The Sapulpa Plaza, a standalone strip center located in the southeast corner of the parking lot near the Sapulpa Walmart, has crossed a milestone not many Sapulpa businesses can attest to: a full 25 years of operation in Sapulpa. Owner Elle Jewell credits the tenants for the longevity, some of whom have been there since the beginning.
“That’s a big deal,” she says. “And I really am appreciative of them. They’re lovely. Everybody here is wonderful.”
The Plaza had an outdoor celebration earlier this month featuring sponsors, vendors, and a mobile petting zoo.
The Sapulpa Plaza wasn’t built initially by Jewell, and when she took it over a quarter-century ago, scoffers said it wasn’t a good business move. Except for Walmart, the area was barren. It was on the edge of town, and it was a place to drive by, not drive to.
“We were pretty isolated out here,” she said. “There wasn’t all that development back here, with the school and obviously the apartments, none of that was here. I mean, none of it.”
Still, Jewell said she believed having the town’s only Walmart would be a draw, but beyond that, Jewell, who has worked in real estate for decades, has a nose for seeing where a population is headed. “I had a really good feeling for Sapulpa’s growth,” she said.
“I just thought, ‘this is an untapped market,’ Sapulpa is going to grow. It’s bound to. It took a while for all this to come out here, but it came.”
The Plaza proudly hosts a mix of shops and stores, but the area has definitely matured; what used to be empty cow pastures has now turned into apartment complexes, an elementary school, and multiple sports complexes and housing additions.
Jewell says she’s thrilled with the growth in her area and Sapulpa, including downtown. “It’s just really, really fun to see. I love that I came from a really small town, and I love seeing the growth in small towns.”
Though the town is growing and being remodeled in several areas at the same time, Jewell says that she can point to a few often-found specifics that are common in small towns that successfully grow—and it’s not the big-box stores that people seem to think it would be.
“I feel that the (Sapulpa Chamber of Commerce) is doing a great job, and the development of the downtown and the charm of the downtown is huge to keeping the small town feeling.”
Jewell says that Sapulpa is “very fortunate to have such really neat old buildings downtown,” but maintains that the charm of a small town is in two things: its people and its small businesses.
“I love that we still have these small, mom-and-pop stores that have been here as long as they have,” she said. “I’ve seen a lot of change in a small town, and it’s been for the better. And here in Sapulpa, it’s for the best. They’ll keep it vibrant.”
She also says that the small-town charm of Sapulpa is what will help keep The Sapulpa Plaza and these other businesses a fighting chance in a changing economy over the next 25 years. “I can’t prove anything, but I think being in a small town gives you a little longevity,” she says.
She maintains that offering to do things the old-fashioned way—like having a place to try on clothes and shoes—will continue to be a selling point into the future. “I still want to come in, I want to try these clothes on. I don’t want to have to order everything from a place unknown,” she said. “I know we still have a lot of that, but I believe these stores will continue to thrive in a small town. I really do.
