Oklahoma City takes the next step in Infrastructure Building

I I am a native Oklahoman that grew up in Oklahoma City. What my city has done in the last ten years is remarkable. After the energy bust in 1982, we were in a major recession that in some ways was worse than what we are seeing now, and it lasted for more than 13 years. Then Oklahoma City got religion. No not the Baptist kind, the kind that when you are on the bottom, and nothing tradition works, go for the creative approach. So it the midst of a down market, our city embarked on a surpising ventrue. We would vote a voluntary sales tax of 1C on the public, and revitalize downtown Oklahoma City and surrounding areas. We built a river walk like San Antonio, revitalized the warehouse area called Bricktown with over 80 restuarants and clubs with the river walk going though it. We built a Triple A baseball park, a 20,000 seat arean, a state of the art Library, a new Museum, an updated hall for the symphony and ballet, a new public transportation system, and updated the Fairgrounds which has more horse shows than anyplace in the world. Then we did it again and rebuilt the Oklahoma City School System with 75% new buildings, and the rest remodeled. We did it all, had nothing that was cut back, and had oversight that saw no one put in jail for graft or fraud. We also now have an NBA team, The Thunder, that despite being the smallest NBA market ranks in the top 10 in attendance.

Could I also add that we did this with ZERO DEBT. Jow about a stimulus package that truly stimulates, and no future debt to pay off. No wonder Oklahoma City is used as an example nationwide about how a city rises from the ashes and coordinates the business community with the local government. Now we are being asked to do MAPS 3. To see the proposal go to www.maps3.org. This is a 777 million dollar upgrade. Among the projects is a state of the art convention center, a 70 acre downtown park. a downtown streetcar system, new sidewalks and bicycle paths, and more. This is a collaborative effort with over 2400 sugggestions that poured in from the residents. Oklahoma City has been taking control of it's own destiny. We have achieved the lowest unemployment of any city over one million inpopulation, and our real estate market has actually appreciated in the last two years. I am proud of our city, our people, and our forward thinking. Not everything new has to come from one of the coast. Go to the website and see the history of the MAPS projects. You will see that Oklahoma City is OK.

For more information about Oklahoma City you can go to www.joepryor.com. For answers to short sale question go to www.avoidforeclosureoklahoma.com.