Fifty years ago, Fortune 500 energy company Williams triggered a revitalization of downtown Tulsa by building a 52-story skyscraper and subsequent entertainment and office hubs.
With a unified, municipal vision, another urban resurgence is possible, a Williams representative told a Tulsa Regional Chamber audience on Friday.
“Cities that win the decade will not do it by accident; they will do it because business leaders, civic institutions and city government chose to act together at the right moment,” said Blake Jackson, Williams’ head of corporate affairs and president of the Williams Foundation. “We believe that this moment is now for Tulsa.”
Jackson’s ambitious words set the tone for the Chamber’s Community Vitality Briefing, a quarterly meeting initiated by Chamber Chair Dr. Cliff Robertson and designed to foster stakeholder-led dialogue that shapes downtown’s trajectory.
“This is a moment where we can actually turn the tide, and indeed we must,” said Jackson, speaking on behalf of the briefing’s sponsor (Williams).
Before an audience of about 40 in the Chamber offices, Tulsa Police Department Capt. Shellie Seibert and Maj. Mark Ohnesorge updated how TPS is increasing its presence downtown.
It is establishing a new patrol division – set to open by 2027, Ohnesorge said – that will police the Inner Dispersal Loop and other downtown-adjacent areas.
TPS also has instituted downtown mounted, utility task vehicle and electric bicycle (e-bike) patrols.
An e-bike patrol led to the apprehension of a person accused of initiating a knife attack on a city bus, Seibert said.
“These e-bikes really allow for street-level accessibility, because when you’re driving around in a patrol car, it’s very difficult to have that connection with the public,” she said. “On bikes, it’s very easy to talk to people, be flagged down or if nothing’s happening, just to have a conversation.”
A.J. Johnson, owner of Oasis Fresh Market, said he is opening a new full-service downtown grocery store in July in the Arco Building.
Emily Scott, interim president and CEO of the Downtown Tulsa Partnership (DTP), detailed Downtown Tulsa Forward, that organization’s strategic investment plan completed in 2024.
The master plan has outlined 41 visionary, high-impact and tactical projects totaling about $3 billion.
High-impact projects include railroad crossing enhancements, Cathedral District infill and Center of the University Plaza enhancements, the groundbreaking for which is set for August.
“It’s incredibly important that you are constantly dreaming about your downtown, that you are constantly looking town the future. What are the 10-, 20- and 50-year investments that are going to make this central neighborhood maintained as the regional economic engine of our area.”
“You have to constantly invest in the urban fabric and the public infrastructure. And as private investment flows in, it’s incredibly important that public investment follows.”