State leaders celebrated completion of a three-year, $70 million renovation of Oklahoma City’s Jim Thorpe Memorial Office Building on Wednesday, Oct. 14. Four state agencies are expected to move into the Capitol Complex building in phases beginning this winter.

The Oklahoma Corporation Commission, the state Election Board, the Oklahoma Arts Council and the Oklahoma Water Resources Board will lease space in the building at 2101 N. Lincoln Blvd., southeast of the Capitol, according to Oklahoma Voice. The agencies will rent from the Office of Management and Enterprise Services (OMES).

The Legislature appropriated renovation funds in 2023.

"This building is going back to work," state Sen. Chuck Hall, R-Perry, the Senate's appropriations chairman, said at the ceremony, according to Oklahoma Voice.

Hall said preserving existing state assets matters as much as building new ones. OMES Director Mark Wood said the project aimed to keep what makes the building special while creating an accessible, functional workplace.

Built in 1938, the building is named for Jim Thorpe, a Sac and Fox and Potawatomi athlete from Oklahoma who competed in the Olympics and played professional baseball and football. Some of Thorpe's descendants attended the ribbon cutting, Oklahoma Voice reported.

The Oklahoma Arts Council commissioned new artwork for the renovated building through the state's public art program, according to a state news release.

Bonnie Campo, OMES director of outreach, said finishing touches such as furnishing offices remain before agencies can settle in. She said the moves are expected this winter.

The Election Board's arrival carries added context. On Tuesday, Oct. 13, the board's offices received an envelope containing suspicious white powder, prompting an evacuation, according to a statement from Election Board Secretary Paul Ziriax.

No staff members were harmed.

Law enforcement is investigating the incident. The Hill reported that the FBI and U.S. Postal Inspection Service were investigating suspicious mailings nationwide, including at election offices.

Ziriax told Oklahoma Voice the Election Board will keep its public-facing offices at the Capitol and use the Jim Thorpe building for administrative functions.