Tulsa County Roads To Improve With Construction Of Macy's Distribution Center

A massive business development in north Tulsa County is leading to some big road improvements for the area.

When the Macy’s distribution center opens next year on 76th Street North, there's going to be a lot of traffic, both employees and trucks. The trucks will come in on the west side and the employees will enter on the east side, towards Owasso.

Four months into construction, the steel skeleton of the Macy's order fulfillment center is complete and the massive footprint is clear.

The site covers 72 acres, with a massive building and parking lots to handle the staff and shipping space Macy's needs for online orders.

At times, 1,500 employees will be coming in, and hundreds of trucks will go through each day.

That would tie up 76th Street North as it is now, so the county is expanding two intersections; the ones east and west of the building.

"We want to make sure we add access for the employees who will be there and for the trucks. There will be a lot of trucks up there, in and out, and it's going to change the traffic a lot, so we're trying to prepare for that,” said Michael Willis with Tulsa County.

The center is a $170 million investment for Macy's, and the road improvements will cost about $2 million. The expense is being shared by state, county and tribal governments.

The improvements are on Sheridan Road south of 76th Street where it's going to be extended 1,500 feet into the site. That's going to be the entrance and exit for trucks.

The county plans to widen the intersection and add new signals to handle the traffic.

Just up the road on the Owasso side, the employee entrance will be at 75th East Avenue. It's going to be widened with new turn signals as well.

"Basically each intersection will be widened, so the street lanes will be wider and we'll be adding left turn lanes," said Willis.

He said the design is already underway and construction should be done by spring; about the time Macy's starts taking applications for the new jobs coming in.

The road improvements will start this fall and the center is expected to open next May.