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City council votes to allow extra funding for MAPS 4 stadium in downtown OKC

jessie christopher smith and steve lackmeyer, the oklahoman
·4 min read

Oklahoma City councilmembers on Tuesday unanimously approved using economic development funds that would increase the budget for the MAPS 4 multipurpose stadium from $41 million to $71 million.

The additional funding is dependent on the multipurpose stadium being located in downtown Oklahoma City, where $20 million in Tax Increment Financing, or "TIF," and $10 million previously allocated to the Omni hotel debt service fund could be used to help pay for the stadium’s rising construction costs.

The funding plan, recommended by a TIF review committee and approved earlier this month by the Oklahoma Economic Development Trust, would trigger a donation to the city of 7.2 acres of land south of Lower Bricktown by owners of the Energy FC soccer team. Owners Bob Funk Jr. and Tim McLaughlin are under contract to buy the land south of Oklahoma City Boulevard and east of the BNSF railway viaduct ― a property which for decades was home to the Producers Cooperative Oil Mill, but has long since sat undeveloped and underutilized.

"In the original plan for this stadium, there was no provision for land or funding for land, and we have a unique opportunity right now," Kenton Tsoodle, president of The Alliance for Economic Development of Oklahoma City, said Tuesday. "There's a very short timeline for (the team) to make this decision on when to purchase this land. And I think, if most of us were in their shoes, we'd want to know, 'Are we going to have viable, professional-level stadium?'"

More: OKC could build MAPS 4 stadium south of Lower Bricktown, home for city's soccer team

The stadium design includes a United States Soccer Federation (USSF)-approved pitch to accommodate professional men's and women's soccer, seating for up to an estimated 10,000 guests, locker rooms and suites. The venue is expected to drive the development of a downtown sports-centered entertainment district, a model already in use for other major cities like Louisville, Kentucky, and Indianapolis.

This is a $40 million rendering of the proposed MAPS 4 multi-purpose stadium from the perspective of a concert and a sporting event, as well as a portrayal of the inside concourse area.
This is a $40 million rendering of the proposed MAPS 4 multi-purpose stadium from the perspective of a concert and a sporting event, as well as a portrayal of the inside concourse area.

Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt said the council’s decision Tuesday was the culmination of two years of ongoing conversations involving city officials, economic development leaders and the local soccer team owners.

“We’re solving sort of three issues here,” Holt said. “We’re siting the stadium, which had no funding in MAPS, and we’re doing so with a donation, which is much appreciated and we thank the team for that pledge. We’re providing a catalyst for an undeveloped but critical property here in downtown Oklahoma City, and we’re doing it through TIF, which is typically what TIFs are for. And we’re enhancing a project that was arguably always a little below the standards that our residents expect.”

“$40 million is a Texas high school stadium,” the mayor continued, “and we’ve always hoped that we could do a little better than that. And, again, to do it from a source that doesn’t take away from core city functions is all the better.”

Some city councilmembers, while voicing support for the decision, also expressed hope that city leadership would be willing to use similar funding tools, opportunities and partnerships to boost other critical developments under the MAPS program.

“I do not want us to neglect the fact that there are still quite a few very important projects that people have asked for that still need high support, that need higher funding, that need other and more creative ways of how we support those projects,” said Ward 7 City Councilwoman Nikki Nice.

Tsoodle also said funding reserved for an infrastructure request with a proposed Strawberry Fields project west of Scissortail Park is now available after negotiations collapsed between developer Pat Salame and the city.

The land donation also is dependent on authorization from the MAPS 4 Venues Subcommittee and the MAPS 4 Citizens Advisory Board, which could take place as early as this spring. If approved, design work likely would start in mid-2024 and construction would be expected to begin by early 2026.

Ward 8 Councilman Mark Stonecipher thanked Tsoodle and the Energy FC ownership for their collaboration and said he was hopeful for the project's future after touring a major soccer complex near Overland Park, Kansas, in 2023.

"I know you guys are going out on the limb a little bit," Stonecipher told the Energy FC owners, "but it's incredible what it's done for that city. So, I'm keeping my fingers crossed, and hope that we get to the finish line sooner rather than later."

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma City Council approves extra funding for MAPS 4 stadium Tuesday