Anyone notice work being done on the Legacy site?

<crickets chirping>

I wish I could make it to the OCURA meeting tomorrow with pictures of the lack of progress.

Since he's bed buddies with some members of the board, I'm sure another deadline will be set as to when work will be started. :rolleyes:

Anyone want to play some soccer? Soccer field is still available on the east side of Sycamore Square.

Anyone want to play some soccer? Soccer field is still available on the east side of Sycamore Square.

haha

I'm guessing it will be available until the next final deadline, too. :numchucks

How many more deadlines will this clown receive? Geez.... Anyone know if it was even discussed at the meeting?

We really, really need to get rid of JoeVan.:ohno:

I'm sure Steve Lackmeyer is covering the meeting for the Oklahoman and there should be a story in tomorrow's paper about this.

If not, there should be something in the Journal Record.

Hopefully, there will be some good news, but I'm not holding my breath.

If someone else were interested in developing that land, OCURA would probably give them the contract, or at least they'd be in court right now trying to get it.

These deadlines aren't set in stone. OCURA wants the area developed, and so far, it looks like Henderson is the only person interested in obliging them. It's hard to understand why he can't put together the financing he needs though. Who wouldn't want to be involved in the downtown housing boom?

If OCURA pulled that property back and marketed it properly, I'm sure there would be other qualified developers that would be interested.

It's been effectively off the market for a couple of years and much has changed during that time.

I'm kind of wishing Henderson doesn't deliver because even though it might be a temporary setback, I think we could get a more imaginative development on that property.

OK, Malibu Sooner ... I'll go one better. How about the story from tomorrow's paper?

URBAN RENEWAL AUTHORITY OKS THE NEXT STEP FOR SEVERAL DOWNTOWN PROJECTS

BY BRANDICE J. ARMSTRONG
THE JOURNAL RECORD
OKLAHOMA CITY – Oklahoma City's Urban Renewal Authority approved the next step for several impending projects at Wednesday's meeting.
Voting members approved a shopping list of agenda items on four major projects in downtown Oklahoma City. Projects included The Hill at Bricktown, Block 42, Summit Legacy at Arts Central and the Skirvin Hotel.
Construction documents for The Hill at Bricktown and Block 42, two downtown residential for-sale developments, were approved.
Voting members also gave Urban Renewal's Executive Director JoeVan Bullard the ability to negotiate and contract engineers for the two projects. The Hill at Bricktown officials selected David Todd of Todd Engineers and Grant Humphreys, project manager of Block 42, chose Johnson & Associates.
"There are more houses to be constructed than any time in our history," said Stanton Young, Urban Renewal chairman at the start of the meeting.
The Hill at Bricktown will offer 171 townhouses with two-car garages in an upscale community. One-, two- and three-bedroom units will range from nearly 1,400 to 3,100 square feet. Depending on size, units will cost between $200,000 and $475,000.
Situated on 11 acres between Bricktown and the University of Oklahoma's Health Sciences Center, the Hill at Bricktown will border Interstate 235, Stiles Avenue, NE Second Street and a railroad right of way.
A groundbreaking is scheduled for April 1 and construction could be completed within three years, depending on demand, said Robert Annis, deputy director of the Urban Renewal Authority.
No problems are anticipated, said a Hill official.
Block 42 gained its namesake from blocks 42 and 43 of the Maywood addition in downtown Oklahoma City. Surrounded by Interstate 235, NE Fourth Street and the I-235 service ramp, approximately 87,000 square feet will be developed into 18 townhouses and 12 elevated flats. Units range from 1,100 to 2,800 square feet and cost $160,000 to $485,000.
Six units have sold thus far. A groundbreaking is scheduled for February, yet may be moved back to March or April. Units should be ready for residents one year after groundbreaking, Humphreys said.
Voting members also approved construction documents for the Skirvin Hotel, which included the addition of an exterior ballroom entrance.
When Urban Renewal officially approved Skirvin Partners LLC's redevelopment for the hotel in March 2005, an exterior entrance to the ballroom entrance was not included, although an allowance for the ballroom entrance was incorporated into the $51 million budget, said John Weeman, president of Partners in Development, a partner in Skirvin Partners.
Construction for the ballroom entrance should begin in late spring.
The majority of the Skirvin is expected to be completed by January 2007 with a soft opening scheduled for late January or early February 2007.
Legacy Summit at Arts Central, a 300-unit apartment project west of Walker Avenue between Robert S. Kerr Avenue and NW Fourth Street, faced a setback. Due to financial challenges of getting quotes from potential contractors and lenders, environmental issues as there had been two gas stations at that site and last fall's severe hurricanes, little has been done to the project site. Approved in March 2004, the project was originally estimated at $26 million. It is now expected to cost $33 million, which is in part due to rising construction costs in the aftermath of the hurricanes.
At Wednesday's meeting, the voting members approved a time extension that expires Friday evening for developer Mike Henderson to complete transactions with Housing and Urban Development, which is guaranteeing the summit's mortgage. Financing will be done by General Motors Acceptance Corporation Commercial Mortgage, Annis said.
If all goes as expected, construction could start next week with a completion date of 12 to 14 months later.

