Phoenix City Living

Light rail park&ride lots approved in multiple locations

From Arizona Republic, Casey Newton, Pacts for park, ride lots for light rail approved:

Light-rail officials approved contracts for four park-and-ride lots in Phoenix, literally paving the way for commuters to access the system from around the city.

The Metro light rail board voted unanimously last week  to build lots at:

• 19th and Montebello avenues.
• 19th Avenue and Camelback Road.
• Central Avenue and Camelback.
• 38th and Washington streets.

The lots will have spaces for about 3,500 vehicles, said Brian Buchanan, Metro light rail's director of design and construction. The cost for construction is $13.4 million.

"Park-and-rides are an integral part of the project," Buchanan said.

The system will include two lots in Tempe and one in Mesa.

Metro light rail had originally planned to award contracts for the park-and-ride lots last summer but received fewer bids than expected, Metro light rail CEO Rick Simonetta said.

"We're probably three to four months behind where we want to be," Simonetta said.

The Phoenix lots are still scheduled to open before light-rail service begins at the end of December 2008.

Cityscape soon to begin the big dig

Phoenix Business Journal, Jan Buchholz, Wachovia to anchor CityScape office tower:

Wachovia Corp. announced Monday that it will be the anchor tenant in the 600,000-square-foot CityScape office tower in downtown Phoenix.

The complete CityScape project -- a 2.5 million-square-foot retail, residential, office and hospitality complex spanning three city blocks -- is being built by RED Development, which has offices in Scottsdale and Kansas City, Mo. The project is in the spotlight this week, with a big groundbreaking celebration scheduled for Monday night.

Wachovia, based in Charlotte, N.C., announced several weeks ago that it was planning to locate its Arizona headquarters in downtown Phoenix, but declined to say where until now.

"Wachovia has the naming rights (to the office tower)," said Michael Ebert, owner of RED Development.

..."There's a lot of options in the Valley, but we thought downtown Phoenix made the most sense," said Bill Morgan, Wachovia's regional vice president for Arizona.

RED Development also announced Monday that Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants, based in San Francisco, will build a 250-room luxury boutique hotel at CityScape called Hotel Palomar. Other marquee names committed to the project are AJ's Fine Foods, Twelve Hotels & Residences, and P.F. Chang's China Bistro.

Ebert said other tenants will be named in the next couple of months, and a signature restaurant will be among them.

"We're far along with negotiations with a restaurant not currently in the market," Ebert said.

METRO light rail: 3Q07 Update

While Central Avenue remains a mess, there is no doubt of the progress underway to keep the METRO on schedule for the 4Q08 opening. In some cases the stations are complete, the tracks are set, and the concrete finish is poured. In other locations is seems like work has just started. But as this rail line spiders out to our dispersed cities and we head into Fall, there seems to be a few cracks of positive light dampening the misery that was Central Avenue this past year. The Great Phoenix Shutdown may one day be a thing of the past.

Camelback and 44th redevelopment issues remain on burner

The redevelopment of Camelback and 44th St. remains a hot topic but still hanging in limbo after last night's meeting on the various proposals. Phoenix, the developers, and local residents have their say:  Camelback Road projects on hold

Two projects along Camelback Road remain on hold as the Phoenix Planning Commission studies three redevelopment proposals at the road's intersection with 44th Street.

The two proposals discussed Thursday evening were Opus West's proposal for the southeast corner, where the well-known "mushroom" bank is located, and M3 Cos. plan for the northwest corner, where the Camel Square development currently sits.

Opus West sought a delay to work out new plans with neighborhood residents, who opposed the initial plans. Attorney Stephen Earl said the company would build in reduced heights and densities from the initial project, although neighborhood activist Paul Barnes said the company remains "a long way from anything the neighborhood would deem acceptable."

The Camel Square proposal was delayed after close to three hours of discussion, pro and con, before a room crowded with residents of the area. Attorneys for the developer described the proposed project and argued it fits with the city's desire to grow smarter, but opponents made the point that the plan violated several existing city plans calling for compatible development and maintenance of views of Camelback Mountain nearby.

The proposal includes three 100-foot tall buildings and will be largely residential, with condominiums, town homes and nine single-family lots. The developer said the parcel, at 17.4 acres, is the largest between the Biltmore area at 24th Street and the Phoenician Resort.

Planning Commission chairman Don Keuth said he expected a third redevelopment proposal, for the site of the London Center on the corner's southwest quadrant, to be filed on Friday.

He proposed that the commission be proactive and look at all three quadrants together. He said the committee should "develop a reasonable solution." Commissioner Wes Gullett will lead the effort.

Keuth emphasized the importance of the decision, saying the city expects many more similar proposals down the road. Attorney Grady Gammage, representing the developer, said the development "is a precursor to the future of Phoenix."

