Author: BEX Staff

By Roland Murphy for AZBEX Two recent approvals from the Yuma County Board of Supervisors will allow development of a new inland port project north of Interstate 8 between avenues 32E and 33E along the Union Pacific Railroad line near Wellton. The first request, submitted by Boyce Land Co., Inc. requested a change in land use designation for two parcels totaling 126.73 acres from Agricultural/Rural Preservation to Industrial. The second request, submitted by Five Rivers Cattle Feeding, LLC, sought a land use designation change for 208.27 acres from Agricultural/Rural Preservation and Business Park to Industrial. A third request that would…

Two sports-related organizations have filed a lawsuit against the City of Glendale over the City’s plans to build a $71.8M parking garage to serve the VAI Resort master planned development. The complaint by the Arizona Sports and Tourism Authority and the Arizona Cardinals alleges that under a 2016 agreement that settled an ongoing parking dispute between Glendale and AZSTA, Glendale cannot make changes to existing parking in the proposed area without prior approval from the Authority and the Cardinals. The complaint says Glendale claims the approval is not needed because it retains air rights over the site and that the…

By Amkor Technology, Inc. Amkor Technology, Inc. has announced its plan to build an advanced packaging and test facility in Peoria. By the time of full project completion, Amkor projects to invest approximately $2B and employ approximately 2,000 people at the new facility. Amkor is the only U.S.-headquartered OSAT (outsourced semiconductor assembly and test) service provider with advanced packaging technology capability and high-volume manufacturing experience. Upon completion, this will be the largest outsourced advanced packaging facility in the US. “Expansion of a U.S. semiconductor supply chain is underway, and as the largest U.S.-headquartered advanced packaging company, we are excited to…

By Maricopa County More than 400 people are expected to benefit each year from a $10M investment approved by the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors. The funding will help families and individuals with low incomes by expanding affordable housing options in the Chandler area. The funding for this collaborative effort with the City of Chandler comes from Maricopa County’s allocation of federal American Rescue Plan Act dollars. 73 South Hamilton Five million dollars will be used to help construct an affordable housing rental community on 7.4 acres located at 73 S. Hamilton St. When complete, the newly constructed community, which…

The Eloy City Council heard a presentation earlier this week on the possibility of presenting voters with a General Obligation bond request to fund municipal improvement projects. Nick Dodd of investment banking firm Raymond James presented Council with information about a potential request. Over the past 10 years, Eloy’s growth rate has averaged 4.15%. City Manager David Malewitz explained the City needs additional revenue if it plans to implement large projects like water, wastewater and parks to accommodate the growth. A $43M bond request—one of the options discussed—would raise property taxes on a $250K home by $459/year. In discussing the…

A group of six homeowners in the Eastmark area of Mesa have filed a federal class action lawsuit against Brookfield Residential alleging the developer failed to live up to its promises regarding the community’s Great Park development. The complaint alleges Great Park was intended to be a 90-acre “contiguous” component. The plaintiffs say Brookfield benefitted when it “perpetuated a scheme” to create a smaller and “disjointed” park with fewer private amenities and that it shifted a greater share of maintenance responsibilities onto homeowners than was originally agreed. The plaintiffs say Brookfield advertised Great Park’s location and scale in its marketing…

Groundbreakings 1. Owners Southwest Public Power Agency and BrightNight, partnered with Cordelio Power to begin construction at a groundbreaking for the Box Canyon Solar Project, a 300MW solar development near Florence. The expected completion time is the first half of 2025. 2. Echo Real Estate Capital broke ground on Echo Park @ P132, a four-building project totaling nearly 183KSF of industrial space. Winton Architects, GF Group, KAEKO, Mechanical Designs and Hawkins Design Group are the project team. The expected completion date is October 2024. 3. Achen-Gardner Construction began work on the Detroit Basin & Gazelle Meadows Park area for drainage…

By Roland Murphy for AZBEX Trilogy Investment Co. has proposed a 164-unit townhome development in Avondale on 13.4 acres west of the NWC of McDowell Road and Avondale Blvd. The McDowell Villas site, which lies adjacent to the Avondale Commons master-planned mixed-use development, is currently zoned Agricultural. Trilogy is requesting a rezoning to McDowell Villas Planned Area Development. Avondale’s General Plan targets a density of 20 units/acre for the site, and the proposed project density is 13.8. The project narrative states, however, that the development will create a community with an “alternative housing typology” that will serve as a transition…

By Maricopa Association of Governments Chances are if you live in the Valley, you’ve traveled Interstate 10 through the Deck Park Tunnel. In fact, the stretch of I-10 between the Deck Park Tunnel and the I-10/Interstate 17 “Split” interchange is one of the most highly traveled freeway segments in the region, with more than 300,000 cars each day. Now, drivers can help shape future improvements in the area by taking a short survey. The survey will provide the study team with their priorities on improvements to a key downtown corridor. The Maricopa Association of Governments is conducting a corridor study…

By National Association of Home Builders The Home Builders Institute continues to expand its trades training programs into secondary schools across the country with generous funding from The Home Depot Foundation and the National Housing Endowment. Schools to Skills grant funding allows secondary schools to create or enhance a career technical education program using HBI’s nationally recognized, patented Pre-Apprenticeship Certificate Training curriculum and industry-approved certifications. PACT is designed to be hands-on and competency-based and aligns with the STEM education model. With a PACT curriculum, students can learn construction trade basics, gain practical skills, and secure industry recognized credentials. PACT is…