Oklahoma Factory Shoppes - I40 & Council

[soonerguru]

Who is going to ride the Heartland Flyer now?

I realize you're joking, but people don't ride the HF to go to Gainesville. It is doing very well in the ridership department, however.

[Larry OKC]

I realize you're joking, but people don't ride the HF to go to Gainesville. It is doing very well in the ridership department, however.

Ummm, don't know what the percentages are, but there are those that do just that and it is listed as one of the stops http://www.heartlandflyer.com/destinations/ and the Outlet is featured

Gainesville now has free trolley service available Friday through Sunday. Friday & Saturday hours of operation are from 11:am to 9m and Sundays from 11:am to 6m. The trolley services the train depot, downtown, Frank Buck Zoo, and the Gainesville Factory Shops and all local hotels. Mon- Fri. TAPS bus will transport to the Factory shops from the depot. TAPS will also provide service back to the Depot from the Factory Shops at 4:30 Mon-Fri.

[Spartan]

Wow.

Mods?

[okcpulse]

Who in the hell is this JacobDylan dude. People who pull this site spamming crap ought to have their fingers mangled so they never use a keyboard again!

[jbrown84]

Aw what'd i miss? LOL

[adaniel]

Would this be the same JacobDylan that posted pics of human waste and female body parts in the "What if the Oklahoman went away" thread? I don't really understand the motive of people like that? Yay I grossed people out! Congrats, you've done what most of us mastered in junior high!

[OKCNDN]

They've been stirring dirt over there for a month. Glad they are coming. Not so looking forward to Council/Reno/I-40 traffic turning into the same as MacArthur and Meridian since I go through there once a day or so.

Rockwell helps alleviate some of the traffic at the MacArthur/Reno intersection.

That won't be the case with the new mall. Rockwell will still help some but not nearly as much. The mall will likely have 2 entrances on the north side and hopefully 1 on the west side. There had better be or traffic will be much worse. I suppose they could extend third street west but there are businesses there and 3rd would probably have to go to the south of the businesses which is not ideal. The street that loops through the area and back to Reno doesn't look big enough to handle anything more than local traffic.

Either way traffic should be a nightmare at reno and council and even worse when it rains hard (those of you in the area know what I am talking about). Anyone agree with this? Well let me modify my statement...traffic at Rockwell and Reno will be a nightmare when it rains hard because if a motorist is smart they avoid Council in that situation.

Anyone know if the city plans to improve drainage at Council and Reno for this mall?

[Jesseda]

well im glad i didnt see that stuff, maybe the moderator got ride of him.. Back to the outlet mall thing.. any more news of retailers that have not yet been mention on this board going into the outlet? I think it would be neat to adda rainforest cafe around the outlet area and maybe a movie theater and entertainment stuff...

[jbrown84]

I doubt we'll see a movie theatre. There is already a fairly new one at I-40 and Garth Brooks.

[Jesseda]

didnt even know about a new theater, thats how much i head out in the west end of the metro.

[onthestrip]

The theater off Garth Brooks is a piece of crap really. Just really bland and unnoticeable.

There will be drainage work on the ditch that runs under I40.

I also believe there will be an entrance off council.

[Hammondjam]

[QUOTE=adaniel;351857]Would this be the same JacobDylan that posted pics of human waste and female body parts in the "What if the Oklahoman went away" thread? I don't really understand the motive of people like that? Yay I grossed people out! Congrats, you've done what most of us mastered in junior high![/QUOTE)

I think I might actually know this scatbandit from another forum. He likes Shakespeare and Mac computers(I think William is still tops, in some areas, but not necessarily ahead of the race.)

I've felt anger towards this broken human being but it quickly turned to pity. I can't imagine living THAT life!

[Larry OKC]

Rockwell helps alleviate some of the traffic at the MacArthur/Reno intersection.

That won't be the case with the new mall. Rockwell will still help some but not nearly as much. The mall will likely have 2 entrances on the north side and hopefully 1 on the west side. There had better be or traffic will be much worse. I suppose they could extend third street west but there are businesses there and 3rd would probably have to go to the south of the businesses which is not ideal. The street that loops through the area and back to Reno doesn't look big enough to handle anything more than local traffic.

Either way traffic should be a nightmare at reno and council and even worse when it rains hard (those of you in the area know what I am talking about). Anyone agree with this? Well let me modify my statement...traffic at Rockwell and Reno will be a nightmare when it rains hard because if a motorist is smart they avoid Council in that situation.

Anyone know if the city plans to improve drainage at Council and Reno for this mall?

Cant locate specifics and the article I thought it was in is only available for view by subscribers (if anyone has access, please post). The article was called "City Council approves outlet mall incentives" (May 6, 2008)

There was this blurb from an article in 2009:

"Assistant City Manager Cathy O’Connor said designs for infrastructure improvements at Council Road and Interstate 40 are complete, but won’t be put out for bid until the city is assured the development is moving forward..."

And a recent article mentioned an

"increase from $2,395,000 to $3,937,690 in public improvements to the site from the city"

but gave no details as to location.

[ljbab728]

Either way traffic should be a nightmare at reno and council and even worse when it rains hard (those of you in the area know what I am talking about). Anyone agree with this? Well let me modify my statement...traffic at Rockwell and Reno will be a nightmare when it rains hard because if a motorist is smart they avoid Council in that situation.

Obviously traffic will be much higher at Reno and Council but I wonder how many people remember what traffic in that area used to be like years ago when the Western Electric plant had thousands of people working there. Granted that was mainly at shift change times but that intersection has seem much worse traffic before.

