Biz Buzz

Reptile Refuge. Aquarium supporters will turn shovels of dirt to mark the official groundbreaking for the Sea Turtle Experience, a new exhibit to house two loggerhead sea turtles, sharks and other fish. The groundbreaking will be immediately followed by a ribbon cutting to open the Oklahoma Aquarium Event Center.

The Sea Turtle Experience will provide a permanent home for two sea turtles, which have been housed behind-the-scenes at the Aquarium since 2004. The exhibit will include an addition to the existing building, on the west side of the Marvels and Mysteries Gallery, with a 65,000 gallon tank, three viewing levels and a feed presentation platform. The presentation area will allow biologists to provide educational information about sea turtles and their threatened and endangered status. Construction is expected to take between 18 and 24 months. Fundraising efforts will continue during the build to raise the remainder of the $1.6 to $2 million needed. Nearly $1 million has been raised to date.

Under New Management. Eric Doss was named the new director of the Tulsa School of Arts and Sciences (TSAS) effective July 1 by the TSAS board of directors. He will succeed Dr. Dennis Shoemaker, who is retiring at the end of the 2010-11 school year.

Doss is the current TSAS principal, a position he has held since June 2010. For eight years previously, he was the school's band and orchestra director and computer teacher.

Founded in 2001, TSAS is Tulsa's first public charter school for grades 9-12. TSAS annually since 2006 has scored the highest ACT average composite scores of any Tulsa Public School.

Packed House. The BOK Center has been named one of the Top 10 "Top Stops" by Venues Today magazine. The 2010 year-end rankings are based on concert and event grosses from Jan. 1--Dec. 31, as reported to Venues Today.

The BOK Center ranked No. 4 for the top Midwest tour stops with a minimum capacity of 15,001.

More than 175 events came to the BOK Center in 2010, including the C-USA Men's Basketball Tournament, Brooks & Dunn and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.

Madre's Cookin'. Casa Frida, a new restaurant featuring authentic, made-from-scratch Mexican food, has opened at 5239 S. Peoria Ave.

The restaurant is named after famed Mexican painter Frida Kahlo, who loved to cook, according to the owners, Emmanuel Montes and his wife, Nancy Hernandez-Montes.

Recipes include some from her mother, Isabel Hernandez, and others from his mother, Pina Cruz, who also helps in the kitchen. The restaurant decor is colorful, and it includes a portrait of Kahlo. Call 918-743-6064 for more information.