Midtown Renaissance set to renovate one of their old auto shop buildings at 220 NW 13th into small spaces for entrepreneurs. Plans were submitted to the Downtown Design Review Committee on Friday.

Chris Fleming of MidtownR provided this quote:

“It was urbanist Jane Jacobs who wrote, ‘A lively city scene is lively largely by virtue of the collection of small elements and in particular its commercial diversity.’ We feel that the Make Ready Building personifies this thought.”

“The Make Ready Building provides commercial space to the small-tenant market segment that currently has limited options in Midtown. This building could house startup companies that come out of the Thunder Launchpad or the Innovation District or i2E. Maybe it’s home to a two- or four- or six- person office or maybe a workshop and retail space for a group of artisan makers.”

“Companies and their employees want to be in Midtown. The Make Ready Building ensures that companies of all sizes can be here.”

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I'm not sure if it's this project, or the building next door, but on the "for lease" sign it says "NO DISPENSARIES". I'm not sure if this is a common trend around town, but I love it.

I'm not sure if it's this project, or the building next door, but on the "for lease" sign it says "NO DISPENSARIES". I'm not sure if this is a common trend around town, but I love it.

If this renovation is bank-financed, I'm sure that is a requirement.

I am a partner for a building that leases out space and our bank does not care that we have two CBD related businesses. Just offering up the data point.

I'm not sure if it's this project, or the building next door, but on the "for lease" sign it says "NO DISPENSARIES". I'm not sure if this is a common trend around town, but I love it.

That sign has been up a long time. It is for the building on 13 th that used to be a pharmacy.

I'm not sure if it's this project, or the building next door, but on the "for lease" sign it says "NO DISPENSARIES". I'm not sure if this is a common trend around town, but I love it.

They are both owned by the Midtown Renaissance group; the No Dispensaries building is directly east of this project.

Bob Howard doesn't want dispensaries in his properties for some reason.

I saw a quote from Midtown partner Mickey Clagg that said something to the effect that thy felt the marijuana business was already oversaturated in the city and they didn't feel it was a good fit for their plan at this time.

So many dispensaries are looking for space, and many (most?) won't be around in a year or two. Many property owners & leasing agents don't want to deal with them. And as @Sooner88 said, bank financing on the building typically prohibits any tenant who is known to operate a business that is in violation of law.

I am a partner for a building that leases out space and our bank does not care that we have two CBD related businesses. Just offering up the data point.

Is it CBD or a marijuana dispensary? If it's below 0.30% THC it falls under a different regulation.

This project is complete, and, according to the proprietor of Mira Bird (a fantastic cooking oriented gift shop) all the spaces are leased out. She also informed me that the owners want to raze the ugly brown building across from it and create a mirror development.

15599

They are planning to take the small building to the east and make a mirror of the recently renovated building.

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Went into Twinkle Apothecary last weekend and the space is really neat--kind of a micro retail concept. The owner indicated the terms are very favorable for folks who have a solid online presence but are looking to develop local walk in traffic as well. She is very happy with the space. I thought it was perfect for a small business owner in the brick and mortar/ecomm retail environment we live in. She mentioned the development across the way as well to form a little retail court there. Should be neat.

The small building to the east has been demolished to make way for what will be almost a mirror of the existing structure:

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Great project, but I'm having a hard time understanding the uninviting metal doors.

Great project, but I'm having a hard time understanding the uninviting metal doors.

They are glass.

I wish someone would lease one of these spots and put in a public accessible podcast recording studio. Somewhere where people could reserve time in a professional sound treated space to record and maybe space for podcast club meetings, seminars, etc. These have popped up in other cities and are pretty popular.

I wish someone would lease one of these spots and put in a public accessible podcast recording studio. Somewhere where people could reserve time in a professional sound treated space to record and maybe space for podcast club meetings, seminars, etc. These have popped up in other cities and are pretty popular.

Do you think there's enough demand in OKC for something like that?

KCSC is now downtown (in the Santa Fe Garage space) and their new digs are really awesome. You can see them recording from the sidewalk. Wonder if they'd allow that space to be used for the podcast thing.

Work has already started on the 2nd building (on the right):

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Do you think there's enough demand in OKC for something like that?

I have at least five buddies who have all started their podcasts over the past couple of years. They all are looking for better recording situations and I think they would all be up for a studio like that.

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That entrance/exit thing is annoying and hardly do people ever use it as intended.

This project is now complete.

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Any idea what a slip goes for?

Looks nice!

Any idea what a slip goes for?

Looks nice!

$1,025 - $2,250 per month:

https://www.priceedwards.com/oklahoma-city-property/office/lease/make-ready-buildings

A before-and-after; great infill project:

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Wow...that is amazing!!!

$1,025 - $2,250 per month:

https://www.priceedwards.com/oklahoma-city-property/office/lease/make-ready-buildings

That's actually not too bad for a commercial space. But it would all come down to what kind of business you're running.

Have there been any tenants either announced or that it is thought they will be moving here?

The first half already has tenants. When I've walked by I've seen company names in windows and on signs, but don't remember them.

New sign:

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I have to say this is a very nice project. Sounds like it can appeal to smaller tenants (start-ups). Hopefully this project will be a success and spur other similar infill projects in this area!

Yesterday there were some tents/vendors setting up shop outside of Make Ready so my girlfriend and I stopped in for a bit. It was really nice to see a good amount of people there sifting through stuff. My girlfriend bought a cute little bison sticker for her car. I’d recommend people check it out!

