They have been doing a lot of work on the building the last few months. The bathrooms have gotten much needed overhauls of plumbing as well as thermostats being installed (though those don't seem to be functional just yet).

Thread name change? BancFirst tower?

Thread name change? BancFirst tower?

Good idea.

Anyone know of a timeline for the new crown on Bancfirst ?

Anyone know of a timeline for the new crown on Bancfirst ?

They have yet to even file building permits and once that happens, it usually takes a few months, at least.

This sounds like a good get for the tower and area in general:
https://newsok.com/article/5631688/red-earth-art-center-moving-into-bancfirst-tower-lobby

This sounds like a good get for the tower and area in general:
https://newsok.com/article/5631688/red-earth-art-center-moving-into-bancfirst-tower-lobby

It is located next door in the Santa Fe Parking Garage today. You should go and support!

BancFirst now plans to reskin the entire tower in new glass all around

https://oklahoman.com/article/5632516/bancfirst-tower-renovation-expanded-to-include-new-exterior-on-all-36-floors

Great news!

Hopefully someone will buy the property & upgrade this tower into a Class A office space. It needs major renovation.

My wish came true....ahahah...lol

Are there any other renderings that show either the new glass or the crown?

Got excited until I read they are not replacing the glass on the exterior curtain wall. That is the biggest issue, too dark.

I am so excited...I am going to open an account at Bancfirst today!

I have mixed feelings about this.

With replaced glass, the building will look much newer.

But that 70's International style is cool in its own right. It wasn't that long ago that we thought re-skinning older buildings from other eras to 'modernize' them was a great idea and one we now largely regret.

I definitely like the crown much better now.

I'm very curious to know how they would replace all that glass while they have tenants inside.

Especially the Petroleum Club.

Im very excited to see that. Very true on the the HVAC comment...only so much you can do with single pane glass. Plenty of houses and apartments have the same experience.

Don't quote me on the city, but i THINK it was Indianapolis that had has a building of similar International Style that re-skinned like 10 years ago for the same reasons. We had discussed it here, but no one thought it made sense yet given the uncertain nature of the building at that time. It's not nearly as complicated as it sounds. The stuff is all modular to some extent. As long as the new stuff (which is built to spec) fits in the existing hole, its just a matter of removing the old and snapping in the new. Lots of scraping/drilling/sealing/etc that goes into it so it's labor intensive (hence the 18 months). We've got lots of examples of businesses doing this in town, although none of them have to be 30 stories up in the air!

If you have a window office in the building, be prepared to have to not be in your office for a few weeks when they work on your floor.

VERY excited about all of this. A little sad because we lose a classic International Style skin in the process. But it's always been my LEAST favorite style because its so bland. But it is that signature 70's highrise and we will lose a little bit of that in this. But at the same time, its going to be brought into the modern age.

I wonder how similar it will look to the Devon tower and BOK Plaza. Ctrl+c, Ctrl+v?

I know it had already been announced, but I really like the Red Earth move to the lobby. Gives a lot more visibility to the gallery than being stuck in the parking garage.

I have mixed feelings about this.

With replaced glass, the building will look much newer.

But that 70's International style is cool in its own right. It wasn't that long ago that we thought re-skinning older buildings from other eras to 'modernize' them was a great idea and one we now largely regret.

Yeah I'm kind of fond of the international style. Those buildings always said "big city" to me when I was a kid.

i'm with Pete on this one... i love the fact that the building looks different. it adds a bit of history to the skyline... i don't want everything to look sleek and modern. having something like this (as it currently is) along with First National representing a much older age of design, and then with the newer modern towers, gives the skyline character..

Wonderful news. The crown doesn't look like a cheap afterthought now and we get rid of the ugly facade. Win win!

Oh good, another blue tower.

Wait until we see the finished product before I comment; on the surface, hope it will be a game-changer for our skyline.

I can see being mixed or unhappy about the exterior changes, but I definitely understand them wanting to replace the "50-year-old single pane glass".

I'm very curious to know how they would replace all that glass while they have tenants inside.

Especially the Petroleum Club.

I am sure there will be some shuffling around & the best way would be floor by floor. They will probably house them in temporary office space downtown until construction is complete. I work in a office that had to do this, it's very common to move to another building for construction purposes.

I can see being mixed or unhappy about the exterior changes, but I definitely understand them wanting to replace the "50-year-old single pane glass".

I understand how people can be upset over losing history...but reality is that 50 year old single glass pane needed to go. Moreover, not only will it enhance the skyline, but its more energy efficient, re natural lighting. That is why you see most new office towers have all glass curtain walls.

