Just saw an outline of the whole King's Crossing development. Incredibly exciting multi-use project. Town homes, a park, live-work retail, medical office complex, school that teaches skills that can be used at an upscale market: meat cutting, flower arranging, baking. And, of course, the Uptown Market.

Yes, the mix of uses is exciting. It's one of the best autocentric mixed-use projects in the city, and the only one that incorporates residential. That alone makes this project worthwhile.


It's a lot of parking that doesn't have to obscure the building from a street presence and from alternative mode access.

NE 23rd needs some quality street presence. There are good bones along that corridor that would lend well toward revitalization if it were to be activated.

NE OKC has needs and this project can meet more than just filling the food desert.

Bingo.

The Eastside is my ancestral home. When I drive along the NE 23rd corridor, I see all of the potential the area has for a revitalization between I-35 and the I-235 -- one that would connect the area with several important centers such as the Health Sciences Center, the Capitol Complex, and Uptown. Not to mention, 23rd is the spine that already connects the Eastside's historic neighborhoods. A concentration of businesses, services, and transit-oriented development would make the corridor active, convenient, and walkable. There are several uses along the corridor already in place practicallly begging for complementary neighbors. For example, there are popular barber shops and salons, as well as locally owned clothing boutiques. These are, unfortunately, separated by suburban big boxes that destroy the natural urban fabric. Other uses such as popular bars (Woody's, Plumtree) might benefit from a move to the corridor. With the proximity to both the Capitol and the OUHSC, lunch and dinner venues should thrive (countless bbq and soul food restaurants are flung throughout the Eastside).

The King's Crossing project for better or worse will set the tone for happens to NE 23rd. If the B4L group/Pettit can be convinced to at least front the street, it will provide a tremendous signal of the vitality and viability of 23rd. It would also welcome bus users in a big way. That would be easy to do anyway because the new store is set to be built in an empty lot, and the new store will be demolished after completion of the greenfield project.

As for bchris02, I know you have the best intentions at heart and you'd like to be pragmatic about things. There's nothing wrong with that at all. But at some point, someone in Charlotte, or Seattle, or Denver said, "Enough! This is the quality of life that I want for my community." We cannot allow private interests to trump public interests at every turn just because they own land. In this case our job is to say, "The plan you have is good, but we could easily make it better by X Y and Z."

I completely agree with Hemingstein. Lets not let perfect be the enemy of good.

So are you saying that this project should not be subjected to a public process through which minor improvements may or may not happen?

Short of purchasing a subscription, is there a way to see the graphics for this article?

That area is pretty urban if I know where we're talking about here. I'll get some pictures later...

Wasn't Blair Humphreys consulted for this project? I was surprised that none of this appears pushed to the street. That's probably the biggest change I'd like to see for this development.

It's a lot of parking that doesn't have to obscure the building from a street presence and from alternative mode access.

NE 23rd needs some quality street presence. There are good bones along that corridor that would lend well toward revitalization if it were to be activated.

NE OKC has needs and this project can meet more than just filling the food desert.

I think you should share your concerns with John Pettis.

Urbanists need to pick their battles. NE 23rd and MLK is very auto-centric and is nowhere close to being an urban district and won't be in the next 30 years. The suburban office complex going up in Core2Shore is a battle worth fighting. This grocery store isn't.

Well I'm already overweight so I shouldn't change my diet... See that logic. No one is saying there should be no parking, but this development belongs in Edmond, not on OKC's soon to be premier commercial strip. If we want NE 23rd to look like NW 23rd you can't have buildings interact with the street like that. Rear parking would allow the building to be accessible and more attractive to the many pedestrians and transit users on this corridor. Also if OKC gets their act together in the transit department unused spots can be converted to greenspace and more commercial development. Hard to do that if the sea of parking is in front.

We really do need to start looking at 23rd as the Main Street of OKC.


I think you should share your concerns with John Pettis.

I will, I appreciate what I have heard so far of him.

The city is moving forward to facilitate this development as per Steve.

http://www.oklahoman.com/article/5102325?embargo=1


A large portion of northeast Oklahoma City centered at NE 23 and Martin Luther King Avenue was declared “blighted” Tuesday by the Oklahoma City Council after the panel received a new study showing the area is struggling with high unemployment and crime, plummeting home ownership, unsafe conditions and crumbling buildings and infrastructure.
The blight declaration allows the Urban Renewal Authority to pursue a redevelopment plan for an area bounded by Phillips Avenue, Sooner Road, NE 36 and NE 20.

