Found these on https://gateway.okhistory.org/
Would love to see more unbuilt buildings posted here!

Mid-America II hotel/office tower, where the Wyndham Grand is.
https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc1287532/m1/1/med_res/

Addition of 7 floors to the current ONG Building.
https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc1551394/m1/1/med_res/

330-room Hilton Hotel for the Myriad Gardens.
https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc1296291/m1/1/med_res/
https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc1299767/m1/1/med_res/

Don't know the location of this, caption says "cardboard and balsa wood model... for a proposed new trade center."
https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc769992/m1/1/med_res/

"About half the major land improvements for the proposed 240 Penn Park in South Oklahoma City have been completed."
https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc1291380/m1/1/med_res/

"Architect's sketch shows the proposed 15 story office tower and bank building planned by Fidelity National Bank & Trust Co."
Must be an early proposal of the current Arvest Tower?
https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc467019/m1/1/med_res/

"This is the architect's sketch of the proposed "Ritz-Plaza," $1,500,000, 12-story apartment building to be built in the 1300 block N Robinson."
https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc1294059/m1/1/med_res/

Two office buildings proposed for where BancFirst Tower currently is.
https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc629145/m1/1/med_res/

"Looking at a model of the proposed 25-story Citizens Tower building are, left to right, C. R. Anthony, Myron Horton and D. B. Eddie, among the principal investors."
Different cladding system and 5 stories taller shown in the model than what was built.
https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc475318/m1/1/med_res/

"Decision will be made within 60 days by the Urban Renewal Authority board on whether a drive-in bank or a 14-story office building will be built on the Garibaldi property at Broadway and Robert S. Kerr Ave. This is a drawing of the proposed office building."
This is where the BancFirst drive-thru currently is.
https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc661445/m1/1/med_res/

Pei Plan which was completely conceptual:

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/peiplan080721a.jpg


http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/peiplan080721b.jpg

This is 101 Park Avenue where BC Clark is located.

There was a plan at one time to double the height:

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/skirvintower080721a.jpg

I had an idea for a thread like this. I'm glad you made one. There was a mid-rise(with renderings) planned at I-235 and I-44 I am trying to find it.

The monorail system that was supposed to be built throughout the city: https://www.oklahoman.com/gallery/articleid/5433527

There was also a 3rd office tower planned for what was originally known as 'The Galleria'.

Was proposed at 50 floors and would have been located roughly where the Ron Norick Library sits.

Of course, The Galleria itself never materialized and now Devon Energy Center occupies that property.

I'll see if I can hunt down a rendering somewhere.

There was also a 3rd office tower planned for what was originally known as 'The Galleria'.

Was proposed at 50 floors and would have been located roughly where the Ron Norick Library sits.

Of course, The Galleria itself never materialized and now Devon Energy Center occupies that property.

I'll see if I can hunt down a rendering somewhere.

Is this the one?
https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc641632/m1/1/med_res/

Here's another Galleria rendering dated 1974:
https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc653444/m1/1/med_res/

^

Yep, that was the very briefly proposed 3 Galleria.

"Vincent Carrozza shows a model of downtown Oklahoma City, with the proposed Galleria, in this August 1982 photo."
https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc762683/m1/1/med_res/

BTW, I am going to delete any "developers here always over-promise and under deliver" comments.

The negativity on this site is getting out of control.

"Design model of Myriad Gardens, including botanical bridge, right foreground, is shown, with Galleria, upper left."
https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc410669/m1/1/med_res/

"Ron Burks' Office Tower By The Skirvin" found here (http://dougdawg.blogspot.com/2008/03/tall-buildings.html).
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a49/DougLoudenback/miscbuildings/okc2ndtime_nearskirvin_howardand-1.jpg

Does this qualify? I don’t think it was ever seriously proposed but it would have been cool if it did get built:


https://youtu.be/0TkgtddQalQ

KanyeMo, thanks very much for these Galleria III pics, with Carroza. I've been looking for those for years and never seemed to be able to find them. The rendering is just as I remember.

BTW, I am going to delete any "developers here always over-promise and under deliver" comments.

The negativity on this site is getting out of control.

