What is this facility at 5400 Colfax PL ?

[securityinfo]

https://maps.app.goo.gl/aLqspTuFVLpTydnT7

I've seen this for years... appears to be at least an EOD bunker. The tanks maybe have fresh H2O?

Anyone know for certain? Just curious.

Thanks!

[gjl]

Part of the OKC fresh water system. The pumps pump water into the tanks and the weight of the water provides the water pressure to the surrounding neighborhoods. I've lived around them since 1960 In the 60s when we were kids after a big snow we would take our sleds there and sled down the hill. During the great freezeageddon a few winters ado the pumps either quit working or froze or lost power and they couldn't pump the water into the tanks and we eventually lost all our water service for several days until they got them back on line.

[Urbanized]

The building is new-ish. The history on Google Maps has some big gaps, but it was built sometime between 2015 and 2022. Before that the associated building was much smaller, and the two generators (I assume that’s what they are) were also added. Looks like there was probably a pump and generator upgrade to protect against power outages and other events like gjl mentioned above.

I notice there’s also a comms tower, which I would guess is a part of the City’s emergency management system. And I’m sure those ALSO are connected to generators. Maybe one for the pumps and a separate one for coms..? Or simply a backup unit as a failover. These are only guesses.

[billokc]

I also grew up in the area during the 1960's. The city upgraded the system a number of years ago. The old building was quite small although it did hold some equipment as well as being the pump house. Yes, as a kid back then we would find spots to get through the fence that surrounds the property. The comm tower replaces the old comm tower which was located on the east side of the hill along with the building that contained the radio equipment which was for the police and fire department communication. The old tower is now gone, I do not know about the building below it. Years ago I was told the property was under the Fire Department's jurisdiction, but whether that was (or still is) the case I have no idea. Regarding the elevation/height, according to USGS topographic maps, the top of the hill shows 1,340 ft above sea level which is 41 ft above the normal pool level of Lake Hefner(1,199 ft). The only spot in the metro area higher than that is in the neighborhood of NW 19th & Glade in Bethany at 1,430 ft. There are two large dark green objects I assume are either large generators and/or storage containers.
During the sixties the city would run us off the property if they caught us, usually by someone seeing us and calling it in. In the Summer we all would find large cardboard boxes, open them to make a large flat piece, then slide down on that. On the west side facing Colfax, they ran two strings of barbed wire the length of the hill about knee high. Sliding down you wouldn't see it until it was too late. My sister found that out the hard way one time.

[gjl]

I wonder what the life span is for storage tanks like that. I think those tanks are the original ones and have never been replaced.

[billokc]

Since Lake Hefner went online in 1946, I think it's safe to say those tanks have been there that long, and no, they've never been replaced and I don't believe there's a need to. Reason: When we were kids and would go up there, you could slap your hand on the side, but it was hard to tell if it was metal or concrete, although it felt like concrete. Years ago, the city was doing something there and had one large block pulled out of one side. Inside you could see a tractor or some other large piece of equipment inside. So it seems the structure itself was hollow, and any "water related operation" was going on inside. This would make sense because the property, as well as the hill, needs to have the grass/weeds mowed down. Keeping it on-site would make perfect sense.
Except for the residents around the hill, there's probably a lot of people that don't know that the color of the tanks was originally silver/gray, and I remember way back in the mid-60's the city had "OKLAHOMA CITY WATER WORKS" and the words "HOT" and "COLD" lettered on the sides facing the city.

[gjl]

We lived at 4129 61st st just west of Tulsa. My father had that house built and we moved into it in June of 1960. Do you remember the swamp at NW 56th and Tulsa pretty close to those water tanks back then? And I remember the tanks being the silver/gray back then and vaguely remember the hot/cold lettering.

[CCOKC]

I also grew up in the neighborhood on 53rd street in the 70s and 80s. I never even thought about trying to get through the fences to get a closer look. When I see those tanks from an airplane it takes me back to my childhood.

[securityinfo]

Thanks for all the great information. I saw a home for sale in the area, and was driving by it and it struck me to ask about those tanks... I'm wayyyy old enough to remember most things in the City, but was not quite certain about those tanks.

As a side note, the design and construction of the homes in that area is amazing. Almost Alpine in some cases. Too bad many of them were not kept up to the level of craftsmanship that it took to build them. The scalloping of the ridges etc. is really really nice in my opinion.

[billokc]

We lived at 4129 61st st just west of Tulsa. My father had that house built and we moved into it in June of 1960. Do you remember the swamp at NW 56th and Tulsa pretty close to those water tanks back then? And I remember the tanks being the silver/gray back then and vaguely remember the hot/cold lettering.

We moved into the area (4300 block on 54th) at the end of the school year in 1964, so began the next school year at Coronado Elementary. That entire area south of the school was "The Swamp" which was little by little being drained.

[billokc]

I also grew up in the neighborhood on 53rd street in the 70s and 80s. I never even thought about trying to get through the fences to get a closer look. When I see those tanks from an airplane it takes me back to my childhood.

There were two ways to get through, depending on how skinny you were. One was in the gap between the gates on the west side where 53rd met with Colfax. Too fat for that? On the north side there was a spot dug under the fence that required getting on your back and scooting under the fence. One summer there was someone who cut a big gap in the fence. Word of the gap spread like wildfire throughout all the kids in the area, and we all enjoyed the easy access until the city repaired it.