Downtown Tulsa is a place where people go to work.

For many Tulsans, that's the end of the story. There is nothing to do downtown, parking is a nightmare and the streets are unsafe, people say. But downtown business leaders claim those perceptions are false, and they want you to know it.

"I think it's like every other urban downtown has gone through this, where we had major retail that's moved out, and downtown became a business center instead of residential or entertainment venues or retail," said Suzann Stewart, senior vice president of the Tulsa Convention and Visitors Bureau. "Now we have a wonderful opportunity to really take advantage of a lot of things happening at once."

The opening of the BOK Center, the eventual move of the Tulsa Drillers to downtown, streetscape improvements and new residential and commercial developments are all contributing to a buzz about downtown that Tulsa hasn't felt in years. And Stewart's organization is looking to capitalize on that buzz by consolidating the efforts of individual businesses downtown.

"We're trying to get all of the venues and businesses in the downtown core, such as all the theaters, the BOK Center, the restaurants and nightclubs, all to work as one unit in marketing the downtown core as a destination center of the city, an entertainment center for the city," said Marlin Keranen, general manager of the Crowne Plaza Hotel and chair of the CVB's Downtown Marketing Committee. "All these entities are working for their own good, so let's all also work for the good of all of us, to let people know there's more than one restaurant, more than one theater, more than one nightclub."

One of Keranen's first objectives as chair was to get all attractions listed on a single Web site, such as that of Downtown Tulsa Unlimited, which counts more than 20 nightspots, more than 50 restaurants and more than 30 retailers in the downtown area. Next he wants to put television monitors in elevators and empty storefront windows that will alert passersby to downtown events. In addition to spreading the word about nightlife and attractions, that could help spruce up some of the less attractive buildings downtown. In the meantime, posters from the CVB's "I am Tulsa" campaign are occupying some of those windows.

"There are lots of cooperative things that people are doing to try to make downtown not just enjoyable but aesthetically pretty as well," Stewart said. "We're dressing up buildings with empty storefronts and putting a greater emphasis on attracting and developing business -- retail, in particular."

The marketing committee was formed just six months ago, and only six people attended its first meeting, but like the downtown buzz, the committee is gaining attention. Keranen, who established a similar initiative in Toronto before moving to Tulsa last year, now counts about 40 committee members. Eventually he expects the committee to establish a group advertising campaign and possibly its own Web site. The committee doesn't have money for those activities yet, but Stewart said she is working on ways to raise private-sector funding next year.

In her role at the CVB, Stewart mainly focuses on attracting out-of-town guests to spend tourist dollars in Tulsa, while the Downtown Marketing Committee targets residents of Tulsa. But creating a vibrant downtown will certainly make it easier to attract tourists, which in turn will benefit the community.

"To get conventions and stuff, part of the attraction is not just the box where you put the people to meet, it's the restaurants and the entertainment options all walkable within the downtown area," she said. "It was really difficult [in the past] to get people to consider us because downtown was pretty dead ... and those people [who attend conventions] spend money like crazy on retail, shopping, eating, and that is a huge tax generator for the community."

The Downtown Marketing Committee may one day focus on attracting tourists as well, which would directly benefit Keranen's hotel. But for now his main goal is to get other businesses involved and sharing their ideas about how to attract people downtown.

"One way or another we all benefit to some degree if we all work together to make this thing happen," he said.