MAPS 4 Stadium

[Pete]

Stadium and entertainment project proposed for MAPS 4

See the press release below that was just delivered to the Mayor's office late Wednesday afternoon – a MAPS 4 idea submission.

Although the release says the exact site has not been determined, all the images pertain to the former Producer's Coop, land that was recently cleared just south of Bricktown.










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Group proposes connecting south OKC to downtown through cultural and sports district

OKLAHOMA CITY (February 28, 2019) - A growing alliance of Oklahoma City residents and organizations today announced support for a MAPS 4 proposal to connect south Oklahoma City to downtown through a cultural, entertainment and sports district anchored by a City-owned multi-purpose outdoor entertainment venue.

The proposal calls for the City to include the venue in the MAPS 4 program, on which residents are expected to vote later this year. Such a venue would allow Oklahoma City to compete for numerous outdoor events including professional soccer matches, rugby and lacrosse games, high school multi-sport rivalries including Oklahoma State Championship Football games, national performances and a host of outdoor concerts, events and exhibitions.

“We fully support Mayor Holt’s vision to usher in a more diverse and inclusive Oklahoma City,” said Bob Funk, Jr., owner & CEO of Prodigal, LLC which operates the Oklahoma City Energy FC and is major driver of the proposal. “Connecting south Oklahoma City to downtown through a cultural and sports district would be a powerful component of building unity and showcasing our diversity.”

The outdoor venue would be sized in accordance with USL, MLS, U.S. Rugby, Major League Lacrosse as well as Oklahoma Secondary School Field regulations and seat between 8,500 – 10,000 people for sporting events and 16,500 to 18,000 for outdoor concerts. It would be designed to allow for renovation to expand capacity, much like the Ford Center which later became Chesapeake Arena.

The City-owned venue would also serve to anchor a walkable district of diverse, modern restaurants, housing and retail, functioning as the public element of a public -private partnership.

“By funding a City-owned, multi-purpose outdoor venue as part of MAPS 4, Oklahoma City will open the door to private investment to complement the public project,” said Chuck Wiggin, an Oklahoma City-based developer with a 38-year track record of successful investment and development projects.

Wiggin further highlighted how Opportunity Zones, as a part of the site selection process, would heighten the appeal for a new category of private investors. These areas, created by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act in 2017, are designed to spur private investment in designated low-income areas. Much of the City’s Central Business District and surrounding land to the south falls within Opportunity Zone areas.

“Designing connections and walkability around destination areas will also serve to strengthen continuity between Oklahoma City neighborhoods, Scissortail Park, The Convention Center, Wheeler Park, Lower Bricktown and the Boathouse District,” Wiggin said.

The proposal also underscores that a centrally located venue with close proximity to existing downtown attractions would promote citywide accessibility for all residents. However, the submittal stopped short of specifying a location, opting instead to leave the site open-ended, recognizing the City would ultimately determine a location that best suits the proposal.

“We have a keen interest and support for the proposal as a way to connect south Oklahoma City to downtown,” said Dr. Raul Font, president of the Latino Community Development Agency. “We envision this district as one that our community can utilize to showcase Oklahoma City’s vibrant and growing Latino culture.”

The group also proposes the City work with Fields and Futures – a nonprofit founded by OKC Energy FC Partner Tim McLaughlin, which is dedicated to keeping youth in school by refurbishing athletic programs and facilities in Oklahoma City public schools – to add up to 10 soccer fields to Wheeler Park to be uses for tournaments that attract visitors to our region, youth development, league play, and engagement events between professional athletes and the community.

“I’ve witnessed soccer fields transform communities by inspiring young athletes and bringing neighbors together over a common interest,” McLaughlin said. “MAPS 4 is Oklahoma City’s chance to do this on a major scale.”

“We have seen firsthand how soccer can unite so many people,” said Peter Evans, Executive Director of the Oklahoma City Police Athletic League and incoming chairman of the South Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce, “Soccer is a sport a lot of kids play and has significant heritage in so many neighborhoods. As a favorite sport for many of our student-athletes and their families, sharing the game together becomes a relationship building tool for the police officers who serve as coaches and mentors through our program.”

The group identified soccer, rugby and lacrosse as the fastest-growing sports in America, and pointed to a 2018 Nielsen study commissioned by the OKC Energy FC, in which 51 percent of Oklahoma City’s direct market area are interested in or follow professional soccer.

