So, been a while (got the nice little warning above, haha).
Figured some updates were due:
So I previously mentioned the Jewel Box Hotel Apartments. Apparently you too can stay in these studio apartments via AirBnB. They go for about $140 a night. I know that’s more than the hotels in the area, but obviously you would be paying for the ambiance. It’s also right above some of the more active restaurants in the evening in town.
Tower Center at Unity SquareApparently this is the name we are going with. I appreciate the thought but it sure is a mouthful. Ground breaking was a week or so ago. Again, I really REALLY hope they are somehow able to define the area well and it doesn't just turn from a street that barely gets driven on to a park that barely gets used. Architect will be Ambler Architects (
http://www.amblerarchitects.com) so at least I am extremely confident it will look good. This firm is also responsible for the Arvest Bank Tower and BancFirst rehab projects that are amazing. More recently they designed the Phillips 66 plaza (just south of the Plaza Building).
Tinker's GlassHouseLooks like I first mentioned this in late 2017. It opened in late 2018. It was well financed and progressed rather quickly considering the dilapidated nature of the building. Today it is quite impressive looking. There are a ton of pictures on their Facebook page (
https://www.facebook.com/tinkersglasshouse/) showing the transformation.
Unfortunately...... I've heard the experiences to be rather disappointing. I almost went right before Christmas with my work team, however we changed at the last minute and took a trip to Pawhuska.
Other Rehab Projects:* Phillips Hotel - complete rehab of interior and updating of entire building.
* Former Sweet P's & Annex - I'm honestly not sure if this is one project or two, but at minimum a private residence is going in the 2nd floor and rear 1st floor of one building, with commercial space along Frank Phillips.
* All the buildings between the County Courthouse and the Annex (3rd & Johnstone) have been taken down for what I presume to be parking (ugh). Most of the businesses closed, but apparently the Rolling Pin (which I love) is staying downtown and moving to a dramatically larger space on 2nd Street (215 E. 2nd).
* Just south of my office it looks like they are slowly renovating some office buildings. Just one done so far where they have removed the thatched roof that went all the way to the ground. It's not as if there was anything historical underneath, they were just ugly (see the photo below where one is done on the right, but untouched on the left).
I'm sure I have missed something.