Walmart

[Martin]

i don't know where i got it in my head that this one was going to be in brick... really disappointed by the cheap facade. -M

[Zuplar]

i don't know where i got it in my head that this one was going to be in brick... really disappointed by the cheap facade. -M

I think I may have said something before about it not. According to the people in the neighborhood just there to the east they were told it was supposed to look like the one in Edmond on I35. That's the last I heard, but appears as it's their standard look.

[u50254082]

I hope this means that crappy Valero gas station on that corner finally has to compete. They always jacked up their fuel prices and the stuff they sold was expired and dusty.

[OKCRT]

This.

Wal-Mart is a bully that seeks to dominate and force out existing businesses so people will have no choice but to shop there. Neither Target, AMC, or SuperCuts operate that way. I believe its been statistically proven that every time a Supercenter opens, at least one or many times two nearby traditional grocery stores close their doors (I will be very surprised if Homeland at S 104th and Penn survives this Wal-Mart). When Wal-Mart closes older locations they sit on the real estate as to keep competition from coming in. Also, compare a typical shopping center anchored by Wal-Mart to one anchored by Target (or Kroger or Tom Thumb) and make note of the differences. Wal-Mart is a business and everything they do is within the confines of the law, but that doesn't mean that I, as a consumer, have to like it.

You are correct and OnCue appears to have adopted that same business model in OKC.... OKC today-the World tomorrow!

[KayneMo]

I also drive by this everyday and noticed that brick was going up on part of the facade.

[Pete]

Plans to build strip center and more along I-44. (BTW, 'National QSR' = undetermined fast food)

[Jeepnokc]

Freestanding fast food? There is a McDonalds 3/4 mile down 104th and nothing really else for several miles. Hopefully a Chick fil a instead of a Taco Bell. What QSRs are expanding in OK that use free standing buildings? DQ and Del Taco both are adding free standing locations.

[Bobby821]

I hate this, I wish we could have some areas undeveloped like the still open areas around I-44, I like the open spaces where there is still a little country left in the city.

[Jeepnokc]

I hate this, I wish we could have some areas undeveloped like the still open areas around I-44, I like the open spaces where there is still a little country left in the city.

I agree but knew it was going to develop at some point when we moved out here 8 years ago. Really hate the fact that it is a Walmart going in instead of a Target (really....anything would be better than Walmart). This intersection is going to be horrible but I did notice yesterday that they are working on the SB off ramp. Hopefully they are making it wider and adding a right turn lane. Maybe Pete can find out if there are any plans to change the streets at this intersection.

[tfvc.org]

I agree but knew it was going to develop at some point when we moved out here 8 years ago. Really hate the fact that it is a Walmart going in instead of a Target (really....anything would be better than Walmart). This intersection is going to be horrible but I did notice yesterday that they are working on the SB off ramp. Hopefully they are making it wider and adding a right turn lane. Maybe Pete can find out if there are any plans to change the streets at this intersection.

Hopefully that plan that Pete posted has the other side of the highway included. Hopefully they have the off ramp spilling onto Portland.

[jompster]

I can't remember when it was posted here, but didn't someone mention that Walmart was also chipping in to re-do the on/off ramps to I-44 and the street intersection itself to accommodate the increased traffic?

[Zuplar]

Yeah I thought at some point the off ramp was going to dump onto Portland to eliminate multiple intersections.

[Zuplar]

Drove by this weekend and noticed it looked like they were starting to add lights at the off ramp on 104th. So sure seems like there is going to be 4 lights very close to one another. Talk about a nightmare.

[Boomer3791]

Does anyone happen to know when the new Walmart Superstore in SE Norman is opening? It looks like they're getting close, but I haven't seen any signs on the property announcing a grand opening or any articles in the Transcript about it.

[OKCTY]

Does anyone know what if any other plans are in store for this area?

[SoonerDave]

Does anyone have links to drawings showing how the I-44/104th interchange is going to be rebuilt/affected? Curious how traffic is going to be routed.

[AAC2005]

Curious how traffic is going to be routed.

I came here with a similar question in mind and I see that I'm not alone with the idea of moving the SB ramp to dump the traffic onto Portland, thereby making everyone drive through the existing signaled intersection. Right now, I really can't tell what's going on and I'm too scared to take my eyes off of the road to look! However, I think the "Portland Dump" idea would mean having to build an entirely new exit ramp from SB I-44; in my non-engineering mind, that would mean one hell of a sharp curve to negotiate without some severe modifications.

While I'm wandering around in my non-engineering and free-spending mind , I think that the entire southbound ramp area should be redone to the point where westbound drivers on 104th would have to turn north on Portland to access I-44 south, instead of having to make that already-dicey left turn from 104th (I can see it, I just can't articulate it very well). As someone alluded to in an earlier post, traffic lights replacing the four-way stops is going to be an aggravating inconvenience, so the real engineers might want to get in front of that before they have to play catch-up again.

Finally, does anyone know what will become of that lot where the old Shell/Big Johnson's stood? I know it's being used for a storage shed sales lot, but is that "permanent"?

[tfvc.org]

This is how I envision them setting up the ramps. They could go further and set up a Texas turnaround on the North side of 104th to eliminate some of the traffic for Walmart. Sorry it is a bit hard to read, I don't want to save on the live map.

[tfvc.org]

They turned the power on at this location. Should be ~3 months now.

[tfvc.org]

Does anyone happen to know when the new Walmart Superstore in SE Norman is opening? It looks like they're getting close, but I haven't seen any signs on the property announcing a grand opening or any articles in the Transcript about it.

It is open. I think they opened on Fri. I went into it last night on my way home from work (~1230am) it seemed clean and nice. I noticed they don't have as many products as the other Norman ones, not quite as big as the normal SW. Probably more like the Purcell one.

[MrZ]

Has anybody heard what food joints will be going in around this location? I know they will be building an Arby's on the location of the old gas station at 104th and May. Will be nice to have a few extra choices near there. Hoping for a Wendy's, Red Robin, or Pei Wei!

[Plutonic Panda]

Hoping for a Wendy's, Red Robin, or Pei Wei!

Just curious, do these restaurants genuinely excite you or is it just something nice that you will be glad to have as an option close by?

[MrZ]

I don't actually get excited for many food places. Empire Pizza in the Plaza District is probably my go to answer for "going out" when I get the choice, but Red Robin and Pei Wei both have some tasty options and I would like to have a closer option. I don't eat Wendy's myself (unless it is a Frosty!), but my kid loves to bug me for a Baconator once a month and I would like to not have to drive far to scratch that itch. I cook at home 90% of the time, but when it is that 10% that I eat out, I want more options besides McDonald's, Braum's, or Subway.

[OKCTY]

What about all the Street lamps on the West side of I44 Starting at 104th? Anyone know of actual plans for what is going in ?

[baralheia]

What about all the Street lamps on the West side of I44 Starting at 104th? Anyone know of actual plans for what is going in ?

That's being discussed in the Will Rogers World Airport - Eastside Commercial Development! thread. I don't think anything is concrete yet since they're still working on finishing the re-route of Portland.