OKC Explodes in population. Tulsa creeps along. That's all you need to know.

And what is the name of Tulsa's NBA team ? Oh crap they don't have one.

If the only metrics worth measuring are population and having an NBA team, then yeah, sure, OKC wins. I guess that's how OKC citizens keep themselves sane.

Just kidding, OKC has some great qualities and I enjoy visiting from time to time. I do enjoy living in Tulsa though because of the riverside parks, downtown arts district, and general vibe/culture. Watching Tulsa FC, the Drillers, and the Oilers is enough for me. Wish TU was better at football. :wink:

OKC is going to keep growing rapidly because of it's critical mass, the universities, and the capitol, not to mention the proximity to Dallas. It's a natural magnet for many reasons, but some amenities have certainly been lacking. The progress on OKC's riverfront, downtown park system, and various districts over the past 15 years has made the city livable, but I remember what it used to be and you guys basically started over from nothing. OKC was a bleak city when I was a kid and it still has a ways to go before I feel like it would be truly desirable to live there. I think OKC is just a few years away from being truly desirable though. There's so much happening, it just takes time for some of the loose ends to finally connect. I am watching the strawberry fields area and the Scissortail park closely. Can't wait till there's just a bit more urban cohesion around the city center. Last time I walked around downtown OKC it was just so dead during the day, but at least there's bricktown and taking the streetcar up to Fassler/Dust Bowl.

Tulsa isn't perfect, but it's got a lot of factors that are often overlooked. The whole point of that twitter thread was just to show people that we are more than a random cow town. It's a fight just to get people to even look at our city, let alone consider moving here, hence our "little brother syndrome". Tulsa is not in a natural position for growth. It exists because of the early 1900's oil boom and has been coasting largely on it's own critical mass and history since then. We are oddly positioned between multiple large markets without a great transportation system to help us connect very well (other than the port of Catoosa, which gets blocked by floods easily and needs a bunch of work). We are growing at a nice steady pace and our downtown area has a lot of awesome projects getting off the ground, but most of the growth is in the suburbs. The one thing that does keep setting us apart is our concentration of old money that keeps our arts scene flourishing, not to mention bringing us amazing amenities such as the Gathering Place, Holberton School, Mother Road Market, etc. Tulsa has a lot of relatively wealthy people moving to it to retire.

Over time Tulsa is going to sprawl to the east and form some kind of super metro with NWA. There's so much stuff being added to the MidAmerican Industrial Park and Port of Catoosa area, plus the big Inola industrial park with the massive new factories there. I don't know if we'll ever be a hub for major businesses again, but at least we will keep growing as a manufacturing base.

So in summary, this thread is dumb, lol. Both cities have a lot going for them, but Tulsa has to fight harder for everything due to lack of strategic position. OKC shot itself in the foot repeatedly a few decades ago and has had to rebuild the heart of the city, which is an on-going and exciting phenomenon.

Not that I can find but I'm sure it is out there

I should have kept scrolling down, thank you for the info

Not sure why there had to be a pissing contest between the 2 cities. OKC is no doubt bigger. Tulsa has its pluses, as well. They both need to grow to help this state prosper. I don't understand why that Tulsa guy felt the need to piss on OKC, but that's for him to do.

I don't get the pissing contest either. Maybe just me but it seems like most of the outrage comes from Tulsa. We are all Okies and I love seeing both cities grow.

Not sure why you’re belittling Tulsa by over exaggerating the population growth of Oklahoma City. To say it “explodes” is very deceptive and untrue. There’s no need to inflate yourself at the expensive of dismissing or insulting another place. It’s just shallow and lame.

Only 14 cities in America had 100k plus increase from 2010 to 2020. You may not like it but OKC was one of them and Tulsa was not. It's a fact and if you read the guys 31 list count , which was stupid I'll admit, you will see where I'm coming from.
You can call the list shallow and lame,

IDGAF about this argument, but OKC's population increased 100K between the 2010 and the 2020 census, and is one of only two cities that did that if I remember correctly. How is that an exaggeration?

There were 14 cities and Tulsa, (which I do like the place by the way), was not one of them.

Josh, Aren't you promoting San Antonio in some way ?

This was the percentage of growth from 2010 to 2020. - 8 %

'And San Antonio's growth has continued to be robust.” In San Antonio alone, the city's population rose to more than 1.4 million people in 2020, a jump of 8 percent since 2010.'

Thank you!

So the city itself grew a bit faster than the metro, that is interesting.

