OETA Story on The Renovation of the Mayo Hotel in Tulsa aired on 08/06/09

This is a story that aired on OETA Public Television's The Oklahoma News Report in Tulsa Oklahoma as reported by Cathy Tatom and photojournalist Edwin Wilson. For more information or to contact us, please go to the new and improved www.oeta.tv The verbatim script follows below... ONE OF OKLAHOMA'S ORIGINAL SKYSCRAPERS IS UNDER-GOING A GRAND RENOVATION AFTER DECADES OF NEGLECT. IN ITS HAY DAY, TULSA'S MAYO HOTEL WAS THE DESTINATION FOR CELEBRITIES, POLITICIANS AND ANYONE WHO WAS ANYONE. IT HOSTED EVERYONE FROM ELVIS TO ELEANOR ROOSEVELT. AS OETA'S CATHY TATOM REPORTS, THE NEWLY RENOVATED MAYO WILL BE MUCH MORE THAN A GRAND HOTEL. ITS ALSO ABOUT TO BE ONE OF THE HOTTEST PLACES TO CALL HOME IN DOWNTOWN TULSA. IN JUST DAYS THE SCAFFOLDS COME DOWN, AND THE CURTAIN GOES UP ON THE NEWLY RENOVATED MAYO HOTEL IN DOWNTOWN TULSA. THE HISTORIC HOTEL IS UNDERGOING A 40-MILLION DOLLAR FACE LIFT AFTER SITTING EMPTY AND NEGLECTED FOR TWO DECADES. WHEN THE MAYO RE-OPENS IT WILL NOT ONLY BE A LUXURY HOTEL.... BUT ALSO HOME TO ITS FIRST PERMANENT RESIDENTS. THAT'S BECAUSE ALONG WITH HOTEL ROOMS, THE NEWLY REFURBISHED MAYO WILL HAVE DOZENS OF ONE AND TWO BEDROOM LUXURY APARTMENTS TO DRAW PEOPLE BACK INTO LIVING IN DOWNTOWN TULSA. ARCHITECT JOEL SLAUGHTER SAYS THE NEW APARTMENTS AND HOTEL ROOMS ARE NOT COOKIE-CUTTER LOOK-A-LIKES. FLOORPLANS FOR EACH HAD TO BE FITTED LIKE A JIGSAW INSIDE THE EXISTING STRUCTURE OF THE MAYO. Joel Slaughter/Architect: "What we ended up with was approximately 20 different hotel rooms and 22 different apartments." THE MAYO'S GRAND LOBBY HAS SEEN MANY INCARNATIONS SINCE IT WAS FIRST BUILT IN THE EARLY 1920'S. BUT THIS RESTORATION TAKES IT BACK TO IT'S ORIGIONAL SPLENDOR. ITS STAINED GLASS CEILING HAS BEEN METICULOUSLY RECREATED. AND WORKERS SPENT TODAY CUTTING GREEN AND WHITE MARBLE SLABS RETURN THE GRAND STAIRCASE TO ITS ORIGINAL DESIGN. OTHER AREAS OF THE HOTEL WILL PAY TRIBUTE TO THE MAYO'S RICH HISTORY. Wesley Ludloff/General Manager: "We'll have a banquet - event room called the Mayo Museum that will be adorned with memorabilia specifically from the old hotel from original bellmen uniforms, photos an collateral from celebrities that have stayed here and of history." PERHAPS THE MOST MAGNIFICENT PART OF THE MAYO'S RESTORATION IS TAKING PLACE ON ON THE HOTEL'S 16 FLOOR. THE HOME OF THE LEGENDARY CRYSTAL BALLROOM. Macy Snyder/Mayo Hotel: "Everybody remembers the Crystal Ballroom and the reason it was the Crystal Ballroom was because of the four original crystal chandeliers that actually hung in this room and the exciting part of the renovation I think is and one of the most important things is that we have those four original chandeliers." THEY'LL BE REHUNG AS SOON AS RESTORATION WORK IS FINISHED ON THE TERRAZZO FLOORS AND PLASTER DETAILS ADORNING THE WALLS. Macy Snyder/Mayo Hotel: "All the detail pieces you see are not the original pieces but they have been restored back to look exactly like the original." SO THAT THIS BALLROOM CAN ONCE AGAIN BE AMONG THE MOST ELEGANT PLACES IN DOWNTOWN TULSA TO HOLD AN EVENT. AT THE MAYO HOTEL, I'M CATHY TATOM, THE OKLAHOMA NEWS REPORT.