So long '09, it's been fun.

2009 held more for me than the year that saw my 26th birthday.

The highlights:

Taking the highest honors for my 2009 memories will be my trip to Europe in June (all of June). It was a monster trip that led to 15,947 words and 34 pages of blogging that can viewed here http://caseycornett.blogspot.com/2009_06_01_archive.html.

I also bought my first home in September which proved to be quite a headache and although the $8,000 tax credit normally comes between 4-12 weeks, I now am 17 weeks after closing date still waiting for mine and appears to be another 6-8 weeks according to the IRS (hooray).

A highlight that I am was so proud to be involved with was the passage of Maps 3. Being a downtown worker and having a strong passion for OKC, I am constantly diving into OKC's history whether it be from simple observations, to listening to stories even reading books (shout out to Steve Lackmeyer http://bit.ly/8HoULs).

I was 10 when the first Maps passed and have trouble remembering certain aspects of OKC pre-1993 but as MAPS 3 will begin to evolve over the next decade and beyond I'll be able to smile and think, "I remember when..."

MAPS 3: Why I'm voting "YES"

Tuesday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. the MAPS 3 election will take place and will note a big day in Oklahoma City's history.

Those in favor of the Maps 3 campaign "Yes for Maps" include 7 city councilman, current Mayor Mick Cornett, and former mayors Kirk Humphreys, Ron Norick, Andy Coates and Jim Norick. Governor Brad Henry and Governor Frank Keating also endorse Maps 3.

Those that oppose Maps 3 include a handful of misguided citizens and one city politician, councilman Brian Walters.

Those opposing the MAPS 3 initiative try to make people believe that there are others that are in favor of their side other than their greedy unions (and they are probably right) but how do others show their appreciation? By giving a hefty $250. Unions gave $120,000.

Businesses have contributed over $220,000 in favor of "Yes for Maps" money. http://newsok.com/three-maps-3-campaigns-file-fundraising-reports/article/3421660?custom_click=lead_story_title

The Union bosses for anti-Maps coming from the Police and Fire have been clamoring from the beginning that they need more public safety employed to help the cause...but when the union negotiations began (by Union bosses that live in Newcastle and Norman) none of their demands dealt with more public safety...http://www.okcfriday.com/default.asp?sourceid=&smenu=92&twindow=Default&mad=No&sdetail=4566&wpage=&skeyword=&sidate=&ccat=&ccatm=&restate=&restatus=&reoption=&retype=&repmin=&repmax=&rebed=&rebath=&subname=&pform=&sc=1079&hn=okcfriday&he=.com

again...greedy. Do our police officers and fire fighters deserve the respect they receive? Absolutely they do. They also are shown that by the city by being paid well with early retirement packages and 5 days off at a time.

Oh, and the average fireman makes $77,000 and the average police officer makes $75,000 (read discussions on it here, http://bit.ly/8oydFS), not bad considering the median income of an ENTIRE HOUSEHOLD in OKC is $32,656. "INCOME: The median income of households in Oklahoma City city, Oklahoma County pt. was $32,656. Seventy-eight percent of the households received earnings and 16 percent received retirement income other than Social Security. Twenty-four percent of the households received Social Security. The average income from Social Security was $11,893." - www.census.gov

Recently, those supporting the Anti-Maps coalition vandalized public property with spray paint...causing more OKC employees to work through the very cold morning yesterday causing more OKC budget money being spent...way to think that one through.

Another reason the opposition tries to express their anger at the world is to try to have the voter tricked into thinking the $777m estimate is not going to happen...what they're not telling you (probably because they don't know and/or don't care) is that when the MAPS for KIDS estimate was set at $512m, it was set pre 9/11, set pre ".com" bust...set in a recession and ended in a recession and in the end what did it raise?? $514m...and they aren't telling you the same people used to get that $512m estimate are the same people that set the $777m estimate.

The anti-Maps act as if there is a good reason for them to cheer on their pessimism and negative attitudes...all I see are reasons to cheer on what OKC has come from the past couple decades.

