Your OKC Wish List

[SoonerDave]

Okay...

In this thread, we list the top two or three really new or different kinds of things you'd like to see in OKC. It might be types of entertainment, retail shops, restaurants, whatever. Doesn't have to be fancy, maybe nothing more than a "change of pace" in some area.

If you'd like to qualify it to your particular part of OKC, that's cool, too, as if you think your particular part of town is underserved by an existing business or service..

I'll start the ball rolling with:

1. Barnes and Noble Booksellers in *South* Oklahoma City (not Moore, Norman, or MWC)
2. La Madeline's French Bakery and Restaurant *anywhere* in OKC
3. True IMAX theater.

-SoonerDave

[In_Tulsa]

I just spoke with La Madeline's French Bakery and they are coming to Oklahoma in 2009. They are going to put a La Madeline's French Bakery in Tulsa and OKC. They said that one will be built by July 2008 but that they do not know if it will be Tulsa or OKC first.

[SOONER8693]

1. A new signature high-rise building for downtown OKC.
2. Finish I-35 work in south OKC/Moore, and widening/re-working I-35 through NE OKC. That NE corridor is an embarrasment.
3. At least 1, preferably more, large company move their corporate headquarters to OKC.

[Pete]

1. Hyatt Regency or similar hotel downtown.
2. Downtown grocery store.
3. High rise downtown condos (w/ perhaps a hotel on the bottom).

[escan]

1) ANY decent grocery store....such as Central Market or Whole Foods.
2) Really great seafood restaurant (besides Boca Boca....looking forward to trying the new restaurant in the Colcord)
3) More smoke free bars (like Bin 73). It's much appreciated in the restaurants, but I wish that drinking establishments would follow suite.

[Pete]

escan, there is a big lobbying effort being made to include bars in the smoking ban in OK.

I bet it will happen in the next 5 years or so.

[soonerliberal]

Sheesh, its tough to do just three but alas...

1. Organic Grocery Store such as Whole Foods, preferably in the Downtown area.
2. Entertainment facility such as an ESPN Zone in Bricktown.
3. I-35 construction to be finally finished in south OKC and then widen it in Norman and widen I-44 from the Airport to Tri-City. It is as congested as I-35 is at times.

[escan]

I'll keep my fingers crossed!

[Pete]

I'd like to change my #3 to having WRWA add the 2nd concourse with an addition 10-12 gates ASAP, as had been previously planned.

[mranderson]

A south terminal for Will Rogers to house hub operations for an airline.

A domed stadium to exceed NFL standards.

A REAL theme park. Disney or Universal.

A metro wide rapid transit system with links statewide. (the rts includes Shawnee, El Reno, Purcell and Guthrie)

A major motion picture studio including tours. This would include many back lots.

A major symbol of Oklahoma City (like the Arch is to St. Louis).

A better freeway system.

[shane453]

- Deannexation of 250-300 square miles of undeveloped, haphazardly annexed land area- perhaps giving the land to existing suburbs so that they can more closely manage development on that land or create new, master planned suburbs.

- Rail transit- light rail, commuter rail, downtown modern streetcar, or some combination.

- Urban Growth Boundary or sprawl control plan developed and controlled by regional government like ACOG.

And of course, if I could have more than three, I'd wish for a highrise boom throughout the inner city including a few new tallests for the state, lots of monuments and statues and public art, a major corporation, permanent pro team, attention to redeveloping Stockyard City into a more exciting entertainment district... on and on and on.

[quailcreekgal]

1. Enforcement cameras at intersections
2. Wine sales in grocery stores
3. Farrell Family Bakery

[metro]

1. Light rail and better mass transit
2. New high-rises downtown and the river
3. World-Class destination monument besides the OKC National Memorial

[BDP]

1 actual neighborhood, self contained, with full services and shops within walking distance of each other.

[escan]

Ooh! Quail Creek Gal! Forgot about wine sales in grocery stores...was in dallas this weekend and they had wine and beer tasting in my (much coveted) Central Market.

[onemoreokie]

Cold beer at the liquor store would be spectacular!

[jdsplaypin]

1. Large aquarium near chesapeake boathouse
2. ESPN Zone (as earlier mentioned)
3. Condo boom along river with NO height restrictions

[MadMonk]

1. More high-tech jobs in the city
2. Cold beer in liquor stores
3. Better road maintenance

[Lauri101]

1. One or two decent smoker-only restaurants with a varied menu. (I can live with one or two!)
2. 6 point Beer,wine and all alcoholic beverages available in the grocery stores or other retail outlets.
3. Mandatory landscaping with green belts for ALL businesses.

[floater]

Three is not enough-

1. Single- and multi-family housing and schools in Riverside and Midtown.
2. Art galleries and more cultural centers in the Arts Quarter.
3. Lots more quality downtown retail

[TomGirl]

1.)More museums, art gallaries, independent theaters.
2.)Something similar to the CN Tower...awsome! put a rotating restaurant up there. This city is large enough for one of these.
3.)Please..please...please...bring Sea World to me! We need this type of theme park because we are so far away from the ocean. Who cares about Frontier City when I can walk out of my house and look at my neighbor's "wagon wheel" fence.

People choose to live her because of the cost-of-living, but they sacrifice being around good scenery and great things to do without travel.

[jbrown84]

1. Hyatt Regency or equivalent hotel downtown.
2. More public art and greenspace, especially downtown.
3. REI

[Karried]

1) Ditto everything alcohol related and smokefree bars
2) Ditto an awesome aquarium/Seaworld
3) And is it too much to ask for a scenic mountain or two? Can't we make a few hills at least? ( I so miss the ocean and the mountains!!) lol .. I want something tall to look at.. okay, I'll take a few more skyscrapers.

Yes, I do appreciate the cost of living here but we do need some work.. maybe start by cleaning up some of the blight lining the freeways, that would give us such a better image for travelers through our state.

[zuluwarrior0760]

My wish is that a lot of folks on this group
would query the OKC Civic Center on why
after spending tens of millions of our money
during Maps, that their event calendar is
as bare as a baby's butt!

No notable music acts to speak of at all.
Last summer they had Don Henley booked and he
cancelled, and outside the philharmonic, they haven't had any decent music, period....

Think:

Norah Jones
Alison Krauss
Hundreds of possible Jazz, blues artists.....

Hell....ANYBODY!!!!

Sell the facility to promoters and get some big
name acts in there and save us REAL music lovers from the acoustics of the Ford Center.....

[mranderson]

1. Hyatt Regency or equivalent hotel downtown.
2. More public art and greenspace, especially downtown.
3. REI

What is an "REI?"