Fairgounds Grandstand (demolished)

[Rover]

I am 56 and like changes...guess I am one of the youngsters.

[jmarkross]

guess I am one of the youngsters.

Comparatively speaking--yes...

[gen70]

I have alot of great memories of the old Fairgrounds Grandstands but, it's gone so, let's press on for the good.

[ljbab728]

I lived near the fairgrounds--went all the time. I was in the 4-H club at Wilson elementary in the 1950's-60's...closest I came to farming--but--I did knew a few dairy people and some who had connections with places outside the city limits.

I too went to Wilson and was in the 4-H club and was in the 6th grade in the 59-60 school year.

[Larry OKC]

We should take a poll to see what age groups want the fair to stay as it was 5-10 years agoi and which age groups are happy to see the change. I bet (after reading this forum) that the vast majority of our older readers are very upset about the changes and the younger contributors on this site want it to change.

Why is that? Probably because when our older reader went to the State Fair growing up everything was new and exciting. The State Fair and all its glamor had an appeal that kids would dream about...that dream is no longer happening with today's generations. The buildings/structures are decades old, rusty and ugly. The fair (as it has been for the last 15 years) hasn't offered the entertainment to today's generation as it did in the 60's.

I see nothing wrong with the change the Fair has undergone and hope they continue to revamp it until it becomes a destination again, as it was in the 60's. My generation didn't get to experience the Fair like our older generations and that is why I welcome the change. I don't want the next generation to have to go through the same Fair I went to. So, for all the older contributors on here, try to see it from a younger generation's point of view. I see it from your point of view and I can see the nostalgia and understand not wanting to see old structures of your childhood being knocked down for something new to be built...but why can't the future generations of OKC have it's own nostalgia in the decades to come?

As always you have some good points and I don't think anyone is against replacing old, worn-out with new ones. Such as is proposed with the MAPS 3 funds. Although some of the previous improvements (to exhibit halls) have been purely from the facade.

My question is what "nostalgia" are "future generations" going to enjoy?

The monorail is gone...what was it replaced with?
The planes are gone...what were they replaced with?
The Speedway is gone...what is it being replaced with?

The list can go on but you get the idea.

[Kerry]

My question is what "nostalgia" are "future generations" going to enjoy?

The monorail is gone...what was it replaced with?
The planes are gone...what were they replaced with?
The Speedway is gone...what is it being replaced with?

The list can go on but you get the idea.

Larry - that is a darn good point and it is true for things other than the State Fairgrounds.

Any chance the Space Tower can be moved near downtown once it is removed.

[CaseyCornett]

Great points, Larry. I don't think I have any good answers for that.

The space needle needs to stay as it has served as an iconic structure off the interstate for decades.

Does anyone else think the fair (past 5-10 years) has seen a higher adult to child ration than in decades past or is it merely that I'm starting to notice it more? Te last few years it seems more and more that people (adults) are going to the fair mainly for beer and enormous food rather than children coming for the rides...I'm sure that adults have always come to "party" at the fairgrounds but the ratio of "partiers" compared to children-related events seems to have shifted IMO

[Kerry]

Great points, Larry. I don't think I have any good answers for that.

The space needle needs to stay as it has served as an iconic structure off the interstate for decades.

Does anyone else think the fair (past 5-10 years) has seen a higher adult to child ration than in decades past or is it merely that I'm starting to notice it more? Te last few years it seems more and more that people (adults) are going to the fair mainly for beer and enormous food rather than children coming for the rides...I'm sure that adults have always come to "party" at the fairgrounds but the ratio of "partiers" compared to children-related events seems to have shifted IMO

It is because you are getting older Casey. If you were a little kid doing little kid things with other little kids, it would give the appearance of a high ratio of little kids.

[jmarkross]

It is because you are getting older Casey. If you were a little kid doing little kid things with other little kids, it would give the appearance of a high ratio of little kids.

Not unlike when you think all the horny toads and hop toads are gone now...harder to see them from about six feet up than when they are within a tiny squat's reach...and you tend to hang out in different places as well...

[Kerry]

Not unlike when you think all the horny toads and hop toads are gone now...harder to see them from about six feet up than when they are within a tiny squat's reach...and you tend to hang out in different places as well...

That is what I meant by 'getting older'. There are also a lot more adults at Chuck E. Cheese than I remember as a kid.

[jmarkross]

That is what I meant by 'getting older'. There are also a lot more adults at Chuck E. Cheese than I remember as a kid.

