For the second time in two weeks, the Tulsa Public Facilities Authority has considered but failed to act on an agreement with a Texas-based company to develop 12.3 acres of city-owned property on the southwest corner of 71st Street and Riverside Drive.

Details of the possible agreement were not made public at Wednesday’s authority meeting, but it is widely believed that the development will be home to the state’s first REI store. The attorney for the developer and city planning officials have said previously that the anchor tenant would be the outdoor equipment and sporting goods retailer.

Recreational Equipment, Inc. has more than 130 stores nationwide.

The Public Facilities Authority may not have signed off on the development agreement, but the developer continues to move forward with plans for the project.

This rendering shows the north and west sides of what is expected to be an REI store on the southwest corner of 71st Street and Riverside Drive./Provided
This rendering shows the north and west sides of what is expected to be an REI store on the southwest corner of 71st Street and Riverside Drive./Provided
Detailed site plans submitted to the Tulsa Metropolitan Area Planning Commission this week provide more information on the project, including the height of the “RiverFront Sports” store, as it is referred to in the plans, and its orientation in relation to the River Parks trails to the west.

The store’s entrance would face north with the west-facing side of the building about 20 feet from the trails, according to the plans. The west-facing wall of the store will be 36-feet, 3-inches tall at its highest point. The majority of the wall will be 30 feet high.

The west wall will be made of concrete, except for the northern 18 feet 8 inches, which will be glass.

Tulsan Graham Brannin on Wednesday encouraged the authority to slow down and take more public input before making its decision.

Brannin question whether the development was an appropriate use for the property, citing concerns about removing green space along the river, the loss of the volleyball courts on the property and possible problems with downstream flooding.

“We’ve only got one chance to do this,” Brannin said.

Trustees questioned the developer, Don Bouvier of UCR Development of Dallas, about what the company plans were to do to ensure that trail users aren’t looking east into dumpsters.

“All that back-of-house activity is screened from the public, appropriately,” Bouvier said. “The general public wouldn’t come in contact with dumpsters in any way.”

The project’s design went through several iterations, Bouvier said, and will include trees and other landscaping to separate the building from the trail system.

“The development is planned as a means to activate the park and as a means to have a destination to the trail system,” Bouvier said. “We’ve gone to great length to integrate the buildings to achieve that.”

Detailed site plan for proposed development at 71st Street and Riverside Drive./Provided
Detailed site plan of proposed development at 71st Street and Riverside Drive./Provided
The other main component of the proposed development is a 7,000-square-foot restaurant with a 6,000-square-foot patio facing the river. That tenant has not been identified either.

Clay Bird, the director of the Mayor’s Office of Economic Development, said after the meeting that the authority’s failure to take action Wednesday should not be taken as a sign that they do not support the project.

“There are still small details that must be worked out,” Bird said.

Bird has said previously that the Public Facilities Authority has indicated it would use a portion of the proceeds of the sale or lease of the property to replace and upgrade the sand volleyball courts that would have to be removed for the project.

The city is considering moving the volleyball courts to Fred Johnson Park, 6002 S. Riverside.

The Tulsa Public Facilities Authority is a public trust established in March 1981 as the Tulsa Civic Center Authority. When the authority changed its name a year later, its role expanded to promote the acquisition, construction, operation and improvement of various public facilities.

The five-member board is made up of the mayor, or his appointee, and four individuals appointed by the mayor and approved by the City Council.

Key facts regarding the Riverside Drive development

Developer: UCR Development, Dallas

Development location: 12.3 acres at the southwest corner of 71st Street and Riverside Drive.

Anchor tenant: The developer has not announced who the tenants will be. However, city planning officials and the attorney for the developer have said previously that the anchor tenant would be the outdoor equipment and sporting goods giant REI.

The store will be built on the west said of the property with the front of the store facing north.

The west side of the building would face the River Parks trails. At its highest point, the west-facing wall will be 36 feet 3 inches. The majority of the west-facing wall will be 30 feet.

The west side of the building will include more than 18 feet of windows. This is less than the Tulsa Metropolitan Area Planning Commission initially requested but more than it ultimately required.

Other major tenant: The site plan submitted to the Tulsa Metropolitan Area Planning Commission shows a 7,000-square-foot restaurant that includes a 6,000 square foot patio.

Parking: 589 spaces, nearly 200 more than is required.

Sidewalks: A sidewalk will be constructed in front of the project along Riverside Drive. The development will have a berm up to 3 feet high between the roadway and the store.

kevin@readfrontier.com

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