City of Tulsa on behalf of Gilcrease Museum

PROJECT PURPOSE

Gilcrease Museum, owned by the City of Tulsa, is preparing to start construction of a new state-of-the-art facility and outdoor amenities that will transform Gilcrease into a leading cultural tourist destination locally, regionally and nationally. Plans for this Vision Tulsa project were approved in February 2020. Since then, the COVID-19 pandemic and its ongoing effects have had a drastic impact on construction market conditions. Consequently, the project faces a $6 million escalation in construction costs. The City of Tulsa has already committed $1 million to narrow the project deficit. To ensure that we can deliver a first-class project for Oklahoma, we respectfully request $5 million to close this gap. Gilcrease?s new facility will not only greatly enhance the long-term care of Tulsa?s most valuable cultural asset, home to a collection of more than 350,000 objects related to the art, history and culture of the Americas, including the largest public holdings of art of the American West, but will also ensure Gilcrease better serves Oklahomans. We anticipate the new museum will be an even more compelling draw for out-of-state visitors, which made up approximately 35% of Gilcrease visitors pre-pandemic, leading to increased sales tax revenue and additional spending in the state.

EVIDENCE

The City of Tulsa expects that the new Gilcrease Museum and its outdoor amenities, including 14 miles of multi-use trails that will connect with Tulsa?s existing trails and parks, will increase tourism dollars and sales tax revenue as well as the health and wellbeing of low-income and vulnerable communities in North Tulsa and beyond. In addition to the economic impact of projects like the Gathering Place and BOK Center, Gilcrease looks to Crystal Bridges and its trail system, which increased sales tax revenue for the city of Bentonville by 37% and had a total regional economic benefit of $137 million.

POPULATION DESCRIPTION

The new Gilcrease Museum will benefit all Oklahomans and in particular low-income, rural and vulnerable communities that have been disproportionately impacted by COVID-19 and its economic consequences. The per capita income of the neighborhood around Gilcrease is only $21,569, nearly $5,000 below the national poverty level. The museum campus is also located within the boundaries of the Osage Nation reservation and adjacent to the mostly African American North Tulsa neighborhood. Gilcrease is ensuring the needs of these communities are met by engaging a Community Advisory Council, a group of 25 members from diverse neighborhoods throughout Tulsa, and an advisory group of North Tulsa leaders as well as consulting with 35 American Indian tribes about the display and interpretation of cultural materials in the new museum. In addition to being fully ADA accessible, the new Gilcrease Museum will utilize technology to not only enhance the in-person visitor experience but also provide a robust digital experience for anyone with access to an internet connection. The Digital Experience will be especially valuable to visitors from rural communities who may be able to more frequently able to access our extraordinary collection and educational content online than in person.

PERFORMANCE MEASURING

The City of Tulsa and museum design team are tracking construction progress. Through its existing customer relationship management and technology infrastructure, Gilcrease measures its geographic reach by tracking in-person visitation and program participation by zip code and online engagement by state and country. For its new facility, the museum will set up key performance indicators for geographic reach, attendance, program participation, earned and contributed revenue, and the diversity of schools and communities engaged. Gilcrease will collaborate with the Oklahoma Department of Tourism and Recreation and Tulsa Regional Tourism to assess museum visitors? impact on sales tax revenue and local spending.

ONGOING INVESTMENT AMOUNT

$

ONGOING INVESTMENT DESCRIPTION

None

ONGOING INVESTMENT REQUIRED

Able to continue operation without additional funding from the State of Oklahoma