Brandice J. Armstrong reports on real estate, technology, manufacturing, entertainment, tourism and media. You may reach her by phone at (405) 278-2846 or by e-mail at brandice.armstrong@journalrecord.com.

I think it is time for all of us to express or extreme DISSATISFACTION with Urban Renewal. I challenge each of you to contact them as we have had enough of their good old boy tactics. They are not operating in the best interests of the city nor like a government agency. Their too coward to have a website or post their email addresses.

Oklahoma City Urban Renewal Authority
(405) 235-3771
204 N Robinson Ave # 2400
Oklahoma City, OK 73102

Here's another article on the subject:

Review delays Legacy Summit project
By Steve Lackmeyer
The Oklahoman

After being told he would get no more extensions, developer Mike Henderson on Wednesday was given two more days to close his deal with the Oklahoma City Urban Renewal Authority to begin construction of the $33.3 million Legacy Summit at Arts Central.



Henderson provided Urban Renewal commissioners a letter from the Department of Housing and Urban Development -- which is providing part of the project's financing -- that said it needed the two additional days for legal review of the financing.

Henderson was accompanied by a GMAC Commercial Mortgages representatives who traveled to the meeting from Plano, Texas, to assure Urban Renewal commissioners that Henderson has his financing ready.

"This is more than a home run," said Daniel Crain, a GMAC vice president and branch manager. "GMAC loves it, the community will love it, the residents will love it. Everything is going great -- we're just not done yet."

Henderson's project has gone through three years of delays and extensions. He was warned when his last deadline expired Oct. 22 that he would receive no more extensions. Henderson was given until Dec. 22 to "remedy the default" in his redevelopment contract.

That deadline passed, and Jo Van Bullard, Urban Renewal director, blamed a title problem for resulting in yet another short extension. He said he was confident construction would start by Wednesday's meeting.

That has not taken place.

In a letter dated Wednesday, J. Tom Miller, director of HUD's multifamily program center, indicated that the agency needed until Friday to finish its review of the financing. Henderson told commissioners he's confident he can close on buying the property at NW 4 and Walker by then, and has instructed his contractor to start work Monday.

Henderson said he was ready to start work in September but lost his contractor in the wake of Hurricane Katrina as prices began to spike for labor and materials.

Bullard said he does not believe the continued delays and extensions will hurt his agency's credibility in enforcing timelines with other developers.

"Development opportunities are such right now that you don't want to take any more time to get a deal finalized and to get construction started," Bullard said. "Construction prices aren't going down, and they're going to continue to go up. And that's the driving force for developers."

Also Wednesday:

Commissioners approved construction documents for "Block 42," an $11 million, 36-unit townhome complex to be built at NE 4 and Stiles, and "The Hill," a $50 million, 171-townhome development planned for NE 2 and Stiles.

The vote clears both development groups to apply for building permits, the last step before starting construction. Both groups reported they now expect to start construction in April, instead of next month as previously announced.

I talked with one of the architects on this project last night. He strongly feels Henderson will close by today and break ground by Monday. I have yet to see it. If he doesn't ABSOLUTELY NO MORE EXTENTIONS FOR HENDERSON. Everyone need's to keep calling OCURA and letting them know how they feel.

Hey, I saw a pile of rocks out there on the site today! Is that new? Anyone?

Now all we need next to that pile of rocks is a pile of dirt. Hopefully not a pile of trash.

Yeah and some bulldozers and cranes, then I'll believe

:numchucks
FYI...Legacy Summit closed this morning. Construction begins Monday.
Mikel

That is a cool emoticon. Anyhow I'll still have to see construction on Monday to believe it after 3 years of nothing

I give Mr. Henderson a 30% chance of starting construction on Monday.

any dirt moving today? pigs flying? OCURA should be out there with a shovel themselves after all the delays they've handed the citizens

No dirt moving as of 8:30AM when I drove by. I'll go by there several times today.. Chances of dirt turning are slight though.

