# OKCpedia > General Real Estate Topics >  Abandoned area between the new and old Interstate 40 (Reno to SW 7th St)

## UnFrSaKn

No idea where to put these. Steve is planning on doing a blog series to bring some of these old buildings to everyone's attention. I've passed through here many, many times but had no reason to stop. Like I said before, this is really no area of town you want to wander around. Subsequently, there is more here than you might imagine. Believe it or not, a lot here was unseen by both me and Steve. If anything would be called "I Am Legend"... this is it. Here's a tour...

Map

February 25 2012

http://www.flickr.com/photos/william...7629464258273/

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## UncleCyrus

Cool shots.  I was just down in that area Sunday morning.  Where is that 89ers marker located?

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## BoulderSooner

thanks for these shots ...

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## Martin

> 


that's awesome! where is this?!? -M


edit: i think i figured it out... looks like it's on the oklahoma operating company building just west of sw 3rd & shartel on the north side of the street. i've gotta check this out in person... so cool. -M

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## Languss

If you want to read about this canal go to http://www.okgenweb.org/books/okc/043.htm

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## Pete

In a weird way, I'm going to miss the urban blight that is south of the CBD as it's very interesting, especially if you walk it.  I feel the way same way about the old railroad lines and surrounding area that was behind Union Station that is now the new I-40.

Several years ago I walked all around that area and found it fascinating, with tons of little things to see at every turn.  It's very surreal to be so close to the cities tallest buildings and be in an almost completely deserted spot.  The combination of old abandoned buildings, rough businesses that almost no one sees and vacant lots makes for interesting exploring.

It really is the last part of downtown that remains this way as Bricktown, Midtown and now the Film Exchange and the western area are all heavily renovated now.

I really encourage anybody that loves urban exploring to get down to that area sooner rather than later because it won't be long before it's completely changed.  Same for the Coop / Lumber yard area east of the RR tracks.

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## BoulderSooner

just a note ... but the park sub committee is doing a building study ..on all existing building in the park area ..  and very well might keep several ..

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## Pete

I hope they do keep as many buildings as possible.

But even if they do, the area is soon going to start changing very fast, with the old I-40 coming down and the first phase of Central Park basically leveling several city blocks.

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## UnFrSaKn

Exploring the Lost City.  

http://blog.newsok.com/okccentral/20...the-lost-city/

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## OKCisOK4me

Thanks for risking your life and equipment to take these pics William.  It makes my heart flutter (seriously) imagining myself down there.  I may be 6 5 and 210lbs., but I can just see some "urban camper" jumping me.  I guess it's best to go down there, not alone, so it's good you had Steve with you!  Thanks again ;-)

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## Steve

I believe this area will become significantly less dangerous once the old highway is torn down and the boulevard is built.

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## iMAX386

What is that Voss building?  The building and signage seems ripe for modern renovation.  The font seems like something they'd use today.

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## UnFrSaKn

A Closer Look at the Voss Building

http://blog.newsok.com/okccentral/20...voss-building/

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## UnFrSaKn

Here's all the photos from the OHS going back to 1944-1952...

July 1944

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## UnFrSaKn

January 29 1946

"Den"

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## UnFrSaKn

September 1948

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## UnFrSaKn

February 1949





April 1949

"Mr. ?"





July 1949


"GROUP ENJOYING COFFEE IN DEN"


"STAFF IN OFFICE"


"GROUP ENJOYING COFFEE IN DEN"


" STAFF IN OFFICE"

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## UnFrSaKn

January 1951

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## UnFrSaKn

March 1952





April 1952





October 1952



"MR. LESLIE VOSS, MS."





"GROUP ENJOYING COFFEE IN DEN"

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## UnFrSaKn

"DATES UNKNOWN"








"MR.  WITH ANIMAL SKINS"


"MS.  WITH CHRISTMAS DISPLAY"

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## Urbanized

If I were venturing a guess, I would say Mr. Voss was a hunter.

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## kevinpate

> If I were venturing a guess, I would say Mr. Voss was a hunter.


That or he made a small fortune renting out wall space to a taxidermist or three.

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## pickles

Great stuff, guys.

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## BB37

Did a Google search on 'Voss Truck Lines,' a family member wrote a book on the firm, ( http://books.google.com/books/about/...d=qNzKNQAACAAJ ), but not much else, other than citations to some lawsuits against the company.

