A much-anticipated Tulsa project will soon be opening its doors.
In 2021, developer ITULSA and the city announced plans for a mixed-use development at 11th Street and Lewis Avenue across from Mother Road Market. Now, CEO Chris Ellison says NOMA — which stands for North of Market — has started pre-leasing and tenants will soon be moving in.
“Here in February we are looking to open up this first turn, which will effectively be somewhere in the neighborhood of 100 to to 114 apartments,” said Ellison.
NOMA will have a total of 256 apartments ranging in price from $1,250 to $2,780 per month. A community gathering space along with retail and restaurant areas are also in the works. So far, a nail bar, a fashion boutique, and an ice cream parlor have signed commercial leases.
Ellison says he hopes the deliberateness in each decision will come across to visitors.
“This is not just a stick-it-up design that we’re building,” said Ellison. “In a lot of ways, it’s going to be a much-needed refresh to what an apartment can be in Tulsa."
The project was originally announced with a price tag of $60 million, but Ellison says costs are now closer to $65 million. While a small band of private investors got together to fund the project, it’s benefitting from a special tax agreement with the city. Ellison is married to Elizabeth Frame Ellison, who chairs the board of the Lobeck Taylor Family Foundation. LTFF created nonprofit Mother Road Market that also benefits from a tax agreement.
In the future, Ellison says he’d like to keep developing vacant areas.
“For me a primary goal that I've had since this started is finding sites that don't have anything already existing. That's one thing I'm very proud of with this site, is that we didn't tear down any housing or push out any existing businesses. It was just a four-acre lot.”
