YES! I thought downtown smelled a lot better lately.

The article says that they have addressed the land to the city for the convention site. It says the city said that semi truck access is inadequate, the mill says they have no problem with the trucks. The mill says they would work with the city to address how much land they need and for the 13 million dollar cost. The mill has contacted about 6 real estate groups to sell as retail and HQ sites. They said to get the ball rolling, they would sell an initial site at a steep discount. They also talked how the milling business is changing and all operations would be moved to Altus. That's generally about it.
They said they also approached the owner of the Lumber Yard to possibly combine both sites for the convention center IIRC.

Can you guys not watch the video like i can? Great work by Steve here. Says they are moving all operation to their Altus location. They arent going to produce canola oil anymore. The land is for sale. He speculated that the price would be shave by $30-$50 million. They are discussing with Sooner Investments. They could sell the land in parcels instead of the entire thing at once to help attract more buyer. Those were the main points i got from it. Anything else to add?

After I posted that, I realized I could watch the video. You pretty much covered everything.

Wow, yeah, I know there's probably some downsides to the COOP site for CC use (range to full service hotels, potential higher use of this land), but IMO (not worth much admittedly) this is now officially the best CC site on the market.

Wow, yeah, I know there's probably some downsides to the COOP site for CC use (range to full service hotels, potential higher use of this land), but IMO (not worth much admittedly) this is now officially the best CC site on the market.

One downside could be a possible high dollar cleanup cost ? But I think the site would be great.

Semi access is an issue? Is the City not aware that Oklahoma City Boulevard in all its 'lanes of glory' will go right by it?

I'm quite sure that the "semi access issues" argument is merely a ploy because the City just doesn't want to put the CC there. That said, I'm happy for this! The smell was terrible and the land can be put to a much greater use - especially given proximity to the urban core and Bricktown.

Producers Co op owner at Council meeting offering his location as a possible site for the convention center

producers co op owner at council meeting offering his location as a possible site for the convention center

nice

Deleted

Best of luck to the company and their future operations. May they succeed and prosper in Altus.

Moving forward, this land has been debated and sought after for so long. I would like to ask what we could do to try and ensure (as much as we can, if we can at all) that some good quality development(s) take it's place. We all know this is prime real estate between the river, BT, and the CBD. Which means a LOT of potential for something "game-changing." I hate to use such hyperbole, but seriously, let's put this to some seriously good use!

^^^^^^^^^^
YES!

This is land that will be important to the core of OKC. What can we do to make sure that only quality development happens here?

All of my dreams are coming true!

There is no better land in all of Oklahoma City. Between Downtown, Bricktown & the boathouse district ANYTHING could go here & it would be a huge success. Convention center, housing, hotels, entertainment, football/soccer stadiums. The list is endless. I just really hope with such a blank slate that the developments codes are top notch.

We also don't have to worry about what will be torn down. Of course I'm sure some people would love to see some rehab, people have already started posting this, but lets be real the potential for brand new development far exceeds anything that could be done with these metal barns.

One downside could be a possible high dollar cleanup cost ? But I think the site would be great.

In truth, that may be one of the biggest hurdles to this property. That whole area of downtown historically was oil field and refinery property. Every other parcel around that area has required some expensive remediation of contamination in the soil, as well as ground water. And depending on the severity it could make residential development very costly. There is really no telling how extensive it is until a phase 1 assessment is done. But those types of issues can impact financing issues, development issues and more.

If they are still planning to go underground that alone solves a big part of the soil contamination issue.

If they are still planning to go underground that alone solves a big part of the soil contamination issue.

For a convention center...maybe in that they will excavate and remove a lot of soil. But ground water is a whole different issue. The water table is fairly close to the surface there. All the ground water from the DT area migrates toward the river. Assuming there is ground water contamination...which is a safe assumption...there will also be vapor intrusion issues that will require some engineering controls, especially considering an underground facility will possibly extend to the water table, if not be surrounded thereby. The studies I've seen of areas just north show a lot of contamination in the soil and ground water and that the water table is not very deep below the surface. Not saying it will prohibit development at all. Just that the environmental issues will impact cost (possibly by a fair amount) and also impact the types of development.

