Author: BEX Staff

By Associated Builders and Contractors The construction industry reported 248,000 job openings in January, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey. JOLTS defines a job opening as any unfilled position for which an employer is actively recruiting. Industry job openings fell sharply last month, down 240,000 on a monthly basis and 148,000 from the same time last year. “Today’s construction job openings number was simply shocking,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “While the total number of job openings economywide stood at a lofty…

Groundbreakings 1. Interstate Warehousing recently broke ground on the 273KSF Phase I refrigerated warehouse component of its planned 92-acre development in Kingman. Master site planning is in place for up to 1.2MSF, depending on eventual customer needs. Interstate Warehousing’s sister firm Tippmann Construction is handling the design and construction, and Phase I is expected to be complete and operational by the end of the year.  2. Phelan Development recently broke ground on its Pecos Center I industrial project near Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport. The development features three buildings of 224.6KSF, 108.6KSF and 141.1KSF, each with between 1.5KSF and 3KSF of office…

By BEX Staff for AZBEX Diversified Partners has announced a $100M investment in a portfolio of commercial real estate projects on the west side of Glendale. Projects affected by the announcement include the Cambria Hotel, the En Fuego retail development, the North 91st Ave. and Cardinals Way retail development and the North 75th Ave. and West Bethany Home Road commercial space. The new developments total more than 25 acres of commercial property and all are near major West Valley attractions like Westgate, Desert Diamond Casino, State Farm (Cardinals) Stadium, the Entertainment District and the Loop 101. While most of the…

By Roland Murphy for AZBEX Mayo Clinic is continuing its quest to fulfill a master planned biotechnology and innovation hub known as Discovery Oasis on 228 acres around its Mayo Clinic Hospital campus at 56th Street and Mayo Blvd. in north Phoenix. On Jan. 19, Mayo Clinic filed a Planned Unit Development request for Discovery Oasis Paradise Ridge, a 76-acre site that will include a “New medical focused campus that will include outpatient clinic, patient services and advanced R/D and medical equipment manufacturing space, with associated tenant amenities, to total up to 2.3MSF within the Mayo Clinic Discovery Oasis Master…

A set of zoning code changes to promote housing construction on infill sites is making its way through the Tucson City Council process. In June of last year, the Mayor and Council discussed issues they commonly heard concerning the City’s Planning and Development Services Department. After those discussions, Council ordered improvements to the Tucson Unified Development Code. Over the last nine months, a series of public outreach and interdepartmental communications led PDSD to create seven amendments to the zoning code that it will present this week. Among the recommended changes are: Requiring only one parking space per unit and eliminating…

By Roland Murphy for AZBEX After spending the second half of 2022 in limbo as LG Energy Solution paused to reevaluate its investment due to the current state of the market, events since the first of the year strongly indicate the company’s Queen Creek battery plant project will move forward. AZBEX was first to report on both the initial agreement between LGES, its subsidiary ES America LLC, the Town of Queen Creek and Pinal County to bring the project, with a total estimated valuation of $2.8B, to a 650-acre site at Germann Road and Ironwood Drive. We were also first…

By Roland Murphy for AZBEX Even before its Phase I plans have been scheduled for a hearing before the Scottsdale Development Review Board, Mack Real Estate Group has filed its pre-application for development review for Phase II of its Mack Innovation Park Scottsdale master plan. The innovation park is a 124.7-acre mixed-use master plan site at the SEC Loop 101 and Pima Road in Scottsdale. MREG paid $125M for the property in an Arizona State Land Department auction last March. The company filed its requests for site plan reviews for site improvements, elevations and landscape plans for Phase I—a five-building…

Two San Tan Valley projects recently advanced after approvals from the Pinal County Board of Supervisors. In the first, the Board approved a minor amendment to the San Tan Valley Special Area Plan, rezoning and a Planned Area Development for the 225-unit Elux at Ocotillo Build-to-Rent community. The development of one-, two- and three-bedroom units is planned for approximately 24 acres on the NWC of Ocotillo and Kenworthy roads. In what may be a sign of development fatigue, Chairman Jeff Serdy voted against some of the agenda items for the project and said people looking for multifamily residences may want…

By The American Institute of Architects Fewer architecture firms report declining billings in January compared to billing activity in December, according to a new report today from The American Institute of Architects. AIA’s Architecture Billings Index score for January was 49.3, compared to 48.4 in December (any score below 50 indicates a decline in firm billings). The January score indicates overall revenue at U.S architecture firms continued to decline from December to January, however, the pace of decline slowed. Inquiries into new projects during January grew, with a score of 55.2 compared to 52.6 in December. The value of new…

Awards & Accolades 1. Cushman & Wakefield | PICOR was named among the top-producing Tucson leasing and top Tucson sales firms in the annual CoStar Power Broker Awards. At the individual recognition level, CoStar recognizes the top five professionals in each market sector. C&W | PICOR’s winners were:  Top Industrial Leasing Brokers: Jesse Blum, Stephen Cohen, Robert Glaser and Paul Hooker; Top Office Leasing Brokers: Rick Kleiner and Thomas Nieman; Top Retail Leasing Brokers: Greg Furrier, Dave Hammack and Aaron LaPrise; Top Sales Brokers: Rick Kleiner, Joey Martinez and Allan Mendelsberg. 2. The Arizona Masonry Council recently bestowed journeymen cards…