Groundbreakings
1. Arizona Partners Retail Investment Group has begun demolition work inside the former Fry’s Food Store at Chandler’s Sunset Village Fair Shopping Center, at the NEC of Alma School and Warner roads. Arizona Partners bought the center in spring 2024 for $12.5M. Plans call for subdividing the space into three units and remodeling the center. Leases are currently being negotiated for the future units.
Progress Reports
2. Maricopa County Department of Transportation will begin the next phase of the 12.5-mile Northern Parkway project in early 2026. Work will extend along Northern Avenue from the Agua Fria River to 103rd Avenue in Peoria, with roadway improvements planned. Construction is scheduled to finish in fall 2026.
3. SPS+ Architects and Pimmex Construction joined community members, elders and other stakeholders in a ground blessing ceremony (shown at right) for a multipurpose facility for the Covered Wells community. The Santa Rosa Multipurpose Building will cover 2.8KSF on 1.2 acres in the Gu Achi District of the Tohono O’odham Nation. Construction began in July and is expected to finish in February. The location holds deep cultural and historical importance and is intended to remain a cornerstone of heritage and shared knowledge.
4. The Arizona Department of Transportation reports that the Rancho Santa Fe Pkwy. Interchange on I-40 in East Kingman is about one-third complete. The $44M project, which began in December 2024, will provide direct access to the Kingman Airport and industrial park. Completion is expected mid-2026.
5. The second and final phase of the $9.8M Highway 69 widening project between Prescott Lakes Pkwy. and Heather Heights is on track for completion in October. Led by ADOT, in partnership with the Central Yavapai Metropolitan Planning Organization, the two-mile expansion will add two lanes and a raised median. Phase I of the project finished in February of this year, and Phase II began in April.
6. David Weekley Homes is now selling in two new sections of the Soleocommunity in San Tan Valley and has broken ground on six model homes across four neighborhoods. Homes are offered on 48-ft to 70-ft lots, with one- and two-story floor plans available. The community will also include a park, sports fields, trails and a two-acre lake.
Completions
7. Willmeng Construction and the City of Scottsdale have completed a $13.1M renovation at McCormick-Stillman Railroad Park at 7301 E. Indian Bend Road. The project included construction of the new 7.5KSF roundhouse facility, a 5KSF splash pad and various site improvements across the 30-acre park. DWL Architects led design work.
8. Pima County has completed the Suzanne Shields Santa Cruz River Pedestrian Bridge on the Chuck Huckelberry Loop, a 300-ft span connecting trail segments near Sweetwater Wetlands Park and Danny Lopez Park. The project began in January and finished in July, improving access across the river and providing new flood control access.
9. Goodwill of Central and Northern Arizona will open a new store Aug. 21 in Mesa, located at the SWC of Higley and Brown roads.