Greater Oklahoma City Parks & Trails Foundation hosts prominent city planner

On April 12, the Greater Oklahoma City Parks & Trails Foundation will host urban planner Garner Stoll at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art for a discussion on trails and walkability in the modern age. 

The keynote address, entitled “Trails and Walkability: Critical Components of Successful 21st Century Cities” will emphasize the importance of parks, trails and public spaces to its surrounding community and economy. 

“Garner is a passionate and prolific parks and trails planner who is excited about Oklahoma City’s progress and opportunity,” said Marsha Funk, director of Greater Oklahoma City Parks & Trails Foundation. 

“We should be thrilled that current leaders are expanding the conversation around what it looks like to be a vibrant, healthy, economically robust 21st century city.” 

The fourth iteration of Oklahoma City’s voter-approved Metropolitan Area Projects, otherwise known as MAPS 4, includes $154 million for neighborhood and community park upgrades across the city, as well as operating funds for park maintenance, Oklahoma River enhancements and the creation of new parks in underserved areas of the city. 

The initiative is funded by a temporary penny sales tax that allows for improvements to be made, debt-free, and was implemented as a previous temporary sales tax expired, keeping the city’s sales tax rate the same. 

The previous temporary sales tax-funded initiative; Better Streets, Safer City, was an investment into the city’s citizen-focused infrastructure, as well, improving parks, trails, bike routes, sidewalks, streetscapes and more.  

Stoll once served as city planner for the City of Oklahoma City and has been credited in helping transition its municipal planning from mundane apartment complex and shopping center-focused concepts to a more community-oriented, walkable infrastructure, setting the stage for initiatives such as Better Streets, Safer City and MAPS 4. 

An article by The Oklahoman cited Stoll’s efforts in the 1990s in planning some of the city’s most popular destinations today, such as Automobile Alley, Midtown, the Paseo District and a revitalized Asian District. 

More recently, Stoll has become known for his work on the first comprehensive plan in 30 years for Austin, Texas; “Imagine, Austin,” which was awarded the 2014 Sustainable Plan Award from the American Planning Association. 

The Greater Oklahoma City Parks & Trails Foundation is an advocacy organization that works with donors, community organizers and government agencies to improve parks, trails and public spaces in Central Oklahoma.  

You can learn more about the organization and “Trails and Walkability: Critical Components of Successful 21st Century Cities” at www.okcparksandtrails.org.