They are moving very fast.

You can already see part of the footing.

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/fairgrounds042323a.jpg

This might be another tower crane development. It may not be tall or urban enough to need one, but it will have a few cranes, to be sure.

Truly going to miss the Fairgrounds Arena. First learned to ice skate there, watched All College Tournament in-the-round when moved from the Municipal Auditorium. Impressed with the progress Oklahoma City has made as a result of MAPS initiatives.

Thanks for the pics, Pete.

In the second photo, you can see the outline of the arena floor:

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Moving fast:

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/fairgrounds072823a.jpg

Wow!

The construction is moving fast. Pete you have been keeping us informed with updates on many projects. Thanks so much for this update.

That's where the gate was that we always go in and where you enter when you park off the Reno entrance. I wonder what they are going to do about that. Tons pf people use that gate entrance.

That's where the gate was that we always go in and where you enter when you park off the Reno entrance. I wonder what they are going to do about that. Tons pf people use that gate entrance.

It will still go through but you'll have to drive around the new coliseum:

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/fairgrounds032122i.jpg

That's where the gate was that we always go in and where you enter when you park off the Reno entrance. I wonder what they are going to do about that. Tons pf people use that gate entrance.

Yeah, we are going to see Disney on Ice in September and usually park off Reno (where you are talking about) to walk to the entrance on the east side. There is an entrance on the NE side near the Bennett Event Center that I am guessing everyone will have to enter through. I would assume everyone will have to walk around the construction to the west to get to it. We are going to park about 30 minutes before to make sure we get there on time.

It will still go through but you'll have to drive around the new coliseum

I mean the walk through gate and the ticket booth. Those are gone now. There was also a motorized scooter place right at that gate. I just reserved a couple of scooters to pick up at that gate location for this years fair. Also I wonder where the rides and games (midway) will be set up now. That new arena site is pretty much where they always were.

Yeah, we are going to see Disney on Ice in September and usually park off Reno (where you are talking about) to walk to the entrance on the east side. There is an entrance on the NE side near the Bennett Event Center that I am guessing everyone will have to enter through. I would assume everyone will have to walk around the construction to the west to get to it. We are going to park about 30 minutes before to make sure we get there on time.

There's an entrance from the main barn to the NW. It doesn't really get used except by people using the barn. I assume this year that will change though and people will enter the fair or arena from the mega barn or walk all the way to land rush street.

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/fairgrounds080523a.jpg


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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bz7FNiZfRj0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8aE949Ha-M
There have been so many different designs; don't know if this is the latest.

I’m not searching in advance, so as to stimulize discussion…. But was the Norick Arena Lobby a MAPS project? And are we now into the multi-generation civic upgrade territory? I think that is a good thing.

I’m not searching in advance, so as to stimulize discussion…. But was the Norick Arena Lobby a MAPS project? And are we now into the multi-generation civic upgrade territory? I think that is a good thing.

IIRC they built the lobby portion of the SFA apart of original MAPS funds, erected around 1996. The Fairgrounds was credited with the increase in the hotel-motel tax revenue which supported city sales taxes and MAPS.

The new coliseum will be booked solid with horse shows and related events by the time it is constructed; also we built the Bennett Events Center much like an exhibition hall to support the arena-coliseum related exhibits.

The new State Fair Coliseum will seat about 4,700 in its 21-inch padded seats for horse shows. Retractable seating will allow up to 7,500 seats in different layouts for events like bull riding, concerts and basketball games.

IMO if we get the new downtown arena built; hang on to the Paycom Center for at least five years before any decision will be made on it. Events like AA ice hockey where you have Tulsa and Wichita (Natural Rivals) in the ECHL probably could survive with more events added. Having two arenas could allow more scheduling flexibility
with the Oklahoma City Blue in the development league.

The new $1 billion arena if built on the 4 square block PSM site could be used primarily for NBA games and concerts, once it's booked, overflow could go toward Paycom Center Arena. Resurrect the All College basketball tournament (Once, the nation's oldest holiday tournament) with the option to play in the new arena or Paycom Center. Oklahoma State University, Universities of Oklahoma or Tulsa to host the All College Tournament in an 8-team original format; that will benefit downtown hotel room occupancy.

Oklahoma City 2022-23 tourism of 23.2 million visitors with an economic impact of $4.3 billion continues to grow.

OKC (IMO) could be just as competitive as Sacramento or Salt Lake City in hosting an NBA Summer League tournament using both arenas. The recent opening of the FAM museum, Oklahoma City Riversport Rapids, Oklahoma City National Memorial, Oklahoma City Museum of Art, Improved OKC Zoo, Remington Park Racetrack/Casino, National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum and Rother Shrine (NA); much anticipated opening of OKANA in 2025. More places to go--plenty of things to do.

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Went to the State Fair yesterday and it was weird to see the new construction popping up right behind the midway:

HTTP://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/fairgrounds092123a.jpg

Pete or anyone in the know, do you have an update of the exterior of the new State Fair Coliseum...

https://assets.simpleviewinc.com/simpleview/image/upload/c_fill,h_300,q_75,w_720/v1/clients/oklahoma/temp_3c5bb33a-cc6b-4932-8ad5-71505eb39e78.jpg

The above pic is the last rendering I've seen.

I will say I enjoyed this layout of the fair a lot. It seemed way less confusing and cluttered.

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Nice pics, Pete, again thanks for sharing.

Just a reminder of the iconic structures lost over the last three decades:


Grand Stands
The Arch
Monorail
All Sports Stadium
Space Tower 330 feet

Would be nice to replace the Space Tower with something in excess of 500 feet.

Nice pics, Pete, again thanks for sharing.

Just a reminder of the iconic structures lost over the last three decades:

Grand Stands
The Arch
Monorail
All Sports Stadium
Space Tower 330 feet

Would be nice to replace the Space Tower with something in excess of 500 feet.

Yeah add the bombers/planes and the cool old house that used to be out there...then was moved to a big vacant lot but the owner let it get run down and demo'd it last year.

Losing the only things that made the fair grounds unique kinda sucks. Tulsa still at least has the Golden Driller.

I went and walked all over this past week and other than the carnival and food places, there isn't much to see.

Absolutely nothing on the fairgrounds itself other than concrete and plain buildings. I think the only way to do it is to go on a night when they have a band you want to see, drink several beers and eat a bunch of crap.

I was surprised, even the auto show was really meager... Only Kia, Hyundai, Toyota and Ford.


And why are there 347 hot tub vendors??

I went and walked all over this past week and other than the carnival and food places, there isn't much to see.

Absolutely nothing on the fairgrounds itself other than concrete and plain buildings. I think the only way to do it is to go on a night when they have a band you want to see, drink several beers and eat a bunch of crap.

I was surprised, even the auto show was really meager... Only Kia, Hyundai, Toyota and Ford.


And why are there 347 hot tub vendors??

Did you have any trouble finding one of the 52 Mattress Firm locations?

Did you have any trouble finding one of the 52 Mattress Firm locations?

Or the 50 massage chair vendors.

Nice pics, Pete, again thanks for sharing.

Just a reminder of the iconic structures lost over the last three decades:


Grand Stands
The Arch
Monorail
All Sports Stadium
Space Tower 330 feet

Would be nice to replace the Space Tower with something in excess of 500 feet.

I still want to see an 800 foot oil derrick.

Just a reminder of the iconic structures lost over the last three decades:


Grand Stands
The Arch
Monorail
All Sports Stadium
Space Tower 330 feet


In all fairness, most of these structures fell into disrepair or were impacted by weather. The Grand Stands/Speedway were in pretty bad shape in the final years, The arch was blown over by a thunderstorm in 2017, in all the years I went to State Fair park I never saw the monorail working, All Sports Stadium was replaced by a much nicer Bricktown Ballpark, and the Space Tower flooded in 2010 due to the submerged plaza at its base.

