In 2017, the prestigious Brookings Institution and Project for Public Spaces partnered to study innovation in Oklahoma City. The study centered around the Oklahoma Health Center and Automobile Alley area downtown, looking at ways to create and maximize opportunities for the wealth of entities and innovative assets in the area to interact and “percolate,” ultimately creating new ideas and business opportunities. Through this study Oklahoma City’s Innovation District was born.
At 843 acres, the Innovation District represents less than 1% of Oklahoma City, yet almost 18,000 jobs. The goal of the district is to create greater synergy between industries like health, energy, technology and aerospace development to further adapt our region’s economy for the 21st century.
Last year, the citizens of Oklahoma City voted to invest heavily in the district with the MAPS 4 proposal. In that package, $71 million will be put towards developing the Innovation District, such as creating the Henrietta B. Foster Center for Northeast Small Business Development and Entrepreneurship, constructing an innovation hall and developing better connectivity with the surrounding area and operating funds.
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