MAPS for Kids

In 1993 a vote passed approving taxes to be used for what would be known as Metropolitan Area Projects (MAPS). The $350,000,000 initiative was primarily intended to revitalize downtown. Projects included the Bricktown Ballpark, Bricktown Canal, convention center, a new arena (now Chesapeake Energy Arena), the civic center, renovations to the State Fairgrounds, Oklahoma River, trolley’s, and the building of the new downtown library.

Following the success of MAPS, there would eventually be three more MAPS initiatives, MAPS for Kids, which was used to provide improvements to the schools, MAPS 3, which included projects like building a new convention center, a park, a streetcar system, riversport rapids, a new event center at the fairgrounds, a senior health and wellness center, trails, and sidewalks, and finally MAPS 4. MAPS 4 includes projects for parks, homelessness, animal shelters, mental health facilities, new buildings, renovations to existing facilities, and many more items.