Tulsa City Council To Discuss Lawsuit Involving Tulsa Club Building

By Tara Vreeland, The News On 6

TULSA, OK – The Tulsa City Council is meeting Thursday evening to discuss a lawsuit involving the Tulsa Club Building.

The News On 6 has recently reported the historic building had been set on fire three times in the past two weeks. The building has been cited for violation of fire and city codes.

It's an historic building many want to see returned to its former glory.

The Tulsa Club Building has been around for 83 years. The stout structure sits hauntingly vacant, looming over Tulsa's downtown streets.

"The old tree here could tell some stories couldn't it," Rex Ball, Tulsa Art Deco Co-Founder, said.

One seemingly constant companion is a tree rooted in the ground. The same tree appears rooted in the ground in a photo taken in 1929.

"Look how solid it is! Look at the limestone! It's just great," said Ball. "You can imagine the effort that would go in to trying to tear it down."

Rex Ball remembers joining other architects in the Men's Grill on the fifth floor back in the 60s.

"They had wonderful elevator doors by the way," he said. "I think they were glass with the 'filagree' metal on them."

He says the Tulsa Building wined and dined VIP's. Patrons enjoyed the gymnasium, saunas, and two-story grand ballroom with art deco detailing.

"It was a central part of the city's activities," he said.

Ball says looking past the graffiti, the smoke and fire damage, and the neglect, the real character of the building emerges.

"See the ornamentation on top? That is very valuable," he said.

Ball says the granite and glass "skirt" was added to the building during a renovation.

"There is circles in here and geometric forms. See the squares," he said.

As he gazes up at the skeleton of an important part of Tulsa's past, Ball believes one day the Tulsa Club will rise from the ashes like a phoenix.

"It's definitely possible that rebirth can take place here. It will take a developer that has the imagination," said Ball.

The building is on Oklahoma's most endangered list.

Watch the News On 6 at 9 p.m. and 10 p.m. for updates on the potential lawsuit involving the building.