I wonder though...are those of us who are long in the tooth just seeing through the eyes of a 'second childhood'...hell...when I was a kid the only pizzas were sold in boxes at Safeway by Chef-Boy-Ar-Dee...and they were DEFINITELY 'thin crust'! And I grew up in Norman in the 50's...here's a laugh--in 1971, I used to grab a medium Sausage pie at Pizza Hut on Lindsay for $2.80, was great, too!

[rondvu]

I agree. The airplanes are gone. The monorail is gone. The western town is gone. The helicopter rides are gone. The race track is gone. But there is lots more buildings, parking, concessions for the horse people.

Don't forget the art museum has been torn down. The Flower and Garden building is now offices. I liked the waterfall that was on the front of the building.

[Rover]

Yes, let's not forget the art museum. It was so great. The new one just doesn't compare.

[Larry OKC]

What? There was an art museum at the Fairgrounds???

[ljbab728]

What? There was an art museum at the Fairgrounds???

I know everyone is being sarcastic about the art museum but that was something I always visited while at the state fair.

[Larry OKC]

Think it has a lot to do with our own changing experience (as others have said). Like when I got my last truck, suddenly I noticed how many Ford F-150s there were on the road when I didn't give much thought to it before. Obviously everyone didn't go out and buy one the same weekend.

[sgt. pepper]

I just heard the space needle will not be working this year. The control room, which is below ground, got flooded this last spring and after trying to get it fixed all summer, could find nobody to do it. 1st the monorail...2nd the grand stand....now it looks like the space needle may be next. This will be the final straw for me if they do not replace it. Not really, but i sure would hate to see it go.

[Kerry]

I just heard the space needle will not be working this year. The control room, which is below ground, got flooded this last spring and after trying to get it fixed all summer, could find nobody to do it. 1st the monorail...2nd the grand stand....now it looks like the space needle may be next. This will be the final straw for me if they do not replace it. Not really, but i sure would hate to see it go.

I told you so. The reality is they want to get rid of these things and are looking for the first excuse to do so. Personally, I have no problem with that. I want to buy a new car but won't until something goes wrong with my current one. But belive me, the second something happens I will be down at the Ford dealer getting an F-150/250.

If they tear it down maybe they could donate it to Grant Humphries so he could pair it up with his Ferris Wheel.

[sgt. pepper]

The space needle did not work half the time any way, but they need to REPLACE it. Nostalgia is important at a state fair, and we are losing all of ours.

[therondo]

Sgt. pepper, I totally agree with you! Piece by piece we are losing the special attractions that help to draw people to the state fair that Oklahomans from across the state know and love. Fair park without these attractions will become very bland IMHO.

[Rover]

Sgt. pepper, I totally agree with you! Piece by piece we are losing the special attractions that help to draw people to the state fair that Oklahomans from across the state know and love. Fair park without these attractions will become very bland IMHO.

It was bland WITH those attractions. Now at least maybe we can make it NICE and bland.

Seriously, we need to move on from our own childhoods and let the children of today develop their own memories from things they can actually relate to in this city. We have our own memories and it is selfish and prideful to think that is as good as it gets. Let's create memories for this and the next generation. My memories aren't going anywhere....I don't need the props.

[Kerry]

It was bland WITH those attractions. Now at least maybe we can make it NICE and bland.

Seriously, we need to move on from our own childhoods and let the children of today develop their own memories from things they can actually relate to in this city.

LOL - if you were a child today going to the Oklahoma State Fair what attraction would stand out to you? It isn't like they are replacing the old icons with new icons.

[SkyWestOKC]

I haven't hit 20 yet, everything I remember about the fair from when I was little (5-ish) that was worth remembering involved the monorail and the space needle. I hated to see the monorail go, and I'll hate to see the space needle go. There's nothing out there to remember. Just a bunch of stables and buildings (not a bad thing).

[Watson410]

Man, after reading most of these post.. I just realized our State Fair SUCKS!!!! I remember the Art Museum, the planes were my FAVORITE part as a kid... I loved to go stand under them and look up at them, the rocket engine, the Monorail, and now the Grand Stands... Our fair has ZERO character... Soon it's going to be NOTHING but a 10 day FFA (Future Farmers of America) show. That's really sad to see...

[SOONER44EVER]

It won't be long before "The Big House" has a permanent dirt floor and stalls.