Published: September 24, 2008 11:40 am            

A place to rest

Cimarron Turnpike stop near Stillwater first to get makeover

The Oklahoma Turnpike Authority is beginning a project to renovate all rest stops in the system, with a pilot construction project beginning near Stillwater.

The Lone Chimney rest stop on Cimarron Turnpike, near the intersection with state Highway 18, is the first rest stop to undergo major renovations. Construction is underway.

Two facilities currently sit at the rest stop: An EZ Go gas station and convenience store and a McDonalds. The EZ Go has already closed its doors, but gas is available at a station on S.H. 18, one of the turnpike’s free exits. McDonalds is still open for business, but will soon have to close for further construction where the restaurant sits.

“There will come a point where they will close us down and bulldoze us,” said Tim Rinker, owner of the Lone Chimney McDonalds. “This is where the new pumps will be.”

Both the McDonalds and the EZ Go station will be torn down to make room for a larger facility housing both McDonalds and a Kum & Go gas station and convenience store. The project will cost about $1.8 million, of which the Turnpike Authority will pay about $250,000 for construction of the building pad. McDonalds and Kum & Go will fund the rest and provide construction of the new facility, said Jack Damrill, public information officer for the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority. Weather delays have already pushed back the opening of the project.

“We were supposed to open in October, now it’s January,” he said. No specific opening date has been set.

The look of the new facility is aiming for a more relaxed tone.

“The profound difference is we tried to deinstitutionalize the building,” said David Larsen, of Larsen & Associates, the Dallas-based architecture firm that designed the facility. “We tried to create a building that has a more human scale to it, more inviting than a typical turnpike location.”

The new facility will be about 10,000 square feet, housing both McDonalds and Kum & Go. It will be constructed out of more natural materials, such as bricks, that give the facility a more “residential” feeling.

The interior will feature stone finishes and mosaic tiles on the walls and floors. There will also windows above the roofline to bring in as much natural light as possible. It will also feature a fireplace and plush seating in the McDonalds, Rinker said.

“It’s well-lit for the night time traveler, and easy access to goods and services,” Larsen said. “Yet it still maintains a strong degree of branding that is unique to the food service side and the retail side.”

In addition to the new building, additional parking spaces will be provided for cars and trucks to accommodate increased traffic along the turnpike. At least 55 spaces will be provided for cars and at least 18 for trucks.

“Space is limited because traffic has increased on Cimarron,” Damrill said.

Lone Chimney is the first turnpike rest stop to undergo renovations. Many buildings have become outdated and traffic has increased across the turnpike system.

“We have a lot of old buildings along the turnpike system,” Damrill said. “It gives us a chance to update buildings that are fairly old, some more than 25 years.”

        

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