Guthrie Green, Tulsa, Guide du visiteur et quoi faire à proximité

Guthrie Green is a public park in the Brady Arts District of downtown Tulsa, Oklahoma, opened in 2012 on the site of a former freight yard. It looks like a simple lawn with trees and a stage, but a geothermal system under the grass helps heat and cool the arts buildings around it.

The story behind it

Before it became a park, this patch of downtown was a freight and truck-loading yard. The ground was industrial, and the soil had to be cleaned up before anyone could safely spread a picnic blanket here. The park opened in 2012 and has since become a gathering place for music, markets and community events. It is named for Woody Guthrie, the folk singer from Oklahoma.

The most surprising part is invisible. Beneath the lawn, 120 wells have been drilled about 500 feet into the earth. Together they form a geo-exchange system that draws on the steady temperature underground to warm and cool the surrounding arts buildings, with a capacity of around 600 tons of heating and cooling. So while people dance and listen to music on the grass, the ground beneath them is quietly doing practical work.

What to look for

• The open central lawn, which looks ordinary but sits above the field of 120 geothermal wells.
• The stage and pavilion at the heart of the park, the focus of its concerts and community events.
• The arts buildings around the green, which are the ones heated and cooled by the system underground.
• The mix of old brick streetscape and new landscaping, a reminder that this was once a working freight yard.

Tips for your visit

• Plan 20 to 30 minutes for the park itself, longer if you want to sit on the lawn or catch an event.
• Late afternoon and evening are pleasant for a stroll. Check the current events schedule if you hope to catch live music or a market.
• It is an open outdoor park, so there is no building to go inside. Nearby cultural spaces such as the Woody Guthrie Center are a short walk away, so check current opening hours before you go.
• Pair it with a walk through the rest of the Brady Arts District, where the streets reward slow wandering.

See it on a quest

Ghost Hunt in Tulsa brings you to Guthrie Green on foot as one stop on a longer route through downtown. The app tells you about each place as you arrive and sets a puzzle in what is in front of you. One ticket covers the whole group.

Murder Mystery: Death in the Shadows in Tulsa is a good pick if you like a mystery theme with your sightseeing. You walk between places in the area, hear the story of each one as you reach it and solve a puzzle on the spot. One ticket covers the whole group.

Lucky Treasure Hunt: The Golden Shamrock in Tulsa turns the streets around the park into a treasure hunt. You reach Guthrie Green as part of a self-guided route, learn about it from the app and solve a puzzle on the spot. One ticket covers the whole group.