[OKC] MAPS3 and opportunity

[Shauna Struby]

Greetings Sustainable OKC members, friends and colleagues - 


MAPS3 has passed and so it is as advocates of sustainability we have a
unique opportunity. Please see the Journal Record article below about the
citizen oversight advisory board the mayor and city council are forming.


I'm writing this missive not as the president of Sustainable OKC or as the
co-chair of the Transition Town OKC project. I'm writing this as a citizen,
a member of the Douglas Edgemere Neighborhood in Oklahoma City, a wife, a
mom, a friend.


I think we need sustainability incorporated into every MAPS3 project going
forward and that's going to take some visionary thinking and planning.
Tuesday night we were discussing MAPS3 at gathering and one of my
sustainably minded friends said, "We need a vision to make Oklahoma City not
just a tier 2 city, but THE greenest city in the region, the state, the
nation." Hear, hear! 


That translates to establishing a set of criteria from the get-go that
defines the process before any shovel hits dirt and takes into account
long--term sustainable planning for buildings, structures and designs that,
as much as possible, will meet our needs for 100+ years rather than 10 or
20. 


We've seen what happens when we build cheap and myopic - the county jail,
the Ford Center, the Cox Convention Center -- and need to incorporate
resiliency, adaptability and modularity into buildings, weighing the
long-term costs and full life-cycle of materials into every project so that
as technology changes we don't have to abandon buildings or scrape and
bulldoze every time an industry shifts or as we transition to different
energy sources and have to retrofit. Ultimately short-term cost-benefit
thinking just costs all of us more, uses and wastes more resources. 


We need to aim for the ultimate in energy efficiency and conservation for
every project, and build healthy spaces for people using non-toxic, truly
sustainable materials. We need plenty of natural light in these spaces so
whole buildings rely as little as possible on electricity for lighting. We
need to use green building techniques and principles, which also means
taking into account the people, geography and species displaced or impacted
by all this activity in a way that is equitable and fair, that looks deeply
at environmental impact and work to reduce harm. 


This means thoughtful resource management and using permaculture principles
in designing and implementation. And it means as much as is possible, using
local businesses, companies and organizations, keeping the feedback loops
tight and manageable, efficient and effective, and our tax dollars
circulating here in our local economy where it benefits us the most. It
means harnessing the creativity of our people and communities, being
inclusive, inviting citizens in throughout the entire process, being
transparent and accountable. 


What it does not mean is business as usual. We can't afford to repeat the
mistakes of the past and we need to look thoroughly at where and how we've
failed and learn from those lessons so we can evolve these new projects in a
more holistic, sustainable way, in a way that benefits all of us. To do all
this we need oversight with citizens from all walks of life, political
persuasions, backgrounds and experiences, and we need sustainably minded
folks to step up and get involved. We need to let our city council people
and mayor know now we expect sustainability incorporated into this process
at every turn. You'll find email addresses for our city council and mayor
here ::: http://www.okc.gov/council/index.html. 


I hope each person on this email list who is a citizen of OKC will consider
submitting their and resume for consideration on the advisory board. You can
do that at this email address ::: MAPS3 at OKC.GOV. I will be submitting mine -
not because I have all the answers - I don't - or entertain illusions that
if by some chance I am chosen, this will be an easy process - I know it
won't be. I'm submitting my name because 50, 100, 150 years from now, I want
my children, grand-children, great-grandchildren to have a city on the
plains that is filled with healthy, resilient, sustainable, connected
neighborhoods, a haven for creativity, innovation and happy, joy-filled
living.


Do what you can, with what you have, wherever you are!


Shauna, OKC


Officials to assemble oversight panel for MAPS 3


by Brian Brus
The Journal Record December 10, 2009


OKLAHOMA CITY - Before the first shovel of dirt can be moved on $777 million
in MAPS 3 projects citywide, officials will first establish an oversight
committee to ensure the integrity of the process, Mayor Mick Cornett said
Tuesday. 

 

An e-mail address was created this week to accept citizen applications to
serve on the committee, which must review MAPS 3 proposals and submit
recommendations to the City Council throughout the next decade.

 

That address is MAPS3 at OKC.GOV, and applicants are asked to use "MAPS 3
Citizens Advisory Board" in the subject line and include their resumes in
the body of the mail. The structure and composition of the board will be
determined by the mayor and City Council and formalized by a resolution.

 

"We need that advisory board in place by the first half of 2010 so we can
get started," Cornett said. "We've got a lot of work ahead of us."

 

Full article here ::: http://www.journalrecord.com/article.cfm?recid=105142

 

Imagine, innovate, create, collaborate

 <http://www.sustainableokc.org> www.sustainableokc.org

 <http://www.transitiontownokc.com> www.transitiontownokc.com 

 <http://www.goinglocalokc.com> www.goinglocalokc.com 

 <http://thinklady.typepad.com%20/> http://thinklady.typepad.com / 

 <http://freshgreens.typepad.com/> http://freshgreens.typepad.com/   

P please don't print this e-mail unless you really need to

 

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.sustainableokc.org/pipermail/okc-sustainableokc.org/attachments/20091210/cbddbf82/attachment.htm>