Drat my luck. After my meeting I was going to take some pics but the battery was dead on my camera. It was also about 200 degrees outside so I didn't do a lot of walking.

Sounds like a caipirinha would've done the trick

Sounds like a caipirinha would've done the trick

It might have. My traditional scotch and water didn't.

Btw, Louie's has a happy hour? I wish there was a listing of happy hours around the city..

4:30 - 7:00

Thought alcohol "Happy Hours" were made illegal in the past couple of years or so??? I don't imbibe but that is what I thought I read???? (May have been through a court ruling and not legislative act)

Thought alcohol "Happy Hours" were made illegal in the past couple of years or so??? I don't imbibe but that is what I thought I read???? (May have been through a court ruling and not legislative act)

you can only have "happy hour" prices for 3.2 beer and for food ..

Thanks Boulder, that is what I was thinking

Tax increment financing plan is approved.

http://newsok.com/oklahoma-city-economic-development-trust-approves-1.1-million-in-assistance-for-renovation-of-osler-building-into-hotel/article/3688392?custom_click=pod_headline_financial-news

I'm pretty sure the Wedge and a few other places do a happy hour with real drinks? I guess they must just not call it happy hour. 3.2 would be a pretty unhappy hour IMO..

Nonetheless, the TIF deal is fantastic, but sometimes I wonder the real impact of all these TIFs. Questions like: Would these projects happen otherwise? How many more of these do we have the capacity to do? What will be the impact on the downtown elementary if there isn't any new residential ad valorem?

I will say I do get the impression that the TIFs are making an impact on getting more development. Some of these deals would probably happen without, especially in the case of MidtownR, but I think even in this case the TIF deals have really helped them speed up. Plus I love that the TIFs are generally residential-focused.

If you read Steve's piece you'll note that Midtown Renaissance has an out on the TIF from doing a hotel. They are also allowed to convert to offices. This would be a real disappointment in my opinion. Hopefully they can find a good operator for the hotel. Is Paul Coury's group still around?

I also agree, conversion to office would not be favorable in comparison to a boutique hotel. I feel as if there is already plenty of office use in Midtown and it's likely they'll convert some of their cooler buildings to office as well.

Guys, everything I'm hearing is the hotel conversion for the Osler is very much a goal ... I think the only way it doesn't happen is if we see another 2008-style cratering in the national economy this fall and financing gets worse. Hotel financing as it is still isn't easy, and that's why the office option is listed as a back-up plan. But again, I'm seeing things moving forward with the hotel conversion at this point. As for Paul Coury's involvement... that's quite insightful of you folks.

Guys, everything I'm hearing is the hotel conversion for the Osler is very much a goal ... I think the only way it doesn't happen is if we see another 2008-style cratering in the national economy this fall and financing gets worse. Hotel financing as it is still isn't easy, and that's why the office option is listed as a back-up plan. But again, I'm seeing things moving forward with the hotel conversion at this point. As for Paul Coury's involvement... that's quite insightful of you folks.

heard this weekend that Paul Coury is involved and will be the operator for this hotel if things pan out

They should recruit Coury Properties to develop and manage a boutique hotel, since he no longer has the Colcord. I'm sure he'd like to get back in the OKC market.

This makes too much sense, even back in March.

I'm sure the plan to bring the streetcar right to the doorstep of the Osler will help immensely with making a hotel work at this site.

With Saint Anthony and the other medical facilities so close and the ability to jump on the streetcar and hit downtown and Bricktown, the location makes a lot of sense. It's just that the small scale and limited number of rooms may be a challenge.

I'm sure the plan to bring the streetcar right to the doorstep of the Osler will help immensely with making a hotel work at this site.

With Saint Anthony and the other medical facilities so close and the ability to jump on the streetcar and hit downtown and Bricktown, the location makes a lot of sense. It's just that the small scale and limited number of rooms may be a challenge.

Boutique hotel definition:


a small hotel that gives a high level of service and is considered fashionable

The proposed 60 rooms for the Osler would be small even for a boutique hotel. The Colcord has 108.

On the other hand, Paul Coury's other hotel project, The Ambassador in Tulsa, only has 55 rooms.

I think 60 is just right. To be honest, I don't know how a huge one-off hotel would do in Mid-town, but this boutique hotel deal could be a great way to test Mid-towns hotel market.

I think it would be a pretty good location being so close to St Anthony's. And with the new residential that is typically 1 bedroom apartments that could be a plus if people don't have room to house out of town guests. But I am not in the hotel business either so what do I know?

The proposed 60 rooms for the Osler would be small even for a boutique hotel. The Colcord has 108.

On the other hand, Paul Coury's other hotel project, The Ambassador in Tulsa, only has 55 rooms.
I stayed there on a couple of occasions several years back, before the Colcord project. Very classy place.

Application submitted to the Downtown Design Review Committee to remodel the Osler.

Can't see the details yet but this is yet another step forward into converting this fantastic old building into a first-class boutique hotel.

