Renovation Costs Stalling Transformation Of Bartlesville Church Into Convention Center

A plan to repurpose an old church in downtown Bartlesville has hit a financial road block.

First Christian Church closed its doors in April and gave the building to the city, but the plan to turn it into a convention center is far too expensive.

"We wanted to retain some of the architecture, so we were hoping to keep the chapel and then maybe remove some of the parts of the building and put the conference center in and around it," Vice Mayor James Curd said. "The main [issue] is the price tag of about 17-million dollars. We were hoping it was somewhere considerably less than that. But the design and the demolition and things like that, the costs go up."

Curd said the feasibility study found that a convention space this size is needed, but it also showed how costly it would be.

"We're looking for some alternatives and in our meeting last night we discussed putting out some RFPs or requests for proposals for the area," he said.

The city plans to put out requests for proposals from private businesses or individuals who have a plan for how to use the space, which could mean anything from events to hotels.

If a proposal is approved, the city has agreed to put $2 million into renovations.