Author: BEX Staff

By Associated Builders and Contractors National nonresidential construction spending increased 0.3% in February, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of data published by the U.S. Census Bureau. On a seasonally adjusted annualized basis, nonresidential spending totaled $1.255T. Spending was up on a monthly basis in nine of the 16 nonresidential subcategories. Private nonresidential spending increased 0.4%, while public nonresidential construction spending was up 0.2% in February. “Nonresidential spending rebounded in February, rising to the highest level on record,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “A surge in highway and street spending accounted for more than 40% of the…

Groundbreakings 1. ZOM Living has begun construction on Azola Desert Ridge, a 416-unit multifamily development in north Phoenix. $88M in construction financing and a joint-venture equity investment with Origin Investments, arranged by CBRE, funded the project. Construction is expected to be completed in Q3 2026. Units will range from one-to three-bedrooms and fall between 730SF and 1.5KSF. The area will contain up to 1,500 units upon full buildout. 2. Shops at the Cardinal, a Glendale retail project valued at more than $20M, will break ground next week. The project has only 1.2KSF unleased. Tenant buildouts will begin later this year…

By BEX Staff for AZBEX The Glendale Planning Commission has recommended in favor of a rezoning for a 39-acre site near the Westgate Entertainment District for development of a new mixed-use project. The City applied for a rezoning from agriculture to planned area development and a minor General Plan amendment from business park to entertainment mixed-use for the Envision Encore property, which is located south of the SWC of 99th Avenue and Ballpark Blvd. Glendale made the application on behalf of owner Porter Fields, LLC, an entity associated with the Fram Family Limited Partnership and other parties, according to the…

By Roland Murphy for AZBEX In a rider amendment slipped quietly into a continuing budget resolution last week, both chambers of the Arizona State Legislature voted to effectively outlaw special interest opposition to proposed development projects around the state. The Governor then signed the bill into law in a guests-only, 3 a.m. ceremony March 28. Following the signing, the Governor’s Office released the following statement: “This bill has some useful stuff and some bad stuff. Most importantly, it keeps Arizona’s $16.2B budget from flaming out. I’m going to catch (grief) from everybody anyway, so here it is. You guys figure…

The City of Phoenix’s planned 2025-2030 Capital Improvement Program features 966 projects with a total expected value of $11.5B. Of that total, $2.8B is planned in the coming fiscal year, and Phoenix has a total of $387M remaining under the $500M general obligation bond approved by voters in 2023. The draft program will go through several meetings to solicit public feedback, with a final version planned for City Council review and adoption in June. All told, five departments will receive the lion’s share of project funding, with planned allocations under those headings totaling 83% of the total planned expenditures: Water:…

By BEX Staff for AZBEX The Buckeye Planning and Zoning Commission has recommended approval of a rezoning request by Sunbelt Investment Holdings, Inc. for a 160-acre mixed-use development at the SWC of Verrado Way and Yuma Road that will include single- and multifamily residential, retail uses and a business park. Along with the rezoning from single-family residential to planned area development, SIHI is requesting a minor General Plan amendment and annexation of the Maricopa County property by the City of Buckeye. The site condition description in the submitted narrative says, “This site is part of a former dairy farm, which…

Giving Back 1. MC Companies ranked as the third-highest food donor for Move For Hunger’s food drive nationwide with 10,399lbs of food. While the companies that donated slightly more than MC Companies each managed more than 85,000 units, MC Companies manages only 7,600, highlighting a much higher donation-to-unit ratio. 2. The HDR Foundation donated $324K to the All Kids Bike Kindergarten PE Learn-to-Ride Program at Rover Elementary. This funding will cover teacher training and certification, a complete Learn-to-Ride curriculum, 24 balance-to-pedal bikes, pedal conversion kits, student helmets, a teacher instruction bike, and rolling storage racks. To date, the HDR Foundation…

Sales Transactions 1. Copper Point Business Parkat 3530 S. Val Vista Dr. in Gilbert was recently sold to Transwestern Real Estate Services. The 83.4KSF building was sold by RX Health & Science Trust for $36M. The two-story office space mostly consists of medical tenants. 2. A five-property industrial and retail portfolio was purchased by Larsen Baker for $8M. Four of the buildings are in Tucson, while the final building is in Phoenix. Combined, the five buildings total 126.7KSF. Sydco Realty Company sold the properties. Each building came with tenants, and the new owners are currently planning renovations. Both companies were…

By CJ Jorgensen and Roland Murphy for AZBEX The United States has seen a steady improvement in its nationwide infrastructure throughout the past four years. Despite this, plenty of areas are still in dire need. The American Society of Civil Engineers recently released its 2025 Comprehensive Assessment of America’s Infrastructure report, giving the United States an overall grade of C. Arizona has benefitted from significant infrastructure funding over the last five years. A thorough breakdown of Arizona’s section ratings and a review of some of the infrastructure investments in the state follows below. The National Details ASCE has been releasing…

By Roland Murphy for AZBEX Relying on an unusual legislative technique that allows the replacing of a previous bill’s text with entirely new language, the Arizona Legislature is once again considering changes to State law that could empower one of Arizona’s top employers to build the project it says is essential to its continued residence in the state. Representative Tony Rivero put forth an amendment to Senate Bill 1543—a bill that had looked to address homestead exemptions—that would, instead, create approval exemptions for companies seeking to build international headquarters with mixed-use campuses in cities of between 200,000 and 500,000 residents.…