I'd bring your hopes a little more in line with this lol:
http://localtvkfor.files.wordpress.com/2012/05/opubco.jpg?w=402

I'd bring your hopes a little more in line with this lol:
http://localtvkfor.files.wordpress.com/2012/05/opubco.jpg?w=402 haha yeah right. I love to dream man lol. When/if do you think that they might announce a new tower? I know that alot of people were saying later this year, but is it just speculation or is there really a strong possibility?

haha yeah right. I love to dream man lol. When/if do you think that they might announce a new tower? I know that alot of people were saying later this year, but is it just speculation or is there really a strong possibility?

There are 1356 posts above yours that will give you as much infomation as anybody here knows...

There are 1356 posts above yours that will give you as much infomation as anybody here knows... ok

ok

I'll save you time. A few months ago there were wild rumors of one or two towers. Those rumors, partly because of American Fidelty's move into OPUBCO's building (picture above), have almost completely died down. At this time it does not seem like there will be any towers coming... at least in the short term...

To add to what KilgoreTrout said, with AF opting to buy the OPUBCO Tower instead of vacant OPUBCO land downtown it is safe to say that the prospects for a new tower have greatly diminished. Couple that with the uncertainty around Chesapeake, it seems unlikely MidFirst will have a motivated buyer for their current headquarters. With AF buying such a small tower I am not sure how big of a downtown building they were even going to construct - certainly wouldn't have been anything as big as Devon Tower.

Maybe the Oklahoman is making some changes and now they will build downtown... speculation of course.

Maybe the Oklahoman is making some changes and now they will build downtown... speculation of course.

The reason they sold their building was because they have greatly diminished their staff and they simply were not using almost half of their building. That's one of the big reasons why they sold. If the Oklahoman moves downtown (BIG if) they won't need a lot of space.. Thus unlikely to build.

The reason they sold their building was because they have greatly diminished their staff and they simply were not using almost half of their building. That's one of the big reasons why they sold. If the Oklahoman moves downtown (BIG if) they won't need a lot of space.. Thus unlikely to build.

Yea, I believe that they are moving towards a digital publication. You do not need a huge staff or space for that. Print is a dying breed.

If there is no paper - will it still be called a newspaper?

Why not, even though vinyl is dead, we still call them "records"

Maybe the Oklahoman can move into there old building downtown?

Any chance that Continental could start building a tower within the next 3-5yrs? they are expanding rapidly and are hiring people like crazy. i wouldnt think it would be too far fetched.

Any chance that Continental could start building a tower within the next 3-5yrs? they are expanding rapidly and are hiring people like crazy. i wouldnt think it would be too far fetched.

It would need unexpected growth on top of what they are already doing to be needed in 3-5 years, they planed to triple in size over the next five years, which is why they moved here.

I'll save you time. A few months ago there were wild rumors of one or two towers. Those rumors, partly because of American Fidelty's move into OPUBCO's building (picture above), have almost completely died down. At this time it does not seem like there will be any towers coming... at least in the short term... Thanks :)

I honestly think there is still a possibility for a new tower soon. No one has officially announced that there will or will not be building a new tower, until that happens, I think there is still a possibility. Everything is still pure speculation until someone announces something either way. You would think that if Beffort announced there will be a new headquarters, he would announce that that project is no longer being pursued. I am also beginning to realize that a lot of people on here really don't half of what's going on, and most comments are based on rumors, opinions, and speculation.

Well derr....

I honestly think there is still a possibility for a new tower soon. No one has officially announced that there will or will not be building a new tower, until that happens, I think there is still a possibility. Everything is still pure speculation until someone announces something either way. You would think that if Beffort announced there will be a new headquarters, he would announce that that project is no longer being pursued. I am also beginning to realize that a lot of people on here really don't half of what's going on, and most comments are based on rumors, opinions, and speculation.

And here goes G.Walker again. Why on earth would a company announce that they are NOT building a tower? You have to be kidding.

