George Kaiser Foundation Leads $350-Million Gift to Park Project in Tulsa

Oklahoma energy billionaire George Kaiser’s foundation and other community donors are turning over land, plans, and operational services worth $350-million to a public-private Tulsa agency to develop a new park along the Arkansas River, the Tulsa World reports.

The gift to the River Parks Authority, a nonprofit funded largely by the city and county of Tulsa to maintain riverfront green spaces, is believed to be the largest ever to a U.S. public park, topping financier John Paulson’s $100-million gift in 2012 to the Central Park Conservancy.

The transaction involves the donation of the foundation-affiliated legal entity that is building A Gathering Place for Tulsa. The parks authority will receive 58.37 acres of land; the new park’s design, engineering, and construction plans; and approximately $50-million for operations and maintenance. Groundbreaking is scheduled for next month and construction is expected to take about three years.