TULSA, Okla. — Extending the river park trail system south remains a priority for the city of Tulsa.
"The interaction of recreational trail users and heavy vehicular traffic is just not a good mix," Paul Zachary with the city's public works department said.
Zachary tells 2 News it's a big reason why the city wants to buy land near 105th and Riverside, all part of their plan to extend the trails south to 121st and an even bigger plan for a low-water dam and pedestrian bridge.
"That's our most southern piece, and that's where the trailhead and the parking lots going to be on the Tulsa side," Zachary said.
The land sits across the street from the Metro Tulsa Soccer Club complex on the west side of Riverside, currently just an open field.
The problem? A Tulsa family owns that land. The city offered them just over $2 million for it. The family countered at $8.3 million. Now, the city looks to move forward with condemnation proceedings -- which Zachary explained at the Public Works Committee meeting on July 22.
The hope for the city is they'll be able to acquire the land, and put another piece of the trail system puzzle in place, while continuing their work to add another connection point across the river.
"If the south Tulsa dam project comes through and we get that pedestrian bridge there, people would then have that access to be able to go all the way up to Turkey Mountain over on the west side," Zachary said.
The proceedings now move to a council vote at a future meeting. The plan includes updating at least eight traffic lights and crosswalks for better pedestrian use.
As for the pedestrian bridge, Zachary says there's a large price gap that's holding those plans up.
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