Around Edmond: OP ED about need for better Edmond community connection. Welcome to the New Mayor & Councilmen. Changing retail landscape. May Heard on Hurd fun!

Hi everyone! What a spring its been. My thoughts and prayers go out to the Lewis family, I can’t tell you how sorry I am about your son’s passing this last week. As a mother, and in this situation, I understand. And my heart is broken, for Isaiah and for all of you.

I hope that as a community, the entire situation will be cause for all of us to come together to discuss options for our Police to consider before lethally harming an individual who is incapacitated through whatever cause, and that we might all shed the stigma we sometimes automatically assign to other parents and perhaps without knowing it, that we apply to those who may be middle to low income and who are actively trying to obtain services needed for our family members who may not be able to cope with drugs, alcohol, or that have mental health issues needing immediate professional assistance.

And because I don’t know the entire story, I will not comment further. I just know that an Edmond boy isn’t going to feel the gratification of being able to walk through his home high school graduation and his family is grief stricken instead of feeling pride. We need more conversation between the community and law enforcement, and I believe further conversation between parents and police would be highly beneficial.

And hopefully, the conversation will start with our new Mayor Dan O’Neill, to whom I’d like to congratulate, along with my congratulations extending to Josh Moore and David Chapman, who became new City Councilmen. Here’s to continued consideration of community minded growth that really makes Edmond shine!

Knowing there are amazing mixed use projects coming to downtown Edmond on the west side of 1st Street railroad tracks, and the east side of the tracks with the Railyard development is such welcome news, and I can say, after being an Edmond resident for the last 14 years, any attempt at community minded development that encourages community gathering is more than overdue and very welcome! I’m all about development that keeps our residents interested in Edmond!

Speaking of the changing retail landscape, have you noticed all of the businesses disappearing overnight? It appears that either a) the physical brick and mortar setup of the retail establishment isn’t competing with online retailers as was hoped it would survive ten years ago or b) consumer’s don’t care as much about buying everyday products from brick and mortar retailers as they care about saving money or even c) consumers have slowed their spending with the trend of less is more.

I don’t know which factors attribute to this growing number of business closures, however I do know one thing. The business owners I know in Edmond, and do business with, are fantastic models for growth in retail, as they are connected with their customers and reach out when heading to markets to purchase items for their stores.

Anne McCarthy is a model retailer, in that she embraces constant change, works hard to find unique fresh lines to sell at EmoryAnne Interiors, and will help any customer find anything they may be seeking, along with offering design services, delivery, free gift wrap and other extra services that other locally owned independent retailers might find outside of their duties as a retailer. And in the end, Anne will always be successful competing with national and large regional retailers because of her connection to the communities she serves, whether philanthropically, in her support for other female business owners or just because she and her staff give her customers 150%.

I sit wondering what will happen to our mall’s. Quail Springs Mall feels only about half way occupied as opposed to its condition one year ago. While everyone heads to Costco when it opens, it will be interesting to see how this big box store performs in a locale whose Mall stores shrunk by 50% in one year. And especially one city block away from Sam’s Club.

All I can say after watching retail trends in Edmond since 2009, specifically as compared to the immense growth occurring lately in Nichols Hills, North OKC, Midtown and Downtown OKC, the next twelve months will for sure be interesting to see who remains and which of the remaining mall stores and independent retailers in and around Edmond that the community allows to go out of business, as consumer spending trends change.

Mark Your Calendar for May 18th for the return of Heard on Hurd and in celebration of the Class of 2019 after record breaking crowds congregate in March and April!

Citizens Bank of Edmond’s Heard on Hurd returns on Saturday, May 18^th at the corner of Broadway and Hurd in downtown Edmond to celebrate the graduates of 2019. Festival attendees can also expect to enjoy the usual wide variety of food trucks, pop-up shops and local music from 6-10 p.m.

The featured nonprofit for the month of May will be Project 31. Founded by two-time cancer survivor Sarah McLean, Project31 is a faith-based organization here to focus on the reconstruction that often needs to be done on the heart, spirit, and relationships with those closest to you throughout breast cancer and beyond.

Heard on Hurd will welcome three talented acts to the stage including:

• Don’t Tell Dena at 6:00 PM: Don’t Tell Dena is an Oklahoma City based Psychedelic Indie Rock band started in 2015. Chris Krummrich and Sean Kanaly founded the band and later added two fellow ACM@UCO students, Campbell Young and Triston Lightner. Their solid rhythm section, tight vocal harmonies and an energetic live show, help us put a new spin on old psychedelic.
• Jason Scott at 7:20 PM: Americana artist Jason Scott was raised in the land of boots, bolo ties, and burial grounds; bred on the Bible and shielded from most secular entertainment. His seemingly distant memory of that Oklahoma City childhood is a mosaic of tattered song books, equal parts fire and brimstone, and sneaking off to his uncle’s ‘79 Ford Bronco to listen to Conway Twitty tapes. He’s a skilled multi-instrumentalist quickly becoming known for his unrelenting, sweat-soaked performances.
• Vandoliers At 8:40 PM: This Cowpunk band mixes raw, rough-edged roots music with the focused, fiery storytelling of front man Joshua Fleming. The band’s Third album, Forever, is a mix of youthful and defiant punk, rugged Red Dirt country, and vibrant Tejano. The full-length’s 10 songs blend emblematic rock ‘n’ roll with bold horns, violin, and a slather of twang reflecting where the band is from, where they’ve been and, eventually, where they’ll be headed. It’s regional and universal all the same.

“The month of May is always such an exciting month as we watch our graduates from high school and college step out into the world to begin making their mark.” said President and CEO of Citizens Bank of Edmond, Jill Castilla. “Our team at Citizens Bank of Edmond congratulates the class of 2019 for all of their past, present and future accomplishments.  What better way to celebrate than enjoying local talent, shopping and eating delicious food!”

Street entertainment performances will begin at 6:30 PM at the intersection of Main and Broadway featuring students from Cross Timbers and the local band, Daunted.

Make sure to come with an appetite as there will be over 30 of the best food trucks in the metro at the event.

With a wide variety of retail pop up shops spread throughout the event you will be sure to find something for yourself or for someone special. Heard on Hurd t-shirts, long sleeves, tank tops and more will be for sale at the Indigo Skies tent right in front of the stage.

You never have to feel bad about enjoying a local brew from The Patriarch’s tents or The Big Friendly Beer Bus , as 15% of all our Heard on Hurd T-shirt and alcohol sales go back to Edmond Public Schools.

To find out more about the event, like us on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter and Instagram.

That’s it for today, stop by Friday for another glimpse of what’s happening around Edmond!

Sherri