Jeffrey Tanenhaus’s architecture walking tour in Tulsa, Okla., is only a mile long, but it takes two hours. He stops frequently to point out neoclassical and art deco flourishes. You’d never know he only arrived in Tulsa, a city of about 415,000 people, in 2020.
On his tours, Tanenhaus dives into Tulsa’s past as an oil boomtown, when ambitious types from across the country descended on the city and changed it in the process. On a recent trip, I saw a different kind of transformation taking place. A new wave of transplants is being drawn in by the city’s affordability, slower pace and open spaces. They are collaborating with longtime locals to turn the central neighborhoods of this sprawling city into an unlikely hub for art, culture and gastronomy.
Read more in the Wall Street Journal