Giving Back
1. Wespac Construction joined Habitat for Humanity of Northern Arizona to dedicate the nonprofit’s first 10 starter homes in Flagstaff. The project involved more than 200 volunteers and aims to provide affordable homeownership for local families.
2. The ACI Foundation is accepting applications for fellowships and scholarships for the 2026-2027 academic year. A total of 48 awards are available to undergraduate and graduate students pursuing concrete-related degrees in the U.S., Canada or Mexico. Fellowships include a $10K stipend, and scholarships include a $5K stipend. Applications are due by Nov. 1.
3. Gensler volunteered with The Joy Bus on June 28 to support its mission of delivering fresh meals and companionship to people with cancer. The team assisted with cleaning, resetting the space for service and building a new storage cabinet for staff.
4. Gensler collected 68 backpacks with school supplies for Foster Alliance, an organization that provides essential resources to the foster community.
Awards & Accolades
5. Big-D Construction Southwest was the recipient of the 2025 Tempe Chamber of Commerce Large Business Excellence Award. The company was nominated in two categories: Large Business and Cool Place to Work. The company was awarded the top prize for the Large Business category.
6. AZRE released the list of its Most Influential Women in Commercial Real Estate for 2025. Recipients included:
- Melissa Carrasco, Bell Bank,
- Jenn Consentino, Corgan,
- Kelly Gantner, Diversified Partners,
- Jill Hamblen, triARC architecture & design,
- Christina Heide, Southwest Heritage Bank,
- Nicole Herman, Social Design Studio,
- Kate Kaminski, Howard Hughes,
- Kim Murphy, CHASSE Building Team,
- Stacey Noble, Keeley Construction,
- Ashley Nye, Clayco,
- Joy E. Seitz, American Solar & Roofing,
- Jenn Thomas, Colliers,
- Jenny Aust Turner, Cresa and
- Vanessa Williams, CBRE.
7. Clear Title Agency of Arizona has been awardeda Top Workplaces 2025 honor by Arizona Republic and azcentral.com. This list is based solely on employee feedback gathered through a third-party survey administered by employee engagement technology partner Energage, LLC.
Boards & Commissions
8. The Valley Metro Regional Public Transportation Authority and Valley Metro Rail Boards of Directors have elected officers for the Fiscal Year 2026 term of July 1, 2025 to June 30, 2026.
- Valley Metro RPTA Chair: City of Tempe Councilmember Jennifer Adams.Adams will also serve as the VMR Board Vice Chair;
- Valley Metro Rail Chair: City of Phoenix Councilmember Laura Pastor.Pastor will also serve as the Valley Metro RPTA Board Treasurer;
- City of Avondale Councilmember Max White has been elected as RPTA Vice Chair and is also serving a two-year term on the Audit and Finance Subcommittee, as well as the Valley Metro RPTA and Valley Metro Rail Joint Board Subcommittee;
- City of Glendale Vice Mayor Lauren Tolmachoff has also been elected as a member of the Valley Metro RPTA and Valley Metro Rail Joint Board Subcommittee.
9. The Town of Jerome appointed Tyler Christensen Chair and Devon Kunde Vice Chair of its Design Review Board.
Company News
10. SOLV Energy announced it acquired Spartan Infrastructure. The two companies have worked together on numerous projects in the Southwest. The acquisition is intended to provide Spartan with the financial backing necessary to complete larger projects.
11. Diversified Partners announced it is launching its first dedicated investment-sales team. The new team is led by Stan Sanchez, who will oversee brokerage operations firmwide. The team also includes John (K) Jackson and Kristina Remon. The new service line is intended to help landlords and investors reposition, lease and sell assets.
12. W.W. Clyde & Company opened a new 38KSF office in Apache Junction. The new office is located at 1353 S. Vista Road.
13. Colliers Engineering & Design (formerly HILGARTWILSON) recently relocated its Phoenix office to Elevate 24 at 4742 N. 24th St., Suite 270. The office move secured the company 10KSF of additional space.
Promotions
14. City of Flagstaff appointed Michelle McNulty as Director of Planning and Development Services. McNulty joined the City in 2022 and has 20 years of experience in land use, transportation planning and community development.
New Hires
15. P.B. Bell hired Jim Deakyne as VP of Land Acquisition and Entitlements. Deakyne has sourced, brokered or developed land for more than 7,000 multifamily units in Ariz. and Fla. Liz Shumar joined as a portfolio director after 11 years in multifamily management, including roles at Greystar and RPM. Angela Marotta also joined as a portfolio director and brings 26 years of property management experience.
16. Arrowmark hired Andrew Mortensen as VP of Estimating and Preconstruction. Mortensen has more than 25 years of construction experience spanning technical and strategic roles.
17. Dibble appointed Eric French as Group Leader for its Utilities Planning, Assessment and Construction team. French has 20 years of experience managing water and wastewater projects, including large-diameter water main assessments and major reclamation facility expansions.
18. Rocky Rogers has joined the FCL Builders team as Manager of Field Operations for the western region. Rogers has many years of field leadership and will focus on continuous process improvement. His main focuses will be quality, schedule management, safety and exceeding client expectations.
19. CMT named Andrew “Drew” Bellon as Arizona Regional Testing and Inspection Manager. A City of Phoenix Certified Special Inspector and ASNT Level II technician, Bellon has led quality control and lab teams on many major projects. He will oversee field and lab operations and expand testing services statewide.