The Midtown Renaissance group is preparing to expand this project to the south and east, with 4 new buildings. All will have the same sort of micro-retail space on the ground floor as in the first phase, and 2 will have apartments above.


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Wow, this project is going to completely transform what was a pretty sad urban block just 3 years ago.

see if there are any fellow geezers with a good memory can help me here-I know Bolen Oldsmobile was at 12th and Robinson. I can't remember if the service department was on the NW corner or the SW corner? I also recall the "last house in Midtown", which was moved to somewhere around NW 19th and Lee(?) was either in the lot that is going to be Building 4, or the existing parking lot just north of there?

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This expansion is fantastic, though as a living space I am dissapointed to not see any greenspace incorporated into the plan. It seems like there is a great opportunity for place making here that is being neglected in favor of front facing parking. This project could easily take form similar to Magnolia Market in Waco, but instead there is a lot of area still being reserved for parking, which Midtown has no shortage of as-is.

Work has started on the apartments and live/work units:

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I have OCD, and this block looks like a maze to me :-(.

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Moving fast:

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When you sit back and think about all the construction projects small and large (including freeways) that are currently happening in OKC is astonishing!

We're watching a city enter into it's mid-league status. Not quite like the townships of your Dallas', Atlantas, NYC, LA, Boston, Philly, Austin, but that "flyover state" status is getting lifted.

When you sit back and think about all the construction projects small and large (including freeways) that are currently happening in OKC is astonishing!

Truly! And yet, when you look at aerial views of the city, there are still so many big open gaps and holes waiting to be filled in. It's crazy how much damage urban renewal and white flight did to this city. It's as if entire blocks were bombed.

MAPS is in its fourth iteration, and we still see so many undeveloped lots in the urban core. OKC needed some kind of Marshal Plan after Urban Renewal. :)

Remember, the huge gaps just now being partially filled in Midtown have zero to do with urban renewal. It was just neglect, plain and simple.

A sprawling city like OKC is never going to have a uniform density. A more realistic goal and one that has been happening is that we have areas that are getting much denser with lots of things to see and do. That's a huge step forward as compared to just a few decades ago.

^^^

Yes, and the city is doing an admirable job of it. To your point, simply filling in and connecting the more urban fabric would be huge. If you consider the breadth of 23rd St, east and west, as a bit of a northern boundary, and 29th ST as a southern boundary, with Penn a western boundary—that would be a large city in itself. And then you would have pockets of density outside of that core throughout the city.

There have been gaping holes over a massive area dating back to the late 60s.

People started moving to the outlying areas and almost all of Midtown was completely abandoned. The entire time I was a commercial real estate broker from 1982 to 1989, nobody even looked at properties in that area and the brokerage community didn't even try to sell or lease there.

Most buildings were empty and many owners just walked away completely. Before long buildings started to be torn down due to insurance risks. This was also true for huge parts of downtown.

This is what people overlook when talking about the Pei Plan or government-funded urban renewal. There were huge areas of blight and there was no way to get any sort of investment without clearing out a lot of the rot. Rot was the problem and urban renewal was just a consequence of it. And there was zero uran renewal north of 4th, south of Reno and west of Western.

There were some architecturally significant buildings that were lost but there were literally thousands of others that were beyond the disaster state and the huge majority of demolition was by private owners where property had almost no value. Those forces are still working in the same way in a lot of rust belt cities where entire neighborhoods have just been abandoned.

I will never forget taking my visiting uncle around downtown a few weeks after the bombing. When we were driving up Broadway in Automobile Alley, he said, “It’s unbelievable how much damage the bomb created.” Reluctantly, I had to summon the will to tell him it looked that way BEFORE the bombing.

I remember taking an out of state investor through the vacant and rat-infested Plaza Court building. It seems like a miracle it was saved. Midtown was, as you say, nonexistent. 23rd Street was mostly loan shark joints and a place to sell your plasma.

The Plaza was rundown with vacant storefronts.

There was ONE functioning hotel downtown with no hotel properties in Bricktown.

It is sad and incomprehensible how utterly neglected and devoid of planning this city was even fairly recently. I know it’s not the fault of the Pei Plan. When things get that bad you have to blame city leaders for presiding over it.

People have no idea how powerful the Gaylord family was in this city at one time. Almost nothing happened here without their tacit or explicit support. So, if there is a bigger villain than E.L. Gaylord I would like to know who it is.

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Some of the new live/work units:

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Shouldn't the parking spots all be facing the same way? Doesn't look like there's enough room for a two-way lane between them. Huge pet peeve of mine...

Shouldn't the parking spots all be facing the same way? Doesn't look like there's enough room for a two-way lane between them. Huge pet peeve of mine...

I'm guessing it is so cars which enter from 13th and those from Harvey can both park to their right.

Shouldn't the parking spots all be facing the same way? Doesn't look like there's enough room for a two-way lane between them. Huge pet peeve of mine...

Don't look now, but some of those lines aren't perfectly parallel to each other, either.

I'm guessing it is so cars which enter from 13th and those from Harvey can both park to their right.

Lot's full and a car pulls in from each direction, what now? :rolleyes:

Shouldn't the parking spots all be facing the same way? Doesn't look like there's enough room for a two-way lane between them. Huge pet peeve of mine...

I believe that lot is just a private employee parking lot for a business on the other side of Robinson. I don't believe it is associated with Make Ready in any way.