The vote, if passed, will keep OKC's sales tax the SAME as they are currently, 8.375%. Want to know how that compares to other city's around here?

Warr Acres 8.5%

Nichols Hills 8.5%

The Village 8.5%

Bethany 8.5%

Yukon 8.85%

Mustang 8.85%

http://www.okc.gov/maps3/salestax.html

So, if you feel OKC has done well with our metro low 8.375% then vote "YES"

"Downtown is dead, and we helped kill it." - Former City Councilman I.G. Purser

The above phrase was the overall feeling of the citizens back on that April day of 1988. The anti-MAPS people have tried with much energy to make you think we are still living in that era. We most definitely don't. Take a few minutes to read who Oklahoma City is now and read that quote inbetween each article:

"Most recession-proof city in the country" http://www.forbes.com/2008/04/29/cities-recession-places-forbeslife-cx_jz_0429realestate.html

"#1 place to launch a small business" http://money.cnn.com/smallbusiness/best_places_launch/2009/snapshot/241.html

Need visual assurance our city is headed in the right direction? How about this photo of California Avenue before and after... http://twitpic.com/s0lmp

Do NOT let misinformation from the opposition sway your vote. I have provided sourced materials for you to double check what I've said and if you want to investigate further please check out all these other links to better educate your vote.

http://yesformaps.com/

http://mapsfacts.com/

http://www.facebook.com/yesformaps

http://newsok.com/maps3?search_what=newsok&page=2

When you get to the ballot box on Tuesday, side with the people that have brought this city back to the place you're proud of...not the Union bosses that don't even live here. This is your city, not theirs. Prove that this Tuesday.

How did we get here??? MAPS. Keep it going. Vote "Yes" on Tuesday.

The countdown begins...

MAPs 3 is upon us and (like it or not) could possibly altar the face of Oklahoma City permanently...so to break it down in a "Voting for Dummies" way - THIS IS IMPORTANT.

Whether you want MAPs to pass or you want it to fail, it is very important to get involved.

I have heard about every viewpoint I can think of and heard lots of speeches. Discussed in depth on local blogs and had many phone calls. Read much and talked even more...I will vote "yes" to pass MAPs 3 because that is the right I've been given as an OKC citizen and hope that you will exercise that right as well.

Of course, I want to sit on my blog and write all day long about each project and which ones I like more than others and what I am most excited about but I feel like my role in all this is just to simply raise awareness. I feel that there is enough information on all eight projects out there for anyone to cast an educated vote. Are there things to argue? Absolutely. But on December 8 (day of the ballot goes to a vote) you must inevitably stand in the ballot box and ask yourself,

"Is the $10.75-ish a month for the next 7.5 years worth it?"

(My breakdown on the cost - $777 million for 7 years 9 months total for sales tax. All estimates point to sales tax generating 30% of the whole from out-of-city residents...leaving $543k to OKC residents to make up. Census in '06 says 537k live in OKC and the population has slighly risen making the $543k needed almost equaling the population completely to $1000 a person. At $1000k a person over the 93 months...roughly $10.75 a month...yes, this is a ballpark and if it is off it will not be off drastically.)

I encourage all of you to show up at all discussions of MAPs 3 to be even more educated on the projects:

1. Transit

2. Convention Center

3. Central Park 57 miles of new public bicycling and walking trails

4. River Development (outdoor rafting facility)

5. Fairgrounds upgrades

6. Senior Citizen Wellness Centers

7. Sidewalks throughout the city on major streets

8. 57 miles of new public bicycling and walking trails

The future of Oklahoma City is too important to sit by and watch this go by. We are talking about a revitalization of our city, our home and of course our future.

Ways to (non-physically) be involved/get educated...

www.yesformaps.com

www.okccentral.com

www.twitter.com/yesformaps

www.twitter.com/maps3

www.imaginativeoklahoma.com

www.okc.gov/maps3

www.okctalk.com

Last week's part 1 of 3 luncheon

Set a "google alert" for "maps 3" for news

There are so many other places but you get the idea...gotta go, part 2 of 3 luncheon at the Petroleum Club...topic? MAPs 3 - Central Park

This vote is going to ballot to you and your neighbors on Dec. 8, 2009.

