Southeast Valley Development News

[HooverDam]

1. Stop using peoples real names on an internet message forum, its creepy as fuck.

2. Downtown Mesa is a perfectly safe place, see here:


In the past year there were only THREE violent crimes in the Downtown Mesa area, two 'family fights' and one assault. Its hardly the hot bed of hooliganism you proport it to be.

I may be biased to Downtown Mesa, but its because Im biased to ALL downtowns and all urban places. Like everyone on this forum you'd think would be. To say the eternally empty Mesa Riverview is more urban than Downtown Mesa can literally only be described as a statement made from gross ignorance. For you to be promoting a suburban outdoor mall over a real, authentic, walkable downtown place on this forum of all places is just bizarre.

I don't know when you're going to Downtown Mesa, but when I'm there, its not dead. I have lunch there about once a month and I always see an active street scene with people of all ages and ethnicities. Is a night life hot spot? No, but thats not really the sole definition of a good downtown or urban space. If Downtown Mesa can continue to grow as a Downtown for families, that'll be a terrific thing.

Lets put it this way, of the Phoenix are suburbs, please rank their Downtowns, I'd go:

1. Scottsdale
2. Tempe
3. Mesa/Glendale (tie)
4. Chandler
5. Gilbert
6. Carefree
7. Cave Creek
8. Litchfield Park
9. Buckeye
10. Peoria
11. Guadalupe

So really Mesa seems to be doing well for itself amongst its Valley peers.

EDIT: Further, lets look at the Walk Scores of each area.

Mesa Riverview at the intersection of Dobson and Bass Pro Drive (where you can't actually live, but lets imagine you could) scores a 58, "somewhat walkable." Downtown Mesa on the other hand at E Main & Center (where there's actually residences nearby) scores a much higher 80, "very walkable." Its clear which is a better urban place.

[Vicelord John]

1. It's creepy? Ive been here 5+ years man, and most message boards, if not all, where the same people are conversing over and over use peoples names. It's just proper to address someone by thier name if you know it. Sorrt you think thats weird. I sure as hell dont.

Ricketts is running a business, not a charity. You obviously have no reading comprehension, because I'm not saying Riverview is better than Downtown Mesa, I'm simply saying that it's better for this use and it has a lot more going on, which from a business standpoint is what you want. It makes much more sense to put it in a busy place that families love to visit rather than a run down part of town, no matte how much potential it has.

3. You're being awfully rude. Not sure why.

I'm done talking to you. You've obviously no rational thought, just blindly defending anything resembling a downtown. I'm and urban guy too and I want almost everything to be downtown. However, there are many instances where the best location is not downtown. This is one of those instances. You're failing time and time again to have a rational discussion about our disagreement, and rather you want to try to force me to see what you see and feel the way you feel.

I spend a lot of time making side comments and being completely off topic, but when it comes time to have an actual conversation I'm here and ready. So where the fuck are you?

[HooverDam]

I love how you can be the king of personal attacks but anytime anyone throws it back in your face you freak out. Its a classic bully tactic, you can dish it out, but you sure as shit can't take it.

Any thinking person knows Downtown Mesa is a better BUSINESS location for the Cubs stadium than Riverview. You want to create a place where people park once (or take transit), go to the game and then walk around in Wrigleyville West, right? Well go look at Wrigleyville the original, is it in a place more like Downtown Mesa, or more like Riverview?

You want people to stay in or around Wrigleyville West, right? Well then it seems stupid to put it closer to freeways that can easily wisk people away to hotels and nightlife in Scottsdale or Tempe. Ever noticed how Riverview is always empty? Its because Tempe Marketplace is right nearby and most people would rather go there, putting Wrigleyville West in that are will mean people will drive their cars to the game, park on a surface lot, not walk anywhere, and then drive home.

You're actually the one providing zero evidence than Riverview is the superior location. We've seen with statistics now that Downtown Mesa is obviously more walkable, not at all an unsafe place, it'll be better connected by public transit, and its more adjacent to currently existing hotels and retail so that while Wrigleyville builds out people will still have places to go.

Scottsdale Stadium is such a terrific place to see a Cactus League game exactly because its in a Downtown. Building a stadium in an urban neighborhood is such a good idea in fact that Goodyear is planning to build their downtown around/adjacent to their stadium!

