Redneck Venice, Part Two

Steve Lackmeyer columns from NewsOK

• Future appears bright for investment in city February 9, 2010
  Go back. Go way back to 1993.Read more on NewsOK.com […]
• Cellar Restaurant rose above its peers in city February 2, 2010
  In its heyday, the Cellar Restaurant was the ritziest eatery downtown, a place where the city’s most powerful each had a cubicle for their private liquor and a discreet table where deals could be done.It was Frank P. Johnson, onetime president of First National Bank & Trust Co., who built the Hightower Building in 1928 and opened the Cellar in the buildi […]
• Options seem limited for downtown school January 19, 2010
  Angela Banks, 16, likely will never get to enjoy learning in an Emerson High School renovated by MAPS for Kids.But that didn’t stop the student from participating in an hourlong public forum last week in which residents, educators and civic leaders discussed what should be done with one of the city’s oldest schools.Some decisions already have been made — mos […]
• Are Oklahoma City ghosts to blame for NBA Knicks’ loss? January 13, 2010
  Boo!It’s not Halloween, but some humiliated New York Knicks players are blaming ghosts for their trashing Monday by the Oklahoma City Thunder.It was inevitable, really, that the legend of the Skirvin Hilton Hotel’s 10th floor being haunted would become a national story.Read more on NewsOK.com […]
• Downtown set to see return of retail sales January 12, 2010
  With the recession still at full blast, retail leasing and development has entered a virtual freeze across the country. And with several hotel and residential projects on hold, one might think retail growth would also be at a standstill in downtown Oklahoma City as well.Think again.At this very moment at least four significant retail openings are pending dow […]
• Demolition, parking bring new discussion January 5, 2010
  Two interesting developments are under way along NW 10. At Harvey Avenue, an unprecedented community effort is under way to eliminate an eyesore and replace it and adjoining raw land with a mixed-use development.Just a few blocks away, along NW 10 east of Broadway, the Oklahoma City Community Foundation just finished tearing down a second vintage building to […]
• MidTown Plaza owner looks for recognition December 22, 2009
  Rick Dowell is unhappy.The developer of a swath of once-forgotten properties now dubbed MidTown Plaza, Dowell has spent the past few months arguing to have his area recognized on the same level as Bricktown, Deep Deuce, Automobile Alley, MidTown and Film Row.For Dowell, the debate is all about marketing.Read more on NewsOK.com […]
• Downtown questions about to be answered December 15, 2009
  After months of wrangling, some final decisions may be made Wednesday on what the renewed downtown business improvement district (BID) may look like.Even if a complete renewal plan is approved by the board that oversees the district, it must still be approved by a majority of property owners downtown, and then by the Oklahoma City Council.But this step is de […]
• ‘Skirvin’ book passes security inspection December 9, 2009
  If my recent experience with Homeland Security is any indicator of the unexpected risks facing entrepreneuers, such folks have far more respect from me now that "Skirvin,” the latest book I’ve co-authored with Jack Money, apparently is one of the most dangerous books in America.Jack and I started working together at The Oklahoman as young pup reporters […]
• Brownstone residents illuminate community December 8, 2009
  Brent and Linda Beebe are on a mission to let the world know the Brownstones at Maywood Park is no longer a housing development, but rather a community with a lot of potential.One must remember the block where they live was for decades an abandoned surface parking lot owned by Kerr-McGee Corp.Read more on NewsOK.com […]