How to make Tulsa ' cool'

What makes a cool city? Is it great parks and neighborhoods. Perhaps terrific restaurants and coffee houses make a city cool. <br/><br/>Creating cool Oklahoma cities is the theme of a conference in

Wednesday, April 6th 2005, 10:31 am

By: News On 6

What makes a cool city? Is it great parks and neighborhoods. Perhaps terrific restaurants and coffee houses make a city cool.

Creating cool Oklahoma cities is the theme of a conference in Tulsa Wednesday.

News on 6 reporter Rick Wells visited the conference to find out what's cool about Tulsa.

Just about any way you cut it Zingo is cool, but is Zingo enough to make Tulsa a cool city, probably not. What does is the theme of a conference on creating cool cities in Oklahoma. Mayfest is cool.

The Oklahoma Center for Nonprofits is hoping to capitalize on the success of the Michigan Cool Cities Initiative Robert Johnson is with the State of Michigan. "Government can't mandate cool." What goverment can do he says is energize people to work together with existing organizations to create a cool city. Cainâ€™s Ballroom is cool. "Having those little slices of experience that you don't come across every day is really what makes a city cool."

This is all important because cities must compete for young talent to replace retiring baby boomers. Sheila Curley with the Tulsa Metro Chamber: "For every two baby boomers who retire only one young professional will enter the workforce."

The cooler cities will get the best people. Art Deco is cool, the praying hands are cool and the big driller at Expo Square, he's cool. Sheila Curley: "It's more important to be cool than uncool, Tulsa's cool."

The Creating Cool Oklahoma Cities Conference moves down the Turner Turnpike to Oklahoma City for a similar conference there Thursday.