Chances of another extension for their buddy? 100%.

Maybe we should all OCURA again today and let them know our extreme disappointment with this project, and frankly with everything they touch

metro, they could care less as long as they and their friends continue to make money, mission accomplished. The Deep Deuce fiasco should prove to you how much they 'care' about the long-term development potential for OKC versus the quick bucks made by them and their supporters.

I wish someone would do a hard-hitting investigative report on OCURA and their dealings.

It wouldn't take much to expose a variety of scandals and incidents of self-dealing.


To me, OCURA is one of the biggest hold-overs of good-ol'-boy network that has kept OKC down for decades. The airport and the way it's run is right up there as well.

Malibu, it all starts with the old OIA trust, all roads would lead back to them.

-- and no it wouldn't. Who would take them on though? The news companies' owners are all likely co-opted. They don't mind doing their dirty deals out in the open as we saw with the Deep Deuce thing recently.

All of those public trusts are subject to the open records act. Anyone on here who has the time should feel free to expose them for what they are. Good luck getting one of the major news outlets of the city to pick up on it though.

Steve Lackmeyer please do an investigative report on OCURA

The best chance for some coverage would be the Gazette. While they may not be "hard hitting", they're not afraid to cover issues usually protected by the GOB network.

It wouldn't have to be the Oklahoman or the mainstream media... Someone could just create a website and/or blog to chronicle everything.


I managed to wrest minutes from OCURA a while back, but it wasn't easy (although it's supposed to be).

Seems to me that someone local could attend the meetings, collect the minutes, conduct some interviews and publish the results.

I would do it if I still lived there -- it would be a great service to the citizens of OKC.

I strongly agree. The Daily O has too many good old boy ties to OCURA. You all can write a letter to the editor of the Gazette at: http://www.okgazette.com/contactForms/editor.aspx

OKC very much needs a watchdog, which could take the form of a person, a group or even a webiste or blog.

OCURA, the airport authority and now the River Development Authority... There's no one to keep them honest or accountable and there is much more at stake these days with much new development yet to come.


Deep Deuce, Lower Bricktown, The Hill, this Henderson ordeal... All handled very badly with pretty poor results thus far.

Steve Lackmeyer please do an investigative report on OCURA

He would be fired. Lackmeyer's employer's owner's deceased father founded the OIA from which a vast amount of public 'bad faith' has sprouted (OCURA, the State Fair Board, the Airport Trust, etc. all descendents).

I'd volunteer if I weren't otherwise engaged in the evenings (this sort of thing interests me). Is there anyone interested in actually doing this? I can offer my servics as a 'help desk' when it comes to acquiring information under the Freedom of Information Act as I've had to do it several times and am well versed in it. Otherwise, if we had enough volunteers, we could set a schedule up.

Keep in mind, most of the really juicy stuff goes on behind closed doors under the name "Executive Session." I used it a few times while chairing a public commmittee (UCO student government, nothing major) myself -- a useful tool when you're trying to keep things private.

Anyhow, the full text of the Oklahoma Freedom of Information Act can be found here:

http://www.foioklahoma.org/OpenRecords.pdf

Midtowner. Great info. Indeed The Oklahoman's hands are tied on investigative reporting. I would be glad to offer some of my time although it is usually limited just like everyone else. Let's set up a task force, between all of our time and expertise we should be able to make a dent

I wonder if Todd would be able to spare some space for a blog, image host and message board regarding the investigation of these trusts?

There are documents that I'd like to obtain besides just minutes. I'd want:

1) Agendas;
2) By-laws;
3) Exhibits presented on each item on the agendas;
4) Minutes (already mentioned, but here it is anyhow); and
5) Any audio or video recordings made of any meetings;

I may be leaving something out, but the FOI Oklahoma Act requires that public records be made open to inspection during regular business hours. I'd request some time alone with the files of each individual trust, then make copies of what occurs to you was rotten. Keep in mind that the best stuff is still private, but you can get a pretty good idea of what they're hiding based on the agendas.

Can anyone come up with a list of names, addresses and telephone #'s for trusts that deserve investigation? Does anyone know if the Oklahoma Industry Authority is still in operation -- that'd be a great place to start, they were the big dogs back in their day.

Quick update...
drove by at the future site of Legacy at 2:30 today...nothing doing. There was a guy sitting there next to a pickup truck but that was it. No sign of machinery or tools or anything.

surprise surprise

Wonder when the next deadline will be?

is that hot place freezing yet?

is that hot place freezing yet?