Canadian County I think grew 30 %.

A lot of OKC's growth came in Canadian County.

I am an OKC native and booster and am on the side of my hometown in whatever argument (?) this is, but I still think shavethewhales has offered the best contribution to this renewed thread.

It's easy, lazy and shallow to look at a population growth rate and somehow equate that with naturally being "better." There are structural reasons why OKC grows faster than Tulsa, and an overlooked one is that it's two hours closer to Mexico. I wonder what percentage of our growth rate is the Latino population surging north from Texas?

The last time I drove from St. Louis to OKC, I got to Tulsa around dinnertime and got off 44 on one of the arterials in south Tulsa, I forget if it was Sheridan or maybe Yale. I don't know but I went south for a few miles looking for a place to eat. Guys, I'm sorry, but that area of Tulsa possesses a cohesion of well-done architectural shopping centers, stately homes and the like that is damn impressive for a city in the middle of the country. And OKC may have every one of those stores, and an equally sizable number of large homes, and I'm sure it has more if you cobble together 20 different parts of OKC but all I could think of was that it was probably the demographic equivalent of north May Avenue and it just looked - classier. May Avenue looks - well - I'll leave that be.

Now, I think Tulsa rested on the laurels far too long (and maybe still does) as a town that is just better put together aesthetically. It's got much more concentrated wealth geographically and so it's a lot easier to be in a "bubble" in Tulsa. It's families support things like arts and museums. Well, in OKC, the well-healed fund medical centers and the like. (I realize I'm oversimplifying as the reverse is true in both cities) but I might argue that having the OU Medical Center is a better calling card than having Philbrook Museum from a quality of life issue but the point is, it's a more nuanced argument than "who is bigger."

OKC has done so many things right, that we needed to do. Whereas 30 years ago, only those with their head in the sand would argue for OKC's dominance (and OKC was still bigger than Tulsa then and might have been growing faster, I don't know), now it's at the very least an open question and honestly, I do think OKC has pulled ahead even when considering our shortcomings.

It is - really - a pretty stupid argument to be having since, when compared to most places in the U.S., the cities are much more alike than they are different. But if it makes you feel any better, St. Louis and Kansas City have the same arguments. I know Dallas and Houston do as well. It's only natural.

:yeahthat:

I am an OKC native and booster and am on the side of my hometown in whatever argument (?) this is, but I still think shavethewhales has offered the best contribution to this renewed thread.

It's easy, lazy and shallow to look at a population growth rate and somehow equate that with naturally being "better." There are structural reasons why OKC grows faster than Tulsa, and an overlooked one is that it's two hours closer to Mexico. I wonder what percentage of our growth rate is the Latino population surging north from Texas?

The last time I drove from St. Louis to OKC, I got to Tulsa around dinnertime and got off 44 on one of the arterials in south Tulsa, I forget if it was Sheridan or maybe Yale. I don't know but I went south for a few miles looking for a place to eat. Guys, I'm sorry, but that area of Tulsa possesses a cohesion of well-done architectural shopping centers, stately homes and the like that is damn impressive for a city in the middle of the country. And OKC may have every one of those stores, and an equally sizable number of large homes, and I'm sure it has more if you cobble together 20 different parts of OKC but all I could think of was that it was probably the demographic equivalent of north May Avenue and it just looked - classier. May Avenue looks - well - I'll leave that be.

Tulsa has done a great job with beautification of many of its thoroughfares. The Up With Trees program has also planted thousands of trees. This is an area of the state that is more forested and hilly makes the city more attractive. Lots could still be done though with regard to more trees especially downtown and corridors like Memorial and Mingo.


It is - really - a pretty stupid argument to be having since, when compared to most places in the U.S., the cities are much more alike than they are different. But if it makes you feel any better, St. Louis and Kansas City have the same arguments. I know Dallas and Houston do as well. It's only natural.

Little Rock and NWA is another one. Ohio with Columbus and Cincinnati is probably the best comparison though. OKC being Columbus and Tulsa being Cincinnati

.


Oklahoma's two shinning stars--we are proud of both. Both cities are competitive and each has something bright within its own domain. Proud home town boosters who support, know what their town has to offer. This is good for all of Oklahoma to be competitive and make our state more attractive.

Great ambassadors we are and should continue to be. "You're doing fine Oklahoma..."

