OKC MAPS PROJECTS – 25 YEARS
MAPS Impact (Goals, Geography and Measurement) The 2009 MAPS report focused on evaluating change within the core downtown area of central Oklahoma City. Most of the initial MAPS projects and most MAPS 3 projects are similarly focused on development downtown. For consistency with the 2009 report, the same general downtown study area is used to evaluate changes triggered by MAPS development. Changes include both economic and demographic characteristics associated with both public and private investment over the past 25 years. This section describes the general downtown study area used throughout the remainder of the report along with combinations of Census tracts and ZIP codes used to form highly localized estimates of activity within the study area. Downtown Market Figure 7 illustrates the general downtown market area encompassing most of the MAPS spending to date. This defined region is commonly used by both the city and related entities to describe the current footprint of the broader downtown Oklahoma City market. The study area captures the location of most downtown MAPS spending as well as other major public spending initiatives targeted at the downtown market. The 4.41 square mile study area is generally bordered by Western Avenue to the west, 13th Street to the north, I-35/235 and Lottie Avenue to the east and the Oklahoma River to the south. By major district, the study area captures the Business District, Bricktown, Boathouse District, Film Row, Arts District, Mesta Park, Heritage Hills, Midtown (including St. Anthony Hospital), Automobile Alley, Research Park and the Medical Community (including OU Health Sciences Center). Relative to the 2009 MAPS report, the Riverside district south of I-40 and stretching to the Oklahoma River is added to the study area. This new area is a component of the Core-to-Shore initiative and includes south Scissortail Park along with some housing and light commercial activity. Measuring Activity in the Downtown Study Area . Public databases of economic and demographic data generally do not correspond to the exact boundaries of the general downtown market area shown in Figure 7. Combinations of Census tracts or ZIP codes are typically used to provide approximate coverage for the region. In choosing between Census tracts and ZIP codes, the greatest granularity is often achieved with the use of (smaller) Census tracts, while more detailed data sources are often available using (larger) ZIP codes as the underlying geography. Where possible in the report, we form unique tabulations of the underlying data to best match the specific need at hand. With the streetcar project, for example, a third measure of the study area is used which encompasses a three-block area around the streetcar path. Study Area – Census Tracts . Census tracts provide the means for detailed data analysis within small geographic subdivisions. Tracts are defined to capture between 1,200 and 8,000 residents, averaging about 4,000 residents across all tracts nationally. Tracts provide a detailed view of the component areas of downtown using the broad range of data available in the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (ACS). Figure 8 describes the 14 Census tracts used throughout the report to measure change in the downtown study area. The tracts are consistent with those in the 2009 report plus tract 1040 located south of downtown between I-40 and the Oklahoma River. 23 A map of the 14 downtown area tracts is provided in Figure 9.
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