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Broken Arrow City Manager Michael Spurgeon learned on Monday, April 22, 2024, the City had been awarded the landmark grain elevator in downtown BA.
The structure had recently been placed for sale at auction by its current owner, Hansen-Mueller, a commodity trading business.
The City submitted one of two bids for $250,000 that came in at the same time as the online auction for the grain elevator came to a close on April 18. According to the auction website, the two bids were submitted at 11:07:40.
After a meeting of the Hansen-Mueller board of directors, a representative of the company notified Norman Stephens, Assistant City Manager of Administration, that the board would accept the City’s bid.
“This is incredibly exciting news for Broken Arrow and the citizens who work and live in BA,” said Mr. Spurgeon. “The grain elevator has become an iconic image standing tall over downtown Broken Arrow, and therefore, the City Council and I felt it was vital to acquire the towers to preserve the historical and cultural character of our community for future generations.”
 The City’s interest in the property has been focused solely on acquiring it for preservation purposes. There is no immediate plan for the grain elevator.
As many Broken Arrowans have expressed since the grain elevator was listed for sale, the structure is part of our city’s history and should be saved. The Museum Broken Arrow recently posted on its Facebook page that at least four other grain elevators stood along the Katy Railroad tracks long before the current one was built in 1962. Since then, it has been the skyline of Broken Arrow and a longstanding symbol that ties our present and future to our past.
The City Council, acting in its role as the Broken Arrow Economic Development Authority, is expected to review the purchase agreement for the grain elevator in an upcoming Regular Meeting in May. If the Authority approves the agreement, the City would take over ownership of the grain elevator after closing.
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