OKLAHOMA CITY 'Big Friendly, Modern Frontier...'
Devon Energy Tower, OKC Skyline
Paycom Center,NBA Oklahoma City Thunder, Oklahoma City Convention Center Complex
Scissortail Park, Myriad Gardens
FAM Museum, Oklahoma City Museum of Art, National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum
Softball Hall of Fame Museum
Oklahoma State Fair
WCWS annual event: OGE Field @ Hall of Fame Stadium
Oklahoma Riversports Adventure Parks & Dams
Oaktree Country Club
Oklahoma City Zoo
Tinker Air Force Base
Amazon centers
OU Health Science Center, OU Medical Trauma Center, OU Patient Tower,
Innovation Research Plaza, Children's Hospital, Oklahoma Baptist VA Hospital,
Integris Baptist Medical Center.
OKC Will Rogers World Airport

TULSA, 'Oil Capital of the World, T-Town...'
Williams Center, Tulsa Skyline
Tulsa CityPlex Towers
BOK Center, ECHL Tulsa Oilers
Tulsa Convention Center Complex
Philbrook Museum of Art, Gilcrease Museum
Tulsa Zoo, Oklahoma Aquarium
The Gathering Place,
Southern Hills Country Club
Tulsa State Fair
Tulsa River Parks Development & Dams
American Airlines Maintenance Center
Tulsa St. Francis Hospitals, St. Francis Children's, Hillcrest Hospital,
Oklahoma State University Medical Center, St. Francis South,
Tulsa International Airport

If anything has been omitted; please chime in...

OKC is a city with more commerce than Tulsa. It is more metropolitan in population and grew at a rate that is incredible! OKC is the financial center of the State! OKC has much better medical hospitals and biotechnology than Tulsa. OKC has a far superior zoo to Tulsa. OKC has made great strides in development of it's central core! DT OKC is clean and modern and MAPS has transformed DT in a big way. One thing I do have to say about Tulsa is it is a much cleaner city than OKC. OKC outside of downtown looks beaten down and just plain dirty! Why did the residents of OKC let this happen? It appears OKC lacks the civic pride where Tulsa has better landscaping and is overall much cleaner.

This whole thing is silly. There are plenty of great things about each city. I am sick of the corn dog measuring contest between the two. In every economic and statistical metric OKC blows Tulsa out of the water. That ship has long sailed. But there are so many cool things about Tulsa that OKC cannot replicate -- and that is okay.

This Twitter list is so dumb it makes my head spin. There are so many subjective parts of it. If Tulsa is the greater city for you then great. I am happy for you. But this whole thing just sounds like that annoying kid we all knew in elementary school who would criticize your pencil because it was yellow, and his mom, who is better than your mom, bought him a red pencil that has a super eraser on it. It's ridiculous and serves no purpose. But he feels good about it, and is riding his Tulsa better than OKC wave of fame. (?)

I have been disconnected from Oklahoma long enough now to really appreciate both cities. I think both cities are great. They are very different cities that have very different cultures and feels. I am partial to OKC, but there are plenty of reasons to love Tulsa as well. If Oklahoma were smart they would capitalize on that and continue to link the cities together. Get a frikken' train running between them. Or at least a joint-funded frequent bus service that doesn't say Greyhound on the side. A 6x daily bus service would do well. Link both downtowns together with a cheap fare. I have family in both cities and often have to rent a car when flying into either city. I would love to fly into OKC and take a bus or train to Tulsa, or vice versa.

Good point on the train. I can’t believe there isn’t one between two cities only 90 miles apart with a combined metro population of 2.4M

This whole thing is silly. There are plenty of great things about each city. I am sick of the corn dog measuring contest between the two. In every economic and statistical metric OKC blows Tulsa out of the water. That ship has long sailed. But there are so many cool things about Tulsa that OKC cannot replicate -- and that is okay.

This Twitter list is so dumb it makes my head spin. There are so many subjective parts of it. If Tulsa is the greater city for you then great. I am happy for you. But this whole thing just sounds like that annoying kid we all knew in elementary school who would criticize your pencil because it was yellow, and his mom, who is better than your mom, bought him a red pencil that has a super eraser on it. It's ridiculous and serves no purpose. But he feels good about it, and is riding his Tulsa better than OKC wave of fame. (?)

I have been disconnected from Oklahoma long enough now to really appreciate both cities. I think both cities are great. They are very different cities that have very different cultures and feels. I am partial to OKC, but there are plenty of reasons to love Tulsa as well. If Oklahoma were smart they would capitalize on that and continue to link the cities together. Get a frikken' train running between them. Or at least a joint-funded frequent bus service that doesn't say Greyhound on the side. A 6x daily bus service would do well. Link both downtowns together with a cheap fare. I have family in both cities and often have to rent a car when flying into either city. I would love to fly into OKC and take a bus or train to Tulsa, or vice versa.

