Thunder Practice Facility Making Progress in Tough Economy

By Colleen Chen, NEWS 9

OKLAHOMA CITY -- The bids for Oklahoma City's new NBA Thunder practice facility were turned into the city Tuesday afternoon and the weak economy proved good news for the Thunder.

The city received 11 bids total, which is a high number for the process. The large number of bids is attributed in part to the economy because more contractors are seeking work.

The increased competition led to bids much lower than city officials anticipated. The Thunder had budgeted $16 million for the facility, but were hoping to get a cheaper price tag. That's because low sales tax revenue numbers had city leaders concerned with how to pay for the project and renovations to the Ford Center. They were pleasantly surprised with the apparent low bidder sitting at $10,029,000.

"The number well exceeded my expectations. We were hoping to get lower bids than $16 million, and thought it was feasible. However, we thought the number would be around $13 or $14 million. The fact that we got $10 million helps our cause a lot," said Executive Manager of Special Projects Tom Anderson.

The lowest bid came from Atlas General Contractors, which is based near Tulsa, but has an office in Oklahoma City.

"We got a lot of bids from subcontractors that are out of state. It really shows how the construction market has dried up in states surrounding Oklahoma. They're all coming to us to get work, and they are willing to give us better prices, which is why we can then in turn give Oklahoma City a lower price too," Mike Owen, said Atlas General Contractors.

Right now, Atlas General Contractors is the apparent low bidder. They won't become the official contractor for the project until at least August 18 when it's expected to become official in court.

Atlas General Contractors said they don't anticipate any problems and plan to break ground soon after August 18. The Thunder Practice Facility project is expected to be completed within one year.

Anderson said bids were very close. The 2nd and 3rd lowest bidders were only two thousand dollars apart. He said despite the low bid, they don't expect quality to be an issue.

Site plans for the project include offices, two practice court, a therapy area, saunas, pools, and a car wash.