If hell=OCURA, then yes, frozen stiff.

Randy Hogan was given deadline after deadline. Why not Henderson?

There's a bulldozer sitting on the lot now. Looks like possible preparations for construction may be underway.

It also looks like they've smoothed that aforementioned pile of rocks out into a gravel driveway.

Even if construction does get underway, the Good Old Boy tactics were still at work and OCURA did not honor their guidelines and extentions. What good is an extention if you keep extending it.

Playing devil's advocate here...

Metro, if you don't think the extensions worked in bringing about the desired end result (being new construction) why is there dirt turning? When do construction projects ever occur without setbacks and delays?

3 years of delays is a little on the extreme end don't you think. I understand delays and setbacks do happen but 3 years? Come on. OCURA's job is not just to get dirt turned with new construction but to get the best use out of the land. That was clearly not the case on the Hill and I'm not so sure I can say that about this project

Another update:

The backhoe is gone and nothing has happened on the lot (as of 5:30 pm Tuesday). Maybe they rented a backhoe just to make it look like they were doing work!

Does anyone know for sure which rendering is the right one for this project?

http://www.okcbusiness.com/images/newsletter/6993068_9115217.jpg

http://maps.newsok.com/features/maps/images/maps_legacy_lg.jpg

Unfortunately, I imagine the first pic is the project we will see, if it is ever built.

Who knows. For all we know, Henderson has probable changed his mind and decided to build one story apartments surrounding a Wal-Mart. I think metro is right. OCURA needs to stand up to the plate. We've gotten the shaft from wanna-be developers long enough.

Another update:

The backhoe is gone and nothing has happened on the lot (as of 5:30 pm Tuesday). Maybe they rented a backhoe just to make it look like they were doing work!

Yep, nothing has happened there in awhile.

TS, the top rendering is the one on Henderson's website.

Looks like a suburban development (all he's ever built) just pushed closer to the street with a parking garage in back.


I wonder if this whole process had been thrown open upon Henderson's first default if there wouldn't have been plenty of interest from other developers.

Of course, we'll never know because OCURA seems to be more interested in catering to local developers than doing what's best for OKC.

It is quite tragic when you look at the earlier design. It is a story taller with flat roof on most of the project. It appears to involve more stone and brick. It is a more urban design. Then you look at the new design... shorter, pitched roof, no stone, less brick. It just makes you want to scream.

The original design (the one on bottom) is actually pretty good. I like it. I would be interested to know if the original design was the one originally approved by OCURA. If it is, what was the reason given by Henderson AND Urban Renewal for the massive change?

Henderson has three other apartment communities in the Metro, all using the name "Legacy".

If you go to the website (http://www.legacycommunities.com/) and look at the video tours, all three are almost excactly the same and not impressive in the least.

The fact this is being lumped in with all the other "Legacy Commuities" says this development will be built in a very similar fashion, just more dense.

I am not optimistic about this development at all. Here's photos of the other three properties:

http://mysite.verizon.net/res17zef/hendersonsouth.jpg

http://mysite.verizon.net/res17zef/hendersonedmond.jpg

http://mysite.verizon.net/res17zef/hendersonmwc.jpg

Legacy Woods in Edmond is very nice. One of the nicest apartment complexes in the metro area. What's not to like?

The property in Edmond is the one in the middle picture above.

The other two look much more like the rendering for Arts Central and are ugly.

If you took away the landscaping and pushed the apartment buildings in Edmond to the curb, then how nice would it look? Because that's what's being proposed for the downtown site.

They all look really nice to me. I don't see what the problem is.

It will blend

It will blend in nicely with Sycamore Square, which by the way, doesn't look all too urban either.

Legacy Woods in Edmond is very nice. One of the nicest apartment complexes in the metro area. What's not to like?

If we have it in Edmond why do we need it downtown? I think people were just hoping for something nicer and more exciting than what Edmond has to offer. It's perfectly understandable if people aren't excited about the same ole crap. And that is pretty much what this project seems to be.

Went by the site today....saw some guy in a white pickup standing around talking on a cell phone, thats about it. This is really starting to tick me off.

Like I said, anyone up for some soccer this afternoon?

Ok, its a week later, any dirt moving yet? Time to call OCURA, the address and phone number is posted earlier in this thread.

Looks like the dirt work started today.

Yup, drove by there a few hours a go. The big machinery is out there and they're preparing/clearing the site. Looks like it's a go!