Jackie Bubenik, Tulsa’s first River Parks Authority director passed away earlier this week in Wichita, Kansas. Tulsa might look much different today if it were not for his vision and guidance of the RPA through its early years. He was the director for nearly 30 years.
I never met Mr. Bubenik personally but came to know him through his vision for Turkey Mountain when the TUWC was leading the fight against development on the west side of the Turkey Mountain area. I came to appreciate what his vision was for the land. His idea all along had been to acquire all the land from the Arkansas River to Highway 75 which was finally realized as a result of Tulsa’s Vision 2025 extension.
Mr. Bubenik’s lasting legacy will be the miles of trail which now line the Arkansas River as well as many park areas along the river. I can recall a time before the trail system was in place when the area just west of Riverside Drive resembled somewhat of a wasteland.
In addition to the trails, Bubenik, along with former Tulsa County Commissioner Terry Young were the two individuals who can really take credit for the creation of the Turkey Mountain Urban Wilderness area. It was Bubenik’s dream that Turkey Mountain would be free from development and it would be a place where future generations of Tulsans could go to get a respite from life in a busy city.
The most amazing part of his vision for such a riparian haven was that it would eventually be near the center of the metro area.
Two of my favorite quotes of his were:
“We have a lot of well-manicured parks, but we don’t have one that shows this area before people.”
“Fifty years from now, (Turkey Mountain) will be an oasis. “Everything around it will be conquered by urban growth, but that will be there as a reminder of what Tulsa once looked like.”
(Both originally published in Tulsa World articles)
I relied on relaying this original vision of the land to city leaders to remind them of the original intent of this gift to the citizens of Tulsa. I always felt fortunate there were records of his vision we could draw on to show how unique and important this urban wilderness area is.
Thank you Mr. Bubenik for your vision and your gift to the citizens of Tulsa.
Colin Tawney, former VP and Public Affairs Coordinator of the Tulsa Urban Wilderness Coalition. 
With Thursday’s news of land donations to Turkey Mountain, it’s important to take a long view back to what made this happen. In addition to lands donated by the city of Tulsa to the Tulsa River Parks Authority, the George Kaiser Family Foundation donated even more, bringing the total to around 400 acres. These donations triple River Parks Authority’s land inventory at Turkey Mountain.
GKFF has been a forward-thinking entity when it comes to preserving land at Turkey Mountain, buying up parcels for well over a decade. It has been patient, waiting for the city to commit to a vision for the area that dates back to the late 1970s – to keep that section of land along the Arkansas River as wild and free as possible, for the purpose of giving Tulsans a place to enjoy the outdoors in a natural setting.
The trend has been heading that way. Plans for an outlet mall on Turkey Mountain’s western edge were loudly rejected by the public, and the city listened. The land was included in the latest Vision Tulsa sales tax package, taking it off the market.
Next came dealing with the inherent instability of Turkey Mountain’s land leases. Monthly lease terms meant the possibility existed that lands leased to RPA could be wild one month, then developed commercially the next. A master lease program has ended that, providing a more stable and clear future for Turkey Mountain.
And now we have Thursday’s land donation, the moment that GKFF and many other advocates for Turkey Mountain have been waiting for. A hodgepodge of public and private land holdings is now being further unified, which will give planners the needed certainty that Turkey Mountain can be a long-term site for outdoor recreation.
For years, Turkey Mountain has been a magnet for mountain bikers, runners, hikers and nature enthusiasts. We now have greater assurance that this quality-of-life asset will remain so for the foreseeable future. Turkey Mountain serves as an important site for preserving the health of the city’s air and water, and is a major asset in the area’s promising outdoor recreation economy.
Thursday’s news is good for all Tulsans, now and in the future. For this, we owe the George Kaiser Family Foundation no small amount of gratitude. Its long-term thinking is paying off.
