Author: BEX Staff

The U.S. House Natural Resource Committee has passed a bill that would let Salt River Project build a new power generating reservoir development near Apache Lake. House Bill 1607 was introduced by Republican Arizona Representative David Schweikert and co-sponsored by Republican Rep. Debbie Lesko and Democratic Reps. Greg Stanton and Ruben Gallego. Arizona Independent Senator Kyrsten Sinema and Democratic Senator Mark Kelly have introduced companion legislation in the U.S. Senate. SRP is considering two possible sites above Apache Lake for a reservoir development that would release water into the lake through a hydropower dam to generate electricity for the Phoenix…

Tucson City Council has voted to annex approximately 300 acres across three parcels adjacent to a planned 2,000-acre industrial development near Vail. The annexation was necessary before any zoning considerations can move forward and was passed on a 5-1 vote. Some residents and officials with Acacia Elementary School, as well as some members of Council, expressed concern about the annexation and the planned development. Councilmember Steve Kozachik, who voted against the measure, said some residents were left out of the annexation and would not have any say in the matter. He also expressed concerns about potential impacts large-scale industrial uses…

Tucson officials announced the City will receive a $50M grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Choice Neighborhoods program in support of its affordable housing efforts. The money will go toward renovations at the Tucson House public housing development and to help develop three new affordable housing communities. The funding is directed toward Tucson’s Thrive in the ’05 initiative, which plans to create 550 new or rehabilitated housing units focused in the 85705 ZIP Code area. Tucson House is Tucson’s largest public housing site, with 408 units on North Oracle Road. The plan is to convert the…

Groundbreakings 1. StarPoint Properties has begun construction on Dobson Station, a 245-unit community at 139 N. Dobson Road in Mesa. Completion is expected this year. 2. The Town of Gilbert could begin construction as early as this month on the $31M Guadalupe Road Reconstruction and McQueen/Guadalupe Intersection project that will improve Guadalupe Road between Arizona Avenue and McQueen Road. Construction is expected to take 12-14 months and will progress from east to west widening and rebuilding Guadalupe and ending with the intersection at Guadalupe and McQueen. 3. Phoenix Theatre Company announced it will begin construction in August on the $30M…

By National Association of Home Builders The lack of skilled construction labor is a key limiting factor to expanding home construction and improving housing inventory and affordability. The latest Construction Labor Market Report from the Home Builders Institute provides an outlook for residential construction employment and includes state-level employment data. Key findings in the report include: The construction industry currently needs approximately 723,000 new construction workers each year to meet demand. Residential construction represents 3.2 million of the construction payroll employment of 7.9 million. The number of open construction sector jobs currently averages between 300,000 to 400,000 every month. At…

Holualoa Companies has plans for a new development under its Dwell banner. The company will redevelop part of an office site it owns at 21st Street and Highland Avenue to add 144 affordably targeted apartments. The 13-acre site currently has two office buildings, a garage, a restaurant and a two-acre lake. The restaurant will be razed to accommodate the new multifamily portion. Holualoa bought the site in 2021 for $50M and filed a zoning request with the City of Phoenix this June to start the redevelopment process. Company officials said building developments from scratch can have higher infrastructure costs. The…

By Roland Murphy for AZBEX High Street Residential is requesting a rezoning and minor General Plan amendment to allow the development of Sundown Commons, a 239-unit mixed-use multifamily community on approximately 8.53 gross acres at the NEC of 70th Street and Shea Blvd. in Scottsdale. According to the submitted narrative, “The GPA request from Commercial to Mixed-Use Neighborhoods and rezoning request from C-2 (C)/P-4* to PUD PSD allows for a synergistic mixed-use community comprised of existing commercial/retail and new residential development including housing for first responders, healthcare workers, and teachers.” To maintain that focus on workforce affordability, units are planned…

By Arizona Commerce Authority MicroStar Logistics has expanded its investments in quality services for the beer industry with a commitment to build a new Keg and Pallet Quality Services Center in Tucson. The approximately 270KSF facility adds to MicroStar’s industry-leading repair and maintenance capabilities in order to service millions of kegs and new, reusable pallets each year, benefiting its customers ranging from small craft brewers to the largest individual brewery in the world. The new facility will be operated by approximately 200 quality professionals and feature a range of first-of-its-kind equipment including one of the largest, most sophisticated pallet cleaning…

By Roland Murphy for AZBEX – BEXCLUSIVE Arizona’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate increased to 3.5% in June, up from 3.4% for the month of May, according to the latest report published by the Arizona Office of Economic Opportunity. The national unemployment rate decreased to 3.6% from 3.7%. In June 2022, Arizona had a seasonally adjusted rate of 3.8%, while the national rate was 3.6%. Construction led Arizona employment sectors reporting job gains, adding 1,500. The state had a loss of 39,800 non-farm jobs. “Prior to the pandemic (2010-2019), NSA nonfarm employment lost 51,600 jobs on average in June,” the report…

Giving Back 1. SDB Contracting Services will host its 15th annual charity golf tournament in October. A total of $538K has been raised to date to benefit the Arizona Department of Disabled American Veterans. Vans have been purchased to transport Veterans to appointments. Boards & Commissions 2. Jared Holland has been named Chair of the Surprise Planning and Zoning Commission. He had previously served as Vice Chair, a position now filled by Ken Chapman. 3. The Arizona Association for Economic Development has elected new members to its Board of Directors that represent both rural and metro communities across the state.…