Oklahoma City Gets Ranked as 5th Worst Place to Live

[Bunty]

All the focus on why OKC is rated bad is mostly health related. So people, shape up or ship out: http://www.walletpop.com/blog/2010/0...ces-to-live%2F

[Spartan]

Sweet, another top ranking for OKC! If they saw how we do on walkability, incarceration, and educational attainment, we might have gotten to move up on the list even further.

[hipsterdoofus]

I'm not sure why this makes OKC a bad place to live...if you move here, in THEORY, you have the choice to not overeat...maybe the danger of living here is that the fatties are going to run out of food and try to eat you?

[proud2Bsooner]

Great point hipster. Seems they took one minute thing and ran with it...obesity. What about things people care about, like crime, traffic and cost of living?

Maybe this is why we need plazas...to make people walk farther to get from place to place.

[Larry OKC]

Realize you are joking... Think plazas would have little effect or actually make it worse. Point A and point B are still the same distance apart no matter what is in between them (buildings, parking lots or plazas). And if a plaza, instead of walking down the length of buildings and around corners, a plaza can be a shortcut.

[yessir69]

We're between Vegas and LA??? Neither of those places seem too bad to me.

[betts]

Lack of dog parks I can agree with. I don't know how you get more, however.

[Spartan]

proud2besooner, I get what you're saying, and I know you're just making the comment in jest, but let me just mention that walkability will only improve if sidewalks are reinforced by an attractive built environment..the opposite of corporate plazas.

I'm not sure why this makes OKC a bad place to live...if you move here, in THEORY, you have the choice to not overeat...maybe the danger of living here is that the fatties are going to run out of food and try to eat you?

Actually, the theory is that there must be a reason why obesity is so bad in OKC. I think obesity SHOULD be considered along with crime, although it isn't because most people aren't that perceptive. We don't even care to realize how our environment affects our health. Here in OKC you drive EVERYWHERE and walk NOWHERE, there are limited healthy eating options, limited fresh food options, abundant fast food options, it cites the dearth of dog parks, walking trails, baseball diamonds, exercise centers, and if it bothered to come here, it would have gone on to reveal that the few parks we do have, most hardly qualify as parkland by most standards. We also have very low rates of primary care physicians..

These are all things that contribute to obesity. So no, the threat is not that fat people will eat you alive. The threat is that living in OKC will make it very difficult for you to live a healthy lifestyle, AND THERE IS NO WAY TO ARGUE OTHERWISE. I guess you could, but the FACTS do not support it. When we are assessing a place's healthiness, you're talking about the differences between one city and another. The difference between OKC and almost any other city usually means unhealthier lifestyles and people. I just don't see that there is anything at all, not even one thing, that is a positive point for OKC in terms of health...and "putting the city on a diet" hardly counts. Maybe half of a point for a healthy living PR campaign, but really it ended up being absolutely worthless because this mayor and city council did not do any follow-up by making exercise, outdoor living, and healthy lifestyles accessible to the majority of the city's residents. And then they got it sponsored by TACO BELL, a fast food chain with at least 100 metro locations probably. Big fat F on all counts on the report card.

I personally think I would definitely steer clear of somewhere, when choosing a place to raise a family, that will all but ensure that my kids grow up to be fatties. "Oh, but what about our family values? Here in Oklahoma we're so full of 'Faith, Family, and Freedom.' Surely this listing is a mistake, we're great for families." Well apparently where the rubber meets the road, facts and wishful thinking ideology don't jive.

[fuzzytoad]

Maybe this is why we need plazas...to make people walk farther to get from place to place.

or maybe we need a Mayor who doesn't try to pass off Taco Bell as health food...

[theparkman81]

In my opinion, these people that do the ranking for these website probably have nothing else to do in their spare time, this just as bad as the guy that tried to ban oreos in california, get me a break, and I betcha none of these people have never been to Oklahoma. look Oklahoma city is not a worst place to live, and on top of that, I have never heard of walletpop.com, I wonder who came up with that name lol.

[CO-To-OKC]

First, I've never heard of this "walletpop" site. Its probably just one of those sites that pays freelance writers $50 for every article they write.

Second, every other city on the list is in the midst of an economic and/or housing crisis. From what I gather, OKC's economy is consistently ranked as one of the strongest in the country.

Third, I usually take "lists" like this with a grain of salt.

[Architect2010]

I personally think I would definitely steer clear of somewhere, when choosing a place to raise a family, that will all but ensure that my kids grow up to be fatties. "Oh, but what about our family values? Here in Oklahoma we're so full of 'Faith, Family, and Freedom.' Surely this listing is a mistake, we're great for families." Well apparently where the rubber meets the road, facts and wishful thinking ideology don't jive.

Wtf? I'm tired of this crap honestly. The only thing that will ensure anyone grows up to be overweight is yourself. That's just bull**** that if you move here you'll be unhealthy. I don't eat fast food. I run on our trails: South Grand, Earlywine, and the River. I walk around my neighborhood. I am a fit 18 year old. It all comes back to the citizens and their willingness to get off their unhealthy track of life and to motivate others and the city to do so also. If you don't want your kids to be fatties, then live a healthy lifestyle, put them in sports, and don't feed them McDonalds for dinner. It isn't the city's fault. It's the citizens of this city that have shaped and manipulated it to their unfit lifestyles and now the city is paying for allowing it to happen.

[rcjunkie]

or maybe we need a Mayor who doesn't try to pass off Taco Bell as health food...

He didn't try to promote Taco Bell as healthy eating, just that if you eat there, the Fresco menu is a healthier option. You need to stop trying to create controversy when it's not there.