Not that they would, but if the COOP was willing to sell the required amount of land (including for expansion) for $13M minus the cost of the environmental remediation, how could the city refuse? The COOP folks win because there will eventually need to be related development around it that they could sell at fair market value. The CC site is a loss leader.

Oh my goodness... this is the best news I've heard all year!!!

Great news.. as I passed it on the highway this week I thought.. if only that were gone!

This has been percolating for a while, and the coop group has been willing to sell the property for far less than the reported $120 million for quite some time.

I mentioned just a few weeks ago that they were looking to shift their processing capacity elsewhere rather than building a whole new plant.

The tricky part of this is there are literally hundreds of separate owners; all the various members of the coop. It sounds like the involvement of Sooner Investments will help, but there have been at least two very prominent local real estate people working with the coop owners for quite some time, and this still may be a very slow process.

Remember, the property has been officially for sale for years.

How much are they asking per square foot of raw land?

I don't think they've set prices; just generalities but it looks like about $1 million per acre.

BTW, production stopped at this location a couple of months ago. They laid off all their production people. Only thing left there are a few admin types, otherwise the facility is completely out of business.

I wouldn't be surprised if they never do production in Altus. They have seen less and less need for this over the years which is why they are selling off their storage facility at the old tire plant.

I wonder what drives that? I'll admit I'm naive to what they did and what they provided, but I thought it was processing cotton seed into oils and other byproducts for use in feed, pet food, etc. What is replacing what this plant produced?

There are other facilities that do canola processing and the coop doesn't need to provide it to their members any longer.

Not sure what changed but I think production within the coop is down and 3rd party refining capacity is up.

On other thing... When Don Hayes spoke before City Council today about the Coop, he said he represented Don Hayes brokerage on behalf of the coop.

Hayes has been involved with developments through Sooner Investments but also has his own brokerage company and he seems to just be trying to sell the property on behalf of the coop, as other brokers have in the past.

Not that they would, but if the COOP was willing to sell the required amount of land (including for expansion) for $13M minus the cost of the environmental remediation, how could the city refuse?

I think because 1) no one they have paid has told them to do this and 2) they would have to change their minds. And even if 1 happened, 2 isn't going to happen.

...and 3) because it puts downtown's existing full-service hotels between .6 and .8 miles away at its closest point and adds crossing a below-grade, freeway-like "boulevard" plus E.K. Gaylord to the walking route, taking those hotels out of the 10 minute walkability equation. Not that anybody here cares about that stuff. That site is a nonstarter. The lumberyard site would be closer, and better, but - oh yeah - it ain't free. And neither is the COOP.

Best of luck to the company and their future operations. May they succeed and prosper in Altus.

Moving forward, this land has been debated and sought after for so long. I would like to ask what we could do to try and ensure (as much as we can, if we can at all) that some good quality development(s) take it's place. We all know this is prime real estate between the river, BT, and the CBD. Which means a LOT of potential for something "game-changing." I hate to use such hyperbole, but seriously, let's put this to some seriously good use!

Perfect site to build a bunch of skyscrapers.

hi rize housing.

Seeds of change: Bricktown co-op to sell property, plots move to Altus
Owners offer land as convention center spot

By: Brian Brus The Journal Record July 8, 2015

OKLAHOMA CITY – Producers Cooperative Oil Mill on the south side of Bricktown is changing its business model. It will be moving to Altus as soon as the property sells, President and CEO Austin Rose said.

Unfortunately, that may take a while, he said. This week, the City Council politely ignored the cooperative’s offer to open negotiations at less than $18 million to use the site for a new convention center.

“Until somebody who has a vision for development that will fit Oklahoma City steps up, then we’ll continue to operate here as-is,” Rose said. “It could be next month or two years from now.”

Contrary to rumor, he said, the mill on SE Fourth Street isn’t shutting down. Producers Cooperative ceased canola and cotton seed-crushing services about two months ago – downtown residents might have noticed the absence of the odor associated with that process – in response to a significant decline in crop production following years of drought in the region.

