Scissortail Park

[Pete]

Just took this one; there are a ton of workers down there:

[Laramie]

It's coming together with one week til grand opening.

Here's a good observation by Ross:

I got to tour the park the other day, and while there were some loose ends that still needed to be tied up, I can assure you there weren't any shortcuts taken in designing this park. It will be amazing - especially in a year or two when the vegetation starts to mature.

[snark0leptic]

It would appear that as of 1:15pm the Northside camera has been taken down. Pretty funny it kept transmitting for a while and it now having a stare at some tile. Fare thee well brave camera. The Southside camera is still up and running though.

[Pete]

It would appear that as of 1:15pm the Northside camera has been taken down. Pretty funny it kept transmitting for a while and it now having a stare at some tile. Fare thee well brave camera. The Southside camera is still up and running though.

Haha... This happens the other way as well, where sometimes they'll fire up a camera in advance of placement and for a week or two you get a great view of underneath a desk and someone's pants leg.

[d-usa]

You usually have to pay extra for the “under the desk” view on cameras.

[5alive]

From the Southside camera...early visitors



Click on picture for a larger version

[soonerguru]

Those trees look sad.

[d-usa]

It doesn’t seem like it’s been that long ago that the trees at the MBG looked pretty similar. I expect them to grow in quickly.

[shawnw]

Lots of social media posts of folks getting sneak peeks today, such as paddle boat rides...

[ChrisHayes]

The park looks so much bigger with people in it!

[midtownokcer]

It doesn’t seem like it’s been that long ago that the trees at the MBG looked pretty similar. I expect them to grow in quickly.

I'm not sure about that. The MBG retained several mature trees from the 1980s when it first opened. Scissortail has no mature trees whatsoever. It'll take a good 10-15 years before we see the trees reach what we see in any renderings.

Expectation:


Reality:

[SagerMichael]

[QUOTE=midtownokcer;1090248]I'm not sure about that. The MBG retained several mature trees from the 1980s when it first opened. Scissortail has no mature trees whatsoever. It'll take a good 10-15 years before we see the trees reach what we see in any renderings.

It’s a shame because the Strawberry Fields area just west of the park is filled with beautiful old trees. I wonder what their fate will be

[LordGerald]

[QUOTE=SagerMichael;1090252][QUOTE=midtownokcer;1090248]I'm not sure about that. The MBG retained several mature trees from the 1980s when it first opened. Scissortail has no mature trees whatsoever. It'll take a good 10-15 years before we see the trees reach what we see in any renderings.

It’s a shame because the Strawberry Fields area just west of the park is filled with beautiful old trees. I wonder what their fate will be[/QUOTE

The park designers put careful consideration in tree and fauna selection. The trees were all grown here in Oklahoma. It's best to grow urban trees within about 150 miles of their eventual resting place. It's going to look sparse for a few years, but if all goes well, irrigation and urban wear and tear, the trees should be healthy and amazing. Right now, the Project 180 trees are just now showing their potential and most of those are about 10 years old. We just have to think long term.

[Pete]

^

Thanks for that info.

And it's just common sense that if things look full and mature when installed, it's going to be an overgrown mess in just a few years.

[Ross MacLochness]

Speaking of the irrigation. Lord Gerald is right - it will be key to the early success of the thousands upon thousands of trees and plants. Something cool that I learned on a tour is that in order to save water, all the water needed will be supplied by the lake. To replenish the lake, the drainage system under the park sends all water back to it. Raingardens that dot the park will collect water during a rain and send that water to the lake as well. It should be a fully self sufficient system.

Another cool fact is that the lake does not have mechanical filtering. The water will be filtered naturally by plants in the shallow tail section of the lake.

[Roger S]

Just an FYI.... The OKC Boulevard from Hudson to Robinson is closed for the opening of the park until Oct 1st.

[Sooner.Arch]

Is anyone else worried that this concert is going to ruin some of this vegetation. I don’t trust people and it worries me people will be inconsiderate.

[kevin lee]

Especially the Kings of Leon fans lol.

[kevin lee]

What's weird, in a meeting last week I learned the actual grand opening isn't until around April.

[LordGerald]

Is anyone else worried that this concert is going to ruin some of this vegetation. I don’t trust people and it worries me people will be inconsiderate.

There will be damage. It's inevitable. Same thing happened to Bicentenniel Park when the Festival of the Arts was moved there. First year, there was thousands of dollars in irrigation damage. Let's just put these down to "startup costs" and hope that the Park's security doesn't go all tree-nazi. But kids will want to climb and roll and run through stuff.

[5alive]

Is anyone else worried that this concert is going to ruin some of this vegetation. I don’t trust people and it worries me people will be inconsiderate.

My concern also!

[catcherinthewry]

Is anyone else worried that this concert is going to ruin some of this vegetation. I don’t trust people and it worries me people will be inconsiderate.

The MAPS Director has already laid aside a substantial amount of money to repair any damage that occurs.

[Pete]

Prep well underway for the big concert; note the huge stage.

[OKC Guy]

^^^

That is so cool this park knocks it out of the park for coolness.

[hoya]

This is a pretty awesome park. I am quite impressed.