"after the panel received a new study showing the area is struggling with high unemployment and crime, plummeting home ownership, unsafe conditions and crumbling buildings and infrastructure"...they needed a study to figure that out?

"after the panel received a new study showing the area is struggling with high unemployment and crime, plummeting home ownership, unsafe conditions and crumbling buildings and infrastructure"...they needed a study to figure that out?

Of course they needed a study . . .
To verify what everyone already knew and give some folks the opportunity to earn a couple of bucks.

People are ignoring the reality that studies are required before taking action. They can't just designate an area as blighted by saying "hey I already knew that" without documentation. Things just don't work that way.

I've heard this proposed development has hit a rough spot and has stalled at least for the time being.

Lots of incentives involved and pretty ambitious to start.

Hope they get back on track but wouldn't be surprised if this ended up with a pretty significant revision.

as in pushed to the street with parking behind; revision? :)

I've heard this proposed development has hit a rough spot and has stalled at least for the time being.

Lots of incentives involved and pretty ambitious to start.

Hope they get back on track but wouldn't be surprised if this ended up with a pretty significant revision.

Here is Steve's update. It is a rough spot but there is no indication of any significant revision.

Dump discovery delays northeast OKC development | NewsOK.com (http://m.newsok.com/dump-discovery-delays-northeast-okc-development/article/5361647)

Here is Steve's update. It is a rough spot but there is no indication of any significant revision.

Dump discovery delays northeast OKC development | NewsOK.com (http://m.newsok.com/dump-discovery-delays-northeast-okc-development/article/5361647)

Thanks for posting! That makes me feel a lot better to know that the Binkowski's are still fully on board with delivering this Uptown Grocery to the Eastside. I had fears that the recent shooting at the store might have spooked the family away. FWIW, I still shop at Buy 4 Less every chance I get and I will continue to do so.

Here is an update by Molly


Dirt delay: Environmental tests complete on stalled King’s Crossing development
By Molly M. Fleming
The Journal Record

OKLAHOMA CITY – Environmental issues at 23rd Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue have slowed the King’s Crossing development.

Originally expected to start construction in winter 2014, that plan was abandoned when developer Susan Binkowski of Esperanza Real Estate Investments learned more about the 22-acre site. The property was once home to a filling station and a dry cleaner, leaving contaminants in the ground. Ten acres of the site was once dumping grounds, said Oklahoma City Councilman John Pettis Jr. of Ward 7, where it is located.

“There were buildings that were originally downtown that were demolished and then buried on the site,” Pettis said.

He said the last environmental tests were recently completed, so the site plan will have to be redrawn to accommodate the concerns. He said a new look will be completed in the next 60 to 90 days and then presented to the Tax Increment Finance Committee.

“I don’t believe that the developer has ever lost faith in the development,” Pettis said.

King’s Crossing is expected to have an Uptown Market, a major national retailer, an education space and an 18,000-square-foot medical complex. Michael Owens, community development director for the city’s Alliance for Economic Development, said the group, which is spearheading the retail changes, is seeking input from the community through the Northeast Renaissance Stakeholders Committee.

“(The committee) has been instrumental in helping the larger community understand that change is coming and also for us to gather community needs, community desires and figure out how to formulate the two,” he said. “Without community acceptance, you don’t have sustainability.”

There was some concern from the surrounding neighborhoods that the grocery store wouldn’t be priced for the area, Owen said. However, he said Buy For Less, which operates Uptown, has assured him and the committee that the prices will remain the same. There is a Buy For Less in the existing shopping center at NE 23rd and Martin Luther King.

“They think (Uptown) brings a sense of class,” Owens said. “From the community, there’s no push-back.”

He said it was important for the Alliance to work with the community on King’s Crossing and the further development of the city’s northeast corridor. The Alliance wants to make sure small businesses still have a place in the neighborhood as well, so Owen meets with owners frequently.

“I think we’re going to see a richness come out of the northeast community,” he said. “The narrative is still to be told.”



Maybe the name of this thread should be changed to KIng's Crossing.

They really need to work on the site plan some more. There is no excuse with the extra time and all of the public subsidy involved here. Why subsidize just another strip mall? Either this development catalyzes revitalization or it contributes a more typical real estate cycle to this area of town.