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## ljbab728

Did anyone notice the guy using a dictaphone in the last pic in post 17?  That certainly dates it.

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## UncleCyrus

> Did a Google search on 'Voss Truck Lines,' a family member wrote a book on the firm, ( http://books.google.com/books/about/...d=qNzKNQAACAAJ ), but not much else, other than citations to some lawsuits against the company.


There are a few copies of that book at the OHS Museum Store.

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## UnFrSaKn

I was going to wait and let Steve post these on his blog but he hasn't had time so I'm sharing it now.

I took these on March 3 2012. It's along SW 3rd St next to the old I-40.

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## BB37

The CC Cooke building fronts up to the old Crosstown, driven by it many times but I've never seen the full building.  Love the masonry urns.

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## SoonerBoy18

Core to Shore will clean up this mess

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## dankrutka

> Core to Shore will clean up this mess


You have a lot to learn.

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## Spartan

> Core to Shore will clean up this mess


I don't know what you mean, because unfortunately, it won't go anywhere near Penn and Memorial...

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## SoonerBoy18

I am just looking at things from outside the box. Do you think people from other cities want to see abandoned buildings like that when they are traveling through OKC near the downtown area? Do you think they would say "I think I want to move here"?..

Its bad that you have people from the Dallas - Ft Worth area traveling to OKC daily and having to see places like this before right befor they enter the downtown area.

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## ljbab728

> I am just looking at things from outside the box. Do you think people from other cities want to see abandoned buildings like that when they are traveling through OKC near the downtown area? Do you think they would say "I think I want to move here"?..
> 
> Its bad that you have people from the Dallas - Ft Worth area traveling to OKC daily and having to see places like this before right befor they enter the downtown area.


SoonerBoy, the point is that people from other cities as well as the locals would love to see buildings that were previously abandoned that were salvaged to be useful and preserved parts of our history.  Have you visited other metropolitan areas?  Every city has districts like this that need rehabilitation.

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## mdeand

I'm sure people from Dallas would rather see empty lots where historic buildings once stood.  (sarcasm intended).

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## Urbanized

What about this building? Should it be torn down?

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## Urbanized

What about the buildings in the background behind this guy?

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## Snowman

Urbanized, those images are not showing up.

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## Urbanized

Switched them to Flickr. Hopefully they work now. Both came from Steve's blog.

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## Urbanized

These crummy buildings should all be torn down, right? Surely we can at least all agree on that?

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## Steve

Hey Chad, not sure I've seen that photo before... seriously - where did you get that? I'd like to post it on OKC Central.

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## Urbanized

Wichita Eagle. I'm a Google ninja.

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## Spartan

> What about the buildings in the background behind this guy?


Urbanized, that's not you is it?

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## Urbanized

Nope. Not me. That's Devery Youngblood, who was the first director of the Automobile Alley Main Street Program. I was the third. I was a board member of AAMSP at the time. Devery was also the first (and only) MAPS Private Investment office director for the Chamber, and the first (and formative) president of Downtown Oklahoma City Incorporated.

My AAMSP media photos were far more embarrassing than that one. Staring off into the distance, holding blueprints I had nothing to do with, that kind of cornball stuff. Fortunately at least my glasses were smaller.

And yes, I would happily tease Devery about his '90s glasses to his face, preferably over a cold malted beverage. That guy had a lot to do with getting downtown to where we are today.

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## Spartan

Alright, yeah I've seen that name a few times. It's just kinda hard to play the "guess what this person looked like in the 90s Game" ha. If you ask me, we should get on creating a MAPS 3 Private Investment office (or is that just the Alliance?)..

The disturbing thing is the simple fact that we are having this conversation. It's 2012, and some people still think old buildings are a curse. The most depressing thing is that I'm absolutely 100% that these views aren't just held by SoonerBoy on the Internet, but also many of the most important movers and shakers. I wouldn't be surprised if this is the personal opinion of Larry Nichols.

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## Steve

Urbanized, Devery is going to kill you for posting that photo.

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## SoonerBoy18

I want to see Oklahoma City continue to progress as much as possible, I just think images like this will not attract anyone to relocate here due to our "image issue" already.

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## Spartan

> I want to see Oklahoma City continue to progress as much as possible, I just think images like this will not attract anyone to relocate here due to our "image issue" already.


