Cherry Street Ridge - 15th and Troost

[tshane250]

Does anyone know if there are any tenants lined up for this development?  Looks like there is going to be two restaurants and a couple of retail establishments.  Do you think Chipotle's will go here?

[AVERAGE JOE]

I'll say this for the siteplan -- the building is up to the sidewalk and the parking is in the back. It has that going for it. Seems to be an awful lot of parking, but with two restaurants that was probably dictated by the zoning code.

[OurTulsa]

As far as I know Chipotle's was planning on going in there.

I wish they would have done multi-story there but I understand there was less than luke warm desire to do so and they couldn't park it so it was an easy decision not to.  I personally think the parking lot is excessive; it tears at the fabric by creating a huge gap between the buildings - kind of like a malling affect.

I really would like to see parking requirements lifted along corridors like Cherry St. and Brookside in coordination with some sort of central parking arrangement(public or private).  Have I ever said I think the City's parking requirements are completely bogus and entirely excessive across the board?

[SXSW]

Seems like they could get away with half that parking lot.  How many houses are/were destroyed for this?

[AVERAGE JOE]

quote:Originally posted by SXSW

Seems like they could get away with half that parking lot.  How many houses are/were destroyed for this?

The parking requirements in the zoning code likely forced them to have that much parking. I count about 80 spaces in that siteplan. They probably could have less and be fine, but restaurants require a pretty high parking space-to-square footage ratio. With 2 restaurants, they had to dig deep into the neighborhood, which is a shame.

[Townsend]

ABLE requires a certain number for parking too.

ABLE!!!!, ABLE!!!! (done in Captain Kirk voice, Wrath of Kahn)

[tshane250]

quote: How many houses are/were destroyed for this?

Originally, there were three structures facing 15th Street, one of which was Karen Keith's campaign headquarters and three houses facing Troost.  All of that was leveled for this development.  They also did quite a bit of dirt removal to bring the development down to street level on the 15th Street side, because as many of you may remember, those buildings facing 15th were quite elevated.  

I personally wish they would have included a residential component to this project.  Something like a few second story apartments/condos would have been great.  Not only would that make Cherry Street that much more viable, you would think it would make this development more profitable.  And I certainly wish they could cut back on the parking.  I would think there is ample parking in the area, but oh well I guess.  

As of today, it appears they have finished installing the screening wall on the north and west sides of the property and are currently erecting the steel structure, so it's moving right along.

[SXSW]

Is there parallel parking on 15th here?  I can't remember.  That car wash nearby needs to be the next to go, hopefully more mixed-use with a residential component.

[carltonplace]

Looks like the exterior of this building is nearly complete. Esthetically it is a nice addition to the neighborhood.

From the Tulsa World:


http://www.tulsaworld.com/business/article.aspx?subjectid=32&articleid=20090424_32_E3_Courte65648

New restaurants coming to Cherry Street

Courtesy 
By ROBERT EVATT World Staff Writer
Published: 4/24/2009  2:22 AM
Last Modified: 4/24/2009  5:22 AM

A building under construction on Cherry Street will bring two chain restaurants to the retail and dining district.

Chipotle Mexican Grill and Ghengis Grill will anchor the 9,000 square-foot Cherry Street Ridge building when it opens this summer on the north side of 15th Street near Utica Avenue, said Duane Phillips, head of Jenks-based Oak Properties LLC.

Phillips, who is developing the $3.5 million project, said the time is right for new construction in the area despite the slowing economy.

"There's still a need for high-end retail and restaurants," he said.

Although Oak Properties has developed residential and commercial areas in Jenks, including the Waterford Shopping Center, Phillips said the Cherry Street area is the best fit for this kind of construction.

Approximately5,000 square feet will be taken up by the two restaurants. Denver-based Chipotle already has a location near 71st Street and U.S. 169.

Ghengis Grill, a Dallas-based Mongolian stir fry restaurant that allows customers to build their own bowl meals, is in the process of opening other Oklahoma locations in Oklahoma City, Norman and Edmond, according to the chain's Web site.

The remaining 4,000 square feet will be used for office space, Phillips said.

Since Cherry Street is one of Tulsa's more distinct areas, Phillips took care to construct the building with an art deco style, put parking in the back and leave the front open for pedestrian space. "We're hoping to match the rest of the neighborhood," he said.

[SXSW]

This is a good project for the area and fits in nicely on Cherry Street.  It will also be nice having a midtown Chipotle location and Genghis Grill sounds interesting. 

[PonderInc]

Glad to see they did a good job of bringing the building up to the sidewalk, including lots of windows and putting the parking behind.  I'm even OK, with the faux art deco style.

I agree that the parking is excessive.  As usual, our zoning treats each individual use as if it exists in a vacuum...in a distant jungle.  (Where the only way to get there is each individual driving a Land Cruiser.)  How many neighbors will walk or bike?  When I lived about a mile from here, I used to walk to dinner on Cherry Street all the time. 

Now that this enormous parking lot exists, you can see why the concept of "shared parking" is so important.  Shared parking accomodates the ebb and flow of drivers' needs, and serves several establishments, without destroying such a huge swath of the neighborhood. 

Here's a lot that won't need all those spaces all the time.  Will adjacent shops and restaurants get to share?  They should.  But I bet they won't.

[TheArtist]

One could imagine that the office space wouldnt need parking at night and the busiest time for the restaurants would be at night. So you could have gotten rid of the requirements for the office space, and any extra parking that was needed on occasion could be on street parking. The nearby antique stores to the west and the bank parking lot on the corner could also be used in the evenings.

Glad they put this development up to the sidewalk, and I like the deco elements as well.

[cannon_fodder]

Does anyone think our parking code is a good idea?

[sgrizzle]

Does anyone think our parking code is a good idea?

Someone did, once upon a time.

[cannon_fodder]

No, not really.  Someone thought their boss would think it was a good idea.  Their boss thought that guy knew more than he did, or that everyone else was doing it, or whatever and stamped it on. 

Boss could be the director, a development head, a counselor or a mayor.  Someone probably thought someone else would think it was a good idea.  But the Emperor had no clothes.  No way someone thought requiring Staples at 27th and Harvard to bulldoze a house to a lot behind their building was a good idea.  I've never seen s single car there.  No one is that stupid.