Better Block

Better Block OKC // building a better OKC, block by block // today until 6PM
Some of the genius behind it all // Allison Barta Bailey.

New transportation.

Last night Jeremy surprised me by taking me to the bike shop to look at getting me a new bike. Both of our cars are getting old (like 10 years and 130,000+ miles old) and I've considered once one goes kaput just commuting by bike. It's really easy to say when you've had a mild winter and haven't yet hit the 100F summers - but I guess I've said it enough that Jeremy thought it might make a good (belated) birthday present. We live in the center of Oklahoma City, close to the places we love and frequent, so bikes make sense.

We immediately hopped on and rode down to Better Block OKC:

Better Block OKC, presented by ULI Oklahoma, is a community revitalization project that temporarily demonstrates how to improve a street with pedestrian and public infrastructure mixed with art, culture, pop-up businesses and street life. 

Though comprehensive planning projects are often necessary for developments, the cost, scale, and long-range timelines associated with these initiatives can often lead to a loss in project momentum. Instead, Better Block OKC aims to create quick, inexpensive, high-impact changes that exhibit permanent solutions for areas in OKC.

It's kind of genius. I wasn't quite sure what to expect but there were some really amazing pop-up shops + food trucks + bikes + my favorite farmers market. And the place was buzzing with good energy and happy people! When Jeremy and I rode our bikes back home and we were both seeing buildings and homes we had never spotted before. We rode home feeling a little more connected to the street under us and a little more proud of the city around us.

If you're local please check out Better Block OKC at 7th & Hudson today - it'll be running until 6PM. And if you're not local please know that Oklahoma City is kind of rad.