(PROJECT) One Place Tower

[Weatherdemon]

I saw in the TW today that the 11 story proposal to the south with the hotel had yet to secure funding and the project deadline was extended to 2014.

Honest question, how is it so many downtown, and even river plans, get announced then fall through or are delayed significantly due to lack of funding?

Is this normal during 'booms' like this?

Serious question not meant to bag on anyone.

[Oil Capital]

I saw in the TW today that the 11 story proposal to the south with the hotel had yet to secure funding and the project deadline was extended to 2014.

Honest question, how is it so many downtown, and even river plans, get announced then fall through or are delayed significantly due to lack of funding?

Is this normal during 'booms' like this?

Serious question not meant to bag on anyone.

Huh.  When they requested the extension back in May we were told that everything was great.  They were ready to build but could not start on phases 3 and 4 because they needed that portion of the site as a staging area for the first 2 phases.  (The  deadline was extended to 2016, not 2014.)  Seems that maybe the staging area thing was just a convenient excuse.

[DTowner]

It seems a little suspicious.  In happy news, the Cimarex Tower topped out.

One Place tower tops out at 18 floors

A crane lifts a beam with a tree and flag to the top southeast corner of the One Place tower during a ceremony Thursday. MICHAEL WYKE/Tulsa World
1 / 3Showing image 1 of 3By ROBERT EVATT World Staff Writer
Published: 10/5/2012  1:45 AM
Last Modified: 10/5/2012  4:05 AM

Downtown's newest skyscraper has reached its peak.

The framework for all 18 stories of One Place, phase one, is now in place, and a potted, living tree was lifted by crane to the top of the building Thursday to mark the occasion.

Mayor Dewey Bartlett and other officials gathered at the base of the structure - across Denver Avenue from the BOK Center - for the ceremony.

Bartlett said the building is a great example of turning nearly vacant city land into property occupied by thriving businesses.

"Instead of being a partly used parking lot, it'll be a terrific couple of buildings," he said.

Delise Tomlinson, executive director of downtown development with the Tulsa Metro Chamber, said the $120 million One Place project is just part of more than $400 million in construction that is planned or under way downtown.

"It's an incredible achievement for the dream that we have for making downtown Tulsa the vital core of the region," she said.

Also attending the ceremony was Tom Maxwell, CEO of Flintco Cos. Inc., the project's contractor. He said the tradition of topping out a building with a tree has various origins, one of which is an American Indian belief that buildings should not be higher than the tallest tree. Maxwell also noted that this week marks the 10th anniversary of Cimarex Energy Co., the Denver-based company that has leased all of the tower except for the retail-based first floor.

Construction is on schedule and should be finished by spring. A five-story companion building was completed last month and is occupied by Northwestern Mutual.

Construction on another phase, which includes a hotel, has not yet begun. Developers are still shoring up funding, said Brittany Sawyer, a spokeswoman for One Place LLC, a company formed by local developers.

In May, the Tulsa Development Authority approved a two-year construction extension for the project. Now the privately funded undertaking that encompasses a full square block must be complete by Dec. 31, 2016, rather than the end of 2014.

Read more from this Tulsa World article at http://www.tulsaworld.com/business/article.aspx?subjectid=49&articleid=20121005_32_E1_CUTLIN664648

[Hoss]

Progress as of this afternoon..took this while at the hockey game.

[Oil Capital]

Any news/rumors on retail tenants for either building?

[BKDotCom]

Tower crane is gone.
Must have been removed on Fri (or over the weekend)

[carltonplace]

Any news/rumors on retail tenants for either building?

I was certain that was all lined out. Northwest Mutual Insurance is taking over the Northwest corner building. There will be a local restaurant on the ground floor. Cimerex has most of the Cimerex tower on the Northeast corner. Not sure about tenants for the two additional buildings that have not started construction yet.

[Oil Capital]

I was certain that was all lined out. Northwest Mutual Insurance is taking over the Northwest corner building. There will be a local restaurant on the ground floor. Cimerex has most of the Cimerex tower on the Northeast corner. Not sure about tenants for the two additional buildings that have not started construction yet.

As I first asked, any news/rumors on retail tenants for either of these buildings?  I think we are all well aware of the Cimarex and Northwest Mutual office space leases.  Both buildings have retail space available for rent (2 floors in the Northwest Mutual building and 1 floor in the Cimarex building).

[Hoss]

As I first asked, any news/rumors on retail tenants for either of these buildings?  I think we are all well aware of the Cimarex and Northwest Mutual office space leases.  Both buildings have retail space available for rent (2 floors in the Northwest Mutual building and 1 floor in the Cimarex building).

http://www.tulsanow.org/forum/index.php?topic=12060.msg253792#msg253792

Rumor #1

[Oil Capital]

It appears on the webcam that they are putting a fresh asphalt surface on the southern end of the block, but don't worry, they will start construction on Phases 3 & 4 just as soon as they are done using this part of the property for staging.  Phases 1&2 will be at around 100% occupancy at opening so [the delay of stages 3 & 4 is] not a financial issue.  ;-)

[cannon_fodder]

Sigh...  odds of next phase done by 2014?  Of being started in 2013?  Development is great... but we are promised the moon and instead get a soviet style office building and asphalt surface parking.  Say it aint so!

I am no expert, but the number of announced projects that never happen in this town is amazing.

[davideinstein]

My only beef with this project so far is where are the Street Trees?? Yet again the city and a developer has ignored the concept of Complete Streets. I also don't see any street front retail along Denver in the finished office building... that should be prime space for retail.

I know those were available for retail early this past fall so I'm assuming they will have that on the ground level. I don't think it's the developers responsibility to put up trees in an urban area like this, but instead the city.

[TheArtist]

I know those were available for retail early this past fall so I'm assuming they will have that on the ground level. I don't think it's the developers responsibility to put up trees in an urban area like this, but instead the city.

It's not so much that they are "offering" ground level retail, it's that they don't have any "street front" pedestrian friendly retail space.  

One can rightly say the building is ugly.  But imo, there is a factor in building design that is more important than what the building looks like above street level and that is, what the building looks like AT street level, and how it functions AT street level.  Both of these buildings not only ignore the pedestrian but act against the pedestrian and the Tulsa communities desires and efforts to make the city more pedestrian and transit friendly.  I still hope that the next phases of the development are better in this respect for those street fronts are more important.

You say it's the cities responsibility to put trees in an urban area like this,  who, do you believe, is responsible for ensuring that we have streets/sidewalks in an urban area that are pedestrian friendly, and thus transit that can work efficiently and affordably?

When nobody wants to walk down a sidewalk, any transit you wan't to have in the area will not work efficiently and affordably.
If your a developer or business, or city/community, that wants to have urban, street front retail and a different developer comes in and builds something that hurts or negates those other developers, businesses etc. efforts and plans... who is to blame?

[RecycleMichael]

There is a planning group meeting regularly to add trees all over downtown. I believe many will be planted in the next year.

[rdj]

Am I the only person who doesn't believe trees are absolutely vital downtown at this point?

Particularly, until we have an ability to maintain them?  Only thing worse than seeing expensive trees planted downtown and then dying within a year due to lack of water is the tree being cut down and weeds filling the former tree bed.  The urban environment is very tough on trees and they must be maintained otherwise it looks worse than not having trees.