Norman Public Schools Board of Education approved a contract to purchase the former Journey Church building at Interstate 35 and Tecumseh Road during its February School Board Meeting.
The project, contemplated as part of the voter-approved 2023 school bond package, was to “construct, furnish, equip, and/or acquire improvements at a new District Performing Arts Auditorium” with a budget allocation of just over $18.4 Million according to bond language.
Due to the availability of land, original plans called for the facility to be located on the campus of Irving Middle School near 24th Ave SE and Alameda Street although the district remained open to other alternatives if they arose.
The new facility was contemplated to be smaller than the existing Nancy O’Brian Performing Arts Center located on the campus of Norman North High School and be more akin to the facilities found at Longfellow Middle School and Norman High School.
If placed on the Irving Campus, preliminary design and budget calculations put the facility at 19,000 sq ft seating 800 with 50 parking spots. Site considerations limited the placement of the facility and its proximity to existing parking.
“While it meets what we presented to the voters, I will admit that it’s short of what the stakeholders came up with during the design phase,” Justin Milner, Associate Superintendent and Chief Operating Officer for Norman Public School, said at Monday night’s Board Meeting.
While design was underway, the district was made aware of the former Journey Building that was for sale.
“It includes most of what the Fine Arts stakeholders were looking for and hoping for through the design process,” Milner said.
The 61,000 sq ft building is set on a 11.2 acre site with the main auditorium seating 1,600, parking for 500 cars, and additional land for future expansion. There are also two smaller “black box” spaces for meetings or smaller events, and classroom spaces. The purchase includes all existing fixtures and furniture.
“We began negotiating through that process with the current ownership and were able to bring the sale price within budget of this project,” Milner said.
Dallas-based Fellowship Church purchased Journey Church and their building in 2018. The church eventually closed and the building was listed for sale for $11.9 Million until Summer 2023.
The property eventually fell into control of the mortgage holder, Prosperity Bank, in August 2023.
In November 2023 the property was sold to Journey Partners LLC, a company linked to Norman-based developer Sassan Moghadam, for $8 Million.
The Board approved a purchase agreement between the district and Journey Partners LLC for $12.5 Million.
Project anticipated to be completed by fall 2024. The additional funds will be used to replace carpet, paint, and convert signage.