“We had planned to crush canola from the local harvest, and for the last few years we’ve been bringing in canola from Canada and North Dakota to supplement what we’ve got,” he said. “But the markets are such that we can’t make any money from that now. We had a short crop locally, and the logistics and pricing of bringing in canola from that far away didn’t work either.”

Cotton isn’t doing well either, Rose said, a point that Oklahoma Cotton Council Executive Director Harvey Schroeder confirmed.

“Four years of drought have hit us hard,” Schroeder said. “We’ve got farmers who have sat through three years of zero harvest.

“It’s safe to say that drought has actually altered the infrastructure of the cotton industry,” Schroeder said. “You’ll notice a lot of consolidation, like in the car businesses where you used to see several dealerships scattered across town and now most of them are county-centered.”

In 1925, a record of 5.3 million acres of cotton were harvested in Oklahoma, according to the state Department of Agriculture. In 2011, the crop hit its lowest harvest of just 70,000 acres. Given the state of the industry, Rose said, members of the cooperative – about 15 cotton gins across Oklahoma and Texas – decided it was time for a change of plans. Shutting down the seed-crushing side and laying off more than two-thirds of the employees was the hardest thing he’s ever done, Rose said.

“We’re transitioning the company into a merchandising businesses, so we’ll continue to buy cottonseed and canola from Oklahoma producers,” Rose said. “We’ll just receive, store and market those commodities near downtown and move to facilities in Altus as soon as we can.”

Moving to Altus will bring the mill closer to its producers and save on transportation costs. Also, more unprocessed cottonseed is now used for livestock feed, which is more profitable than full processing in Oklahoma City.

Rose said he was disappointed that the City Council didn’t consider the cooperative’s offer. He wouldn’t discuss a target price, but confirmed the cooperative was willing to sell the property well within the MAPS 3 budget of $17.8 million.

The cooperative sits on three parcels totaling nearly 20 acres, according to Oklahoma County assessor records. The latest market value of the three together is about $5.3 million, according to assessor records. The grain elevator and most other buildings on the site were built in 1960.

I have to believe that they knew back when council was going to address other sites a month or so ago that they were going to sell, they could have thrown their hat in the ring then.

I have to believe that they knew back when council was going to address other sites a month or so ago that they were going to sell, they could have thrown their hat in the ring then.

They did, but just as now, the consultants and committee have shown little interest.


I hope something changes here soon but I have the feeling this is just more of the same: Trying to sell without a clear marketing plan or price, just with a new broker involved.

The property has effectively been for sale for several years now.

Just eliminating production (and thus the smell!) will be a welcome change. There are some nights that I actually feel sorry for people that live within 'nose-shot' of it.

They did, but just as now, the consultants and committee have shown little interest.


I hope something changes here soon but I have the feeling this is just more of the same: Trying to sell without a clear marketing plan or price, just with a new broker involved.

The property has effectively been for sale for several years now.

I'll start with saying I know little about commercial real estate, but perhaps their plan is "we don't need a plan, we have a location." :)

That location is far from great.

There is zero frontage on any through street; one side is completely blocked by the railroad and another by I-40.

Unless the Lumberyard property is developed soon, this whole property just isn't very desirable.

http://www.okctalk.com/attachments/development-buildings/6256d1390321858-producers-coop-coop6.jpg

Good point, so if I'm right and that IS their "plan" then you just proved why it's wrong.

Perfect place for a soccer stadium ;)

Perfect place for a soccer stadium

Without a doubt. I hope that what comes of it.

...and 3) because it puts downtown's existing full-service hotels between .6 and .8 miles away at its closest point and adds crossing a below-grade, freeway-like "boulevard" plus E.K. Gaylord to the walking route, taking those hotels out of the 10 minute walkability equation.

You're right. I do forget that .6 and .8 miles is an issue for OKC. I think we're building a full service hotel next door to this thing, so that shouldn't be too big of an issue.

Everything in downtown is walkable to me and is closer than most CC settings I usually encounter.

