Oklahoma City Harris Survey

[mranderson]

I participate in Harris surveys and got one today that is really interesting.

They had a survey about Oklahoma City. The survey wanted to know opinions on Oklahoma Sooners football and basketball, Oklahoma RedHawks (I will comment on that one shortly), Oklahoma City Blazers, Frontier City, the State Fair, and Bricktown.

I rated Oklahoma University marginal (opinion, which is what they wanted), Blazers good, but in need of improvement, Bricktown very high, but not the highest in all areas, Frontier City and the State Fair very low, infact, quite poor.

The RedHawks was a different story. They asked about the Oklahoma RedHwaks which they said was a AA basketball team. I told them I had never heard of them... Which is true. I have never heard of the RedHawks basketball team. I wrote them an email telling them they had made a serious mistake and told them the team was NOT a basketball team, but was one of the premier baseball teams in the pacific coast league.

They also asked about corproate sponsorship with beverages. I answered the best I could on those.

Oklahoma City featured by Harris, a major pollster. That is really a compliment to our city.

By the way. In case you are curious. Harris pays me for the survey. Not cash. Gift award after a set number of points. I am about to score an LCD television from it.

[Luke]

How do I get in on the Harris action?

[mranderson]

How do I get in on the Harris action?

I was actually invited on by email several years ago. However, you can go to harrispollonline.com. The eventual prize might not be as large, however, because I have been a select group for a long time. Harris invites those. I do not know the requirements. They just asked me and I said yes. Points build over time.

[HOT ROD]

Mr. Anderson:

It is great that you were invited by Harris to comment on OKC. And while I appreciate your often candid opinion about the city, I would caution you on being so critical when it comes to the national scene.

Such a poll in Harris could lead to a variety of national opinion about OKC. If most of your survey results were overly negative, then the present theme of OKC will continue (when asked from residents nationwide).

However, if you sit back and really look at what OKC has to offer, it is on par if not better than most other Major Cities in the country. Yet, this fact may be suppressed by your survey results because of the 'local' OKC mentality.

Frontier City does not deserve a 10 for the best theme park, but they dont deserve a 1 either; I would rate them a 7 personally for lack of big theme rides - but would mention that Six Flags is headquartered here and has promised to expand the park soon.

Bricktown may not deserve a 10 but I would not rank it lower than 9. It is by far the best urban experience in the state of OK and is a better entertainment district than any we have in Seattle. The fact that Brick is still growing and the synergy it has created for downtown OKC as a whole is something to be proud of - and therefore perhaps your vote should have been closer to "best."

I would encourage everyone invited to comment about OKC to remember that this is the time to get the positive word out about OKC. Sure, Frontier City is not the best Six Flags has to offer - but why dont we let visitors to OKC decide this for themselves. And yes, the state fair had gone down significantly since 2000 but they have a new director and from what I hear - the fair is moving back up.

If we continue to think little and bash OKC whenever someone national asks us then how can we expect the nation to drop their negative opinion about us, and our city!

~ something to think about.

[mranderson]

Mr. Anderson:

It is great that you were invited by Harris to comment on OKC. And while I appreciate your often candid opinion about the city, I would caution you on being so critical when it comes to the national scene.

Such a poll in Harris could lead to a variety of national opinion about OKC. If most of your survey results were overly negative, then the present theme of OKC will continue (when asked from residents nationwide).

However, if you sit back and really look at what OKC has to offer, it is on par if not better than most other Major Cities in the country. Yet, this fact may be suppressed by your survey results because of the 'local' OKC mentality.

Frontier City does not deserve a 10 for the best theme park, but they dont deserve a 1 either; I would rate them a 7 personally for lack of big theme rides - but would mention that Six Flags is headquartered here and has promised to expand the park soon.

Bricktown may not deserve a 10 but I would not rank it lower than 9. It is by far the best urban experience in the state of OK and is a better entertainment district than any we have in Seattle. The fact that Brick is still growing and the synergy it has created for downtown OKC as a whole is something to be proud of - and therefore perhaps your vote should have been closer to "best."

