Lot Traces: Our subURBAN! way of life

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Some weekends remind me precisely why we selected to stay within the coronary heart of downtown Edmond. This previous one was an ideal instance.

Friday night, two state Division I faculty soccer groups (TU vs OSU) squared off below the lights, a sport sufficiently big to land on nationwide tv. In most cities, that might be the occasion of the evening. In Edmond, it was merely the backdrop. Every restaurant and bar appeared to have the sport on, however in addition they had one thing else—stay music. From our downtown house, we wandered from venue to venue, catching 4 totally different units with out ever beginning a automotive. The hum of dialog and the rhythm of guitars blended with the cheers of soccer followers, making a uniquely Edmond soundtrack.

Saturday morning introduced a slower begin, with breakfast only a block away at one of many metro’s most iconic diners. After plates of eggs and occasional refills, we strolled one other block to the Edmond Farmer’s Market. It’s a spot the place the neighborhood exhibits its colours—tables overflowing with late-summer produce, baked items nonetheless heat from the oven, native honey, hand-made crafts, and neighbors greeting each other as if it had been a weekly reunion.

By noon, it was time to settle in for extra soccer, this time an SEC matchup on TV. At halftime, we walked all the way down to Frenzy Brewing, the place Oktoberfest was in full swing—stay polka music, steins clinking, households filling lengthy tables. As the OU sport wrapped up, the streets outdoors had been closing for Heard on Hurd, Edmond’s month-to-month avenue pageant. Food vehicles lined the curbs, bands arrange on levels, and hundreds of individuals stuffed the downtown blocks. We wandered by means of the gang however needed to maintain shifting; just a few colleagues had been ready simply east at an area watering gap referred to as the Flat Tire earlier than kickoff at Chad Richison Stadium.

There, the UCO Bronchos hosted Washburn. Tailgating, free game-day shirts, and a fireworks present after the win capped the evening. From there, it was solely a nice stroll house.

Sunday morning, we made the brief stroll to Redemption Church, the religious anchor of our downtown life. Looking again, I spotted this weekend captured every little thing town’s leaders dreamed of making – a vibrant, walkable, subURBAN! way of life the place neighborhood, tradition, and comfort collide. We’re grateful not simply to stay right here, however to stay in it.

J. David Chapman, Ph.D., is chair of finance & professor actual property at The University of Central Oklahoma ([email protected]).