The boulevard is an issue for sure, but that's an issue for anything that goes here. It's gonna be a barrier for anything south of it. I guess I'd rather see the CC deal with it and use the good real estate above the blvd. for something else. At least in that case the CC could be a catalyst for bridging the blvd. I think private development is going to have a harder time doing that. We might actually get a little public improvement out of this project.

Just eliminating production (and thus the smell!) will be a welcome change. There are some nights that I actually feel sorry for people that live within 'nose-shot' of it.

I agree. Some nights in late summer it gets so bad its hard to enjoy a nice drink on a patio, even as far north as Deep Deuce. This will be a welcome change. As for the future of the property, I personally think the best use is as a new urbanist development a-la Wheeler.

Smell is a funny thing. Some people are very sensitive to it but I'd say most people are not.

I worked downtown for years and it never bothered me at all; don't remember even noticing it.

Same with the comments others have made about the Wheeler District and the stockyards. For years I played softball at Wheeler Park and don't remember an offensive smell at all.

However, I am extremely sensitive to smoke, but that's only because I hate it so much.

I have a really bad sense of smell (allergies), and the smell is even too much for me.

Without a doubt. I hope that what comes of it.

Yes!

The Smell from the COOP was strong, but it wasnt that bad to me. It even had a hint of sweet to it sometimes. It will be a huge improvement removed though.

I also don't think that the limited access from through streets is that bad of a problem. For something like a stadium, or convention center, that has high loading & unloading traffic for short amounts of time then yes it would be bad & would cause nightmares for those short amounts of time. But for living units that had small steady stream of traffic I think would actually be a benefit, due to improvements in walkability from limited car travel. It could essentially become Deep Duece #2.

Ooooooooo.... I rescind my previous preference for this site to be the CC location in favor of a soccer stadium...

I think a stadium would be nice, too, but how big of one would we need? MLS stadiums are about 20k (or reduced to that in bigger venues). I'm not sure if we're on major league soccer's radar right now, though. I think it would need to be justifiable from a multi use standpoint, since the Energy doesn't even fill Taft at this point. I think it would be great just to have something for larger outdoor events, but I'm not sure what size makes sense for the market.

The tough thing about this site is that 1) it first needs the Lumberyard property to be developed and 2) developing a small part of the 30 acres still means you'd been among a very ugly industrial area; or a desolate area if the buildings have been scraped.

It almost requires a big, master development, not a parceling off of smaller pieces.

And since the coop is seemingly in no hurry to do anything, I wouldn't expect them to sell unless they get a good price, which is going to be hard to get in the current situation.

Is there any way to add ramps for entrance and exits to the new boulevard? If you can't access it, it seems that there is no way to get a lot of cars in and out of that area. Qualcomm stadium in San Diego only has one main road for all the traffic and it does well and I doubt it is any bigger than the one under construction along the Coop.

It almost requires a big, master development, not a parceling off of smaller pieces.

Maybe this could be the Lower Bricktown do-over.

Why not develop the lumbaryard as the convention center hotel/residential condos and develop the Co-Op site as the actual convention center exhibit space?

That way, the dead space created by the convention center exhibit halls themselves are hidden behind the hotel and railroad tracks (and potentially I-40). There would also probably be plenty of space left over for large amounts of structured parking and future expansion as needed.

There may also be plenty of space for a small stadium to be used for soccer, larger outdoor concerts, HS sporting events, etc (which could also use the structured parking).

Why not develop the lumbaryard as the convention center hotel/residential condos and develop the Co-Op site as the actual convention center exhibit space?

That way, the dead space created by the convention center exhibit halls themselves are hidden behind the hotel and railroad tracks (and potentially I-40). There would also probably be plenty of space left over for large amounts of structured parking and future expansion as needed.

There may also be plenty of space for a small stadium to be used for soccer, larger outdoor concerts, HS sporting events, etc (which could also use the structured parking).

I'm in Deep Deuce and Bricktown for dinner once or twice a week, and I cannot say that the smell from the coop has ever been noticeable for me. Sometimes I wonder what I am missing.

