Author: BEX Staff

By Tasha Anderson for AZBEX  The City of Flagstaff has issued a Request for Qualifications for a firm to provide Design-Build services for the design and construction of an overpass in central Flagstaff.  According to the issued RFQ, the city is looking for services including, project design, agency/public coordination, budget control/value engineering and construction services.  The project, called the Lone Tree Overpass Project, will be a bridge overpass that will be an extension of the existing Lone Tree Road, from Butler Avenue to Route 66.  According to the documents associated with the RFQ, an alternatives study was completed in 2010 the city had three…

Budget, Policy & Stimulus News  $730M Coming to 90K Displaced Ariz. Workers  Nearly 100,000 Arizonans who have lost jobs during the pandemic are about to finally receive thousands of dollars each in jobless benefits, according to the Department of Economic Security. DES Director Michael Wisehart said the department has verified 90,000 applications to the “pandemic unemployment assistance,” or PUA, program that provides jobless pay for contractors, self-employed and other people who don’t qualify for regular unemployment insurance. (Source: AZCentral)  Hotel Leaders Pleading for Relief  Hotel industry leaders are calling on Congress to pass bipartisan legislation to assist the industry, as a new report predicts a historic number of hotel foreclosures…

By Wayne Schutsky for Scottsdale Progress  Scottsdale has reached a preliminary agreement with Axon to reimburse the body camera manufacturer over $9M in infrastructure costs and other expenses connected to the planned expansion of its headquarters in Scottsdale.  The deal will go before City Council and is likely to face the same pushback from critics who opposed a similar deal with Nationwide in 2018.  Axon, formerly known as Taser International, was founded in Scottsdale in 1993 and has its eyes on a 74-acre parcel of Arizona state trust land near Loop 101 and Hayden Road to expand its nearby headquarters.  The land, which will go to auction…

Source: Arizona Department of Transportation  The Arizona Department of Transportation has finalized the Disparity Study report and the Federal Highway Administration Overall Disadvantaged Business Enterprise Goal and Methodology for federal fiscal years 2021-2022.  Based on the results of the Disparity Study, which took into consideration comments and input from the public, ADOT will adopt a 12.89 percent DBE goal for federal fiscal years 2021 through 2023 for FHWA-funded contracts; 8.17 percent of which is expected to be accomplished through race- and gender-conscious means (DBE contract goals) and the remaining 4.72 percent to be accomplished through race-neutral means (ADOT outreach, training and program efforts). The goal will be submitted to FHWA…

Awards & Accolades  1. Paul Johnson Drywall, Inc. announced that it was named to Walls & Ceilings Magazine’s 2020 Top 50 Contractors list for the sixth consecutive year and is the only drywall contractor with a presence in Arizona and Nevada to make the list.  2.The 2021 edition of Best Lawyers in America includes the following Withey Morris attorneys and practices:  William Allison – Government Relations Practice and Land Use and Zoning Law  Adam Baugh – Land Use and Zoning Law  Jason Morris – Land Use and Zoning Law  Benjamin Tate – Land Use and Zoning Law – “Ones to Watch” award  Michael Withey – Land Use and Zoning Law and…

Sales Transactions  1. An unnamed institutional buyer purchased a 50.4KSF Target-occupied building at 1625 Camelback Road, Phoenix, for $20.3M. Newmark Knight Frank Net Lease Capital Markets Executive Managing Director Matt Berres and Director Samer Khalil, in cooperation with Managing Director David Guido, represented the seller, an affiliate of Menin Development, Inc., and procured the buyer.  2. SB Real Estate Partners purchased Verona Court, a 141-unit community at 17646 N. Cave Creek Road, Phoenix, for $20M. Institutional Property Advisors, a division of Marcus & Millichap, brokered the transaction. Executive Directors Cliff David and Steve Gebing represented the seller, A partnership between Dalan Management and VM Management, and procured the buyer.  3. A private investor purchased Safeway Center at Lake Powell, a 100.5KSF Safeway-anchored shopping…

By Tasha Anderson for AZBEX  Ross Aviation Operations, LLC, a Fixed Base Operator (FBO) with locations throughout the United States, is looking to develop a new hangar building at the Scottsdale Airport located at 14600 North Airport Drive.  Architect and applicant, DWL Architects + Planners, Inc., on behalf of Ross Aviation, submitted documents to the City of Scottsdale on August 4th and is requesting approval of the site plan, landscape plan and building elevations for the project, known as the Ross Aviation SDL Hangar.  The project will consist of a 64KSF hangar building comprised of two, 28KSF hangar bays and two, 3KSF shell office spaces. According…

Budget, Policy & Stimulus News  Three Tax Breaks for Liquidity During Crisis  Wading through the tax legislation implications of the 2017 tax reform and 2020 CARES Act can be overwhelming for many real estate companies. Three tax breaks, however, warrant special attention. These are: The First-year Depreciation Deduction, Faster Write-offs for Interior Building Improvements and Use of Net Operating Losses to Create Liquidity. (Source: National Real Estate Investor)  Economic News  Apartment Renters on the Brink  Millions of apartment residents have fallen behind on their rent payments, according to data from the U.S. Census — and the damage is likely to spread as the economic crisis caused by the novel coronavirus continues. Federal assistance…

By Tasha Anderson for AZBEX  Arizona’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate increased to 10.6 percent in July 2020, from June 2020, according to the latest report published by the Arizona Office of Economic Opportunity.   The national rate decreased to 10.2 percent from 11.1 percent in June. In July 2019, the state had a seasonally adjusted rate of 4.7 percent, and the national was at 3.7 percent.  The state had a net loss of 19,500 non-farm jobs over the month. “Historically (2010-2019), Nonfarm employment has averaged a loss of 19,200 jobs in July,” the report states. Leisure & Hospitality had the largest net loss with 16,200 jobs, followed by Government with a loss of 1,500. Construction lost 1,200 jobs over the month. Trade, Transportation & Utilities had the largest net gains with 700 jobs.  Trade, Transportation & Utilities took the top spot in job gains from July 2019 to July 2020 with a total of 6,500, while Leisure & Hospitality took the top spot in job losses over the year with 60,600.  The Construction…

By Blake Herzog for Golden Corridor Living  An 18-month study being launched by Pinal County and the University of Arizona will plot out the county’s future industrial development by identifying where different types of businesses should go for their benefit as well as the region’s.  The study’s aim is to create an Arizona Innovation Technology Corridor that, for now, begins on Interstate 10 at the southern Maricopa County line, includes all of Pinal County’s frontage on Interstates 8 and 10, and continues on I-10 through Tucson before ending at the UA Science and Technology Park.  County Economic Development Director Tim Kanavel said he will be working with Dr. Greg…