50 Penn Place is an upscale

mixed-use Mixed-use is a kind of urban development, urban design, urban planning and/or a zoning type that blends multiple uses, such as residential, commercial, cultural, institutional, or entertainment, into one space, where those functions are to some ...

complex in the inner Northwest part of

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, and ...

. The galleria-style shopping mall and tower is located at 1900 Northwest Expressway in the Penn Square trade area immediately at

I-44 Interstate 44 (I-44) is a major Interstate Highway in the central United States. Although it is nominally an east–west road as it is even-numbered, it follows a more southwest–northeast alignment. Its western terminus is in Wichita Fal ...

and Northwest Expressway, across from

Penn Square Mall Penn Square Mall is a two-story, regional shopping mall in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States. It is located at the intersection of Pennsylvania Avenue and NW Expressway, near Interstate 44. The mall's anchor stores consist of JCPenney, Mac ...

near the exclusive suburb of

Nichols Hills Nichols Hills is a city in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, United States, and a part of the Oklahoma City metropolitan area. The population was 3,710 as of the 2010 census. History The 1,280 acres now known as Nichols Hills were developed as an exclu ...

. The complex consists of a 16-storey office tower, upscale retail shops on 3 levels , and a parking structure. Midland Oak Realty purchased the building from MBL Life Assurance for $15 million in 1997. The complex was later owned by a

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

-based capital management company, which bought the building for $25.7 million in 2004, along with 25 tenants-in-common. A planned sale fell through in 2008. In March 2011, In-Rel Properties based in

Lake Worth, Florida Lake Worth Beach, previously named Lake Worth, is a city in east-central Palm Beach County, Florida, United States, located about north of Miami. The city's name is derived from the body of water along its eastern border known as the Lake Worth ...

, purchased the building for $15.25 million and invested over $1 million in renovations. 50 Penn Outside Shot with tower

History

The complex was built in 1973 by C.W. Cameron, founder of

American Fidelity American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

. For the next twenty years it was a landmark due to four red piggy bank signs (One on all four sides of the Elevator tower on top of the building.) with a big "S" in the center, belonging to Sooner Federal Savings and Loan who had their home offices in the Building at the time. It was also formerly home to a couple of Oklahoma locally owned chain of high end retail stores such as Balliets a women's boutique and the flagship store of

Orbach's Ohrbach's was a moderate-priced department store with a merchandising focus primarily on clothing and accessories. From its modest start in 1923 until the chain's demise in 1987, Ohrbach's expanded dramatically after World War II, and opened numer ...

which closed in 1990. Although not currently anchored by a major retailer, 50 Penn Place still has upscale shops and restaurants, a brewpub,

independent bookstore An independent bookstore is a retail bookstore which is independently owned. Usually, independent stores consist of only a single actual store (although there are some multi-store independents). They may be structured as sole proprietorships, cl ...

, the 50 Penn Place Art Gallery, and various office tenants including

LexisNexis LexisNexis is a part of the RELX corporation that sells data analytics products and various databases that are accessed through online portals, including portals for computer-assisted legal research (CALR), newspaper search, and consumer informa ...

. In recent years, the retail portion of the complex has lost the majority of its tenants to other nearby shopping venues, such as

right across the street, and

Classen Curve Classen School of Advanced Studies, often referred to as Classen SAS, CSAS or simply Classen, is a public speciality school serving students in grades 9–12 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The Oklahoma City Public Schools program participates in th ...

a newly built modern upscale shopping center in

. Because of this, 50 Penn Place is no longer seen by locals as an upscale shopping destination. However, several upscale tenants still remain, and former retail space is being leased to other tenants, such as

ITT Technical Institute ITT Technical Institute (ITT Tech) was a private for-profit technical institute with its headquarters in Carmel, Indiana and many campuses throughout the United States. Founded in 1969 and growing to 130 campuses in 38 states of the United State ...

. In March 2011, In-Rel Properties purchased the building for $15.25 million and invested over $1 million in renovations

Tenants

50 Penn Place Gallery

Belle Isle Brewery Company

Branch Communications

Capital Insurance Group

Craig E. Brown, PC

Full Circle Bookstore & Cafe

Futurity First Insurance Group
* iHeartMedia, Inc., iHeartCommunications, Inc. **Radio Stations: ***

KREF-FM KREF-FM (94.7 MHz) is a commercial radio station located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. KREF-FM airs a sports format branded as "94.7 The Ref". Owned by iHeartMedia, its transmitter is located in Northeast Oklahoma City, and studios are located at ...

(94.7) - Sports (94.7 The Ref) *** KGHM-AM (1340) - Sports/Sports talk (Fox Sports Radio) *** KJYO-FM (102.7) - Top 40 Rock (Also known as KJ-103) *** KTOK-AM (1000) - News Radio 1000 KTOK (News/Talk) *** KTST-FM (101.9) - The Newest Country Hits (101-9 The Twister) ***

KXXY-FM KXXY-FM (96.1 MHz, "96.1 KXY") is a commercial radio station in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma and is owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. It airs a classic country radio format. In its logo, the station omits one of the two Xs in its call sign, calling itself ...

(96.1) - Classic Country (96.1 KXY) ***

98.5 El Patron The following radio broadcasting, radio stations broadcast on FM broadcasting, FM frequency 98.5 MHz: Argentina * 985 radio in Punta Alta, Buenos Aires * Cielo (radio station), Cielo in San Bernardo, Buenos Aires * Meridiano (radio station), ...

(98.5) KREF-FM HD2 - Regional Mexican (98.5 El Patron) *

Inceed Employment Professionals

Jameson Management

Legacy Investment Services

LexisNexis Risk Solutions

Mahin's Full Service Salon

Mee Mee Hoge & Epperson, PLLP

Midwest Private Client Group

Oklahoma City Abstract & Title Company

Pinpoint Resource Fine Wear

Regent Bank

Route 66 Gift Shop

Summit Group

Wilsey Meyer Eatmon Tate, PLLC
* Olive Garden Italian Kitchen (separate building on the premises)

References

External links

* http://www.in-rel.com/inrel-properties/50-penn-place/ {{Shopping malls in Oklahoma Shopping malls in Oklahoma Shopping malls established in 1973 Buildings and structures in Oklahoma City Skyscraper office buildings in Oklahoma City 1973 establishments in Oklahoma

History

Tenants

See also

References

External links