“Our plan was to go into an area where we could control the environment and lease or sell to small office users,” Horton said.

“The Bricktown area, which has definite boundaries of Walnut, Reno, Main and the Santa Fe railroad tracks, was perfect at that time for an office park.”

The pair formed Warehouse Development Co. and bought the first eight or nine buildings in the 12-building project “just like that” and then purchased the “stragglers,” Horton said.

But the decline in demand for office space brought leasing activity in the Bricktown project to a virtual standstill by early 1982. One of the buildings in the six-block area had been beautifully restored, according to plans designed by Howard & Porch Architects.

“As in a lot of real estate markets, we’ve been sitting here with a large group of properties. . .and haven’t had income from them,” Horton said. “Cash flow in this project has been non-existent. And now, one of the lenders wants the property back.”

That lender is Fidelity Bank in Oklahoma City, which recently filed a foreclosure suit claiming that Horton, Peterson and other partners defaulted on five separate loans amounting to more than $2.5 million, used to finance several Bricktown buildings.

“We’ll have to take some kind of defensive action so the project doesn’t get splintered,” Horton said. “We have to keep it together.

We’ll either have to sell it or get new partners or any number of possibilities.”

Despite the legal problems, Horton remains stubbornly optimistic about the future of the project. In another attempt to generate activity, the marketing strategy for the buildings was recently changed from 80 percent office and 20 percent retail to 80 percent retail and 20 percent office.

“We plan to have six to nine restaurants, two small hotels, a convention center, boutiques, small shops and 50,000 square feet of office space,” Horton said. “Our first priority is restaurants.”

Oddly enough, Horton added, once the news of Bricktown foreclosure suits hit the streets, leasing activity at the project escalated.

Although he said he could not be specific about pending leases or building sales, Horton said two restaurants, an architectural antique store and two hotel groups are currently negotiating for space or buildings in Bricktown.

“The biggest request we get from people is for living quarters in the project,” Horton said. “So we may add residential space at a later date, if it’s feasible.”

One problem that prevented the leasing of Bricktown space was a restriction in the developers’ permanent loan which committed them to lease at $17 per square foot, even in the current soft office market, Horton said.

“We were finally able to get that changed in June of this year and dropped our lease rates to a more competitive level,” he said.

The biggest advantage to keeping projects like Bricktown alive, Horton said, is that it can answer a lot of problems that have faced downtown Oklahoma City.

“Maintaining the plans for Bricktown is a significant battle in the war to bring back downtown and create a lively downtown,” he said.

Finding downtown restaurants that remain open in the evening is one problem in the city, he said.

“There are 486,000 conventioneers in downtown Oklahoma City each year and there’s nowhere for them to go but downtown bars,” Horton said. “A nice restaurant and shopping area would be beneficial to people living in the central core area. The only limit to this project is the creativity of those who lease it.”

Battles with lenders and the struggle to find tenants has not discouraged Horton.

“The end result is not in danger,” Horton insists. “There will be a Bricktown project in downtown Oklahoma City.”

Abuelos Gets a Makeover

And it’s a significant one at that. Not content to simply read a sign and move on by, I dropped in for a visit.

The inside of the restaurant is getting a new paint job – and if you’ve ever been inside, you can trust that the paint companies are getting a much needed boost to their business this month.

Crews also are tearing into the building’s century old floor back in the kitchen and putting in an all new cement floor.

Abuelos is certainly planning on sticking around. The restaurant opened in 1994 and recently signed another 15-year lease. The chain must be spending tens of thousands (managers wouldn’t tell me) on these upgrades. The restaurant is expected to reopen by early May.

Questions Have Been Asked, and Names Have Been Named

Are Bricktown property owners doing their best to give visitors a good impression of Oklahoma City?

After today’s column appeared about responses to my questions about broken and boarded up windows, empty space and other eyesores in Bricktown, especially along the canal, one person in Bricktown suggested I’m “obsessed” with the topic.

