Momentum Continues for SkySong as 2014 Begins

SkySong, The ASU Scottsdale Innovation Center is off to a strong start in 2014, with a new addition and significant construction progress on its third office building. LearnVest  has become the latest addition to SkySong. The company, which provides personalized online financial planning services, has leased a 5,160 RSF space on the third floor of SkySong 2, bringing the total occupancy of the first two SkySong office buildings back to more than 98 percent.  Also, construction continues to progress on SkySong 3, the third office building at the project. The building “topped out” at its final height of 62 feet at its parapet in mid-December. Construction is proceeding on schedule and it is anticipated the new building will open in the summer of 2014.

Residents are now living in the SkySong Scottsdale Apartments, with Phase I of the apartments opening in October 2013 and with additional phases coming online throughout the course of the year. The construction of the apartments also included the construction of a large open plaza on the eastern portion of the project.  And, SkySong recently launched its new web site to provide more information about the project and its progress and features.

“We are pleased with how SkySong is progressing as we move into a new year,” said Sharon Harper, president & CEO of Plaza Companies, the master developer of the project. “Between the success we are seeing from a leasing standpoint and the progress of construction on new facilities, it is a very exciting time for the project as it continues to grow and evolve. “We are also very pleased to welcome LearnVest to the SkySong family of companies,” Harper said. “Their focus on technology in financial planning is just the sort of innovative approach we see from so many successful companies that call SkySong home.”

The 145,000-square-foot SkySong 3 building is located along SkySong Boulevard, just southwest of the project’s iconic shade structure. Arizona State University will lease 1½ floors of the four-story building, and current SkySong tenant WebFilings will be expanding its presence in the project by taking a full floor in SkySong 3.   Plaza Companies will be taking office space on the first floor.

SkySong 3 has approximately 50,000 square feet available, and Lee and Associates, SkySong’s commercial real estate broker, is working with prospective companies and tenants. Additionally, pre-leasing activity is continuing for SkySong 4, which is already approved and shovel-ready.

SkySong, the ASU Scottsdale Innovation Center is a home to a global business community that links technology, entrepreneurship, innovation, and education to position ASU and Greater Phoenix as global leaders of the knowledge economy.

SkySong is a 42-acre mixed use development designed to:

• Create an ecology of collaboration and innovation among high-profile technology enterprises and related researchers;
• Advance global business objectives of on-site enterprises;
• Raise Arizona’s profile as a global center of innovation through co-location of ASU’s strategic global partners; and
• Create a unique regional economic and social asset.

Companies located at SkySong enjoy a special relationship with Arizona State University, which has more than 73,000 students at four metropolitan Phoenix campuses. Its campus in Tempe is the single largest campus in the U.S., and is located less than three miles from SkySong.

In addition to locating its own innovative research units at the center, ASU provides tenants with direct access to relevant research, educational opportunities and cultural events on its campuses. Through ASU’s on-site operations, tenant companies have a single point of contract for introductions to researchers, faculty and programs to address their specific needs.