The OKC urbanite/suburbanite

Uptown Boom

2005-01-19T19:30:00.000-08:00

nichols hills10
Originally uploaded by Sooner RiceGrad.

I have noticed a strange building boom in Nichols Hills, and leading into Uptown. There is a commercial building boom, which is probably so because the nearby May & NW 63rd intersection is one of the states busiest, albeit Penn & Memorial, and Lewis & 71st in Tulsa. Maybe Sheridan and Cache in Lawton compares... but these chains that want a very upscale clientele, and a more upscale environment, but yet the proximaty seem perfect for Nichols Hills, just a skip and a hop from May & NW 63rd.

Maybe someone has also seen the office boom in the area, an area that srtetched from the Daily Oklahoman's offices to about Belle Isle to Lake Hefner, an area I like to call Uptown Oklahoma City. Maybe next time you are in the city you will notice the office boom, they're building another building being built in the Broadway Executive Park, 63rd & Broadway.

Hilton recently sold their hotel at May & NW Expy for about 50% of it's retail value, which is around 10 million. They sold it to Crwone Plaza... the structure would have to undergo major facelifts and renovations to become level with the quality the name Crowne Plaza has grown to bear. But, I am just curious what could motivate Hilton to sell a hotel for 50% it's appraised value? Think about that. Maybe OKC's uptown isn't quite so hot. Maybe it just isn't hot about hotels. Maybe we need to do something to get travelors and conventions up in that direction. Maybe we need to bottle everything up for downtown.

Until then, this the Sooner&RiceGrad, telling Oklahoma City to go and have a fine day!

Sooner Mills

2005-01-17T16:04:00.000-08:00

ontariomills
Originally uploaded by Sooner RiceGrad.

Can Oklahoma support a major outlet mall, perhaps a Mills? I think so. Yes, they did a survey and the final predicament was... no. However, I don't think they really did a strong analasys of the Oklahoma City market. So... I will do my own.

First, you must realize that Oklahoma City shoppers do not just come from Oklahoma City. They come from all over Oklahoma, and some come in from Kansas, Arkansas and the Texas "Panhandle". So... Oklahoma City can actually appeal to an area with a population of 8 million people. And, not all of these people are actually going to care to drive 2 hours to spend a lot of money, but my entire theoery regarding this is based on the fact that many Oklahomans will, and have.

I think the only legitimate reason is that this proposed mall could take away from Mills malls in Tennessee and Dallas, that are already thriving, and will even so. These corporate people just think that they can consolidate this entire area into 2 or 3 malls, and save expenses. But, Mills also makes a lot of income from leasing out spaces, so it would make sense to build an Oklahoma location.

As I have said before, and I quote, the only reason to not go through with this is that it may take customers and shopper volumes from Tennessee or Dallas. Look at the success of Malls like Penn Square, and Quail Springs. They are well located, and well used. Then look at ordinary malls like Crossroads and Heritage Park. They aren't doing so well, they are surviving, but they aren't booming. The upscale or "nicer" shopping complexes thrive in this part of the nation, and I think that a Mills mall could do well.

The Factory (2)

2005-01-16T13:20:00.000-08:00

factorytower
Originally uploaded by Sooner RiceGrad.

This is another, better pic of the tower, and something I can't hardly recognize to the lft, another tower.

Exerpt from OKCBusiness.com-

"the Factory, a Bricktown development that will house 54 condos, more than 200 high-end apartments, a market, a courtyard, a garden, a pool, and a health club, all with rare and desirable city views. "

The factory (1)

2005-01-16T08:59:00.000-08:00

factory2
Originally uploaded by Sooner RiceGrad.

The Factory was one of most Oklahomans favorite urban housing project. The project, being developed by TAParchitects. You can find more about the project at http://www.taparchitecture.com/tap%20architecture%20In%20The%20News.html. The residential "tower" is actually considered a high rise, and is probably one of the first high rises to built in five years in the city. You would believe that such great architecture would bottle itself up and explode as soon as it is released, and I believe this is the phase we are going through here in Oklahoma City. The following text is a news article:

Family hopes to turn factory into sweet deal
Steve Lackmeyer
08/18/03

For more than a decade, the McLain family has held onto some of Bricktown's most prominent properties, preparing for a time when the district might finally be ready for housing.
That time, they believe, has arrived.