Thanks.

KanyeMo, thanks very much for these Galleria III pics, with Carroza. I've been looking for those for years and never seemed to be able to find them. The rendering is just as I remember.

When I was a student at OU, I knew I wanted to go into commercial real estate but really had no idea about all the different types of jobs and companies that were involved in the industry.

This was right after Corporate Tower (then known as 1 Galleria) was built, and Carroza, who was based in Dallas, had a small office in that building.

I just walked in, introduced myself as a student interested in the field, and they showed me that model. After knocking on a bunch of doors, I ended up taking a job with CBRE (then known as Coldwell Banker Commercial) as a commercial real estate broker. Started off in the Oil & Gas Building then was one of the first tenants when Leadership Square opened.

Carozza received tons of incentives and did nothing more than build two office buildings (2 Galleria became Oklahoma Tower). Eventually after he was taken out of the picture, the IRS building was constructed as was the parking garage to the west. That was until Devon worked out a deal with the city to build the Devon Energy Center complex on the site of what was the ill-fated Galleria project.

Proposed in the early 1980's, Oklahoma Commerce Tower, an apprx 20-story building, nw/c of Kerr and Hudson.
17023

Interesting story Pete. I graduated from about that time too, and also had a big interest in the same business. I too went around, knocking on doors, trying to talk to some of the same real estate firms, looking for a way "in." However, Penn Square bank failed that June and we all know what happened next, esp to that business. For a time, I worked for IBM located in Oklahoma Tower, and our office looked out over Park Avenue, allowing me watch the completion of Leadership Square. At the time, I had some connections to OCURA and was able to look at some the proposed renderings for the time. I would be lying if I didn't acknowledge we dodged a big bullet on some of them.

Addition of 7 floors to the current ONG Building.
https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc1551394/m1/1/med_res/


IF someone can get this to happen before 2035 (so that it can be around before I'm 50), I might be able to let go of the Baum building (which was demolished 16 years before I was born) on my actual death bed.

Lincoln Plaza.
https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc1303737/m1/1/med_res/

Founders Tower in the center.
https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc1304453/m1/1/med_res/

I've seen that Lincoln Plaza model but the Founders Tower rendering l hadn't seen. Too bad a lot of these couldn't be constructed.

Someone should add those proposed at the time of the Devon tower where the Theater used to be.

OU libraries posted a rendering on their social media pages of a proposed expansion to the Bizzell library from 1979. This looks sort of like the "new" part of the library (that was built in the early 80s?), but the version that was built is clearly a very scaled down version.

17031

OU libraries posted a rendering on their social media pages of a proposed expansion to the Bizzell library from 1979. This looks sort of like the "new" part of the library (that was built in the early 80s?), but the version that was built is clearly a very scaled down version.

that is amazing... it's like a fever-dream version of what was actually built. the one thing i wish that they would have incorporated from this draft is the corner towers so that the addition coordinates with the architecture of the older section of bizzell and with evans. maybe somebody who is better versed in architectural terminology can say what those 'little corner towers' are actually called. : )

^^^^^
Those are turrets. Watch that you aren't pierced by 1000 arrows when you walk past.

^^^^^
Those are turrets. Watch that you aren't pierced by 1000 arrows when you walk past.

riiight... thanks! my mind was stuck on 'parapets' and i knew that wasn't right. if the physical sciences center was built to withstand riots, then maybe it wasn't too crazy to throw in a few turrets around campus for defense. : )

Love, love this topic. The Dunning Collection on the Metro Library website provides a particularly nice example of the Episcopal Church thinking big, very big.

https://www.metrolibrary.org/archives/image/2020/11/cathedral-church-all-souls

At that time, the pro-Khomeini and anti-Khomeini Iranians were fighting each other on the ovals.

Of all those, I wish the Ron Burks office tower had been built. That would be a really nice addition to downtown. There are others I like, but that's pretty much my favorite.

At that time, the pro-Khomeini and anti-Khomeini Iranians were fighting each other on the ovals.

somehow, this is how i imagine that going down...
http://i.imgur.com/hbBDSaV.jpg

Speaking of unbuilt developments, is The Oak (catty-corner to Penn Sq. Mall) completely dead?

