With one Tulsa icon moving in plus a possible anchor tenant, could The Farm survive?

Jamil’s, a Tulsa steakhouse fixture for more than 60 years, is moving into the former Billy Sims BBQ location.

A few new businesses also have moved in or announced that they will. Several have relocated there in the last year.

The Farm’s owner told the Tulsa World that an anchor store of about 23,000 square feet will be announced soon.

“I am tired of people saying they want better for The Farm but no one’s willing to put something together,” said Janae Irby, owner of Pink Creek, a women’s boutique.

She has been at her current location since January. She set up a meeting of business owners at The Farm a few weeks ago. It was the first one in years.

“We had the meeting and really just wanted to let (business owners) know, if you really want The Farm to be better, we need to actually put forth effort and to do that,” she said. “I have always loved The Farm … and I see the potential.”

Following calls and emails from concerned patrons, the Tulsa World in November last year outlined how The Farm had declined from having at least 40 stores to less than 20. That number has not changed much.

“I’m trying not to be pessimistic about what is going on, but I’m still concerned about what this ownership group … what they are trying to do,” said Ken Rudzienski, manager of Windsor Market, an antiques and home decor store that is marking its 28th year in business.

“I’m just not sure what their plan is … because they are still not doing what they said they would do … and you would think they would want more tenants here,” he said.

The Farm, at the southeast corner of 51st Street and Sheridan Road, has been a mainstay in Tulsa since the early 1970s, when a barn at the site was refurbished and a retail and restaurant destination were built around it.

Historically, it was considered by many to be similar to Utica Square, though not as upscale.

“There’s only two shopping centers like this — The Farm and Utica Square — where everybody (in Tulsa) knows what that is,” Rudzienski said.

Shop Cos. of Dallas bought The Farm in 2021.

Rudzienski and other merchants have been critical of the property ownership company for a steep increase in their rent and common area maintenance — or CAM — fees, which include taxes, insurance, utilities, security and other costs, since the purchase.

Rudzienski said he would not mind an increase in his rent and CAM fees, as long as Shop Cos. would “hold up their end” and bring more businesses into the shopping center.

“I mean, ‘Yes, I wouldn’t mind paying more rent, but I think it should be based on how many stores you bring in here,’” he said. “There should be some kind of ratio there.”

“I just don’t want to see The Farm turn into (the now defunct) Promenade Mall,” Rudzienski said.

Daniel Fuller is founding partner of Shop Development, a division of Shop Cos.

Since last November, he told the Tulsa World in an email, Shop Development has completed “Phase I” of its renovation of The Farm.

“We plan to continue making further upgrades to the center over the years ahead,” he said. “On the leasing front, we have entered into a number of exciting new leases with more on the way.”

Since the beginning of the year, Fuller said, seven new leases have been signed, totaling more than 20,000 square feet, including Jamil’s, Don’t Stress Meowt Café (cat café), Urgent Vet, and Grisaille Cottage.

The Farm has also renewed long-term favorites such as Ron’s Burgers, Mazzio’s, and Pink Creek,” he said. “We are actively working with another several potential new tenants,” including an anchor store “which we hope to announce soon.”

“We are very pleased with the direction that The Farm is heading in,” Fuller said. “Retail is ever changing, and we work to be responsive to these changes. The Farm has wonderful heritage, and we are proud to be associated with the many businesses that have operated successfully at the center for decades. We are committed stewards of the property, and believe that the reinvestments that have been made will support the many established tenants, along with a host of exciting new businesses.”

Susan Mansisidor opened her store Grisaille Cottage, a specialty DYI and home decor shop, in August. She moved from Idaho with her husband, Joe.

“It was the aesthetic,” she said of why she choose to establish her business at The Farm. “I spent probably six months, like driving around nonstop, looking at places (in Tulsa), looking at the type of customers and the flow and the feel of everything, and I didn’t want anything too commercial, too industrial. I wanted more like this. It feels like a family. More comfortable.”

From the outside, The Farm still deals with some challenges. Many storefronts remain empty. The Farm’s official Facebook page has not had a post on it since Nov. 2, 2021.

Merchants like Rudzienski and Irby are working to get that account unlocked. No one seems to know the password, they said.

“I know what The Farm is capable of,” Irby said. “It’s just now at the point of us coming together and working together, because it’s definitely going to be a group effort.”

The Farm merchants are planning to meet quarterly, she said, and have already tentatively planned Halloween events to help drive traffic to the destination.

“I am very optimistic, otherwise I wouldn’t have signed (a lease) here,” she said.

However, she and Rudzienski said this year has been extremely tough for small-business owners.

“The economy has been very, very brutal in 2024,” Irby said. “If Tulsa loves The Farm Shopping Center and the shops here, they need to come and support us. All we’re asking is for people to come in … and we want to be there for the community. And we’re just asking for the community to come back from these hard times.”