SandRidge Energy Development in OKC

[dsjeffries]

It just dawned on me this morning that I haven't seen a post about this on here.

SandRidge Energy, the same group that bought Tulsa-based Arena Resources, is planning a downtown OKC campus and if their plans are approved, will result in the destruction of six of Oklahoma City's oldest structures, including the India Temple, the oldest building still standing in downtown. Five of the six buildings will be razed not for new buildings (and not because they are structurally unsound) but for landscaped plazas.

Preserve Oklahoma and scores of dedicated citizens and groups like Keep Downtown Urban (www.keepdowntownurban.com) have made appeals to the Downtown Design Review Committee's approval of plans by SandRidge Energy to raze the six buildings. Yes, that's right--the plans have already been rubber-stamped. That's where we come in: we all need to take a moment and write a letter to the Oklahoma City Board of Adjustment in opposition of this project.

Early on in the process, the plans called for renovation of buildings instead of demolition, and the lead architect for the project made several statements touting how "green" the project was:

This afternoon, Sandridge will unveil an over $100 million expansion of its downtown headquarters across three city blocks. The plans include a renovated 1960s tower by architect Pietro Belluschi, a restored Braniff Building–built in 1923 by the brothers who started their namesake airline–and a public park recycled from a pair of windswept plazas. The New York-based architecture firm of Rogers Marvel will incorporate features like green roofs, native plantings, and storm-water management to meet LEED standards. Sandridge, which is the youngest and smallest of the city's gas giants, is touting the project as the largest private downtown development in its history–for the time being, at least.

What's unusual about the plan by local standards is that Sandridge is reusing existing buildings, rather than relocating to an exurban campus. Part of this has to do with timing–the company acquired a million square feet on the cheap when yet another energy firm, Kerr-McGee, was sold to Anadarko Petroleum in 2007 and immediately left town for Houston. Sandridge CEO Tom Ward had considered a campus, but found it was both too expensive and too inflexible for his plans to grow the company from 600 to 1,500 employees. Ward went against his own employees' wishes by electing to remain downtown instead. "Their first response was that it was going to be a longer commute, and the idea was not one they embraced originally," Ward says. "And then the Thunder came to town and a lot of things started changing." (Ward is also a minority owner in the Oklahoma City Thunder, the city's two-year-old NBA team.)

"If you're an urbanist, vacancy of any kind is super tough," adds Rogers. "So the decision to go downtown and be a part of the city, to redevelop and reuse, is fundamentally about reinvigorating downtown. Everybody talks about being green, but one of the greenest things you can do is simply reuse things."

Folks, we can't let this happen. I'm probably the last person to ever defend Oklahoma City (especially given the many ways the State Legislature has found to "stick it" to Tulsa over the last 103 year) but this is an entirely different matter. We would be throwing a fit, raising hell and demanding action if this were in our city, and I hope we do the same for our cousin down the road.

The Board of Adjustment has the choice of affirming, reversing or modifying the design committee's decision. All three actions could then be appealed by either side through district court. The Board of Adjustment can also send the matter back for more deliberation by the design committee.

Write a letter in support of the reversal of the design committee's decision:

Board of Adjustment
c/o Kathe Casula
420 W. Main Street
Ste. 9210
Oklahoma City, OK 73102

email: kathe.casula@okc.gov

[heironymouspasparagus]

This has already happened.  They just haven't moved in the bulldozers yet.

We (Tulsa) have never thrown a fit when some big company wanted to bulldoze an old building and build something new.  Even as recently as the old Shrine Temple downtown, which was sold to build condo's.  (Yuck!)

The Shriner's know best whether to continue to use it or not, and that is most definitely their choice, but maybe the city should have looked at buying it from them instead of letting some developer dig it up.  That was a beautiful building.  Now look at what is there.

I'm just waiting for someone to throw around "jobs", "development", and maybe "progress" so we can get rid of that old Brady theater.  And let's throw in Cain's for good measure.

[dsjeffries]

Yes, the project was given a green light by the Design Review Committee, but the decision is still being appealed as far as I know.

[TURobY]

Honestly, I'm a bit torn.

This certainly isn't good for historic preservation or the urbanization of OKC. For that aspect, I am very opposed to this development.

However, the other side of me is okay with it, because it gives Tulsa another advantage in which we ARE preserving (or at least starting to preserve) our buildings and ARE offering (or at least starting to offer) a more urban environment.

Is that weird?

[dsjeffries]

Honestly, I'm a bit torn.

This certainly isn't good for historic preservation or the urbanization of OKC. For that aspect, I am very opposed to this development.

However, the other side of me is okay with it, because it gives Tulsa another advantage in which we ARE preserving (or at least starting to preserve) our buildings and ARE offering (or at least starting to offer) a more urban environment.

Is that weird?

Yes, it is. I understand where you're coming from, but I think this situation is above any kind of inter-city competition and shouldn't be viewed as Tulsa gaining the upper-leg because of destruction of some of Oklahoma City's oldest structures...

[Renaissance]

Some fascinating developments last night:

SandRidge Energy Corp. on Thursday threatened to reconsider making downtown Oklahoma City its home as resistance continues to thwart the company's plans to demolish older buildings on its campus.

