Category: Uncategorized

TulsaWorld: West Tulsa outlet mall plans submitted to Planning Commission

West Tulsa outlet mall plans submitted to Planning Commission

Tulsa Premium Outlets would cover more than 48 acres on the corner of U.S. 75 and West 61st Street and include more than 350,000 square feet of leasable space, according to the plans.
The only entrance to the mall would be off 61st Street.

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Blog: TZ – Exploring Mooser Creek

Exploring Mooser Creek

In 2006, the City of Tulsa published future plans for southwest Tulsa, which included a lot of trail work. Part of the plan was for a trail system along Mooser Creek. I am in favor of this, although it looksd like they are doing a paved trail on the north bank and just a trail on the south bank. Would we really need both? Just the dirt trail would be fine by me. 🙂

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TUWC Hosts “Get to know Turkey Mountain”

TUWC Hosts a “Get to Know Turkey Mountain” Day Feb 21

The Tulsa Urban Wilderness Coalition is hosting a “Get to Know Turkey Mountain” guided walk Feb 21. This will be a gentle walk geared toward familiarizing new Trail Users with Turkey Mountain. This event is free and open to all ages! All we ask is that you please register for the event so we have adequate volunteers for our visitors. If you are interested in volunteering please contact the TUWC webmaster@tulsaurbanwildernesscoalition.org.

To register follow this link. Space is limited.

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TUWC: What, or who is a Turkey Mountain Trail User?

Head out to Turkey Mountain on any given day, and you’ll see a parking lot filled with cars, buses, and maybe a truck with a horse trailer or two. They’re out there hiking, running, biking, geocaching, walking and riding.

Trail users come from all walks of life. There is no admission charge.

The wilderness is free to all who appreciate the beauty of a few moments unplugged. The time to escape with your thoughts. The irreplaceable family outing that will be retold for years to come but will always retain a child’s point of view.

A diverse group. But what do they all have in common?

They’re all trail users.

But this is a different breed than what you might see among those who visit parks or peruse shops and such. While a trail user’s primary purpose for going to a place like Turkey Mountain might be to get some exercise or stretch the legs, there is often more to it than that.

So here are a few ways trail users are different from most folks:

Trail users are passionate about what they do outside. Whether they run, bike, geocache, walk, hike or ride, a trail user doesn’t just casually get into what they do. The activities require a degree of commitment in terms of time, energy and yes, money. The degree of interest to which they dive into these activities goes way beyond casual. What they do is a huge part of who they are.

Knowing that, trail users care deeply about the places they go. We like to explore and get to know our trails. We have favorites. We give them names. And like any place we love, we’re more often than not going to want to share these places with people we know. Not surprisingly, trail users show great concern about anything that might negatively affect our trail systems, and are vocal about protecting them.

Trail users put action behind our words. It’s one thing to talk a big talk, but trail users are more than willing to walk the walk. Trail users are the first to volunteer for clean-up days. They’ll bring their own tools to clear brush and rebuild worn trails. Trail users will even pick up litter on their own. That’s what separates us from pretty much everyone else. If you need something done that requires a lot of volunteers to do it, trail users will be there in droves.

Long before a coalition was formed these trail users were maintaining the trails with one single idea. Preserving the trails for the long term.

The term ‘user’ can so easily mislead a casual observer. Perhaps finding a word that better describes the relationship we have with the wilderness is a good idea. As I type this I am struggling to find just one word to encompass steward, activist, conservationist, and enthusiast.

You can sum it up in this way. Trail users aren’t just consumers, users, or even constituents. We’re all that and more. In a city that keeps an urban wild place, trail users are assets. Come on out and see us in action.

 

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KWGS:Regarding Tulsa’s Quality of Life Report, Which Was Recently Presented to the City Council

Regarding Tulsa’s Quality of Life Report, Which Was Recently Presented to the City Council

This report — per the City Council website, where you can read all of it — is “an objective analysis of our community, compared to 20 peer cities. The report includes data on demographic trends, economic vitality, public safety, neighborhood vitality, human investment, citizen engagement, transportation, the environment, and recreation and culture.”

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