Let's just lock this mostly pointless thread after this post. Well said.

Let's just lock this mostly pointless thread after this post. Well said.

Amen!!

This whole thing is silly. There are plenty of great things about each city. I am sick of the corn dog measuring contest between the two. In every economic and statistical metric OKC blows Tulsa out of the water. That ship has long sailed. But there are so many cool things about Tulsa that OKC cannot replicate -- and that is okay.

This Twitter list is so dumb it makes my head spin. There are so many subjective parts of it. If Tulsa is the greater city for you then great. I am happy for you. But this whole thing just sounds like that annoying kid we all knew in elementary school who would criticize your pencil because it was yellow, and his mom, who is better than your mom, bought him a red pencil that has a super eraser on it. It's ridiculous and serves no purpose. But he feels good about it, and is riding his Tulsa better than OKC wave of fame. (?)

I have been disconnected from Oklahoma long enough now to really appreciate both cities. I think both cities are great. They are very different cities that have very different cultures and feels. I am partial to OKC, but there are plenty of reasons to love Tulsa as well. If Oklahoma were smart they would capitalize on that and continue to link the cities together. Get a frikken' train running between them. Or at least a joint-funded frequent bus service that doesn't say Greyhound on the side. A 6x daily bus service would do well. Link both downtowns together with a cheap fare. I have family in both cities and often have to rent a car when flying into either city. I would love to fly into OKC and take a bus or train to Tulsa, or vice versa.

Why would anyone ride a BUS to Tulsa or OKC when everyone has a car?

corn dog measuring contest between the two. .

LOL...we really need to bring back the like button

Listing Greenwood Rising and calling the history of the Tulsa Race Massacre "unique" as a reason why Tulsa is better than OKC is shameless.

I was thinking the same thing Midtowner - OP reaching there.

If the only metrics worth measuring are population and having an NBA team, then yeah, sure, OKC wins. I guess that's how OKC citizens keep themselves sane.

Just kidding, OKC has some great qualities and I enjoy visiting from time to time. I do enjoy living in Tulsa though because of the riverside parks, downtown arts district, and general vibe/culture. Watching Tulsa FC, the Drillers, and the Oilers is enough for me. Wish TU was better at football. :wink:

OKC is going to keep growing rapidly because of it's critical mass, the universities, and the capitol, not to mention the proximity to Dallas. It's a natural magnet for many reasons, but some amenities have certainly been lacking. The progress on OKC's riverfront, downtown park system, and various districts over the past 15 years has made the city livable, but I remember what it used to be and you guys basically started over from nothing. OKC was a bleak city when I was a kid and it still has a ways to go before I feel like it would be truly desirable to live there. I think OKC is just a few years away from being truly desirable though. There's so much happening, it just takes time for some of the loose ends to finally connect. I am watching the strawberry fields area and the Scissortail park closely. Can't wait till there's just a bit more urban cohesion around the city center. Last time I walked around downtown OKC it was just so dead during the day, but at least there's bricktown and taking the streetcar up to Fassler/Dust Bowl.

Tulsa isn't perfect, but it's got a lot of factors that are often overlooked. The whole point of that twitter thread was just to show people that we are more than a random cow town. It's a fight just to get people to even look at our city, let alone consider moving here, hence our "little brother syndrome". Tulsa is not in a natural position for growth. It exists because of the early 1900's oil boom and has been coasting largely on it's own critical mass and history since then. We are oddly positioned between multiple large markets without a great transportation system to help us connect very well (other than the port of Catoosa, which gets blocked by floods easily and needs a bunch of work). We are growing at a nice steady pace and our downtown area has a lot of awesome projects getting off the ground, but most of the growth is in the suburbs. The one thing that does keep setting us apart is our concentration of old money that keeps our arts scene flourishing, not to mention bringing us amazing amenities such as the Gathering Place, Holberton School, Mother Road Market, etc. Tulsa has a lot of relatively wealthy people moving to it to retire.

Over time Tulsa is going to sprawl to the east and form some kind of super metro with NWA. There's so much stuff being added to the MidAmerican Industrial Park and Port of Catoosa area, plus the big Inola industrial park with the massive new factories there. I don't know if we'll ever be a hub for major businesses again, but at least we will keep growing as a manufacturing base.

