New developer eyes $30 million retail project near Warren Theater

By John Dobberstein, editor

The once-promising shops of Aspen Creek in south Broken Arrow have languished for more than a decade, but that appears to be changing this year after the town signed a development agreement with a new developer Monday.

The Broken Arrow City Council approved an agreement between the city's Economic Development Authority (EDA) and Walman Brown Aspen Development to build approximately 38 acres of retail in three phases on Aspen Creek Drive.

Potential retailers have not been revealed, but several national retailers representing approximately 100,000 square feet have reportedly signed letters of intent to locate at the Shoppes, which currently has only the theater, a handful of retail establishments in retail and an apartment complex.

Earlier this year, the EDA agreed to purchase 38 acres near the Warren Theater from Sig-Broken Arrow LTD for $7 million after city council and staff concluded there was a need to move the project forward . The project was launched in 2013, and Sig-Broken Arrow had contacted the city earlier this year to ask for additional incentives to attract retail. The finalization of the land transaction is scheduled for June 28.

The first phase of the project – which is the largest – calls for the construction of 160,000 square feet of retail on 22.75 acres that Walman Brown Aspen Development would purchase from the city for $10. The developer estimates the parcel would generate about $41 million in sales taxes each year.

In the second phase, which will be completed after the first phase is built, the city will sell an additional 13.2 acres to the developer at a price of $2 per square foot, and an additional 100,000 square feet of retail would be built, which is expected to bring in $25 million in annual sales tax. income.

For the third phase, which will continue after the second phase is completed, the EDA will sell the remaining 2.3 acres to the developer for $6 per square foot for an additional 20,000 square feet of retail that would generate $10 million per square foot. year in sales tax revenue.

The developer's total capital investment is estimated at $24 million, plus $6 million in infrastructure that the city has agreed to reimburse.

The developer's representative, Steve Walman, told the city council he was determined to move the project forward after many years of disappointment.

Walman estimates he is the fifth broker sought to attract interest from national tenants coming to south Broken Arrow, but the cost of money, labor and materials for new construction has caused difficulties. Tenants were unwilling to pay the rent amounts necessary to make the deal work, leading to stagnation of the project, he added.

“We are members of the community. We understand that when you get that kind of momentum, you can’t afford to let it go,” Walman told the city council. “If you let it go, it won't come back for a long time.

“We have a bunch of leases and we have tenants who want to be here. We have a great location that could become the hub of the south Broken Arrow business community. And that kind of gravity in a market is the catalyst for other tenants, restaurants and other people to come in. “I am committed from a personal point of view, but also from a professional point of view. I'm thrilled to have so much interest in Broken Arrow. Honestly, I think this will be something that will serve the community over a long period of time.