I'm surprised Boral industries has yet to relocate their american headquarters in OKC yet as most of their US operations are in OKC and surrounding areas. Maybe this is something city leaders could look into and entice them to their US HQ in OKC.

And here goes G.Walker again. Why on earth would a company announce that they are NOT building a tower? You have to be kidding.

Whatever, I take most of what you say with a grain of salt...I can say what I want...

I'm surprised Boral industries has yet to relocate their american headquarters in OKC yet as most of their US operations are in OKC and surrounding areas. Maybe this is something city leaders could look into and entice them to their US HQ in OKC.

That would be a good fit. They have offices in Yukon at the former Schwarz Ready Mix location. they bought it about 4 years ago. They mostly run their sales out of there.

They also have a brick manufacturing plant in Union city and I think one or 2 more companies that are subsidiaries of Boral I think they recently aquired a sand plant somewhere in the state and possibly a rock plant(if the deal went through) in Davis.

Now that I think about it Bricktown would be would be a good spot for a US HQ for Boral being that they have that brick plant in Union City they probably make a killing on bricktown projects anyway it would be a good way to capture more of the sales as well

Guys: This is just a rumor, but I'm hearing things from unrelated people that are starting to match up and make me believe there is a little bit of smoke. The gist is this: Devon is planning significant company expansion in the next several years (could be through gradual hiring or acquisition of another company). The new tower is filling up fast, but not unexpectedly. Devon is behind several of the Preftakes purchases on the block to the west. Devon plans to tear down several buildings on that block to make way for a medical clinic and, as much as I cannot believe it, another tower.

I don't know if this is true, but like I said I have now heard similar bits and pieces from several unrelated sources that are not urban speculators or rumor-mongers. I don't know about a timeline. I know this scenario has been brought up before in this thread. In fact, I believe I said it was highly unlikely. In any event, I just thought I'd share the info.

I think it's reasonable to assume that there are plans for several new towers...we just need to be patient about timelines and expectations. This thread has been more about spreading rumors of a 2012 announcement than actual towers. I think we all still expect Towers to go on the Preftakes block and on the NE side of the CBD...the question is when...and it only makes sense for companies to wait and see what is going to happen with the economy /election ... It would be more reasonable to expect 3 to 6 new 10+ story structures to be under construction by 2020. Than one announced by the end of the year.

You say that this thread is all about rumors, and then you go on to randomly guess that a bunch of new towers will be built in a specific place by a specific time without any evidence. I guess your point is to make up rumors that go beyond this year as opposed to the rumors for just this year?

You say that this thread is all about rumors, and then you go on to randomly guess that a bunch of new towers will be built in a specific place by a specific time without any evidence. I guess your point is to make up rumors that go beyond this year as opposed to the rumors for just this year?

His post was speculation. A rumor would be, I have heard that a company is looking to build 8 new towers by 2020. Speculation is: I bet we see the development of...by....

Guys: This is just a rumor, but I'm hearing things from unrelated people that are starting to match up and make me believe there is a little bit of smoke. The gist is this: Devon is planning significant company expansion in the next several years (could be through gradual hiring or acquisition of another company). The new tower is filling up fast, but not unexpectedly. Devon is behind several of the Preftakes purchases on the block to the west. Devon plans to tear down several buildings on that block to make way for a medical clinic and, as much as I cannot believe it, another tower.

I've heard this too but have also heard Devon is interested in Oklahoma Tower if their long-term needs require more office space. The two buildings are now joined through a pedestrian walkway on the 3rd level of the City Center East parking garage AND O.T. has been up for sale (asking a lot of money, but would sell if they could get it) so you could easily see that scenario as well.

We know from the current Devon Tower project that it takes about 3 years to get a new downtown building open for business once you decide to move forward; and that's with an aggressive round-the-clock schedule.

But also remember that Devon scaled back their tower plans by five floors after looking at their long-term needs, and we know there is considerable empty space in their current tower. Of course, something may have changed since then or is about to change; i.e. faster growth than had been anticipated and/or an acquisition.