So in summary, this thread is dumb, lol. Both cities have a lot going for them, but Tulsa has to fight harder for everything due to lack of strategic position. OKC shot itself in the foot repeatedly a few decades ago and has had to rebuild the heart of the city, which is an on-going and exciting phenomenon.

this is very well written and I agree with almost all of your points. Thank you for contributing, please continue to mention where you think OKC can improve.

I think it will do Oklahoma very well to have OKC excel as a major market and Tulsa excel as a mid-market. Very nice points about OKC's strengths that Tulsa can not compete with but has had to go above and beyond to even be considered. My only request is let's not compete/belittle against each other but rather take on other cities with our strengths and support each other in the process!

I am an OKC native and booster and am on the side of my hometown in whatever argument (?) this is, but I still think shavethewhales has offered the best contribution to this renewed thread.

It's easy, lazy and shallow to look at a population growth rate and somehow equate that with naturally being "better." There are structural reasons why OKC grows faster than Tulsa, and an overlooked one is that it's two hours closer to Mexico. I wonder what percentage of our growth rate is the Latino population surging north from Texas?

The last time I drove from St. Louis to OKC, I got to Tulsa around dinnertime and got off 44 on one of the arterials in south Tulsa, I forget if it was Sheridan or maybe Yale. I don't know but I went south for a few miles looking for a place to eat. Guys, I'm sorry, but that area of Tulsa possesses a cohesion of well-done architectural shopping centers, stately homes and the like that is damn impressive for a city in the middle of the country. And OKC may have every one of those stores, and an equally sizable number of large homes, and I'm sure it has more if you cobble together 20 different parts of OKC but all I could think of was that it was probably the demographic equivalent of north May Avenue and it just looked - classier. May Avenue looks - well - I'll leave that be.

Now, I think Tulsa rested on the laurels far too long (and maybe still does) as a town that is just better put together aesthetically. It's got much more concentrated wealth geographically and so it's a lot easier to be in a "bubble" in Tulsa. It's families support things like arts and museums. Well, in OKC, the well-healed fund medical centers and the like. (I realize I'm oversimplifying as the reverse is true in both cities) but I might argue that having the OU Medical Center is a better calling card than having Philbrook Museum from a quality of life issue but the point is, it's a more nuanced argument than "who is bigger."

OKC has done so many things right, that we needed to do. Whereas 30 years ago, only those with their head in the sand would argue for OKC's dominance (and OKC was still bigger than Tulsa then and might have been growing faster, I don't know), now it's at the very least an open question and honestly, I do think OKC has pulled ahead even when considering our shortcomings.

It is - really - a pretty stupid argument to be having since, when compared to most places in the U.S., the cities are much more alike than they are different. But if it makes you feel any better, St. Louis and Kansas City have the same arguments. I know Dallas and Houston do as well. It's only natural.

very true as well stl, and to fellow expats progressive and catch.

I really wish Tulsan's can stop the little brother, cocky pride thing against OKC and instead help represent the state. As was mentioned, both can target different markets/sectors to the benefit of the state. OKC is larger and will always be - let's move on now. ...

Tulsa had a chance to have a very vibrant black community with the Greenwood District prior to the race massacre. This IMO is what set the difference between a larger OKC vs. TUL. Whenever I visit Atlanta, it's a reminder of what Tulsa could have been--a slightly smaller version of ATL.

Tulsa recently eclipsed 1 million MSA population (1,015,331). This is a good sign. Tulsa's disposable income is higher than OKCs. Now would be the time for a city like Tulsa to begin looking at major league sports possibilities to raise the city's national profile--at lease conduct a study about what T-town could support. Major League Soccer or the National Hockey League would be a good place to begin. The old Tulsa Roughneck of the NASL were a rallying point back in the late '70s and early '80s--averaging 12,000 to 17,000+ attendance.

Vision 2025 could be a possible future stadium funding sources. Tulsa best days are ahead...

^^^ that is a very interesting point I hadn’t thought about. I wonder where Tulsa would be today if the race massacre and the destruction of Greenwood didn’t happen.

Tulsa had a chance to have a very vibrant black community with the Greenwood District prior to the race massacre. This IMO is what set the difference between a larger OKC vs. TUL. Whenever I visit Atlanta, it's a reminder of what Tulsa could have been--a slightly smaller version of ATL.