I don’t know about that. I do know that plenty of readers were interested in seeing last week’s questions answered. And it was interesting to hear Mayor Mick Cornett, Lt. Gov. Jari Askins and First Lady Kim Henry talk about how Bricktown was changing regional and national perceptions of Oklahoma City. So let’s take that at face value – then how does the city feel about the following glimpses of the canal, which include wads of used chewing gum on the Hunzicker building owned by Brett and Brent Brewer, broken windows on 19 E California and decade-old sandbags along the canal level of the Oklahoma Hardware building (both owned by French Hickman).

The Brewer’s building:

Hickman’s buildings:

Final note: A decade ago then Mayor Kirk Humphreys called on Bricktown property owners to pave dirt and gravel parking lots saying the days of it being the wild west were over.

When I asked Mayor Mick Cornett last week if a similar call should made to get Bricktown property owners to take better care of their buildings, he declined and said he has faith that the market will eventually take care of such conditions.

Watch his response below:

The gum has been been on the Brewers’ building since before the canal opened. The sandbags have been outside Hickman’s building since the canal opened.

The mayor’s email is mayor@okc.gov.

The Brewers can be contacted here.

I do not have an email for French Hickman.

It's a Beautiful Morning in Downtown OKC

Twitter photo of Kerr Park by Rob Crissinger - I'm going to rely on his good nature that he won't mind me showing this off on my blog.

Yeah, it’s looking like it’s going to be one of those weeks. You know, “a chamber of commerce kind of week.” Downtown is looking great, the Festival of the Arts is gearing up and the weather forecast is looking like a winner all week long.

I’m talking with my editor this morning, and the reporter who was supposed to do a story on the festival today is out. Could I get out and do it? It’s a rough assignment, but yeah, I guess I can fit that in (NOTE TO FESTIVAL ORGANIZERS: NOBODY IS ANSWERING YOUR PHONES! PLEASE CONTACT ME ASAP AND DON”T MAKE ME USE TWITTER!)

Interesting item on tomorrow’s council docket: Brewer Enterprises is asking for, and is getting, an early termination of their lease for the city-owned parking lot immediately east of Ford Center. COTPA is set to take it over. If you’ll recover, The Oklahoman discovered a couple years back that Brewer Enterprises owed thousands of dollars to the city on the lot’s operation – a debt that was then paid after the report came out.

I guess we’ll see cheaper parking across from Ford Center now?

Welcome to Bricktown

That was the message at today’s State of Bricktown press conference. And it’s also the Bricktown Association’s new website, www.welcometobricktown.com. The site is graphicly unlike anything I’ve seen. It’s simply amazing.

And for the first time in a long time, there’s a Bricktown website that has a current list of restaurants, shops and attractions, and it doesn’t exclude anybody. Well, at least not intentionally. A close look at the map shows it has some kinks to work out. Hooters is in the wrong location. McDonalds and Subway don’t exist. But those are details I suspect will be ironed out fairly quickly.

New Bricktown Fire Station Designs

Something looks familiar here - I wonder if the architects at the Small Group can provide us some guidence.

When we last heard from the Oklahoma City Fire Department, they swore changes were on their way for a station to be built in Bricktown. Say goodbye to the design by Norman-based LWPB that resembled a station recently opened in Mustang. Fire Chief Keith Bryant promised the new Bricktown fire station would be designed to fit into the district as well as the much praised Bricktown Police Substation.

It’s always interesting to then see how designers try to carry out such a promise. Here, in case you’re interested, is the Bricktown Police Substation:

Bricktown Police Substation Designed by The Small Group.

The Bricktown Urban Design Committee is being asked to approve these designs at it’s meeting Wednesday. The group meets at 9 a.m. in the Glass/Confectionary building at 116 E Sheridan in the second floor board room.

The planning department report advises approval even though it acknowledges the setback is suburban.

Yes, You Did See Conan in Bricktown …

That’s my response to those of you who think Bricktown is filled with tall red-headed Irish fellas. Sorry, but despite the best efforts of the Brewer family to make Bricktown the hub of all things Irish and their St. Patrick’s Day festivities, we just don’t get that many tall red-headed Irish guys in Bricktown.