I do believe Devon/Nichols is behind Preftakes and started backing his purchases without a clear idea of their plans; just that's it's a great, underutilized block right next to their new corporate HQ. I could see them doing another tower plus residential and a parking structure. But that may be 10 years down the road.

Yeah, I've heard a decent amount of stuff will be preserved after all, but the thing that concerns me about Devon is that I've heard they have no interest at all in workforce housing.

Pete, wasn't the scale back of Devon tower not so much a scale back as it was a strategic separation. IIRC, those floors were still built, but they were built out near(ish) the airport as an off-site data center.

Read that part of the "scaling back" was the configuration of office space on the remaining floors

Pete, wasn't the scale back of Devon tower not so much a scale back as it was a strategic separation. IIRC, those floors were still built, but they were built out near(ish) the airport as an off-site data center.

Partly, yes.

The river taxi in the Bricktown canals told everybody that OKC would not allow Devon to build 65 stories because safety issues with the "Oklahoma" wind. Now I thought to myself that is crazy because Dallas is pretty much the same climate as we are and they have a Bank of America building which is 70 stories. So is this true?

When it comes to riverboat tales, might be best to treat most of it as harmless misinfotainment.

Too bad all the talk and speculation has died down. It was fun to imagine the possibilities - both realistic and not. I hope some news is forthcoming soon and we will have another "Devon - like" project to watch.

The river taxi in the Bricktown canals told everybody that OKC would not allow Devon to build 65 stories because safety issues with the "Oklahoma" wind. Now I thought to myself that is crazy because Dallas is pretty much the same climate as we are and they have a Bank of America building which is 70 stories. So is this true?

No.

Devon Tower is almost exactly the same height as the tallest building in Dallas (BofA Tower) even though it's only 50 floors.

Lots of cities with high winds and bad weather (like Chicago) have buildings much higher. Even here in California earthquake country there are a bunch of buildings taller than Devon.


Modern engineering can conquer pretty much anything.

Too bad all the talk and speculation has died down. It was fun to imagine the possibilities - both realistic and not. I hope some news is forthcoming soon and we will have another "Devon - like" project to watch.

I really don't think anybody knows anything solid at this point. It seems we have made no progress, and are right back where we started with this thread 6 months ago.

No.

Devon Tower is almost exactly the same height as the tallest building in Dallas (BofA Tower) even though it's only 50 floors.

Lots of cities with high winds and bad weather (like Chicago) have buildings much higher. Even here in California earthquake country there are a bunch of buildings taller than Devon.


Modern engineering can conquer pretty much anything.

I'm not trying to be argumentitive, Pete, because I agree with your points. California, however, has only three buildings taller than Devon. Two are in LA and one in San Francisco. Two of those are only a couple of feet taller.

The river taxi in the Bricktown canals told everybody that OKC would not allow Devon to build 65 stories because safety issues with the "Oklahoma" wind. Now I thought to myself that is crazy because Dallas is pretty much the same climate as we are and they have a Bank of America building which is 70 stories. So is this true?
Good grief. Not true. Thanks for the heads-up.

When it comes to riverboat tales, might be best to treat most of it as harmless misinfotainment.
Geez, I hope not. We provide them with 60 pages of thoroughly-vetted and regularly-updated material that has been at various times reviewed by people from the Oklahoma Historical Society, Downtown OKC Inc., The Greater Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce, and the Oklahoma City Convention and Visitors Bureau. We heavily stress the importance of accuracy and positivity in tours, and in fact do everything we can to make it a condition of employment. If you ever ride on a boat with inaccurate info, I would appreciate a PM with the name of the captain so that I can take corrective measures with them.

Geez, I hope not. We provide them with 60 pages of thoroughly-vetted and regularly-updated material that has been at various times reviewed by people from the Oklahoma Historical Society, Downtown OKC Inc., The Greater Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce, and the Oklahoma City Convention and Visitors Bureau. We heavily stress the importance of accuracy and positivity in tours, and in fact do everything we can to make it a condition of employment. If you ever ride on a boat with inaccurate info, I would appreciate a PM with the name of the captain so that I can take corrective measures with them.

