Author: BEX Staff

Budget, Policy & Stimulus News  State Budget Expecting $700M Hit  Arizona’s economy has performed better than anticipated since the start of the coronavirus outbreak, but the state is still projected to see a $700M shortfall, according to the legislature’s top budget analyst. Earlier estimates had ranged as high as $1.1B. (Source: KTAR)  Economic News  Work from Home May be Fueling Casa Grande Home Boom  The number of permits pulled for the construction of new homes in Casa Grande continues to grow and is even starting to match or even exceed the number of new home permits issued in the City of Maricopa. In addition to the area’s ongoing economic development, the COVID-19 pandemic has fueled demand for…

By Bret Jaspers for KJZZ via San Tan Valley Sentinel  Central Arizona has been booming — more people, more houses, more need for water. There’s also a long-term drought, and less water to buy from the Central Arizona Project canal system. It’s leading Phoenix exurbs to cast about, looking for new buckets.  Other regions of the state say: Don’t come here.  “They want to come and take from the rural counties, which is completely wrong, in my opinion,” said Holly Irwin, a county supervisor in La Paz County. Her district is where the Colorado River runs along lush irrigated farmland and small towns.  Irwin is pushing back…

By Bendix Anderson for National Real Estate Investor  Heading into 2020, a robust development pipeline and rising costs of construction material and labor were major concerns for the multifamily sector. The economic devastation wrought by the COVID-19 shutdowns has put a halt to that, scrambling the projections of economists, developers and contractors.  Developers aren’t exactly finding bargains at the moment, since there’s now also downward pressure on rents and potential returns. The net result is that even as more companies re-open for business most multifamily developers are still hesitating to start big projects or sign big deals to purchase materials. Those big deals that could help establish a…

Awards & Accolades  1. The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com announced that Clear Title Agency of Arizona has been awarded another top ranking on the list of 2020 azcentral.com® Top Companies to Work for in Arizona, for the eighth consecutive year.  2. ABI Multifamily Senior Managing Partner, John Kobierowski, has been selected for the GlobeSt. Best Bosses 2020 award by the editors of GlobeSt. Real Estate Forum, a leading national commercial real estate magazine. Honorees were selected for their influence and accomplishments within the commercial real estate industry.  3. Engineering News Record recently published their ENR 2020 Top 400 Contractors List. ENR subscribers can view the full list here. Sundt Construction, Inc. announced they climbed to No. 52 on…

Sales Transactions  1. Tides Equities teamed with FCP to buy the Tides at South Tempe, a 442-unit apartment complex at 4130 S. Mill Avenue, for $71.5M.  2. Knightvest Capital purchased the Capital Place Apartments, five-story, 292-unit complex at 11 S. 12th Street, Phoenix, for an undisclosed amount. The JLL Capital Markets Investment Advisory team representing the seller, Epoch Residential, includes Mike Higgins, Charlie Steele and John Cunningham.  3. Westcore acquired a 164.5KSF, Class A industrial warehouse on 16.5 acres of land at 2550 N. Nevada Street, Chandler for $38M. The warehouse is fully leased to a leading global e-commerce company. Jeff Chiate Will Strong and Mike Adey of Cushman & Wakefield represented the seller, Greenlaw in the transaction, with…

By Tasha Anderson for AZBEX  A new package delivery service facility is being planned at the NEC of Litchfield and Sweetwater Roads in Surprise.  Applicant, Withey Morris, LLC, on behalf of real estate developer, BH DevCo, submitted a request for site plan approval to the city for the approximately 145.5KSF development, called Project Baxter. The Surprise Planning & Zoning Commission heard and recommended the project for approval at its June 18th meeting.  According to the submitted documents, “The package delivery facility will provide a physical location from which a third-party provider fulfills customer orders for ecommerce retailers.” Inventory arriving at this facility will be prepackaged and labeled and are anticipated to be shipped in a…

Budget, Policy & Stimulus News  Surprise Gets $16M in CARES Cash   The City of Surprise recently received more than $16M via the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act to help offset tax losses and other budget impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic. The funds are intended to help with public safety personnel costs. Money freed up through the assistance payment will be used to shore up the General Fund in the face of sales tax losses. (Source: Independent Newsmedia)  IRS and Treasury Ease Opportunity Zone Incentive Requirements  Earlier this month, the Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service issued revised guidelines and timeline extensions for investors in Opportunity Zone-related projects. (Source: Snell & Wilmer)  Economic…

Source: Arizona Corporation Commission  Arizona Corporation Commissioners voted for Johnson Utilities LLC to begin work on the Pecan Water Reclamation Facility Phase IV Expansion and Influent Pump Station & Headworks Replacement projects approved in Decision No. 77330.  The Pecan Water Reclamation Plant Phase IV Expansion totals approximately $18M and will expand the capacity at the plant from 3.0 million gallons per day to 4.0 million gallons per day.  Based on the Commissioners vote, the project will proceed without further delay and the company’s interim manager, EPCOR, has been directed to immediately commence construction. The project is expected to take approximately 12 months to complete.  The Commission directed Johnson ownership to…

Source: Maricopa County  Maricopa County is putting hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funds to immediate use helping people impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic while also pulling back on discretionary spending unrelated to the crisis. The Board of Supervisors approved the final $3.071B budget for fiscal year 2021. The bulk of spending is focused on core responsibilities like public safety, with an increased amount dedicated to community health.   “These are difficult times. This budget focuses on what people need right now: investments in their safety, their health, and their economic wellbeing, all within our state mandates, all without raising the tax rate,” said Board of…

Groundbreakings  1. Pacific Hospitality Group and Mortenson recently broke ground on a 238-room, 8-story Hyatt Place hotel in downtown Phoenix. The project is expected to be completed in September 2021. Allen+Philp Partners is the architect.  2. FatCats Entertainment has started construction on their new ground up, 61KSF family entertainment center at 20660 E. Riggs Road, Queen Creek. The $11M project will have 8 theaters, 20 bowling lanes, arcade, nine-hole glow in the dark mini golf, party room, virtual reality area, bar and restaurant. TK Architects is the design firm and A.R. Mays Construction is the general contractor.  3. The partnership of Davcon Aviation and Mesa Hangar has started construction on nearly 400KSF of hangar and office space at Mesa Falcon Field Airport. The $60M project is being managed by GCON, Inc.  Progress Reports  4. Lincoln…