Norman is an interesting place land wise. The west side between the highway and the river. All that low land is likely a flood plain. North is up against Moore. Who knows what the future is for the east edge.

Down south though is very interesting. Imagine if what they did to the river in downtown OKC; they did to the river south of Norman so it was always full. Imagine how much the land on both sides of the river would be worth. I'm thinking nice neighborhoods and boating on the river.

The way it is now; for one; the river doesn't have much at all for water in it. It can't even be seen unless one is on the I-35 bridge crossing over it and the river is totally inaccessible.

What are your feelings on if the river was made to hold water like was done in OKC?

I already hear our urban experts racing to this thread to tell you how stupid it is to invest money in Norman.

Any sort of damning on the Canadian River would be difficult and pretty expensive. Like the Arkansas River, the Canadian is a "prairie river" and very wide, sandy, and highly flood and erosion prone. Really, the only reason this was possible on North Canadian/Oklahoma River is because that is not the original channel and there's local flood control thorugh Lake Overholster.

Something to consider...the next dam on the Canadian River going upstream from Norman is well over 200 miles away on Lake Meredith in the Texas Panhandle, if that tells you anything.

I already hear our urban experts racing to this thread to tell you how stupid it is to invest money in Norman.
Why would they say that?

Wayne Copeland, who has been building the lakeside restaurant at Strawberry Lake in Norman for the past decade, owns, or manages for the Bob Moore trust, most of the land north of the river from the David Stanley dealership west to 48th.

He's refused to sell even an acre or two in the past because he's convinced it will be worth millions someday. Maybe this is a project he could take on.

Norman (http://www.okctalk.com/norman/)

Wayne Copeland, who has been building the lakeside restaurant at Strawberry Lake in Norman for the past decade, owns, or manages for the Bob Moore trust, most of the land north of the river from the David Stanley dealership west to 48th.

He's refused to sell even an acre or two in the past because he's convinced it will be worth millions someday. Maybe this is a project he could take on.

Man I hope he doesn't...it would take him 75 years to get it done. He needs to finish the restaurant already!!!

He needs to finish the restaurant already!!!Y'know, I used to be of the same mindset but now I have no desire to see what it's all about even if it ever opens in the next decade or two. The insane parking scenario alone for the place has me so turned off I'm no longer curious as to whatever dining situation might be going into that place. Can you imagine all the people in their ginormous LandYachts trying to get in and out of that teeny place? If the place ever opens, perhaps get an adjuster to camp out there 24/7 for all the parking lot collisions and dents sure to occur.

So Mr. Copeland, take all the time you need on your glacial vanity project. I'll be elsewhere......

Bob

Man I hope he doesn't...it would take him 75 years to get it done. He needs to finish the restaurant already!!!

Maybe he is waiting for an earthquake to take it into the water so he can write it off?

I would love for the Canadian to look like an actual river, but others have pointed out in the past when I've brought up the idea, is that the land in that area just isn't setup right to dam things up. It would be awesome to see a large body of water along the south edge of Norman, but for now we'll just have to live with a stream and a bunch of sand.

I think the future for Norman likely includes some kind of development around the Canadian possibly even using it as a natural asset. But that is a long way off and there is no current movement to do anything in that area. I've always thought if they decided to build another river crossing , say to connect SE Norman and Noble to I-35, then it could also have some kind of low water dam component creating a small lake. I have no idea about the challenges or feasibility of doing this however.

As for the near future I think you will start to see more density in central Norman especially if a commuter rail link to OKC is established.

I joked a few years back I'd like to hold my granddaughter's sweet 16 party at Copeland's slowly progressing restaurant. As she turns 7 about a week, I still haven't ruled that out .. but I am a tad skeptical. :)