By Roland Murphy for Arizona Builder’s Exchange
HonorHealth Wants Hospital-Anchored Urban Project at I-17 & Dove Valley
Healthcare giant HonorHealth is seeking approval for a Planned Unit Development from the City of Phoenix to create Sonoran Crossing, an 87-acre, hospital-anchored, mixed-use wellness campus that will ultimately include office, retail and residential components as well.
Located at the NEC of Interstate 17 and Dove Valley Road, “The HonorHealth Hospital will be the defining centerpiece of Sonoran Crossing and will set the tone for a health and wellness-focused community. To suit the needs of an ever-growing multi-generational demographic, other uses and site amenities may include medical office facilities, retail, restaurants, hotel, office space, multifamily housing, assisted living, community open space and fitness trails,” the proposal states.
HonorHealth’s existing Sonoran Health & Emergency Center is the only development currently on the site. The closest existing hospital is the HonorHealth Deer Valley Medical Center more than eight miles south. The submittal points out there are currently very few commercial services in the immediate vicinity. There is one retail center roughly a mile to the north and a Fry’s Shopping Center a half-mile to the east. Beyond those, the next closest retail services are in Anthem or at I-17 and Happy Valley Road.
The Development Components
The conceptual framework consists of three development districts with a shared internal road network. The hospital and medical office facilities are planned for the southwest portion of the property in a “Healthcare District”. Multifamily and assisted living will be on the eastern half in the “Residential District”, and the remainder will be an urban “Mixed-Use District” for commercial, retail and lodging, as well as the potential for additional residential and office uses.
Maximum buildings heights will be 150 feet in the Healthcare District, 90 feet in the Mixed-Use District and 60 feet in the Residential District. The campus will be developed in multiple phases, with the first phase being the hospital, tentatively called Sonoran Medical Center. Earlier planning documents filed with the city call for a 174KSF facility starting at 84 beds and eventually expanding to 300 at full buildout. Associated medical offices and supporting use structures will also likely be constructed in the initial development. No timeline has been created for the other phases, as they will be contingent upon market conditions.
According to the submitted land use plan, “The more intense uses are planned adjacent to Interstate 17, transitioning in intensity as the development moves east to meet the natural landscape of Skunk Creek Wash and creating an appropriate transitional buffer to the natural environment.”
The site is part of 105 acres HonorHealth purchased several years ago after another developer’s plan to create a regional auto mall, “The Black Canyon Motorplex,” fell through in the Recession. Approximately 20 acres in the Skunk Creek Wash corridor will be dedicated to the city to be preserved as open space with a multi-use trail. The PUD boundary will not include that portion.
Design concepts will foster an urban environment in the currently open desert space, “That promotes walkability and fosters social interaction amongst its visitors, residents and employees. Common design elements such as building materials and colors, hardscape elements, landscape, signage and streetscape will unify the development and create a cohesive vision for the approximately 87-acre site. This PUD encourages flexibility in uses and design while meeting the design intent of the North Black Canyon Corridor Overlay District and Sonoran Preserve Edge Treatment Guidelines.”
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