Scissortail Park is now complete. The newly opened park extends from Oklahoma City Boulevard to the Skydance Bridge over Interstate 40 and stretches to the shore of the Oklahoma River. Altogether, Scissortail Park offers 70 acres of educational and recreational activities for Oklahoma City residents and visitors.
The 40-acre Upper Park opened in Sept. 2019 with three days of events featuring live music and family fun. The Lower Park opened today, completing the $132-million MAPS 3 project with a weekend-long celebration, Scissortail Park Takes Flight, presented by The Chickasaw Nation.
“With the opening of the lower portion of Scissortail Park we finally realize the dream of a large urban park linking our core to our shore,” said Mayor David Holt. “The dream of a large urban park in downtown OKC first originated almost 70 years ago, and this specific vision first debuted 15 years ago. In other words, all of this is a long time coming, but it is worth the wait. It has only been three years since the upper portion of Scissortail Park opened, but we can hardly imagine OKC without it. Now, with this opening, our beloved park suddenly doubles in size and extends more than a mile end to end. Scissortail Park will define the Oklahoma City experience and downtown development for generations to come.”
The Upper Park includes amenities and spaces for programmed events, while the Lower Park was designed to be more reflective of the natural environment around Oklahoma City. The Upper Park features an oval-shaped grand lawn, plus a covered stage, 3 ½-acre lake, boathouse, covered event pavilions, a playground, a tree-lined promenade and more.
The Lower Park has ample green space, sports courts and fields, a nature playground, pavilion, trails and more.
“The core-to-shore vision set in place several years ago is now a reality, and we’re thrilled to welcome you to the fully completed Scissortail Park,” said Maureen Heffernan, president and CEO of the Scissortail Park Foundation, the nonprofit organization that manages Scissortail Park. “The Lower Park offers an assortment of new features to explore, much of which is in the comfortable shade of several large mature trees.”
Oklahoma City's new urban park is a culmination of more than 13 years of work. The park was designed by Hargreaves Jones and built by Wynn Construction (Lower Park) and Downey Contracting (Upper Park).
“The Lower Park offers a relaxed counterpart to the intentionally programmed upper portion of the park, while serving as a gathering place for Oklahoma City residents to play pickleball, soccer, basketball and futsal,” said MAPS Program Manager David Todd. “As one of the largest public projects to date in MAPS history, Scissortail Park has transformed downtown Oklahoma City and provides residents with a beautiful public space they can be proud to share.”
Scissortail Park is one of the debt-free MAPS 3 projects funded by the temporary penny sales tax that expired on Dec. 31, 2017.
About MAPS 3
MAPS 3 is a $777 million capital improvement program to improve the quality of life in Oklahoma City. It’s funded by a 1-cent sales tax initiative that began in April 2010 and ended in December 2017. MAPS 3 funds eight projects: Downtown Convention Center, Downtown Public Park, Modern Streetcar/Transit, Oklahoma River Improvements, Oklahoma State Fairgrounds Improvements, Senior Health and Wellness Centers, Trails and Sidewalks.