A Vision sales tax–funded citywide study of Tulsa’s retail environment is underway.
Wisconsin-based Place Dynamics is doing preliminary work now, gleaning what information it can about Tulsa through data sources like the U.S. Census. City Planning Director Dawn Warrick said they hope to figure out weaknesses in Tulsa’s various retail areas.
"That includes where we have what we would call ‘leakages’ in areas that are over-served or that are underserved with certain types of retail and then kind of a strategy as to what to do about that," Warrick said.
Some areas of Tulsa are thriving bastions of retail keeping the same stores in business for years while others are revolving doors and some have recently lost anchor tenants, including big names like Macy's at Promenade Mall and Sears at 21st Street and Yale Avenue.
Warrick said by the end of the study, officials hope to have a better picture of it all.
"I think the information, if nothing else, helps people who are considering a location in Tulsa to really hone in on areas that there’s an existing market to support," Warrick said.
It's also possible the analysis will identify existing retail areas of the city that may need to be thought of differently altogether.
"Those areas may benefit from a transition in land use to something other than what they’ve been previously, and I hope that we’ll get enough feedback from this study and guidance to help to transition some of those areas," Warrick said.
Consultants will visit Tulsa at the end of the month to hold focus groups with residents and city councilors and to visit different retail areas. Funding for the retail study is coming out of Vision sales tax funding for citywide revitalization, which is split among Route 66, beautification and reinvestment. Total funding for that is $11 million over 15 years.