I would encourage everyone invited to comment about OKC to remember that this is the time to get the positive word out about OKC. Sure, Frontier City is not the best Six Flags has to offer - but why dont we let visitors to OKC decide this for themselves. And yes, the state fair had gone down significantly since 2000 but they have a new director and from what I hear - the fair is moving back up.

If we continue to think little and bash OKC whenever someone national asks us then how can we expect the nation to drop their negative opinion about us, and our city!

~ something to think about.

Frankly, Hotrod, you nor anyone else has the right to "caution" me about how I rate something in a poll. Harris asks me my HONEST opinion... And I gave it. The truth is Frontier City and the state fair suck big time, and I HATE OU. Those are my opinion. Frontier City is based on the fact I have been to most REAL theme parks across the country (REAL, meaning major), the Blazers do need improvement (and so do their nay sayer fans), and Bricktown is NOT the best entertainment district.

I am not going to lie on a poll just to satisfy you or anyone else. Harris does not rate on a "one to ten" scale. They have several rating areas ranging from poor upward. They have several ways of wording it.

Oklahoma City is NOT on "par" with other major cities, nor is it better. In many areas it is just the opposite. Yes. There are areas where Oklahoma City excells, however, those are rare.

Plus. Harris, to the best of my knowledge does not release the results to the general public. Only their client and those who participate in the poll. There may be exceptions.

Despite what YOU say, I will continue to give my honest opinion. Maybe it will change things for the better.

It might also interest you to know, I rated bricktown higher on most categories. The only one I rated below center was originality.

[Midtowner]

Hot Rod, when a company shells out big bucks for a survey like that, they are wanting honest feedback. While I may think anderson is completely off base on at least half of what he says (not here, I actually agree 100%), Harris asked him, they wanted his opinion. You telling him how to fill out his survey is like a Canadian telling me to not vote Republican. It's none of your damned business

If OKC wants to get higher ratings in certain areas, all they have to do is try harder! It is true that OKC is a city with decent potential. But have you been to a major city lately? We don't even come remotely close to someplace like Dallas in many important areas like job opportunities, job growth, etc.

Without honest answers like anderson is giving, how do you expect OKC to know what needs improvement? Despite what you are professing here, honest assessment is exactly what we need.

Now, anderson... about you counting OU as "marginal".... we gotta talk about that

[HOT ROD]

Midtowner and Mr Anderson:

I do appreciate your replies and Mr Anderson by no means am I asking you to lie on the survey. All I am saying is there is little to no difference between how you voted on that survey vs. the general opinion most of the nation has about OKC.

I for one know OKC has much potential and has certainly come a long way in 10 years. It appears that you do not give them credit.

Midtowner, yes, I live in Seattle and travel regularly to Vancouver BC, Chicago, and San Fran. So, I have been to major cities and while OKC is much smaller than each of the named above - OKC does match and even beat some of them in a few areas.

Example, we have a "Bricktown" like district here in Seattle called Pioneer Square. It is the so called best place to go clubbin and is where Seattle started (its first downtown). The place is NO COMPARISON to Bricktown. Brick blows Pioneer Square away by a longshot!

Bricktown is more akin to Gastown in Vancouver or LODO in Denver. My opinion is Brick beats Pioneer Sq in Seattle (and if any of you have been here, you would agree with me). That is SOMETHING to be proud of! And that is all I was saying in my reply.

Yes it is true, Frontier City is not a major park but Enchanted Village (our Six Flags park up here in Seattle area) is not either. In fact, Frontier City beats Enchanted Village!! Hands down.

OU is way better than our school up here, the University of Washington - my alma mattar for undergrad. I remember when I first moved up here to Seattle in 1991, OU played UW in the Orange Bowl (or was it Rose Bowl) for the national championship. UW beat OU but that was the last time we had a good team up here - some 13 years ago!

And all of our pro teams suck. Seahawks (A Joke), Supersonics (crybabies), and Mariners (a good team but they always lose it in the end). We dont have major league hockey, arena football, or soccer.

So what I am saying is, if you compare OKC to major cities as a whole, then yes, OKC has a lot of catching up to do. BUT, when you compare amenities OKC has to amenities in other major cities - then I would argue that OKC matches the other major cities - even beats them.

