By GARY LEE
Evans-Fintube, a colossal new development complex, is poised to go up in the Historic Greenwood District over the next few years.
The entire look and vibe of the Historic Greenwood District is on the verge of a transformational overhaul.
One version on the table would bring a 42-story high-rise within a couple of blocks away from the corner of Greenwood Avenue and Archer Street, the epicenter of the neighborhood.
That skyscraper would include retail stores, offices, a luxury hotel, rooftop dining and of course, spectacular views of the skyline of Downtown Tulsa and beyond.
That proposed plan has been presented by Team Alchemy, one of two major development companies on the short list to recreate the moribund Evans-Fintube complex, located in the Greenwood footprint.
A second proposed plan centers around an outdoor multipurpose stadium and indoor youth and amateur sports facility. A second proposed plan would be centered around an outdoor multipurpose stadium and indoor youth and amateur sports facility.
The outdoor stadium could be home to concerts, sporting events. It could also become a popular venue for community events like the annual Juneteenth celebration. That plan has been put forward by a development Team Green Phoenix – composed of E Smith Legacy, Rose Rock and Pivot Project – has put forward this plan.
The two development companies vying for the project presented their visions to North Tulsans in meetings held in Northside venues last fall. Attendees offered feedback on the plans.
The two firms are processing the community input and will present their revised plans in a meeting on the evening of April 5 at the 36th Street event center. North Tulsans are encouraged to attend the session and offer further critiques of the plans.
Following those presentations, a group composed of representatives of the Tulsa Authority for Economic Development and the Evans-Fintube community steering committee will score the presentations and make a final decision on which team and plan will be awarded the project. Kian Kamas, executive director of TAED said in an interview with the Oklahoma Eagle that the final decision could come as early as this May.
Meanwhile, both developers are lobbying hard for their proposals. Steven Watts, CEO of Rose Rock Development Partners, and a spokesman for Team Phoenix, used an interview with the Tulsa World to push the concept of a stadium for the venue. Team Green Phoenix group is said to have close ties with Lt. Go. Matt Pinnell, who recently floated the idea of a soccer stadium for the area.
Watts told the World that a stadium is the kind of anchor he and his team believe will not only draw visitors but help address the health and wellness disparities that have plagued north Tulsa.
“We are one of the only cities of our size in the country that doesn’t have one of these multipurpose outdoor stadiums,” Watts said.
At the same Team Alchemy is advocating publicly for its high-rise concept.
“If you look at the Tulsa skyline, there is nothing that has been disruptive to that skyline since about the ’80s, but we’re talking about the Tulsa of the future,” Francell Abdalla, a representative of Team Alchemy, said in an interview with the World. “So, we looked at what would have happened if it wouldn’t have burned in this area. What would have happened if development wouldn’t have been so cautious around going up?
“So, we are saying it is time to disrupt the Tulsa skyline again with infrastructure and a beacon that calls people here.”
The bid to develop the project is about far more than buildings. The Evans-Fintube location, right in the heart of Greenwood, creates an opportune for North Tulsans to reclaim its legacy in the neighborhood.
“This is the chance for Black Tulsans to take the land that belongs to them and with that build multi-generational wealth,” Greg Robinson, president of Standpipe Strategies said in an interview with the Eagle. “But the forces of white supremacy that took the land away are still in control of the conversation.”
Robinson has played a key role in organizing community meetings to discuss the Evans Fintube and other development projects in the Greenwood footprint.
“The decision on who will develop the site is key to our future,” he said. “And the engagement of Black Tulsans is crucial to make sure the right decisions are made.”
So far, Mayor G.T. Bynum and other members of Tulsa’s political leadership have pledged to honor the Greenwood community’s interests in the Evans-Fintube project.
“The city aims to fulfill the community’s vision through a robust community engagement process and measurable project outcomes,” Tulsa officials said in a statement released at the start of discussion about the project. “The Evans-Fintube project itself must create opportunity for local small businesses to participate, with a focus on the Greenwood and North Tulsa communities.
“Additionally, the final development must offer ongoing economic opportunity for North Tulsa entrepreneurs and business ventures, potentially through affordable rents and targeted tenanting, and wealth-creation through small business and property ownership for the local community and descendants of victims of the Tulsa Race Massacre. Finally, the project must create meaningful fiscal impact for the public through a combination of ground lease revenues, land sale, and property and sales taxes. The city of Tulsa has made clear what it would like to see from the mixed-used development planned for the Evans-Fintube site just north of downtown.”
During the upcoming April 5 meeting, attendees will have the opportunity to question principals of the two companies vying for the project.
GLANCE BOX
The companies have offered the following summaries of their approaches
Be Good Development
Be Good has assembled a passionate team of developers, planners, architects, builders, and economic equity strategies to reimagine a resilient, innovate, and equitable development on the Evans-Fintube site. Be Good has intentionally built a team includes highly engaged local professionals and stakeholders, complemented by national partners skilled in historic preservation, commercial mixed-use development, adaptive reuse, and community-rooted economic development. In partnership with the community, Be Good is poised to co-create a development vision that both acknowledges the generational harm caused by the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre and rebuilds an ecosystem for prosperity and innovation.
E Smith Legacy, Rose Rock, and Pivot Project
The Team came together through a shared interest in not only building communities and urban real estate development, but through a drive to rethink traditional real estate development, to question the status quo, and create a development that is truly inclusive and provides opportunities for all who participate. The Team’s approach will focus on building a community partnership, strategic tenanting to grow local business, creating tenant partnerships to address ownership and wealth building, and creating a thriving mixed-use development.
