Community Partners Create a Plan for Kirkpatrick Heights/Greenwood

TULSA, OK – In 1921, Tulsa was the site of one of the worst race-based massacres in American history, which devastated what had been a thriving Black community in North Tulsa. The Greenwood neighborhood, once known as “America’s Black Wall Street”, was savagely demolished by a mob of white rioters, leaving hundreds dead and businesses and livelihoods destroyed. Now, a century later, a diverse group of Tulsa citizens, business owners, planners, government officials and Greenwood massacre victim descendants have come together to create a Master Plan for Kirkpatrick Heights/Greenwood with a focus on a prosperous and equitable future for all. www.ourlegacytulsa.org

The planning process included community meetings, workshops, charrettes and informal conversations, as well as small focus groups and interviews that directly informed the development of the Master Plan. An 11-member Leadership Committee helped guide and shape the entire process from kick-off to adoption with support from the Mayor’s office and PartnerTulsa (www.partnertulsa.org). The end result acknowledges Greenwood’s painful history, while emphasizing healing through confronting the historical inequities, segregation, race-based violence and disinvestment that resulted from redlining and displacement.

Late last year, Our Legacy, Our Community: A Renewed Vision for North Tulsa was honored by the American Planning Association for its strong community involvement which helped shape the vision and framework for the area’s redevelopment. The planning process was led by Philadelphia-based WRT (www.wrtdesign.com), with TSW’s Tulsa office (www.tsw-design.com) serving as the local planning, urban design and community outreach partner. www.planning.org/blog/9279648/apa-recognizes-2023-national-planning-award-winners/

The focus of the plan is the redevelopment of 56-acres of publicly-owned land, with eventual transfer of the property to a community-led model, ensuring the social and economic benefits of the area’s redevelopment will be experienced by Black Tulsans, descendants of the Race Massacre and future generations.

“The planning team worked hard to acknowledge the past, make an honest assessment of the present and map out a path to a more equitable future. The plan reconnects the neighborhood through diverse housing options, bicycle and pedestrian trails and commercial spaces for locally-owned businesses to facilitate community wealth-building. Within the mixed-use community, there are public parks, common areas and gathering spaces for recreation, cultural activities and celebrations as well as stormwater management facilities,” said Katy O’Meilia, TSW associate principal planner and director of TSW Tulsa.

PartnerTulsa and community partners have been working to lay a foundation for a governance structure that will ensure social and economic benefits of the redevelopment of Kirkpatrick Heights/Greenwood will be experienced by Black Tulsans for decades to come. In January 2024, the Tulsa Development Authority (TDA) passed a resolution supporting the creation of an advisory committee that will help form a Community Development Corporation for the redevelopment of the publicly-owned land.

https://partnertulsa.org/building-wealth-for-our-community/community-revitalization-projects/kirkpatrick-heights-greenwood-site-master-plan/