The first image is a "before"; the second -- not necessarily the one submitted today -- shows a proposed "after".



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


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

That "after" still includes the Heritage Building next door

The top, and different windows, seem to be the only differences. Strange rendering. No landscaping. And something about the mismatched brick of the flower bed wall bothers me...

The top, and different windows, seem to be the only differences. Strange rendering. No landscaping. And something about the mismatched brick of the flower bed wall bothers me...

I don't have any problem with not showing landscaping in this proposal. The main issue is the building and landscaping can come later. The flower bed wall you are talking about is already there and isn't an exact match (also not a big deal in my opinion). I'm more interested in what is going to happen with rooftop area with expansive window areas.

I really like the penthouse windows added to the top. Wish they would add it all around the top, ie., in the middle of the U where windows are far apart and it gets kind of bland.

Aside from landscaping, another thing I don't understand is where will signage go? Amenities? Building ingress/egress? Clearly this rendering can't be the only thing being shown with the design application..

I really like the penthouse windows added to the top. Wish they would add it all around the top, ie., in the middle of the U where windows are far apart and it gets kind of bland.

Aside from landscaping, another thing I don't understand is where will signage go? Amenities? Building ingress/egress? Clearly this rendering can't be the only thing being shown with the design application..

I meant to make it clear this was NOT a rendering from the design application but an older one I found on the website of the consultant they are using for historic renovation.

I'm pretty sure that a hotel was not even being considered at that time.

This trickiest thing will be finding a place for a port-cochere of some sort.

application submitted to the downtown design review committee for next months meeting ... no pics yet but here is the summary

replace roof; replace existing storefront glass, doors, and standing seam roof with aluminum framed glass storefront and spandrel glass transoms and gliding storefront doors to be set back three feet from existing locations at 7th floor; install cable handrail at 7th floor; install metal louvered awning at 7th floor; replace all existing windows on all elevations with aluminum clad wood double hang sash windows except north and select windows of east elevation; Demolish existing first floor single story transformer room; construct two enclosed stair towers on east elevation with brick and EIFS veneer; construct one story addition on south end of east elevation with brick veneer, glass folding security doors, and metal paneled fascia; install metal paneled and louvered exhaust screen at roof or through adjacent wall; install veestibule at east elevation of aluminum framed storefront window and door assemblies; and metal paneled fascia; install 92.44 sq ft illuminated projecting blade sign at west elevation.

Glad to see they are going with double-hungs; more in keeping with the historic character of the building. Aluminum clad wood windows means on the interior they can have traditional wood finishes, which will be fantastic. I wonder if they will be the 6 over 1 light variety shown in the HP rendering?

That word EIFS appears. Someone talk me down.

JK

That word EIFS appears. Someone talk me down.

JK

I noticed that too. I wish that part had just been left out of the story so I wouldn't have known about it.

I noticed that too. I wish that part had just been left out of the story so I wouldn't have known about it.

Do developers get kickbacks for adding EiFS? Seriously, it is the suck.

It is affordable, provides insulation to the building facade, and can look like stucco or stone from far away. In the Oklahoma weather it is a mess and needs to be repaired almost every time a hail storm comes through. If I had my choice, I would never use EIFS.

From what I see there it appears the EIFS will cover part of complete new structures (stair towers) built in the back of the building. I assume these towers are required to comply with modern fire code. The Osler is one of the few buildings downtown I haven't had a chance to go inside of at some point, but I'm guessing it has a main staircase that is open to all floors, and perhaps no other. If that is the case, code requires fully-enclosed fire stairs with doors closing on each floor to contain fire outside of the stairwell.

Rather than completely destroy the interior of a building to accommodate this, a more and more common approach is to build standalone fire stairs in buildings almost separate from the main building. An example would be the building that houses Schlegel Bicycles on Broadway (old CD Warehouse/St Nicholas Hotel). Good HP would call for them to be theoretically removable, so that if the stairwell was demolished in the future it would restore the building to its historic configuration. Not sure why I am mentioning all of this other than to point out the EIFS appears to only be going on PART of (probably somewhat detached) stair towers IN THE ALLEY BEHIND THE BUILDING.

While I'm with many here in deriding EIFS, it is probably much less of a tragedy here than in many places where we have seen it used as a featured building material.

I also want to mention that while I expressed enthusiasm for replacing the existing windows with double-hungs, it was mostly because of what a great upgrade it is from the predictable fixed aluminum frames and tinted glass that usually makes its way into these projects.

Technically the aluminum cladding on the windows specified would be looked down on by preservationists if used on primary facades. I'm curious as to whether they are pursuing federal tax credits on this project. If so, we might hear where they were required to change the windows from what appears on this application. However, as a practical matter the windows are likely to LOOK great (especially inside) and be very durable.

Osler Building's conversion to boutique hotel set to start in December in Oklahoma City

MidTown's Osler Building, empty since it was acquired by MidTown Renaissance Group in 2006, is set to reopen next year as the latest addition to the Ambassador Hotel chain.

