New Saigon

[T. Jamison]

The house on the left is described by the Assessor as Salvage and is valued as land only.

[Mississippi Blues]

No fear of neighbors. Would you want a 3 story wall next to your house blocking light?

If the sun sat in the same spot all day and I never left my house, probably not.

[Dob Hooligan]

There's 6 houses on my block in The Village. And if they take out 3 of them and put in 36 apartments, I'm not gonna celebrate it as a wonderful example of New Urbanism

[Mesta Parker]

On OKC Talks there is always a lot of concern as to whether a proposed commercial project fits in with character of the surrounding area. The latest example is the project at NW 13th and Broadway being built literally around the Garage Lofts. Why is there never the same concern with a residential area? The infill taking place in the Douglas Park area is a prime example of neighborhood character being changed by infill. 1500 ft2 homes in good condition on 1/4 acre lots are being bought, demo’d and replaced with ~4000 ft2 houses that tower over the rest of homes on the block. To me, this is not progress.

[Bowser214]

Yes!! I agree! Signs of a true metropolitan city!

[Mississippi Blues]

There's 6 houses on my block in The Village. And if they take out 3 of them and put in 36 apartments, I'm not gonna celebrate it as a wonderful example of New Urbanism

It would depend on the development itself and the vision for the area. Is there a need for denser, urban housing in The Village? Not really. Is The Village an area that intends to be a dense, walkable place? Probably not. The Asian District along with any other urban area in the city is going to have a different vision and different needs.

[Mississippi Blues]

On OKC Talks there is always a lot of concern as to whether a proposed commercial project fits in with character of the surrounding area. The latest example is the project at NW 13th and Broadway being built literally around the Garage Lofts. Why is there never the same concern with a residential area? The infill taking place in the Douglas Park area is a prime example of neighborhood character being changed by infill. 1500 ft2 homes in good condition on 1/4 acre lots are being bought, demo’d and replaced with ~4000 ft2 houses that tower over the rest of homes on the block. To me, this is not progress.

The vast majority of bickering around the fit of a project with the character of the surrounding area is about design, architecture, or land use. (i.e. non-urban layout in an urban area) Even with The Hub development you mentioned. If anything were proposed in a residential area that someone didn’t like, trust me, it would be very clear who opposes it and OKCTalk wouldn’t have to be the community voice in that scenario.

The rest is essentially the difference between seeing things as they are versus being able to envision what will come. Things are built in anticipation for the future as much as they are in response to what has been needed. This development is going to have 36 new units in the Asian District essentially next to the BRT line and across the street from a large market, so this could potentially be one of the few spots in Oklahoma City where living without a car is doable in a few years. If this isn’t progress, then what exactly does progress look like to you?

[Mesta Parker]

Douglas Park is not next to the BRT line it is south of NW 50th between Western and Walker.

[soonerguru]

On OKC Talks there is always a lot of concern as to whether a proposed commercial project fits in with character of the surrounding area. The latest example is the project at NW 13th and Broadway being built literally around the Garage Lofts. Why is there never the same concern with a residential area? The infill taking place in the Douglas Park area is a prime example of neighborhood character being changed by infill. 1500 ft2 homes in good condition on 1/4 acre lots are being bought, demo’d and replaced with ~4000 ft2 houses that tower over the rest of homes on the block. To me, this is not progress.

You're describing a completely different scenario.

Also, to Dob's comment, housing in the Village is different than housing in the central city.

These apartments are tasteful and fit in fine in the neighborhood.

[onthestrip]

No fear of neighbors. Would you want a 3 story wall next to your house blocking light?

As Qwo mentioned, Mesta, along with Heritage Hills, which are two of the grandest neighborhoods in OKC, already have lots of 3 story structures and many multi-unit residential buildings next to single family homes. Seeing how your name indicates you live in Mesta, where these things you complain about already exist, I'm not sure I understand your gripe.

[OkieBerto]

As Qwo mentioned, Mesta, along with Heritage Hills, which are two of the grandest neighborhoods in OKC, already have lots of 3 story structures and many multi-unit residential buildings next to single family homes. Seeing how your name indicates you live in Mesta, where these things you complain about already exist, I'm not sure I understand your gripe.

I lived in one of those old apartment buildings when I first moved downtown. It was in Mesta Park and the street was mainly Multi-Family housing. Not one neighbor, whether from a single family or a multi-family seemed to care. It is part of the cool factor of both neighborhoods. Just about anyone could rent in the nicest neighborhoods of OKC 10 years ago. Not so sure how much rent has gone up there.

[GoGators]

mixed use neighborhoods are not a new concept. As someone who lives in Gatewood, I always find it funny when people start to clutch their pearls over a new multi family proposal in the neighborhood. They claim each proposal doesn't "fit the character" of the neighborhood of single family houses. I always have to remind these people that the neighborhood has been flush with multi family housing for the last 100 years. I actually tried to map out all of the multi family houses in the neighborhood but gave up because there were to many. This wasn't even taking into account all of the single family homes with separate garage apartments.

Anyone claiming that infill multifamily housing is some new alien concept that should be feared is silly.

[Pete]

Most everything like this is high-quality, new construction.

It's not like they are drawing in a bunch of people on Section 8.

[OkieBerto]

mixed use neighborhoods are not a new concept. As someone who lives in Gatewood, I always find it funny when people start to clutch their pearls over a new multi family proposal in the neighborhood. They claim each proposal doesn't "fit the character" of the neighborhood of single family houses. I always have to remind these people that the neighborhood has been flush with multi family housing for the last 100 years. I actually tried to map out all of the multi family houses in the neighborhood but gave up because there were to many. This wasn't even taking into account all of the single family homes with separate garage apartments.

Anyone claiming that infill multifamily housing is some new alien concept that should be feared is silly.

Gatewood is actually a good example of how multi-family infill has helped the neighborhood. The apartments that Sam Gresham put in look great and filled a major need. I guess I am the type that clutches my pearls when a rich bachelor builds a single-family mansion on 16th Street.

[SpaceGuy]

No fear of neighbors. Would you want a 3 story wall next to your house blocking light?

lol good god man its a metropolitan area

also that's the east side of the house, only gets like 4 hours direct sun a day, i think they'll be fine

[GoGators]

Gatewood is actually a good example of how multi-family infill has helped the neighborhood. The apartments that Sam Gresham put in look great and filled a major need. I guess I am the type that clutches my pearls when a rich bachelor builds a single-family mansion on 16th Street.

New multi-family infill has absolutely helped the neighborhood. I have tried to make a point of attending planning commission meetings in support of every proposed PUD that has any vocal opposition. These new multi family buildings do nothing but improve existing lots, increase demand for the area, and increase property values for everyone around them. There is absolutely zero downside to these developments.

[warreng88]

I was in the Las Vegas neighborhood recently (23rd/Penn area) and was very surprised at how many tear-downs and rebuilds seemed to be occurring there.

I think the ones you are talking about are just west of Penn on NW 20th. It is very similar to what they did on 16th, east of the Plaza District.

[SEMIweather]

I think the ones you are talking about are just west of Penn on NW 20th. It is very similar to what they did on 16th, east of the Plaza District.

Yes, that is the exact street I was on lol.

[Mississippi Blues]

Douglas Park is not next to the BRT line it is south of NW 50th between Western and Walker.

I’m talking about this (New Saigon) development. I don’t know what anything going on in Douglas Park has to do with these apartments but I’m sure there’s a thread somewhere or one can be created if something is going on there that you dislike.

[Pete]

Finally nearing completion: