LIVE: Norman City Council holds first UNP entertainment district public hearing

Norman City Council is holding a public hearing to consider the Rock Creek Entertainment District project plan at its special meeting Tuesday. 

Public Hearing for entertainment district questions Council is holding the first of two public hearings regarding the UNP entertainment district, with a second planned for Sept. 17.

According to a staff report, the first public hearing is for questions and the second public hearing is for public opinions. 

Public Hearing for entertainment district questions

Members of the public are wearing green pins on their shirts that say “No UNP TIF Arena” in protest against the Rock Creek Entertainment District. Members of Team Norman are in attendance in OU shirts to show support for the TIF. 

The city council chamber is completely full, residents are overflowing in the back of city hall to attend the meeting. 

Cathy O’Connor, founder of the Coalign Group, is presenting the TIF plans. O’Connor said a TIF district can attract major investors, create new jobs and retain old jobs. 

According to O’Connor, the entertainment district could also reverse stagnation, retain and expand employment, preserve and enhance the tax base, and stimulate private commitments to invest and reinvest in Norman. 

O’Connor said staff has been working on an economic development agreement with University North Park, LLC. She said the city is seeking a final agreement before Sept. 17.

O’Connor said the entertainment district will include 500 housing units in addition to 177 medium-density housing units. 

CC Trust obligations require construction to begin no later than Jan. 1, 2026 and end no later than Dec. 31, 2029. 

Ward 6 resident Dan Munson, asked if the entertainment district would require additional public safety requirements, including police officers, firefighters and emergency medical services. 

Anthony Francisco, Norman finance director said the city will consider safety requirements as the plan moves forward. 

OU economics professor Cynthia Rogers said the city has budget constraints due to growing expenditures compared to revenue.

“How can the city maintain its level of public service if it gives up so much revenue growth for the next two decades?” Rogers asked. 

OU philosophy professor Stephen Ellis said more events could occur at the Lloyd Noble Center, citing the decreased size of the proposed arena.

“How are we going to get more at the smaller place?” Ellis asked. 

Francisco said the projections for the next 25 years are uncertain but the city is comfortable with its predictions.

“What we’re talking about here is an educated guess or a sophisticated guess of what’s going to be happening over the next 25 years if this development happens,” Francisco said. 

UNP Entertainment District first reading

Council approved progressing plans for the UNP entertainment district to second and final reading. 

University North Park Entertainment District 

Introduced in September 2023, the $1 billion Rock Creek Entertainment District would include a basketball and volleyball arena to replace Lloyd Noble Center, a retail market, housing units and office spaces. 

The entertainment district would create two tax increment finance districts, or TIFs. A TIF is used to support redevelopment, infrastructure and community-improvement projects to stimulate private investment within a certain area in need of economic revitalization.

One TIF would be for sales or use tax, expected to be activated on May 1, 2025. The other would be an ad valorem increment district and expected to be activated on Dec. 31, 2026, to capture the property tax that would begin when the first-year properties in the project area are developed.

The total cost of construction would be $644,482,953, according to a district analysis by HVS Convention, a sports and entertainment facilities consulting firm. Around 40% of the costs for the district would be financed by OU and private sources, while OU would use around 25 percent of the event dates, according to the staff report.  

If approved, the entertainment district areas would open from 2027-29. 

The proposed arena would seat 8,000 people, which is less than Lloyd Noble Center’s 11,000 people. Around 1,650 seats would be premium seating options, according to the analysis. 

HVS Convention’s analysis projects the arena could host 146 events per stabilized year, including games, concerts, shows and meetings. The analysis also projects the arena will generate $51 million in revenue for the city and $37 million for the district per stabilized year. 

The arena would open on Nov. 1, 2027, with a stabilization period of three years, according to HVS Convention. 

HVS Convention notes the 180,000 sq ft. of office space would hold 690 employees and include 148,000 square feet of leasable space. According to the analysis, 138,380 square feet is expected to be occupied in a stable year. 

The office space would be constructed from 2028-29.

The Norman retail market would include 140,000 square feet of retail stores and business. Businesses would be “high-end,” with higher rents than market average, according to the analysis.

The analysis notes around 45 percent of visitors would come from Norman, while 55 percent would come from tourists. HVS Convection also projects the retail market would generate $22 million in net new sales. 

According to the analysis, the arena and retail spaces would open in late 2027. 

On Sunday, OU President Joseph Harroz Jr. wrote a column in the Norman Transcript advocating for the district plan’s approval. 

In his column, Harroz wrote the entertainment district is essential to Norman’s future. Harroz added the entertainment district would create a strong sense of community, and attract new business and residents, citing migration to the Sun Belt.

“This is our opportunity to define who we are and what we aspire to become,” Harroz wrote. “Do we seize this moment and choose the path of investment, growth, and improved quality of life? Or do we remain complacent and atrophy, watching as other cities leap ahead?”

In April, Harroz threatened to build the entertainment district outside of Norman if rejected.