Ideas for Bricktown

[BG918]

Bricktown is a huge success, but it's still developing. What kinds of things would you like to see in a future Bricktown? What do you think will be there in 5-10 years from now? Should the city invest anymore money, or let private enterprise run the show?

I personally would just like to see more urban development like the north canal area. I hope the south part of the canal doesn't end up looking suburban, but the Bass Pro and movie theater are scaring me. More buildings like Sonic HQ right on the canal with little or no surface level parking would be what I want to see in that area. An extension of the canal would be the only public project I foresee happening down there, with all the rest being private development.

[Patrick]

As you've already said, I think the only public projects that will need to occur are extensions to the canal....mostly extension of the south canal to make a closer fit with Zone G, and extension of the canal stub (which will be built going out west from te theater towards the Santa Fe railroad tracks) between the Ford Center and Cox Center, and into the ponds at the Myriad Gardens.

The rest of the development will have to be done on the private side.

As I've mentioned in other posts, I'd like to see a shopping district, similar to Utica Square in Tulsa. No malls please!!!!! Try to stick to smaller unique stores. More hotels would be nice. San Antonio's Riverwalk is filled mostly with hotels and restaurants! Regardless, a good mix of space would be nice! And it all needs to retain the Bricktown theme!

[Patrick]

Oh yeah...more music venues would be great as well! We could have our own litle Oklahoma Opry right here in Bricktown.....a theater from Vince Gill/Amy Grant and Reba McEntire would fit nicely with Toby Keith's new development!

An arts and crafts village would be a great addition! Maybe on the park portion of the canal! If we're not going to do something with our old Farmer's Market, maybe we could build a new one in Bricktown!

[mranderson]

How about an indoor golf course and combine it with a 100 lane bowling facility called Century Lanes? THAT would be unique.

[okcpulse]

I definitely agree with mranderson about putting a 100 lane bowling alley in Bricktown, and I hope that someday soon Randy Hogan can revive negotiations with Sega Gameworks to open a Bricktown location here in Oklahoma City. Combine the two projects, and that would make one hell of an entertainment area when coupled with Bricktown 16 and Toby Keith's new restaurant.

A lot of bowling tournaments televised on ESPN I noticed are held in Las Vegas. The last nationally televised bowling tournament was at Boulevard Bowl in Edmond back in 1991. The tournament was covered by ABC Network. However, Boulevard Bowl has since gone downhill since its private owner sold the facility to AMF, and AMF changed the name to Boulevard Lanes. It's halfway decent, but not nearly as nice as it once was.

The remainder of Oklahoma City's bowling facilities are ancient to say the least. Heritage Lanes on N. Pennsylvania attracts too much trouble for bowlers to feel comfortable there. I remember when I was seventeen I had to be accompanied by a parent or guardian, or be eighteen and show photo ID. I was alone, going there to meet friends, and security wouldn't even let me in. Windsor Lanes and 66 Bowl are both housed in ugly buildings that never left the 1950's- the decade when good architects must have disappeared, for anything from the 1950's was dog-ugly... the buildings, houses, even appliances! Cars were nice, though. Penn 44 Lanes is in the same situation.

My point? No good decent and sizeable facilities to go bowling exist in this city, and Bricktown is the perfect mold. At least I think so.

[floater]

Gameworks was a loss; it would have gotten Bricktown rolling, and on the national map because it was a prototype that included bowling. Bricktown may be okay without significant retail, but it needs additional diversions, whether it's an arcade or a bookstore.

Sometimes I think we need to think outside of the box and come up with some diversions that haven't been packaged as we know it. I mentioned awhile ago about a combination laundromat/cyberlounge/cafe that could serve Bricktown residents. Hot Rod may be familiar with a Seattle version called Sit 'N Spin. The trouble is, such resident-oriented concepts aren't commonly found in family-friendly entertainment districts.

So what new concept could work in Bricktown? Mranderson mentioned a golf course: what about having a complex that combines such a course plus the indoor climbing walls?

Also from an earlier age, what about an Oklahoma Store that not only sells native products and Oklahoma museum gifts, but also involves Bass Pro-style interactive activities, such as a cow chip throwing pit, or horseshoe throwing? A cooled Blazers ice lane where two players can try to score on one another? We'll have the Native American Cultural Center, but it could include Native American musical instruments. A country music video karaoke (where you see yourself)? The activities could change seasonally, or yearly.

But I agree with BG: while the landscaping is beautiful, Lower Bricktown is not an urban waterway. With standalone elements on their own pad sites, it does seem somewhat suburban. Maybe that's why Lower Bricktown deserves a separate identity.