Speaking of unbuilt developments, is The Oak (catty-corner to Penn Sq. Mall) completely dead?

No work is ongoing. Delayed but not dead.

No work is ongoing. Delayed but not dead.

^^^ What they said with a comma between No and work.

^^^ What they said with a comma between No and work.

Lol, good catch!

Shepherd Memorial Baptist Hospital, southeast corner of NW 30th and Villa, found here (https://okcmod.com/2014/05/never-built-oklahoma/).
https://okcmod.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/brown-collection-28.jpg

Of all those, I wish the Ron Burks office tower had been built. That would be a really nice addition to downtown. There are others I like, but that's pretty much my favorite.

Agree. It would’ve looked real sharp against the rest of the skyline.

And that Shepherd Memorial Baptist Hospital concept looks like it could be built today, maybe not as a hospital, but something. I like those clean lines.

Agree. It would’ve looked real sharp against the rest of the skyline.

And that Shepherd Memorial Baptist Hospital concept looks like it could be built today, maybe not as a hospital, but something. I like those clean lines.

I agree, the Ron Burks' office tower is probably my favorite too.

Yes it does! The Shepherd Memorial Baptist Hospital reminds me of the new Parkland Hospital in Dallas, built in 2015.
http://interactives.dallasnews.com/2015/new-parkland/images/parkland-main_1380.jpg

Drawing is labeled "Preliminary Study showing the Proposed Development of the Central Riverfront Area - June 1946."
https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc211758/m1/1/med_res/

I agree, the Ron Burks' office tower is probably my favorite too.

Yes it does! The Shepherd Memorial Baptist Hospital reminds me of the new Parkland Hospital in Dallas, built in 2015.
http://interactives.dallasnews.com/2015/new-parkland/images/parkland-main_1380.jpg

You’re right! Didn’t even think of Parkland.

This is the most depressing thread on OKCTalk!

What was the proposed building for the corner lot on the canal? Cotton something?

Every city has buildings never realized. I saw a similar thread about LA one time and I couldn’t believe what had been proposed there over the years.

Most of this I'm actually glad did not happen - but definitely a few of these I'd've liked to see. My favorites so far are Shepard Hospital, and really all of the additions to the current existing buildings. Maybe the Ron Burks' office tower by the Skirvin Not my favorite street level, but the tower looks nice, and, hey, beats the heck out of a one story Banc First.

Most cities have more buildings that never come to fruition than the one that actually do. Building skyscrapers in tier 2 cities is no easy task. With the exception of Austin, Charlotte, and Nashville....you don't see may skyscrapers or high rises being built in tier 2 cities.

Its easy to admire high rises going up in Dallas, Houston, LA, and Seattle, but those cities are major cities. That is what they are supposed to do.

OU libraries posted a rendering on their social media pages of a proposed expansion to the Bizzell library from 1979. This looks sort of like the "new" part of the library (that was built in the early 80s?), but the version that was built is clearly a very scaled down version.

17031

I was at OU at the time, this was all under Bill Bankowsky.

IIRC, that posted image was to be built above the existing north section of the library and that's why it looks like it was on stilts. After very negative and understandable feedback, the school decided to build the addition to the west and that building today (known as the Doris Neuestadt wing) clearly shows some of the same design elements, as seen below:

HTTP://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/bizzell081721b.jpg

Pei Plan which was completely conceptual:

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/peiplan080721a.jpg


http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/peiplan080721b.jpg

Is this the model that at one time was on display in Crossroads Mall?

I was at OU at the time, this was all under Bill Bankowsky.
IIRC, that posted image was to be built above the existing north section of the library and that's why it looks like it was on stilts. After very negative and understandable feedback, the school decided to build the addition to the west and that building today (known as the Doris Neuestadt wing) clearly shows some of the same design elements, as seen below:


from the rendering it looked to me like it was suspended above the courtyard between bizzell and evans. what ended up being built is way more functional and practical... but i absolutely love the sheer craziness of that concept.

oh, i just now remembered... i don't have any renderings handy, but i distinctly remember that sarkey's energy center was originally supposed to be twin towers.

from the rendering it looked to me like it was suspended above the courtyard between bizzell and evans. what ended up being built is way more functional and practical... but i absolutely love the sheer craziness of that concept.

