Last Updated on December 22, 2023, 12:24 PM | Published: December 21, 2023
OKLAHOMA CITY — The development leaders behind OAK – the sprawling 20-acre mixed-use development currently in construction at NW Expressway and Pennsylvania – are celebrating the so-far successful launch of EMBARK’s brand new Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system, OKC’s first-ever rapid public transit line.
The complex is expected to be heavily served by the BRT stops at the intersection of Expressway and Penn when OAK launches at its projected completion in late-summer/autumn of 2024.
A clearer ease and encouragement for city residents to access and enjoy public transportation has been a part of the plans behind OAK since the beginning, according to project leader Ryan McNeill of Veritas Development.
“OAK is about bringing a new level of amenities to Oklahoma City in a mixed-use environment,” McNeill said, “and having connectivity to the BRT and to Downtown is definitely an important part of the project.”
Common Areas
Designed as a massive, pedestrian-focused business/retail/restaurant/hotel/apartment complex, OAK’s developers, led by McNeill, say that the initial inspirations for the site drew heavily from similar developments in other, more transit-oriented cities, particularly Alpharetta, Georgia’s Avalon Center.
Key to that goal is a focus on the common areas and the kind of pedestrian-oriented design that emphasizes foot traffic and outdoor activity.
“There’s millions and millions of dollars going into the hardscape and landscape,” said McNeill. “So the businesses will occupy the spaces all around, but the heart is really those common areas.”
The open-air common spaces will be home to a selection of public artworks and numerous planned community events and regular public activities, providing a foothold into the city’s local culture and homegrown community that currently does not exist in the expected business lineup at launch.
The retail commitments currently in place for OAK comprise exclusively national chains, such as Pottery Barn, Tommy Bahama, Restoration Hardware, and more, and at least one national restaurant chain, The Capital Grille.
McNeill says that a selection of locally owned stores or a walk-accessible grocer to serve the complex’s apartment residents would be welcome, but so far no commitments have been made.
“There’s absolutely space still reserved for local tenants,” he said. “It’s just a matter of getting them satisfied and comfortable and confident.”
Foot Traffic
Having grown up in the Metro, McNeill is well aware of the difficulty of breaking Oklahomans from the state’s traditionally car-focused mindset.
“I’m from Edmond, so I understand that weaning yourself from a car is pretty hard in a place like OKC,” he said. “I do think the consciousness has changed, and the way that folks think about proximity has influenced the thinking about transit-oriented development.”
In order to help create this more walkable, pedestrian-friendly complex of businesses, apartments, restaurants, and more, McNeill and Veritas have included more than two miles of new sidewalks in the plans.
“Our vision for this project has always been to create a destination that prioritizes walkability and mobility,” McNeill said in a press statement praising the launch of the new BRT service earlier this month.
It was that vision that won the project unanimous city council approval in August 2019, when OAK’s developers applied for both the required zoning and approval to realign NW 50th to better serve and direct traffic through the complex.
Ward 2 OKC City Councilman James Cooper said at the time that he was “excited and encouraged” by the plans and the proposed changes to the area, primarily owing to the project’s emphasis on walkability, encouragement of public transit for access, and large amount of planned green space in the common areas.
Pushback
Not everyone has shared that level of excitement for the development, however.
At that same city council meeting, representatives of Simon Malls, the operator of Penn Square Mall (which will share an intersection with OAK) pushed back on the plans, claiming that the new development will actually do little to reduce traffic or encourage more public transit and walking.
According to Simon Malls’ attorney Robert Sheets, a traffic study conducted by OAK themselves predicted a possible increase in traffic on NW Expressway as large as 18,000 more cars daily.
McNeill and OAK developers say that kind of increased traffic should be a net positive both for Penn Square Mall and for the entire retail and business corridor of NW Expressway.
And with the BRT now in operation, McNeill’s hope is that OKC residents will engage the transit service even more than expected and begin to embrace a more pedestrian-friendly, less car-focused commerce experience.
Though, the 621 square miles of the city makes that a challenge.
“The general thesis of any project that leverages mass transit is doing away with cars the best you can,” he said. “But that’s hard in a city where you have the geographical spread that we have.”
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Brett Fieldcamp has been covering arts, entertainment, news, housing, and culture in Oklahoma for nearly 15 years, writing for several local and state publications. He’s also a musician and songwriter and holds a certification as Specialist of Spirits from The Society of Wine Educators.
