In the early 1990s, the leaders of Oklahoma City were faced with a decision: to compete or retreat. The city was in the wake of the oil bust and had lost a bid for a United Airlines maintenance facility. The decision was made to compete, and a visionary project was launched - one that changed the face of Oklahoma City forever. That plan is Metropolitan Area Projects (MAPS), an ambitious program that's one of the most aggressive and successful public-private partnerships ever undertaken in the U.S. The amount spent in this public/private partnership exceeds $3 billion.

Public Projects
A series of nine public projects propelled Oklahoma City into its renaissance. These included renovations to the Convention Center, Civic Center Music Hall and Oklahoma City fairgrounds, as well as construction of the 15,000-seat AT&T Bricktown Ballpark, the mile-long Bricktown Canal, the 20,000 seat Ford Center, the state-of-the-art Ronald J. Norick Downtown Library, the Oklahoma Spirit trolley system, and a stretch of water transformed into river lakes with trails and recreational facilities known as The Oklahoma River. Learn more about the projects through the City of Oklahoma City or NewsOK.

Funding
MAPS was funded by a temporary one-cent sales tax approved by city voters in December 1993. The tax expired on July 1, 1999. During the 66 months it was in effect, more than $309 million was collected. In addition, the deposited tax revenue earned about $54 million in interest. All of the public projects were funded by a self-imposed, five-year, one-cent sales tax. The tax was extended by a vote of the people for six months to cover cost increases during construction. The tax is complete and the projects are all debt-free.