The Board of Adjustment held its second hearing on Preservation Oklahoma's bid to reverse the building demolitions, which were approved in April by the Downtown Design Review Committee.

The Board of Adjustment voted three to nothing to uphold four of the six demolitions. But with one member, Michael Dunn, absent, and another, Jeff Austin, declining to vote, the remaining two buildings also required a unanimous vote of those present for the hearing not to be continued.

That didn't happen.

Read the rest:

http://www.newsok.com/sandridge-issues-warning/article/3469383

This doesn't have anything directly to do with Tulsa, but it's fascinating to watch this struggle play out.  Many of us have argued for the same kind of demolition restrictions as exist in OKC.  Now we're going to see whether such restrictions/review committees actually have their intended effect, or whether they fold when pushed by people with money and differing interest and are thus fairly worthless.

Also--when are these "plazas" going to go out of style???  They are just blank spaces that no one uses and that contribute to a feeling of emptiness in an urban area.

[SXSW]

There is plenty of space in the Warren Place towers where Citgo/SemGroup had large amounts of office space for Sandridge to move.  No one will care what they do there.  

Truthfully I hope the buildings are preserved and Sandridge remains in downtown OKC.  I wish this same amount of ferver had existed when they demolished the Skelly building in 2004, or the many buildings during urban renewal in the 60's and 70's.

[Renaissance]

Well what's fascinating to me is that OKC's Downtown Design Review Committee, the board charged with reviewing proposed demolition, unanimously approved Sandridge's proposal.  It's their Board of Adjustment that's holding things up.

So my question is, what's the point of a Downtown Design Review Committee if it's simply going to rubber stamp the demolition of historic buildings?  A committee operating in a similar manner wouldn't saved the Skelly Building in 2004.

[SXSW]

Well what's fascinating to me is that OKC's Downtown Design Review Committee, the board charged with reviewing proposed demolition, unanimously approved Sandridge's proposal.  It's their Board of Adjustment that's holding things up.

So my question is, what's the point of a Downtown Design Review Committee if it's simply going to rubber stamp the demolition of historic buildings?  A committee operating in a similar manner wouldn't saved the Skelly Building in 2004.

Honest question, does downtown Tulsa have a design review committee?  I know Oklahoma City has one for downtown and another one for Bricktown.  If Tulsa has something like that you never hear about it.  Downtown, Brookside, and Cherry Street should all have such a committee.

[Renaissance]

Nope.  Nothing of the sort.  Closest thing are the neighborhood historical preservation districts.

[SXSW]

Nope.  Nothing of the sort.  Closest thing are the neighborhood historical preservation districts.

That's hard to believe.  Is there any kind of movement to have something like that downtown? 

[Conan71]

That's hard to believe.  Is there any kind of movement to have something like that downtown?  

What's the purpose?  Have you taken a close look at how TMAPC works?  This would eventually be populated with pro-development advocates and become one more rubber stamp. I hate to sound apathetic, but it's hard not to be when I've watched how things get done around here for 40 plus years.

[spartanokc]

Hey guys. I'm actually one of the preservationists that are causing the huge flack. I am tired and worn out from all the appeals and all the meetings..I've been to 3 public meetings to deal with this thing (which last for hours and hours each, during the day), written countless letters, and even presented in the first Board of Adjustment meeting. We will win eventually, but I want everyone to win, including SandRidge. This company is refusing to work with anyone despite their rhetoric they mockingly push at us that they are model corporate citizens. Their lawyer is the biggest a**hole in the world, as well.

So far we've lost on 4/6 of the buildings, which they approved at the last meeting. We have a really strong possibility to save the ones that matter the most, though. The KerMac bldg at the corner of RSK and Robinson is historic, and the original headquarters of Kerr McGee--a company whose legacy apparently SandRidge detests. The India Temple is a 1902 building with a false facade that can be removed. This building also served as the state capitol while they were building the current building on Lincoln. There have been numerous developers in the last few years who attempted to renovate these bldgs, problem is they have not been on the market for decades. One group had financing in place and they had a deal with KMG that fell through when they got bought out. Now they're going to be gone forever, despite the awesome potential for lofts and a boutique hotel that will pump huge amounts of life into our DEAD DEAD DEAD downtown core.

I would really appreciate some help from people in Tulsa who care about downtowns. I have cared about you guys' downtown, I have supported a lot of your local businesses, and I've posted thousands of photos of Tulsa on other urban forums. It would be great if we could get some support from up the turnpike. People with power already razed 50 blocks for their superblock urban renewal projects. Now they're wanting to raze whatever is left, and this is the biggest stand we've taken since the 1970s. We lost then, I hope we don't lose again. If we do, I will seriously be looking for a new place to call home.

[RecycleMichael]

I would really appreciate some help from people in Tulsa who care about downtowns.

What would you like us to do?

[spartanokc]

Just write a short email, it can be one or two sentences. Talk about how you're tired of being bullied around by property owners with no vision for the city, how you wish Tulsa had the ordinances OKC had, how we have the potential to make a stance and be a significant example in the fight against urban renewal.

The email address is kathe.casula@okc.gov and all emails she gets are logged and put in the public record. SandRidge is coercing letters of support from everyone they can.