Does "Executive Session"=Closed to public?

Yes it does.

Does anybody know if they have killed the CLAYCO deal officially? I mean TIF rejection for the South parcel where the Hotel will be proposed.
Maybe they will meet the following week.

The south parcel of Clayco was never transfered to them and I don't think there has been any serious discussion about them developing that property for many months.

It's been effectively dead for quite some time.

This is yet another big private development that the CC subcommittee has killed.

If someone proposes a $100+ million mixed-use tower (read: not energy) on yet another site, the CC subcommittee will want that site to be included as well. That's how this process has played out for five years. But look at all the development we are getting BECAUSE of MAPS 3 and specifically the CC!

We should have news here very soon, right? CC committee is out of executive session...

This is yet another big private development that the CC subcommittee has killed.

What? I don't understand the logic here. Are you implying that the south portion of the Clayco site was killed off because the CC subcommittee wanted the site?

What? I don't understand the logic here. Are you implying that the south portion of the Clayco site was killed off because the CC subcommittee wanted the site?

The CC probably didn't kill it outright but the powers that be certainly didn't go out of their way to help that project along.

And, if Clayco couldn't perform they could have moved on to Milhaus which also submitted a proposal, or re-issued the RFP again, this time giving people enough notice to actually put together a plan and meaningful response.

Absolutely no question that that parcel would have be met with lots of interest from commercial developers and that it's been effective off the market since the City tabbed it as a primary spot for the CC.

The CC probably didn't kill it outright but the powers that be certainly didn't go out of their way to help that project along.

And, if Clayco couldn't perform they could have moved on to Milhaus which also submitted a proposal, or re-issued the RFP again, this time giving people enough notice to actually put together a plan and meaningful response.

Absolutely no question that that parcel would have be met with lots of interest from commercial developers and that it's been effective off the market since the City tabbed it as a primary spot for the CC.


Kinda looking like a scam. Could be that Clayco never really intended on building anything on that plot.

Kinda looking like a scam. Could be that Clayco never really intended on building anything on that plot.

I think they wanted to build, conditionally upon receiving huge TIF's.

I don't think it was a scam... I think Clayco really wanted to build there but just got in way over their heads.

They put that south parcel under contract before the first CC site feel through and the committee cast their eye to that parcel.

We should have news here very soon, right? CC committee is out of executive session...

Not really any new information for the public.

Convention center subcommittee receives appraisal update (http://m.newsok.com/video/4537446115001)

What? I don't understand the logic here. Are you implying that the south portion of the Clayco site was killed off because the CC subcommittee wanted the site?

Yes. Or else you would see actual interest in making a deal happen there, which there is not. That Bricktown Towers project ended up being more seriously received than Clayco, a highly respected developer.

Not really any new information for the public.

Convention center subcommittee receives appraisal update (http://m.newsok.com/video/4537446115001)

Why not take advantage of the parcel that Clayco couldn't develop. Just as soon see a Convention Center/Conference Hotel there since we do have the funds to get that started. OG&E could build something more in line with their original plans a 14-16 story tower or one 26-30 story tower as planned by Clayco on another parcel.

Why not take advantage of the parcel that Clayco couldn't develop. Just as soon see a Convention Center/Conference Hotel there since we do have the funds to get that started. OG&E could build something more in line with their original plans a 14-16 story tower or one 26-30 story tower as planned by Clayco on another parcel.

I thought their original plans were "world class" whatever that means..

That Bricktown Towers project ended up being more seriously received than Clayco, a highly respected developer.

By whom?

Who are you suggesting took Clayco seriously?

Yes. Or else you would see actual interest in making a deal happen there, which there is not. That Bricktown Towers project ended up being more seriously received than Clayco, a highly respected developer.

or perhaps they felt their TIF request was out of line?

The whole process of Clayco being awarded the right to develop that south parcel was a sham to begin with.

Clayco approached the City about acquiring and developing it in conjunction with the Stage Center site immediately north. The City then quickly put together an RFP and allowed only 90 days for responses. Prior to that, no one even knew this property was in play.

The whole thing was orchestrated in order to give the appearance of an open and fair market process but of course, other than Clayco -- who already had fully developed plans in hand -- only Milhaus replied with an application that looked amateurish in comparison, as well it should given the incredibly short time frame.

I talked to several local developers who were very interested but just could not get their act together to apply; just not enough time. And you don't want to come in with something you can't deliver or something half-baked because it damages your reputation for future projects.

So, you really only get one meaningful response from Clayco, and of course they are 'selected' even though their application clearly indicated they would need an unprecedented amount of public assistance well beyond any amount available in the TIF programs.

Also, very quietly, the City agreed to sell the property to Clayco for well under market value and also was going to absorb a bunch of expense in relocating existing tenants.


Then, when the original convention center site fell out, all the sudden the City told Clayco they were way out of line in their TIF request and are now considering giving them next to nothing.


