America's Most Beautiful City 2.0

[carltonplace]

Some good ideas here:

http://www.kwgs.org/post/tulsa-americas-most-beautiful-city-again

Tulsa's Beautification Task Force wants to reclaim "America's Most Beautiful City" moniker. The title was given to Tulsa over 50-years ago by Reader's Digest.

To accomplish the task,  many things will have to be done. Task Force member Ken Busby says sign regulations will need better enforcement.

Other items include: more flowers, cleaning up blighted areas, underground utilities and even showcasing the routes to and from the International Airport.
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[Townsend]

A wonderful idea.

Getting rid of billboards would be a great way to start.

[patric]

A wonderful idea.

Getting rid of billboards would be a great way to start.

That's true, but I think Busby may have been referring to businesses signage exceptions that the BOAs hand out like candy.
When the ordinances limit size, brightness and distractability, its usually for a good reason.

[Townsend]

That's true, but I think Busby may have been referring to businesses signage exceptions that the BOAs hand out like candy.
When the ordinances limit size, brightness and distractability, its usually for a good reason.

Well, anything's something.

[carltonplace]

Well, anything's something.

I think all there should be a ban on billboards inside the IDL.

[Townsend]

I think all there should be a ban on billboards inside the IDL.

Nationally in my mind but might as well start here.

[patric]

I think all there should be a ban on billboards inside the IDL.

Actually, that's on a scale that's doable.

There would be a substantial safety benefit to expressway traffic, as well as the obvious aesthetic improvement.

[TheTed]

You guys don't find the double-wide lime green bail bonds billboards an attractive addition to our city?

[RecycleMichael]

I served on that task force and helped write the report. I will put a link to the full report on my website later today.

We actually talked quite a bit about all signs, including billboards. One of our task force members was very clear about this topic and used the sign on 75 highway entering downtown that ruins a wonderful view of the skyline. We even discussed using private dollars to buy it and tear it down.

I thought our report was good. We had a few difficult tasks, but overall felt like most of our recommendations were affordable and possible. We had many meetings, took a van around town looking at problems, met with city planners and beautification folks and got our report out in just a few months time.

[AquaMan]

Don't stop with landscape beautification. The first thing visitors are greeted with off the main arterial, I-44, is the smell of sewage treatment operations and a bone dry river. That isn't necessary. Those smells can be scrubbed, and the river.....well...paint it blue.

[Teatownclown]

Billboards? What? Let's start with air pollutants (refineries) and water (chloramine)...

billboards? Seriously?

Then we need to work on camouflaging those ugly gray trash containers...

There's no way to return Tulsa to "America's Most Beautiful" because so many other community's have stayed focused and disciplined over the years. Our leaders have had no clues.

[RecycleMichael]

There was a river task force as well. We were charged to recommend visual things, not smelly things.

[TheTed]

Maybe it's just personal preference, but to me sprawl and beauty can't co-exist. The most beautiful cities are always going to be those that have more buildings than parking lots and brownfields.

But that shouldn't stop us from trying to make our city more attractive.

[Townsend]

Billboards? What? Let's start with air pollutants (refineries) and water (chloramine)...

billboards? Seriously?

Then we need to work on camouflaging those ugly gray trash containers...

There's no way to return Tulsa to "America's Most Beautiful" because so many other community's have stayed focused and disciplined over the years. Our leaders have had no clues.

Does "Other items include: more flowers, cleaning up blighted areas, underground utilities and even showcasing the routes to and from the International Airport." sound like a task force for pollutant controls?

Yes, billboards seriously.

[carltonplace]

I served on that task force and helped write the report. I will put a link to the full report on my website later today.

We actually talked quite a bit about all signs, including billboards. One of our task force members was very clear about this topic and used the sign on 75 highway entering downtown that ruins a wonderful view of the skyline. We even discussed using private dollars to buy it and tear it down.

I thought our report was good. We had a few difficult tasks, but overall felt like most of our recommendations were affordable and possible. We had many meetings, took a van around town looking at problems, met with city planners and beautification folks and got our report out in just a few months time.

I recognized your thumbprint on a few items. I really like the downtown planters and under grounding utilities. I was just in Fort Worth last week and it is remarkable what hanging/standing planters can do to a sidewalk. Plus they have very few surface parking lots and they seem to have a set of rules for parking lot aesthetics.