Our zoo up here (SEATTLE) is nowhere near the OKC Zoo!
Our theme park up here is no where near Frontier City! (although they are trying to market it as a Six Flags park - Enchanted Village only has 10 rides? what a joke)
Our Pioneer Sq (SEATTLE) can not hold a candle to the nightlife offered in Bricktown. In fact, I think Brick is better than LoDo in Denver also (as I used to live in Denver).
Our Freeway system is a joke!
Our tax system is pythetic.

So, OKC has much to be proud of and I would like to see someone vote more precisely about OKC in comparison to other major cities. Although OKC still has to catch up in many areas, it has come a long way.

And I should also mention that everyone I know who has been to OKC does not think bad of it like you residents do. We just think it is different! But not worse.

Look at tripadvisor, and other web sites like that and pull-up OKC. Those old comments about OKC being boring and so on are beginning to disappear.

In fact, I would not mind moving back to OKC if two things were solved; 1) I could find similar employment opps there and 2) if it were not so dang hot! I moved away from OKC mainly because of the heat. I lived there for 17 years growing up and that was enough. I moved to the most neutral climate in the US - SEATTLE. For that reason. Back in 1991, Seattle was nothing like it is now. It was then where OKC is now, up and coming!

And midtowner, while Dallas does have a leg on OKC I think it has more to do with the amount of jobs available than the fact that Dallas is all that. And just remember, Dallas siphoned off alot of jobs from OKC due to its airport!

This is why OKC should get rid of that stupid airport trust and get some big city movers and shakers in there!

[Midtowner]

Our airport trust is not really the major problem. I have to think it has something to do with the clientelle and the airlines not choosing to locate here.

You have two major hubs -- Dallas and St. Louis, one is about 3 hours away, one is about 8 hours away (by car). I can't see OKC having anything more than a regular terminal for that reason.

Also, was it Big Sky (I know, now defunct) that pulled out of OKC saying it was the worst market they'd been to?

I'm not sure it's just the airport. There are a myriad of factors. I agree that we're catching up. I'd have to read the survey questions, but I'm guessing they were about where we are now, not where we're going

Yes, there are many positive things about OKC. I plan on staying here for the long haul. There are also many other areas (crime and poverty for example) that need lots of work.

[HOT ROD]

True that!

I just wish Mr. Anderson was a bit more forgiving (if that is the best way to put it) in his survey.

By the way, these surveys are used by advertising, tourist, and the like to rate major cities on quality of life and other indexes. Mercer is one organization that I know of that uses these surveys to rate cities worldwide. It consistently ranks Vancouver BC as the world's best city (or if not #1, it is always #2).

So, these surveys could play a major role in whether OKC ever lands a major corporation again. Sure, many of them visit the city but MOST refer to the rankings FIRST before they even consider coming to town.

I am not asking anyone to lie, if a venue sucks, then it sucks. But! I can not think of any OKC venue that sucks. Even the fair and Frontier City. Both are better than ours up here in Seattle area! Sometimes, Oklahomans need to be thankful for what you have and not put your foot in your mouth so much.

[Patrick]

Well, I think I'll chime in here. Being real honest, I probably would have to rank our fair grounds and Frontier City at least average. Unfortunately, Six Flags has really let Frontier City go downhill the past few years! It isn't near as nice as it used to be when Premier Parks (the parent company to Six Flags) ran it...sure it's the same company, but they have a whole different mindset now. Before, their focus was just on Frontier City and Wihe Water Bay. Now, they could give a care less about our theme parks, preferring to focus more on those in other "more profitable" areas.

Unfortunately, with the financial state Six Flags is in right now, I don't see any changes being made at our parks soon.

Hopefully the fairgrounds will get a makeover with the hotel-motel tax increase. But right now, after visiting Tulsa's Fair this past year, I must admit....we have some large facilities, but they need major updating! The fair has improved them some with new coats of paint, but that only covers up some of the major problems we now face.....our buildings need some major upgrading. And we could really work on landscaping more. From the highway, our fairgrounds look like an eysore. In contrast, from the streets, Tulsa's State Fairgrounds look pretty elegant and attractive, especially their horse barns and Expo Square.

[mranderson]

True that!

I just wish Mr. Anderson was a bit more forgiving (if that is the best way to put it) in his survey.