Tulsa recently eclipsed 1 million MSA population (1,015,331). This is a good sign. Tulsa's disposable income is higher than OKCs. Now would be the time for a city like Tulsa to begin looking at major league sports possibilities to raise the city's national profile--at lease conduct a study about what T-town could support. Major League Soccer or the National Hockey League would be a good place to begin. The old Tulsa Roughneck of the NASL were a rallying point back in the late '70s and early '80s--averaging 12,000 to 17,000+ attendance.

Vision 2025 could be a possible future stadium funding sources. Tulsa best days are ahead...

Not disagreeing with the actions you recommend, but do you have a link/reference regarding your "Tulsa has more disposable income" statement? I'm just now sure how that's discerned.

Also, 15K comprises an eclipsing?

Not disagreeing with the actions you recommend, but do you have a link/reference regarding your "Tulsa has more disposable income" statement? I'm just now sure how that's discerned.

Also, 15K comprises an eclipsing?

It costs less to live there. Every source I know of, OKC has a higher median income.

It costs less to live there. Every source I know of, OKC has a higher median income.

Median income 2015-19 - the counties are about the same but OKC is considerably higher for just the city limits
OKC city: $55,557
Oklahoma County: $54,520

Tulsa city: $47,650
Tulsa County: $55,517

Per capita income for both cities is pretty equal
OKC city: $30,567
Tulsa city: $30,970

Median income 2015-19 - the counties are about the same but OKC is considerably higher for just the city limits
OKC city: $55,557
Oklahoma County: $54,520

Tulsa city: $47,650
Tulsa County: $55,517

Per capita income for both cities is pretty equal
OKC city: $30,567
Tulsa city: $30,970

I don't know about Tulsa but isn't OKC sprawled into several counties other than Oklahoma County?

I don't know about Tulsa but isn't OKC sprawled into several counties other than Oklahoma County?

About a 5th of Canadian County is OKC.

I don't know about Tulsa but isn't OKC sprawled into several counties other than Oklahoma County?

Small portions of Tulsa are in Osage and Wagoner counties but these are the least-populated areas. 2/3 of the Tulsa metro lives in Tulsa County

About a 5th of Canadian County is OKC.

and a bunch of Cleveland county as well . and a little of Pottawatomie

and a bunch of Cleveland county as well . and a little of Pottawatomie

It's about 1/2 of a square mile in Pottawatomie County. It's kind of funny considering Pottawatomie County is excluded from the OKC MSA. So those individuals that live in Oklahoma City and Pottawatomie County are counted in the municipal population, but not the metro population.

with virtually no people living in those counties except right where OKC city limits are adjacent to Oklahoma County.

could easily deannex most of the non-OK county parts of the "city" and not drop in city population.

I also don't think those counties would move the needle for the OKC vs Tulsa per capita or discretionary income conversation.

with virtually no people living in those counties except right where OKC city limits are adjacent to Oklahoma County.

could easily deannex most of the non-OK county parts of the "city" and not drop in city population.

I also don't think those counties would move the needle for the OKC vs Tulsa per capita or discretionary income conversation.

almost 100k people in OKC live in cleavland county

almost 100k people in OKC live in cleavland county

I'd give a WAG that 50 to 60 thousand OKC residents live in Canadian County.

According to the 2020 Census:
77,784 OKC residents live in Cleveland Co,
77,226 live in Canadian Co,
74 live in Pottawatomie Co, and
525,970 live in Oklahoma Co.

wow on that 74 we're having to provide (I'm sure limited) services to...

According to the 2020 Census:
77,784 OKC residents live in Cleveland Co,
77,226 live in Canadian Co,
74 live in Pottawatomie Co, and
525,970 live in Oklahoma Co.

thank you

Why would anyone ride a BUS to Tulsa or OKC when everyone has a car?

Hoping this is sarcasm.

Not sure were this would go but its a list a started a while back and my buddy updated (still a work in progress) it and added hyperlinks

https://www.reddit.com/r/okc/comments/ub3v6z/our_okc_****_to_do_around_town_post_pandemic/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf

Very thorough job with links and important places in OKC. Great work, will need to bookmark your work.

Hoping this is sarcasm.

I dont think that is sarcasm. Why would you want to ride a bus? The public transit options once you arrive at either end are not good. You could Uber once you get there, but point to point with your own car makes a heck of a lot more sense.

Just want to add that we have two outstanding MSA cities which are growing in a positive direction. Lots of promise if the Panasonic Battery Plant is secured in Tulsa that will supply EV batteries for the plant in Pryor, OK and help with Tesla & EV operations.

