http://www.tulsaworld.com/business/realestate/tulsa-s-brookside-to-get-new-apartments-on-its-southern/article_76988a38-23a1-5bdb-9e8c-194cf5bd41ee.htmlMost new apartments built in Tulsa arrive in already-popular areas, such as south Tulsa, Broken Arrow and downtown Tulsa, for example.
But Luke Strawn and his partners chose a different area to build their first apartment building — the south tip of Brookside.
“We think there’s a revitalization in that part of the world,” he said. “We do a lot of home sales over there, and we feel Brookside is extending to (Interstate) 44.”
Construction has already started on the $4.6 million, 36-unit building at the southwest intersection of South Quaker Avenue and East 49th Place.
Strawn, who is also the president of McGraw Realtors, said he expects the new development to be finished in the mid-fall.
Though the site may seem like a counterintuitive location for new construction, Strawn said he believes the recent Brookside boom will help push development south.
“We’re seeing a lot of new life, such as the new Reasor’s, Urban Outfitters and the Enclave (apartment complex),” he said.
A series of older, boarded-up apartments at the location have already been torn down to make way for the new building. Strawn said the old buildings were too decayed to be saved.
When finished, the buildings will have a brownstone look to them.
“We want the traditional brick look you’ll see in a lot of boroughs of New York and parts of Chicago,” Strawn said.
The apartments will range in size from 600-square-foot one-bedroom units to 1,000-square-foot two-bedroom units, and have “affordable” monthly rent.
The new apartments should give those just starting out in the workforce another option for living, Strawn said.
“Our focus is on the young people coming back from college and starting their first and second job who want to live in Brookside,” he said.
Though McGraw Realty isn’t involved in the apartments’ construction, the company will manage them, Strawn said.
So, do we think these will end up being more 34th and Peoria or more 61st and Peoria?