By the way, these surveys are used by advertising, tourist, and the like to rate major cities on quality of life and other indexes. Mercer is one organization that I know of that uses these surveys to rate cities worldwide. It consistently ranks Vancouver BC as the world's best city (or if not #1, it is always #2).

So, these surveys could play a major role in whether OKC ever lands a major corporation again. Sure, many of them visit the city but MOST refer to the rankings FIRST before they even consider coming to town.

I am not asking anyone to lie, if a venue sucks, then it sucks. But! I can not think of any OKC venue that sucks. Even the fair and Frontier City. Both are better than ours up here in Seattle area! Sometimes, Oklahomans need to be thankful for what you have and not put your foot in your mouth so much.

I can not be "forgiving" of a city that does not try to bring major venues. This city has no decent theme park (Frontier City might have been fine before I visited the bigs, but now it is not), very poor air service (and, yes, it IS the trust. Their job is partly to recruit airlines), no major elague sports (blame the "fans" with blinders who think minor league is cool), Bubba University football, 12 major call centers all starting pay of $10 per hour or less, a state fair that has not seen any major attraction change in years, plus copying other cities in lieu of originality.

As I said earlier, I rate this city based on what I hear about other cities in their efforts to land jobs that can support a family (buy a house, car, and travel) plus the cities I have visited. I rank attitude of the citizens, quality of the attractions, amount of airline traffic, size and condition of the malls, condition of streets and freeways plus attitude of drivers, weather (uncontrolable but important), quailty of the television news stations, looks of the city, and more.

Roads. Oklahoma City is probably close to the center. Pittsburgh has roads in such bad condition that ours look like they are gold in comparison. Plus the people on the Pittsburgh freeways will stop at the end of an acceleration lane (I call those stoppers). The streets are confusing. I burned rubber and do not want to go back. Worst streets I have ever been on.

Airline traffic. Oklahoma City is at the bottom for a city our size. We have non stop to around ten or so cities. That is way to few. We need non stops to at least the top 25 cities, plus regional (Wichita, Little Rock for example).

Venues. Of the cities I have visited, Oklahoma City is probably close to center when you factor in the fact many do not have major theme parks such as Disney or Universal. Most have at least one major league sport and understand while they think College sports are important, they do not draw tourists except for the opposing team. Our shopping malls are below par. We have two that are in good or better shape. We could build to rival Mall of America and draw a very large tourist trade. Yes. Bricktown ranks high. However, it does not have year round Christmas lights which most similar areas have, and copied some attractions from other cities (I cite the canal). It may be larger than most which helps.

People. Stll negative in attitude. These people, it seems, do not go anywhere and really take a hard look at the country. They are still somewhat ruralite in attitude. (backward).

News departments. A bit below center. Very low in sports anchors. Maybe center with the appearance of the staff. They all have their staple of a geezer, however, most have pretty faces on camera (Robin and Amy). Most do not have a great deal of sensationalistic news, and very seldom start the cast with a sporting event. We are center on openings of the newscasts. All are lame.

Looks of the city. Some are just ugly like Cincinatti for example. So, we are probably center or a bit over. However, you have some that are drop dead gorgeous like Tampa. Their downtown is really nice.

You want hard facts? That is it. If I could afford it, I would burn rubber and head for a coast. Why? Attitude.

This fourm is for both sides of the issue. Hotrod. You no longer live here. I do. I am not going to be a hipocrite (sp) and say nothing but nice things about a city that I know needs work... A lot of it. What you say is your opinion. Not mine. Why not accept that some people are honest enough to say what is wrong. If more people would do that, then maybe the city leaders would wake up. Plus. Give tourists credit. I bet a lot of them do not pay attention to "rankings."

[HOT ROD]

I agree with your last statement mranderson, but keep in mind that we visitors often hold OKC in higher accord than residents of OKC. This is a shame because you all are the ones who should spread the word about your city. Ask anyone from Seattle about Seattle and they will tell you nothing but nice things. We often avoid the boring, bad stuff.

Truth be told, that we in Seattle have problems of our own and if you compare as a whole, there is not much diff from here to there except climate and geography. So why arent OKC residents proud of their city, like we are up here?