The research further showed Energy FC’s fan base is multicultural and millennial – largely part of the “MAPS generation.”

The group also pointed to the many missed tourism and sporting event opportunities that Oklahoma City is currently unable to compete for due to its lack of an outdoor venue capable of hosting them. They cited Big 12, NCAA, NAIA and junior college soccer, U.S. Soccer Federation, U.S. Youth Soccer, college and club lacrosse, international and club rugby, NCAA Dll football games, e-sports and drone racing events Oklahoma City could pursue if such a facility is built as part of the MAPS 4 initiative.

Supporters include:
Bob Funk, Jr., Partner, Energy FC, Owner and CEO, Prodigal LLC
Tim McLaughlin, Partner, Energy FC, Founder, Fields and Futures
Jake Edwards, President, United Soccer League (USL)
Peter Evans, Executive Director, Police Athletic League and Chairman-elect, South OKC Chamber of Commerce
Steve Hahn, President, AT&T Oklahoma
Bob Ross, President and CEO, Inasmuch Foundation
Dr. Raul Font, Latino Community Development Agency
Chuck Wiggin, President, Wiggin Properties
Adrian DeWendt, President and CEO, Special Olympics Oklahoma
Scott Dedmon, Principal, ADG
Alexander P. Brown, Commissioner, Major League Lacrosse
John White, President, OKC Crusaders Rugby

[jccouger]

I like this.

[Pete]

This is pretty much what Funk was trying to do before when he had the property under contract.

If you look closely you'll see the plan is to extend the Bricktown Canal through the development.

[BoulderSooner]

Doesn’t look like anyone associated with that piece of land is part of their group.

If the city has to buy that land. It makes this very very expensive.

[SagerMichael]

This is what we’ve been waiting years for.... Im excited. Great location for a dense entertainment area with the stadium. It would be perfect if the canal got extended through. Regardless, it’s much better than the “Lower Bricktown 2.0” we thought we were getting.

[onthestrip]

The first line already had me sort of rolling my eyes. "Group proposes connecting south OKC to downtown through cultural and sports district" Connect south OKC to downtown because it goes south a couple more blocks? The river going away?

Maybe a soccer stadium works for Maps 5, but not now. We have no need. We arent getting an MLS team anytime soon, lacrosse and rugby arent attracting crowds and do we not have the ability to have large outdoor concerts at the new park? This seems like a great catalyst for whoever is jockeying for control of the Producers Coop property but I dont think it should be a part of Maps 4 unless its asking for a small amount. What is the dollar amount on this?

[king183]

I am admittedly cynical on this topic, but this is just a dressed up proposal to get the city to fund the construction of Funk's soccer stadium and bail out the owners of the Coop site. There is no guarantee or plan that the area would be developed as depicted in the flashy renderings--the offices, "modern restaurants" (whatever that means), and housing aren't part of the MAPS4 proposal. People will see the renderings of the area as a whole and think, "Oh, this looks great," but not realize the only thing guaranteed to be built is the stadium. We've seen this game before--awesome renderings, poor execution.

[OKCretro]

does the soccer stadium go east-west as opposed to north south?

Pretty sure that the stadium in stillwater is one of the few that actually go east west and not north south.

[king183]

This is pretty much what Funk was trying to do before when he had the property under contract.

If you look closely you'll see the plan is to extend the Bricktown Canal through the development.

I may be wrong, so correct me if I am, but per my above comment: there is no plan for extending the canal. The plan is the stadium. Extending the canal and the building the other items depicted in the renderings is dependent on other stakeholders and private investment separate from this. In other words, they're hoping the publicly funded stadium will spur the private investment they are showing us here and have thrown in the opportunity zone as a possible path for that investment.

[benjico]

I think we're well past the MLS pipe dream. Too many potential cities ahead of us and fewer expansion oportunities on the horizon.

I'd be on board with this if it guarenteed a team to come to OKC. But using city funds to build a stadium for Funk's team? Noppppeeeeeee.

