Author: BEX Staff

By Roland Murphy for AZBEX Following decades of lobbying from performing arts groups around the state, the Arizona Legislature passed a new tax credit measure earlier this year to incentivize television and movie production. Starting next year, studios can qualify for credits of up to $75M, which increase to $100M in 2024 and $125M in 2025, according to KTAR. Two studios have announced plans to build production facilities in Arizona as a result of the new program, including one studio that was instrumental in the new law’s design. Matthew George, president of Acacia Filmed Entertainment, told Variety, his firm and…

A proposed 65-unit apartment and 13.7KSF retail development at the SEC of Third Avenue and Marshall Way in Old Town Scottsdale was first introduced to the general public in a recent neighborhood meeting. Information provided by David P. Hamblen of Synectic Design shows a four-story project with an approximately 10-foot step-back on the top level. The commercial uses – which are focused primarily toward art gallery space and, possibly, restaurant use – will be located on the ground floor. Plans also include an underground parking garage. Owners of nearby businesses attending the meeting expressed mixed emotions about the proposal. On…

By Solvay Solvay has announced its plans to invest in a new facility to produce electronic grade hydrogen peroxide – also known as eH2O2 – in Casa Grande to supply the growing U.S. semiconductor manufacturing market. The facility will convert hydrogen peroxide into an ultra-high purity grade to clean silicon wafers that are needed to manufacture semiconductors, essential components of electronic devices. In addition to being the leading global producer and supplier of hydrogen peroxide solutions, Solvay is also a technology leader in the production and distribution of eH2O2. The new facility will be Solvay’s seventh eH2O2 unit. With a…

By JLL and IndiCap Boutique commercial real estate company IndiCap announced it will develop Virgin Industrial Park in partnership with Invesco. At build-out, the two-phase, 110-acre Class A development will total more than 1.5MSF in five buildings. It will also bring IndiCap’s local industrial development pipeline to more than 14.4MSF and 880 acres. Virgin Industrial Park is located on the NWC of Olive and Reems Roads in Glendale. The project sits within the Loop 303 industrial corridor and immediately north of Northern Parkway. Virgin Industrial Park will be developed in two phases. Phase I will include three buildings totaling 566KSF,…

By Roland Murphy for AZBEX Two projects approved by the Tempe Development Review Board this week will, if built, add 943 apartments to the city’s housing stock. Emerald Multifamily For the larger of the two projects – Emerald Multifamily – Davis Development requested an amended planned area development overlay; a use permit for residential and a development plan review to create a new 591-unit, five-story multifamily community on 16.8 acres at the SWC of Priest and Commerce drives. The site is currently zoned Regional Commercial Center and has a mixed-use land use designation. The current request deals with the northern…

The U.S. Treasury Department has announced guidance intended to increase state, local and tribal governments’ use of American Rescue Plan Act funds that will let more multifamily developers increase production via Low-Income Housing Tax Credits. Under the Treasury plan, state housing agencies can use State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds to finance LIHTC Projects. The change will enable significant new financing for affordable housing. Treasury is also updating guidance to make it clear SLFRF funds can be used to fund development, repair or operation for affordable rental housing with affordable designations 20-years or more for households earning 65% or less…

Groundbreakings 1. Picking up an announcement from CoStar, ORION Investment Real Estate reports EKN Development has begun construction on the dual-branded, 148-room Fairfield Inn and TownePlace Suites at Tempe Market Station near Tempe Marketplace. FFKR Architects is the design firm, and Porter Brothers Construction serves as general contractor. 2. EPCOR has begun construction on the Copper Basin Water Reclamation Facility in San Tan Valley. The new facility will replace the Section 11 lagoon-style plant, which will be decommissioned by 2025. Copper Basin is scheduled to be in operation by December 2023. Progress Reports 3. After a full year of construction,…

To the chagrin of some San Tan Ranch residents, the Gilbert Planning Commission has recommended a two-story, 75KSF self-storage plan at the SWC of Pecos and Recker roads for approval. The request involves a rezoning and minor General Plan amendment for the 2.92-acre site to allow the developer to build a two-story storage facility greater than 25KSF. The self-storage use is already permitted by right, according to planning officials. Some residents of San Tan Ranch started an opposition petition against the project, which ultimately got 70 signatures. Among the concerns expressed were an increased in crime and homeless/transient traffic, neighborhood…

The Mesa City Council unanimously approved plans for the 36-unit Countryside Townhomes (also known as Countryside Modern) development on 2.4 infill acres at Southern Avenue and 32nd Street following months of meetings and negotiations between the developer and nearby residents opposed to the original plan. Over the course of five months, opponents – mostly from the nearby Dana Park community – got enough concessions from the project owner to pave the way for approval. Council members commented during the July 11th meeting on the hundreds of hours spent by staff, residents and project representatives to get the approval to the…

The City of El Mirage has expressed its support for a request by Dermody Properties to designate approximately 700-acres of LogistiCenter at Copperwing as a Foreign Trade Zone. Requests are ultimately reviewed and approved or rejected by the federal government, but El Mirage will draft a letter supporting the request. El Mirage wants to help the industrial park remain competitive in the face of rampant industrial development in the area. The City reports there are currently seven speculative buildings planned for the park. A Foreign Trade Zone designation is an attractive differentiator, as it allows materials to be stored, processed…