Location:
Tulsa, Oklahoma

Client:
George Kaiser Foundation

Partners:
Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates (MVVA)

Our Expert:

In 2011, the George Kaiser Family Foundation sponsored a design competition to develop a conceptual plan for 66 acres of land along the Arkansas River in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The goal was to develop waterfront land owned by the Foundation into a world-class waterfront park for the City of Tulsa. The contest involved a 90-day design concept competition among four teams invited by the Foundation. LimnoTech’s team, led by Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates and including high-profile firms from around the world, was selected as the winner. The initial phase of the Gathering Place was completed in 2018 and has received numerous awards, including USA Today’s “Best City Park in the Nation” in 2021 and 2024.

The Challenge

The City of Tulsa lacked an inclusive space where people from the community could gather, find recreational opportunities, and experience the riverfront. The George Kaiser Family Foundation and representatives of the city and local community had a vision for a new park on the river, seeking to make the most of 66 acres of unused property. The Foundation hosted a design competition to envision new uses for the property while addressing some critical challenges: a roadway that blocked access to the water, a river edge that was hardened and unwelcoming, and upland areas that were dry and exposed to harsh sun and wind.

The Outcome

LimnoTech participated in the design competition as part of a team led by Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates. MVVA’s design was selected to transform the open space into a park with spaces for community events, a huge array of play structures, public art, and natural features, including water gardens and a pond connected to the groundwater that percolates beneath the site. Access to water was a primary priority of the park as a way to help address the intense summer heat and provide places for refuge and recreation. A key strategy of the park’s design for water access was to create a link to the riverfront by constructing a land bridge across the riverfront roadway. The redesigned park space now extends continuously to the waterfront, and extensions have been built into the Arkansas River to create opportunities for direct interaction with the waterfront and a diversified shoreline edge.

As part of the design team, LimnoTech played a key role in the design competition, envisioning possibilities for the use of the site and developing and testing conceptual alternatives. Following the project award, LimnoTech provided expertise in hydrology, hydraulics, ecology, and permitting. Hydraulic modeling support was provided throughout the project, including monitoring and modeling to support the in-park and riverfront design concepts, regulatory compliance, and design component selection. Modifications to the shoreline edge were tested and permitted under the US Army Corps Engineers 404 permitting process. The built naturalized shoreline has performed well under significant high-flow events on the Arkansas River since construction was completed.

The Gathering Place park had its grand opening in 2018. The park has been the recipient of numerous awards and recognitions, including the “Best New Attraction 2019” by USA Today Readers’ Choice awards, Time Magazine’s 2019 list of the World’s 100 Greatest Places, and the American Planning Association’s 2019 list of six great public spaces in America, and USA Today’s “Best City Park in the Nation” in 2021 and 2024.

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