So, in the beginning the City seemed to go way out of their way for Clayco but as soon as they needed a new convention center site everything went sideways. Don't think any of that is a coincidence.

It should also be pointed out that the convention hotel and parking will likely need lots of TIF funds and the Clayco project was/is a competitor in that regard. And of course, since the south parcel is mostly City owned it represents a way around their current convention center budget problem.

That is definitely what this is starting to look like. How is OGE not b!tching at Clayco about this? I am sure they are/were planning on having new space to move into within a couple years, construction not moving is only going to make things more troublesome down the road for their main tenant.

Revise plans to stack both south parcel Clayco towers on top of the north ones, and let the city shadily take back over the south for their beloved CC.

Where the hell is Rainy Williams during all this? Hanging out in his really nice BOK lobby???! How much of this mess is on his shoulders or is he like most of us assumed a puppet for the city?

Where the hell is Rainy Williams during all this? Hanging out in his really nice BOK lobby???! How much of this mess is on his shoulders or is he like most of us assumed a puppet for the city?

Puppet for OG&E.

Rainey Williams was a former board member of Enogex, an affiliate of OG&E.

Petty clear what his role was from the start.


Williams is to OG&E as Preftakes is to Devon.

or perhaps they felt their TIF request was out of line?

No. The city's response was basically that ANY TIF request for this site is unwarranted.

So will we hear something today on the site?

Would be nice to get a billboard on all that black top announcing OKC s future maps plan. It is kind of embarrassing to see probably close to 80 acres of nothing

They are starting very soon on the first phase of Central Park, so that will make a big difference in the area.

I doubt we'll hear anything on the CC for at least another month. I'm sure they are trying to finalize a deal for the REHCO / South Calyco parcels.

I think the Daily Oklahoman had a story yesterday that highlighted the three choices under consideration:

* A. North Park (Harvey to Walker, Reno to California)

* B. East Park (Shields to Robinson, S 4 to S 7)

* C. NE Park (subset of East Park in the northern site area abutting the blvd)

For me, personally, I prefer option C as it will assure highrise development without disturbing existing plans/development for the area. Option C is no farther away from Bricktown than Option A and to me B or C allow development to move towards the south of the blvd (every development so far has been focused north of the blvd, aside from the riversports district). I'd prefer the northern section to continue in-fill to add density to downtown like it's doing organically, it's south downtown/C2S that needs the CC as a catalyst and has the land readily available to do so. We don't need any more superblocks north of the blvd.

Please do the right thing, OKC, chose the original site when this all started (E Park or the NE variant) and let the N of the blvd downtown continue its infill development organically.

I believe they are going to pick whatever is closest to OCURA land which seemed to fall in their lap.

I, too, am seriously hoping for the East Park site - but I would not at all be surprised to see the N Park site (REHCO/South Clayco) parcels be the winner here, for multiple reasons.

^^^^^^^
Reason number one being that the east park site would be outside of convention industry best practices for walkability to hotel and dining/entertainment, would be therefore be exponentially difficult to book, and would lead to an underperforming CC.

I, too, am seriously hoping for the East Park site - but I would not at all be surprised to see the N Park site (REHCO/South Clayco) parcels be the winner here, for multiple reasons.

Good prediction since the South Clayco parcel will be open; the city needs to put this convention center-conference hotel site to rest.

We need to break ground (instead of wind) on this project; get out of the toxic mode that the CC could cause for a successful MAPS IV.

Just returned from executive session and voted in favor of east park for Cc per William Crum on twitter. Very interesting.

Wow!!

That's very surprising.

Pete, or anyone who might know, what will the next steps be? Buying the said land? Will anything from their executive sessions be released so the public can know what went into the decision?

Yeah confirmed. East of park. Not my first choice but will of course be on board from here out. Very, very important at this point that the area and the Boulevard get EXTREME walkability enhancements.

The next step would be to finalize the purchase agreements.

Sounds like the terms have been generally outlined, as that was part of this last process and the whole idea was to know what the final deal would be before choosing the final site.


I have said all the way along I think that site is the best for all of Oklahoma City. Perhaps not the best for the convention center, but they will be fine there and have a much, much better facility than they have now.

The REHCO and south Clayco parcel can now be used for private development, which will surely come.

And the East Park location means the CC can help spur more development in Core 2 Shore instead of City having to plow even more public incentives into getting that property developed.


I also suspect that they could simply not come to terms with REHCO because I know the committee desperately wanted the North Park site. East Park was always a fall-back.

Holy cow! Color me pleasntly surprised.

Is it possible they know more than we do about what's happening at Lumber/Cotton Seed Mill and that factored in?

Is it possible they know more than we do about what's happening at Lumber/Cotton Seed Mill and that factored in?

Was thinking the same thing.... if there's hotel, restaurants, residential, etc. coming there in the near future that would boost the walkability calc for conventions.