[Double Edge]

Yes, there was a commitment to rework that intersection and/or south to I-40 back when. The overpass was reworked beginning shortly after the original plans were announced. It needed it. I hope that wasn't the end of it.

I haven't seen water at Reno and Council out of the ditch in a long time. Looks like one of the first things built was a detention pond at the NE corner of the site and they seem to be building some concrete drainage along the south property line in the last week. I doubt that site contributed to flooding of Reno though.

[RadioOKC]

Anyone hear about an Eddie Bauer Outlet or Disney Outlet making it here?

Last time I was at Gainesville it was nearly vacant. Seriously,
I think Crossroads offers more right now than Gainesville.


Chris
http://radiookc.com

[OKC@heart]

I am all for progress in OKC and am excited that the Factory outlet mall is going in!!! But as someone who is keenly aware of retail development and of many outlet malls around this region as well as the country I can say the the design of the new one, is to be kind vastly underwhelming...

I can appreciate the reasons and desire for economy in building as a necessity in getting a ROI and in keeping the lease rates reasonable and attracting the most stores as possible, however that is no excuse for from what I have seen in the renderings as the worst concrete tilt wall building design and finishes I have seen in many years!!! There apears to be no other finish other than paint to the exterior of the tilt wall!!!

This is one occasion where I hope that I am seriously mistaken and that there are somewhere other renderings that we have not seen that will showcase them in a differnt light. I have seen industrial parks look more inviting and well crafted with attention to design and making them seem more upscale. Before everyone jumps to the conclusion I know that it is an outlet mall and hence a discount shoppers destination, but I have seen a great deal of outlets and most of them reflect an upscale nature and make it an event or a destination so reflect that in the way they clad the buildings and hide the concrete structure so that it seems more pedestrian friendly.

I know there was some image with tensile fabric structures shown as well , and those are nice when used appropriately, but by themselves will not make a difference in how the buildings look.

It is always a bad sign when a buildings rendering looks like a before picture needing a drastic renovation and face lift, prior to being built!!! Am I the only one who is seeing this???? Hello??

[Jesseda]

to bad it cant be something huge like town center in las vegas, now that i sa nice outside shopping area..I think that would fit great in the downtwon area develoment somewhere by the new proposed park, but back to the outlet mall they are building, I do hope they put a disney outlet in there, as well as some perfume outlet names

[ljbab728]

The design or lack thereof has been previously discussed and there is nothing particularly appealing in the renderings. It may end up looking as terrible as you describe but I'm going to keep an open mind. And if it doesn't have an upscale look, is there someone you want to blame? I'm sure it will meet all city code requirements so will it be the city's fault? If it's a financial success and contributes to the city's tax base would we be better off if it hadn't been built because the design wasn't appealing?

[Larry OKC]

I am all for progress in OKC and am excited that the Factory outlet mall is going in!!! But as someone who is keenly aware of retail development and of many outlet malls around this region as well as the country I can say the the design of the new one, is to be kind vastly underwhelming...

Agree that the renderings were...less than impressive...but when you look at the photos (courtesy Spartan) on page 11 (think it is post #245 or something like that), they are much improved. As Steve pointed out, many of the design elements in the renderings are transferred in the photos (and look much better in the process).

Hopefully we will get something more akin to the photos than the renderings.

[OKC@heart]

The design or lack thereof has been previously discussed and there is nothing particularly appealing in the renderings. It may end up looking as terrible as you describe but I'm going to keep an open mind. And if it doesn't have an upscale look, is there someone you want to blame? I'm sure it will meet all city code requirements so will it be the city's fault? If it's a financial success and contributes to the city's tax base would we be better off if it hadn't been built because the design wasn't appealing?

I am not one of those that looks to blame anyone, and as a designer myself am more than acquainted with the realities of development finance and what it takes to make a project come to fruition and become more than a pretty picture. That said I also am keenly aware that the public ar fickle and where as they will no doubt flock to this retail center once opened that things change. If there is another center that opens up in competition, that offers more ammenities and a nicer feel to it, well they will go there and the other will languish and struggle with vacancies, and become a place to avoid if you can.

This has been seen in other areas with the competing brand of outlet shops.

That being said, I am not against the tilt wall construction, as that is a very cost effective method of building, rather it is that there is very little evidenced in the actual released renderings that show any attempt to make them look more retail/pedestrian friendly besided a coat of sealant and paint. That in my opinion is the problem. It can make a huge difference to see the application of stone, brick and other materials used to break up the facades and give each store a unique appearance.

Hopefully they are going to do something like let the stores who are leasing weigh in on the storefront design and materials selected and we just have not seen it yet. I am nothing if not an optimistic person, and so will hold out hope that we may see some more accurate and improved images as things progress. I am not a blamer, but do believe in accountability and civic responsibility, and if not to the community that you are a part, of then at least to your shareholders! I would be concerned as a shareholder if I saw the newest development only striving for that level of quality. I would take that as a ominous sign for the future, and look at placing those shares in the sell column.

But as always hope for the best! I have no doubt that the shops will be a great thing for OKC, but only want to make sure that they continue to work as a marketing tool for the city as an emerging market, rather than an eyesore, that reinforces an idea that the city is not worth investing or building to a level of quality that would be required in any other competing market.

[mmitch1031]

Has anyone been by the location in a while? Are they making good progress? Is there an updated store list?

[Easy180]

Just drove by and the plumbing tubes are sticking up but that's about it

[Double Edge]

I go by there every day. Activity has ramped up over the last ten days or so. Looks like the grading and site prep is mostly done and building construction is proceeding. More containers have been moved on site and there is a lot more people and pickups there now.

[Steve]

Saw the same thing - wouldn't be surprised to start seeing structures going up next.