Neighbors React To Opening Day Announcement Of Tulsa's Gathering Place

With construction and traffic, it’s been a long four-year road for people who live near Tulsa’s Gathering Place.

Friday, park officials announced opening day would be Saturday, September 8, 2018, but some people living off Riverside say they have mixed emotions about how Gathering Place’s opening is going to affect their neighborhood.

6/8/2018 Related Story: September 8: Tulsa's Gathering Place To Open

"We're outdoor people. We love to be outside and it's been hard not having access to the trail and to the park for the last four years," Joey Toler said.

Toler can step outside his front door and see both the Gathering Place and Riverside Drive. He said he hopes to see fewer drivers flooding his neighborhood to get around the Riverside closure.

"There are the people that don't see all the road-closed signs, all 10 of them right there, and continue to try to make it through. That's been a problem," he said.

Neighbors said they're glad to know exactly when the park will open but now they’re wondering if the park's visitors will spill into their area.

"Where are they all gonna be? Are they gonna park in the front yard? Are they going to make it a traffic issue," Toler asked.

While he may have these questions, Toler said he doesn't plan to leave the area anytime soon.

He put the house up for sale at one point but said he realized how lucky he is to live next to such a big attraction.

"One of the best possible things that could've happened to Tulsa is happening right here and we're gonna move away from that? Nah. I think it was a silly decision so I'm glad we stayed," he said.