Author: BEX Staff

By Rebekah Morris for AZBEX Part 2 in a series on overall construction cost increases In early June, more than 100 A/E/C professionals gathered at Sky Song to hear a large roundtable discussion about Rising Construction Costs put on by BEX. Moderator and BEX President and Founder, Rebekah Morris guided the discussion between three types of firms: General Contractors: Mike Bontrager, President of Adolfson & Peterson Construction, Roger Rowley, Pre-Construction Manager for Hunter Contracting; Subcontractors: Mike Greenawalt, Senior Vice President of Rosendin Electric; Brian Scherer, Director of Business Development, Bell Steel; Andy Clarke, General Manager for Roofing Southwest; Materials Suppliers:…

By Rebekah Morris for AZBEX Part 3 – Deeper Dive – The Rising Cost of Construction Labor & What we’re doing to fill pipeline. Construction could employ another 100,000 individuals in Arizona if the industry were able to find ready, willing and able workers. That estimate of the shortage of construction labor is provided by Build Your Future, a national organization with a nuts and bolts look at the issue by state and craft. Participants of the BEX June 2019 Leading Market Series event, The Rising Cost of Construction, highlighted increased labor costs as a primary reason the total price…

Giving Back 1. Rosendin sponsored Austin’s first Construction Camp For Girls, created by the Austin Chapter of the National Association of Women in Construction, from June 10th – 14th. The week-long camp gave 13 girls heading into 7th, 8th and 9th grades opportunities for hands-on learning and new experiences in an industry most young girls aren’t introduced to. Awards & Accolades 2. ZELUS, the largest reality capture services firm in the nation, has earned a spot on the list of 2019 azcentral.com® Top Companies to Work for in Arizona, for the second year in a row. 3. Heather J. Boysel…

Sales Transactions 1. MG Properties Group recently paid $73.7M for the 379-unit Elevate at Discovery Park apartment complex at 1820 E. Bell De Mar Dr., Tempe. 2. Baron Properties purchased the Pillar at SanTan, a 315-unit garden-style apartment community in Gilbert, for $67.85M. Tyler Anderson, Sean Cunningham, Asher Gunter and Matt Pesch with CBRE in Phoenix represented the seller, Pillar Communities & Private Portfolio Group. 3. DRA Advisors, LLC acquired Camelback Lakes, a 203KSF four-building, multistory office complex at 2710, 2720, 2730, and 2850 E. Camelback Rd., Phoenix, for $47.5M. Cushman & Wakefield’s investment sales team of Chris Toci and…

By Tasha Anderson for AZBEX A preliminary plat submittal for a mixed housing development on 45-acre parcel in Goodyear was heard at the city’s Planning and Zoning Commission meeting on Wednesday. The project, called DeRosier Ranch Development, is located in the western portion of Goodyear north of Lower Buckeye Road, south of Yuma Road and east of Cotton lane. The site is currently mostly farmland and is bound by an urban-agricultural parcel to the west and Canyon Trails Unit 4 to the south and east. Developer, Urban Fabric Builders, LLC wants to subdivide the 45 acres and is proposing a…

Groundbreakings 1. Construction officially began June 8 on The McMillian Mesa veterans home facility in Flagstaff, during a groundbreaking hosted by the Arizona Department of Veterans’ Services (ADVS). 2. Ground recently broke on phase II of Sagewood, a northeast Phoenix community for seniors who want to age in place, which is jointly owned by Life Care Services Corp. and Westminster Capital Inc. The plans for Phase II of construction will cost $100M and is expected to be completed by the end of 2020. The architect is Todd & Associates, while the project is being built by The Weitz Co. 3.…

By Rebekah Morris for AZBEX On Thursday, more than 100 attendees at the latest Leading Market Series event listened to a lively roundtable discussion regarding the rising cost of construction and what they predict will continue to happen in the next six to 12 months. Moderator and BEX President and Founder, Rebekah Morris guided the discussion between three types of firms: General Contractors: Mike Bontrager, President of Adolfson & Peterson Construction, Roger Rowley, Pre-Construction Manager for Hunter Contracting; Subcontractors: Mike Greenawalt, Senior Vice President of Rosendin Electric; Brian Scherer, Director of Business Development, Bell Steel; Andy Clarke, General Manager for…

Awards & Accolades 1. Phoenix Business Journal has announced it’s 2019 Top 40 Under 40 Honorees. See the full list here. Some of the honorees include: Julie Garcia, director of preconstruction, Kitchell Rusty Kennedy, vice president, CBRE Yung Koprowski, principal, Y2K Engineering LLC Susan Martinez, regional economic development specialist, Maricopa Association of Governments Cherilyn McCabe, estimator, Mortenson Stephanie McCarty, chief marketing and communications officer, Taylor Morrison Colleen Schwab, senior vice president of marketing and communications, Greater Phoenix Economic Council Julia Staten, project manager, Hensel Phelps 2. Just in time for its 50th anniversary, Kidder Mathews was recently named a Fastest-Growing…

Sales Transactions 1. Virtú Investments sold the 194-unit La Costa at Dobson Ranch at 1820 W Linder Ave, Mesa, for $33.8M to a California-based private investor. Berkadia Commercial Mortgage secured a $22.2M Freddie Mac acquisition loan for the new owner, set to mature in 2026. 2. CBRE negotiated the sale of four Phoenix multifamily communities totaling $12.8M. Brian Smuckler, Jeff Seaman, Derek Smigiel and Bryson Fricke represented the buyer and seller in all four of the following transactions: 400 On Pasadena, a 28-unit contemporary boutique apartment community in Central Phoenix, sold to Wildwood Hills Home Community Trust for $4.25M. The…

By Tasha Anderson for AZBEX The future of the Phoenix Convention Center’s South Building and site rests in the hands of a multidepartment community and stakeholder engagement plan approved by Phoenix City Council on Wednesday. The approximately two-month long engagement plan will gather input into possible expansion, disposition and/or redevelopment of the 286KSF building located on 9.27 acres between Washington and Jefferson streets from 3rd to 5th streets in downtown Phoenix. According to a Rose Law Group Reporter article dated May 9, Phoenix City Council member Michael Nowakowski “said the city could look at public-private partnership for the site that…