We went to State Fair Arena this past week, and yup, you can tell its in its final act. It's amazing how the single narrow concourse and amenity infrastructure has lasted this long.

As for a 500 foot tower or other landmark, I think it would be a private donation in the style of public art donated to the Fair Park.

Visiting Tulsa's Expo Square and Fairgrounds over the years, they seem to have done a better job in preserving the buildings instead of building new from the ground up, they have renovated existing structures. Tulsa also has a concrete jungle of surface parking surrounding all of their fair buildings.

BTW, what is up with the cinnamon rolls?

I went on a weekday afternoon and there had to be 200 people in that line.

https://www.instagram.com/silverdollarconcessions/?hl=en

It’s been that way since at least the early 80s. In fairness they are REALLY good.

In all fairness, most of these structures fell into disrepair or were impacted by weather. The Grand Stands/Speedway were in pretty bad shape in the final years, The arch was blown over by a thunderstorm in 2017, in all the years I went to State Fair park I never saw the monorail working, All Sports Stadium was replaced by a much nicer Bricktown Ballpark, and the Space Tower flooded in 2010 due to the submerged plaza at its base.

We went to State Fair Arena this past week, and yup, you can tell its in its final act. It's amazing how the single narrow concourse and amenity infrastructure has lasted this long.

As for a 500 foot tower or other landmark, I think it would be a private donation in the style of public art donated to the Fair Park.

Visiting Tulsa's Expo Square and Fairgrounds over the years, they seem to have done a better job in preserving the buildings instead of building new from the ground up, they have renovated existing structures. Tulsa also has a concrete jungle of surface parking surrounding all of their fair buildings.

It's not really about keeping the old structures, it's that they didn't replace them with anything really that unique and interesting.

In all fairness, most of these structures fell into disrepair or were impacted by weather. The Grand Stands/Speedway were in pretty bad shape in the final years, The arch was blown over by a thunderstorm in 2017, in all the years I went to State Fair park I never saw the monorail working, All Sports Stadium was replaced by a much nicer Bricktown Ballpark, and the Space Tower flooded in 2010 due to the submerged plaza at its base.

We went to State Fair Arena this past week, and yup, you can tell its in its final act. It's amazing how the single narrow concourse and amenity infrastructure has lasted this long.

As for a 500 foot tower or other landmark, I think it would be a private donation in the style of public art donated to the Fair Park.

Visiting Tulsa's Expo Square and Fairgrounds over the years, they seem to have done a better job in preserving the buildings instead of building new from the ground up, they have renovated existing structures. Tulsa also has a concrete jungle of surface parking surrounding all of their fair buildings.

In even more fairness, the state fair board LET those attractions fall into disrepair (assumingly purposefully) so it became cost prohibitive to fix and operate them. That is the issue moreso than the loss themselves - that the fair board let it happen rather than being good public stewards while realizing end-of-life decisions and replacements.

From the pics one can see the fair is a shell of its former self, largely and chiefly due to the loss of the monuments and venues left to rot then demo'd. The ONLY one I agree with is the one that actually got replaced, 'All Sports' Stadium for Bricktown Ballpark. ...

Is Frontier City now larger than the fair?

In even more fairness, the state fair board LET those attractions fall into disrepair (assumingly purposefully) so it became cost prohibitive to fix and operate them. That is the issue moreso than the loss themselves - that the fair board let it happen rather than being good public stewards while realizing end-of-life decisions and replacements.

From the pics one can see the fair is a shell of its former self, largely and chiefly due to the loss of the monuments and venues left to rot then demo'd. The ONLY one I agree with is the one that actually got replaced, 'All Sports' Stadium for Bricktown Ballpark. ...

Is Frontier City now larger than the fair?

