TULSA, Okla. — City of Tulsa and Crossland Construction broke ground on major upgrades to Chamberlain Park on May 4, with Berry Park construction to follow.
“No one should have to move out of their neighborhood to live in a better one,” State Representative Ronald Stewart (D-Tulsa) said during the groundbreaking event held outside the Jane A. Malone Community Center.
WATCH: ‘Respect this community has deserved’: Treasured North Tulsa parks getting upgrades:
‘Respect this community has deserved’: Treasured North Tulsa parks getting upgrades
A new, 24,000 square-foot version of the community center is planned, which will continue to display its namesake.
“Jane Malone has led the Chamberlain Area Neighbors. She chairs every meeting and has been that way for decades now,” Mayor Monroe Nichols said after the groundbreaking. “And she’s advocated on behalf of everybody in this community, particularly (for) young people, and she’s never been apologetic about it. And so, what’s happening today would not have happened without Jane Malone.”
City of Tulsa
Outside the rec center at Chamberlain Park will be the following:
- New community center (Jane A. Malone Center)
- New basketball pavilion (court provided by OKC Thunder, according to city officials)
- New playground
- Tulsa Parks’ first community garden
- New picnic shelters
- Nearly one mile of accessible trails
- Infrastructure investments, including new parking and “underground stormwater detention upgrades”
A mile to the east, Berry Park will get:
- A central lawn framed by two large pavilions
- A 0.3 mile walking loop
- Two new inclusive playgrounds for children of all ages, including one covered playground
- Two water play features
- New basketball courts
- New covered picnic areas
- Shaded seating areas
- An above ground detention pond “to support long term stormwater management”
See all construction renderings in both parks HERE.
City of Tulsa
“But for North Tulsa, this moment isn’t a beginning,” city councilor Vanessa Hall-Harper said. “It’s a continuation of a long and steady push for the investment and respect this community has deserved for generations.”
The city paid $5 million for the work, but $22 million is straight from private donations, with the George Kaiser Family Foundation providing the largest portion, the city said.
The community can expect the upgrades to finish by late spring of 2027, the city added.
“To the city, thank you for not just giving us a candy wrapper. We are finally getting the candy too,” Malone told the small crowd during the groundbreaking.
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