The land value map data was provided by the Tulsa County Assessor's office. It shows Land Value per Square Foot.
We INCENTIVIZE surface parking and vacant lots in high value locations with our current property tax structure. Our property tax sums the value of land and building, and a single tax rate is applied to that. This means that if you own a vacant lot or surface parking lot, you pay a much lower tax than those who build on that land since you have no/minimal improvements. These owners waste good land, hold it out of use and reduce supply (which drives housing prices/rent up), AND they exacerbate the urban sprawl all over the city by preventing urban infill. Not to mention, it makes Tulsa less walkable.
We should push for reform of the property tax and enable Split-Rate Property Taxation. This would allow us to tax LAND at a higher rate and reduce the tax on BUILDING proportionally.
We could be encouraging building, connectivity, and proper use of a necessary resource all the while discouraging the land waste, land speculation, gatekeeping, rent-seeking, sprawl, pollution, etc.
Edit: I appreciate all the engagement and support on this post! If anyone would like to know how to get involved and/or learn more on this issue, shoot me a DM and I’ll let you know what my coalition is up to and how to support.