Vision Tulsa’s $15.2 million lure to bring USA BMX, the face of the Olympic sport, to Tulsa has hit a massive roadblock in its plan to build headquarters at Tulsa County’s Expo Square.
Mark Andrus, Expo Square CEO, said the proposal to refurbish county offices and build a BMX training facility where old Drillers Stadium is being dismantled died due to soda-pouring contractual requirements to Coca-Cola.
Coca-Cola has long-term rights to all non-alcoholic beverage pours on the county grounds, Andrus said. More details of the contract were requested but could not be made available Thursday.
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“The agreement we have with them would have required and does require anyone on our property to pour Coke products,” Andrus said. “I know USA BMX just wanted that flexibility down the road.”
Expo Square staff also didn’t respond to a question Thursday about whether or not they engaged Coca-Cola to amend the agreement to allow USA BMX more flexibility.
Andrus and other officials said they are still assured USA BMX plans to relocate to Tulsa, but the breakdown of the original site plan has leaders scrambling to look for a new site.
Mayor G.T. Bynum said he learned about the issue within the past week or two, which is when the city took direct control over finding a site for USA BMX.
“This doesn’t impact the Vision program in any way,” Bynum said. “We’re already working with them (USA BMX) on several additional sites.”
Bynum said he couldn’t specify which sites have already been looked at and that changing sites would not require any amendment to the ordinance attached to Vision Tulsa’s tax that outlines expenditures, nor would it affect anticipated timelines.
John David, chief operating officer of USA BMX, said his group has already visited three of the proposed sites.
“We’re all 100 percent committed to making this thing happen,” David said.
David said the long-term nature of the beverage-pour contract was one of several factors, but wouldn’t specify any additional issues.
“There’s other factors,” David said. “There’s other limitations. … That (Coca-Cola contract) really amplified it.”
The Tulsa County Fairgrounds has been eyed for the headquarters since just after the Vision Tulsa project was proposed in 2015 and long before voters approved Vision Tulsa’s tax package in April 2016.
The relationship between the fairgrounds and USA BMX goes back years. Tulsa plays host every November to the USA BMX Grand Nationals.
Ray Hoyt, president of VisitTulsa and the Tulsa Sports Commission, compared the project’s current status to an individual relocating to a new city.
“They’re committed to Tulsa,” Hoyt said. “The only thing that is changing is the location. It’s like buying a house. You think you’ve found it but during closing something comes up in the inspection or someone else buys it first. You go find another house.”
Hoyt said he is “100 percent confident” that USA BMX will still move to Tulsa upon finding the right site.
Hoyt also said finding a new site doesn’t assume any lost value for the $15.2 million from Vision Tulsa.
Sarah Thompson, Expo Square spokeswoman, said no funds expended for the dismantling of old Drillers Stadium or refurbishing county offices near the stadium have come from Vision Tulsa.
“We’re disappointed that it didn’t work out, of course,” Thompson said. “They (USA BMX) have been a really good partner to us for a really long time.”
Thompson said the Expo Square board will be looking for “any opportunity” that comes to fill that site.