Stage Center

[Pete]

Anthony agreed “the door is still open” for a deal to be done with the children's museum organizers, but said an appraisal on the property has been completed and the theater's fate may be decided by her board later this month.

“We have determined options have to be broader than the not-for-profit community,” Anthony said. “We believe it's inappropriate not to deal with this after it has been empty for two years.”

Sounds like they are getting serious interest from private developers.

[Just the facts]

Translation - we have another buyer and it is more than you can afford.

[Larry OKC]

STEVE: Is the tornado looking thing in the rendering one that you had mentioned over in your blog some time ago? I remember it looking pretty kewl if it is the same thing.

[Rover]

Translation - we have another buyer and it is more than you can afford.

And it sets the pricing stage for the CC site negotiations. It will now start to get interesting with real facts, not speculation.

[BoulderSooner]

And it sets the pricing stage for the CC site negotiations. It will now start to get interesting with real facts, not speculation.

that price has already been set very high by the vitagraph property

[Larry OKC]

SID: thanks...that's it

[Spartan]

that price has already been set very high by the vitagraph property

Talk about an elaborate way for the city to shoot itself in the foot.

[SoonerDave]

Sounds like they are getting serious interest from private developers.

Yup. Pretty hard not to draw that inference, and pretty plain way of saying it without saying it.

[Pete]

Group seeking children’s museum for Stage Center negotiating deal, organizer says

by Brian Brus (Journal Record)
Published: May 14th, 2012

OKLAHOMA CITY – Stage Center in downtown Oklahoma City may be rescued within a week, said Tracey Zeeck, coordinator of a campaign to move a children’s museum into the landmark building.
If a deal doesn’t shake out as Zeeck’s group hopes, the building’s owners... still plan to look for other suitors, said Nancy Anthony, executive director... of the Oklahoma City Community Foundation.

“We’re moving ahead through the process,” she said. “To say we’ve hit an impasse would be an overstatement. We’ve explained the circumstances and what needs to be done, so it’s not as though we’re negotiating anything. There’s no impasse.

“The crux of the matter is that we need to move on; we need to look for other opportunities,” Anthony said. “It’s been two years that the building has been vacant and almost unusable. It’s not fair to the citizens of Oklahoma City to perpetuate this so that maybe someone can raise the money and maybe try it again. We need something more definite.”

The nonprofit foundation maintains the oddly segmented property at a cost of $12,000 to $15,000 per month, or about $150,000 per year, officials said. The 3-acre tract at Sheridan and Hudson avenues has potential value as raw real estate, especially with the increasing emphasis on MAPS 3 projects and so-called Core to Shore development following the relocation of Interstate 40.

But civic leaders have been reluctant to simply let it go. Architectural groups have deemed the building a significant design by John M. Johansen, a student of Walter Gropius and Frank Lloyd Wright, and possibly one of Johansen’s most influential buildings. It received the American Institute of Architects’ National Honor Award in 1972, the same year that the Museum of Modern Art in New York City accepted the building model into its permanent collection.

So the central Oklahoma chapter of the American Institute of Architects stepped up to the challenge of saving the building when it learned that the foundation was considering its sale. The AIA chapter asked for permission to broaden the search, which turned up only two proposals by the March 1 deadline. The most promising, submitted by Zeeck’s group, is to convert the center to a children’s museum, expected to be less expensive than trying to upgrade it as a viable theater venue. The Children’s Museum of Phoenix has been a partner in promoting the plan.

Zeeck would not discuss details of the deal, nor reveal the identity of the other party. However, she did agree with Anthony and said she supports the foundation’s position.

“I think the community foundation has been a pleasure to work with,” Zeeck said. “They haven’t done one thing that we didn’t expect or weren’t told about,” she said. They have to represent their constituents and be good stewards of their resources. We completely understand their position. We know that ultimately they’re doing what’s right.”

Regardless of the success of negotiations this month, Zeeck said supporters of a children’s museum are dedicated to make it a reality, even if they have to move away from downtown. They have been offered a few acres elsewhere in the city, she said.

