Preftakes Block

[Spartan]

The same thing that is wrong with EIFS.

Wrong lol

[Just the facts]

Spartan - are you saying a glass curtain wall isn't used because it is the cheapest material? I think that is exactly why they use it.

[metro]

Steve mentioned this in his on-line chat today...

Pizza Town is closed and Steve says Preftakes is trying to acquire it.

I noticed it was closed when I walked by last week but forgot about it until now.

Sad to loose a long time business, but the food was nothing special and the place was filthy and questionable.

[bluedogok]

dup

[bluedogok]

Curtainwall is not that cheap, especially with newer energy efficient glazing which is required by most jurisdictions to meet energy codes. Curtainwall is used a lot in tall buildings because people want windows, for low rise you can can use storefront which is more affordable but for anything of height you have to use curtainwall which is engineered for greater height. EIFS is a fraction of the cost.

[Just the facts]

FNC doesn't have windows, since when? What exterior building material for a high-rise is cheaper than glass?

[hoya]

Sad to loose a long time business, but the food was nothing special and the place was filthy and questionable.

That place has been closed for a few years. I think the last time I saw anyone in there would have been in '07 or '08. In other news, did anyone know Heath Ledger died?

[Pete]

That place has been closed for a few years. I think the last time I saw anyone in there would have been in '07 or '08. In other news, did anyone know Heath Ledger died?

It has been open recently. It was definitely open in June because I went in.


The place has looked abandoned for a long time but hasn't been.

[hoya]

I walk by there literally every day. I haven't seen anyone at all inside it for years.

[Pete]

I was in it.

Also, there are reviews on Urban Spoon from late 2011.

[Spartan]

Spartan - are you saying a glass curtain wall isn't used because it is the cheapest material? I think that is exactly why they use it.

I could say that if you would like

[hoya]

I was in it.

Also, there are reviews on Urban Spoon from late 2011.

A picture of Pete at Pizza Land

[UnFrSaKn]

If you're talking about Pizza Town, I ate there once. I was the only person there... it wasn't at a busy time though but still.

[Pete]

A picture of Pete at Pizza Land

Hi Loyd. A little slow tonight, isn't it?

[hoya]

Hi Loyd. A little slow tonight, isn't it?

I'm honestly stunned that it was still open. I have walked by that building every day for like 5 years, twice a day, on the way to my car. A few months ago I tried to remember the last time I saw anyone in it. It had been so long I couldn't remember. I did eat there once. That's when I figured out why people don't eat there. Yuck. Probably better if it was prepared by ghosts.

[Spartan]

Check out this building in downtown Boise, Idaho:




If they can do it... We can! and an added bonus, besides HP, is that no matter how dated the architecture of the tower because (everything ages) it will still look cool because it is balanced by a base structure that has aged very elegantly.

[BDP]

If they can do it... We can! and an added bonus, besides HP, is that no matter how dated the architecture of the tower because (everything ages) it will still look cool because it is balanced by a base structure that has aged very elegantly.

Unfortunately, when developers here see buildings like that they think "parking lot!" or "plaza!".

[BoulderSooner]

I don't want us to compare ourselves to boise

[Spartan]

I don't want us to compare ourselves to boise

Meaning..?

Hate to break it to you, but there are a lot of much smaller cities doing great things. Boise is also about to launch a monster bikeshare system.

I could show a million photos of modern high-rises built over preserved smaller ones (cantilevered, or hollowed out, or several other methods) from NYC, Chicago, London, etc.. but what would the point of that? The fact that they've done it in Boise of all places I think is more relevant to our discussion.

[Just the facts]

I could show a million photos of modern high-rises built over preserved smaller ones (cantilevered, or hollowed out, or several other methods) from NYC, Chicago, London, etc.. but what would the point of that?

That would only generate a chorus of 'we aren't NYC, Chicago, London, etc.'

Personally, I like seeing how these smaller cities do things. Great ideas come from everywhere.

[Urbanized]

Agreed. The first time this hit home with me was when I attended an International Downtown Association conference about a decade ago. I watched staff from organizations like the Downtown Seattle Association, the Downtown Denver Partnership, Milwaukee Downtown, the Los Angeles Fashion District and the Times Square (NYC) BID listen in rapt attention to Des Moines, Iowa's presentations. There was zero ego, and Des Moines' people were treated like superstars.

Basic urban development, planning and revitalization principles are mostly universal. I've felt for years that a major problem for OKC is that - due to the quick and dramatic changes wrought by the original MAPS projects and the innovative nature of their funding - often many in OKC somehow believe that we INVENTED downtown revitalization. It's an arrogance that sometimes prevents us from discovering good ideas hatched in other places.

[Jchaser405]

Wow, 5 months into the year and we have heard nothing?!
Do we atleast know when the bus station is scheduled to relocate?

