Actually, I forgot to pay my membership dues last years, so I'm embarassed to say I haven't had a copy of that agenda for a while now.

But to me it's a no brainer that between office workers in the day and tourists and concert goers and teenagers at night that for a basic fast food place like that you are going to do killer business.

MidTown future still hangs
By Steve Lackmeyer
Oklahoman
Main Street

Almost two months have passed since Greg Banta sold his shares in his MidTown Renaissance development to partners Bob Howard and Mickey Clagg. At the time, Clagg promised he and Howard would discuss the future of the project the following week.

Clagg then asked for a one-week delay, explaining Howard was out of town. The next week they were too busy to talk. Ditto for the next week.


What was said?
After repeated interview requests, the following response was sent by Clagg and Howard via email:
Steve

I want to thank you for your continued interest in our project. I hope you can appreciate, with over 30 buildings and multiple parcels of land, it will take more time for us to evaluate what kind of use would be appropriate for each project. It is not my practice to make premature announcements but I will assure you we are fully committed to the completion of these projects.

Bob

So we're left waiting a while longer. But here's what we do know: a building that was previously set to be home to Gaijun Sushi has stood empty for weeks, with construction either finished or halted before Banta's departure from MidTown. A sign promotes the future arrival of the MidTown Deli at the nearby Walker Shops, another MidTown Renaissance project, but no other work can be spotted inside that building either.

All signs of construction have stopped at a former Packard dealership at 201 NW 10, an adjoining former garage at 1117 N Robinson Ave., and the Osler Building at NW 11 and Walker Avenue.

The MidTown Renaissance banners have disappeared (not surprising, since they also were stamped with "The Banta Companies”).

What's ahead?
In the weeks after Banta's withdrawal, LoopNet - #1 in Commercial Real Estate Online, a national real estate listing website, showed the following MidTown Renaissance properties up for sale: 1100 N Broadway, 1101 N Broadway, 1117 N Robinson Ave., The Shartel Professional Building at 1226 N Shartel, Hadden Hall at 215 NW 10, and 901 NW 13.
Another search this last week, however, indicates those listings have been removed.

MidTown has definitely turned the corner. The district is alive with new restaurants, shops, offices and residences. But, with a handful of buildings gutted and prepared for renovation now sitting still, without any new word from Howard and Clagg, the future remains uncertain.


Much of MidTown's future is in the hands of Bob Howard and Mickey Clagg. And so far, they're not talking. By Steve Lackmeyer, The Oklahoman

Thanks to Steve for staying so persistent on this story.

It sounds to me like Howard & Clagg immediately stopped all work then tried to sell the buildings. And perhaps pulled them back off the market once they didn't fetch the prices they had hoped.

I'm still very worried about who is going to replace Banta's vision, passion and motivation when it comes to Midtown.

The properties in question had been on Loop Net for several months. It appeared that Banta was marketing the properties for sale through Banta Realty and once he was no longer involved he dropped the listings. This is a large project and I am confident that Bob Howard and Mickey Clagg are committed to Midtown. They are the type that will take their time and do it right. I'm sure that they are just taking a deep breath and trying to decide the best way to move forward. You have to remember that they were not the guys on the front line and I'm sure that they are just wanting to make good decisions on their investements.

trison, those properties only appeared right before Banta announced his departure from the development group.

I really hope you are right about Howard & Clagg but why would they completely stop all work, including tenant build-outs?

I really think they were on Loop Net for some time. Banta had a booth at the CREC Real Estate Forecast held earlier this year and was handing out brochures showing the properties listed for sale.....so who knows???? As far as the build outs for the two restaurant tenants my understanding was that the tenants were responsible for their own build out not the property owners so the inactivity would be due to the tenants not Howard and Clagg.

But the work stoppage begs the question: Why would tenants -- who presumably have already sunk a bunch of money into their respective spaces -- suddenly both just stop making improvements at the same time of this ownership change?

And why did Banta leave anyway? He had invested a lot of blood, sweat and tears into these projects... And he seemed very committed to moving them forward, as opposed to just sitting on them.

I think they own too much property to develop it all. They need to sell off properties to different owners and focus on a few places to turn over.

There was a big article on Banta in OKC business a couple of weeks back. I think a lot of people missed it and the only reason I caught it was because they started delivering it to my house for some reason.

In the interview section, Banta talked a bit about what we will see happen in the near future and that's the Packard buildout, which Clagg & Co. are moving forward with as another Plaza Court type concept. Allegedly.

I wouldn't be surprised if Gaijin has backed out on their own. I don't think the Park Harvey location has been a bust by any means, but it hasn't been super busy either.

I for one think we're better off if this is the case. The sushi market seems pretty saturated.