Tour Homes Announced for Storytellers: Historic Home Tour 2017 Event

Tulsa, Okla. – The tour destinations for Storytellers: Historic Home Tour 2017, an event being held in the Brady Heights Historic District of Tulsa, have now been announced. The event will be held in the neighborhood, located just north of downtown Tulsa, on Sunday, October 15th, 2017 from 10:00AM to 5:00PM.

This year’s theme of Storytellers invites current and former residents of the Brady Heights Historic District and the surrounding communities to record their personal and family histories on video or audio recordings for future preservation, ensuring that the stories of the neighborhood live on into the future. People interested in sharing their story should visit http://www.bradyheights.org/tell-your-story/.

This year’s tour brings new places to the table, with a majority of homes featured not having been on the past two home tours in the neighborhood. Among destinations that are returning from either the 2013 or 2015 tours are 769 N. Denver Ave., 902 N. Denver Ave., 1145 N. Denver Ave., 1140 N. Cheyenne Ave., and 1151 N. Cheyenne Ave.

The “new” homes on this year’s tour include two homes that are in the process of being lovingly restored at 628 N. Cheyenne Ave. and 823 N. Cheyenne Ave. These homes will be open as the owners work on them, with opportunities for tour-goers to see demonstrations of the kind of dedication and technique that is required to preserve houses that are nearly 100 years old to prepare for their next 100 years.

In the southern end of the neighborhood, 627 N. Cheyenne Ave. returns to the tour and is owned by residents who helped save many homes in the neighborhood during the initial push for it to be recognized on the National Register of Historic Places. A new resident of the neighborhood is jumping in feet-first at 716 N. Cheyenne Ave., opening their home up to tour guests within a year of moving into the community.

Finally, in the northern end of the neighborhood, 1152 N. Cheyenne Ave. borders the Community Garden and its associated Little Library, showing just a few of the many ways that neighbors have worked to intentionally create community. And tour guests of the 2015 Historic Home Tour may be surprised to see that 1164 N. Cheyenne Ave. is no longer a vacant lot—it was the site of the Design Competition for that tour—but now has a single-family home built upon it. Construction finished fairly recently, so tour guests will be among the first people who aren’t friends or family of the owners to get a peek inside.

Tickets for Storytellers: Historic Home Tour 2017 can be purchased on-site at the tour’s starting point, the Centenary United Methodist Church, located at 631 N. Denver Ave. Acceptable payment methods include credit card and cash. Tickets will cost $10 per person for those 12 years of age or older, with guests under 12 years old receiving free admission. Proceeds will benefit community projects of Brady Heights Historic District, Inc.

Tour guests will be able to visit inside Centenary United Methodist Church as well as The Parish Church of St. Jerome, located at 205 W. King St. There will be a “Bizarre Bazaar” at The Parish Church of St. Jerome during the tour as well. Guests are also encouraged to stop by TW’s AFAB Catering at 217 W. Latimer St., which is locally-owned and will be open during the tour.

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Quick Facts

Brady Heights Historic District presents

Storytellers:

Historic Home Tour 2017

Sunday, October 15, 2017

 10:00AM to 5:00PM

Tickets: Purchased on-site at Centenary United Methodist Church, 631 N. Denver Ave.

$10 per person for guests 12 years of age and older.

Free admission for guests under 12 years of age.

Eleven (11) homes featured on tour, including multiple homes listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Two (2) churches featured on tour.

The theme of Storytellers invites current and former residents of the Brady Heights Historic District and the surrounding communities to record their personal and family histories on video or audio recordings for future preservation, ensuring that the stories of the neighborhood live on into the future. People interested in sharing their story should visit http://www.bradyheights.org/tell-your-story/.

For more information about the Brady Heights Historic District and the home tour, please visit http://www.bradyheights.org.

Brady Heights Historic District Announces Storytellers: Historic Home Tour 2017

Tulsa, Okla. – August 21, 2017 – The Brady Heights Historic District of Tulsa will host Storytellers: Historic Home Tour 2017 on Sunday, October 15, 2017, from 10:00AM to 5:00PM. The tour will include around 10 homes in Tulsa’s oldest historic neighborhood. Tickets will cost $10 per person 12 years of age and older. Guests under 12 years old receive free admission. Tickets can be purchased on site at the tour’s starting point, the Centenary United Methodist Church, at 631 N. Denver Ave. Proceeds will benefit community projects of Brady Heights Historic District, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization which serves the residents of the neighborhood and the surrounding community.

