Broken Arrow's Rose District Continues To Bloom

Investors are bringing back a part of Broken Arrow's downtown that has been missing for decades. Residents will soon be moving into the Rose District.

The Rose District has changed a lot recently. New restaurants are popping up left and right and on Thursday the Chamber announced there will be new lofts and a popular pizza joint.

In the past year, Broken Arrow's downtown Rose District has blossomed.

Broken Arrow business owner, Jeff Gordon, said, "I think it's going to be bigger than everybody's expecting. You can just feel the energy down here."

Gordon has lived in the area since he was a kid. He has experienced the change firsthand.

3/19/2014 Related Story: Booming Downtown Broken Arrow Brings In Two New Businesses

"This is going to bring people in from outside of this area that wouldn't have normally come here. It's cool. It's exciting," Gordon said.

A four-story building known as the "District at 222" will soon sit on Main Street. On the ground floor a brand new Andolini's Pizzeria that'll be unique to Broken Arrow.

"We're always moving to do more, and we're looking to do a few things with pizza that haven't been done yet. We're gonna hold off on that one today," said Mike Bausch, with Andolini's Pizzeria.

And above the restaurant will be ten new lofts. This is the first time there have been downtown Broken Arrow apartments in decades.

Broken Arrow Chamber President and CEO, Wes Smithwick, said, "We have a strategic objective to have people come live in this area. This is the first of more to come."

The 13,000 square foot building is going up right next to another new restaurant, In The Raw.

"It's a place where we hope our residents, as well as those in the metro area, will want to come and spend an afternoon or an evening, and they can have dinner, they can have drinks they go to and have a cigar at Stogies," Smithwick said.

The resurrection of the Rose District has been in the works for quite some time. The Chamber of Commerce hopes the area will draw people from surrounding communities.

"All of that research is paying off. The planning is paying off and we're all just very excited that the community and the people have embraced this as an area for entertainment, dining and shopping," said Smithwick.

Construction is expected to kick off within the next two weeks. And if you're concerned about parking, there will be 26 additional spaces.