If these plants meet their projections, this will be a big boost for the Tulsa MSA in population and income.

Oklahoma City continues to work to secure plants that will meet projections with safeguards in place. The Oklahoma Quality Jobs program rewards firms entering our state and those here that meet expansion benchmarks.

Diversification with a strong 'Energy' sector as well as a mix of a variety of non energy businesses and corporations will prompt up the economies of our two largest markets during times where the energy sector 'demand and/or supply sides are down.'

.

I dont think that is sarcasm. Why would you want to ride a bus? The public transit options once you arrive at either end are not good. You could Uber once you get there, but point to point with your own car makes a heck of a lot more sense.

How about the fact that not everybody owns a car? Not everybody with a car has a reliable car. Not everybody wants to put 300 miles of wear and tear on a car. Not everybody wants to or can easily afford to buy $100 or more in gasoline. The public transit options on either end are not good, to be sure, but that's an argument for making those better rather than just throwing up your hands.

happy about the potential for panasonic potentially coming to OK, but at the same time - very observant of the governor continuing to build up his hometown area using the state funds. NE Oklahomans should be proud.

happy about the potential for panasonic potentially coming to OK, but at the same time - very observant of the governor continuing to build up his hometown area using the state funds. NE Oklahomans should be proud.

this is not going in tulsa

this is not going in tulsa

Hot Rod said 'area'.

Dup post

happy about the potential for panasonic potentially coming to OK, but at the same time - very observant of the governor continuing to build up his hometown area using the state funds. NE Oklahomans should be proud.

lol, now you know how NE Oklahoman's typically feel when OKC automatically gets most things promoted by the state. Panasonic is targeting this area because it is uniquely well positioned for it. The Midamerican Industrial Park is a tremendous asset for the area and the state. It's a big project for sure, but to infer that Stitt is only promoting it because he is from the general area is silly.

lol, now you know how NE Oklahoman's typically feel when OKC automatically gets most things promoted by the state. Panasonic is targeting this area because it is uniquely well positioned for it. The Midamerican Industrial Park is a tremendous asset for the area and the state. It's a big project for sure, but to infer that Stitt is only promoting it because he is from the general area is silly.

Yeah I’m pretty sure the Port is a major factor in the location decision.

lol, now you know how NE Oklahoman's typically feel when OKC automatically gets most things promoted by the state. Panasonic is targeting this area because it is uniquely well positioned for it. The Midamerican Industrial Park is a tremendous asset for the area and the state. It's a big project for sure, but to infer that Stitt is only promoting it because he is from the general area is silly.
Meh, Stitt does seem to have a bias towards NE Oklahoma. Things like the Tesla factory would have made much more sense for a city like OKC versus the Tulsa metro. Not that it matters as I think Elon wanted Austin from the get but Stitt definitely seems to be more invested in the NE part of the state. I don’t think it’s silly to say that.

I don’t think it’s a bad thing though nor do I feel some type of way about it. I say good that area. There really hasn’t been too much going on up there besides some small announcements here and there. These two things(Panasonic and Canoo) will be absolute game changers. This is really what could push Tulsa to become a bustling metro area similar to OKC. As it stands Tulsa is a boring city to me compared to OKC which I don’t think either are terribly excited. But I think this will really get some momentum going in Tulsa.

I don’t know anything about the history of that industrial park, and if the port is important than so be it, but it does seem like locating these types of investments around Stroud would have been a good way to leverage both metro areas.

Stroud is a terrible choice. You then immediately include a toll for absolutely every track that goes in and out (including construction, supplies, shipping, etc). Not to mention, depending on what you're building, the hiring pool sucks. Anything on the turnpike is going to have that issue.

Unless you're a business capable of using a barge, then Tulsa doesn't help because that's all that can go through Catoosa. Then the barge has to go somewhere to go to another form of transportation. If you're going air, then OKC and Tulsa are on level playing ground....neither really has an edge on the other. If you're going via truck then I'd say OKC has an edge because of the lack of toll needs for 35/40, whereas you can't get in or out of Tulsa without a toll. That adds up for all those semi trucks. Sure, someone can bake that in the price and not have to absorb it but it's not 10k per truck or anything. So maybe that doesn't matter?