The Phoenix Downtown Sheraton tops off

Last week marked the end of major exterior construction at the Phoenix Downtown Sheraton and the commencement of intense construction activity inside. About 100 dignitaries and 650 construction workers attended the ceremony marked with the placement of a ceremonial beam, and a flag with an evergreen tree. The 1,000 room hotel, making it the largest in Arizona when completed in October 2008, was financed entirely with $350 million in City of Phoenix revenue bonds. The hotel features over 80,000 s.f. of meeting space including two ballrooms at 15,000 and 30,000 s.f. Additional amenities include an outdoor pool and sundeck, a fitness center, restaurants, a bar, and a lounge. The hotel will be a key player in the success of the expanding downtown convention center and the Copper Square area.

Sky Harbor pushes for traffic solution

From the Arizona Republic:

"Phoenix is picking up on the popular "people mover" idea and will build an automated train to shuttle passengers from the eastern edge of Sky Harbor International Airport to its three terminals and its western end.

...The train is expected to start operating in 2013 to Terminal 4.  The train's lines will expand through Terminal 2 to the car rental center on the airport's west side by 2020.

The project is expected to help alleviate curbside congestion created by motorists who drop off and pick up passengers at the terminals along the 5-mile east-west span of the airport.

...The train is needed because of the growing demand for air travel at Sky Harbor.  The airport had 41.4 million travelers last year but expects annual passenger counts to hit 50 million by 2020 when the second stretch of the train begins running.

...The train is part of a larger $3.3 billion project approved by the Phoenix City Council earlier this year to improve Sky Harbor.

In addition to the train, Phoenix plans to realign Sky Harbor Boulevard, which snakes around the airport's three terminals.

Phoenix also plans to build a new concourse in Terminal 4 and a new 33-gate terminal to replace Terminal 2 as demand warrants..."

For the full article:
Sky Harbor buys into "people mover"

Will living dangerously in the fast lane be denied?

The Phoenix City Council recently voted to contract with ASU's Phoenix Urban Research Laboratory to help decide the fate of the reversible lanes along 7th Street and 7th Avenue.  The issue:  what becomes of the middle turn lane of both arteries during rush hour whereby they become one-way additional lanes for the dominant traffic flow.  For 25 years these lanes have helped move traffic, but both residents and merchants along the route complain about the confusing (yes...to those that simply can't read a sign) and dangerous (oh yes, we've all experienced the thrill of the unknown while barreling down the center lane!) issues now clouding these lane's future.

Ross Blakely Jr., acting streets transportation director, noted that PURL will consider the "people component" in deciding the elimination or revision of the current design.  This project is part of the larger traffic analysis Tom Simplot requested in March 2007.

So while the Seventh Avenue Merchants Association endorses eliminating these "suicide lanes" I see options rapidly dwindling to play extreme car games on the way home from work.  C'est la vie.

Jackson Street entertainment district starts to gel

It's becoming obvious that, while downtown Phoenix continues to see significant residential and commercial development, more needs to be done to foster the core as an entertainment, restaurant, and bar draw beyond the population pop whenever a game is on or the convention bookings are thick.  The move is on for a major change.  Cityscape is working out the final issues and there now seems to be a lot of support from some major players and the public to develop a destination daytime, but especially nighttime, draw for downtown Phoenix.  Its name is the Jackson Street Entertainment District and you can check out the articles below for some perspective:

Group pushes hip downtown
Phoenix Rising: A peek at the future cityscape
Phoenix's success needs to be made in the shade
Contact Magazine: The Jackson Street Promise

UA Downtown Medical School receives $5M boost

The University of Arizona Foundation received $5 million from the Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust to benefit the UA's new medical school in downtown Phoenix.

In partnership with Arizona State University, Tucson-based University of Arizona is expanding its medical school on the Phoenix Biomedical Campus at Seventh and Van Buren streets.

That campus, which also houses the Translational Genomics Research Institute, is expected to generate as much as $2.1 billion for the local economy and provide jobs for 24,000 Arizonans, according to a study by Tripp Umbach Healthcare Consulting.

Dr. Edward Shortliff, the dean of the new Phoenix campus, will use $3 million to support his efforts to recruit nationally renowned faculty to the medical school campus.  The remaining $2 million will be used to match future private gifts, which he expects will provide a catalyst toward securing additional private support for the campus.

The Business Journal of Phoenix, April 20, 2007
Full Article:  Downtown medical school given $5M grant

$500M plan for Capitol Mall gets bumpy ride

From the Associated Press via The Arizona Daily Star 03/11/07:

A legislative subcommittee wants new buildings for the state House and Senate to be designed and built by 2012, but the estimated $500 million plan faces critics and an uncertain fate.

......Three design proposals have been created by the Arizona State University College of Design, and all approximately double the space now provided.

One would put new buildings west of the Executive Tower and 18th Avenue, where state employees currently park and the secretary of state's customer service building is located.  A second plan puts the new Senate and House buildings just to the west of the current one's, on the site of existing parking lots and flanking the original capitol building.  The third design retains the existing buildings, expanding and renovating them.  It would add an underground building under a plaza to connect the expanded sections.

$500M plan to add space for House, Senate gets mixed reception.