I disagree.

Times change. The Oklahoma City metro decided they did not want stock car racing in the middle of town anymore. The monorail usually operated 2-3 weeks a year and drew maybe 10-15,000 riders. It was bumpy, with no HVAC, hazy plexiglass windows, and just not much fun for today's population. The Space Needle was another mid-century attraction that just didn't have much "sizzle" in modern terms. Besides it always seemed to smell slightly like vomit IIRC.

The Fair Board decided they no longer wanted to be the dumping ground of all the metro's "trinkets" that other organizations wanted to get rid of, but feared the pushback. Especially since they ALL came with zero funding for upkeep. Airplanes, trains and old houses were all rotting and rusting relics that were in the way and ignored the vast majority of the time.

The State Fair of Oklahoma is doing just fine. When I drive by on my way home every evening, the parking lots are full out to 10th Street, and the street is still backed up with traffic. Pretty much like it has been for the 40 years I have been in the area.

The Fair Board does a good job of operating a complex that is busy 50 weeks a year.

And...State Fairs just ain't what they used to be. Just like County Fairs

All of this is true, but it is also true they could have done a lot more of both.

Visiting Tulsa's Expo Square and Fairgrounds over the years, they seem to have done a better job in preserving the buildings instead of building new from the ground up, they have renovated existing structures. Tulsa also has a concrete jungle of surface parking surrounding all of their fair buildings.

Tulsa has restored and preserved the Expo Building and the Pavilion. But outside of the those two basically every single other building at Tulsa's fairgrounds has been torn down and mostly replaced starting with Vision 2025 bond issue.

BTW, what is up with the cinnamon rolls?

I went on a weekday afternoon and there had to be 200 people in that line.

https://www.instagram.com/silverdollarconcessions/?hl=en

They usually have 2 stands (maybe 3, but I know 2 for sure) and this year only 1 so if you wanted one, which they are really good. then you have to wait in that long line (I did)

My wife and I were talking about how we really liked Disney on Ice and taking our daughter to it, but hated that it was at the arena during the state fair. Is there any hope that with the new arena, in the coming years, it will be not during the fair? I looked at about 20 other cities hosting it and really only OKC and Tulsa are hosting it during the fair. Maybe that is the major selling point for some people?

My wife and I were talking about how we really liked Disney on Ice and taking our daughter to it, but hated that it was at the arena during the state fair. Is there any hope that with the new arena, in the coming years, it will be not during the fair? I looked at about 20 other cities hosting it and really only OKC and Tulsa are hosting it during the fair. Maybe that is the major selling point for some people?

I think the new arena will still support an ice rink? To someone with more knowledge about the ice shows at the State Fair, does Disney on ice bring their own portable rink, or is it included within the rider of the show that the State Fair Arena can support it with the proper piping and other infrastructure needed?

I think it's built into the fair schedule since the demographic it targets is already at the fair (families with kids). I believe at the end of this week the exact same show hits the road for the Tulsa State Fair.

However, if Disney on Ice was to come another time of the year, I think it would still be successful given the appeal and brand recognition.

I think the new arena will still support an ice rink? To someone with more knowledge about the ice shows at the State Fair, does Disney on ice bring their own portable rink, or is it included within the rider of the show that the State Fair Arena can support it with the proper piping and other infrastructure needed?

I think it's built into the fair schedule since the demographic it targets is already at the fair (families with kids). I believe at the end of this week the exact same show hits the road for the Tulsa State Fair.

However, if Disney on Ice was to come another time of the year, I think it would still be successful given the appeal and brand recognition.

The show brings their own ice equipment. They also bring support columns to support the lighting and sound truss structures since there are no rafters to hang them from. This limits some specific aerial types of acts that the show does in other cities. Plus, you 4 columns partially blocking peoples views.