Brady Heights Historic District, Inc. invites current and former residents of the neighborhood and the surrounding near-downtown communities to use this event as an opportunity for homecoming and sharing their personal stories of the people who have called this place home over the last hundred-plus years. Interested guests who would like to record their story on camera or on audio will be able to do so at Centenary United Methodist Church or at select tour homes. The neighborhood organization is very invested in identifying these stories which tell our past so that they can be saved for future residents to look back upon, especially those stories which nobody may be aware of today. With stories being told throughout the event, guests attending Storytellers: Historic Home Tour 2017 should have the unique experience of hearing the personal histories of many homes on the tour. People interested in sharing their story should visit http://bradyheights.org/tell-your-story/.

Since the neighborhood was established, thousands of people have called the Brady Heights Historic District home. These include some of the founding fathers of the City of Tulsa, displaced residents of the Greenwood District and Black Wall Street who were victims of the Tulsa Race Massacre of 1921, Tulsans finding a place to call home after returning from World War II, members of the LGBTQ community who sought refuge in the neighborhood beginning in the 1970s and 1980s, and young professionals and their families who have purchased homes in the area to celebrate the recent revitalization of downtown Tulsa. The people of these different communities have the common ground of calling the same place home, and their stories are full of triumph, tragedy, healing, anger, humor, family, and all the other qualities which characterize humanity.

The design of homes in the Brady Heights Historic District also has a role in the stories that have been experienced over the years. With wide, welcoming porches, residents were and are able to call to each other and host informal gatherings. Detached garages provide an opportunity for neighbors to greet each other between the moment of parking a car and coming back into the home. With historic homes built primarily between 1900 and 1930, the built environment serves as a time capsule which tells a story of its own as well.

Brady Heights Historic District, Inc. is interested in working with potential sponsors or partners for this year’s Historic Home Tour event, especially any audio/visual partners who may be able to supplement existing recording equipment on the day of the event.

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Quick Facts

Brady Heights Historic District presents

Storytellers:

Historic Home Tour 2017

Sunday, October 15, 2017

 10:00AM to 5:00PM

Tickets: Purchased on site at Centenary United Methodist Church, 631 N. Denver Ave.

• $10 per person for guests 12 years of age and older.
• Free admission for guests under 12 years of age.

Around ten (10) homes featured on tour, including multiple homes listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The theme of Storytellers invites current and former residents of Brady Heights Historic District and the surrounding communities to record their personal and family histories on video or audio recordings for future preservation, ensuring that the stories of the neighborhood live on into the future. People interested in sharing their story should visit http://bradyheights.org/tell-your-story/.

For more information about the Brady Heights Historic District and the Historic Home Tour, please visit http://www.bradyheights.org.

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Contact Brian J. Parker, President, Brady Heights Historic District, Inc. at brianjparker@outlook.com.

Brady Heights Historic District plans “Chalk the Walk” to bring Attention to Traffic Speed Issues

Tulsa, Okla. – May 7, 2017 – Brady Heights Historic District, Inc. of Tulsa has announced its first-ever “Chalk the Walk” event which will be held in the neighborhood on Saturday, March 25th, 2017 from 9:00AM to 3:00PM. The event has been organized to address long-running neighborhood concerns about the high rate of speed from traffic as it travels through one of the oldest historic neighborhoods in the city.

Inspired by images of other unique crosswalks in the U.S.A. and around the world, the neighborhood’s nonprofit organization has recruited artists to design striking crosswalks which will be eye-catching and call attention to the need for safer driving in a neighborhood which has many young children playing at any given time. The work will be done in chalk as a demonstration of how alternative crosswalks could be designed, since official crosswalk painting can only be done by the City of Tulsa or an approved contractor. After the chalk work is completed, the art will be mildly treated for short-term preservation but will be temporary and wash away after time. The neighborhood hopes that this creative approach to provide a solution will encourage the City of Tulsa to consider alternative traffic-calming options on N. Denver Ave. and N. Cheyenne Ave. in the historic neighborhood.

