Tulsa's Gathering Place opening Saturday

After years of anticipation, Tulsa’s Gathering Place is opening this weekend. The nearly 100-acre project along the Arkansas River broke ground and began construction back in 2014. Its vision, led by the George Kaiser Family Foundation, was to unify Tulsa and beyond with a welcoming environment for everyone to come together, learn, and, of course, play. Since then, more than 80 corporate and charitable organizations have joined in to help make Kaiser’s vision a privately funded reality. Hundreds of employees have been hired to keep it running. It’s completely free to get into Gathering Place. The only costs are for visitors who want to buy food or drinks, rent equipment, or get merchandise. Visitors on opening day will want to bring their own drinks, like water, and food, because those items aren’t available for sale just yet. The park will be open from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. every day after Saturday’s event. There are some items visitors are not allowed to bring with them, so leave your glass bottles, outside grills, outside alcohol, guns, knives, other weapons, drones and amplified sound devices at home. Shuttle services start at 6 a.m. Saturday, the parade kicks off at 8:30 and the park officially opens to the public at 10 a.m.