I get not letting perfect be the enemy of good. But I also know that OKC can do a lot better and shouldn't be pumping finite public resources into "okay" developments. Just because we are OK City doesn't mean we should aspire to be "An Okay City," which I do feel is the goal now.

Any update on this?

Susan Binowski for Buy for Less and Updtown Grocery told me today that things are still moving forward with this project, just lots of challenges.

The hope to start demolition on part of the existing shopping center next month.

Is this still on?

Here is the latest on the King’s Crossing Development (NE 23rd and MLK)(Uptown Grocery Store):

The developer recently informed the city that the developer would not be building the Uptown Grocery Store. The Uptown Grocery Store was going to be a full size grocery store. The Developer now wants to build a smaller grocery store called Smart Saver.

The Smart Saver Grocery Store is not what was promised to the community by the developer. The Smart Saver’s name and size of the store is not acceptable in my view.

It’s time for the developer to be honest about their true plans. I don’t support their latest plans. We deserve better than what is now being planned by the developer.

The City of Oklahoma City gave the developer two options-

1st Option
The Kings Crossing Development had a financial gap of $9 Million Dollars. The City of Oklahoma City proposed $5.5 Million Dollars in NE TIF Funds and $3.5 Million in Section 108 Loan Funds for this development. In total, the City proposed $9 Million Dollars to the developer. This option does require accountability and requires the developer to put up collateral to receive the city's assistance.
The City’s proposal is for a full size grocery store.

2nd Option
The City of Oklahoma City proposed to purchase all 22 acres of the King’s Crossing Development. This option would allow the city to find a developer for site who could deliver a full size grocery store and retail that would be acceptable to the community in a timely manner.

Deadline:
The City of Oklahoma City gave the developer a deadline of September 29, 2016 to accept one of the options.

Now, where do we go from here?

The City of Oklahoma City and I are fully committed to bringing a full size grocery store to NE OKC. We will continue to work to find the right store for NE OKC that will value the people who live here. Just like the City of Oklahoma City owns Bass Pro in Bricktown and the Skirvin Hotel in Downtown, we just might need to own a full size grocery store in NE OKC. NE OKC deserves the best.

We will keep you posted. If you have any questions, please call me at 405-297-2569 or email me at Ward7@okc.com

PLEASE SHARE!!!

From John Pettis facebook

Very sad that it has come to this. I enjoy the Uptowm Market on Britton and May , but if the owners don't build a Uptown Market in Kings Crossings, I will no longer shop at any Uptown Market or anything they own!

Very sad that it has come to this. I enjoy the Uptowm Market on Britton and May , but if the owners don't build a Uptown Market in Kings Crossings, I will no longer shop at any Uptown Market or anything they own!

Isn't this the developers decision and not Uptown's?

"God is good all the time" ... only if you don't live in a food desert.

To my knowledge the owners of Uptown and Buy for Less (The Binkowkis)are the developers, someone correct me if I'm wrong.

typical bait and switch OKC action.

Hopefully this is the LAST time of this under-deliver crap now that we have responsible, active city leadership ONSITE in John Pettis as well as visibility for this LONG NEGLECTED part of the city that should naturally start to experience the renaissance effects from MAPS being that it is also so close to downtown.

To my knowledge the owners of Uptown and Buy for Less (The Binkowkis)are the developers, someone correct me if I'm wrong.
From the article that I referenced when I started this thread.

http://www.oklahoman.com/article/3946001?embargo=1


The new store will be built and operated by the owners of Buy For Less, which has leased a 52-year-old building at 2001 NE 23 for the past three years after buying the existing grocery from the property owner, Grady Delling.

Susan Binkowski, who runs the chain’s property division, Esperanza Real Estate, is promising a new, 50,000-square-foot store that will be as customized to its community as Uptown Market is to Edmond and the Super Mercado stores are to the Hispanic community in south Oklahoma City.

From the article that I referenced when I started this thread.

http://www.oklahoman.com/article/3946001?embargo=1

Thank you, I knew I saw that. Hopefully they sell to the city giving the city the option to put out an RFP opening the door for a Kroger or Reasors! One can dream I guess.

Something bigger has to be going on with that company in general because they are closing the Buy for Less on Hefner and Penn and changing the Buy for Less on 23rd and Penn to a Smart Saver as well.

This has been dead for a long time, just no one wanted to admit it.

