Author: BEX Staff

By Roland Murphy for AZBEX Arizona’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate fell from 4.1% to 3.8% from February to March, according to the latest report published by the Arizona Office of Economic Opportunity. The national unemployment rate also decreased over the month, dropping from 3.9% to 3.8%. Last March, Arizona had a seasonally adjusted rate of 3.6%, while the national rate was 3.5%. The Construction sector lost 300 jobs around the state from February through March. Arizona had a not-seasonally adjusted gain of 1,900 in nonfarm employment in February. “Prior to the pandemic (2010-2019), NSA nonfarm employment gained 10,800 jobs on…

Giving Back 1. A team of Gilbane Building Company employees recently participated in the 20th annual Pat’s Run, a 4.2-mile run honoring the legacy of Pat Tillman. Gilbane participants included Elizabeth Sydnor, Emily Gallagher, Zach Gallagher, Chris Bartley, Tyler Nimsger, Gerald Kinnard, Adam Macey, Luke Holder, Kylee Rathburn, Glen Rathburn and Dale Murawsky.   Promotions 2. PCL Construction has promoted Ankur Talwar to District Manager, Civil Infrastructure, West Region. 3. DCS Contracting has promoted Trennis Stanley to the role of Project Sponsor. He has been with DCS for the past eight years and has more than 28 years of construction experience. 4. Norris Design…

Sales Transactions 1. Blackstone Inc. paid $87M for a nearly 537KSF portfolio of five warehouses across four sales in Phoenix. Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. Inc. was the seller. Will Strong, Kirk Kuller, Molly Hunt, Dean Wiley and Michael Matchett of Cushman & Wakefield represented both parties. The properties are: 5302 – 5240 W. Buckeye Road: two buildings, 219,240SF, $35.2M; 4720 W. Van Buren: 135, 438SF, $18.2M; 4441 W. Polk St.: 92,575SF, $16.77M, and 120 E. Watkins St.: 90KSF, $16.77M. 2. Aura Central, a 251-unit apartment complex on North Central Avenue in Phoenix, sold for $70M. An entity tracing to…

By South32 South32’s Hermosa project announced today that it would construct its remote operations center in Nogales. Hermosa is currently the only advanced mining project in the United States capable of producing two federally designated critical minerals – zinc and manganese. The decision follows two years of analysis and consideration of Hermosa’s county-wide planning and employment goals to retain the economic benefits of the project in the Santa Cruz County area. As part of the location announcement, the Hermosa project is also debuting a new name for the remote operating facility: Centro, a name chosen by the community in an…

By Roland Murphy for AZBEX “Don’t California My Arizona,” has become something of a battle cry for longtime residents who don’t like the ways in-migration from the Left Coast is impacting local culture. Ironically, a group fighting for the status quo in Fountain Hills is taking up California-style tactics to prevent a new apartment development from being built. A frequent issue with attempts to develop new properties in California is opposition groups filing litigation to get projects halted. In Arizona, that tactic has been comparatively rare, but opposition petitions to force approvals to a referendum have begun to come along…

By Roland Murphy for AZBEX Tech entrepreneur Britton Lee’s firm S3 Group, LLC is planning a “5-star” luxury golf resort in Bullhead City on the Colorado River. Plans for the Emerald Bay development include an 18-hole championship course, a nine-hole par-3 course, a resort hotel and spa, a beach club/marina/racquet club, a sports science boarding school for middle and high school athletes, and homes in a mix of luxury single-family residences and condo units in both attached and villa configurations. The development will be anchored by The Legacy Club at Emerald Bay, the planned “world-class golf facility.” The course will…

By BEX Staff for AZBEX The Mesa Planning and Zoning Board has recommended approval for a rezoning to allow a 102-room hotel and retail pad development at the SWC of Peterson Avenue and Ellsworth Road. The site is slightly north of the NEC of Ellsworth and Elliot roads. According to the submitted narrative, owner/developer Capital Asset Management does not yet have a hotel partner in place for the as-yet-unnamed development. According to local news reports and the submittal documents, planned retail uses include a sit-down restaurant, a Dutch Bros., an Arby’s and two retail spaces totaling 15KSF with 1.5KSF of…

By BEX Staff for AZBEX TriPlus Partners and Prologis are planning to add another nearly 900KSF to the West Valley’s assortment of industrial developments with a new five-building business park on more than 53 acres west of Cotton Lane and south of Camelback Road in Goodyear. The location sits immediately west of the existing 1.8MSF Prologis 303 industrial park, which completed construction earlier this year. The Goodyear Planning and Zoning Commission will vote this week on a request to rezone the proposed site from Agricultural/Urban to Business Park District to allow the project to proceed. Planned building sizes break down…

By Associated Builders and Contractors Associated Builders and Contractors reported today that its Construction Backlog Indicator increased to 8.2 months in March from 8.1 months in February, according to an ABC member survey conducted from March 20 to April 3. The reading is down 0.5 months from March 2023. Backlog is down over the past year for every region except for the Middle States, which now has the second largest backlog of any region. The South continues to have the largest backlog despite a large decline over the past year. ABC’s Construction Confidence Index readings for sales, profit margins and…

Groundbreakings 1. XNRGY announced the groundbreaking of its new $300M state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Mesa. There will be four phases of the 1MSF manufacturing hub, with the first phase constructing a 275KSF facility. No expected completion date was given. 2. The City of Hope Cancer Center Phoenix announced the groundbreaking of its surgical center expansion. The expansion will renovate 20KSF and add 15KSF of new space to offer four new operating rooms, recovery rooms, endoscopy rooms, post-anesthesia care units and new surface parking lots. Construction is expected to be completed in 2026. City of Hope is collaborating with Ryan Companies…