'We're in scoring position': An update on Oklahoma's proposed new $330 million arena
'We're in scoring position': An update on Oklahoma's proposed new $330 million arena
NORMAN — Norman’s plan for a new $1 billion entertainment district that would include an 8,000-seat arena for select Sooners sports is approaching a crucial next step toward becoming a reality.
University of Oklahoma president Joe Harroz Jr. on Tuesday announced during a scheduled meeting of OU and Norman leadership that the proposed project received unanimous approval from the statutory TIF (Tax Increment Financing) committee on May 16 and will be up for approval in front of the Norman Planning Commission on June 13. If the project receives approval during that meeting, it will be up for final approval from city council later this summer.
If approved, the new arena — which would not only house Oklahoma men's and women's basketball and women's gymnastics but concerts and other events as well — and Phase 1 of the project would be completed by 2027 or 2028, according to OU athletics director Joe Castiglione. The project is also estimated to bring in 5,000 new jobs to the city, as well as housing for 3,000 residents, once fully completed.
"Things are going to happen because of this move," Castiglione said. "We've said it's transformative, and likewise, this entertainment district and for us the synergy of an arena with an entertainment district is absolutely a gamechanger for our program. We have to compete. We make that choice, and we will, make no mistake about it. But an arena like you will see here shortly that is something that helps us immensely in recruiting and developing teams that are going to fill it on a daily or nightly basis. We do have some great teams, as we've talked about.
"…This is an opportunity (where) we feel like we're in scoring position. Now, it's time to score and not let that opportunity go by the wayside. We're going to do everything we can to make this successful."
The proposed $1 billion entertainment district was first brought to the public last September during the Norman Economic Development Coalition's annual State of the Economy breakfast but further steps in front of the Norman Planning Commission have been delayed multiple times in the months since then. However, May's unanimous vote by the TIF committee was an important next step in the process, as the project inches toward a vote of final approval.
"This is one of those moments that, I think as it's occurring, we don't really appreciate the significance of it," Harroz said. "…At the founding of this city, when Norman was first established, there was a fundamental question about our identity and who we wanted to be. When the founders started, there was a competition for the state capital. It was hotly contested, and we all know the discussion of Guthrie vs. Oklahoma City and where it landed.
"The City of Norman knew that having the housing, the research university, had a special effect. It knew it had a special purpose in this state well beyond the university. For years and decades, we've lived into that. Each generation has an opportunity to decide who they're going to be and what they're going to do — those projects that define whether or not leadership is seized. People take the offices they have, and they do something with it that really improves the lives of those in the community. This is one of those moments. It has been literally years in the making."
The entertainment district would be located at Rock Creek Road and 24th Ave Northwest, between I-35 and Mx Westheimer Airport in Norman. Of the project's $1 billion price tag, 80% would be paid through private investment, including a "significant" investment by the university, while the remaining 20% would be paid through public sources. According to the coalition of Norman leaders present at Wednesday's meeting, no funding for the project would come from city or county general funds, and the public will not see a tax increase for the project.
The arena portion of the project is estimated at $330 million, with $230 million being proposed via public funding. As part of OU's "significant" contribution to the project is an estimated $100 million, including an initial investment of $25 million, with another $75 million — accounting for rent and operations — contributed over a 25-year period. According to Harroz, the primary contribution for OU athletics would be in the form of rent, as the Sooners' men's and women's basketball teams and women's gymnastics team would account for about 24% of the arena's total usage.
"This is thought through completely," Harroz said. "This is thought through with a great deal of effort. We look at the impact this would have, and it is stunning in what it will do…. Over a $1 billion investment in the third-largest city in Oklahoma. In just a few days, we're going to move to the Southeastern Conference, an historic move. There's so many things converging right now, this is what progress looks like. This is what being a unified city, looking out for the interest of all others, looks like. This could not be a more exciting opportunity, and yes, there's some that get anxious over this. There's some that don't like change. There's some that fear opportunity. I understand that. But I think what you see right here are people fully committed, collectively, toward this."
The proposed new arena would replace the Lloyd Noble Center as home for OU's basketball programs and women's gymnastics team. The Lloyd Noble Center was opened in 1975 and currently holds a capacity of 10,967 people. The new arena would be more intimate, and while it would be located off-campus, Castiglione noted that he does not believe that would change the accessibility for students. He cited a study conducted by the athletics department five years ago, which showed that 85% of students who attended games at the LNC drove to the arena, and that number has not changed. The new arena proposal, he said, also features a built-in plan for shuttle service from campus to the arena, as well as a "high focus" on walkability within the entertainment district that is expected to "enhance interest" in the area and further create synergy between the university and the greater Norman community.
"We're at a seminal moment in Norman's history, " Visit Norman president and CEO Dan Schemm said. "This is an opportunity for us to invest in ourselves. We're the third-largest city in the state, and it's time we start acting like it."
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