So is Apple interested in a second Tulsa location? There was the rumor that Norman was going to get one, which seemed reasonable, then it just turned out to be OU's it shop..


Spartan, there aren't Chanel and Dior items sprinkled throughout many stores in the country. It's actually pretty impressive that they carry them, regardless of what the store is called. I don't think you can throw out Juicy Couture as a reasonable comparison.

I'm just not qualified enough in the retail world to be able to seriously consider that, because it would involve knowing who in Tulsa is the authorized reseller of such brands. My ilk doesn't buy Dior, not even when I'm in Europe.. :P

It looks like the screwup on the carpark was pretty big. they have removed almost the entire roof now down to the concrete.

It looks like the screwup on the carpark was pretty big. they have removed almost the entire roof now down to the concrete.

Are you talking about the "Central Park" as in the parking garage under the athletic field in the middle of campus? I parked next to it today and saw nothing of the sort.

I am not sure if you can see it from the ground. Everything that i saw was via this weblink. If you look back over the past 2 - 3 weeks you will see what i am talking about.

http://oxblue.com/pro/open/smithandpickel/centralparkcarpark


It looks like the started relaying the blue foam stuff today. Hard to imagine what they screwed up.

Just saw some job ads for the Child Development Center (day care) and they mention a summer opening date.

It will be operated by Child's Choice (www.childschoice.com).

Pete, where did you see the ad for the child care center?

http://jobs.newsok.com/careers/jobsearch/detail?kAndEntire=child+development&location=&view=1&jobId=38624429&viewType=main&networkView=main&offset=

I moved a bunch of posts about CHK business practices (rather than development) to this thread in the Local Businesses section:

http://www.okctalk.com/showthread.php?t=26031

Looks like they are back on track with the Central Car Park and it also appears they will be installing live sod, thus making the top surface a green roof. Looking at the webcam, I believe the black squares they are laying down are the same as shown below (the drainage/aeration layer):

http://www.lid-stormwater.net/images/greenroof1.jpg

^^^
Pete,

Am I reading this wrong, or are they are building a park on top of an underground parking?? If so it sounds like their version of what was talked about in the C2S Central Park???

that picture is very interesting. It matches up with how they have been doing the car park so far. first they tarred the roof, then a double layer of the blue insulation, then clear plastic, then black plastic, then light blue, now the dark blue matting, and today they started with a blueish purpulish plastic. I would guess dirt would be next?

It will be interesting to see how they landscape the top with plants.

are they are building a park on top of an underground parking

Larry, the plan was always to have a playfield on top of what they call their Central Car Park. There is currently a playfield and track just on the other side of Western and north of the Whole Foods location, but they will soon be developing that property so they are effectively moving those facilities across the street and on top of the parking garage.

I had assumed they'd just use synthetic turf, as the new stuff is pretty darn realistic and much lower maintenance. But it seems clear from watching the construction progress they are going to install real sod instead, effectively making it a "green roof" to the garage below.

Someone I know at Hertz just received this email:

Today, Hertz OKC has reached the first milestone toward the sale of the Customer Contact Center building. Chesapeake Energy Corporation has signed a letter of intent to purchase the building located at 10401 N. Pennsylvania. During the next 60 - 90 days, Chesapeake will perform engineering studies, and the sale will be finalized. We will also begin the engineering and architectural analysis to prepare the Hertz Technology Center as the new home for our Customer Care organization.

What the heck does CHK want with that property?

What the heck does CHK want with that property?

Isn't the Love's headquarters right next to that property? Haven't Love's and CHK been getting kinda cozy lately with regard to CNG being available at Love's gas stations? I wonder if this is related somehow.

Isn't the Love's headquarters right next to that property? Haven't Love's and CHK been getting kinda cozy lately with regard to CNG being available at Love's gas stations? I wonder if this is related somehow.

It is right next to it, but it is only a three mile drive from the Chesapeake HQ to Love's HQ anyway. That is a lot of square footage for on-site client support if that were the case given their is currently very few Love's station with CNG and nothing else announced, unless a major expansion of the number of stations is has some commitments between the two.

Maybe CHK wants to develop the area around Loves as well.

Looks like they started putting dirt on the Car Park. Actually it looks more like sand.

Does anybody have any idea why half of building 4 is built out of concrete but the other half steel?

Looks like the first five floors of steel on building 14 has gone up.

Does anybody have any idea why half of building 4 is built out of concrete but the other half steel?

Glass....

It looks like they are starting another pad next to the Athropologie. Any ideas what this will be?

There was a building permit a couple of months ago for a bank/office structure.

For some reason i thought the bank would be in the corner. It sure seems like a weird location next a anthropolgie and Wholefoods.

Parking garage 3 is under construction. webcam here (http://oxblue.com/pro/open/smithandpickel/chesapeakeg3)

East of building 14, north of the Child Development Center
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-90LCGc3ZLso/ThoF3zg5HsI/AAAAAAAAAHY/iGn5UTQ8nFs/s640/CHK%252520G3.jpg

Strangely, no building permit has been issued for the new garage.

I'm sure it will be very similar in size and design as the two immediately adjacent.

Just seen Aubrey McClendon on 60 minutes talking about fracking,but I think it was an old interview!

Chesapeake to invest $1B in natural gas technology
By Brianna Bailey
Journal Record
Oklahoma City reporter - Contact 405-278-2847
Posted: 04:02 PM Monday, July 11, 2011

Chesapeake Energy Corp. has unveiled plans to spend $1 billion to develop new natural gas technologies over the next 10 years to spark new demand for the fuel.

The company announced on Monday that is will invest $150 million in Seal Beach-based Calif.-based Clean Energy Fuels Corp. to provide a cheaper, lower-carbon alternative to diesel fuel for heavy-duty trucks.

