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New tenants announced for Convergence and topping out celebrated
It was a historic day for Oklahoma City and specifically the burgeoning Innovation District as earlier this month Convergence hosted its Topping Out Ceremony.
Convergence is a mixed-used development located in the heart of the Innovation District that emphasizes innovation, collaboration, diversity and advanced technology. The 230,000-square-foot development features eight stories and has an impressive list of tenants and strategic partners already announced.
Wheeler Bio, an Oklahoma City-born contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) that specializes in biomanufacturing for clinical trials, will be one of the anchor tenants of Convergence.
Further connecting Oklahoma City’s powerhouse aerospace industry with the community’s other innovation sectors is a major goal of Convergence and the Innovation District.
An important step in that direction will be happening on the eighth floor of Convergence where the University of Oklahoma, Tinker Air Force Base and a soon-to-be-named aerospace partner will use the space for a strategic partnership. Tinker will be represented by the 76th Software Engineering Group, a part of the Air Force Sustainment Center Software Directorate.
OU’s presence at Convergence will be centered around the Office of the Vice President for Research and Partnerships and the Oklahoma Aerospace and Defense Innovation Institute (OADII).
CrossFirst Bank has also been announced as a tenant.
The event was hosted by Gardner Tanenbaum Holdings and Robinson Park, the partnership behind the visionary Convergence, and attendees got a first look at the progress being made on the development and heard remarks from Richard Tanenbaum, CEO of Gardner Tanenbaum Holdings and Mark Beffort, CEO of Robinson Park.
Beffort gave an update on the Stiles Hotel, being developed adjacent to Convergence, saying it will start to come out of the ground later this Summer. The 7-story, 109-room upscale boutique hotel will include a restaurant & bar, 7,500 square feet of event and meeting space, and retail space.
Both Beffort and Tanenbaum emphasized how critical and effective the partnership between Convergence and Innovation Hall has been.
Convergence and Innovation Hall, connected by a promenade and Stiles Park, will work together to further the goals and mission of the Innovation District. Funds for Innovation Hall were approved by Oklahoma City voters as part of the MAPS 4 package and is scheduled to open in early 2025. Innovation Hall will be a hub for collaboration, learning and connection. One of the most exciting aspects of the project will be the BioTC, Oklahoma’s first biomanufacturing training facility. BioTC will provide short-term training programs to address our community’s workforce needs in the biotechnology sector.
The construction of both Convergence and Innovation Hall is part of an Oklahoma City biotech scene that is riding unparalleled momentum. In 2022, the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber helped spearhead a group that secured a $35 million Build Back Better Grant to further develop Oklahoma City as a biotech hub. The grant will help launch six core biotech projects in Oklahoma City.
CHAMBER-LED COALITION AWARDED $35 MILLION BY US DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE.
Convergence is currently scheduled to open later this year and Tanenbaum, who has a long history of building and development in Oklahoma City, wasn’t shy to share what Convergence and the partnerships that made it happen have meant to him.
“This is an incredibly special building. I’ve built a lot of stuff in Oklahoma City, but nothing as special as this building,” said Tanenbaum. “The objective of this building is to host pharma manufacturing. We will also have Aerospace and Defense here. This (building represents) the new Oklahoma City, one with more high-paying industries.”
