Development Goes West in 2017
Cathy O’Connor
Bricktown, Midtown and Deep Deuce are just a few Oklahoma City areas that have enjoyed an economic renaissance. Now developers have their eyes—and their investments—to the west.
As we start 2017, there are several developments in construction phase or that have just been completed in west downtown OKC.
Construction began right before the holidays for West Village, a $70 million mix of housing, retail and office space that will surround the 21c Museum Hotel. Fred Hall, grandson of Fred Jones and CEO of Hall Capital, is the developer. His vision includes The Jones Assembly restaurant and music venue, paying tribute to the history of the area. The project is designed by Dallas-based Arrive and will be built by local contractor CMS Willowbrook. The development will include 345 residences, 9,000 square feet of commercial space and parking.
Pivot Project partners, David Wanzer, Ben Sellers and Jonathan Dodson, are getting closer to completing their redevelopment of the Sunshine Cleaners and Laundry building. The 17,000 square foot space will have office space, a restaurant and brewery. The Stonecloud Brewery Company is anticipating serving craft beer from the historic building by spring. Sunshine Cleaners follows Wanzer’s recent completion of the Main Street Arcade, just blocks from the cleaners.
The Civic, a condominium development facing the Oklahoma City Civic Center Music Hall, has sold nearly all of its 34 units, indicating the continued strength of downtown housing demand. The Civic is designed by Butzer Architects and Urbanism and built by LINGO Construction.
Many of the projects are renovations of historic, blighted or abandoned buildings. The developers were willing to invest because there were economic tools available, like TIF and historic tax credits, that made it possible to offset the steep renovation costs of historic spaces. In return, Oklahoma City revitalizes a part of its history, gains a more interesting and diverse landscape and benefits from economic revitalization that spurs more development and investment in the area.
There are still properties west of Walker that are primed for redevelopment, and several quality developers are considering projects. I look forward to telling you more about them as they move forward.