The neighborhood has a history of bringing artistic solutions to the community, including the creation of the Brady Heights Arts Parkway on N. Denver Ave. with a brick monument at the intersection of W. Fairview St. in and the installation of an artistic traffic circle at the intersection of W. Marshall St. over the last ten years.

During the event, N. Denver Ave. will be closed to traffic between W. Jasper St. and W. King St. to allow a safe environment for the team of volunteer chalk artists who will be transferring the designs onto the pavement. The block party created by this street closure will allow residents of the neighborhood and guests the opportunity to observe the chalk progress and also to purchase food and artwork from area businesses and artists. Members of the Tulsa Police Department and Tulsa Fire Department have been invited to attend the block party and connect with the community, and the organization intends to invite local legislators to observe the creative process.

The neighborhood’s nonprofit organization submitted a request for a traffic-calming study by the City of Tulsa in May 2016. Since then, at least three major incidents have occurred on N. Denver Ave. in the neighborhood, including a young girl being struck by a car while playing near the street in the summer of 2016 which resulted in a broken leg. More recently, a high-speed chase with the Tulsa Police Department saw an accident on N. Denver Ave. in January 2017, and a driver checking their phone while driving struck parked cars and flipped their SUV on N. Denver Ave. in the early morning hours of February 12th, 2017.

As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, Brady Heights Historic District, Inc. is welcoming financial support for the “Chalk the Walk” event to assist with expenses related to renting barricades to divert traffic and purchasing the quantity of chalk and other materials necessary to complete the temporary art installation. Interested parties should email brianjparker@outlook.com.

Quick Facts

Brady Heights Historic District, Inc.
“Chalk the Walk”
Saturday, March 25, 2017
9:00AM to 3:00PM

• Block party on the 900 block of N. Denver Ave. (between W. Jasper St. and W. King St.) where artists and volunteers will be drawing unique crosswalk designs on the street with chalk to raise awareness of traffic danger issues.
• Local vendors will be on hand to sell food and refreshments, while local artists and photographers are encouraged to sell their art.
• For more information about Brady Heights Historic District and the “Chalk the Walk” event, please visit www.bradyheights.org.

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Brady Heights Historic District, Inc. Plans to Address Traffic Danger on N. Denver Ave.

At its next membership meeting on Saturday, February 18th at 10AM, Brady Heights Historic District, Inc. will unveil a plan for a special event to work towards action that will address the rate of traffic traveling on N. Denver Ave. in their neighborhood.

Over the past few years, there have been numerous incidents of traffic accidents resulting from motorists traveling at a high rate of speed or being distracted while traveling on N. Denver Ave., a major road which connects downtown Tulsa to E. Pine St. and other destinations in North Tulsa. Although the speed limit is 30 miles per hour, traffic is often observed traveling up to 50 miles per hour through the residential neighborhood where children play within feet of the street. Some examples of prior incidents include:

• February 12th, 2017: Woman Checking Phone Flips Her SUV, Tulsa Police Say
• January 31st, 2017: Couple in custody after chase leads to crash in north Tulsa
• Summer 2016: A young girl in the neighborhood was struck by a car while playing near N. Denver Ave., resulting in a broken leg.

In response to earlier incidents, the organization filed a request to the Mayor's Action Line with the City of Tulsa for a Traffic Calming Study (tracking # 925936) in May 2016. At the organization's meeting on May 21st, 2016, Jeremy Stahle from Connect CEC (a traffic calming contractor) attended and answered questions and listened to ideas from the neighborhood; Mr. Stahle forwarded these suggested ideas on to the City of Tulsa. As of this time, no further follow-up has been received regarding the Traffic Calming Study.

In the meantime, neighbors have taken some actions on their own as private citizens, including the purchase of "Drive Like Your Kids Live Here" yard signs by Dani Widell in an attempt to call attention to the high speed of traffic through the community.

At the meeting on February 18th, the organization will provide full details regarding their Brady Heights Community Chalk Crosswalk Art Project. This event, slated to be held in March 2017, will see the community partnering with local artists to design decorative crosswalk designs. In turn, these crosswalk designs will be drawn in chalk on N. Denver Ave. as a temporary art installation to draw further attention to the traffic concerns and provide a working example for a long-term solution.

