According to NewsOK OKC promoted Aubrey Hammontree to Planning Director. Also named a new Parks and Rec Director....Doug Kupper from Wichita, where he had the same job.

Not much of a splash here.

How does everyone feel about Ms. Hammontree. She is a landscape architect. Seems like an underwhelming and easy/lazy choice, but I don't really know her.

I'd also be curious to hear thoughts on the Parks' hire Doug Kupper.

Aubrey is a super nice lady and I think you'll find her convictions quite similar to Russel.

Great hire.

Hopefully the engineers will get out of her way and let her do her new job.

Good to hear then.

I will give anyone a chance, but we have to see more progressive planning befitting the rise in stature of OKC. People and places before cars and trucks.

I will give anyone a chance, but we have to see more progressive planning befitting the rise in stature of OKC. People and places before cars and trucks.

I agree. I know zero about this lady but I hope she is an agenda-driven obsessive over-zealous fanatical new urbanist like me.

Aubrey is great. She will do a great job. I am not sure about Mr. Kupper. Wichita was set up differently.....we shall see on him.

Hey, she is a landscape architect. Maybe she can help with the park. :)

Other than the Parks and Rec guy, it seems that "Couch" is most comfortable promoting from within. I do agree and hope that engineers will move out of the way. But realistically, that will only happen if City Council members exert pressure for such precedence. And really, when it comes to the conflict between prioritizing automobiles over pedestrians and such, the initial conflict is inherently within the traffic division. Public Works just happens to implement their decisions.

You have to believe Couch will soon be stepping aside.

He's already held that position far longer than any of his predecessors.

I wouldn't be surprised if Cathy O'Connor takes over that position in the near future.

I don't know anything specific about the Parks hire (though I will soon as it directly impacts us), but don't make the mistake of dismissing someone from Wichita in that particular role. Wichita is culturally much more closely aligned with its park system than OKC is, and has some truly wonderful public park spaces. The ones I am most familiar with are the large historic parks in the central City - which OKC doesn't really have - and are generally not highly programmed, but seriously we would probably all kill to have great parks interwoven through our own urban center like the ones there.

I know people here often want to dismiss Wichita as a peer city due to the size discrepancy, but there are some things they have done really well historically, and parks are one of those things.

You have to believe Couch will soon be stepping aside.

He's already held that position far longer than any of his predecessors.

I wouldn't be surprised if Cathy O'Connor takes over that position in the near future.

Don't get my hopes up.

I agree. I know zero about this lady but I hope she is an agenda-driven obsessive over-zealous fanatical new urbanist like me.

You're an urbanist??? :p

You're an urbanist??? :p

I try to hide it.

I don't know anything specific about the Parks hire (though I will soon as it directly impacts us), but don't make the mistake of dismissing someone from Wichita in that particular role. Wichita is culturally much more closely aligned with its park system than OKC is, and has some truly wonderful public park spaces. The ones I am most familiar with are the large historic parks in the central City - which OKC doesn't really have - and are generally not highly programmed, but seriously we would probably all kill to have great parks interwoven through our own urban center like the ones there.

I know people here often want to dismiss Wichita as a peer city due to the size discrepancy, but there are some things they have done really well historically, and parks are one of those things.

I'm not dismissing the city. Those parks have been around a lot longer than he has. I am just worried about how it is set up. Wichita outsources a lot of work and as you can tell from the Central Park that outsourcing does nothing to keep our history or sense of place.

I don't know anything specific about the Parks hire (though I will soon as it directly impacts us), but don't make the mistake of dismissing someone from Wichita in that particular role. Wichita is culturally much more closely aligned with its park system than OKC is, and has some truly wonderful public park spaces. The ones I am most familiar with are the large historic parks in the central City - which OKC doesn't really have - and are generally not highly programmed, but seriously we would probably all kill to have great parks interwoven through our own urban center like the ones there.

I know people here often want to dismiss Wichita as a peer city due to the size discrepancy, but there are some things they have done really well historically, and parks are one of those things.

Well said, boss... And I totally agree with you. I've been frequenting Topeka with my other job, and I regularly detour to Wichita on the way back... for a city it's size (and I agree with you on the peer city argument) they have done some AMAZING things, and their parks are a big part of that.

Think she'll be invited to the meetings?

You really are Ed Shadid aren't you? I have heard ask that exact same question about Russell Claus. lol