Author: BEX Staff

By Associated Builders and Contractors The not seasonally adjusted national construction unemployment rate was down 2.6 percent in June 2021 from a year ago and 45 states had lower unemployment rates over the same period, according to state-by-state analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data released by Associated Builders and Contractors. Although not back to pre-pandemic levels, both overall employment and construction employment have demonstrated significant improvement during the past year. National NSA construction employment was up 233,000 from June 2020. Nonetheless, seasonally adjusted construction employment remained 238,000, or 3.1 percent, below its February 2020 peak, before the impact of the COVID-19…

Groundbreakings 1. With construction underway on the first Guaranteed Maximum Price portion of the $26M Litchfield Park City Center, it has been announced that the project will now officially be called Litchfield Square. The first GMP, set at $3.5M, began July 12th. The funds will cover the preparation of the construction site, installation of the sanitary sewer system, mass grading of most of the site and the order cost of long lead-time items. EPS Group is the design firm and Achen-Gardner Construction is the general contractor. 2. McCarthy Building Companies Inc. recently celebrated the beginning of construction on its new,…

A request for proposals issued by the City of Tempe last week appears to be the latest development in the Arizona Coyotes’ years-long drive to leave Gila River Arena in Glendale for what it envisions to be the greener pastures of the East Valley. The RFP wants a sports team or its partners to put a sports arena, 1,000 residential units and 200KSF of supporting retail, along with amenity space, on 46 acres at the NEC of Priest Drive and Rio Salado Parkway. Team representatives have said they will respond to the proposal. The location is currently a City-owned compost…

By Tasha Anderson for AZBEX A new multifamily development is being planned on approximately 18 acres of underutilized land within the Cavasson Master Plan site in Scottsdale. Plans were recently submitted to the city and Owner, Grayhawk Development, is requesting approval of the site plan, landscape plan and building elevations for the three-story rental project called Grayhawk Residences at Cavasson. Located at 7701 E. Legacy Boulevard, Grayhawk Residences at Cavasson will consist of 400 units, consisting of a mix of 24 studio, 124 one-bedroom, 186 two-bedroom and 66 three-bedroom units. Grayhawk and developer, Alliance Residential, plan to keep the maximum…

A grand jury has handed down indictments related to misuse of funds and other charges related to construction procurements for the Elona Ranch and Sossaman middle schools in the Higley Unified School District. The list of charges consists of: Denise Birdwell, former HUSD superintendent, 18 felony counts for “procurement fraud, fraudulent schemes and practices, fraudulent schemes and artifices, misuse of public monies, conflict of interest, filing a false return, and conspiracy”; Gary Aller, co-owner of Education Facilities Development Services, three felony counts for “fraudulent schemes and practices, fraudulent schemes and artifices, and conspiracy”; Steven Nielsen, co-owner of EFDS, three felony…

By Colliers in Arizona The pandemic’s impact on the Greater Phoenix office market appears to have passed its peak with the market stabilizing in second quarter. Sublease space additions to inventory have slowed and the market returned to positive net absorption following two quarters of negative activity, according to Colliers in Arizona’s mid-year office market report. Arizona’s economy has been booming with record revenue growth, as well as personal income growth. The state is projected to add 325,000 jobs in the next 12 months. As pandemic restrictions have begun lifting, many companies have announced a full return of employees to…

Giving Back 1. Western Wealth Capital is hosting its fifth annual “We’ve got Your Back” event. On Tuesday, July 27th, School supply kits and backpacks will be given to school-age residents of the 21 Phoenix-area Western Wealth Capital-owned apartment communities. The backpacks will include a school district-approved supply kit with notebooks and other vital supplies like pens and art supplies. This year, the company will surpass $200K in donated school supplies since the event’s inception in 2016, with more than 450 backpacks being distributed this year alone. Boards & Commissions 2. Tempe-based First Solar Inc. has expanded its board of…

Sales Transactions 1. Bridge Investment Group purchased Parc Roundtree Ranch, a 275-unit, newly constructed multifamily asset in Peoria, for $88.8M. Steve Gebing and Cliff David with Institutional Property Advisors, a division of Marcus & Millichap, procured the buyer and represented the seller, Evergreen Devco Inc. 2. An undisclosed buyer purchased Paseo Park, a 35-building, 480-unit, garden-style apartment community at 5205 W. Thunderbird Road, Glendale, for an undisclosed amount. Transwestern Investment Group (TIG®), along with its partner, Knightvest Capital, were the sellers. 3. American Homes 4 Rent purchased 184 acres of State of Arizona land near Valencia and Houghton Roads in…

By Tasha Anderson for AZBEX As e-commerce continues to rise, the need for industrial development becomes greater and Arizona’s West Valley is one of the top areas where developers are flocking to in order to fill that need. WDP Partners, in partnership with Brama Holdings, is looking to add to the growing industrial footprint in Avondale, by developing Van Buren 101, a “high quality, institutional-grade industrial building that will permit warehousing/distribution uses,” and, “provide employment opportunities withing the City of Avondale,” according to the project documents submitted to the city. Van Buren 101 is planned to consist of a +/-…

By Mescal Movie Set The Mescal Movie Set, the home to the movies “Tombstone,” “The Quick and the Dead,” and more than 80 other westerns, was recently acquired by local ranchers and saved from destruction. The set was in an advanced state of deterioration, which limited its appeal to film production companies. The new owners, Kartchner Ventures, have started a complete renovation and expansion of the set. Extensive plans are in place to renovate the 27 existing buildings, all of which need complete makeovers, from stabilizing foundations, renovating interiors and exteriors, and replacing roofs. New buildings will be added, including…