A once-busy Motel 6 just east of Bricktown is getting a complete do-over, trading nightly stays for long-term stability. The Oklahoma City Housing Authority has kicked off construction on Vita Nova, a permanent affordable housing project that officials say will create roughly 73 units for people exiting homelessness. The site was purchased through the city's MAPS 4 homelessness program for about $3 million, with renovations expected to stretch roughly 18 months. City crews are also slated to demolish an on-site community center building on April 6, 2026, to clear room for the overhaul.
What Vita Nova Will Deliver
Mark Gillett, executive director of the Oklahoma City Housing Authority, told KFOR that the conversion is expected to produce about 73 affordable units and confirmed the authority paid roughly $3 million for the property. He called the effort a financial juggling act, noting that "affordable housing is challenging; lots of different funding streams have to come together to make affordable housing work." Gillett said the agency anticipates spending an additional $5 to $8 million on renovations to get apartments and common spaces ready for residents.
Funding and Timeline
Planning documents from the Oklahoma City Housing Authority show the motel project is among the first efforts to tap MAPS 4 homelessness funding. Those early dollars are designed to be paired with tax credits, HUD vouchers and other financing tools to make the numbers work, according to the agency's annual plan. In that filing, the total redevelopment budget for Vita Nova is listed closer to $13 to $16 million, including a $3 million MAPS allocation that officials say will be matched with other public and private money to help pay for on-site services, per Oklahoma City Housing Authority documents.
Acquisition and Reporting
Local business outlet The Journal Record was first to detail the housing authority's acquisition of the Motel 6 at 1800 E. Reno Ave., outlining early cost and unit estimates as the deal came together. That reporting pegged the purchase price at about $3.75 million, and earlier planning materials pointed to roughly 75 units, a reminder that both the budget and unit count have shifted as design and financing details have been refined; see The Journal Record.
Why It Matters
Officials argue that adaptive reuse - converting existing motels into apartments - lets Oklahoma City bring new units online far faster than building from the ground up. That speed matters as the city tries to hit MAPS 4 goals around permanent supportive housing. In filings with HUD and in MAPS materials, the housing authority lays out plans to create hundreds of supportive units and to pair that housing with mental-health care and case-management services so residents can stabilize and stay housed, according to Oklahoma City Housing Authority documents.
Next Steps
Construction crews are expected to begin site-clearing and demolition work as early activity ramps up, with the city planning the community center teardown for April 6, 2026, and full interior renovations to follow, KFOR reports. Officials say residents will not move in until renovations, inspections and service-provider agreements are all in place - a process the housing authority estimates will take about a year and a half from the start of work.