Hop on, hop off

I know who/what MetroTransit is but not exactly how their day to day operations are handled. I don't know their budget and even if I did...I still don't have the metro budget's of other cities to compare it to. I don't know MetroTransit's goals or even all their resources so in my opinion, they could be doing as good as they can with what they have...all that to say, I think those Spirit Trolleys are the most ineffective forms of public transportation I've ever used.

All the glory that MAPS 1 receives (and rightfully so) ends on this 9th project.

I have been fortunate enough over the past 3 years to be a traveler quite a bit (68 day 14,000 mile road trip in the U.S., 29-day Plane-Train-Bus trip to 13 diff cities in Europe and the opportunity to live in Madrid for 8 months at the mercy of public transportation)...from a traveling point of view, those Spirit Trolleys would be the biggest pain.

When I would go into a new city the first thing I want to do is "look" around. I can either: 1- walk 2- find public transportation

The first can happen without any guidance but the second leaves me with finding a bus/streetcar/trolley.

I honestly right now can only tell you where ONE trolley stop is and that is because it was by my apartment when I lived in Regency Tower (A "stop" in front of the Memorial).

The Spirit Trolleys are phantom. I see them occasionally around Bricktown... I don't see signs pointing to where any stop is, occasionally I'll stumble upon a trolley stop sign but it doesn't tell me any information.

Color the sidewalks marking each stop, show the trolley route, show VISIBLE signs pointing to a trolley stop, show VISIBLE trolley stops with a bench with Bricktown/downtown map, play music that the street can hear, have a destination where a trolley will always be waiting (for passengers and the next trolley), be timely and reliable...do something useful for crying out loud.

I have not seen anything productive implemented from this MAPS 1 project but I think going 8 for 9 is incredibly good considering the vote almost didn't pass.

A big part of the "romance" in living downtown is the dream of not owning a car. I probably will never be in that position ever again but I'll settle for never "needing" my car.

I know I have been a huge proponent of the Core to Shore Park but this new street car system has some great potential. The citizens got this one right when they listed (better public transit) as a top priority. We will be able to see the track, see the route and if better signs and reliability come with it then living downtown will become more more desirable.

We will see less parking hassles, less traffic, less intoxicated drivers, more options for dining (because getting to your parked car and driving somewhere and finding a parking x2 takes too much of an hour lunch break).

I gotta say it...I get a little giddy when it comes to thinking about OKC in about 5-7 years...it's time to bring those travelers to OKC.

All or none of the issues the trolleys have may not be MetroTransit's fault, but I'm hoping whoever runs the proposed streetcar system learns from absent Spirit Trolleys.

When is history...history?

I recently had a conversation with one of my friends about an e-mail he received from district (he's a Putnam City school teacher).

He told me that no teacher was not allowed to show Obama's speech on education in class unless they had permission from every parent from every student in the class...really??

I have not seen/heard his speech. I want that said before I even start typing my opinion on the whole topic.

Why are we banning the speeches of president of the United States of America? I am NOT saying that the teachers should be forced to show the speech. I am NOT saying the district should insist the speech be watched...but come out and ban it?

A popular response I hear is, "Well it's not part of the curriculum."

Sooooo are we saying that if the president called the principal of a school and said, "Hi, this is President (any president) and I'd like to come speak at your school. Would it be possible for me to have 5-10 minutes to speak on education to your students?" that the principal's "proper" response will be, "Sorry, it's not in our curriculum."

Not a chance.

Don't they teach U.S. History in school? Is what the President of the United States says not considered a part of our U.S. history? I heard countless "historic" presidential speeches growing up... I realize that but I don't have kids so my opinion might fall on deaf ears.

I do know that the seniors and juniors in high schools today will have a vote in the 2012 presidential elections and a longtime common theme has been that the young voters just don't vote....THIS SURE ISN'T HELPING IN REVERSING THAT TREND.