[UnFrSaKn]

Guess we can bring this thread back to life now. See the Mystery Tower thread also.

Downtown moves could signal new tower for Oklahoma City | News OK

[UnFrSaKn]

From the article:

A mysterious scramble is underway to empty the 11-story One North Hudson Building, part of a block of properties bought up over the past decade by developer Nicholas Preftakes.

Preftakes did not return phone calls to The Oklahoman on Tuesday. He owns all of the properties on the block bordered by Hudson, Sheridan, Walker and Main Street, except the city's 420 W Main office annex, Coney Island Hot Dogs and the now-closed Pizza Town.


His acquisitions on the block, dating to 2007, total more than $16 million. And while Preftakes has remained coy about his plans throughout the years, all indications point to a dramatic transformation of the southwest corner of downtown.

All of Preftakes' buildings are empty except the Union Bus Station, where operations are set to close and move to Eastern and Reno Avenues next year, and the One North Hudson Building. The few remaining tenants confirm they are moving after being told their leases won't be renewed when they expire in April 2014.

The Oklahoma Pork Council, a tenant leasing the ninth floor for nine years, is preparing to move to 901 N Lincoln, where it will lease space from the Oklahoma Blood Institute. The Hunsucker Legal Group, meanwhile, is preparing to build a new office building that will fill in a gap between Film Row and the Central Business District.

Roy Lee Lindsey, director of the Oklahoma Pork Council, said Preftakes told him the building is being emptied out as part of a plan to redevelop the block.

Preftakes bought One North Hudson, originally the Hotel Black, in 2007. And while he has engaged in some leasing activity, occupancy has dived at a time when similar properties have filled up.

“There were not many left in the building when they started work on Devon Tower,” Lindsey said. “As that work progressed, the Holder-Flintco people, their subs (subcontractors) on the Devon project took up that space. At the height of the project, the building was filled.”

Lindsey said that space is again empty since the Devon Energy Center construction was completed.

Lindsey praised Preftakes for allowing him flexibility on where he could move and possibly ending the lease early without penalty.

John Hunsucker, owner of the Hunsucker Legal Group, reported the same communications took place with Preftakes' leasing agents — with one exception: the firm had to move by April no matter what. He also has been notified by the Oklahoma City Community Foundation that his firm's month-to-month lease of parking spaces at Stage Center will not be renewed after July 31.

Cardinal Engineering, meanwhile, completed site inspections several weeks ago on the Stage Center site, where several sources have confirmed an announcement is imminent of redeveloping the property into a tower.

While Preftakes isn't talking, it's highly unlikely he is struggling to find tenants for the office building, which overlooks the revamped Myriad Gardens.


After Devon Energy added 1.8 million square feet to the downtown office market, some people worried whether the city would be hit with a glut of vacant space. The opposite occurred as new companies moved into town, and now the city's downtown garage system is oversold and full.

Greater Oklahoma City Chamber President Roy Williams on Tuesday told the city council “our success has become our impediment.”

“We're losing potential clients everyday,” Williams said. “They're looking for existing space, and we're basically full. Everything large, 50,000 square feet and up, is basically full in our market.”

Could more than one new tower be in the works for the downtown skyline? Devon Energy has denied rumors it plans to build a second tower on Preftakes' block, though its parking garages are filling up as its workforce continues to expand.

Or could Preftakes' moves be directly related to the development set to occur across the street at Stage Center?

Either way, the timelines are moving in tandem and deadlines are being set by owners of both blocks.

And Hunsucker is caught up by both deadlines, which has him hoping to quickly build a new home for his law firm at 600 W Sheridan. Hunsucker bought the corner at Sheridan and Dewey back when Film Row was better known as Skid Row and prospects for the area looked dim.

Most of the remainder of Film Row has since been redeveloped to the west and walls are going up for the new John W. Rex Elementary across the street to the east. With the redevelopment of Stage Center almost a certainty, and potentially more redevelopment ahead of Preftakes' block, Hunsucker is set to enjoy a pretty plush new address.

If he can get the job done by April.

Hunsucker experienced an unexpected delay last month when the Downtown Design Review Committee told him he needed to make changes to the building plans and involve an architect.

He's done just that, changing the roofline from a pitched to a flat line, and architect Thomas Small worked with builder/designer Scott Coleman on final renderings.

Hunsucker will find out if his plans can proceed at Thursday's design review meeting. He also is including a retail space facing Sheridan that he hopes to lease out to an art gallery or related use. His fallback plan is to open a gallery for his own photography, which he displays at festivals throughout the year.

“I think this building will provide a nice transition, a nice step down that will bring together the business district and Film Row. We are moving a bit quicker than we wanted to with everything changing around us.”

[G.Walker]

Wow, so could this be a 3rd tower? Myster yTower #1 (New MLP), Mystery Tower #2 (OGE), Mystery Tower #3 (Spec Tower)?