Henderson given ultimatum for Legacy Summit development

[Pete]

Past due

Developer granted extension

By Steve Lackmeyer, Business Writer
Steve Lackmeyer: 475-3230, slackmeyer@oklahoman.com


Developer Mike Henderson could lose his bid to build a $26 million downtown apartment complex after the Oklahoma City Urban Renewal Authority declared Wednesday he is in default of his construction deadlines.

Henderson first submitted plans for 303-unit Legacy Summit at Arts Central at NW 4 and Walker Avenue in September 2002. Henderson initially indicated construction would start by summer 2004.

Instead, the project has received three deadline extensions — the latest of which expired Saturday, Urban Renewal director JoeVan Bullard said Wednesday.

That prompted frustration from Urban Renewal commissioners, who questioned at their monthly meeting why Henderson continues to delay while other housing developers are moving forward with similarly ambitious downtown housing projects. They also questioned whether the city can afford to “tie up” $2.5 million in tax increment finance funds pledged for construction of a garage for the Henderson project.

“This project needs to move forward,” Larry Nichols said. “Either he’s going to do it or not.”

Henderson didn’t attend Wednesday’s meeting, but met with Bullard afterwards. The developer declined to comment, other than to promise he is still going to build the complex. Bullard said Henderson has 60 days to “remedy the default” in his redevelopment contract. If he doesn’t, Bullard said, Henderson could lose his designation as developer for the publicly owned land.

Bullard isn’t without sympathy for Henderson.

“Part of it was he wanted to go with a lending package that site could not meet the benchmark for, and that took an inordinate amount of time,” Bullard said. “The property had a filling station with leaking underground storage tanks, and that took time with Mike being a very, very conservative developer.”

Other problems, Bullard said, include Henderson’s inability to get updated construction cost estimates in the wake of Hurricane Katrina and with fears of more damage after another approaching storm, Hurricane Wilma.

Bullard thinks the Legacy Summit complex will still be built. He reminds those frustrated with the delays that Henderson’s projects have been successful because he is “very thorough.”

“Mike is never going to be the first one to jump in the river and swim to the other side,” Bullard said. “But he’ll be there at the end, pulling people in to cross the river with him.”

[John]

Nice to see. I wish the council and Urban Renewal board would have pressured Mr. Henderson earlier. The delays on this project have been nothing short of rediculous.

[metro]

Yes, they have been wayyyyyy to lenient with him. Boot him out in 30 days. This is a prime piece of land in the arts district, almost one of the few pieces of untouched land in the CBD, especially when it offers a TIF

[Pete]

Doesn't this whole thing sound like the good ol' boy network?

Henderson doesn't even attend the meeting, but meets with Bullard afterward, who then defends him and calls him 'Mike' and talks about him like they are old drinking buddies.


Why not open this up to others, including national developers, especially since so much out of state investment is flowing into OKC right now?


I get uncomfortable every time I read an article about the way OCURA conducts themselves.

[soonerguru]

Malibu,

You are SPOT ON the money. This is the way things are done in OKC. I see it every day in my business, and I work with many of these people.

This is not a big-time city.......yet. We will know we have arrived when business is conducted professionally outside the good ol' boy network.

Having done business in both cities for years, I've always noted that while Tulsa also has a network, it isn't nearly as pervasive as the one we have here. In OKC, being one of the good ol' boys is literally a point of pride among many of our city leaders. They see nothing wrong with them. Propping up the network is as normal an activity to them as drinking water.

[BDP]

I agree. This thing wreaks. Nothing upsets me more to watch a developer benefit so much from public assistance only to respond by dragging their feet. The idea is to mitigate the risk with assistance, but it always seems to attract people who aren't willing to take any risk and have no conscious motivation to reward the community by putting in some extra effort. In the end, it's because the system lets them get away with it. hopefully this ultimatum is sincere.

The sad thing is that this network is really the result of laziness more than anything else. That is, assuming kick backs aren't playing a part of it all.

