AgTech startup, OnePointOne, announced the expansion of its corporate and vertical farming production facilities to Avondale, Ariz. The 50,000 square-foot facility in the Avondale 107th Industrial Park will be home to OnePointOne’s latest indoor vertical farm. The technologically advanced cultivation platform they’re building will utilize automation, AI and plant science … [More]
Silicon Valley-Based Startup Invests in a High-Tech Vertical Farming Facility in Avondale
Prime Day Delivered the Two Biggest Days Ever for Small & Medium-Sized Businesses
Prime Day 2021 was the biggest two-day period ever for Amazon’s third party sellers, nearly all of which are small and medium-sized businesses, growing even more than Amazon’s retail business. Prime members in 20 countries shopped more this Prime Day than any previous Prime Day and scored deep discounts across home, fashion, beauty, and electronics. Members purchased more than … [More]
SBA Reconvenes the Council on Underserved Communities
The U.S. Small Business Administration announced today that it is reconvening the Council on Underserved Communities (CUC) under the authority of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA). In conjunction with the Biden-Harris Administration’s agenda, the restoration of the Council will help support the SBA’s prioritization of equity across its programs and initiatives. The … [More]
Sam Fox’s Global Ambassador Hotel and Development Take Shape

This week, RED Development announced that construction is underway on the $300 million development of The Grove, the highly anticipated mixed-use destination on the northwest corner of 44th Street and Camelback Road that features the recently announced hotel, The Global Ambassador, by restaurant innovator Sam Fox. Arguably the most high-profile intersection in the Valley, … [More]
Phoenix Convention Center Welcomes Back Conventions

The Phoenix Convention Center, along with Visit Phoenix and downtown hotel partners, have welcomed the first convention since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The convention group, American Dental Hygienists’ Association (ADHA), hosted nearly 1,000 attendees during its 2021 Annual Conference from June 18-20. “It is great to see our Convention Center back in action and to … [More]
Juneteenth National Independence Day, Most Federal Employees Will Have Friday Off
President Biden signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act Thursday, establishing June 19 as a federal holiday. Most federal employees will have June 18 off for observance as June 19 falls on a Saturday this year, the Office of Personnel Management said. Juneteenth commemorates when enslaved people in Texas learned of their freedom, more than two years after the … [More]
U.S. Jobless Claims Rose Last Week, First Time Since April
In the week ending June 12, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 412,000, an increase of 37,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised down by 1,000 from 376,000 to 375,000. The 4-week moving average was 395,000, a decrease of 8,000 from the previous week's revised average. This is the lowest level for this average … [More]
AZ Office of Tourism Launches Hospitality Industry Hiring Effort
The Arizona Office of Tourism is partnering with career development organizations Pipeline AZ and ARIZONA@WORK to launch a new initiative connecting job-seekers with thousands of career opportunities available right now across Arizona’s tourism and hospitality industry. This workforce development effort comes at a critical time, as people across the country are planning and … [More]
Single-Family Rent Growth Rate More Than Doubles Year over Year in April, Says Report
CoreLogic, a leading global property information, analytics and data-enabled solutions provider, today released its latest Single-Family Rent Index (SFRI), which analyzes single-family rent price changes nationally and across major metropolitan areas. April 2021 data shows a national rent increase of 5.3% year over year, up from a 2.4% year-over-year increase in April … [More]
GoDaddy Introduces Payment Platform for Small Business
GoDaddy Inc., the company that empowers everyday entrepreneurs, today announced the launch of GoDaddy Payments, a new payments solution that enables GoDaddy Websites + Marketing and Managed WordPress WooCommerce customers to handle all of their commerce transactions directly through GoDaddy. GoDaddy Payments is built using the technology and teams acquired from Poynt in … [More]
More Than 3 Million Arizonans Now Fully Vaccinated Against COVID-19
More than 3 million Arizonans are now fully vaccinated against COVID-19, another milestone as the state increases its protection against the coronavirus, the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) announced today. “Millions now have the full benefit of these safe, highly effective, free, and widely available vaccines,” Governor Doug Ducey said. “I encourage every … [More]
Ducey Issues Executive Order to Prohibit COVID-19 Mandates at Arizona Public Universities
Governor Doug Ducey today issued an Executive Order protecting access to Arizona’s public universities and community colleges for all students. Under the Executive Order, students cannot be mandated to take the COVID-19 vaccine or submit COVID-19 vaccination documents. Students also cannot be mandated to be tested or wear masks in order to participate in learning. The … [More]
SBA Announces Funding Competition to Organizations Providing Federal Procurement Training to Veteran Entrepreneurs
The U.S. Small Business Administration announced that non-profit organizations and private sector firms are now eligible to compete for funding of up to $500,000 to deliver federal procurement training to veteran and service-disabled veteran entrepreneurs. The application period begins today through July 12, 2021. Up to two awardees will use the $500,000 in total funding … [More]
Nationwide Homeowner Equity Gains Hit $1.9 Trillion in Q1 2021, Says Report
CoreLogic, a leading global property information, analytics and data-enabled solutions provider, today released the Homeowner Equity Report for the first quarter of 2021. The report shows U.S. homeowners with mortgages (which account for roughly 62% of all properties) have seen their equity increase by 19.6% year over year, representing a collective equity gain of over $1.9 … [More]
U.S. Jobless Claims Drop to Third Consecutive Pandemic Low
In the week ending June 5, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 376,000, a decrease of 9,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 385,000. This is the lowest level for initial claims since March 14, 2020 when it was 256,000. The 4-week moving average was 402,500, a decrease of 25,500 from the previous week's unrevised average of 428,000. This is … [More]
Consumer Prices Jump 5% in May, Fastest Inflation since 2008
The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) increased 0.6 percent in May on a seasonally adjusted basis after rising 0.8 percent in April, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Over the last 12 months, the all items index increased 5.0 percent before seasonal adjustment; this was the largest 12-month increase since a 5.4-percent increase for the … [More]
Strong Improvement for U.S. Mortgage Delinquency Rates in March, Says Report
CoreLogic, a leading global property information, analytics and data-enabled solutions provider, today released its monthly Loan Performance Insights Report for March 2021. For the month of March, 4.9% of all mortgages in the U.S. were in some stage of delinquency (30 days or more past due, including those in foreclosure), representing a 1.3-percentage point increase in … [More]
WEBINAR – June 10: Briefing on Covid-19 Economic Programs and How to Be a Vaccine Leader in Your Community
Join the U.S. Small Business Administration and the Public Private Strategies Institute for a webinar on Thursday, June 10 at 2:00 p.m. EDT featuring SBA Administrator Isabella Casillas Guzman and Dr. Bechara Choucair, White House COVID-19 Vaccinations Coordinator to discuss the importance of vaccinations, provide updates on COVID-19 economic aid programs, such as the Economic … [More]