Keep in mind they can change the glass without completely changing the look of the building, so this isn't an efficiency vs. appearance issue.

That building has been a part of the OKC skyline for decades and for a long time was a dominant force. I'm not sure I like the idea of it becoming just a generic glass box completely disconnected from our past.

I may be in the minority but I always thought this building was ugly and it has always appeared lifeless (the dark, tinted windows are a huge part of why). That was even the case back in the 90s when it was the BankOne Tower. The new skin will be a huge improvement and am looking forward to it.

Fact is, James Cotter almost let this building go to ruin & tenants were leaving. I for one am glad Bancfirst is investing in the building & downtown by completely upgrading the building. The new facade will make our skyline more attractive. Sometime change is good...

Fact is, James Cotter almost let this building go to ruin & tenants were leaving. I for one am glad Bancfirst is investing in the building & downtown by completely upgrading the building. The new facade make our skyline more attractive. Sometime change is good...

True. Things were not looking good before BancFirst purchased the tower.

I said from the beginning that I'd love to see the new owner of the property greatly expand the base of the building to cover the huge plaza, especially to the west. That building needs to be brought up to the street.

A really cool glass structure at the bottom while freshening up the exterior without changing it much.... To me, that would be the ticket.

I do like the blue glass move. I wish they would do something to harness/deflect the wind. I guarantee this is the windiest area in all of OKC. South winds slam into the tower and rush down to the street level below and it is insanity on 20mph+ days.

I said from the beginning that I'd love to see the new owner of the property greatly expand the base of the building to cover the huge plaza, especially to the west. That building needs to be brought up to the street.

A really cool glass structure at the bottom while freshening up the exterior without changing it much.... To me, that would be the ticket.

Im not completely against the proposal but I agree with this. They could replace the glass with the same blue tint glass while keeping the design.

Im not completely against the proposal but I agree with this. They could replace the glass with the same blue tint glass while keeping the design.

Basically what United Founders Tower did.

But I like the darker color glass, as that is a hallmark of the International style.

Can someone please explain the logic of building an all glass tower in an area with a very high hail potential.

There’s literally no winning around here

*tears down an old building*

WHY ARE YOU TEARING DOWN BUILDINGS

*buys an old building, wants to modernize it*

Don’t modernize it! Keep it ugly looking...just newer ugly!

Can someone please explain the logic of building an all glass tower in an area with a very high hail potential.

I doubt hail would damage the very thick higher tempered glass. The probability of damage would come from debris being thrown by a tornado, not by hail.

I said from the beginning that I'd love to see the new owner of the property greatly expand the base of the building to cover the huge plaza, especially to the west. That building needs to be brought up to the street.

A really cool glass structure at the bottom while freshening up the exterior without changing it much.... To me, that would be the ticket.

I 100% think this would be the biggest game changer for this building, much more than a change in appearance (I'm with the yeah-its-ugly-but-its-part-of-OKC-history crowd). The area around the tower is generally dead. When you walk out of the Skirvin you just feel like you're in a concrete desert. Adding a 1-2 floor glass structure around the base of this building would do wonders for the vibrancy of the immediate area and help the areas nearby too.

I have mixed feelings about this.

With replaced glass, the building will look much newer.

But that 70's International style is cool in its own right. It wasn't that long ago that we thought re-skinning older buildings from other eras to 'modernize' them was a great idea and one we now largely regret.

With replaced glass, the building becomes much more energy efficient.

Very happy for the change. Now if they can do something about the plaza.

I'm very curious to know how they would replace all that glass while they have tenants inside.

Especially the Petroleum Club.

take a look at how First Canadian Place reskinned (https://www.thestar.com/business/2011/05/20/first_canadian_place_the_big_peel.html) their tower in Toronto, they took it floor by floor at a time and sealed everything during construction so there was no impact to tenants. I'd expect similar to be done here.

https://www.blogto.com/city/2011/10/the_changing_face_of_first_canadian_place/

I may be in the minority but I always thought this building was ugly and it has always appeared lifeless (the dark, tinted windows are a huge part of why). That was even the case back in the 90s when it was the BankOne Tower. The new skin will be a huge improvement and am looking forward to it.

I've felt the same way. Been an eyesore for years. It was built in 70 - 71, Kerr McGee was built in 73 - 74. And now that the lights are back on, KM (SD) is way more appealing.

There’s literally no winning around here

*tears down an old building*

WHY ARE YOU TEARING DOWN BUILDINGS

*buys an old building, wants to modernize it*

Don’t modernize it! Keep it ugly looking...just newer ugly!

You'd almost think there were hundres of different voices and opinions and that no two properties are the same.

also, we still have great examples of international in the city in 50 Penn and the Union Bank buildings in NW Expressway Business District. Even downtown still has the old BOK Plaza tower and Sandridge - perfect examples of International Style.