[Pete]

I would still like to understand the process by which OCURA opens up such opportunities.

How do they market these properties? It seems they take the first person willing to do just about anything they want, then act like they are doing the city some sort of favor.

Now that so much is in place in the central core, we should be marketing opportunities to all the big-time developers who might not have even looked at OKC in the past.


This is what ultimately happened with the Skirvin, and now there is another out-of-state partner being brought in for the proposed Hampton Inn. John Q. Hammonds is great, but surely there are others that would be equally interested and enthused.

[metro]

Apparently 3 strikes and your still in with OCURA. This organization needs new leadership or to be dissolved.

[BDP]

How is OCURA authortity funded and how is that apropriated? Are its members paid.

I see what you're seeing Malibu. There seems to be no proactive action or marketing of any kind. Just a kind of passive attitude. I could be wrong about that. But it does seem like that downtown's market has changed and our developmental strategies need to adobt. It is no longer like they're doing the city a favor, the city is doing the developer a favor.

[floater]

I think public authorities have always been these mysterious yet powerful creatures, dating back to New York, Robert Moses, and his parks and highways. The only thing really pubic about them is that they have bonding authority and are appointed by local officials. But it seems they have no direct public accountability.

I think that's OCURA's excuse as well as the river redevelopment authority's. They're clouded because they can get away with it, as other authorities have. We Oklahomans help by being so disengaged from the city building process. We'll take anything that comes along because everybody's busy going to soccer practices and church and working to pay the bills. Outside of a few activists and stakeholders, City Hall seems to be rarely pestered about the sweet deals taking place. Not even the media can be counted on to squeeze some accountability out of these bodies.

[jdsplaypin]

You should read a book called the powerbroker. It discusses Robert Moses in depth. Great New York Times bestseller.

[Pete]

Floater (and perhaps this topic merits a separate thread but let's start here for now), what are your thoughts on how an individual or small group of like-minded people could serve as public advocates when it comes to OCURA, the river authority and the like?

For example, if I was to move back to OKC and decided I wanted to take the bull by the horns -- attend all the meetings, post all the minutes, keep others posted on what's going on so there could be some real activism -- how effective do you think I/we could be??


I'm asking honestly because part of me says someone needs to step up and be the Ralph Nader of OKC issues, but then I also realize that that person wouldn't get very far without some sort of clout, or at least an organized group, behind him or her.


It's something I think about a great deal because I think it's badly needed, as the greater good seems to be frequently compromised by a relatively small group of closely intertwined people.


It seems a well thought-out blog might be a good place to start.

[Karried]

MalibuSooner, I'd stand behind you any day.... tell us where and when - you have always been a great supporter of OKC

[metro]

For example, if I was to move back to OKC and decided I wanted to take the bull by the horns -- attend all the meetings, post all the minutes, keep others posted on what's going on so there could be some real activism -- how effective do you think I/we could be??


I'm asking honestly because part of me says someone needs to step up and be the Ralph Nader of OKC issues, but then I also realize that that person wouldn't get very far without some sort of clout, or at least an organized group, behind him or her.


It's something I think about a great deal because I think it's badly needed, as the greater good seems to be frequently compromised by a relatively small group of closely intertwined people.

Honestly I think if your anyone of any clout or are affiliated with an organization, and if someone is not, just get involved with one, someone could make a good difference. The thing is others and myself who have tried simply don't have the time to make it to all the meetings, etc, only some and we lose momentum with our daily lives. If someone who had the time to devote themselves to such a cause, serious headway could be made, while its true the good old boy system still exists in some forms, the majority of those days are gone. The general public just doesnt care or is too lazy to do anything about it without holding their hand and reading it in The Daily Oklahoman.

[Pete]

Metro, it seems the other reality is that someone would have to be willing to be the bad guy and run the risk of be labeled a crackpot or liberal irritant and in a town like OKC, you certainly would sacrifice any political future and your job prospects might suffer as well.


