Coolgreens

[zachj7]

I used to eat at Cool Greens but they stop offering the combo soup and wrap and instead give you a few pieces of pasta for the same price.

[Dustin]

Holy thread resurrection Batman!!!

[ljbab728]

From the Journal Record:

Cultivating Coolgreens: Eatery plots return to downtown OKC
By Brian Brus
The Journal Record

OKLAHOMA CITY – A new Coolgreens restaurant is scheduled to open downtown at the first of the year, Chief Executive Scooter Aselton said.

The street-level restaurant at Robinson Avenue and Couch Drive has been vacant for several months and Aselton is looking forward to attracting customers who have been looking for fresh salads and sandwich wraps.

Actually, Coolgreens operated at the site since early 2012, but construction work for Project 180 streetscaping has forced the business to close its doors for so long that Aselton said he might as well start over – not a reopening, but a new first opening.

“We’ve been totally dormant and it’s going to be a real quagmire until people realize that we’re open again,” he said. “We’ve lost a lot of repeat guests. But we’re excited about reopening and this thing finally ending.”

This thing is Project 180, a $140 million streetscape refurbishment for the entire downtown business district. Everything between buildings is being updated, including sidewalks, lighting, signage, benches and parks. The total cost of work is being funded through revenues collected from a tax increment finance district that the City Council approved in 2008.

Coolgreens management decided to shut down operations ahead of Project 180 to minimize expected losses due to disrupted foot traffic. Aselton said that if the company didn’t have four other restaurants in the metro area, the damage would have been unrecoverable. Fortunately, the landlord has allowed Coolgreens to stay without rent. The company still had to lay off several employees, however.

The last time he visited the downtown restaurant, Aselton said he was surprised at the amount of dust that worked through the door cracks and ventilation system. Some downtown stakeholders have complained about curbside parking, pedestrian access, debris and other problems related to construction, but the city’s project coordinator, Shannon Cox, said such concerns have diminished over the last year with scheduling adjustments.

“As we went through the process, we learned from mistakes, listened to our stakeholders and made changes,” Cox said. “We know it’s inconvenient, but we’re trying to make it as minimally disruptive as possible. We’re tearing up fewer blocks at a time.”

Cox said construction on Robinson in front of Coolgreens’ windows finished on deadline in early October. Work on remodeling Kerr Park around the corner continues, however. The park falls outside the scope of Project 180 scheduling because it’s a joint effort between City Hall and SandRidge Energy, with the latter shouldering about $3 million and the city paying about $1 million.

Project 180 contractors are required now to maintain pedestrian access to buildings and minimize vehicle traffic impact. Street work must be finished before moving onto sidewalks, she said.

The city has two areas under construction and two more areas, or packages, are planned before Project 180 wraps up in mid 2016. The full project is still under budget with few modifications to the original plan.

As to Aselton’s suggestion that City Hall somehow help offset business revenue losses during construction, Cox said the municipal government can’t commit taxpayer money that way. Fast-food restaurants along interstates face similar challenges when exit ramps are closed for road construction, but some businesses invest in insurance policies to hedge against such disruptions.

[Plutonic Panda]

I just found out about this thread by a link I somehow made. Interesting.

[HOT ROD]

Good to hear they're returning downtown and want to start anew.

Could this new Coolgreens, PlenTy Mercantile, Café 7, BC Clark, did I miss anybody? be the beginning to the upscale Park Avenue shopping street I'm dreaming of?

[Pete]

The Coolgreens in City Place closed in February of 2014 and promised to reopen in January 2015.

They had said it was due to Project 180 construction but that is long since complete. Granted, Kerr/ Couch Park is still under construction to the north.

Has Couch Drive directly to the north been re-opened?

[shawnw]

The sidewalk on Couch is now usable but the street is not open. I've been concerned as well that they haven't re-opened yet.

[Pete]

I walked by yesterday and they still have plywood shielding the northern windows of the restaurant space, due to the on-going construction on Couch and the adjacent park.

The crazy construction slow-down by SandRidge on the Parkside Building means they couldn't finish the park and Couch either, so that whole situation has contributed (and even directly caused) Coolgreens to be closed for many more months than originally planned.

[shawnw]

probably a good thing they didn't try to stay open.

[shawnw]

Steve re-tweeted Coolgreens' twitter saying they'd be opening downtown soon.

[Jeepnokc]

Steve re-tweeted Coolgreens' twitter saying they'd be opening downtown soon.

I was in the area today and saw a now hiring sign in the window.

[Pete]

Great news!

That area is getting ready to change pretty rapidly with Coolgreens reopening, work starting on Dowell Center (they'll do the ground level first), the parks being complete and the Parkside Building finishing up.

[Pete]

They reopened today:

[ChaseDweller]

Just in time for the city to close Park across Robinson and make it damn near impossible to get to again.

[TheTravellers]

Wife went today, pizza oven's broken, they can't make flatbreads or sandwiches, she went to City Bites instead. Good rule of thumb for a restaurant - make sure all your equipment's in operating order before you (re)open...

[Plutonic Panda]

Oklahoma City restaurant chain Coolgreens ousts CEO | News OK

[Urbanized]

Wow, that's a bizarre story...

[Pete]

They are moving into the old Salata space in the center on the SW corner of May and Memorial.

I assume this means they will be relocating from 142nd & May, which is less than a half-mile away.

[jbkrems]

Its too bad they closed their Edmond location.

[Plutonic Panda]

You are not kidding. I spent months worrying about it and messaged them multiple times. They kept saying it wasn't going to close and it did. What a shame as I really liked that place.

[Thomas Vu]

Shame. I preferred salata out of the two

[shawnw]

Love Salata but also highly enjoy Coolgreens. Would eat there multiple times a week if downtown location would be open later than 2.

[sooner333]

Love Salata but also highly enjoy Coolgreens. Would eat there multiple times a week if downtown location would be open later than 2.

Are they even open downtown right now? I've walked by around lunchtime (albeit across the street) recently and it looks like a ghost town over there.

[shawnw]

I don't actually know since I live downtown but work outside of downtown, either way I'm never around when/if they're open but would love to go there for dinner...

[brianinok]

Its too bad they closed their Edmond location.

This has been a huge disruption in our dining routine.