Gooden to Kingfisher Rotary: Visitor center construction should begin soon

John Gooden and Brian Walter, board members of Kingfisher Trails, Inc., told Kingfisher Rotarians and guests that construction should begin this summer to turn a downtown property into the Kingfisher Visitor Center, which will also house the staff of the Kingfisher Chamber of Commerce.

Gooden narrated a slide show presentation that featured local architect John Gilmour’s re-design of the proposed structure, which is the old Bill’s DX property on the northeast corner of the intersection of U.S. 81 and S.H. 33.

Kingfisher Trails, Inc., owns the property.

Gooden said Gilmour’s design would bring construction costs down from the original $450,000 projection to the $300,000 range.

“With the generous gift of $200,000 made by Dorma Hobbs, we have the money to get started and we feel confident enough about donations coming in, that we will have enough to have it funded by the time it’s finished,” Gooden said.

Walter commented that Gooden has always maintained, through the 17-plus years of the ongoing Kingfisher Trails project, the philosophy of “capital follows vision.”

“And that’s been the case throughout the community improvement projects we have undertaken through Kingfisher Trails and others,” Walter said.

“John comes up with the overall plan and we work to make it happen. It’s been successful up to now and we don’t see that drastically changing in the near future.”

Gooden said Hobbs’ gift was placed in the Communities Foundation of Oklahoma, which holds the funds for the Kingfisher Community Trust.

Gooden said the idea to build the structure was for two main reasons.

First and foremost, he said, it was felt that travelers through the community should have a visible place to stop to discover more about Kingfisher.

“I am sure you all have heard this from folks too, but when people from other communities find out I live in Kingfisher, they always remark about what a beautiful town it is when they drive through it,” Gooden said.

“It occurred to us that we need to have a very visible ‘front door’ to give them a reason to not just drive through, but to stop and find out more about us.”

Gooden noted that the Kingfisher Chamber of Commerce office was “out of the way” at its current location of 123 W. Miles Ave., and that persons looking for it usually had to ask someone where it was located.

“We felt because we have the Jesse Chisholm statue, and the map of the Chisholm Trail there to draw attention to the location, and because it is located exactly on the corner of our main highways intersection point, this would be the perfect place to house the chamber of commerce,” Gooden said.

“The chamber staff would be the most experienced and also the most knowledgeable in terms of welcoming people to our community, and informing them of all Kingfisher has to offer, and also directing them to points of interest.”

He said the other purpose was to offer a “business friendly” meeting space.

Walter commented that the design allows for bathrooms, a kitchen area and a meeting room to be closed off and separated from the chamber of commerce offices.

“I think this space will be well utilized by businesses such as those in the energy industry who don’t have an office in Kingfisher, but need a place for their people to meet from time to time,” he said.

Gooden, who owns the ground which housed the old demolished 89er Theatre location, said he hoped to add additional downtown parking on that space to facilitate the increased parking pressure the center would generate.

“I don’t think it will be that much of a problem. After business hours, almost all parking spots are open in front of the building. I know during business hours, because there are several businesses on that block, that customers take up those spaces,” he said.

“I think parking is something we can work to accommodate.”

Gooden said Kingfisher Trails, Inc., owns the property, but the hope was to gift the property over to the City of Kingfisher once it was complete.

He said the main focus, currently, is fundraising.

He closed by saying that donations could be made to: CFO-Kingfisher Forward, and may be dropped off at the Kingfisher Chamber of Commerce office, 123 W. Miles Ave., or mailed to the Communities Foundation of Oklahoma office at P.O. Box 21210, Oklahoma City, OK 73156.

Gooden said Dennis Mueggenborg, owner of Designs by Dennis, has agreed to serve as a trustee for the fund.