That is, if the goal was to really stay on top of things and continually question decisions and ask for explanations.

I know from my limited attempts to get minutes and info. from OCURA that they do everything they can to brush you off and you almost have to be rude to get anything out of them.

Therefore, someone -- or some people -- would have to be aggressive and stand up continually because they obviously don't want outsiders or the general public involved.

[metro]

While I don't think you would be labeled a liberal, it could jeopardize a political career which is something I have had to limit my actions. On the other hand, if successful it could be a huge payoff politically. The average Oklahoman is more moderate than most people give credit for. The last 80 years we have been a majority Democrat representation at the capitol with a Republican governor. It really needs to be a group effort to bring some accountability to the corrupt organization calling themselves OCURA otherwise known as Urban Renewal

[floater]

Malibu, good question. I think the Save the Dome story is a textbook example of how local activists can change things for the better. Here is what they did, and what others can do:

- Work on the issue on two levels. The grassroots front and the insider front. Stage protests while finding well-respected allies in the community to work with the opposition or help you. The Dome group solicited Cliff Hudson, and he donated Sonic billboard space for the cause. At the same time, they had architects working on ways to fit a Walgreens inside the Dome. In the case of OCURA, having other business and civic leaders pressure the board to open things up may do some good.

- Have a web presence. The Dome effort had one, and would be critical in educating the public in why OCURA needs to change its ways.

- Enlist outside help. The Dome effort somehow (I believe) enlisted the state and national registers of historic places to have it listed. The National Trust for Historic Preservation had it listed as a "most endangered" place. It received national media attention because of this. This is where I think the media could play a stronger role. Find movers and shakers in the development world and within the area to bring some credibility to the effort. Who stands to gain from a more open OCURA? Who is an authoritative voice in urban redevelopment?

- Shout every day about it. The media and public have short attention spans. Don't depend on one rally to do the trick. Make news. Do something to compel the media to cover the cause. The protesters did this -- every day for months, at NW 23rd/Classen and sometimes at the Bank One tower. Tell people why OCURA's modus operandi hurts OKC.

- Get organized. The Dome group used a yahoo user group to send out notices for events and protests, as well as rally the troops. Meet regularly to discuss a game plan. Always be telling people what they can do to help the cause.

This is enough to start.

[metro]

Shout every day about it. The media and public have short attention spans. Don't depend on one rally to do the trick. Make news. Do something to compel the media to cover the cause. The protesters did this -- every day for months, at NW 23rd/Classen and sometimes at the Bank One tower. Tell people why OCURA's modus operandi hurts OKC.

This is oh SO TRUE!! I'm down with helping get this effort started.

[floater]

And jd, yes, I am about a third into the book. Moses actually started out as a good government advocate, but that changed when he began working with Al Smith, the New York governor. And as they say -- power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.

[jdsplaypin]

so you've only got around 600 pages to go!

[floater]

It's a long-term read :tweeted:

[BDP]

Malibu, I think it would be a great service to our city for someone to do that. I think the key would be to stay focused on a simple, and non-partisan, mission: public access and accountability of OCURA. I don't see how anyone could view such an undertaking as crackpot or even liberal. I think if there was some level of required public access, better accounatbility would follow.

[floater]

Is there a public official in the city who is willing to sacrifice further electability for the sake of the city? Can someone step up and stand up to OCURA?

I don't think anyone's going to do it on their own. It has to start at the grassroots level. Only when a critical mass of support is built will someone step up. It has to be someone who doesn't look like an opportunist, who is almost universally respected. Someone beyond reproach. Who is that knight in shining armor?

[Patrick]

I'm glad to see OCURA finally pushing Henderson on this. He needs to either complete the project, or we need to move on and find another developer. I will admit, I love his ideas for the property, but we've waited long enough. What's on paper and what can actually be done are two different things.

Like you guys though, the good ole boy network so apparent in this bugs me.