I think the fair uses Disney on Ice to bring more people to the fair. So I think people would have to convince the show to not come during the fair or convince the fair to give up the show.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kd6oNTdf2ys

How about a Landmark 900 foot tower comparable the ones in NBA cities like Toronto, San Antonio and Dallas.

$75 million could build a huge 900 foot high Space Tower (City's tallest structure) equipped with a restaurant/observation deck on top alongside the new DT arena. See if it can be privately funded with the city providing an incentive or TIF funds (if qualify) for an iconic structure that could help with tourism. Partner with the zoo to get the Aquarium built as part of an 'OKC 900 foot Tower' next to the proposed new multimillion dollar downtown arena.

^^
I think that's a superb idea.

But shaped like an old oil derrick! ��

How about a Landmark 900 foot tower comparable the ones in NBA cities like Toronto, San Antonio and Dallas.

$75 million could build a huge 900 foot high Space Tower (City's tallest structure) equipped with a restaurant/observation deck on top alongside the new DT arena. See if it can be privately funded with the city providing an incentive or TIF funds (if qualify) for an iconic structure that could help with tourism. Partner with the zoo to get the Aquarium built as part of an 'OKC 900 foot Tower' next to the proposed new multimillion dollar downtown arena.

I wish rich people would be more generous with their money. Maybe most of their wealth is measured in real assets, rather than cash in the bank.

I wish rich people would be more generous with their money. Maybe most of their wealth is measured in real assets, rather than cash in the bank.

I mean, that is how it's measured. Many billionaires are that due to stocks and if they were to sell en masse they'd 1, get hit with the tax bill and 2, probably tank the stock during the sale which would bring their actual value down. They also end up but buying longer term, less liquid assets as a way to protect that wealth.

I don't necessarily disagree with the sentiment, but it's not as simple as taking from multi-hundred-millions piles of cash.

I see a fair amount of airplanes fly around and over the fairgrounds. I wonder if the FAA would have to approve height?

I see a fair amount of airplanes fly around and over the fairgrounds. I wonder if the FAA would have to approve height?

Vegas has the Stratosphere a few miles north from LAS airport, but I do recall the Eiffel tower replica at Paris Hotel Casino had to be shortened from its original planned height due to its proximity to the airport.

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They aren't messing around on that!

Drone View https://youtu.be/tWl9H7Iz34Y

https://youtu.be/tWl9H7Iz34Y

The roof structure has started going up on the north side.

State Fair Coliseum Drone View Month 12 https://youtu.be/hhlyRt-xPNA

^

Awesome.

Was on my list but now I can take it off for a while.

Thanks so much. I know these are a ton of work.

State Fair Coliseum Drone View Month 12 https://youtu.be/hhlyRt-xPNA

Loving your drone work. The shot of downtown skyline at the 38 second mark is great! Thanks!

Loving your drone work. The shot of downtown skyline at the 38 second mark is great! Thanks!

I was gonna say, amazing shot!!! Thank you so much for these videos.

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Sorry if this has already been covered - but any talks of this venue being open to booking concerts in the future?

Sorry if this has already been covered - but any talks of this venue being open to booking concerts in the future?

When they were pitching the idea, they showed renderings of concert set ups.

Whether anyone at the fairgrounds will pursue this (through a booking company or otherwise) is unknown.

I would be surprised if they don't completely fill the space between the mega barn and the new coliseum within 15 years. The roof line looks very similar to the barn. Plus, it would look weird having one big flat north wall.

When they were pitching the idea, they showed renderings of concert set ups.

Whether anyone at the fairgrounds will pursue this (through a booking company or otherwise) is unknown.

Thanks Pete. I find the capacity possibilities here (specifically 7,500) to be pretty interesting for a concert-like set up. Especially in the colder months when a venue bigger than the Criterion, but smaller than Paycom is needed. Enmarket Arena in Savannah, GA comes to mind when thinking of a near-ish comparison, though Enmarket is a bit bigger than the Coliseum will be.