Unique Model of Oklahoma City Uncovered

By Rusty Surette, NEWS 9

OKLAHOMA CITY -- A group of history buffs is getting a unique glimpse into Oklahoma City's past. In February, Rachel Mosman and others uncovered a large scale model of the Oklahoma City.

Called the Pei Plan, the model was constructed in 1964 by noted architect and urban planner Ieoh Ming Pei. It was the late 50s and early 60s and city leaders needed a survival plan. The Pei Plan was his idea of what Oklahoma City should look like in 1989, the city's Centennial year.

"He was really the go to planner at that period in American history," said Hanz Butzer, consultant for the Pei Plan Project.

Pei Plan Photos

"It's a time capsule. It really is," said Rachel Mosman, the project's coordinator.

Some of what Pei envisioned never saw the light of day, like the six skyscrapers that should have been apartments. Pei also suggested a galleria mall to help revive downtown, but that's where the Devon Tower is going today. Minor misses compared to what did come out of the plan including the Myriad Gardens and Cox Convention Center.

Learn more about the model and view historic photos.

"A lot of the ideas that Pei started to formalize we're still working with," Butzer said.

But there's one part of Pei's plan that sticks out. At N. 5th Street and Harvey Avenue Pei envisioned a reflecting pool exactly where the reflecting pool sits today at the Oklahoma City National Memorial.

Pei's plan came years before the Murrah building was ever built, so it's left many wondering why Pei felt the need to put a pool there. Was it coincidence or did he envision something much, much more?

"It's still shocking to think about. I still don't like to visit that time in history. It's still emotional for me," said Mosman.

"It kind of allows you to kind of get a window in time of how history changes and the way we think. But also the way there's a lot of architects and planners use and how they implement them can be very different," Butzer said.

I.M. Pei is still alive and has offices in New York, but no one has been able to contact him to ask him about the pool or any of the other projects in his plan. about the pool or any of the other projects in his plan.

The model is now being put back together and cleaned up for public viewing. A grand unveiling will take place on May 3, 2010 at the Cox Center in downtown Oklahoma City.