2026-10-15 - Downtown Design Commission Meeting

00:00and the review process.

00:02If you've parked in the parking garage

00:05across the way, you can get validation.

00:07Keith, will you please call the roll?

00:09>> Schmidt.

00:10>> Here.

00:11>> Saru.

00:12Copeland.

00:14Uh Egan.

00:15>> Here.

00:16>> Posse.

00:17>> Present.

00:18>> Reeves.

00:19>> Here.

00:19>> Shams.

00:20>> Here.

00:21>> Thompson.

00:23Oh, present. We have quorum.

00:27>> Thank you, Keith. Um as stated

00:29previously but I want to put on the

00:30record, we have a lot of new faces here

00:33that have joined and we're very excited

00:35that they've joined us.

00:37And we're very thankful that the mayor

00:38has completed the task of of adding to

00:41this commission. So, thank you very much

00:43for joining us. We look forward to

00:44working with you.

00:46Um first item on the agenda is approval

00:48of the minutes. Do I have a motion?

00:50>> I interject really quick? We We trained

00:53everybody in PrimeGov via Teams

00:55meetings, but just a quick refresher for

00:57in here. You've got a microphone at your

01:00seat. If you can clip that on where it

01:02um you know

01:05the area of a lapel or where you would

01:06have a lapel if you don't have one.

01:08Um there's a button to the side of your

01:11computer screen that says mic on off. If

01:14you can click that on and off when you

01:16speak so that

01:17uh all the viewers at home can hear you

01:19and so we can hear you when we go back

01:20to watch the recording and do the

01:22minutes.

01:23And then there's also a button that says

01:24speaker on off. There's little speakers

01:27between each of our computers

01:29um and so make sure that that light is

01:31on for your speaker.

01:33Um you and I are sharing one. Um you

01:35probably got your own down there and

01:36that'll help you be able to hear when

01:37people speak at the podium and that sort

01:39of thing.

01:40So, that's all. Thanks.

01:45>> Okay, very good. Let's start with item

01:48number one.

01:49Oh, sorry. Item number two, approval of

01:52minutes for the June 18th, 2026 meeting.

01:54Anyone want to talk about this?

01:57I'll I entertain a motion?

02:00>> Mariana Sarur

02:02made a motion.

02:07>> And just as a reminder, the chair can't

02:09make a motion, but the chair can second

02:11a motion.

02:12>> as I was the only other one here, I will

02:14second this.

02:15>> Okay.

02:21And we've also been advised that even if

02:22you were not present, you can vote to

02:24approve the minutes. And we presume you

02:27have reviewed them thoughtfully against

02:29the recording of the meeting.

02:53>> Thank you.

02:54>> Okay.

02:55Approval of the minutes passes. Item

02:57number three, cases withdrawn, we have

02:59none.

03:01Item four, continuance requests.

03:04>> So, you all received an email from me

03:07yesterday

03:08with a copy of a continuance letter

03:11that we had received for DTCA 2600025.

03:17Um and so, that came after obviously the

03:20agenda in the packet went out.

03:22Um but we typically honor continuance

03:25requests when applicants request it. And

03:28so, they are requesting a continuance to

03:30your November meeting, so it's just 1

03:33month.

03:34Um and so, that would be uh

03:38an item that's before you now is we you

03:40would be voting on a continuance request

03:43for DTCA 2600025.

03:47For 1 month to November.

03:49>> Is it staff's opinion that forward

03:51progress has been made?

03:53>> Yes. Um

03:55you when you got your packet from me, I

03:57had suggested you guys go back to the

03:59April meeting, which is the first time

04:01this one had a hearing, and there was

04:03direction given to the applicants for

04:05additional information, which they did

04:08provide us, and there was a lot of

04:10discussion between staff and the

04:12applicant during this past time frame.

04:14So, we feel that forward progress was

04:17made on this application, and we

04:19re-advertised it for this meeting

04:21because it'd been so long

04:24since it it was in April, and then we

04:26didn't have a meeting for 3 months

04:28through the summer. So, um

04:30staff feels forward progress was

04:32definitely made on this.

04:35>> Would anyone like to discuss this item?

04:40>> Do we know the reason for the

04:41continuance request?

04:42>> yes. Um the applicant hired um

04:46a attorney this week,

04:48and they have not had a chance

04:50to talk, look at anything.

04:53Um even though the applicant

04:56is a a law firm,

04:58their area of expertise

05:00um for those that have been in meetings

05:02is is medical malpractice, and so they

05:05are not well-versed in what we do here

05:08in this

05:09meeting.

05:18>> So, staff would be staff would be

05:19looking for a motion to to continue this

05:21item to the November meeting.

05:27>> Will we entertain a motion?

05:29>> I would like to move to continue this um

05:32agenda item to the November meeting.

05:46>> November?

05:49>> Motion

05:50>> So we're voting on an

05:52request to continue this particular item

05:54to the November meeting.

05:56Okay, thank you.

05:57>> That passes.

05:59Thank you very much.

06:01>> Thank you.

06:03Okay.

06:05>> Item five, consent docket. We're not

06:06seeing anything on the agenda this

06:08month.

06:09Cases for individual consideration,

06:11there's now nothing on that part of the

06:12agenda.

06:15How about other business?