Now I know what you’re thinking; “Steve, how can you be sure?” Or maybe you’re wondering if this stranger was simply a long-lost relative of Mick Cornett. Nope, if you saw this stranger on Monday, in Bricktown, or in the vicinity of KFOR-TV, it was Conan. I’m told he was in town doing some prep work for his new show that starts in June.

So how was Conan spending his time here?

I don’t know.

So let’s just dream up a dream itinerary for Conan’s stay in downtown Oklahoma City:

6 a.m. Monday: Arrives at Will Rogers World Airport via Southwest Airlines. Finds out the show “Airline” is filming here and he quickly attacks a flight attendant with his friend, “vomiting Kermit.” OCPD are called, Conan rushes outside to catch a cab. Too bad he had to wait an hour. This ain’t no taxi town, Conan.

7:05 a.m. – OCPD catch up with Conan. But they are disappointed and bitter when they realize that the flight attendant was not attacked by an actual celebrity. She reported she was attacked by Conan’s distant cousin, television and movie star and fellow Irish guy Denis Leary. OCPD has high standards for celebrity crime in this town – we’re talking MacCauley Culkin on a traffic stop or Jim Belushi getting intoxicated in Bricktown. Conan is unceremoniously dropped off at the drunk tank at the entrance to Bricktown.

10 a.m. – Conan is released by Detox supervisor after more than two hours of constant crying and wailing about needing his momma to come pick him up. Vomiting Kermit has made new friends and chooses to stay. Conan asks why his fellow detainees are all excited about incoming weather and the chance to play the “Gary England drinking game.”

10:10 a.m. – Conan finds week-old newspaper announcing that Oklahoma City is the nation’s third most manliest city. Conan tries to fit in; he goes to Bass Pro, buys overalls, fishing boots, plaid shirt and a Texas Aggies ballcap.

10:25 a.m. – Conan waits for an Oklahoma Spirit trolley to pick him up at the stop outside Bass Pro.

11:30 a.m. – Conan gives up waiting for the trolley. He walks over to Toby Keith’s. Conan flirts with the waitresses and tells some jokes. The waitresses laugh at him, not with him.

noon: Conan hitchhikes a ride to KFOR and does an interview. He’s hurt, disappointed and confused that he can’t do the interview with all three Ogle brothers. Linda Cavanaugh does her best to console Conan.

1 p.m. – Conan decides to check out The Underground. He has not been seen since.

10 p.m. – Wailing is heard from the entrance to The Underground at the County office building. This sort of thing is considered normal at the home of Oklahoma’s proud county government.

Water Taxis Are Up and Running

I just talked with Chad Huntington and he says with the nice weather and thousands of people in town for the choral directors conference he’s got the boats up and running through the weekend and will likely continue operations next week when the Big 12 starts up (barring bad weather).

Catching Up With Lil at Coyote Ugly

What makes this job tough is just how many different news and information sources I have to scour on a daily basis. I read the Wall Street Journal, USA Today and Dallas Morning News as often as possible. New York Times is read at least weekly. And then there are the blogs and forum sites I’ve mentioned previously.

And then there are the business-related websites. I visit sites for places about to open, like http://www.sageokc.com/, and I also have to thoroughly go through the website for Coyote Ugly, since it’s set to open in Bricktown.

Well, someday at least.

Here’s a blog post by “Lil” from Monday:

By Liliana Lovell,
Coyote Ugly Saloon Founder

Monday, March 02, 2009The bars did great! Monday mornings I don’t open the logs expecting to be so happy but I am really pleased. Nice to see the numbers picking back up. Oklahoma has been pushed back again. At the beginning of this project we expect a quick opening but the liquor license application has been brutal. We have quite a few investors whom haven’t handed in the documents we need to proceed. So frustrating. We really may be pushed back another few months!
Let’s see what today unfolds!

posted by Liliana @ 11:31 AM