BKL Architects Engineers

09/08/2026

🚨 ONE MONTH TO BKL FEST! 🚨

The countdown is officially ON. 🍻

In just ONE MONTH, we’re celebrating 80 years of BKL — eight decades of engineering, architecture, partnerships, projects, and people who helped build our story.

If your invite is sitting on your desk, in your inbox, or on your “I’ll do that later” list… this is your sign.

🎟️ RSVP TODAY:
bklinc.com/bkl-fest2026

30 DAYS. 80 YEARS. ONE BIG CELEBRATION.

We’ll see you at BKL Fest! 🍺

09/07/2026

Happy Labor Day from all of us at BKL!

For more than 140 years, Labor Day has recognized the contributions of American workers—the people whose skill, dedication, and hard work have helped build our communities and move them forward.

In architecture and engineering, we’re reminded every day that great ideas only become real through people. From the teams who design and engineer our communities to the skilled professionals who build, operate, maintain, and improve them, every project is the result of many hands and many talents working together.

Today, we celebrate the people behind the work—and we hope everyone gets a well-earned opportunity to rest, recharge, and enjoy the long weekend.

Happy Labor Day from all of us at BKL.

09/03/2026

**For decades, one of Oklahoma's most unusual traditions happened behind prison walls.**

Beginning in 1940, the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester became home to the Prison Rodeo—an event where inmates competed before thousands of spectators inside the penitentiary grounds.

The first image takes us directly into that history: the official program from the **28th Annual Prison Rodeo in 1972**. Even the program itself has a story—it was published by the Oklahoma State Penitentiary and printed by inmates in the prison's Industries Print Shop.

For roughly 70 years, the rodeo became a remarkable chapter of Oklahoma history.

The last rodeo was held in 2009.

Then the arena went quiet.

**In 2022, BKL entered the story.**

The Oklahoma Department of Corrections asked our team to assess the aging arena and determine what it would take to safely preserve and potentially reuse this historic facility.

Our engineers studied more than what could be seen from the stands. BKL performed structural calculations and code review, investigated existing foundations, conducted material and geotechnical testing and used drone inspections to reach difficult areas.

The goal wasn't simply to replace everything old.

It was to understand what could be saved.

That includes the historic masonry perimeter walls—originally constructed using prison labor and materials manufactured at the prison—and the inmate-painted murals that remain on them today.

More than 80 years after the first rodeo, those walls are still telling a story.

BKL is proud to have a role in helping determine what comes next.

**Preserving the past. Engineering the future.**

📷 Historical images courtesy of the Oklahoma Department of Libraries, State Archives / Oklahoma Department of Corrections.

09/02/2026

Hey, future architects + engineers — we’re coming to campus. 👋

September is career fair season, and the BKL team is ready to meet students who are thinking about what comes next.
Whether you’re looking for an internship, preparing for graduation, or just starting to explore where a career in architecture or engineering could take you, come talk to us!

🎓 Sept. 10 | OU Architecture
🎓 Sept. 15 | OSU Engineering
🎓 Sept. 17 | OU Engineering
🎓 Sept. 17 | University of Arkansas Architecture + Engineering

Bring your questions. Bring your résumé. And come learn what it looks like to build your future with BKL.

🔗 BKLinc.com/careers

09/01/2026

08/31/2026

Register and celebrate our 80th year with us! https://bklinc.com/bkl-fest2026/

08/27/2026

Around Oklahoma, it's simply known as “Big Mac.”

Oklahoma State Penitentiary has stood in McAlester since shortly after statehood, with construction beginning in 1908. Its earliest buildings included the West Cellhouse, followed later by the Rotunda and East Cellhouse.

But one of the most defining moments in the prison's history came in July 1973, when a massive riot and fires damaged 24 buildings and caused more than $20 million in destruction. The damage was so extensive that the state considered closing the prison.

Instead, years of rebuilding and evaluation followed.

This photograph from our BKL archives dates to **1980**, when BKL was brought to McAlester to evaluate structures at the penitentiary and contribute to remodeling work. In the background are portions of the historic cellhouse complex and Rotunda; in the foreground, another chapter of the facility's construction history was underway.

For us, that's what makes photographs like this worth preserving.

They're more than construction photos. They document the moments when architects and engineers were asked to look at what had already stood for decades, understand what it had endured, and help determine what came next.

**80 years of BKL means 80 years of being part of Oklahoma's story—even in some of its most complicated places.**

08/26/2026

Welcome to BKL, Hope Haymaker! 🎉

Hope joins our team as Marketing Coordinator, bringing creativity, energy, and a passion for connecting people and ideas.

Outside of work, Hope enjoys running, sports, pottery, sewing, and just about anything outdoors. She’s also a proud Oral Roberts University graduate and an adventurous foodie.

We’re excited to have you on the team, Hope!

08/25/2026

Help us welcome Jesus Granillo to BKL! 🎉

Jesus joins our office as an Interior Designer. A UCO graduate and Tulsa native, Jesus enjoys working out, taking spin classes, and finding great sushi.

We’re excited to have you on the team, Jesus. Welcome to BKL!