[Pryor Tiger]

I don't think we are well past the MLS pipe dream - the NBA wasn't a possibility until it was. OKC is a sports city, and becoming a soccer city from grade school on up. The Energy have a lot of programs for the young people of OKC. I believe if we build a stadium that can modify to MLS standards we will rise up the list very fast - ESPECIALLY in this location. Talk about having a dynamic downtown?! With Bricktown, this, Convention Center, Omni, new park, etc this is turning into one of the most beautiful downtowns in the nation.

THIS is the kind of proposal I have hoped for for this site - and the list of supporters looms large. Big names with lots of influence. It will draw more housing as shown in the pictures, and the canal extension would be really great through this area. I am going to hear this out and make sure it isn't too good to be true, but in my opinion the city would benefit greatly from a city owned stadium. This has obviously been in the works for a while, and they did a good job of keeping the lid on it.

[Pete]

Here is a video.

After a few phone calls, my understanding is this is the exact same plan that Funk originally proposed when he had the property under contract a couple of years ago, but then backed out.

Something has clearly changed; or they are just trying to get in line for MAPS 4 money while they figure out if they can pull this off.

http://aplacetobringustogether.com/d...ed%20Video.mp4

[Zuplar]

I mean it does look good. But to echo everyone else, pass.

[jedicurt]

like i keep saying on all of these... this won't get me to vote for Maps 4... but if $200 million for streetcar expansion, and them more money for trails, sidewalks and bike lanes... then cool. i'll vote for it regardless of if this is also a project

[G.Walker]

Enough with the grand leisure projects & tourist attractions. MAPS 4 needs to focus more on educational programming, city transit infrastructure, & public safety.

[jedicurt]

Enough with the grand leisure projects & tourist attractions. MAPS 4 needs to focus more on educational programming, city transit infrastructure, & public safety.

i'm curious what your public safety items are for a MAPS type initiative... guess i'm not following along with what you would want

[Timshel]

I would argue that grand projects are almost entirely the point of MAPS and infrastructure, public safety, education, etc. should be funded through “normal” tax collections. Now the fact that normal tax collections don’t adequately cover those things is a separate and real issue that should be addressed but I don’t think changing the core nature of MAPS is the answer. I would rather suspend MAPS and increase other taxes. Even though it’s largely semantics/optics, I think that matters in this context.

[s00nr1]

I hate to be cynical/skeptical as well, but there's no way this gets built as proposed. Unfortunately, we know better.

[jonny d]

Not sure how a tax that isn't permanent will help schools more than a project with long-lasting property, sales, and possible income tax increases will...color me confused. If we can get assurances that the project as a whole will be built, not just the stadium, I'm all for it.

[G.Walker]

i'm curious what your public safety items are for a MAPS type initiative... guess i'm not following along with what you would want

More fire & police stations. Youth centers that tackle issues of teen pregnancy & juvenile delinquency, programs that are more proactive not reactive.

[SouthSide]

I see no benefit for south okc and really resent the way this presented.

[jedicurt]

More fire & police stations. Youth centers that tackle issues of teen pregnancy & juvenile delinquency, programs that are more proactive not reactive.

ok. i follow you know. i'm good with those

[Pete]

I see no benefit for south okc and really resent the way this presented.

The proposal shows a soccer complex on the south side of the river and east of Western.

[OKCRT]

I think we're well past the MLS pipe dream. Too many potential cities ahead of us and fewer expansion oportunities on the horizon.

I'd be on board with this if it guarenteed a team to come to OKC. But using city funds to build a stadium for Funk's team? Noppppeeeeeee.

Pretty much how I feel also. No way I would vote in favor of this. And I might be mistaken but I don't see the price tag. If this is on the ticket I see the end of maps coming. Building stadiums for billionaires just doesn't smell right.

[OKC Guy]

Here is my take. MAPS 4 is going to struggle because they are going to bundle too many projects as one vote.

I love this idea and think it should be voted alone. We built Peake with no NBA team. This can be used for many events even if no MLS.

But if they add StreetCar to the bundle I vote no. Bundling was fine when we had nothing so MAPS1 was all in Bricktown/downtown. It worked so well that 2 and 3 passed (spread around town) but with decreased passing percentages. We are at the point we need to unbundle projects and vote them alone and will have better chances of passing some. The bundles have run their course here. Plus as stand alone votes you see where people stand on issues. And if alone the costsare not as scary as with a bundle.

I would vote yes for this project if voted alone. I would vote no if bundled with Streetcar or other projects I don’t like.