Author: BEX Staff

Casa Grande City Council will consider the Hancock-Cottonwood build-to-rent community during its next regular meeting. The development proposal looks to build 330 single-story rental units and associated amenities. Council is considering zoning changes that will allow the project’s specific layout plans to go before the Casa Grande Planning and Zoning Commission later this week. (Source)

Salt River Project continues to experience significant increases in customer electricity demand as Phoenix and Maricopa County lead the nation in population growth and economic development. To meet customers’ growing needs, SRP has issued a Request for Proposal for additional power generation resources of all types to meet summer peak capacity needs. SRP is seeking competitive proposals for up to 400MW of peak generating capacity by summer 2024, and another 600MW by summer 2026, for a total up to 1,000MW by summer of 2026. Resources selected through this all-source RFP process will also support SRP’s 2035 Sustainability Goals and SRP’s goal to add 2,025MW of new utility-scale solar by 2025. The requested generation is needed in addition to SRP’s recently announced contracts for new renewable resources and plans to expand its Coolidge Generating Station. SRP will consider all technologies and currently serves customer energy needs from generation produced with a diverse fuel mix including nuclear, coal, hydroelectric, natural gas, battery storage and renewable resources including solar,…

Scottsdale City Auditor Sharron Walker has presented her findings on the Hohokam Elementary School rebuild project to the Scottsdale Unified School Board. The rebuild was funded under a voter-approved bond measure, and construction work was conducted between April and August of this year. The audit was undertaken as part of an intergovernmental agreement between SUSD and the City of Scottsdale. The audit process consisted of reviewing the District and contractor records related to the project for accuracy and appropriateness. Key recommendations from the report included: Creating requirements for closer review of subcontractor selection and construction costs, Setting procedures to review…

Licensed contractors who advertise in Arizona will now have an easier go of things under a regulatory change that went into effect at the end of September. Previously, licensed contractors were required to display their Arizona Registrar of Contractors license number for all “broadcast, published, internet or billboard advertising, letterheads and other documents used by the licensee to correspond with the licensee’s customers or potential customers.” This presented difficulties for ads other than print media. In March 2021, Governor Doug Ducey signed HB 2545 into law, creating an exception to the requirement. Now, licensed contractors do not have to display…

By Arizona Department of Environmental Quality The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality has published the Arizona Protected Surface Waters List called for by landmark surface water protection legislation signed by Governor Doug Ducey on May 5th, 2021. House Bill 2691 is the first Arizona-specific water quality protection legislation enacted since the Aquifer Protection Program in 1991. With ADEQ’s implementation of HB2691 and publication of the PSWL, Arizona has achieved a clear and meaningful surface water protection program that provides Arizonans with certainty about which waters are protected as the decades-long debate about the federal Clean Water Act continues. Arizona’s PSWL…

Awards & Accolades 1. The Arizona Association for Economic Development presented 10 Golden Prospector Awards and five Awards of Merit to recognize excellence, innovation and creativity in economic development at its annual Fall Forum held last week in Flagstaff. Awards were presented in the following categories: Economic Development Deal of the Year Golden Prospector Awards The large population Economic Development Deal of the Year awards went to the City of Scottsdale for retaining Axon Enterprise Inc. in its international headquarters expansion and to the Office of Economic Development at the City of Mesa for recruiting the electric vehicle manufacturer, ElectraMeccanica.…

Sales Transactions 1. Harvard Investments, Toll Brothers, and Värde Partners announced the formation of a joint venture to acquire the remaining undeveloped land in the Estrella mixed-use master-planned community in Goodyear. News reports listed the selling price at $215.5M. Newland Communities was the seller. 2. ZMR Capital has purchased the 320-unit multifamily community The Julia in Mesa, for $90.1M. The seller was not disclosed. 3. Zazu Apartment Homes in central Phoenix has been sold to Tides Equities for $43.75M. The firm was self-represented. Seller Emma Capital was represented by Chris Roach of Colliers in Arizona. 4. Younan Properties, Inc. has sold…

By Roland Murphy for AZBEX BEX Companies’ annual Public Works Conference has become a highlight event for companies working in the space, and this year’s event – the sixth time it has been offered – was no exception. More than 170 attendees registered to hear project and development leaders from around the state talk about what they’re doing, what’s coming down the road, and how to best to manage their processes and procedures. Event organizers across industries continue to innovate new approaches to getting people together in the wake of the pandemic, and the 2021 Public Works Conference was no…

By BEX Staff for AZBEX Developer Harmel and Kaplan (Kaplan Management Company) has withdrawn its requests for a general plan amendment and rezoning for its proposed District at 9400 Shea multifamily plan in Scottsdale. Media sources quoted Scottsdale Councilmember Kathy Littlefield as saying if the developer wants to bring the proposal back, they will have to start over and resubmit to the planning commission. In the same article, project attorney Paul Gilbert of the law firm Beus Gilbert McGroder said the developer intends to resurrect the project. Hearings on the proposals had been continued several times, and Gilbert indicated the…

Mesa City Council may approve annexation of 71 acres for Project Cork, a plan from Ryan Companies to build a 701.5KSF industrial project on Pecos Road west of Signal Butte Road. Like so many new projects in east and southeast Mesa, the project will be a warehouse and office development to accommodate the explosive demand for logistics-related properties. Ryan plans to build the project on land currently owned by Tucker Properties Ltd. and has requested a height allowance of up to 56 feet, rather than the standard height of 40 feet. The additional height is needed to accommodate a 184KSF…