News makers need journalists now more than ever

With the recent downtown bank robbery at Bank of America I started thinking about how the word got out and the impact between the growing rivalry between social media and journalism.

We can make the argument all day long on whether people on twitter "breaking the news" technically turn themselves into journalists simply by reporting the news or we can hang on to the idea journalists are still journalists and people on twitter/social media outlets are still just regular people on social media outlets. I'm not sure which side I'd argue for yet but I have developed my own verdict on one thing: When a news event happens, "true journalists" are needed on the scene now more than ever.

As stories are now able to break in real time thanks to mobile devices connected to the internet which can transmit a "breaking" story in a matter of seconds, it is quite easy to see why it took our OKC media outlets longer than expected/desired to report the robbery story...they can't be everywhere at once. What can happen, however, is for a Bank of America representative, the police or whoever is in charge to go find the journalist. I know it kind of sounds backwards but with today's technology it must happen in order for rumors not to spread like wildfire.

It is more important now than ever for true journalists to be given priority on a news event. Don't shut them out, don't tell them to wait, get the facts to them so that they can tell the public what is really going on instead of it spreading across the internet with true/not true information.

Now, I'm strictly speaking of "breaking news" and not investigative or anticipated stories.

Hope all this makes sense...it does in my head at least. What do you think?

Let's gaze into my crystal ball

Steve Lackmeyer asked me to write a bit about "What should downtown Oklahoma City look like in 2020, and how can this vision be best achieved?"

After rereading the question a couple times I began to notice a gap in the word "should" to the word I wanted to use..."could."

Downtown Oklahoma City will undoubtedly look different; especially by bringing a more impressive skyline with Devon's 54-story skyscraper and leveling the offensive crosstown bridge and shipping it off to a resting place not to be missed.

I could go on all day long on what I want downtown to look like in 2020 and could dream-up some ideas on what it could be...but let's stick to the question, "What should downtown Oklahoma City look like..." Not sure if I'm the right person to ask, but I'll at least give you a glimpse on what I should be doing in Downtown OKC in 2020.

As I gaze into my polished crystal ball I see myself hoping off the cable car at the stop off Sheridan between Harvey and Hudson and starring up at the iconic skyscraper and shielding my eyes from its glass reflection. Watching the cable car scoot on down Sheridian I scurry across the street into the Myriad Gardens immediately noticing how shiny the Crystal Bridge has become...the scrubbing and cleansing the outside has received over the past decade really helped in getting rid of all the gunk due to all the neglect from the two decades previous; which left it anything but "crystal."

Heading farther south through 'The Gardens' my dog, "Reina" starts to bark at all the squirrels and geese that have started to plant themselves in the area due to the Core to Shore initiative passed roughly 10 years beforehand. Pulling on the leash and retracting Reina from his jubilee we trot on through the park, passing the street musicians and kiosk stands selling fruit and souvenior hats with "405" across the front and the occasional "I (heart) OKC" shirts.

After the quick mile jog we get down to the river and I let Reina loose in the dog park off the river front and sit on the bank gazing off over the river at the 100,000-light ferris wheel and reflect over how anxious I was to find out more info about this Santa Monica Ferris Wheel once I read about its purchase online back in the summer of 2008 at a friend's apartment in Edmond (can't believe I chose to live in Edmond).

Whistling over to Reina and putting the leash back on him we head on back over the Skydance Bridge towards the rustling and bustling roar of a downtown finally stretching its legs from over a 100 years of pent-up excitement. We stop for a snack while I dangle my legs over the edge and scratch Reina's tummy as cars travel underneath us sending wind gusts up to cool us down from the hot Oklahoma summer sun. Peering off to the East I start to notice all the trees that have started to finally reach the rooftops of all the recently occupied residential complexes.

Pedestrians keep walking by us on their way down to the river and some are headed the opposite direction to downtown to start a night rememberence while stopping to pet Reina as they often do...he has become an exuberently friendly face to those urbanites I've come to know over the years.

I take a second to think to myself, "The once dirt river and abandoned buildings has now turned into all this??? My kid's will never believe me."