.com/48d78fc043b79bb9007143955ab96d2a/tumblr_mjcm9nvgxw1s0u3c8o1_1280.jpg

Nice shots, even though they're in black-n-white.

Source: forbes photography (http://jeniferforbesphotography.tumblr.com)

I know the guy at the 0:17 & 1:34 mark on the YouTube video.

I know Jamie Cerreta at the 1:05 mark.

KWTV had a story on their 10 o'clock news (nearly 4 hours ago) about "Bricktown Canal Extension". They really need to learn to label their stories correctly since it's actually a river extension to the Bricktown Canal...SMH.

KWTV had a story on their 10 o'clock news (nearly 4 hours ago) about "Bricktown Canal Extension". They really need to learn to label their stories correctly since it's actually a river extension to the Bricktown Canal...SMH.

The naming issue is as much on the city, it is still called canal zone G since before the current design was chosen and still called that in most documents. If we wanted to get really technical it is a lake extension anyway.

FYI - They've changed the season pass a bit, but I like it more.... Instead of June-Aug for $75 you can now do March-Oct for $85.

Went down to the boathouse side of the "river/lake extension" and snapped a pic of it. It was around 5pm so I opted not to go to the other side cause I wasn't feeling messing with traffic.
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8237/8579368728_d375bb30cd_b.jpg

Woah, great! Boathouse District is booming right now

This should be good in sucking people into Bricktown and vice versa.

Perhaps some signage similar to the signs leading into bricktown under the tracks.

Bricktown on one side, Boathouse Row on the other.

Looks good! Pretty cool!

Perhaps some signage similar to the signs leading into bricktown under the tracks.

Bricktown on one side, Boathouse Row on the other.

While I think that would be great, thought it was surprisingly hard to get ODOT to allow lights to be hung from the bridge (that are of a type they hang on other bridges), who knows they might not fight so hard against painting signage on each side.

OKC Central: Big dreams flow for Oklahoma River projects | News OK (http://newsok.com/okc-central-big-dreams-flow-for-oklahoma-river-projects/article/3771245)

More Reflections on the Oklahoma River | OKC Central (http://blog.newsok.com/okccentral/2013/03/26/more-reflections-on-the-oklahoma-river/)

I like the wording "American Indian Cultural Center Gateway". Like to know what that's all about.

I like the wording "American Indian Cultural Center Gateway". Like to know what that's all about.

I am very optimistic that the state will fund the completion of the Native American Cultural Center. It needs to be finished and would be a great east anchor to the river. Unfortunately it is a very politically charged debate.

OKC waterway project underway | KFOR.com (http://kfor.com/2013/03/27/okc-waterway-project-underway/)

OKC waterway project underway | KFOR.com (http://kfor.com/2013/03/27/okc-waterway-project-underway/)

"The canal and the waterway will not connect but it will make it easier for passengers to transfer between the Oklahoma River Cruises and the Bricktown Canal Taxis."

This makes it sound like it's even presently (or ever been) possible, which it is not.

You never jumped off the canal taxi while it is turning around and sprinted across I-40?

Your life must be boring.