Comments on: Restoring Downtown OKC Retail

By: MikeN

MikeN — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 20:27:57 +0000

I see opportunity for your smaller “boutique” type stores. Hoping for a Best Buy or any other big box retailer is a fools errend as that type operations will never be a part of their business model and asking for it really serves no useful purpose.

As to the cost folks need to wake up to the fact that costs will be high and so will prices. The convenience of being downtown has a cost. So please do not complain if prices are quite a bit higher than in the burbs.

By: Paul

Paul — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 16:02:56 +0000

Parking is a real problem. More metered parking spaces would make it easier for shoppers to drive, park and shop, but the scarcity discourages everyone except those who are already downtown. It’s hard to support a business merely from downtown residents and workers.

By: david ball

david ball — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 15:27:51 +0000

sorry, i was wrong about katz. oh, well…

By: david ball

david ball — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 15:25:39 +0000

ironically, all the great businesses i hear people reminiscing about were locally grown. john a. brown’s, c.r. anthony’s, t.g.&y., veazy’s drug, bolton’s, katz, otasco, etc. i think the key to future greatness lies along the same path.

By: Tom Peterson

Tom Peterson — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 15:23:10 +0000

As fun as it is to wave the magic wand, Steve still needs to realize the real cost of doing business. Rents downtown make it difficult for local businesses to move in, so while I can see some national brands filling the space, pining for the days of Taylor’s can keep on dreaming. Ask Hans Herman is having a storefront downtown will really make a difference (positively) to his bottom line. At best, it may be a wash. While I love the direction downtown is making and how Steve covers it, I still think there are some blind spots from a lack of real business experience.

By: Judy

Judy — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 15:01:15 +0000

In 2007, my daughters and I rode the Heartland Flyer to Gainesville to shop. On our return there were three ladies coming from Ft. Worth to spend the weekend at the Colcord. They wanted to know where all the shopping was downtown. We told them that there was the Bricktown Marketplace. That was pretty much it. They specifically were interested in antiques and we told them that North May south of NW 23rd and then the store at NW 23rd and Drexel were the closest to them. It was embarrassing to have to acknowledge this to ladies who were going to spend some dollars to stay downtown at the Colcord. They were looking for places that they could walk to. I realize things have improved to some degree since 2007 but not much.

By: Audrey Falk

Audrey Falk — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 03:14:32 +0000

Steve, have you been to Chirps & Cheers in downtown Edmond? A stationery store like this would be a wonderful addition to downtown. They’ve got a fantastic selection of office supplies, greeting cards and gifts, plus a dynamic ownership team that custom orders invitations, stamps, etc. Another idea would be an old-fashioned barber shop.

I know that so many people focus on the large-scale change that attracting big-box chains to downtown would bring. And as a small business owner, I understand the boost that big retail like this would give to our local economy. But do we really want Oklahoma City to feel like the concrete monotony of Dallas with the same 10 shops on every corner? (I know that’s a broad generalization, as there are some cool local hotspots in Dallas as well…) If we want a vibrant and attractive downtown shopping scene — one that truly reflects energetic urban retail, not faux-suburban convenience shopping — the city is going to have to start offering the same incentives to local small business that they’re using to draw in the big guys. And the community is going to have to be willing to sacrifice one-stop discount shopping for a street scene that will provide our city with it’s own distinct urban aesthetic and identity. Downtown OKC deserves to become one of the most desirable places to live in the Midwest.

Thanks for your support of local business and for encouraging public discourse about how we can ensure that our downtown is developed with thoughtfulness and purpose!

By: Bob Waldrop

Bob Waldrop — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 23:44:19 +0000

you forgot the Old Farmers Market area, although maybe you don’t consider it downtown. it has long-standing markets for antiques and collectibls, vegetables. It looks like it is becoming the city’s local foods hub, with the Urban Agrarian opening there, Earth Elements Market/Bakery and kitchen incubator, and the Oklahoma Food Cooperative moving into the old Stirling’s location.Sunday November 4th there is a big celebration of local food going on around the Old Farmers Market.

By: david ball

david ball — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 23:03:39 +0000

by the way, your photos of streets department store brought back a flood of memories, and i can’t find anything on the web about streets. we used to shop the mayfair store all the time, as we were “outlanders” in the village. do you have any stories/ links about streets?

By: david ball

david ball — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 21:18:06 +0000

park makes sense to me. there’s such a high volume of pedestrian traffic there. by all means, cater to the downtown workers. from there it’s not far up broadway to automobile alley, which is more auto-friendly.