Also shocked.

I think us prognosticators have gotten so insider-focused that we forget at times that there's still a political process, Council has the keys, and they don't always march to the insider beat. For instance we've always known Mick liked this site... Council likes Mick... This shouldn't be as surprising as it is today.

I think this is the right move but now we have to be very nuanced with that eastern park frontage. Here's hoping it's not just a superblock and that they find ways to break that park frontage up by setting the long exhibit hall to the back against Shields/BNSF.

There are a lot of things that have to happen on this site now, correct? This site is far from empty.

Also shocked.

I think us prognosticators have gotten so insider-focused that we forget at times that there's still a political process, Council has the keys, and they don't always march to the insider beat. For instance we've always known Mick liked this site... Council likes Mick... This shouldn't be as surprising as it is today.

I think this is the right move but now we have to be very nuanced with that eastern park frontage. Here's hoping it's not just a superblock and that they find ways to break that park frontage up by setting the long exhibit hall to the back against Shields/BNSF.

SHOCKING . That's what you always thought to be the best option. Do you think part of it will be underground?

No need to go underground in this location. I am sure the prefered location of the CCC simply costs too much - which we have known for 4 years.

There are a lot of things that have to happen on this site now, correct? This site is far from empty.

Right, but the latest process was to secure general agreements for any site before it was selected.

This was after not doing that exact thing caused the other site to fall out without a backup plan.

Everyone get ready for all the existing buildings In this area to be demoed

I guess this means the International Harvester building and the two announced hotels bite the dust.

Huh. That means the city will have managed to place it a full block away from the streetcar line at the closest approach, as well as on the other side of a boulevard that goes from street level to partially sunken down for clearance under the rail viaduct. It'll be interesting to see what can be done for the site walkability concerns.

How fast can the city move on this now that the decision is final? What do the land acquisition challenges on this site look like? Does the city own any of the important parcels already? Does this mean we're back to needing 30 million to move the substation?

Huh. That means the city will have managed to place it a full block away from the streetcar line at the closest approach, as well as on the other side of a boulevard that goes from street level to partially sunken down for clearance under the rail viaduct. It'll be interesting to see what can be done for the site walkability concerns.

How fast can the city move on this now that the decision is final? What do the land acquisition challenges on this site look like? Does the city own any of the important parcels already? Does this mean we're back to needing 30 million to move the substation?

YEP
:p

Well, there is a half mile of streetcar track being wasted that goes to the maintence facility. Move it to a more appropriate location and that problem is solved.

Move the "possible phase 2 extension" over a block to where it goes around the park and thus touches the CC. Phase 2 is paid for by Maps 3... this could also incorporate the maintenance facility track...

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It's not clear to me which of the two East Park options they selected:

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/cc0707015a.jpg

East park 1. If I remember correctly it was resolution 2 on the agenda.

East park 1.

How do you know this?

I watched the vote on television.

If it is East Park #1, the Fairfield Inn not be affected but the Best Western would be.

However, the coolest building in that area -- International Harverster -- would have to come down. Very, very similar to The Plow.

http://www.oklahomacounty.org/assessor/Searches/sketches/picfile/1613/R017205300001qA.jpg

http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j286/UnFrSaKn/Old%20Oklahoma%20City/Bricktown/bricktown_collection_044.jpg

Well that sucks.

The resolution identifies the blocks bound by SW 4th, EK Gaylord, SW 7th, and Robinson. I think that the intent is to acquire all of the six blocks. That is what is shown in exhibit A of the resolution. It is item IX. U. 2. from today's agenda. http://www.okc.gov/AgendaPub/view.aspx?cabinet=published_meetings&fileid=2933943

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So, It ends up being the East Park as depicted in this map that Pete made.
Which effectively sets up a "facility row" (Cox, Chesapeake Arena, Convention Center) on Robinson from Sheridan on the north to SW 7th on the south.

http://www.okctalk.com/attachments/development-buildings/10731d1430666545-convention-center-cc050115.jpg

Oh... dear. I had completely forgotten that the International Harvester building was there. Well, that's a bummer... To add insult to injury, looking at the East Park 1 option drawing, the building will basically come down for a parking lot (well, loading dock, but still). On Google Maps, I also found the E.T. Leek Building, former home of the Oklahoma Spring Bed Manufacturing Company (according to what's painted on the building), at SW 7th and Broadway in the southeast corner of the Future Expansion zone. It's clouded my enthusiasm somewhat for this site option, even though I think the location is still superior for the city overall.

Obviously, land assembly has to happen first, but does today's site selection give us any updated timeline for the start of work on this project and it's completion date?

So, It ends up being the East Park as depicted in this map that Pete made.
Which effectively sets up a "facility row" (Cox, Chesapeake Arena, Convention Center) on Robinson from Sheridan on the north to SW 7th on the south.

Except the Cox Center will certainly be coming down once the new convention center is complete.