North Tulsa families have been waiting five years for Black Wall Street Square. Now the first homes are almost ready, and people can start applying.
After nearly 10 months of construction, the $8.4 million project at the northeast corner of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and East Reading Street is closing in on the end of its first phase. That phase includes 13 of the development's 25 townhomes, according to the Tulsa Flyer and The Oklahoma Eagle, which reported on the project Oct. 1.
The request for proposals for the site went out back in 2021. McGee Enterprises later teamed up with Green Country Habitat for Humanity, Boomtown Development and Twenty20 Management, and the group broke ground in 2025.
Where the work stands
Here's the part builders will appreciate: the reporter laid out exactly what's left. The remaining first-phase work is electrical and HVAC, followed by insulation, sheetrock and brick. The first phase is expected to be finished by mid-January.
"People are going to get a real good sense here very shortly of how the buildings ultimately will be colored and how they'll be viewed from the street level," said Cameron Walker, president of Green Country Habitat for Humanity.
Families can begin moving in around the middle of January. That's also when the second phase of construction is set to begin, and it's expected to take up to a year.
Homes for different budgets
Not every townhome will be the same. Eight of the 25 will be market-rate units developed and sold by McGee Enterprises. Those will have two-car garages, three bedrooms and two and a half bathrooms. Four of the market-rate units will be finished in the first phase.
The other 17 will be a little smaller, with three bedrooms, two and a half baths and a single-car garage. Buyers of those units will get some kind of down payment assistance to keep prices affordable, and they can work with Green Country Habitat's network of local banks to get lower mortgage rates. Those homes are expected to open for purchase contracts sometime in November.
People interested in buying can sign up for a free 30-minute information session through Green Country Habitat for Humanity. Walker said some applicants will need help with debt or credit first, and counselors will work with families one on one.
"Some people may come to us and be perfect candidates right out of the gate. Oftentimes, there's some work to do and some things that need to be cleaned up. So it may take a number of months," Walker said.
District 1 City Councilor Vanessa Hall-Harper has said the goal of Black Wall Street Square is to provide housing for north Tulsans of all income levels.
Why it matters for Contractors
This project is a good example of how a mixed-income development gets built in phases. With the first phase down to MEP rough-in, insulation, drywall and masonry, those trades are busy now. The second phase is set to start in mid-January, which means another full round of work, from foundations and framing to finishes, on the remaining 12 townhomes over the following year.
The news reports don't name a general contractor for the job, so we aren't naming one here. Local subs who want a piece of phase two would do well to reach out to the development partners before that work kicks off.
Townhomes are also a type of housing that's been getting more attention as land and building costs climb. They squeeze more homes onto a lot than detached houses do while still giving buyers a front door and a garage of their own. When a project like this sells well, it can open the door for more townhome projects in the neighborhood and across the city.
There's a community piece, too. Neighbors waited five years from the first request for proposals to the first finished homes. Projects like Black Wall Street Square put new homes for sale on the ground in north Tulsa and give local builders and trades a chance to do work close to home. Contractors who live and work in the area are in a good spot to show what they can do on a project the whole neighborhood is watching, and that kind of reputation tends to bring the next job.