Author: BEX Staff

By Tasha Anderson for AZBEX Developer, Kentwood Ventures is looking to contribute to the ever-growing West Valley industrial market by constructing two new flex buildings at the SEC of 211th Avenue and Roosevelt Street in Buckeye. A request was recently submitted to the City of Buckeye by Coe & Van Loo Consultants, on behalf of Kentwood Ventures, to rezone the 18.887-acre site from Single-Family 43 to Business Park District. The property is located within the Buckeye Gateway Activity Center and near several master planned communities as well as the West-MEC Education Center. The project, known as “Buckeye Industrial”, or “Buckeye…

By Greater Phoenix Economic Council AgTech startup OnePointOne announced the expansion of its corporate and vertical farming production facilities to Avondale. The 50KSF facility in the Avondale 107th Industrial Park will be home to OnePointOne’s latest indoor vertical farm. The technologically advanced cultivation platform they’re building will use automation, AI and plant science innovations to continue pushing the industry forward. OnePointOne’s proprietary vertical farming technology uses 99 percent less land and water than traditional agriculture. Also, the process is 100 percent free of pesticides, herbicides, and harmful chemicals. This new facility will act as the production hub for Willo, OnePointOne’s personalized…

By Arizona Department of Transportation The Arizona State Transportation Board has approved the 2022-2026 Five Year Transportation Facilities Construction Program, clearing the way for $1B annually in highway improvements during the next five years. The final 2022-2026 Five-Year Program can be found here. The plan was approved following a three-month period for the public to provide feedback. Arizonans submitted more than 1,000 comments on projects across the state. The State Transportation Board’s approval of the Five-Year Program followed a call for public comment in March and four virtual public hearings. The approved five-year program will fund several projects to widen…

By CBRE With e-commerce penetration expected to grow to 26 percent of all retail sales by 2025, the U.S. will need an additional 330MSF of distribution space just to handle the increase in online ordering in that timeframe, according to a new report from CBRE. That anticipated, e-commerce-generated demand for another 330MSF of distribution space represents 27 percent of the projected overall demand for industrial real estate in the U.S. through 2025, according to CBRE Econometric Advisors. The broader category of industrial real estate includes warehouses for traditional retail distribution, manufacturing, R&D space, and data centers. CBRE forecasted the incremental demand…

Groundbreakings 1. RED Development announced that construction is underway on the $300M development of The Grove, the highly anticipated mixed-use destination on the NWC of 44th Street and Camelback Road that features the recently announced hotel, The Global Ambassador, by Sam Fox. The 15-acre development also features a signature four-story Class-AA office building, several ground-floor retail spaces and restaurants; two additional two-story office buildings; a self-storage facility by Hibernia Capital; a covered parking structure; and a luxury apartment building by StreetLights Residential. Completion of the first phase is expected in the latter half of 2022 with final completion and the…

By Tasha Anderson for AZBEX The Town of Youngtown is looking for a developer to help design, develop and manage a new mixed-use development on a one-acre, vacant parcel at the western end of Wisconsin Avenue within the Grand Avenue District. A Request for Proposals was recently published to the Town’s website, which announces that they plan to enter into a long-term lease agreement with, “the most qualified team that demonstrates knowledge, experience, organization and financial ability to implement a progressive, innovative, mixed-use entertainment development in a timely manner that serves the best interests of the Town.” The Town and…

By Tasha Anderson and Rebekah Morris for AZBEX Arizona’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate remained at 6.7 percent in May 2021, from April 2021, according to the latest report published by the Arizona Office of Economic Opportunity. The national rate decreased to 5.8 percent from April. In May 2020, the state had a seasonally adjusted rate of 10.6 percent, and the national was at 13.3 percent. The state had a net gain of 900 non-farm jobs over the month. “Historically (2011-2020), Nonfarm employment has recorded a loss of 700 jobs in May,” the report states. Leisure & Hospitality had the largest…

By City of Buckeye Businesses are invited to attend the June 29th, 2021 Chamber Meeting from 8 am to 9 am, where an Arizona Department of Transportation representative will go over the latest I-10 Widening Project updates and be available for questions. Chamber and City staff will also formally roll out the #ShopBuckeye Program and discuss resources available for businesses during construction, including: Video production opportunities to spotlight businesses; Buy-In Buckeye Receipt Reimbursement Program; Business toolkits (Window decals, posters, banners), and Social media resources. Businesses are invited to attend the meeting in person or virtually. Contact info@buckeyevalleychamber.org for additional information. (Source)

Arizona Western College has won approval from the community college district governing board for a 2021/2022 budget of $163.6M. The budget includes a $35M revenue bond for capital building projects, including an Allied Health Building, a new Student Experience Center, and the reconstruction of DeAnza Residence Hall. The college sold $20M in revenue bonds in May. Those funds must be used within the next 36 months. Another $15M is scheduled for sale in January. Other projects, including a $7.5M AWC Law Enforcement Training Academy, are contingent upon approval of the Arizona state budget. The LETA project will not proceed if…

Boards & Commissions 1. Longtime ULI leader Mark Winkleman, President of MGS Realty Partners, has been selected as the new Chair of the Urban Land Institute, Arizona District Council (ULI Arizona), serving on a voluntary basis for a two-year term starting on July 1st. ULI Arizona also announced the following industry professionals will be rounding out the District Council leadership team: Heather Personne, a ULI Full Member and Managing Principal of Evolve Ventures, is the incoming Vice Chair; and Steve Lindley, a ULI Full Member and Executive Director/Capital Markets at Cushman & Wakefield, is the incoming Treasurer. Company News 2.…