Comparing Richmond: RVA vs OKC, Austin, and San Antonio!

The second week of #SGT26, I traveled through Oklahoma City and a good portion of Texas. Richmond, I have seen a lot this week. There was a lot to be learned and there were a few surprises.

Departing Kansas City was a sad day for I had such a great time and I definitely plan on going back. As the tour continued, Traveller and I ventured through Kansas. Yes, it is as flat as they say and yes, it is quite gorgeous. However, if you plan on travelling on the interstate, make sure you bring lots of toll money, because it cost me $12 just to drive through Kansas, on top of however much it cost me in gas.

Upon my arrival in Oklahoma City, I went to the entertainment district known as Bricktown. I'm sure some of you are thinking, "Oklahoma City has an entertainment district?" Why yes, yes it does. And a rather nice one at that. Bricktown is situated just east of downtown, just like Shockoe is in Richmond.

Bricktown also has a canal walk.

Now, their canal walk stretches for about 2 miles (I know because I ran on it) and it is a little more developed than ours with several restaurants and shops. Guess what else is in this little place they call Bricktown? Yes ladies and gentleman, there is a ballpark. So let's just make sure we are all on the same page, an entertainment district with a canal walk and a ballpark. Hmm, sounds like something familiar. Oh right, it’s what Shockoe could be once it hosts a ballpark.

The Bricktown Canal Walk would be a great model for Venture Richmond, the nonprofit organization that runs the Canal Walk in Richmond, to learn from and grow our own Canal Walk. I think it is perfectly feasible for the Canal Walk in Richmond to have businesses on both sides, from Brown's Island to the Flood Wall near 17th Street. Oh and allow me to reiterate, there is a ballpark in this entertainment district. This is my call to action, let's make it happen!

Next stop was Dallas. I wasn't very impressed with Dallas as they did not have a clear entertainment district, which shocked me being that Dallas is a pretty large Southern city. I also like the Redskins, so saying anything nice about Dallas could be classified as treason. I will say they do have a nice running trail known as the Katy Trail. It is apparently a converted railroad bed that they paved over and made a nice 5-mile running trail in its place. Great concept. I'm sure there is somewhere in Richmond that has an unused railroad track.

On to Austin, Texas. I swear this is the sister city of Richmond. There are a lot of similarities. It’s the capitol city of Texas. It has a few major universities. There is a great music scene, there is your eclectic strip of bars, and then there is your hipster village. The end. Thank you, Katy Phillips.

Ok, so Richmond wants to develop Grace Street. I think they could take the model of Sixth Street and apply it to Grace. Here is the way Sixth Street flows: west of Congress you have your classier restaurants; east of Congress you have your more rambunctious bars and clubs, more of the younger crowd; then you go even further and you are in the hipster village complete with permanent food truck parks. Grace could follow the same model with west of Harrison: hipster village.

Harrison to Belvidere: rambunctious bars and clubs for the VCU kids. Belvidere to Sixth Street: classy restaurants for the Convention Center and downtown professionals. You're welcome, Grace Street!

And for the crown and jewel of the second week, San Antonio. My focal point: the San Antonio Riverwalk. This is what the Canal Walk dreams of becoming. I still think the Canal Walk in OKC is more realistic, but it's ok to dream. First off, the Riverwalk has been around for more than 50 years and has been an integral part of city planning. Just a block away from the Alamo Plaza, the San Antonio Riverwalk hosts countless restaurants, clubs, hotels, an outdoor theater, river cruises and water taxis. While I was on the Riverwalk, I had some great authentic Mexican food, I got a margarita to-go (only a couple places are allowed to do this with a very expensive license), walked on the Riverwalk with a beer (this is only allowed on the Riverwalk, but you can't take alcohol into bars like you can in Kansas City), took an hour-long and very entertaining river cruise, and I saw a couple get engaged (the Riverwalk is quite a romantic place). There is also a little place they call, "Marriage Island." That doesn't really need an explanation.

So what can Richmond learn? Well first, they could build more restaurants on the Canal Walk. They could also build hotels, allow alcohol on the Canal Walk in plastic cups or cans (apparently you can buy a six pack at the store and walk around with it), have enough restaurants and hotels on the Canal Walk to make it necessary to provide a water taxi service, and make a little island where couples can have a small wedding.

Spoiled by Kansas City, I did try and seek out a rooftop pool. I did find one, but it was part of a hotel and it was not quite as exciting. In fact, a lot of the hotels on the Riverwalk have rooftop pools, but they aren't nearly as fun as the Jones Pool in KC. It was, however, good to catch a few rays with a view.

Again, all of these cities have a river trail for running (except Dallas, which has the Katy Trail).

Alright, that just about does it for this week.

Look for my article next week as I head east to Savannah and hit up a few spots along the way. Follow my tour with #SGT26 and follow my research with #RVAred. I'm on all social media platforms as DJ mFace, so follow me to learn more and see more.

Don't forget to check out my Finale Show at the Capital Ale House Music Hall on Aug. 1 to support Richmond Metropolitan Habitat for Humanity. Tickets are on sale at sgt26.eventbrite.com for $10 until July 26th, after that they are $15 at the door. Bring friends!