SandRidge Commons

Oklahoma City, OK, USA

Photo © Timothy Hursley

Architects: ROGERS PARTNERS Architects+Urban Designers

Location: 123 Robert S. Kerr Avenue, 73102 Oklahoma City, OK, USA
Year: 2015

SandRidge Energy chose to establish a new headquarters in the heart of downtown Oklahoma City in a location vacant for decades. That decision required a plan to balance company needs and civic engagement while supporting the resurgence of the urban core. In response, this project proposed a network of buildings and landscapes that activate the economic and cultural map of the city. Multiple buildings and over five acres of new landscapes are woven together with a cohesive vocabulary to create a unified whole.

The project renovates a Pietro Belluschi-designed tower as the centerpiece of the new civic Commons. It is complemented by the Braniff Building, a US National Register of Historic Places property, which has been given new life with storefront uses and new transparent facades in delicate opposition to the historic masonry building. The Commons’ verdant landscapes and central shade structure are designed to create microclimates, protecting users from harsh summer sun and high street-level winds, extending the seasons for enjoyment. 120 Kerr, the new park-side building completed in 2015, will provide additional offices and amenities, as well as a restaurant fronting a renovated public park. The building’s transparency allows the events inside to activate the life of the city outside, true to the spirit of the overall design.

As a thoughtful, community-centered urban design gesture and a significant architectural investment, the entire SandRidge campus is intended to contribute to Oklahoma City’s current resurgence as one of the Midwest’s most desirable places to live, work and play.