TULSA, Okla. — Home development in Tulsa could soon get easier.
Leaders in both the city and housing spaces launched the T-Town Home Catalog program, which will contain pre-approved construction plans ready to go to developers.
"It's just one of the very most common thing we hear in the development community, that development takes time," said Tulsa's Housing Manager Travis Hulse. "It takes time and it takes money. So if there's anything that we can do to encourage development by reducing both the time or the cost of doing development, then those are the things that as the city we are committed to doing."
The catalog will give a visual to different property types or options for those looking to build in Tulsa.
Hulse explained the program's contractor, Flintlock Lab, will be surveying neighborhoods, lots and residents to get a feel for how and where different housing could fit.
“It’s not just about saying we need housing, and so we’re just gonna throw the first walls and roof and just get it done," he said. "Making sure that it fits the needs of the community, both from a character perspective but also from an affordability perspective.”
Bringing something like this to the community will move Tulsa in the right direction to meet Mayor Monroe Nichols' goal of adding 6,000 affordable housing units to the city by 2030.
It also will help other agencies, like Housing Forward, do their part.
“It’s going to help add gentle density to some of our neighborhoods in and around downtown, and even further out into the city of Tulsa," said Tyler Parette, Executive Director of Housing Forward. "I think it’s important for Tulsa because it allows us to take lots that might have been underdeveloped or haven’t seen any redevelopment in a really long time and kind of revitalize those areas in meaningful ways.”
A catalog isn't a new idea, either.
Hulse said that the contractor hired for the program, Flintlock Lab, has had success executing a model like this in other cities nationwide.
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“They will be coming in to the community, starting to engage with people throughout the community, looking at different sites throughout the community to really try to calibrate this program," he said." Trying figure out what type of housing do we want to see. Not just let’s build housing, but what should it look like? How can it fit into the character of existing neighborhoods?"
The success of the catalog, though, hinges on community feedback.
Tulsans will be able to share their opinions on what kind of homes they want or don't want to see in their neighborhoods. A survey will be readily available at all times.
Those eager to lay down roots in Tulsa will have full access to the catalog and be able to utilize it for their own builds by the end of 2025.
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