I'm in Deep Deuce and Bricktown for dinner once or twice a week, and I cannot say that the smell from the coop has ever been noticeable for me. Sometimes I wonder what I am missing.

It was kind of off and on. But when it was on it could be very pungent. I don't think I have smelled it at all for about a year, though.

Last time I remember it being really bad as probably late last summer. I haven't smelled it recently.

The only way I see this being sold soon is a large group of developers like what Steve had described that had s complete vision for the district or a stadium of some sorts. Selling it in parcels one at a time would be a nightmare.

The only way I see this being sold soon is a large group of developers like what Steve had described that had s complete vision for the district or a stadium of some sorts. Selling it in parcels one at a time would be a nightmare.

Agree with this completely. The last thing that needs to happen is for it to be divided up into parcels.

You're right. I do forget that .6 and .8 miles is an issue for OKC. I think we're building a full service hotel next door to this thing, so that shouldn't be too big of an issue.

Everything in downtown is walkable to me and is closer than most CC settings I usually encounter...

Again, it is not about .8 miles being a hike for spoiled OKC residents. In fact it has NOTHING to do with that. The problem is that .8 miles takes over 15 minutes to walk by the accepted 3.1 MPH average human walking pace. 15 minutes takes that property out of consideration when pitching the 10 minute walk radius valued/expected by meeting planners. Remove all of our CBD's full service hotels from the sales pitch, and OKC becomes a much more difficult destination to sell to meeting planners.

The full service hotel next door will be utilized by perhaps 500 people associated with a conference. If it is a citywide (attendance in the thousands), proximate full service hotels other than the HQ hotel become very important to the sales effort. You have walked further at other conferences because it really isn't that hard to sell conventions in established convention cities like Chicago, Orlando, Vegas, NOLA, or wherever. In that case, the destination name is the calling card. People WANT to be in those places already. A little inconvenience isn't going to be a disqualifier. In OKC we have to leverage ALL of our strengths, and our biggest strength currently is the relative walkable density of our hotels, dining and entertainment. If you doubt this, check out this recent industry article that lists OKC at the top of value meeting destinations: Top Value Destinations | www.themeetingmagazines.com (http://www.themeetingmagazines.com/cit/value-destinations/)

Move away from this model and we become less compelling, and thereby less successful as a conference/convention destination.

People in the CC thread keep scratching their heads and wondering why the City and its consultants seem so locked on the Reno site(s). They are trying to blame it on some nefarious plot to benefit...who? Larry Nichols? Bricktown? All of this speculation is baseless. The reason the consultants, the Chamber, the City, and whoever else is so strongly favoring that location, pure and simple, is because it is the only site still in the discussion that is a 10 minute or shorter walk (by accepted standards) to the CBD's full-service hotels. PERIOD.

Without a doubt. I hope that what comes of it.

This town could support an MLS team without even blinking an eye if they followed one rule. Never go against ou football or thunder basketball. Otherwise every game would draw 20,000+ easily with very good local tv ratings.

Heck we were the #9 nba draft tv market with the #14 pick. It's a sports obsessed state plain and simple. The NFL NHL and MLB are pipe dreams but the MLS is acheiveable and the growth in the sport over the next 10-15 years will be nothing short of astonishing.

There is zero frontage on any through street; one side is completely blocked by the railroad and another by I-40.
Which is exactly why it makes such a great location for the convention center. Without having to worry about adjacent properties they don't have to keep feeding us this BS about putting it underground, which will save millions, and maybe 10's of millions. My concern is that we are putting walkability of a handful of visitors above walkability of residents (or at least potential future residents)

As for a soccer stadium, I hope when one does get built it is a neighborhood style stadium like Providence Park in Portland or many of the stadiums in England, and not something built with huge setbacks.

As for a soccer stadium, I hope when one does get built it is a neighborhood style stadium like Providence Park in Portland or many of the stadiums in England, and not something built with huge setbacks.

I think you are setting your standards way too high. This is Oklahoma City we are talking about. Unless it's done by Humphrey's or a small to medium sized developer who is in tune with urban principles, I would not hold my breath.