A design produced by Ocra-Projects, founded by architecture professor Andrew Stone, has been awarded a $500,000 grant from the Oklahoma Department of Commerce ahead of the Route 66 Centennial. Located in Hydro, Oklahoma, the project celebrates the Mother Road’s milestone by transforming a repurposed bridge into an interactive, land-based monument that offers a unique experiential journey along the historic highway.
Top view of monument.
The new Hydro monument transforms an old bridge into an immersive experience through nature, history and community. It moves away from machine-oriented experiences, bringing nature back into recreation. The aim is to reconnect visitors and communities with the historic significance of the Mother Road while allowing locals to discover the community spirit that once defined Route 66. Revitalizing these routes and landmarks sparks renewed interest in western Oklahoma and small communities like Hydro. It encourages locals to see repurposing artifacts like the bridge as a way to boost the economy and visitor experience through placemaking.
Accentuated view of monument.
day, there’s often a stark divide between urban and rural spaces, with rural areas seen as relics of a ghosted past or romanticized in association with untouched nature. Rural areas are functional landscapes operating at the service of urban centers, often with a cost to local communities and their environment. This perspective on rural spaces as a distant, anonymous center, that is driven by commodity rather than community, overlooks the contributions they bring. A broader understanding could help bridge that divide and foster a more integrated view of rural areas and allow small communities like Hydro to thrive.
The design references the nuances of the prairie landscape, tying it back to the local environment. A lookout point over Hydro will be available from the top of the bridge accompanied by a canyon-embedded rest area. Contrasting the typical car-based experience, the monument allows visitors to engage with the site through tactile and visual senses. They are invited to explore on foot to create a deeper connection with the bridge and surrounding landscape.
The University of Oklahoma College of Architecture is proud to announce that Model Schools in the Model City, authored by Director of the Institute for Quality Communities, Amber N. Wiley, Ph.D., has been named one of ten finalists for the 2026 ASALH Book Prize for Best New Book in African American History and Culture.
This semester, students in the LA 5535 Studio: Ecological Planning and Design, led by Prof. Afsana Sharmin, took on an ambitious hypothetical project to redesign key parts of the OU campus. Their mission: to tackle the critical real-world challenge of stormwater management through innovative green design.
Petya Stefanoff, Chair of the Educational Committee with the American Planning Association, Oklahoma Chapter (APA-OK) and Gibbs College PhD candidate, has developed a new training program for local government officials. The program, focused on land use, zoning principles, and land development, recently certified its first graduates with Certified Citizen Planner status.
