Woodbury Corporation has filed a first submittal with the City of Phoenix for a Planned Unit Development that would revitalize and redevelop an aging retail plaza on 9.2 acres near the NWC of Thunderbird and Scottsdale Roads.
The request seeks to rezone site’s various commercial designations under a PUD “to allow for reinvestment and the redevelopment of the aging center into a thriving, mixed-use development with retail, restaurants, residential and services uses designed around amenity spaces and the overall pedestrian experience,” according to the submitted narrative.
The PUD request applies only to the northern portion of the site, a 16-acre plaza currently known as Scottsdale Towne Square. The project, known as “Scottsdale Town Square – Thunderbird Phase,” in intended to “create a vibrant, mixed-use center and amenity for the surrounding residents and businesses.”
This proposal marks the 12th major residential/mixed-use project in planning and development on the Phoenix side of Scottsdale Road south of Bell Road/Frank Lloyd Wright Blvd. and north of Cactus Road.
The Details
The site was originally developed as a grocery-anchored retail plaza in 1986. The design and layout reflects the dated, “big-box” suburban style common to the area before urban expansion moved northward. The location now averages vacancies of 15KSF-20KSF, and 25KSF is occupied by a church facility that serves to backfill an empty retail space. “The existing retail strip center layout of the property has proven to be a dated model with a low probability of success moving into the future,” the narrative says.
The Thunderbird Phase of redevelopment will add 25KSF of modern retail/restaurant space along with 350 new residential units. The current large parking areas, often referred to as “seas of asphalt” in redevelopment circles, will be replaced with structures screened from public view. Parking for the residential component will be primarily structured, while retail parking will be primarily surface. Both will be accessible via driveways to the north and south and from the existing retail development to the south.
The commercial uses will be brought forward toward Scottsdale Road for improved visibility and segregation from the parking areas, and the residential component will be concentrated to the west, creating a transition between the residential and commercial components, or located above the Scottsdale Road-fronting commercial spaces. The entire property aesthetic will step down toward existing single-family residential to the west.
The plan will now provide a large public space with outdoor dining and community access to replace the expansive parking area and provide enhanced pedestrian connectivity between the residential and commercial aspects. Connectivity and walkability components include upgraded sidewalks, shading and site furnishings.
The redevelopment will also add a series of pocket parks on the western edge that feature art installations and landscaping. There will also be “enhanced planting, walking paths, screening and stepped facades will reduce visual impact of the development.”
Density for the Thunderbird Phase PUD will be a maximum of 40 dwelling units/acre, with a currently planned actual density of 38.8. Building heights are set at a maximum of 78 feet in general and 56 feet for the western side, out to 200 feet from the property line, due to the residentially zoned neighborhood next door.
No unit mix has been provided for the multifamily portion yet.
Amenities for the residential component have not been finalized. At least five will be included, and they could include a clubhouse, shared office space, a dog run/dog park, fitness area, game room, electric vehicle charging stations, a community garden, pool and spa, distributed benches throughout the development, shade ramadas and turf/lawn game spaces.
No hearing dates have been announced.
The Latest on the Phoenix-Scottsdale Border
Scottsdale Town Square is the latest development/redevelopment that puts a taller and denser project on the Phoenix side of the Phoenix/Scottsdale border than would likely be allowed in Scottsdale, itself. The Scottsdale General Plan update approved last year does not make allowance for projects with densities greater than 25 units/acre.
As has been extensively covered here and in other outlets, development on the Phoenix side of Scottsdale Road has proven to be a source of consternation for some Scottsdale residents and officials opposed to more dense development. It’s enough of “a thing” it was even the topic of our April Fools issue front page.
Scottsdale Town Square – Thunderbird Phase is the 12th major multifamily/mixed-use project to enter the planning and development cycle on the Phoenix side of the border within half-a-mile of Scottsdale Road between Cactus and Bell Roads. Of the 11 already in the works, six are in either Design or Design/Plan Review, and five are Under Construction, according to the DATABEX project database.
Taken all-together, those 11 projects have a development valuation of $844.4M, a planned build area of nearly 5.1MSF, and 3,169 residential units. While the built area square footage and development valuations for Thunderbird Phase are not yet available, if built as proposed, the project will bring the total unit count up to 3,519.
