By Lorraine Longhi for The Arizona Republic
On Tuesday, Scottsdale narrowly approved Marquee, a 150-foot-tall office building planned for downtown, amid complaints that the project did not fit the aesthetics of Old Town or include enough parking.
The approval highlights long-running clashes over development downtown.
Marquee was approved in 2016 as a 90-foot-tall building to go up next to the Galleria Corporate Center in Old Town, but the city’s updated development plan has allowed developers to ask for greater height.
The 271KSF mixed-use office building falls in line with changes made last year to the development plan that governs new buildings constructed downtown.
At a City Council meeting Tuesday, several residents flagged concerns about parking requirements and the size of the building along with the density now allowed downtown.
“You continue to bend to the wishes of developers, with little to any consideration to how the citizens benefit from your approach and approvals,” resident Betty Janik said.
Others stressed the need for more office space downtown to encourage economic development.
“A downtown needs jobs to survive,” resident Josh Toney said. “Scottsdale has a reputation for great hotels and great hospitality. But we also need great places for people to work.”
Council members were split, ultimately approving the project 4-3, with council members Kathy Littlefield, Guy Phillips and Solange Whitehead dissenting.
The project is estimated to cost between $50M-$100M, according to attorney Jason Morris, who represents the developer.
It faces one more public hearing with the Development Review Board before construction can begin.
Work at the site, at Scottsdale Road and Shoeman Lane, is expected to begin within six months to a year, Morris said.
Concerns About the Project
Stockdale Capital Partners, the owner of the land and the nearby Galleria, previously submitted plans for the project that included underground parking.
The proposal approved by the council instead provides an above-ground parking garage and small surface lot.
The development will supply 934 public parking spaces, well above the required 906 spaces, Morris said.
But Marquee’s construction will mean the removal of 44 angled parking spaces, to be replaced with 26 parallel parking spaces.
To offset the reduction of these 18 spaces, Stockdale Capital agreed to contribute $13.8K to the city’s in lieu parking fund for every space removed, a total of $248.4K.
Business owners can purchase or lease parking spaces from the city to pay into the in lieu system, which goes toward building large parking structures in the city. There is no timeline for when the city must build parking after these spaces are purchased, according to the city.
The city has used the money to build a parking garage on Third Avenue and Scottsdale Road and a parking garage near First Street and Brown Avenue but use of the program by the city is sporadic, according to city planner Brad Carr.
Read more at The Arizona Republic.