Construction began at Phoenix’s Metrocenter Mall this past summer on a Walmart Supercenter. The approximately 148,000-square-foot Walmart, slated to open next spring, represents the single largest capital investment in Metrocenter Mall in decades. Metrocenter Mall opened in 1973 as the biggest shopping center in Arizona and one of the largest nationwide. Recent years saw … [More]
Ak-Chin Casino Expands
The Ak-Chin Indian Community has broken ground on a multi-million-dollar expansion of Harrah’s Ak-Chin Casino that will include a spa, a conference center with multi-use ballroom space, a parking garage, additional restaurants and more than 200 additional rooms. According to Robert Livingston, general manager of Harrah’s Ak-Chin Casino, this expansion will not only increase … [More]
Luxury Multifamily in Glendale
P.B. Bell has opened Velaire at Aspera, a nearly 13-acre luxury apartment community within the long-awaited Aspera mixed-use development in Glendale. Velaire at Aspera, the third new community P.B. Bell has opened since late September, offers one-, two- and three-bedroom luxury apartment homes in a resort-like setting, with amenities that include a theater, dog agility park and … [More]
Navigating Commercial Leasing to Medical Marijuana Dispensaries
Growing and selling marijuana may be the most controversial business in America, but, due to changing public opinion and the current political climate, it shows no signs of slowing down. Unless the Federal government decriminalizes the manufacture, sale and use of marijuana, it remains a very risky business, not just for the business owners but also for the landlords who lease … [More]
Smoke-Free Gaining in Multifamily
A ban on smoking is an emerging trend in multifamily residential properties, gaining traction especially over the past two years, according to Bryan Fasulo, regional property manager for national multifamily management company Pinnacle, which manages Residences at Fountainhead, a development at Tempe Town Lake, and Proxy 333 in Downtown Phoenix. Support programs in Arizona are … [More]
Good Buy, Canada
Real estate in the Valley of the Sun, and Arizona generally, continues to attract investment from Canadians. “Phoenix is a destination of choice — one of the top three Sunbelt states for Canadians to visit or retire to,” says Alain Forget, director of sales and business development for RBC Bank, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Royal Bank of Canada, which provides U.S. banking … [More]
Video West Stages New Site
LGE Design Build has completed construction on Video West Inc.’s new 40,000-square-foot office/warehouse headquarters in Phoenix. Video West Inc., a national audio visual rental and staging company, moved from Tempe to its new location near Loop 202 and 52nd Street and also Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, doubling the size of its former space. The new building … [More]
Commercial Real Estate: Is Multifamily Moving the Market?
What’s most visible of commercial real estate in metropolitan Phoenix is the multifamily market. Dennis Desmond, senior managing director of JLL in Phoenix, puts the number of units currently under construction at 6,000. This strength has been a trend as we’ve recovered from the recession. “Multifamily, as a segment of commercial real estate, is the No. 1 driver of growth for … [More]
New Model in Real Estate
A new model of real estate brokerage firm debuted in the Valley earlier this year. Local real estate entrepreneur John N. Vatistas created Launch Real Estate with, initially, a handful of personally selected top-producing real estate brokers. “While it is common among traditional real estate brokerages to house agents of varying skills sets and experiences, from novice to … [More]
Entrepreneurial Lifestyle
SOHO Scottsdale, designed in collaboration by renowned architect Bing Hu of H&S International and Irene Clary of Catclar Investments, is a first- of-its-kind, mixed-use, live-work residential project designed for the professional or entrepreneur. These stylish, modern live-work units are uniquely dual-zoned; giving owners the ability to enjoy the lifestyle North Scottsdale … [More]
‘Millennial Mindset’
Contour on Campbell Ave. represents a new typology in condominium communities, with amenities catering not to a particular age group but to the homebuyer looking for a specific urban lifestyle, and Liv URBN and design partners Gould Evans Associates keep locale-centric design and neighborhood integration at the fore of their decision-making on this project. “We think of our … [More]
Whiskey Row with Aggie Roots
Ground has broken on a new Dierks Bentley’s Whiskey Row in downtown Gilbert that has been designed to connect with the town’s agricultural roots. “We were influenced by Gilbert’s agricultural roots and the feeling of a barn or trading post,” says Artie Vigil, architect and urban designer with AV3 Design Studio of Phoenix. The new restaurant will include patio, dance floor and … [More]
Broadstone Broadly Sustainable
Phoenix-based Alliance Residential Company’s Broadstone Waterfront was recently awarded LEED-H Platinum Certification. Among a wide range of innovative measures for energy efficiency, water conservation and sustainable operations are creation of a reduced heat-island effect with reflective roofing materials, paver ground covering and landscaping that minimizes heat absorption. … [More]
Parkland Memory Care
Raymond Poe and Neal Salmen, of Scottsdale-based Medical Development Partners, plan to develop, Parkland Memory Care, a 36,377-square-foot, single-story memory care facility along with two medical office buildings on a 4.5-acre site in Chandler. Building and site have been designed by Lenity Architecture to meet the unique needs of those suffering from Alzheimer’s and other … [More]
No Tanks; Retail
Phoenix-based Evergreen Development has started construction on a redevelopment project that will see the site of a former Shell Gas station on the southeast corner of Power and Baseline roads in Mesa transform into a retail building. Construction on the 3,959-square-foot retail building is expected to be completed in May, making way for Starbucks and Smashburger to open their … [More]
Luxury Market Trending Flat
In Arizona, real estate is a sector that can both be a barometer to our local economy and react to what is happening on the economic scene nationally. The luxury market has proven to be a tested barometer over time, and the recent statistics demonstrate that economic influence can have an effect. We worked with Walt Danley Realty and The Cromford Report to provide data of the … [More]
Entertainment Odyssey
The OdySea in the Desert entertainment complex at the Salt River Pima Maricopa Indian Community in Scottsdale will be adding a 78,000-square-foot open marketplace comprised of “themed” restaurants and individual retail offerings all centered in a courtyard with live stage entertainment. Slated to open July 2016, The Shops is part of the next phase whose other component is … [More]
Spec Office in North Phoenix
Norterra West — the first speculative office development to break ground within the City of Phoenix in the last five years — is taking shape on a 23.3-acre land site situated alongside the northbound Interstate 17 between the Happy Valley and Jomax exits in north Phoenix. Comprising two three-story Class-A office buildings with roughly 150,000 rentable square feet each, … [More]