Wow, had no idea you guys were so thorough!

Credit to you for wanting to share as much good information on OKC as possible.

Geez, I hope not. We provide them with 60 pages of thoroughly-vetted and regularly-updated material that has been at various times reviewed by people from the Oklahoma Historical Society, Downtown OKC Inc., The Greater Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce, and the Oklahoma City Convention and Visitors Bureau. We heavily stress the importance of accuracy and positivity in tours, and in fact do everything we can to make it a condition of employment. If you ever ride on a boat with inaccurate info, I would appreciate a PM with the name of the captain so that I can take corrective measures with them.

This just completely changed my opinion of the river boats. May need to get down and ride one sometime soon now.

This just completely changed my opinion of the river boats. May need to get down and ride one sometime soon now.

OSU, I think he's talking about the canal boats instead of the river boats, but try both of them. I think you'll enjoy it.

Well, it looks like it won't be CNOOC building their headquarters here.


Nexen backing $15-billion takeover bid by China
Calgary to become North American headquarters for CNOOC
By Dina O'Meara, Calgary Herald July 23, 2012 12:01 PM

CALGARY — Nexen Inc. has agreed to a friendly $15-billion takeover bid by China’s largest offshore oil producer in a deal which will see Calgary become the site of one of CNOOC’s international headquarters.

The oil and gas producer’s board, which last year mulled over selling the company, threw their unanimous support behind the deal which see CNOOC increase investments in Nexen’s existing Canadian and international assets.

The bulk of Nexen’s oil and gas production comes from North Sea operations in the United Kingdom.

The Calgary-based company has been struggling with disappointing results from its oilsands project at Long Lake and last week announced a $120-million hit on second quarter earnings on a dry well in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico.

The transaction, if approved by Canada’s investment and competition bureaus, will see China pay 61 per cent premium on Nexen’s closing share price Friday in New York, $27.50 US per share.

“As one of the largest oil and gas companies in the world, they have the balance sheet and the resources to help move our projects forward at a faster pace than we might have been able to do independently,” said Kevin Reinhart, Nexen’s interim chief executive, in a conference call Monday morning. “This transaction will enable us to accelerate our growth by leveraging CNOOC Limited’s considerable financial resources, global network and operational expertise.”

The transaction also will establish Calgary as one of CNOOC’s global headquarters, Reinhart said.

“From here, we will continue to manage Nexen’s global operations, plus their existing operations for North and Central America. This will result in a contribution of approximately $8 billion worth of their existing assets.”

Although CNOOC president Li Fanrong said he intends to keep Nexen’s management team and staff, Reinhart declined commenting on his future with the new company.

The two producers were not strangers, as Nexen’s original partner at Long Lake, Opti Canada, filed for court protection from creditors last summer and was later acquired by CNOOC for $2.1 billion.

The Chinese company has made several other investments in Canadian companies over the past seven years, including buying stakes in MEG Energy Inc. and a 60-per cent investment in Northern Cross (Yukon) Ltd.

The state-owed company was attracted to Nexen’s production base in some of the world’s most significant plays, including oilsands and offshore North Sea, U.S. Gulf of Mexico and West Africa, said Fanrong.

Federal Minister of Industry Christian Paradis confirmed Monday the proposed Chinese takeover would be scrutinized by Ottawa under the Investment Canada Act and by the Competition Bureau.

Under the act, Pardis will review if the takeover will benefit or not Canada on an industrial, employment and competitive level.

“Where an investment is subject to review under the act, my approval is required prior to implementation,” Pardis said in a statement. “I approve applications where I am satisfied that a proposed investment is likely to be of net benefit to Canada.”

Analysts suggested given Nexen’s relatively small Canadian asset base — in British Columbia’s Horn River shale gas play, and its oilsands operations — foreign ownership rules likely would not be an issue.