The McLains might not be the best-known names in Bricktown, but their ownership in the former industrial district dates back 40 years to when R.T. McLain operated the Bunte Candy factory.

It's that legacy, son Scott McLain said, that inspired the family to name a proposed $40 million development on the same site "The Factory."

The housing project, a collaboration between ERC Development and the McLain family, will convert the block bounded by Main Street, Sheridan and Oklahoma avenues and the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway tracks into a mixed development of residences, shops and offices.

The candy company was founded as the Walter Williams Candy Co. in 1932. The family bought the Bunte Brothers Candy Co. in 1960 and moved it from Chicago to Oklahoma City under the direction of R.T. McLain, Williams' son-in-law.

The McLains boast that at its peak, Bunte Candy was the fifth-largest candy manufacturer in the nation, employing more than 500 people. Sales topped $36 million a year, with customers including TG&Y and Wal-Mart.

Candy was produced at the Bricktown factory starting in 1959. Gumdrops, peppermints, orange slices, butterscotch, jellybeans and chocolates were produced there until the company was sold to American Candy Co. in 1990.

Brothers Scott and Rich McLain both grew up in Bricktown and both worked at the Bunte Candy factory along with three other brothers.

The real estate remained in the hands of the McLains, however, and Bricktown was already showing some promise with the 1989 opening of Spaghetti Warehouse.

"I tell people that I worked in Bricktown before Bricktown was cool," Rich McLain said. "While it wasn't glamorous, working at the candy factory taught us a strong work ethic and instilled the sense of history for the building that we respect today."
_____________________________________

It seems that TAParchitecture does not have the funds, 40 million dollars, and The Factory is not likely to happen. I would give it a 40% possibilty of actually coming to fruition as planned, and I would give it a 55% possibility of happening on a much larger scale... or without the tower. This project is what needs to happen across OKC, but there should be more of these projects that actually came into fruition.

Chain Growth

2005-01-15T23:59:00.000-08:00

expectedgrowthblog
Originally uploaded by Sooner RiceGrad.

This is the first day of the blog, so I will go easy. I want to add that if you see any material you would like to discuss with me, I am usually on okctalk.com.

I am going to begin my blog, stating the purpose of my blog. Theorem, to discuss different aspects and theories that I anyone else (who emails me) has. This is aside from downtownguy's blog, where he hints what may happen soon in OKC.

I want to begin with my 2 cents on future growth in Oklahoma City. Every ten years it seems that we add another chunk to our metro, about the size of Lawton, Oklahoma. We currently have 1.2 million proud residents, and excellent city leadership, that are not restricted to Oklahoma City.

I see growth lasting well through a while, simply because in matters of size, it is America's 3rd largest city. Enough land, that urbanities tend to dislike, that we are unrestricted by any boundaries. While other cities may not grow much more, this also dampers urban growth in Oklahoma City, and means the city must pay for unnecessary utility costs. But, think of it like this... if the main city in a metro grows, the rest of a metro benefits. The urban center benefits. The suburban centers grow. As long as we tend to provide our citizenry with an unmatched transportation infrastructure, we should have smooth sailing. If suburbs like Moore, inner suburbs, will grow, we can link outer suburbs like Norman, extreme suburbs like Newcastle to the urban center and see even more growth. Metropolitan growth starts from the center, and is sustained in the suburbs.

My pick for the most amazing growth is for Downtown to reach new heights, I expect Moore to expand to the east. I expect West Moore to expand to the south, and for Mustang/Yukon to solidify. I expect Deer Creek to materialize like Edmond, and become the new Edmond, and for Edmond itself to push into Guthrie, and up north. I expect the popularity of neighborhoods like Rose Creek and Oak Tree (home of this years PGA) to gain in already-enormous popularity, and draw future residents. New office parks in Edmond and off Memorial should contribute to this syndrome here in OKC, that I call Northward Ho! .

Flickr

2005-01-15T23:55:00.000-08:00

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.