New business openings and closings: A revamped Arby’s on Route 66 in west Tulsa

One of Tulsa’s oldest Arby’s locations, 4335 Southwest Blvd., has reopened following a $1 million renovation and expansion, preserving an original sign design that is rarely seen today.

The store, which first opened in 1981, fronts the Crystal City Shopping Center in southwest Tulsa’s Red Fork area, along historic Route 66.

“We are pleased that Tulsa Route 66 Main Street is helping us to welcome the public to our remodeled store,” said Eric Paddock, area director for Flynn Group, which operates the Arby’s franchise.

“With this store being located on historic Route 66, we were proud to be able to refurbish and showcase our original Hat Sign, which was installed when Arby’s opened at this location in April 1981. This refurbishment of the sign totaled around $70,000 and is an example of how we are committed to the history of the Mother Road,” Paddock said.

Paddock also said the 43-year-old location’s expansion will allow it to serve Arby’s nonprofit partners in the region.

“Flynn Group is proud to give back to our communities by offering fundraising opportunities to nonprofits in the area,” Paddock said, adding that more information is available at rbamerican.com/fundraisers.

The Arby’s location on Southwest Boulevard is expected to employ 20 to 25 people.

The grand opening of Tulsa Premium Outlets in Jenks is at 10 a.m. Aug. 15.

The outlet mall, with more than 75 retailers and several fast-casual eateries planned, is expected to create approximately 800 jobs, according to Gary Duncan, president of The Mills and Simon Premium Outlets.

Duncan said recently during a tour of the site that more than 1,000 workers contributed to the construction of the mall. Tulsa Premium Outlets will have more than 2,000 parking spaces for guests and employees.

“This is absolutely a game-changer for the city of Jenks,” Mayor Cory Box said.

The outlet mall has been in the planning stages since 2018 but was delayed because of a local political battle over a tax-increment finance district and supply chain issues for things such as rooftop air-conditioning units following the COVID-19 pandemic.

JPMorgan Chase will relocate from its existing office at 110 W. Seventh St. to a new office space in downtown Tulsa’s Santa Fe Square development off Elgin and Greenwood avenues.

Employees from JPMorgan Chase’s commercial banking and private banking teams are expected to begin work from the new office on Aug. 5.

“JPMorgan Chase is excited to be part of the beautiful Santa Fe Square development, and it is the perfect time to update and modernize our space,” said Ginger Kollmann, head of the bank’s private bank and market leadership team in Oklahoma.

“Providing an invigorating work environment to our employees is essential to recruiting and retaining top talent. The new office design will foster better collaboration, which is critical to JPMorgan Chase’s culture.”

JPMorgan Chase has operated from the Seventh Street office since late 2012, and the bank has been present in the Tulsa community for more than 120 years.

Santa Fe Square opened in 2023 and is the latest in a two-decade-long transformation of Tulsa’s Blue Dome District.

The Walgreens at 6505 E. 71st St. is closing as Walgreens and other drugstore chains move to shutter hundreds of stores nationwide.

Three Walgreens in Oklahoma City also are closing.

Walgreens CEO Tim Wentworth told analysts late last month that “changes are imminent” for about 25% of the company’s stores, which he said were underperforming. The drugstore chain has more than 8,600 stores in the U.S.

Wentworth said the company’s plan could include the closing of a “significant portion” of those roughly 2,100 underperforming stores if they don’t improve.

Company leaders said they’ve already closed 2,000 locations over the last 10 years.

“We are at a point where the current pharmacy model is not sustainable and the challenges in our operating environment require we approach the market differently,” Wentworth said.

Walgreens and major competitors such as CVS and Rite Aid — which is going through a bankruptcy reorganization — have been closing stores as they adjust to an array of challenges to their businesses. They include years of tight reimbursement for their prescriptions and rising costs for running their locations.

Plus, analysts say, they’ve also been hit by growing competition from Walmart, Amazon and other discount retailers over sales of goods sold outside their store pharmacies. Consumers tend to grow more price conscious when inflation rises, and drugstores generally have higher prices than those discounters.

— Scene Writer James D. Watts Jr. and the Associated Press contributed to this report