Petition to save Steady Ed Designed Course

[wake_rider]

Will Rogers Disc Golf Course in Oklahoma City is being encroached upon by the City Parks and Recreation Department in order to expand the tennis facility there and to add a larger pool.

This is the second course installed in Oklahoma, and is a Steady Ed Original. Please go sign this petition with WISE words. Please, no stoner babble or dudisms. Keep it readable and respectable at a city meeting. They WILL pick out the most stereotypical, badly written reasons to state at a meeting in order to bolster their argument against the course. Don't give them that leverage.

Thank you all!

https://www.change.org/p/oklahoma-city-parks-and-recreation-department-save-will-rogers-disc-golf-course

 

[onemilemore]

I saw the PDGA retweeted this, but has there been any other outreach to the organization? I am wondering if there is a part of the governing body that could present some clout that might be useful in saving the course. Best of luck!

 

[RobA]

Will Rogers Disc Golf Course in Oklahoma City is being encroached upon by the City Parks and Recreation Department in order to expand the tennis facility there and to add a larger pool.

This is the second course installed in Oklahoma, and is a Steady Ed Original. Please go sign this petition with WISE words. Please, no stoner babble or dudisms. Keep it readable and respectable at a city meeting. They WILL pick out the most stereotypical, badly written reasons to state at a meeting in order to bolster their argument against the course. Don't give them that leverage.

Thank you all!

https://www.change.org/p/oklahoma-city-parks-and-recreation-department-save-will-rogers-disc-golf-course

Sad to see an original on the chopping block. Very telling that you feel the need to limit what people say. If, in your words, all they get are stoners and babblers at that course, there is probably not much we can do to save it.

 

[Fraser]

I saw the PDGA retweeted this, but has there been any other outreach to the organization? I am wondering if there is a part of the governing body that could present some clout that might be useful in saving the course. Best of luck!

I'm the one who wrote the petition on behalf of the OKCDGA. I'm trying to get their help in contacting the PDGA and get their backing as much as we can. I think it was the Course Archivist at the PDGA that tweeted this. I'm glad he did, as it has definitely had an impact on the petition.

As for the course, nothing is set in stone yet except for the new bike lane that is being put in. (Part of the course will have to be re-designed because of this and we can't change that.) We are just trying to put a stop to the removal of nine or 10 holes for the expansion of the other amenities.

We do have some political backing that I'm trying to solidify at the moment. The mayor of OKC grew up playing this course and the guy that spear-headed the first of the Urban Renewal projects was instrumental in getting Steady Ed here to install the course back in 1978. The OKCDGA has been in talks with the Parks Dept. throughout this entire ordeal. I just want to get as much support from the nation and the world to let the Parks Dept. know what an original course means to the disc golfing community.

RobA, wake_rider didn't really mean anything by that other than not to give them any leverage. The vast majority of the comments on the petition are very respectable and worthy of submitting to any governing body. But, as you know, this sport can have a certain stigma attached to it and that is not what we want to display. We would really like to have your support in our endeavor but we understand if you don't feel the need to. Almost every course has some of that element but the vast majority of the people playing at Will Rogers are new players and families. There is very little of the "stoners and babblers" at this course. (Especially since there is a Police Department directly across the street from 8's basket.)

Thanks wake_rider for reposting this in the General Discussions. I posted one in the courses sub-forum yesterday but it really didn't get much notice. (I'm actually kind of surprised at how much it's spread on it's own.) Contents of that post below. http://www.dgcoursereview.com/forums/showthread.php?t=116344

The Oklahoma City Parks & Rec. Dept. is most likely going to drastically alter one of the nation's oldest DGCs, Will Rogers DGC. This course is a "Steady" Ed original that we really don't want to lose.

By the end of the year, we know we are going to lose part of the course due to a bike lane being created along the eastern border of the park. We can't change that. However, the other park amenity groups (the pool and tennis facilities) are trying to use this as an opportunity to expand and repurpose the majority of the DGC's land. This would effectively turn this 18 hole course into a shoe-horned 9 hole course. I don't think the City of OKC realizes how much this course is played nor the historical significance of it as well.

