I'm sure the 18 units would be along he remaining frontage on Stiles, the only suitable location for any type of mixed-use or retail and thus walling off the entire backside of the property with a line of residential units.
Instead, OCURA should force them to complete Phase I then see how things go. At least that way the rest of the property could be adapted for another type of development.
Yes, Building 2 has 18 units... But as I stated, I think they should first finish Buildings 3 & 7, and thus wrap up Phase I.
If and then there is still a decent market for this product, then they could go forward. And if there isn't a market, than the location of Building 2 (the last remaining frontage on the through street, Stiles) could be an entry point to the property behind and allow for a different type of development.
Otherwise, they will have allowed the best part of the property to be cherry-picked, leaving the less desirable parts for someone else to try and pick up the pieces.
OCURA should absolutely not allow this group to hold this property for another 20 years, which is what it would take to develop the entire property at the rate they are going.
There are already footings poured for 3 and 7, so I suspect those will be the next ones they start.
Speculating about some problem OCURA could avoid is pointless anyway.
Further, is a clubhouse really necessary at this point? Just one more thing for a tiny condo association to foot the maintenance bill on at some point.
Anyone know if they are proceeding on the completion of "phase 1"?
What is the possibility that OCURA might actually release the rest of the site for redevelopment?
I talked to someone that worked there a few weeks ago... and they said construction was beginning on building 3 and they were going to finish out three units in the big building 8.
Are they going to finish the Hill out or is it going to just sit there taking up space?
They've sold two more units since the first of the year, but that's only six total out of 32 constructed.
It would be nice if they changed their development and build the rest of it out as mixed use with apartments. I know that will never happen, but if you are going to have a business these days you have to be flexible. Obviously this business model didn't work.
Did the city provide any TIF money for this project?
One of the realtors who specializes in downtown told me four more have contracts pending, including one in the new building. She also said they were going to start the clubhouse and pool soon. All that's hearsay. If the developer doesn't mind waiting, it seems as if we will soon have a plethora of rental options. Maybe it doesn't hurt to keep some housing available to buy.
TIF money was used for doing streets and underground utilities on The Hill.
Wait Steve, I am extremely confused (and pissed off) about that. As you recall, the reason this project was ever selected in the first place was because they dropped the TIF request at the 11th hour and notifications weren't made to the other competing developers.
The selection of The Hill occurred during a one-year period when I was not covering Urban Renewal, so I don't recall the TIF request being dropped or not. In December city staff released a report showing which TIF projects were performing, which ones weren't. The Hill was listed as failing to meet projections set by the developer.
The numbers:
→Allocation: $2,650,000
→Current increment: $2,682,554
→Projected increment: $48,779,225
→Projected payback: exceeds life of the district
Here is an Oklahoman article from April 22, 2005:
Canfield & Co. also stated in their proposal the townhouses would sell for between $170K and $340K.
Looking at the current listings, there isn't one unit for sale for less than $380,000 and some are $500K.
So does anyone remember what the Walnut Hill group's proposal consisted of? I thought someone said in the past that it incorporated retail and office space.
Yes, Walnut Hill (McDermid et. al.) featured rental lofts, live/work lofts along Stiles and for-sale townhomes.
It was also selected as the clear choice by OCURA's paid consultants but The Hill group was allowed to submit last-minute adjustments to their plan (removal of the TIF funds) without notice to the other applicants.
hmmm......
The Hill is a big disappointment for residential development in downtown. Where do they come up with the price points? Like seriously, who really wants to pay half a million dollars for a 3 bedroom townhouse with no backyard, that's crazy. Moreover the development doesn't offer any basic amenities for its residents like a pool, clubhouse, gym, etc... For that much money you can have a nice home in Rose Creek or Oak Tree, lol.
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