Oklahoma City-Tulsa TV Households as one media market..

In 1997, then Mayor Ron Norick and Clay Bennett were trying to sell Oklahoma City and Tulsa as one media market and convince NHL expansion to place a team here, the committee didn't buy the sale of goods.

The NBA Relocation Site Committee that was here in Oklahoma City bought into the idea this time because they learned that 20% of the season tickets were sold in the Tulsa area.

The BOK Center is coming along, don't be surprised if 2 to 5 of the Sonics games are farmed to Tulsa.

The BOK Center will seat 18,041 for basketball with 34 luxury suites.
The Ford Center will lose seats from 19,163 to 18, 887 with 49 luxury suites expanding to 60 suites.

BOK Center:

BOK Center progress


Designated Metropolitan Areas (DMA) U.S. TV Households.

Oklahoma City (676,000 TV Households) /Tulsa (512,000 TV Households) that's equivalent to the St. Louis market.

Currently, our market is larger than the NBA's Memphis and New Orleans. The NFL's Buffalo and Jacksonville. In all fairness to Buffalo, you have nearby Rochester and Syracuse to beef up there markets.

DMA Rankings - US TV Households by Market

Our media market doesn't appear to be a problem with the anticipated support of our sister 93 miles northeast of us.

I have read the long thread from solitary about the team being named Oklahoma instead of OKC, this makes you wonder even more.

Clay Bennett has said that he want this team to bear the name:

Oklahoma City (?)

I cannot believe that both markets wouldn't be significant in terms of television viewers. Unlike some states, you don't have competition for television viewers by other profesional teams in other cities. With that kind of season ticket purchasing by Tulsa, I would think viewership of the games could be high in Tulsa, were it provided. Although I hate the quality of Cox channel 7, it is the cable provider for Tulsa, and I believe it is for Wichita and Springfield and Joplin, MO as well. I would think this could be promoted throughout the state and into cities like those as well.

That would put us in the number 22 spot...

Did they finally announce that officially? I missed it!

The last I heard, Clay emphasized that this was Oklahoma City's team; unless he has had second thoughts.

Has something recently surfaced on this?

I didn't realize that Tulsans purchased about 2,500 or more of the 12,000 season tickets sold during the last season the Hornets were here.

That's what I was told by my ticket rep two years ago. He also told me they had season ticket purchasers as far away as Wichita and Kansas City.

Bennett will eventually make another buyout offer; they (Seattle) tested the waters on this first--Bennett's offer went to $30 million (pay-off two years left on the lease and retire the debt on KeyArena from the 1996 renovation.

Seattle is still paying off the Kingdom, Quest Field (Seahawks) and Safeco Field (Mariners).

Are they stupid enough to pass that up?

Let's say it goes to trail and Seattle loses--political heads will fall--they think that a trail will be a slam dunk for Seattle.

What if the judge sees it differently and desides that "specific performance" should be compromised and allows the Sonic to buyout one of those two years or both.

The Sonic pay approximately $6 to $8 million a year in rent to KeyArena the City gets half of the revenue on Luxury Suite Sales--no wonder the franchise is losing $17 million annually in Seattle.

They will pay only $1.6 million at the Fabulous Ford Center which is more closely alligned with the league average, so I was told.

Stern called Seattle's lease agreement the worst in the NBA.

They (City of Seattle) want to keep Bennett there to play out the lease just to Bleed the Sonics'owners.

They believe that the longer the Sonics stay, the more likely Bennett's group will sell.

I got news for Seattle, Bennett will hold firm, "The team's not for sale!"

Is there any other major league team that divides its home season between facilities in two different cities? This OKC-Tulsa scenario seems unlikely to me.

Why is Tulsa building an arena?

Because they can
And because the second largest city in the state, with a significant draw power from the surrounding local area, and a right decent reputation outside the state, was sorely in need of a newer facility to remain competitive for bringing in events to the community. I believe it is accurate to note Ttown is rather behind the curve compared to OKC presently, but that wasn't true a mere 20 years back.

Yes, Tulsa feels they need to keep up with OKC or get left behind. Tulsa will NOT be left behind. If Devon builds their tower, you can bet yout breeches that Tulsa will build one, you can bank on it. It's called freidly compeition, always have, always will. And OKC better keep up the pace or Tulsa again have the upper hand. Tulsa is a good city, i just like OKC.

Nope. The lease states that ALL home games must be played in OKC.

The Bock seats way less...

Basketball: 17,534
Hockey: 16,843

Its only a bit larger than the Key which already makes it way out dated. Not to mention that the structure is next to the county jail and the homeless shelters.

Tulsa will have problems in the future if they try to lure in the Majors with a puny 'iconic' arena. The city should have been wise and invested more of that money in other parts of their downtown.
I bet adding seats in the future will be a huge bitch and be very expensive. It will be like fixing a Porsche.

Love the design. But, in contemporary arenas, its not just the motion of the ocean.... its more about the size of the wave.
Bock is what 500,000 sq. ft?....Ford Center will be around 850,000 when finished.

Ohh how I will cherish the day when I see a tulsan wearing an OKC NBA t-shirt, all the while taking a short cruise around the cookie cutter jenks riverwalk. haha.
BOK Center - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Tulsa will get a Pre-Season game, maybe two. I was hoping that Tulsa would get the WNBA team, but Bennett sold it and the women will stay in Seattle.

Nice.

I am really suprised that Tulsa built an arena smaller than the Ford Center, i wonder why they did that?

The Bok seats way less...

Basketball: 17,534
Hockey: 16,843

Thank you OKC patrol, the figue I listed was center-stage, I know see that basketball is only 17,534.

I still believe that the Sonics, once here will farm some games to Tulsa; they can get permission.

That lease with the Fabulous Ford Center isn't waterproof yet.

I don't see a split season though, if that's what anyone fears--especially after the Kansas City-Omaha Kings episode! Stern would never let that happend.

Tulsa wanted to build an arena comparable to the Ford Center, they considered losing about 2,000 for cost overruns, private funding bailed them out or the BOK Center would have been even smalle, around 14.500 for basketball. City officials emphasized that they needed something that could be competitive with the Ford Center, and they weren't willing to settle for less.

You noticed that BOK also uses SMG; they will be managing the BOK Center, they'll try and piggyback off OKC's success. They will co-exist with the Ford Center--feeding off dates when the Sonics are occupying the Ford Center.

On the lease front in Seattle - lets not forget what the lawsuit is about. The lease clearly has an exit clause in Article XXVI. Bennett was attempting to exercise that clause and have an arbitor determine the amont of money the Sonics would owe Seattle. Seattle then sued over the Specific Performance clause. There are a series of conflicting articles in the lease but as I read it, the judge should rule that specific performance does not apply if Article XXVI is executed. Thus the Sonics will be in OKC next season and they will owe Seattle about $3 million.

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Oklahoma City - The surprise your family has been looking for.

Oh Tulsa... have you read up on the Vision 2025 campaign? Read about their "Statue" hahahaha

It was announced on February 28, 2008 that the Houston Rockets would face the Orlando Magic in the first major sporting event at the new BOK Center on October 13, 2008.

Got this off wikipedia from the link provided above, this is interesting.