I think this is great and only hope the new crown adds some height - only needs 16 feet or so to move up above the Tulsa buildings (save BOK).

From https://www.facebook.com/bockuspayne/:

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/bancfirst053019aa.jpg


http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/bancfirst053019ba.jpg

^

From the looks of that 2nd rendering, they are planning to change viturally the entire design. This shows something much more sleek and modern at ground level and the surrounding plaza than was orginally proposed:

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/bancfirst071818g.jpg

I doubt hail would damage the very thick higher tempered glass. The probability of damage would come from debris being thrown by a tornado, not by hail.

Not to mention the fact hail and the glass will be fairly parallel to each other. To shatter a tempered glass window it would have to pretty big hail coming in almost completely sideways. Which would create a very long list problems besides just the glass.

Oh good, another blue tower.

just wait until you see the LED light fins that come pre-broken before install

im just curious as to why HAIL is not an issue for any of the towers today, yet with a facade change it will be an issue for LIberty Tower?

Seeing the wasted lawn space in such a valuable and dense area makes it even more apparent how much better this area would be served with an expanded glass base with retail. And, of course, I love urban green spaces... but those aren't it.

Seeing the wasted lawn space in such a valuable and dense area makes it even more apparent how much better this area would be served with an expanded glass base with retail. And, of course, I love urban green spaces... but those aren't it.

Couldn’t agree more!

Well they aren't exactlly hurting on space in the tower right now. Why would they want to make an addition to the building that causes the occupancy rate to look even worse? If the occupancy does well, then maybe you can think about adding something to the pad in another 5-10 years. Just because Bancfirst has cash, doesn't mean they want to dump money in here they dont think they'll have a return on.

Anyone know the occupancy rate on these new ground floor retail spots we see being put in all over downtown? I'd be curious if they're actually filling in (and staying filled after a few years).

Personally, i really like the new lobby look too. I'm glad they didn't just re-skin and leave the arches...just would have looked weird with the mis-matched styles to me. That's always a peeve of mine with hospitals. The new buildings never look like the old so it's a conglomerate mess (Baptist).

The lobby of the building has always felt super empty. I don't even really want to imagine what it would feel like extended out. I think a better idea would be to have a skinny hotel or office building built on one of the corners, that kind of semi wraps around the base of the tower.

Also, I might be mistaken but didn't the design of this tower have some kind of connection to the old World Trade Center towers? Same designer, or was it just heavily influenced by them? For some reason I have this recollection of this, but it may have just been my own mind making the tie.

Here are a couple of models showing how the skyline would change:

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/bancfirst053119a.jpg


http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/bancfirst053119b.jpg

I like the look and it will only be better in real life with the logos and crown on top. But why can’t we get some halfway decent renderings of this project?

I like the change. But if a building was going to get re-skinned, I wish it was SandRidge and the even uglier AT&T building next to it.

I like the look and it will only be better in real life with the logos and crown on top. But why can’t we get some halfway decent renderings of this project?

I posted two up above.

The rest will come when they submit their application for design review, which should be soon as they want to start work this fall.

Design approval comes first, then they have to apply for building permits and on a project of this size, that is likely to take months.

Understood. Thanks Pete

no, Sandridge does not need to be reskinned. That is classic International Style with Brutalism, having one of these skyscrapers is not only enough but sufficient for the time. Now, I agree with you on the AT&T building but how many of those monolithic downtown central office/POPs are ever reskinned let alone look aesthetically pleasing (aside from Seattle's collocation hotel (https://www.westinbldg.com/Content/PDF/WBX_Fact_Sheet.pdf), the Westin Building (https://www.westinbldg.com/))?

As to BankFirst, I actually don't see this as changing the style as it will still look International and have the ribs of the old design, just not marble (which I actually wish they could have retained). Getting rid of the ribs altogether and having a flat blue glass facade would have been a change away from International - which is not the case here. ...

As a tenant of the building, I can't wait for work to get started (other than the hassle of ongoing construction). These aren't perfect, but this is going to be a huge upgrade over what is currently here. It is certainly going to be strange seeing this building in a different color, but I suspect it'll look better in real life than in the renderings.

I'm not arguing strongly against this renovation but there is an important question to consider: Has any building been re-skinned in an effort to 'modernize' the appearane that wasn't eventually regretted?

How many times have we had the "what were they thinking" discussion here? That only comes with the benefit of time. At the moment -- like now -- this always seems like a good idea. But as far as I know, it never, ever stands the test of time.

So, the question is: Why would we go down this path again?