Honestly, we in Seattle look up to Vancouver BC and San Fran for the urban status while they look to us as more of a maverick, can do, progressive place. I think OKC has some progressive feel to it as well that is often overlooked because residents are too busy comparing (and downgrading) OKC to other major cities.

mranderson, you have lived on the west coast and you know that cities out here have their problems, just like OKC. However, it seems as though no other major city is good at putting themselves down than OKC. You guys are often the first to say "we have this, but ----" when a tourist asks about attractions. Dont you realize you just BLEW IT.

When someone comes to Seattle, we tell them to go to Pioneer Sq for nightlife (and Capitol Hill, Belltown, and U-District) even though we know PS sucks! We never say, "well, you can go to PS but it's not as good as Vancouver Gastown." This attitude seems prevalent in OKC, never talk up - instead make excuse, when most of the time tourists can make up their own minds.

Yes, it is true mranderson that I do not live in OKC anymore, but I am one of the most stout promoters for OKC because the renaissance that I only dreamed of when I left OKC in 1991 has been realized. I remember how travel web sites would only have a small section on OKC, noting how boring it was (this was 1998 by the way). Go to any virtual tourist, or tripadvisor, or the like; and OKC sounds like Austin did when it was getting hip. I read about the nightclubs, restaurants, and so on downtown and even an acknowledgement that the old "Grapes of Wrath" theme is long gone and the New OKC is definitely worth visiting. And I think that should be noted prominently in your survey.

I remember back in 1996 on the Original Oklahoman MAPS forum, the synergy we had and we witnessed in downtown OKC. That to me is something to be proud of! Its more than just B-town, its a way of thinking! Note the survey about that too.

[Luke]

I feel your passion HOT ROD. Sounds like me. I love your optimism too and completely agree with you!

[metro]

instead of all the hostility what are you doing to improve this city?

[mranderson]

instead of all the hostility what are you doing to improve this city?

If the question is being directed toward me, I will answer the following.

I have been contacting everyone I can think of to address my concerns. One or two will not listen, and I will not reveal names. I also am still toying with seeking the city council when the current term expires. I am also making long range plans to leave.

By the way. It is really sad that you mistake honesty with hostility. I have proudly spoken my mind for years. I just wish everyone would be that honest about their feelings with things such as the state of our city.

[Midtowner]

instead of all the hostility what are you doing to improve this city?

Many of us are not in a position to 'improve' this city in any measurable way -- either by our financial means or through our connections. For some of us, that's simply a reality. The problem we face is that those tabbed as 'community leaders' sometimes are more focused on improving their own financial position through corruption, politics and bribery than they are interested in helping their community realize its potential.

This goes back many years in this city to things like the Oklahoma Industry Authority (the good 'ol boys network formalized) and other groups of businessmen that have siphoned off public funds for their personal use or political capital.

If things go as planned, in 4 years I'll have a degree in law. Assuming all that goes as planned (and I know, a lot can happen in 4 years), I'll probably entertain running for public office or doing something to really make my contribution.

Unfortunately, for us, for too long, the motto of our leaders has been "What can you do for me?" vs. "What can I do for you?" -- a perfectly acceptable motto if you're in business, but deplorable if you're in public service. I've seen the city begin to move in a more positive direction recently as the gen-x types begin to take the reigns from the baby boomers.

I think anderson makes some good points. I think Oklahoma City has come a long way in a short amount of time. However, due to decades of stagnation, we have a long way to go if we want to catch up.

[metro]

It seems to me like mainly negativity on the forum and discussing what we could of done or should be doing but yet no one is doing. I think that is a poor excuse. I was raised where I didnt even know where some of my meals would be coming from. I am in my early twenties. Yes, indeed you all have made some good points (bribery, money, personal gain, etc.) however, networking, joining civic organizations, volunteer programs, community involvement does not cost anything the majority of the time. TIME can be the only cost if one truly wants to help make it a better place. For many years, I have despirately wanted to move to either coast, after doing so, you see the points made by the poster from Seattle. We have alot of creative synergy here that can achieve something big.

