Author: BEX Staff

Late last month, the Peoria City Council unanimously voted against extending an economic development agreement with ZonaPart LLC (Arizona Partners in Real Estate) to create a development plan to revitalize the Old Town area. Peoria has struggled for years to gain traction on Old Town revitalization. AZPRE was first brought into the mix in 2021 to redevelop the district and join with the City in an economic development agreement. Council granted a conditional agreement in 2022 with stipulations that the advisor form a development plan and engage in public outreach meetings to gather input by Dec. 26. Peoria officials say…

The Goldwater Institute sent a warning letter to Mayor David Ortega earlier this year warning that the City of Scottsdale could face litigation if it carries through with zoning regulation changes that would impose greater development restrictions in the Old Town area. City Council started to work on a General Plan amendment to the Old Town Scottsdale Area Plan and a text amendment to the zoning ordinance for downtown in August 2021. The changes would reduce maximum building heights and floor area ratios, increase setback requirements, create a new requirement for so-called “sensitive edge buffers” and establish a requirement for…

By The Permitting Council Last week, the Permitting Council announced the first mining project to receive FAST-41 coverage. The $1.7B South32 Hermosa Critical Minerals project is a proposed zinc and manganese mining and processing operation located 55 miles south of Tucson. If permitted, the project would be the largest investment in Santa Cruz County history. “The Permitting Council is pleased to see the first-ever critical minerals mining project accepted for coverage under our unique program,” says Permitting Council Executive Director Christine Harada. “President Biden has committed to securing a domestic supply of responsibly sourced critical minerals, and manganese is a…

By Roland Murphy for AZBEX A Planned Unit Development proposal submitted to the City of Phoenix earlier this month will, if approved and built, deliver a new six-story, two-building multifamily community in the 44th Street Corridor. Specifically, Endres Bellview is planned for 604 units on 7.12 gross acres at the NWC of 46th and Belleview streets. The site lies immediately west of the SR 143 freeway and generally southeast of McDowell Road and 44th Street. The plan also includes approximately 4KSF of retail intended to enhance walkability and available services for residents of the community and surrounding neighborhood. According to…

Following a planning staff recommendation, the Goodyear Planning and Zoning Commission has recommended approval of a special use permit to allow construction of a U-Haul Moving & Storage facility at the NEC of Van Buren Street and 137th Avenue. Two buildings are planned, including a four-story 117.9KSF primary building featuring 1,064 storage units and an 18.6KSF “U-Box” building for container storage. Because of the setbacks in place at the infill site, building heights will be taller than usual, with the primary storage building reaching 48 feet and the U-Box building at 53 feet. Goodyear City Council is expected to consider…

The Glendale City Council voted last week to pursue a special General Obligation bond election in November and put two issues before voters. The requests total $160M. The requests would provide $82M for street and intersection Transportation projects and $78M for a variety of Public Safety facilities development and equipment procurement projects. The City polled 400 likely voters earlier this year and found those two categories met with the strongest level of citizen support. Council members debated the need for pursuing a bond request, with some arguing in favor of funding the projects with cash on hand for at least…

Awards & Accolades 1. Willmeng Construction has been named to Inc. Magazine’s annual Best Workplaces list for 2023. Featured in the May/June 2023 issue, the list is the result of a comprehensive measurement of American companies that have excelled in creating exceptional workplaces and company culture, whether operating in a physical or a virtual facility. 2. Camelot Homes has learned they are a Gold Nugget Award of Merit winner in four categories of the 2023 Gold Nugget Awards. Camelot Homes earned its Merit honors for Paradigm, which was honored for Best Single Family Detached Home (3,000SF – 3.499SF) and Best…

Sales Transactions  1. A private 1031 investor has bought The Marketplace retail center in Flagstaff for $23.5M from Macerich. The sale was brokered by Faris Lee Investments.  2. Back to the Future Cottonwood, LLC has paid $11.78M for Cottonwood Plaza, a retail center on North Oracle Road in Tucson. Seller Cottonwood Plaza, LLC was represented by John Yarborough and David Carroll with Romano Real Estate. The new owner plans to modernize and renovate the property.  3. A private investor has bought a 10.4KSF two-tenant medical office building at 2394 N Alma School Road in Chandler for $6.5M. The building is…

Development partners Venue Projects and Sunbelt Holdings recently presented a site plan for the Hayden Flour Mill Redevelopment adaptive reuse project to a special joint meeting of the Tempe City Council and the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community Council. Under the plan, the redevelopment will feature eight structures, including six new buildings. The City bought the mill site at Mill Avenue and Rio Salado Parkway in 2003. In 2021, Tempe issued a Request for Proposals to redevelop the mill site, which closed in 1998. Two other firms had been awarded development rights after Tempe’s purchase, but the rights expired without…

By Roland Murphy for AZBEX While most reporting this week about the most recent $17.8B Arizona state budget proposal has focused on in-fighting between Gov. Katie Hobbs and Democratic leaders over Hobb’s apparent acquiescing to Republicans on school choice vouchers, there are a great many sections and line items of interest to the state’s construction community. The Arizona Capitol Times reports the budget includes $150M for the Housing Trust Fund, $40M for homeless services and shelters and a $183M one-time allocation for school building renovation. In addition to those funds, more than $100M is planned for capital projects in the…