Record-breaking Skyscraper Gets Oklahoma City Council Approval
A vision for locating the tallest building in the United States in Downtown Oklahoma City is moving forward.
The Oklahoma City Council removed all height restrictions for the Bricktown property development at their meeting Tuesday.
City Councilwoman Nikki Nice said she’s excited about the prospect of the nation’s largest building in Oklahoma City.
“I mean the sky’s the limit. No pun intended,” Nice said.
Development plans call for the building to be 1,907 feet tall. Almost double the height of OKC’s Devon Tower.
“I know some folks are a little nervous to see how this could be built. But other than that, I've heard most people say they're okay with this and want to see it,” Nice said.
The project’s architects say the plan is to ultimately build the massive tower after an initial phase of three smaller ones.
If all goes according to plan, construction of the tallest building would begin in a few years and be ready for occupancy in about five.
Unhoused People In Oklahoma Co Jail Included In Point In Time Count
Unhoused people in the Oklahoma County jail were counted for the first time in this year's Point In Time homeless count.
The annual survey counts people living on the streets and in shelters on one night in January.
Adding the jail gives a more accurate count of the unhoused population.
The Point in Time survey misses a lot of people, including those who are incarcerated.
So this year, for the first time, the Homeless Alliance and Open Justice Oklahoma decided to change that.
They found almost a quarter of the 1,200 detainees in the Oklahoma County Detention Center were unhoused.
People with stable housing are more likely to stay out of jail.
Dan Straughan recently retired as director of the Homeless Alliance and spearheaded the count.
“If we keep going at this rate, the new jail administrator is going to be able to say she runs the largest homeless shelter in the state. And that is not what the jail is for," Straughan said.
Straughan plans to conduct the jail count again next year.
Oklahoma Partnering With Google To Offer A-I Training
A partnership between the state and Google aims to provide training on artificial intelligence.
Gov. Kevin Stitt announced the collaboration with the tech giant last week.
"We have Google coming in to help us on workforce. They’re training about 10,000 Oklahomans for free," Stitt said.
The governor says the Google AI Essentials Course aims to teach foundational skills and responsible AI usage.
The program could also help Oklahomans who are struggling to adjust to the changing technologies needed to be successful in today’s workforce.
"AI is an emerging industry that’s going to continue to disrupt," Stitt said. "And the more you can get familiar with that, I think the better off and the more marketable your skills are."
Stitt has high hopes for AI, citing its use for improved efficiency within state government.
Oklahomans can sign up for the A-I training course at Oklahoma.gov/LearnAI.
Former Brown’s Bakery Added To National Register of Historic Places
The former location of Brown’s Bakery in Oklahoma City is now officially a historic site.
Northwest 10th and Walker Avenue was home to an old Oklahoma City supermarket and has been designated on the National Register of Historic Places.
Most recently it was home to Brown’s Bakery. Originally it was Clyde’s Supermarket and T.G and Y’s Stores.
Lynda Ozan is the deputy state historic preservation officer. She said the nearly 80-year-old landmark epitomized the early shopping experience in Oklahoma City.
“It’s a very modernistic commercial design, significant both for its commercial endeavor as well as its architectural style,” Ozan said.
The buildings are an example of Modern Commercial architecture designed in the mid-20th Century.
Listing in the National Register of Historic Places is an honorific designation that provides recognition, limited protection and, in some cases, financial support for selected properties.
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