The planned additions of a rooftop bar and patio, stairway and elevator towers, and a new east entrance to the Osler Building, are shown in this rendering of its conversion into a boutique hotel. Provided

Paul Coury, owner of Tulsa-based Ambassador Hotels, confirmed a closing on the property is set for December, with renovations to begin immediately after acquisition.

Read more: Osler Building's conversion to boutique hotel set to start in December in Oklahoma City | NewsOK.com (http://newsok.com/osler-buildings-conversion-to-boutique-hotel-set-to-start-in-december-in-oklahoma-city/article/3724282#ixzz2AygwtoPa)

rooftop bar and patio is a huge deal and will be great for midtown

rooftop bar and patio is a huge deal and will be great for midtown

Agree! Great views from up there and it will be yet another special spot.

Midtown is on the verge of greatness.

Rendering from Newsok.com:



"The planned additions of a rooftop bar and patio, stairway and elevator towers, and a new east entrance to the Osler Building, are shown in this rendering of its conversion into a boutique hotel."

http://cdn2.newsok.biz/cache/r620-38ea0ae7e711a08167b0f9d3050ffca6.jpg

The article says a pool and courtyard will be added to the east. I wonder if they will be tearing down buildings or putting it in the parking lot.

It had me at rooftop bar

The article says a pool and courtyard will be added to the east. I wonder if they will be tearing down buildings or putting it in the parking lot.

I was wondering this myself. I've attached a picture of the building that's to the immediate east. It looks nice and I hope they don't tear it down, but looking at Google Maps, the only other place seems to be the parking lot. And that would be a weird walk to take to the pool and courtyard, at least as I'm currently envisioning how it would go.

2830

There is actually a small parking lot they already own between the building above and the Osler.

I'm sure that's were the pool will go.


They own the big lot just north of there as well which is now just parking for 430 Lofts. I bet they plan to valet park cars at that spot or perhaps even build a small parking structure. 430 doesn't need all those spaces, which I count to be well over 100.


Yellow is MidtownR and blue is a possible site for a new city garage:

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

Tangential I know, but is the city really contemplating putting a garage there?

Also, that parking lot is fairly narrow and won't be even narrower once they add the new east entrance and towers?

I'm sure the plan is to use all of that narrow parking lot to the east for the new stairwells, elevator shafts, entrance and pool.

I bet they'll just valet park the cars to the north.

I was wondering this myself. I've attached a picture of the building that's to the immediate east. It looks nice and I hope they don't tear it down, but looking at Google Maps, the only other place seems to be the parking lot. And that would be a weird walk to take to the pool and courtyard, at least as I'm currently envisioning how it would go.

2830

that is a fully leased apt building .. by a different owner ..

I'm sure the plan is to use all of that narrow parking lot to the east for the new stairwells, elevator shafts, entrance and pool.

I bet they'll just valet park the cars to the north.

currently that parking lot is the primary parking for the 1212 lofts .. and the north side of that lot is the entrance for the 1212 lofts i will be very interested to see the site plan

that is a fully leased apt building .. by a different owner ..

Okay...? I figured as much, which is exactly why I wondered what they're going to do. I guess it's probably wide enough, but I am very curious to see a site plan.

Okay...? I figured as much, which is exactly why I wondered what they're going to do. I guess it's probably wide enough, but I am very curious to see a site plan.

from looking at google maps and the crude image ... it doesn't look like the new addition will go very far into the parking lot .. and i would bet that the pool will be a small pool between the new towers

My best guess is the north half of that narrow lot directly east of the Osler will be for 1212 and the south half will be used for the pool, entrance, a place to pull in and drop your bags and for deliveries.

No matter what, there will be 54 rooms at the Osler and all those cars are going to parked elsewhere.

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

That is more space for a pool than A-Loft was working with.

Olser site plan

Osler Site Plan | OKC Central (http://blog.newsok.com/okccentral/2012/11/01/osler-site-plan/)

Bye-bye parking lot.

Interesting.

So, drop off will be in front on Walker and everything to the rear will be pool / courtyard space. Looks really nice.

But how on earth are they going to deal with deliveries and trash removal??

Part of that question is answered in the drawing, which shows a dumpster location in the north micro-parking lot.

Part of that question is answered in the drawing, which shows a dumpster location in the north micro-parking lot.

Uh-oh... trash wars between 1212 and The Osler.

Olser site plan

Osler Site Plan | OKC Central (http://blog.newsok.com/okccentral/2012/11/01/osler-site-plan/)

Bye-bye parking lot.

Lackmeyer, ftw!

interesting the 1212 residents will not like this at all ... but i'm sure they will ajust .

I'm sure the 1212 people will park right across the alley at the lot around 430 Lofts.

I don't think there will be any friction. This whole block is controlled by MidTown Renaissance....

I don't think there will be any friction. This whole block is controlled by MidTown Renaissance....

i don't think there will be friction ... i just know that the renters at 1212 like parking right next to their building and some won't like the extra (albeit small) walk