Please help us in trying to keep the course as close to the original layout as we can. The OKCDGA has set up a change.org petition and we ask if you could sign and share this petition. The more nationwide support we have, the more likely we are to save the DGC.

The petition: https://www.change.org/p/oklahoma-ci...sc-golf-course

Thank you for reading and for your support.

Dave

 

[roadtrip]

I tried to sign. When I click "sign" - nothing happens.

I used to play that course all the time. So convenient to get to. I'd hate to see it go.

 

[scarpfish]

I remember one time at Will Rogers some years back I saw a couple of people with a large group of youths teaching them disc golf. Don't know if was a school PE class or what, but not too many other courses in the OKC metro can serve that need. The course lost a degree of its charm when the trees started disappearing, but that's no reason to pull it.

 

[Fraser]

roadtrip--thanks for trying to sign. I don't know why it wouldn't let you. We do appreciate your support anyway.

Scarp--the loss of the trees really hurt the course but it still is an enjoyable one. The ironic thing is, the city was supposed to replant trees to replace the ones that were affected by the borers. They never did. We have around 20 mature trees donated by one of the energy companies here but with the course in limbo, we can't do anything yet. Now, the gardens want to repurpose part of the course to plant trees. :\

 

[roadtrip]

Signed.

 

[Quinum]

Signed

 

[bballr4567]

Hate to see this happen so they can make more tennis courts. Signed.

 

[goosefraba1]

Signed... thanks buddy.

 

[Aim For The Chains]

Signed. Good luck!

 

[wake_rider]

Thank you all!

 

[THUGNIFICENT763]

I know what it feels like to have a course pulled, and it sucks, I am signing out of principle alone, I wish you guys the best of luck.

 

[Emoney]

Signed

 

[JNichols]

Signed and shared on the Facebook. Best of Luck on this. A piece of disc golf history would be a Shame to lose.

 

[pmay5]

Hey PDGA - How about a Historical Designation for Courses?

Signed, good luck guys.

Now to a bigger issue - It looks like the 40th Anniversary of the first Disc Golf course, and Disc Golf itself, is coming up in 2017. That would be a great time to initiate a Historical Designation for Disc Golf courses, much as there is for ballparks, neighborhoods, houses, etc. Maybe such a designation would keep some of these original ones protected.
Not sure if anyone has thought of this, if its possible or worth the time spend. But a big anniversary like the 40th would make a great time for it. I think it would take a national organization like the PDGA to get it accomplished. :thmbup:

 

[pmay5]

Actually, it looks like the 40th Anniversary of Oak Grove going in, is this year, 2015!

HAPPY 40TH !! DISC GOLF !! :clap: :hfive:

So maybe now would be the time to pursue historical designation for DG courses!

 

[Fraser]

Thanks everyone who is supporting us in this endeavor. I've spoken with a few key people in the efforts to save this course and they have been overwhelmed by the response from the greater DG community (even brought a 51 year old man to tears, it was awesome.) I have been told that our voices are being heard and it is having an impact. There are some things that are going to happen in the next few weeks that hopefully, will really help in saving the course. I'll update this thread once more information can become public.

About one in five of the signatures we've received have come from out-of-state and some are even world-wide. The historical nature of this course has been the #1 reason for signing. This is what I think has had more of an effect on the perception of the decision makers. Some notable signatures are from the PDGA Course Archivist, Joe Bishop and Jeff Homburg who co-designed NE Lions in Norman (which was the first pole hole course in OK, Will Rogers being the second. Both of which were one of the first 25 or so courses installed in the world.) Please continue to share this petition to whomever you feel can help us out. The more support we have, the better our chances of saving the course as well as the opportunity to add more courses in the future.

pmay5, that's a really good idea. That could potentially help all courses in the future.

Thanks again! I hope everyone has a safe and great 4th of July!

 

[Aim For The Chains]

'Murica!

Bump 4 good cause.