OKC MAPS PROJECTS – 25 YEARS
MAPS Evaluation The MAPS initiatives remain the largest and most visible public economic development efforts undertaken in Oklahoma City the past 25 years. The results now serve as a centerpiece for the long- range economic development efforts of the city. In many ways, the MAPS projects established a new national identity for Oklahoma City going forward, particularly for downtown. 2009 MAPS Report Findings The 2009 evaluation of MAPS concluded that the projects halted years of stagnation downtown and provided the catalyst needed to reverse the fortunes of the area. The report concluded with three overarching observations regarding changes traced to the MAPS programs up to that point and going forward. First, the downtown area experienced a sharp reduction in the decay and blight present in the downtown core of Oklahoma City. Second, some risk of overinvestment from MAPS was possible during periods of economic downturn or volatility from an individual industry such as energy. And, third, the MAPS initiatives were the key force underlying the revival of downtown and that these improvements should produce long-lived effects. Key Policy Findings The results compiled in the current report benefit from two decades of history since the first MAPS venues opened in the late 1990s and provide a direct follow-up to the 2009 findings. The analysis suggests several conclusions about the success and sustainability of outcomes related to the three rounds of MAPS projects to date: 1. The revitalization of the downtown study area by MAPS has proved to be long-lived . Momentum surrounding the MAPS projects since the initial projects opened in the late 1990s continues today. Many of the MAPS projects are now the defining components of renewed economic activity downtown. Upon completion of the remaining projects in MAPS 3, the long-run path of the downtown study area will benefit from yet another source of added momentum. 2. A new era of accelerated activity in the downtown study area began in about 2009 . The resurgence in growth in downtown population, housing, employment and business formation since 2009 is substantial relative to the region’s performance in prior decades. The downtown economy is now outperforming the broader county, metropolitan area and state based on most performance measures after underperforming for many years. 3. Public spending on MAPS led to sustained increases in private sector investment activity . The anticipated boost to private investment from MAPS began with the original MAPS projects and has continued through the MAPS 3 era. Since 2009, total investment in MAPS and other investment in the downtown study area from all sources reached $7 billion. The city’s $1.82 billion direct investment in MAPS was accompanied by private investment of $3.86 billion. Other public investment in the area included $682 million by the city and $598 million by other public entities in the period.
4. The desired reshaping of downtown as a place to live, work and play is taking form . The combination of population and housing gains, employment and business formation growth, and
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