Clean Energy will use Chesapeake’s investment to speed up building LGN fueling stations at truck stops on interstate highways.
Chesapeake has also struck a $155-million deal for a 50-percent stake in Louisville Colo.-based Sundrop Fuels, Inc.

The company uses natural gas and plant material to make alternative fuels. Chesapeake’s invest will fund the development of a “green gasoline” touted as the largest of its kind in the world. The plant will be capable of producing more than 40 million gallons of gasoline each year made from natural gas and plant matter.

It is right next to it, but it is only a three mile drive from the Chesapeake HQ to Love's HQ anyway. That is a lot of square footage for on-site client support if that were the case given their is currently very few Love's station with CNG and nothing else announced, unless a major expansion of the number of stations is has some commitments between the two.

Maybe they bought it on behalf of Love's, similar to what they did with Sandridge Center...

The steel is going up on the new building next to Anthropologie. Its footprint is fairly substantial. Anthro appears to be ready for brick or whatever they're going to clad it with. Right now its an eye-jarring orange color.

Looks like they started putting dirt on the Car Park. Actually it looks more like sand.

Sand can actually be quite conducive as a growing medium in Oklahoma's climate.

Does the foot print look like a bank?


It is remarkable how much Chesapeake land acquisition has slowed down this year.

Does the foot print look like a bank?


It is remarkable how much Chesapeake land acquisition has slowed down this year.

It's a pretty big rectangle so I would say, "No, it doesn't look like your typical bank building". At least to my eye it looks quite a bit bigger than the Anthropologie building.

The steel is going up on the new building next to Anthropologie. Its footprint is fairly substantial. Anthro appears to be ready for brick or whatever they're going to clad it with. Right now its an eye-jarring orange color.

Hopefully then, they will cover that with a nice OU red brick cover. LOL

dmoor, it could have been relatively recent. Chesapeake just bought half of a company called FrakTech so they have a larger investment in the system now. FrakTech has a large facility in Chickasha but I think they were based out of Plano,TX or something like that. I have a friend that works for them.

Does the foot print look like a bank?


It is remarkable how much Chesapeake land acquisition has slowed down this year.

They already own so much though..we know what else could be left, but these are all still projects down the line with other areas that haven't been begun still in line first.

I went by today and Grand is open again. The new building In the Triangle lines up perfectly with Anthro, although it is bigger. It has the same depth and has an overhang as well, although because the building is bigger, the overhang has a trapezoidal-like angle. It looks suspiciously like more retail.

So if it is retail where will the new bank go?

What bank is supposedly going there? If we've just heard "bank" then I think that's open to question. I saw nothing that looks like a drive-through unless one were to place it on the front of the building. I didn't look that closely at the northwest side of the building, but I only remember the overhang on the front. It looks like a bigger Anthropologie building, with an angled overhang on the front, IIRC.

For some reason i have it stuck in my head that pete had said a permit had been filed for a bank.

The building permit was for a office/bank structure, not retail.

What is being built to the W and NW of Whole Foods?

What is being built to the W and NW of Whole Foods?

We answer directly above.

Thanks Pete. Sorry for the additional thread- some of our threads get so big that it's hard to sift through them! :)

$25 million (!!) building permit issued today for CHK garage #3 mentioned in post #807 (6201 N Shartel).

Is there supposed to be anything special about garage #3 or is it just a regular garage?

Have no idea but it says 6 floors and 75 feet high, which is very similar to the other two garages nearby.

Found this on the web today and it has lots of great, new information.

It not only shows buildings 14 & 15, Garage 3 and the Day Care Center, it also shows buildings 16 & 18 as well as Garage 4 and a proposed central plant location.

It's also interesting to note that most the streets between Classen & Shartel will be turned into greenbelts with sidewalks:

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/chk72711c.jpg

Hadn't it been mentioned that some of the area east of Shartel could be for housing?

This what CHK showed the planning commission a couple of months ago, but I hope it's not final because none of what they show here is very interesting:

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

I also read that CHK now has over 4,000 employees in OKC (10,000 total), added 1,000 here in 2010 alone (!) and consistently has more than 100 open OKC positions.

They anticipate hiring about 100 employees per month in OKC for the foreseeable future.

what is up with the differnt shapes of the buildings? Do they make letters or something? Is there a secret code?

Found this on the web today and it has lots of great, new information.

It not only shows buildings 14 & 15, Garage 3 and the Day Care Center, it also shows buildings 16 & 18 as well as Garage 4 and a proposed central plant location.

It's also interesting to note that most the streets between Classen & Shartel will be turned into greenbelts with sidewalks:

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/chk72711c.jpg

In the CHK pics I took two days ago, I think some of these new buildings are shown, at least the dirt work. I've never seen so much construction at CHK than what is already underway now.

Buildings 14 & 15, Garage 3 and the Day Care are all under construction, as is the Central Car Park and all the Classen Curve Triangle stuff.

Plus, there is obviously a lot more to come!

Grass is now installed on top of car park

http://yfrog.com/z/hscgeynj

Too bad the main camera is now broken so we can't see it :(

The stuff planned between Classen and Shartel is cool.

I guess the powers that be read this thread. the cam is back up this morning.

Building permit today for CHK to remodel that little (5,400 square feet) office building that is immediately north of Flip's.

Only for $100K, so probably just a quick re-do to house some of their employees as they have likely chased off the old tenant (Joy Reed Belt, etc.).

I'm sure that building will eventually come down, as will the larger one directly north, as it is also owned by CHK.

Will Flip's ever cave???

ANOTHER permit today for the CHK campus... This time a 5-story 59,000 square foot office building for $15 million.

I believe this is for 'Building One', the white building shown here:

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/chkbldg1.jpg