Anthony said the group still has four months to act before outside bids are invited. The foundation offered to hold Stage Center through Sept. 1 for a $25,000 deposit.

“We gave them an opportunity to follow up, not to close the door on the issue and say, ‘Time’s up,’” Anthony said. “We gave them the right of first refusal to buy the property in case we have an opportunity to sell it. … But we need to tie this up. It can’t be left hanging for much longer.”

[SoonerDave]

Sure sounds to me like the Foundation is trying to give this other project every chance, but also making it clear (without saying it) that there is clear and apparently ready interest from other parties. Looks to me like they've given them four months to come up with an offer that matches the one they have in their hip pocket, as it were.

[Spartan]

Well it sounds like Nancy Anthony is making certain to avoid the appearance of stonewalling the preservationists, but I bet she has a clear preference to work with the prospective developers instead, particularly considering who those developers could be backed by. That's the kind of thing that could translate into stronger corporate support for her organization, which is understandable. Likewise, PO had to pull the plug on the SR opposition when Devon threatened to pull contributions.

The game changer will be if Zeeck actually does get the big-time donor to come forward.

[SoonerBoy18]

Interesting read on the Mechanic Theater by John M. Johansen. They're turning it from one of the "World's Top Ten Ugliest Buildings" into this highrise of mixed retail, residential, hotel space, and underground parking.

Link

I know I'm late on this, what is this and when will it be built?

[Spartan]

That is in Baltimore, not OKC. The link you quoted has more information if you're still interested...

[Larry OKC]

Easy to understand the confusion on locale... on first glance, the building to the left is Skirvinesque and one could probably find examples of other buildings in the rendering here in OKC too (but not in the same proximity/location)

[MDot]

Easy to understand the confusion on locale... on first glance, the building to the left is Skirvinesque and one could probably find examples of other buildings in the rendering here in OKC too (but not in the same proximity/location)

As I was scrolling down and noticed that the first building that caught my eye was the building that looks like the Skirvin so yes, very easy to confuse them.

[Spartan]

Easy to understand the confusion on locale... on first glance, the building to the left is Skirvinesque and one could probably find examples of other buildings in the rendering here in OKC too (but not in the same proximity/location)

He quoted the link himself...

[Pete]

This may be the death knell for Stage Center...




Children's museum organization ends effort to save Stage Center in Oklahoma City

An organization that formed in January to acquire and preserve downtown Oklahoma City's troubled Stage Center so it could be turned into a children's museum is moving on after determining the project can't be funded.


Read more: http://newsok.com/childrens-museum-o...#ixzz20H8hOcWn

[Steve]

That link is going to be dead now - they posted an earlier version of the story. The correct, updated version should be posted soon.

[Pete]

Steve, can we assume the foundation will now start working with potential developers for that site?

There seems to be interest and I'm not aware of anyone else interested in trying to make use of the current facility.

[Steve]

Yeah. Have you seen the correct version of the story now with the interview with Beffort? It's online now. What happened was I wrote the story about the children's museum yesterday, was going to print with it today, and I decided to hold it to add in the information about the sale. Unfortunately there was a publishing system quirk that led to the older version being picked up by the central desk, and well, long story short, I just spent the evening fixing it.
Anyway, they're not going to tear it down until a buyer is selected, and there's still an opening for someone to come in with a plan to buy the theater and keep it as part of a new development. Now, do I see there being great odds of that happening? Not really.

[Pete]

Thanks, Steve. Great job getting the feedback from Beffort.

Here's the link to the updated story:

http://newsok.com/childrens-museum-g...rticle/3691388

[kevinpate]

A pity. Not a surprise, but a pity all the same.

[Spartan]

Yup, I'm with Kevin. Let's just hope we get some worthy development proposals on this site that make it worth tearing down an iconic piece of architecture.

[Pete]

How about making this part of a deal with the Fred Jones Ford people...

They had wanted to develop the property that is likely to be taken for the convention center. Why not have them shift over to this site?

[HangryHippo]

At first thought, I very much like your suggestion.