A government-facing showroom in a downtown trophy tower, built out turnkey, at base rate.
In 2026, Victory CRE represented UFA Inc. in leasing a downtown showroom at BancFirst Tower in Oklahoma City, with a turnkey buildout at the base rate.
By Tom H. Vaught, SIOR ·
UFA is the world's premier developer of air-traffic-control simulation and speech-recognition technology: the kind of systems government leaders, military officials, and air navigation providers need to see in person before they buy. They wanted a downtown Oklahoma City showroom to host those visitors. But government sales carry a particular constraint: the space has to look professional and credible without looking extravagant, and the budget was tight.
Match the space to the mission.
In government procurement, 'flashy' works against you: it has to look sharp but read as good value. From our first conversation I knew the answer was BancFirst Tower: a downtown trophy building the bank bought in 2020 and extensively renovated, sitting right across from the newly restored Skirvin Hotel. In my opinion it was underpriced for that quality and location, with an ask around $20 per square foot.
Hit the wall and keep going.
We toured downtown options and the client agreed BancFirst was right. But the numbers wouldn't work: the extensive buildout they'd need, amortized over a five-year term, broke the budget. So we kept looking, and everything else was either too expensive or simply not good enough for the impression UFA needed to make on government visitors.
The break.
Persistence paid off. The BancFirst leasing team came back to us with a leftover suite: a former law firm's space that needed only minimal wall changes to work for UFA. Because the bones were already right, the economics that didn't work before suddenly could.
The win that 'never happens.'
We struck a deal with a full turnkey buildout, delivered by the landlord, at base rate, in 2026. In today's market, a landlord funding a complete buildout without loading it back into the rent is almost unheard of. UFA got a downtown trophy showroom, move-in ready, on a budget that made sense. The tenant was thrilled.
I knew the right building from the first conversation, but knowing the answer and getting it done on the client's budget are two different things. We didn't stop until the building came back to us with terms that actually worked. That's the difference between a broker who shows you space and an advisor who solves your problem.Tom H. Vaught, SIOR · Victory CRE
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