Are there tunnels under downtown OKC? Yes, there are — and you can visit them
Did you know you can walk from Oklahoma City’s Skirvin Hotel to the Federal Courthouse without seeing the sun or getting rained on?
Formerly known as the Conncourse (yes, two Ns, we’ll get to that shortly), Downtown OKC’s Underground is one of the city’s more unique locations and is one that anyone can visit.
Open 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday, The Underground uses tunnels and skywalks to connect a large swathe of buildings and parking garages. The one-mile-long system covers more than 20 square blocks and has been in operation since 1974.
The Underground, however, is not some dingey, cramped environment — photo galleries, art installations, exhibits on OKC’s history and ambient lighting (used for navigation purposes) grace many of the tunnel walls, creating a sort of rainbow maze whose nooks and crannies can be traversed in just a few hours.
While the first tunnel was built in 1931 to connect the Skirvin Hotel to the Skirvin Tower (101 Park Ave.), most of the system was built in the 1970s.
A banker by the name of Jack Conn (he’s the reason for the second N in Conncourse) paired up with the Oklahoma Industrial Authority and went to work. The final portion of the tunnel was added in 1984, which connects the system to Leadership Square.
Not much was done with The Underground until 2007. In fact, the tunnels were basically neglected for more than 20 years. That’s when OKC architect Rand Elliott stepped up and transformed The Underground into what we have today.
Check out The Underground’s website for more information and a map of where you can find public entrances.
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