06:17>> Okay, so we have your meeting schedule

06:19for next year.

06:22There is There were no holidays

06:24impacting your meeting schedule, so the

06:25meetings are on the third Thursday of

06:27the month the entire year.

06:29And the deadline for those meetings are

06:32two days before the prior month's

06:33meeting and that's what the calendar

06:35reflects.

06:36Um

06:37and so that's what we're putting before

06:39you.

06:40Still at 9:30 in the morning.

06:46>> Thank you, Laura.

06:48Um there's number of communications on

06:50the administrator

06:51>> So do they actually need to vote on the

06:53schedule or not?

06:54>> I think we've generally taken a motion

06:56and a vote to approve the

06:59meeting schedule.

07:00>> Okay.

07:04>> Will we entertain a motion to vote to

07:06approve the meeting schedule?

07:09>> I'll move.

07:10>> I'll second.

07:12>> Okay, so that's Sandy.

07:18Thank you.

07:23>> Okay.

07:25Communications administrative approval,

07:26anyone want to talk about any of these

07:27things or Laura have anything?

07:29>> you don't have a meeting for three

07:30months

07:31>> [laughter]

07:33>> you end up with 37

07:35administrative approvals to to report

07:37out.

07:39Um that included a couple from

07:40Bricktown, which is, you know, that

07:42typically at it's slower going in Brick

07:45Town than it is in downtown. Um

07:48obviously, you're going to see a whole

07:49bunch of signs.

07:51We did have two generators installed on

07:53the roofs

07:54of two tall buildings, which I'm not I'm

07:56wondering if they're second-guessing

07:58that after all this rain. I don't know.

08:00I I hope they don't have any issues. Um

08:05and

08:06one of them is for the corner at Walker

08:09and Main Street, and I'll just bring

08:10that up because we're all very excited

08:11about the project. It's called the

08:12Wildcat.

08:13Um

08:14and that one is actually on here because

08:16it happened during that 3-month time

08:17frame, and so they're renovating that

08:20for um a restaurant bar.

08:22Um and so you can see the progress if

08:24you go by there. And so that's it.

08:27We're excited. We can't wait till that

08:28one opens, so.

08:29>> All right.

08:30>> Does anybody have questions about any of

08:31these on there? So, this is the time

08:34if you see an administrative approval,

08:36you can always call me and say, "Hey,

08:37tell me about this one."

08:39We used to attach them to the agendas.

08:41We don't anymore

08:43um because of some issues we had we had

08:45with some people who were skimming the

08:47information off and sending out invoices

08:50to people, and unfortunately, people

08:51paid some. And And so we're trying to

08:53stop that. So, they're no longer

08:54attached, but you can get to them

08:56because they're out there on public and

08:58call me and I can explain how to get to

08:59them on the public portal, but

09:02um if you have questions, please feel

09:04free to

09:06follow up with me after the meeting if

09:08you can't think of it now.

09:09Um the other one on here I'll point out

09:11is uh the John Rex High School. You've

09:13probably been seeing that on the news.

09:15So, up at 6th and Hudson, um EST had had

09:18a three-story office building up there,

09:19and it's being converted to the high

09:21school.

09:22Um there's a vacant lot next to it, and

09:24that's there's an addition where the

09:25storm shelter's going to go because

09:27schools have to have storm shelters

09:28um

09:29in um Oklahoma City. And they also have

09:32the parking lot across the street that's

09:35for the employees, but they're not

09:37proposing any work on the parking lot.

09:39So, that's another one that is um

09:41extremely exciting. And then the last

09:43one I'll point out

09:44cuz I totally forgot about it because

09:46it's been so long is out at uh River

09:48Sport

09:49for the pavilion that they're building.

09:51I think of it as the island that's

09:53surrounded by the channels where

09:55if you're brave enough to

09:57to actually get in a shoot and go down

09:59there and do all that stuff, it'd be in

10:00the middle of that. And so, they've been

10:01talking about that particular thing cuz

10:04it will be done before the Olympics. So.

10:09>> Very good. Thank you, Laura. Any

10:11questions for any of those items?

10:14Any further comments from planning

10:16department?

10:18>> We have a meeting next month,

10:20obviously, and there there will be

10:22There's another item that I did get

10:26on

10:26Tuesday on the deadline.

10:28Um

10:30that I haven't looked at yet, but they

10:31met the deadlines that will be probably

10:33be on that agenda as well. So.

10:36Ink us in on your calendar

10:38for I believe that's uh the 19th of

10:40November. So, it's the Thursday before

10:41Thanksgiving.

10:43I will say that that day

10:45they pit they squeeze a lot of meetings

10:49that day because they move the meeting

10:51scheduled for Thanksgiving day

10:53to that day. So,

10:56occasionally we have a little delay, but

10:58please still get here on time and

11:01hopefully it won't be too big of a

11:02delay.

11:05>> Any general comments from any of our

11:08commission members?

11:11Okay. Seeing none,

11:14I'd like to adjourn this meeting. Next

11:15meeting is scheduled for Thursday,

11:17November 19th, 2026. New applicants were

11:20scheduled to be submitted to staff by

11:224:00 p.m. on Tuesday, October 13th,

11:242026. We're adjourned.

11:26>> Thank you.

11:35>> Mhm.