“ I would say the excitement for both projects is very high .”
~ Brady Moore , Chief Performance Innovation Officer for City of Stillwater
Two major projects that have been under discussion in Stillwater for years are progressing , although the public may not see major construction on them right away .
It takes a while to engineer and design major construction like a convention center . It takes even longer to repurpose an old power plant and develop the industrial land around it . The projects are expected to cost around $ 30 million each by the time they ’ re complete .
“ I would say the excitement level for both projects is very high ,” Brady Moore , Chief Performance Innovation Officer for the City of Stillwater , said .
Convention Center
For decades , Visit Stillwater CEO Cristy Morrison has said building a convention center with large , flexible meeting spaces would open up new visitor markets , enabling Stillwater to attract not just more groups of travelers , but different groups of travelers .
Although the Payne County Expo Center and the Wes Watkins Center at Oklahoma State University have been able to accommodate many organizations over the years , they didn ’ t work for everyone and at the end of the day , Stillwater just didn ’ t have enough meeting space to compete with many cities of similar size . Adding rooms to the city ’ s existing hotel inventory would also create opportunities for larger events , Morrison said .
That vision for growing Stillwater ’ s visitor economy is about to become reality .
Since 2021 , HK Development Group , a family company founded by former Cowboy Mall owner Hamid Khoshroo , has been working on plans for a 20,000-square-foot convention center attached to a 120-room hotel with a national brand .
In November , the project was approved for $ 6.2 million in assistance from the tax increment financing district established to encourage redevelopment in downtown Stillwater and the area south and east of the OSU campus .
The hotel , convention center and parking garage are going on an empty almost 2.5 acre tract in the 100 block of South Duck Street that provides a convenient , central location just blocks from OSU .
Yasha Khoshroo , son of HK Development group founder Hamid Khoshroo , originally said the project could be complete as soon as fall of 2023 .
That seems unlikely now , given the estimated 18-month build time .
Although Development Services department hasn ’ t seen plans for review , design and engineering is in progress , Moore said .
Project engineer Roger Gose confirmed that HK Development has closed on the land and is working with the City of Stillwater to get electric lines removed from the property that once had several apartment buildings and houses on it . He said people may see some earth moving and tree removal soon .
City staff recently held a meeting with the developers and Moore said the concepts illustrated in their slideshow were very exciting .
STILLWATER OKLAHOMA MAGAZINE / 20