If your family vacations in Eureka Springs this summer, you may consider this newly-constructed Airbnb that is sure to feel an awful lot like home.
That, says owner Melissa Brooks, is intentional.
Brooks is a Sapulpa-born, Tulsa-raised girl that found her way back to Sapulpa when she was a teenager.
“I was born in Sapulpa at Bartlett Memorial in 1966, and although I had numerous family members in Sapulpa, my family lived in Tulsa until 1983 when my parents purchased my grandparents’ farm on Highway 117 east of town,” she told Sapulpa Herald via email.
“I was a junior in high school when we moved to the farm in Sapulpa, and I continued my junior and senior year at Sapulpa and graduated in 1984.”
Just under ten years later, she purchased her own home in Sapulpa “for the grand price of only $13,000, with the intentions to redo the home and flip it,” she said. When she sold it in 1997, she liked the man who bought it so much, she married him.
“A man by the name of Newt Brooks bought it,” she said. “He called me a couple weeks later and asked if I liked Mexican food. Of course, I replied, ‘yes,’ and a year later we were married.”
And yes, she moved back into her old home.
As they started a family, they needed more room, so they bought the two lots next door and built a new place. All their children graduated from high school in Sapulpa.
Newt Brooks was originally from Hot Springs, Arkansas, and his job had moved him to Tulsa, but Melissa said they frequently returned to Arkansas, and in particular Eureka Springs.
“We had always liked visiting Eureka because it was a quick romantic getaway for the two of us, and it wasn’t a far drive for a weekend,” she said.
She said the idea of an Airbnb came to her as she thought about others enjoying that same experience.
“One day I had the idea of what if we had our own place that we could go whenever we wanted and that others could enjoy too.”
Brooks said that as they began to look for a house they could flip, they found that most of what they were seeing was old and in too much need of repair, so they began looking for property where they could “build from scratch,” as she said.
It wasn’t long before she stumbled on exactly what they were looking for—seven lots available on a street that was otherwise filled with homes. “It was the perfect location with lots of views,” she said. Even the realtor said, “he had never seen this before.” She called and purchased the lots within half an hour of them being listed.
Brooks says she believes she ended up finding those lots for a reason.
“I had picked a name “Spring Wish” for the place before I purchased the lots, not knowing at the time that I would actually buy lots on Spring street,” she said. “How it all fell into place was totally meant to be.”
As they began to plan out their Airbnb, they began looking at how they could combine the best of both Eureka Springs and her hometown of Sapulpa. They used one of the best things the location had to offer already: the amazing views.
“We wanted to make the place unique as well as romantic,” she said.
“We have lots of outdoor seating with spectacular views of the town. The Christ of the Ozarks is visible from the east, and the famous Crescent Hotel from the west.”
As construction began, Brooks said they took cues from one of Sapulpa’s most famous houses: The Burnett Mansion.
“The house was designed in a similar way with the walkout balcony that overlooks Spring Street in downtown,” she said. “The same as the Burnett Mansion overlooks Main Street.” And just like in Sapulpa, the views from the balcony offer the same opportunities. “We have watched the parades in Eureka right from our own balcony, and they have many parades year-round,” she said.
For the interior, Brooks says they followed her strong ties to the Sapulpa farming community, evident by the use of farm truck parts used in a seating area and a headboard, and the kitchen area has an old International Harvester-era fridge and a farmhouse tub sink. Coffee can be enjoyed in—what else?—Frankoma Pottery coffee mugs. Books on Oklahoma, such as Killers of the Flower Moon, are available for those interested in reading about Sooner State history.
The three-story house has plenty of room for a multi-night stay, and at least one of the bedrooms are themed, including one modeled after the TeePee Drive-In. “Complete with popular movie posters and concession area,” Brooks says.
Brooks says there’s one room left to decorate, and she’d “love some input from Sapulpa residents as to the theme of this one.” If you’re interested, email her with your ideas at michaelnmelissa@cox.net.
The house is available now, as a whole unit or as separate rooms and rents for $159 a night, with a manager who lives offsite. Brooks and her husband still reside in Sapulpa—“We would never move away,” she says.
You can reserve the space at airbnb.com now. Scan this QR Code with your phone to check it out.
