Opinion/Editorial

Reason to Hope (Printable Version , E-mail to a Friend )
Faith in city and its people give cause for postive vibe in 2006
by Michael Bates

As with parenting, so also with punditry, one ought to bestow at least as much praise as criticism, to reinforce positive behavior, not just correct the negative. But when your toddler is about to stick her finger in a power outlet, correction seems more urgent than praise. And when your community’s leaders continue to repeat the same old mistakes, a columnist feels compelled to shout “no!” A parent has to be deliberate about looking for good to praise, and so does a pundit.

So, for this first issue of 2006 (which is due out the same day as my third child), here are a dozen-plus reasons I feel optimistic about Tulsa’s future:

Kanbar and Kaufman: Finally some folks with real vision for what downtown can be, and the money to make it happen, have shown up in Tulsa, buying up some of our city’s most wonderful buildings. By themselves they could provide the critical mass needed to spark the real, sustainable rebirth of downtown. Let’s just hope that the old downtown bunch, the folks who turned the heart of the city into a glorified office complex with acres of parking, don’t put too many obstacles in their path.

TulsaNow: This all-volunteer organization has become a focal point for Tulsans concerned about urban design and historic preservation, sponsoring a series of public meetings and candidate forums and providing an online home (tulsanow.org) for Tulsa’s liveliest online discussions. The one shortcoming--everyone involved has a day job and other commitments that keep them hopping. The group could be even more effective if they had a paid staffer who could mobilize volunteers, keep projects moving forward, and keep issues in the public eye. (Philanthropists, take note!)

Infill development plans: How do we preserve what’s good about our historic mixed-use urban neighborhoods while allowing them to get even better with compatible new development? Detailed answers to that question are in place, or nearly so, for Brookside, 6^th and Peoria (the Pearl), and Brady Village, thanks to visionary neighborhood stakeholders and the staff at the City’s Urban Development Department. It’s a good start, but let’s do more.

Cain’s Ballroom: Bless the highway planner who decided to make a northerly bend in I-244, way back in the ‘60s, else this classic music venue were a fond memory. And bless the current owners for beautifully restoring and improving the Mother Church of Western Swing.
Tulsa’s local news bloggers: They’re ordinary citizens, concerned enough about their city to be involved. They not only comment on local news, they cover it, showing up at public meetings, camcorders and laptops at the ready, giving their readers video and audio that TV news doesn’t have time for and that the daily paper doesn’t want you to see. You can find most of them in one place at tulsabloggers.net.

TGOV: The inner workings of local government available for viewing in the comfort of your living room, unfiltered, and it’s revolutionizing public awareness of City Hall in the same way that C-SPAN changed the way America looks at Congress.

My favorite Jamies: One Jamie (Jamieson) is middle-aged and from England by way of Europe, but Tulsa is his adopted hometown, and he’s been a driving force for sensible urban design and the revitalization of Tulsa’s downtown and core neighborhoods, particularly the 6^th Street corridor between downtown and TU. The other Jamie (Pierson) is twenty and a native Tulsan, hopes someday to have a business on that reborn 6^th Street, and is working methodically to make her dream a reality. Meanwhile she’s urging her fellow twentysomethings to get busy and stop waiting on the old folks to make something exciting happen in Tulsa. Both have an infectious enthusiasm for Tulsa’s potential. Good for Tulsa that such bright and energetic people, who could go anywhere in the world and accomplish great things, are investing their lives in this city.
The clash of ideas: It’s the sound of freedom. Tulsans are finally catching on – vigorous, open debate is a sign of civic health.

McNellie’s: Who’d have thought? A busy, lively Irish pub in downtown (with great food), and an imaginative young owner with plans to do much more in that part of downtown.

The Reform Alliance and the defeat of the recall: Henderson, Mautino, Medlock, and Turner have displayed much grace under much pressure. Thanks to their leadership and determination we have a degree of oversight for the Tulsa Metro Chamber’s handling of tax dollars for economic development, a City of Tulsa-focused economic development plan is in the works, as is a Comprehensive Plan update, and airport operations are finally getting the scrutiny they deserve. Tulsa voters demonstrated increasing discernment by electing them in 2004 and keeping them there, the howls of the daily paper, the Chamber bureaucracy, and the development lobby notwithstanding.

Tulsa morning talk radio: You might not care for his point of view, but give him this much credit: For nearly four years Michael DelGiorno has provided a way for dissenting voices to be heard, a bypass around the old media monopoly, and the time to discuss city issues at length. Much credit goes to Journal Broadcast Group and KFAQ management for launching the format, sticking with it under pressure. (Credit them, too, with adding a local talk show in the afternoons, when most stations are cutting local content.) Meanwhile, Joe Kelley has taken the microphone at KRMG. Already he has a good handle on the local power structure, and because (unlike his predecessor) he’s not a social climber, he’s been willing to speak his mind. If only they gave him more than two minutes an hour to do so.

Good candidates for City Council: Honest, intelligent people like Maria Barnes, Rick Brinkley, John Eagleton, and Rick Westcott are leaving their comfort zones and subjecting themselves and their families to public scrutiny, because they love this city and believe in its future.

Shades of Brown Coffee and Art: It is 11pm on a Wednesday night, and I am sipping an excellent cup of coffee out of a handmade cup on a handmade saucer, working on this column. Scattered around the coffee house there are small clusters of people deep in conversation. Some sit alone, working on their laptops or studying textbooks, but ready to be interrupted for a bit of a chat. A few folks sit in chairs on the sidewalk, enjoying the unseasonably warm weather. Some gentle modern pop is playing now; a few minutes ago, Billie Holliday was singing, and I expect to hear some Django Reinhardt or Hank Williams later on. The picture window looks out on one of Tulsa’s best streetscapes, still lively at this late hour on a weeknight. Behind me are shelves of pottery made by local ceramic artists. On the walls are paintings by local artists. I am the oldest person in the place, by at least a dozen years. The fact that there are such cool and civilized places in this city, filled with cool and civilized young people, gives me a lot of hope.

Urban Tulsa Weekly: Tulsa’s long-time alternative weekly, already the source for information on arts, dining, and entertainment, is emerging as a real alternative source of news and opinion. I’m proud to be a part of the UTW team.