To register as a volunteer or artist with the Brady Heights Community Chalk Crosswalk Art Project, fill out this Google Form. Add this meeting to your calendar by visiting our Calendar page.

Quick Facts

Brady Heights Historic District, Inc. -- February 2017 Meeting

Saturday, February 18, 2017

10:00AM to 11:00AM

Centenary United Methodist Church, 631 N. Denver Ave.

For more information about Brady Heights, please visit www.bradyheights.org.

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Contact Brian Parker, President, Brady Heights Historic District, Inc. brianjparker@outlook.com

BRADY HEIGHTS HISTORIC DISTRICT ANNOUNCES HOLIDAY HOME TOUR

Tulsa, Okla. – November 28, 2016 – The Brady Heights Historic District of Tulsa has announced the homes and destinations which will be open on the 2016 Brady Heights Holiday Home Tour, which will be held in the neighborhood on Sunday, December 4th, 2016 from 1:00PM to 5:00PM.

The tour is a new effort from the neighborhood, which hosts an Historic Home Tour every other year and most recently in September of 2015. In contrast to the Historic Home Tour, the Holiday Home Tour is limited to either the main floor or living area of homes on the tour and is meant to show off the diverse decorations in homes from one of Tulsa’s oldest neighborhoods.

The Holiday Home Tour will also feature two Open Houses which have been recently renovated as well as an Art Sale.

Featured homes on the Holiday Home Tour include:

• 716 N. Cheyenne Ave. (Open House)
• 769 N. Denver Ave.
• 907 N. Denver Ave.
• 911 N. Denver Ave.
• 919 N. Denver Ave. (Open House)
• 1017 N. Denver Ave.
• 1020 N. Denver Ave.
• 1135 N. Denver Ave. (Art Sale)
• 1156 N. Denver Ave. (Open House)
• 217 W. Latimer St.
• 1140 N. Cheyenne Ave.
• 1151 N. Cheyenne Ave.

The 2016 Brady Heights Holiday Home Tour on Sunday, December 4, 2016, from 1:00PM to 5:00PM. The tour includes 11 homes in Tulsa’s oldest historic district. Tickets will cost $10 per couple ($5 per ticket). Guests under 12 years old are free. Tickets can be purchased on site at Centenary United Methodist Church, located at 631 N. Denver Ave. Proceeds will benefit community projects of the Brady Heights Historic District, Inc.

Quick Facts

Brady Heights Historic District

Holiday Home Tour

Sunday, December 4, 2016

1:00PM to 5:00PM

Tickets: Purchased on site at Centenary United Methodist Church (631 N. Denver Ave.)
$10 per couple, $5 per ticket.
Free admission for guests under 12 years of age.

Eleven living spaces featured on tour, including multiple National Register of Historic Places residences.

For more information about Brady Heights Historic District, please visit www.bradyheights.org.

Prizes Announced for 2015 Brady Heights Historic Home Tour Design Competition

Tulsa, Okla. -- July 30, 2015 -- The Brady Heights Historic District of Tulsa are pleased to announce the three prizes which will be awarded to the selected winners of the design competition held as part of their 2015 Historic Home Tour, scheduled for Sunday, September 27th, 2015.

One Grand Prize Winner will be selected by a judging panel of design professionals and will receive $450 along with being prominently featured at the design competition's vacant lot on the day of the Historic Home Tour.  Two Merit Award Winners will also be selected and will receive $225 each, as well as be featured at the lot during the tour.  The three winners selected will each receive four (4) free admissions to the Historic Home Tour.

The design competition is a partnership between Brady Heights Historic District, Inc., American Institute of Architects -- Eastern Oklahoma Chapter, Tulsa Foundation for Architecture, and Home Builders Association of Greater Tulsa.  Generous contributions from these partner organizations makes it possible for these prizes to be awarded.

The full details of the design competition can be found at the 2015 Brady Heights Historic Home Tour Design Competition website.  Entries must be received by 12:00PM Central time (noon) on Saturday, September 12th, 2015.  Those interested in submitting a design are encouraged to email BHDesignComp2015@outlook.com and state that intention in order to aid with the scheduling of entry reviews based on the expected number of submissions.