[Matt]

He didn't try to promote Taco Bell as healthy eating, just that if you eat there, the Fresco menu is a healthier option. You need to stop trying to create controversity when it's not there.

Yeah, stop creating controversity, Fuzzytoad!

[Larry OKC]

In my opinion, these people that do the ranking for these website probably have nothing else to do in their spare time, this just as bad as the guy that tried to ban oreos in california, get me a break, and I betcha none of these people have never been to Oklahoma. look Oklahoma city is not a worst place to live, and on top of that, I have never heard of walletpop.com, I wonder who came up with that name lol.

If not mistaken it is somehow affiliated with AOL...think it is the Money/Consumer section of the site. At least AOL has several stories linked to it that I see on a regular basis.

[Jesseda]

i hate negative talk and making fun of overweight people you call fatties, dont worry when 2012 end of days come and after 2 weeks of no food it will be your skinny, yoga gym training butts dead on the ground and us fatties walking over your dead bodies, marching northward to canada in search of more food...

[Larry OKC]

... but really it ended up being absolutely worthless because this mayor and city council did not do any follow-up by making exercise, outdoor living, and healthy lifestyles accessible to the majority of the city's residents. ...

Are you new here...did you sleep thru MAPS 3?

From the City's site:

A new, approximately 70-acre central park linking the core of downtown with the Oklahoma River

Health benefits weren't specifically touted, but the lower Park is supposed to have athletic fields. The Upper Park is to be fully programmed with activities

A new rail-based streetcar system, plus potential funding for other rail transit initiatives, such as commuter lines and a transit hub
* A better transit system will lead to a healthier, more sustainable community.

Personally think this one is a little weak. What difference does it make if you are going by car or bus or streetcar, you are still riding..unless count the extra walking it might take to get to a bus or streetcar (as opposed to the short walk to your car).

Sidewalks to be placed on major streets and near facilities used by the public throughout the City
* The 2007 bond issue included $68 million for sidewalks next to all resurfacing projects (there were probably several other items in the Bond issue that promote a healthier lifestyle)
* Sidewalks help to build a healthier community.

57 miles of new public bicycling and walking trails throughout the City
* Trails help to build a healthier community.

Improvements to the Oklahoma River, including a public whitewater kayaking facility and upgrades intended to achieve the finest rowing racecourse in the world
* Rowing and kayaking promote a healthier community.

State-of-the-art health and wellness aquatic centers throughout the City designed for senior citizens
* These centers will promote a healthier community.

It might be a stretch, but might even include the walking around in the new buildings at the Fairgrounds (offset by everything that is deep fried on a stick...LOL)

[Jesseda]

thanks for posting this larry okc

[hipsterdoofus]

or maybe we need a Mayor who doesn't try to pass off Taco Bell as health food...

Ooh wow I can AGREE with you on something fuzzy...but don't speak badly of Mick here...his cronies will come after you (or at least type mean things about on a message board :-) ) << double-chinned smiley?

[Bunty]

Is there a concrete sidewalk that goes around Hefner Lake? If not, there ought to be.

[jn1780]

Is there a concrete sidewalk that goes around Hefner Lake? If not, there ought to be.

Yes, there are jogging and biking trails that go around Hefner Lake. A mixture of asphalt biking paths and concrete sidewalks.

[Hondo1]

$68 million for sidewalks three years ago? Where are they?

[FritterGirl]

Sidewalks are being added as road improvements are made. In my neighborhood, where they've recently widened several miles of major commuter arteries, sidewalks are going in.

I frequently see lots of people out jogging, walking (themselves and/or their dogs), children bicycling. The nice thing is, there are now several miles-long "straight-aways" so people can break out of their individual housing additions and still get out to exercise.

Because of the road widening, commercial development is up (although some would argue there is too much), and now that people have a place to walk to just a few blocks away, they are most definitely taking advantage. I know my husband and I have walked multiple occasions down to the video store or to Subway. Right now, the heat is a bit stifling, but when it cools down again, we'll be out with more frequency.

Be patient. The sidewalks will come as the road improvements come along. Did you really expect them all to be built within the first 2 years of the Bond even being passed? That's not how bond projects work.

There are also plenty of in-park walking paths in OKC Parks.

As for the article, I've done a LOT of work with the ACSM data. This guy has it so scewed it's not even funny.

[Hondo1]

Park trails are great, use them myself, but what OKC is sorely lacking is the ability for most of its residents to walk out their front door and have access to a basic sidewalk, like they have in many other cities. Construction being tied in to widening and improvements explains why none (that I see) are being installed along corridors that are not being widened and/or improved. You are correct in that I don't understand how bond issues work. Does this mean those of us who live along areas where roads were improved before the bond issue won't be getting sidewalks?

[Thunder]

5. Oklahoma City, Okla.
Population: 560,332

Oklahoma City is the unhealthiest city in the country, as measured by the American College of Sports Medicine's annual fitness index. The index looks at 30 fitness indicators, including obesity and exercise rates, death rate from cardiovascular disease, acres of park land, number of primary care physicians per capita and percentage of residents who bicycle or walk to work.

The index compares the 50 largest metro areas on a 100-point scale; Oklahoma City received a score of 24.3, making it the most sluggish city in the U.S. The obesity rate is 30.2%, four points above average. It has an exercise rate of 71% and has half as many baseball diamonds, recreation centers and dog parks as most cities. Detroit and Las Vegas also performed poorly on the fitness index.

10 Worst Places to Live
http://www.walletpop.com/blog/2010/0...laces-to-live/