Awards & Accolades
1. In recognition of its “state-of-the-art construction and contemporary, elegant design,” the We-Ko-Pa Casino Resort has been named a finalist for AZRE Magazine’s annual Real Estate and Development (RED) Awards. Winners will be announced during a live Hopin virtual event on March 11th at 3:30 p.m., and all finalists will be featured in the March/April 2021 edition of the magazine. The We-Ko-Pa Casino Resort opened last October and was constructed over a two-year period leveraging the talents of Thalden Boyd Emery Architects, W.E. O’Neil and Kitchell Construction.
Groundbreakings
2. Queen Creek has broken ground on the permanent Fire Station 2, which will replace interim Fire Station 2 at 24787 S. Sossaman Road. Perlman Architects designed the station and Willmeng Construction Inc. will complete the construction. The station is anticipated to open in spring 2021. QCFMD will also break ground on permanent Fire Station 5 this spring.
3. Ground has been broken in Clarkdale for Yavapai College’s new Verde Valley Skilled Trades Center, a 10KSF facility that will train the coming generation of construction workers, electricians, plumbers and heating/cooling technicians in Yavapai County. SPS+ Architects is the design firm and McCarthy Building Systems is the general contractor. The project is expected to be complete in fall 2021.
Progress Reports
4. The final beam of The Refinery was placed, topping off the steel framework for the 120KSF structure. The Refinery is the kickoff building to the new UA Tech Park at The Bridges, an extension campus birthed from the success of the UA Tech Park near Interstate 10 and Rita Road. The Boyer Company, Swaim Architects and CORE Construction are the team on the project and it is set to open on schedule and on time during the fall of 2021.
5. Tri Pointe Homes is opening a new community in Gilbert called The Towns at Annecy, a 251- townhome development, this year. Tri Pointe Homes expects the community to sell out by the end of the year.
6. The first Farmer Boys restaurant is already under construction and slated to open next month at the new City Gate Marketplace in Gilbert, but the chain announced Tuesday it will be opening two more Valley locations either in late 2021 or early 2022. The Tempe location will be opening in the Tempe Market Station development. The Phoenix location of Farmer Boys will be built in west Phoenix on the corner of 83rd Avenue and Buckeye Road.
Completions
7. The recently completed Skyway Commons complements a long history of design and construction by LGE Design Build and Cawley Architects, for Silagi Development in Skyway Business Park in Surprise. Designed as a smaller multi-tenant companion to the larger Skyway Industrial buildings next door, the 62.5KSF project features masonry facades and building colors that emphasize individuality for each of the tenant suites.
8. Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. recently opened a new 62-door, $15.2M service center called the East Phoenix Service Center, at 10233 E. Pecos Road, Mesa. The facility has an opportunity for future growth to include the addition of 60 more doors.
9. Meritage Homes has announced the grand opening of Vistas at Palm Valley, a new 197-homesite community just one mile north of Interstate 10.
10. Discount grocery chain Aldi is set to open its fourth Valley location on February 15th. The location is at 1801 Pecos Road, Gilbert. Aldi initially announced that this store would open in December, but it was delayed for undisclosed reasons.