Oklahoma City seeks input on Classen Boulevard corridor plan

Oklahoma City opened public engagement July 13 on the future of the Classen Boulevard corridor, giving residents, business owners, property owners and commuters until August 31, 2026, to share ideas about safety, walkability, housing, businesses and connections to transit.

The process, called Thrive on Classen, is the city’s first transit-oriented development plan. It is intended to guide longer-term decisions around the corridor, but the current engagement phase does not approve a specific zoning change, construction project, property acquisition or final street design.

What area is included?

The planning area runs roughly along Classen Boulevard from NW 10th Street to NW 48th Street. It also includes nearby areas extending approximately one-quarter to one-half mile on either side of the boulevard.

The city identifies Midtown, the Asian District, Paseo, Uptown 23rd and surrounding neighborhoods as part of the study area. The plan may therefore be relevant not only to people who live directly on Classen Boulevard, but also to nearby renters, homeowners, property owners, employees, customers and people who travel through the corridor.

Why RAPID NW is central to the plan

Thrive on Classen is being built around the existing RAPID NW bus rapid transit investment. According to EMBARK’s 2025 Title VI program update, RAPID NW began operating in December 2023, primarily along Classen Boulevard and Northwest Expressway.

The transit investment includes enhanced stations, real-time arrival information, ticket kiosks, transit signal priority and dedicated bus lanes along part of the route. Those features give the city an established transit connection to consider as it studies how streets, housing and businesses could function around the corridor.

The city’s Classen Corridor Development Plan website describes transit-oriented development as an approach that supports walkable, mixed-use areas around reliable transit. In practical terms, the plan could inform future tools for improving connections between buses, sidewalks, businesses, homes and nearby neighborhoods. It does not guarantee that every idea submitted will be adopted.

How to participate

Residents and others can respond through an online survey and an interactive map on the city’s Classen Corridor Development Plan website. The map allows people to identify specific locations and describe what they would like to see improved or changed.

The survey is available in English, Spanish and Vietnamese and remains open through August 31, 2026. The city is seeking input from people who live, work, own property or travel along Classen Boulevard, not only from residents of the surrounding districts.

What happens next?

After the initial public-input period, the project team is expected to continue developing the plan and provide additional opportunities for community involvement. The plan is scheduled for completion in 2027 and is funded by a $975,000 Federal Transit Administration grant.

For now, the immediate decision facing residents is whether to participate. Any future zoning changes, construction projects, property acquisitions or corridor redesigns would require separate decisions and approvals after the planning process is complete.

Sources

• City of Oklahoma City engagement announcement
• Classen Corridor Development Plan
• EMBARK 2025 Title VI Program Update