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Contact Brian Parker, President, Brady Heights Historic District, Inc.

brianjparker@outlook.com

BRADY HEIGHTS HISTORIC DISTRICT CELEBRATES ITS PAST AND FUTURE WITH HISTORIC HOME TOUR ON SEPTEMBER 27, 2015

New Construction Design Competition Envisions the Future of Tulsa’s Oldest Neighborhood

Tulsa, Okla. – July 15, 2015 – The Brady Heights Historic District of Tulsa will host its Historic Home Tour on Sunday, September 27, 2015, from 10:00AM to 5:00PM.  The tour includes at least 10 homes in Tulsa’s oldest historic district.  Tickets will cost $10 per person 12 years of age and older; a group rate of $25 is available to groups of three people.  Guests under 12 years old are free.  Tickets can be purchased on site at the tour’s starting point, the Centenary United Methodist Church, at 631 N. Denver Ave.  Proceeds will benefit community projects of the Brady Heights Historic District, Inc. (d/b/a Brady Heights Neighborhood Association, Inc.).

New for this year’s tour is the introduction of a design competition open to architects and designers who would like to help envision new construction appropriate to a neighborhood protected by Historic Preservation Overlay Zoning by the Tulsa Preservation Commission.  A generous neighbor has volunteered the use of a vacant lot they own in the neighborhood as a blank sheet for designers to work from as they envision future development in a neighborhood rich with history.  Entries are due by Saturday, September 12, 2015, and will be judged by a panel of Historic Preservation experts from the Brady Heights Historic District, Inc., American Institute of Architects -- Eastern Oklahoma Chapter, Tulsa Foundation for Architecture, and Home Builders Association of Greater Tulsa.  Specific prizes will be determined based on number of entries submitted, but winning designs will be prominently featured during the Historic Home Tour.

Further details about additional attractions as part of this year’s Historic Home Tour will be released between now and the event.

One of the first neighborhoods built outside of downtown Tulsa, the Brady Heights Historic District features homes built between 1900 and 1930, including two homes which were built in 1907 before Oklahoma’s statehood.  Oklahoma’s early political, mercantile, oil, spiritual, and social leaders made Brady Heights their home.  The varied home styles include styles such as Folk Victorian, Colonial Revival, Craftsman Bungalow, and American Foursquare.  The houses of Brady Heights are of a larger scale and more complex design than those of adjacent neighborhoods; bay windows with leaded glass, carriage houses, and broad porches suggest the elegance of earlier days.

Residents have lovingly restored or are in the process of restoring the tour homes and guests will be treated to casual discussions with the homeowners relating the history of their home and the machinations they went through to restore them. Many of the homes still retain original details.

Brady Heights has a spectacular history of rebirth. Suffering from abandonment and crime in the 1960s and 1970s, a renaissance began in the early 1980s when the Brady Heights Historic District was placed on the National Register of Historic Places and the Brady Heights Neighborhood Association, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, was founded by President Wess Young and his wife Cathryn. One of the most diverse neighborhoods in Tulsa, Brady Heights boasts a collection of families and individuals of all races, income ranges, ages, sexual orientations, and religions. Proud urban pioneers were guaranteed continued historic integrity of their homes and neighborhood when the Brady Heights Historic District was granted the Historic Preservation Overlay Zoning by the City of Tulsa in 1999.

Quick Facts

2015 Brady Heights Historic Home Tour

Sunday, September 27, 2015

10:00AM to 5:00PM

Tickets: Purchased on site at Centenary United Methodist Church, 631 N. Denver Ave.

• $10 per person for 12 years of age and older.
• $25 per group of three people over 12 years.
• Free admission for guests under 12 years of age.

At least ten homes featured on tour, including multiple homes on the National Register of Historic Places.

Design contest using vacant lot in the neighborhood provides an opportunity for designers to share a vision of new construction which fits the context and character of an established historic neighborhood.

• Entries due by Saturday, September 12, 2015.

For more information about Brady Heights and the Historic Home Tour, please visit www.bradyheights.org.   

Specific links to webpages include:

• Home Tour Event Details
• Why Hold a Design Competition?
• Design Competition Entry Details

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Contact Brian Parker, President, Brady Heights Historic District, Inc.  brianjparker@outlook.com