Our "image issue" is one that is actually prolonged by demolishing so many meritorious historic structures. Outsiders don't think there are things of value in OKC, and don't think it's possible that OKC could have quality urban areas. So the solution is to create more quality urban areas, not to create more areas of worthlessness. We need to renovate those historic buildings.

I'm a sucker for well-preserved brick and mortar. Most people "like" old buildings, which is a major victory that the historic preservation movement has accomplished. Notice the kind of opportunities that exist with seemingly dull brick warehouses:








If you want to see just what a huge difference a fresh coat of paint can make on buildings HERE in Oklahoma, check this program out.

This is Film Row, which used to be known as "Skid Row" (area along West Main, West Sheridan, West California), which is now the latest area to see a number of historic renovation projects. It has been nothing short of another transformation that will positively affect how people see our city, especially if they visit the IAO Gallery, or Joey's Pizza, or the new architecture firm, or..you get the point. These are the kinds of opportunities that historic buildings are so great for.

East California Street circa 2000:


EXACT same stretch circa 2005:


And again going back to Mr. Youngblood and Automobile Alley:


EXACT same viewpoint today:


So in conclusion, we should NOT be afraid of keeping historic buildings around for what kind of impression they give visitors. Not only is that shortsighted, but it's misplaced, historic buildings are a major positive. Instead, we should be praising the individuals such as Devery Youngblood, such as Urbanized, and the list could go on and on, who collectively have been wildly successful in restoring so many urban blocks. 

We should also make sure that they have the resources and the drive to continue to do amazing things for our city, which starts with making sure historic buildings remain standing. At the current rate, it's totally possible that we could get to every abandoned building in the next decade. Now will that actually happen? Probably not, due to tricky property owners who refuse to sell at a reasonable price (countless examples) or allow access to other parts of building (Spaghetti Warehouse), and other odd reasons. But we're still making more and more progress every day!

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## Doug Loudenback

> SoonerBoy, the point is that people from other cities as well as the locals would love to see buildings that were previously abandoned that were salvaged to be useful and preserved parts of our history.  Have you visited other metropolitan areas?  Every city has districts like this that need rehabilitation.


Great job, Will.

As to ljab728's comment, I was in San Antonio for a couple of days last July ... what they have done and are doing to lots and lots of their old downtown buildings is amazing. We could take serious lessons.

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## betts

And a huge thanks to Steve Mason for what he has done with Broadway and Main Street.  Before and after on 9th St should be inspiration for everyone.

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## SoonerBoy18

> Our "image issue" is one that is actually prolonged by demolishing so many meritorious historic structures. Outsiders don't think there are things of value in OKC, and don't think it's possible that OKC could have quality urban areas. So the solution is to create more quality urban areas, not to create more areas of worthlessness. We need to renovate those historic buildings.
> 
> I'm a sucker for well-preserved brick and mortar. Most people "like" old buildings, which is a major victory that the historic preservation movement has accomplished. Notice the kind of opportunities that exist with seemingly dull brick warehouses:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Thank you for making me see it from a different point of view :-)

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## Spartan

If that's sincere, it goes to show that "sitting down and going through reasoning and positive messages" is far more effective than "just resorting to petty insults and assuming neither side will budge" that are all too tempting for some of us sometimes.

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## Reno and Walker

That is why I do not post on here as often.. There is way to much insulting from a choice few to make this an enjoyable forum..

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## SoonerBoy18

Spartan, it was sincere

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## Larry OKC

*Spartan*: great pics, some of those transformations are rather dramatic to say the least...although I couldn't help but notice the extreme color correcting going on in the "after" canal pic...all of that blue, while it looks nice, it doesn't match reality anytime I have been down there...LOL

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## Rover

I think the elimination of the elevated highway/dividing line will bring a whole new perspective to the area and an appreciation for what kind of neighborhood might be created.  I think this is part of what Core to Shore can bring...an increased awareness and value to the area, making rehabs more economically possible.

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## wschnitt

I went back there tonight.  I wish some of the old core2shore park buildings could be moved.  Like the Film exchange building be moved to the film exchange district.  More specifically move the facade.  That has to be possible, cut it off and put in on a new building.

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## Spartan

I think it's likelier that the Film Exchange bldg could be gutted, opened up, and the main facade preserved..making a sort of park pavilion out of it. Kind of like what SandRidge is doing to the east side of the Braniff Bldg.

SW 3rd needs to be preserved as a historic overlay almost in its entirety (_west_ of Walker).

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