Look at the recent post I made about the Alliance of Emerging Professionals, AEP. We are a group of twentysomethings with not alot of money but are using our abilities to shape our city. Again, I guarantee you will see this organization help carry out the next phase of the city. Those who truly want to help out with this city will and will find an organization to get involved with.

Building a new theme park or adding on to the existing, getting a major league team, etc is not the answer. We cant even retain attendance with the clubs we have now. Instead, we need to change the ATTITUDES that businesses look for. Businesses do not look for theme parks, sports teams, etc. I work for a major call center, (luckily not on the phones) however most callers are surprised and thrilled we are in OKC. The associates are then asked how they like OKC and stuff like that and are so negative. Is it a wonder why people dont take the time to visit or relocate??

Take a stand in this new synergy and promote our city and volunteer your TIME.

[Midtowner]

If you're talking about me, you don't know much about me

I do volunteer my time where I think it's best spent. I'm a chapter advisor to my college fraternity chapter. I have no idea how many of those guys are going to be involved in politics statewide in the future -- I know several will and some even are. I try to ensure that they're churning principled men with respect for ethics, honor and the law. Takes up plenty of my time. Have to save some for myself, you know?

As far as civic organizations, I was involved in Kiwanis for a short time. Found it to be more of a social-networking club which is not something I'm in any great need of to be honest.

I do agree with you however, people should do things to give back to society. The degree to which we do it is up to us. Because of my work with young people (okay, people 5-7 years younger than myself), I have a great deal of faith in the next generation. I think your civic organization is a good idea. There are many ways to give back. How each of us do it is an individual decision.

[mranderson]

"Building a new theme park or adding on to the existing, getting a major league team, etc is not the answer. We cant even retain attendance with the clubs we have now. Instead, we need to change the ATTITUDES that businesses look for. Businesses do not look for theme parks, sports teams, etc. I work for a major call center, (luckily not on the phones) however most callers are surprised and thrilled we are in OKC. The associates are then asked how they like OKC and stuff like that and are so negative. Is it a wonder why people dont take the time to visit or relocate??"

Although I respect your opinion, I do not agree. Yes. Business does look at schools and other areas, however, they do want their staffs to have a nice entertainment environment. Plus, we need to look not only at attracting business, but also increasing our tourist trade. To do that we need better attractions. A two bit theme park will not cut it. It has to be upscale, and maybe even unique. Operated by a company that cares about it. We also need air service improvements, and major sports teams. The visitors from other cities will take the time to see our city. The business leaders want a way to entertain their visitors outside of "gentelmen's clubs" and other adult entertainment venues.

I know a lot of people who want to consider our city, and many are business people. However, they cite everything I said as to why they will not even think about it at this time.

Yes. Business is important, however, also is promotion by tourist trade. My concerns are not only with business, but both.

[metro]

I think you are missing your point, the Chamber of Commerce and the City in general are propositioned everyday by new businesses. The entertainment is here, employees will enjoy going to minor league sports. We can do our part now by going to more games to get attendance up if you want major league. Buy season tickets, etc. We have plenty of entertainment as several members from out of state have noted as well as businesses the Chamber is presented with.

I highly agree with you on tourism, and our attitudes how positively we promote it and talk about OKC will determine that. As you will also know this is the city's number one focus right now. For one, we can all vote YES on Dec. 14 to approve the hotel tax which is well below national average. This will generate millions in revenue, primarily from out-of towners to better improve the Fairgrounds and other facilities. Bricktown is a destination and will continue to be promoted the next year as a tourist destination. Tribal casino's are also gaining and are drawing people from surrounding states. I also agree with you about the air service improvements. As you know, the city is and will continue to dilegently be working on this, construction on one new wing at the airport is almost complete with another one in the works. More routes and airlines are being added frequently.

I would love to see major league, but frankly we dont have the support and will not for quite sometime. We do however, have the resources to make our city much better and grow business and income. Look at Miami, D.C., Jacksonville, Austin and other large cities, they went quite some time without pro sports. That is mere icing on the cake, but not a requirement to attract tourism and new business.

We can all be more civically involved at no cost and improve the air quality, landscaping, social and racial barriers, etc. Another thing we can all do including you and I is continue to report code violations. There is a separate thread on here with all the info. This is another major focus the city is working on. We all should do our part and call in violations and clean up this city.