Yes, there is a small gap between Bizzel and Evans but the building as rendered would have been above the north addition to the library without relying on it for support.

Banowsky loved to dream big, that's for sure.

^
maybe i have my directions mixed up. in the rendering, it looks to me like evans is on the left and the 1950's addition to the library is on the right with the proposed section suspended on 'stilts' between the two. but, i would've been a very young kid when all this happened... so who knows. : ) also interesting is that cars were so close to the library in the rendering... in my time, you couldn't park anywhere close to there unless you were in a service vehicle.

^
maybe i have my directions mixed up. in the rendering, it looks to me like evans is on the left and the 1950's addition to the library is on the right with the proposed section suspended on 'stilts' between the two. but, i would've been a very young kid when all this happened... so who knows. : )

You are exactly right and when I said 'above' the north library addition, I just meant elevated over it so it would be clearly seen, especially from the south oval.

^
the plans for sarkeys (or saxon, originally) would have been around your time. do you remember anything about a second tower? i swear i remember seeing plans in the tower's lobby that depicted two towers and a story that the design had to be scaled back due to funding falling through... but haven't been able to find anything that corroborates that online. i'm starting to question my memory on that.

^
the plans for sarkeys (or saxon, originally) would have been around your time. do you remember anything about a second tower? i swear i remember seeing plans in the tower's lobby that depicted two towers and a story that the design had to be scaled back due to funding falling through... but haven't been able to find anything that corroborates that online. i'm starting to question my memory on that.

Yes, there was at least one other design proposal.

I did a quick search without any luck but will keep digging.

The thought of this, blew everyone's mind:

https://cdn2.newsok.biz/cache/r960-08d150fd0ece2e06af534f973bca78a5.jpg

Rand Elliott's Turbinortnic Energy Tower, Oklahoman, Friday, May 15, 2009 - https://www.oklahoman.com/gallery/articleid/3369602

This tower was more of a thought; later came the drawings for the Devon Energy Tower Super Skyscraper. The tallest building in Oklahoma. I remember posters thinking that Devon should occupy then Kerr McGee Tower; Larry Nichols said it (KM) wouldn't be big enough. We now have the tallest structure between Chicago and Dallas. Had Nichols gone with the original 925 ft., (54 story structure); it would have been taller than Bank of America Tower in Dallas at 921 ft.

Those designs of Devon Tower blew this OKCTalk site up.

I swear several years ago I read an article (I think it was on Newsok.com) that someone wanted to build a giant oil derrick in OKC to represent Oklahoma like the Eiffel Tower is to France. But I can't find anything information regarding that structure.

I swear several years ago I read an article (I think it was on Newsok.com) that someone wanted to build a giant oil derrick in OKC to represent Oklahoma like the Eiffel Tower is to France. But I can't find anything information regarding that structure.

It was supposed to straddle the river. It was put out by a politician over on 23rd street.

Yes! Thank you!

I swear several years ago I read an article (I think it was on Newsok.com) that someone wanted to build a giant oil derrick in OKC to represent Oklahoma like the Eiffel Tower is to France. But I can't find anything information regarding that structure.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RGiJ0JWaOm0

Forgive me for not getting this to you sooner. Had to recall where I had this in my drafts.

Wow can’t believe you had this lol.

.


Wow can’t believe you had this lol.

Still believe if we had a large Tower 700 - 800 ft high, similar to a Seattle Space Needle (605 ft) or San Antonio Tower of Americas (750 ft) it would be a game changer for our City.


https://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/okshores.jpg
Skydance Tower, 760 ft, restaurant & observatory.

Could OKC partner with the Chickasaw Tribe to build something of this magnitude on the 100 acres near the FAM museum deeded to them for finishing the museum.

Want to clarify, the pic above was an artists rendering of the FAM Museum (American Indian Cultural Center & Museum (AICCM). The artist (just for fun) decided to inject an observation tower.

.