^Being located anywhere in Oklahoma pretty much forces a toll fee on any trucking activity that I'm sure they've accounted for. Just another tiny fee on the already exorbitant costs of shipping. The bigger issue with Stroud is that all the workers would have to commute for an hour or so, and as I understand it many of these employees would be higher paid specialized technicians who probably don't want to live way out in the sticks. It's bad enough out in Pryor, but at least that puts you about a half hour between two "exciting" metros with a lot going on in each, vs. an hour+ drive to Tulsa or OKC from Stroud. And again, the Midamerican has unique power and shipping assets that make it a more ideal choice for just about any major production facility right now.

It's obvious that I don't know anything about Pryor and even less about the Mid-America Industrial Park. On a map, Pryor looks like it's quite a long way out "in the sticks." If it's only half an hour from Tulsa, I guess that's marginally better than Stroud.

What I mean about Stroud was that, we don't, at this moment have very much infrastructure pulling the metro areas any closer together. OKC seems to grow to the north, west and south and not the east. And it may not be all that important really but the future of the state is really that OKC-Tulsa axis as those are the only areas that have growth potential. It's 3 million people within an hour and a half and I think that could be leveraged for economic development.

Again, though, my bad about the specifics on Mid-America.

lol, now you know how NE Oklahoman's typically feel when OKC automatically gets most things promoted by the state. Panasonic is targeting this area because it is uniquely well positioned for it. The Midamerican Industrial Park is a tremendous asset for the area and the state. It's a big project for sure, but to infer that Stitt is only promoting it because he is from the general area is silly.

I don't recall the state ever promoting OKC, other than Tinker. OKC often stands on its own yet seems to be mistaken by some Tulsans as the state operation. FAM is a great example of this.

Yet Still is constantly advocating for NE OK. Dont kid me wrong, I'm not against the Tulsa area growing and expanding economically - but wish he'd (and the state leg) advocate for the rest of the state too or at least not get in OKC's way for the purpose of bumping up the NE.

I don't recall the state ever promoting OKC, other than Tinker. OKC often stands on its own yet seems to be mistaken by some Tulsans as the state operation. FAM is a great example of this.

Yet Still is constantly advocating for NE OK. Dont kid me wrong, I'm not against the Tulsa area growing and expanding economically - but wish he'd (and the state leg) advocate for the rest of the state too or at least not get in OKC's way for the purpose of bumping up the NE.

Part of the reason OKC and NE get the attention is because that's where the population and the infrastructure is. It's also where the transportation is. Getting to Enid is fine and there's at least a 50k or so areat there, but that's it really. Nothing else in the NW quadrant is connected enough to a full interstate without having to take state highways to get there. And if you're having to take a state highway to get there, then your population isn't enough to warrant an interstate. SW OK, well you've got Lawton. But who in their right mind would want to develop in Lawton? It also has the same issue with the tolls. One could make an argument that Lawton connects to Dallas by way of Wichita Falls. But if you're going to do that, then quite frankly Ardmore and southern OK are a better bet.

Western OK in general is a more sparse population as there's a lot more ag and its dryer. I'm not downing anything about Western OK, it's just how it is. Just look at the night images of the US and you can see the lighting differences. Look at the interstates and see what's more connected. And rail can't be the answer either because a truck eventually is in play there....on both ends. While dislike Gov. Sh*t and i think it's obvious that he pushes for NE OK in anything he does, the fact that he's not pushing western OK just doesn't surprise me at all.

I don't recall the state ever promoting OKC, other than Tinker. OKC often stands on its own yet seems to be mistaken by some Tulsans as the state operation. FAM is a great example of this.

Yet Still is constantly advocating for NE OK. Dont kid me wrong, I'm not against the Tulsa area growing and expanding economically - but wish he'd (and the state leg) advocate for the rest of the state too or at least not get in OKC's way for the purpose of bumping up the NE.

The state wasn't behind NE Oklahoma getting Canoo or Panasonic. This is all a result of the Tulsa effort to land Tesla. Canoo was interested after Tesla chose Austin. Remember the batteries that Panasonic makes will be purchased by Tesla and eventually Canoo. This is a situation where the state is just supporting the effort.

With these new plants, and with Canoo's headquarters moving to NW Arkansas and Navistar in Tulsa building thier first electric school buses there is a lot of synergy in this area for electric vehicles.

Swake, I understand. That's why I don't fault Tulsa at all, they did what they had to do just like OKC has to a much greater degree. I fault the governor because he's very NE centric, usually at the expense of OKC. Both cities (and more) should prosper yet it seems like the investment spigot is open for Tulsa while OKC is left to develop itself, by itself with opposition.