Nexen has faced numerous challenges over the past few years, most recently the troubled launch of its Long Lake oilsands project in northern Alberta. The project has yet to come close to its design capacity of 72,000 barrels of bitumen per day due to a number of operational glitches.

Last week, the company reported that second-quarter profits tumbled more than 50 per cent as it took a charge on an unsuccessful well in the Gulf of Mexico.

Nexen’s net income was $109 million, or 20 cents per share, missing analyst estimates by seven cents. The results were also down from $252 million, or 48 cents per share, a year earlier.

In January, Nexen announced a major management shakeup, with Marvin Romanow leaving his post as CEO and Gary Nieuwenburg stepping down as the executive vice-president of the company’s Canadian operations.

Reinhart was previously the company’s chief financial officer.


With files from Canadian Press


Read more: http://www.calgaryherald.com/business/Nexen+backing+billion+takeover+China/6975862/story.html#ixzz21TK6fc1S

Just to throw a rumor out there...

Rick Dowell has recently told people he may build a 30-story residential structure at 5th & Walker.

That he hoped to build something there is not news, but I don't think anyone believed it would be on this scale.


Of course, he moves very methodically (being kind here) and he likes to self-finance, so none of us may live to see it happen.

I would think an invenstment of that size might want to wait until the streetcar route is finalized.

Just to throw a rumor out there...

Rick Dowell has recently told people he may build a 30-story residential structure at 5th & Walker.

That he hoped to build something there is not news, but I don't think anyone believed it would be on this scale.


Of course, he moves very methodically (being kind here) and he likes to self-finance, so none of us may live to see it happen.

Rick told me the very same thing about six years ago. I'm not going to hold my breath... (first let's see if he can get the Dowell Center (old Journal Record building) up and going in the next decade or so)

1923

The river taxi in the Bricktown canals told everybody that OKC would not allow Devon to build 65 stories because safety issues with the "Oklahoma" wind. Now I thought to myself that is crazy because Dallas is pretty much the same climate as we are and they have a Bank of America building which is 70 stories. So is this true?

Someone alert Urbanized ... this is not true. Just more water taxi noise....

1923

Austin?

It is a new building in San Francisco. I like it because it is one of the few new tall buildings that doesnt have a glass curtain wall. It reminds me of a cool update of the Sandridge building in OKC and I think it could look cool as a companion to it.

1924

I would think an invenstment of that size might want to wait until the streetcar route is finalized.

street car route is basically finalized

street car route is basically finalized

All I am saying is if you are plopping down $35 million 'basically' might not be good enough. To my knowledge they still haven't done the engineering assesment so we don't know where it is going yet. Missing by even a block will make a big difference.

All I am saying is if you are plopping down $35 million 'basically' might not be good enough. To my knowledge they still haven't done the engineering assesment so we don't know where it is going yet. Missing by even a block will make a big difference.

either way the odds that it goes down walker are slim and none

Someone alert Urbanized ... this is not true. Just more water taxi noise....
Uh...did you read further into the thread?

It is a new building in San Francisco. I like it because it is one of the few new tall buildings that doesnt have a glass curtain wall. It reminds me of a cool update of the Sandridge building in OKC and I think it could look cool as a companion to it.

While that's a cool building, I would rather see a building like the BofA Corporate Center in Charlotte if it's anything other than glass built in OKC.

BofA building as viewed from the sidewalk.

http://i1178.photobucket.com/albums/x378/KerryinJax/bofa.jpg

One lonely security guard..........and this place is considered as a boom town....?


Maybe this was Sunday morning about 7:00 am.

Maybe this was Sunday morning about 7:00 am.

If you go to Google Earth street view you can see for yourself. Tons of people on the streets around this area - there just isn't any reason for them to go to the BofA building since there is nothing there for them. The blank wall even discourages pedestrians from using that side of the street to go other place. BofA is one of those building that looks better from 10 miles away than it does from 10' away.