Looks to me like the developers wanted to do an Uptown, but when you look at the numbers, it just won't work. Especially after a second grocery store in the area comes in they'll have to compete with. And they decided they couldn't make it work financially. Why anyone would want a company to knowingly go into a losing business concern I'll never know. Too bad it didn't work out, though.

I'll continue to shop at Uptown because they are great stores. I hope and expect them to continue to expand into other areas of the metro. Maybe even the NE side if the numbers work sometime in the future.

After reading the article in The Lost Ogle about the 23 & Penn Buy For Less (http://www.thelostogle.com/2016/09/27/rip-buy-for-less-at-nw-23rd-penn/), something tells me the company is not doing well. I mean, when employees are telling customers this:


It was late last week when I heard the news from the sweet sauce goddess at the B4L-BBQ stand that the Buy for Less at NW 23rd and Penn was shuttering its doors for good. As I shed a tear or two, she told me that the store, even though it was one of their most successful ones, couldn’t afford the high rent and invest in the upgrades the store needed at the same time.

Sounds to me like something ain't right in B4L land.

While there may be something wrong, not necessarily. A good business person knows every store needs to stand on its own, and if that store could not pay for increased rent and improvements needed to keep it a functioning store then it would need to close. If that store needed to use funds from another store they couldn't let it limp along, even if it was doing well at a lower rent. Increased rent and increased payment from improvements changes things dramatically.

I hope they get something figured out. Food deserts are a problem that needs to be addressed. Beyond backing out of original agreements, it sounds like a lack of communication from the owners is a big part of the problem here... I can understand why Councilman Pettis is not happy.

TIF still primed at King’s Crossing

By: Brian Brus The Journal Record September 30, 2016

OKLAHOMA CITY – A northeastern Oklahoma City tax increment finance district will still serve its development purpose even though plans for a grocery store anchor have stalled, Councilman John Pettis Jr. said.

Pettis said he does not regret his part in forming the TIF district or pursuing grander plans for NE 23rd Street and Martin Luther King Avenue. He just wishes the process had moved a little faster so that the disappointment didn’t feel as acute.

“I think it was mostly a matter of circumstance,” Pettis said. “We took a little bit longer than we should in giving the developer a deadline. But we also understood the project was going to be hard, and we knew it’s going to take time.”

Hank and Susan Binkowski, who operate Buy For Less, Uptown Market and other metro area grocery stores, had expressed interest in rebuilding what’s now known as King’s Crossing. The couple bought the grocery store about five years ago and converted it to another Buy For Less. They later visited with Pettis, Alliance for Economic Development President Cathy O’Connor and other economic development officials with plans to replace the store with a $30 million shopping center that would include a pharmacy, shops, restaurants, and housing in addition to a new grocery.

The potential of a new grocery store served as a catalyst for the City Council last year to establish a TIF district in the area, allowing the city to tap into future ad valorem and sales tax revenue to pay for infrastructure improvements now. Council members, led by Pettis, approved the Northeast Renaissance Project Increment District with projections of stimulating new investments of over $225 million; the proposed budget for project costs within the TIF district was set at $45 million.

The proposal approved in January 2015 read, “The plan further contemplates several potential catalytic developments, including a significant mixed-use development at NE 23rd Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue, that will be anchored by a new grocery store in a much underserved part of Oklahoma City, and will include other retail, commercial and residential development.”

However, the couple missed a deadline when the Alliance for Economic Development of Oklahoma City asked them to finally confirm whether they are bringing in another developer or selling control of the property. The Binkowskis could not be reached for comment by the end of the week.

Pettis said he had promised his constituents an Uptown Market based on conversations with the developers, so their subsequent reduction of the concept to a Smart Saver discount chain was more than a frustration.

“We are still committed to finding a way to make that happen. The citizens of northeast Oklahoma City deserve a full-service grocery store,” Pettis said. “It may not be with the original developers, but we are confident that we can make something happen.”

City Economic Development Manager Brent Bryant confirmed that no money was committed to the grocery store mall, so the TIF district remains primed for other developers as the City Council sees fit.

“Our TIFs are deal-specific, not generic. We have to evaluate all the details before approval, and we didn’t get to that point for approval,” Bryant said.

“The entire TIF district is 1,200 acres and the King’s Crossing development is only 22 acres,” Pettis said. “The TIF was never about just one project. It was about providing opportunities for people who live in northeast Oklahoma City.”