A renovated 61st and Peoria apartment complex reopens on Friday

There's no doubt the 61st and Peoria neighborhood has seen better days. At one point, the Tulsa Police Department had a special task force just for the crime in the area. But things are looking up.

Thursday, June 17th 2004, 10:03 am

By: News On 6

There's no doubt the 61st and Peoria neighborhood has seen better days. At one point, the Tulsa Police Department had a special task force just for the crime in the area. But things are looking up.

Friday is the grand opening for a renovated apartment complex. News on 6 business reporter Steve Berg shows us an unusual company that has the golden touch with properties that no one else will touch.

St. Louis-based Kohner Properties specializes in what's known in real estate lingo as "distressed properties", but that's putting it mildly. "Some of 'em are pretty nasty. It was a mess, it was nasty.â€ Shelley Bold says the properties are usually so far gone that she encounters lots of skepticism from people who've dealt for years with absentee landlords. "Typically, they just fix them up real quick, move everybody in, anybody in, and turn around and sell it for a quick buck. And that's not our philosophy."

It would be easier to show you all the things they haven't redone, than all the things they have, new siding, new shrubs, new sidewalks, new air-conditioning, even the grass is new, and the list goes on and on. "We took it right down to the bare walls and started from scratch."

The change is remarkable. A tax-exempt, subsidized housing complex that was boarded up for three years is now back on the tax rolls, and will soon be filled with paying tenants. And she says the benefits spread to the neighborhood. "People have to go grocery shopping, they have to go to the bank, they need dry cleaners, they need fast food, it's all like a trickle effect."

Make no mistake; they're here to make money. The way they do it is simple. A new complex can sell for as much as $60,000 per unit. They bought these for less than $10,000; put another $15,000 in renovations. That's still less than buying new or building new. But it provides some new hope for a neighborhood down on its luck.