OKLAHOMA CITY -
There is a minor
setback on plans to create a Kevin Durant theme restaurant in Bricktown.
The Oklahoma City
Urban Renewal Authority is asking the developer of the restaurant to send the
design back to the drawing board. The much anticipated restaurant is set to be
built on an empty pad of land between Toby Keith's restaurant and Earl's Rib
Palace in Lower Bricktown.
Currently, the
concern is access to the future restaurant. Leaders want to ensure there is
equal access from the parking lot on the south side of the property and the canal
on the north side.
It's been more
than five months since word broke that Thunder basketball forward Kevin Durant
was preparing to lend his name to a restaurant.
"That space
doesn't even look like they've started at all," Bricktown visitor Paige
Scheuerman said as she glanced at the restaurant's future site.
Scheuerman's
observation is correct because the design still needs to be finished. The
current design of local developer Randy Hogan was struck down by the Urban Renewal
Authority on Wednesday.
"These buildings
will be there for a long time, and we want them to be of a style and character
that will outlast my career," Cathy O'Connor of the Alliance for Economic
Development said.
The alliance,
which is under the direction of the mayor and city council, wants the building
to have more of a face on the canal side and suggests adding a patio to the
restaurant. The second concern is the building's height.
"The building
[needs] to be taller and have more of a presence along the canal," O'Connor
said.
Hogan could not go
on camera Wednesday but says he appreciates the feedback and is anxious to find
a compromise. In the meantime, Thunder fans will need to be patient.
"That's pretty exciting," Bricktown
employee Savannah Decker said. "We're going to get a lot of Thunder traffic
through there."
A new design will
be presented in October. Both sides say they expect the project to move forward
at that time.
The much anticipated restaurant is set to be built on an empty pad of land between Toby Keith's restaurant and Earl's Rib Palace in Lower Bricktown.
