Busy Months Ahead
The economy has crashed, the recession has hit Oklahoma and we’ve discovered Oklahoma City is not “recession proof.”
So where does that leave us in terms of downtown development?
- Hotels: This time last year we were looking at the addition of up to six hotels in and around downtown. Now that number is down t0 two. The Embassy Suites for the Oklahoma Health Center is a bit scaled down from what was initially proposed, but is on track to be be built this fall. Developers of the Candlewood Inn & Suites at Lincoln and Sheridan, meanwhile, need only to overcome bureacracy at ODOT to get their project started.
- Downtown housing. With banks still frozen on lending, everything is pretty much on hold though surprisingly enough there does seem to be some effort to add more apartments in Bricktown and MidTown. The next immediate influx of new rental housing will come with completion of Hadden Hall and the Kline Hotel by Bob Howard and Mickey Clagg along NW 10.
- Retail. Another surprise: it’s not dead at all. Maybe the property owners are sobering up and getting more realistic in their rent expectations. We have more retail in Bricktown and Automobile Alley today than we did two years ago. But expect some disagreements ahead as some power players try to steer retail away from Bricktown and into Automobile Alley.
- Downtown school: Yep, it’s still out there. And where it gets located could have significant impact on downtown’s future development.
- Upscale market: I don’t see one locating downtown in the foreseeable future. But I do see one locating within 10 minutes of downtown within the next two years.
- DEVON, DEVON, DEVON, DEVON, DEVON. A 50-story tower, a New York Times style auditorium, a massive rebuilding of downtown streets (get ready to feel the pain), a massive makeover of the Myriad Gardens and more. The average person in this city has no idea as to how much all this will change downtown. I said before and I will say it again: the Devon TIF package alone will have almost as much impact on downtown as the original MAPS did.
- New events. The new events being discussed for downtown could be game changes in terms of image and branding.
And now, for the dangers lurking ahead:
- Arrogance. A great track record has been set by City Hall and the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber. But plenty of people close to the action worry that arrogance has set in and the grassroots concensus building of the past has been cast aside. Could this sort of vibe kill the chances of a MAPS 3 ballot? And if it were to fail, how big of a loss would that be to future efforts to improve not just downtown, but all of Oklahoma City?
- Power struggles. Enough said. See above.
- Maintaining momentum of the existing downtown. Can Core to Shore be launched without slowing development of the rest of downtown. Can we make a good downtown bigger while also making a good downtown great? Or is it an either/or proposition?
Now, go forth and talk amonst yourselves….
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Comments
Well, we absolutely need at least part of Core to Shore. With the relocation of the interstate, the “entrance” to our downtown is going to be one giant hellhole if we don’t do something. We at least need to renovate the area between the new interstate and the Ford Center.
From the articles I found online (Steve’s article in Nov. and the Journal Record’s Dec. article) it appears the Devon TIF will be from 135-175 million over a 25 year period or around 7.5 mil a year on the high end and supposedly 20 mil during the 3 year construction period.
So when can we expect some concrete plans/ideas/projects for the TIF district? Is anyone working on plans now or are we waiting until the Tower construction begins to come up with plans? I think we have decent information on most of the major downtown projects, except for the TIF projects. What does “Myriad Gardens renovation” really mean or streetscapes? Just a fountain at the corner of Hudson and Sheridan? Widened and repaved roads all over downtown? More? Less? Also, can I get a hint as to what these “game changing” downtown branding events may be? You’re just a tease Steve. 
Nick, you misread the article. It said powerplayers stealing retail away from Bricktown and into Automobile Alley.
Brent, Devon has already been seeking input and consultants on the TIF projects. Heck, they had an open public forum last fall about the Myriad Gardens renovations (which will be funded by part of the TIF). Streetscape plan was already finished as well (at least initial concept). These are already public documents. I doubt we’ll see widened streets downtown, and frankly we shouldn’t want them to be. We’re trying to create a MORE WALKABLE AND PEDESTRIAN FRIENDLY downtown, not trying to continue status quo of catering to the automobile.
Steven, do you have the links to the documents you referenced and/or where we can go to give input on Devon TIF projects? Thanks in advance. Also, I’m not advocating wider streets at all. I am just curious as to the street projects we will be looking at with the TIF funds as the quote was “massive rebuilding of downtown streets” so I just threw out a random idea. No need to take it as an endorsement or desire to see widened streets in any way, shape or form. I would be surprised if it was even possible to widen the downtown streets…we would have to get rid of sidewalks altogether. Sorry if I was too vague, in short I wanted to know: What will massive rebuilding of downtown streets mean?
“the Devon TIF package alone will have almost as much impact on downtown as the original MAPS did”
How so? I spend as much time as I can learning the ins and outs of what’s going on in OKC that I haven’t had much time to jump into how big of a package the TIF will be…can you enlighten us please?