People desperately want more walkable, urban places. Thats why Old Town Scottsdale and Mill Ave are almost always swamped. Its why so many people put so much time into making Downtown Phoenix better. Its why property values are almost always higher in a walkable neighborhood than in a sprawl.

Putting the Cubs in Downtown Mesa is a win for the Cubs, the City of Mesa and the Valley. You've yet to offer a strong counter to that.

[Leo the Dog]

This one is for Don.

Mesa slips in growth rankings

Gary Nelson - Sept. 8, 2010 12:00 AM
The Arizona Republic

After eclipsing places like Minneapolis, Miami and Pittsburgh to become the country's 38th-largest city in 2007, Mesa has slipped back to No. 39, according to the latest U.S. Census Bureau estimate.

Now, Long Beach and Sacramento, Calif., sit just above Mesa in the standings, and Omaha, Neb., at No. 40, is gaining fast, a far cry from the days when Mesa made headlines as the fastest-growing city in the country.


The distinction involves more than bragging rights.

For decades, the city's economy has been built on growth, and federal and state spending formulas for everything from roads to schools are based on population, which could affect city and school-district finances.

During the 1970s, '80s and early '90s, Mesa was the fastest-growing city in the country as waves of people rolled in from other parts of the country, filling new subdivisions, apartments and mobile-home parks as the city hungrily annexed territory. The city grew from about 17,000 in 1950 to 396,000 just a half-century later - a growth rate of 2,230 percent.

The U.S. Census Bureau put the city at 462,486 people as of July 1, 2009, estimating that it grew by 3,300 people from the previous year - an increase of about 0.7 percent. But as city officials await the first wave of results from the 2010 count, it's possible that Mesa may even have lost ground.

Figures from Mesa's water-resources department show the number of accounts has risen slightly over the last few years, but other indicators suggest, if not fewer people in Mesa, then at least less economic activity.

Trash collections fell by 12 percent between July 2007 and July 2010. Bus ridership is down. Apartment-rental rates also have declined, suggesting less demand for that kind of housing. And Mesa Public Schools now teaches 7,000 fewer students than in 2005.

Frank Mizner, who was Mesa's planning director from 1988 to 2003, has seen both sides of the growth curve.

It wasn't uncommon in the mid-'90s to have 20 cases on a Planning and Zoning Board agenda, Mizner said, and "there were times when we had two meetings a month. It was crazy."

There was even talk of Mesa overtaking Tucson as Arizona's No. 2 city, with some expecting that to have happened by now. As things stand, Tucson is the nation's 32nd-largest city, and the Census Bureau says the gap between Mesa and Tucson is widening.

After retiring from the city, Mizner spent six years as an unpaid member of the planning board, where he got a bird's-eye view of the dramatic slowdown in Mesa's growth. Agendas that once were routinely more than an inch thick have been reduced to just a few sheets of paper.

"A couple of months we had no cases on an agenda," Mizner said. "The only reason for meeting was we had a discussion on a couple of code amendments. . . . That really was kind of a landmark. Not necessarily a positive one."

Mayor Scott Smith, however, isn't so sure a pause in growth will hurt. "We've found that when we grew really fast, it was nice to brag about how you were climbing the rankings," Smith said. "The question was what kind of quality you were getting with that growth.

"I know we're probably faltering, and may even have backpedaled a little bit" with regard to population, Smith said. "I don't think that's necessarily bad."

Smith said Mesa's focus now is not on growth per se, but on quality jobs and economic development. The City Council last week pored over feasibility studies touting Mesa's potential as a center for health care and higher education.

"Whether we're the 38th- or 48th-largest city in the country doesn't matter to me as long as we can focus on the economic growth," Smith said. "If we can do that with fewer people, I'm OK with that."

Even if Mesa's population has flatlined for now, planners don't think it will stay that way.

The city still has vast tracts of undeveloped land, especially in its southeastern corner. That's the home of Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport and prospective urban development that the city hopes will create 100,000 jobs over the next few decades.

"We certainly expect we'll go through another good growth period here at some point," Planning Director John Wesley said. Wesley said the "build-out" population for Mesa's planning area, which includes county islands such as Leisure World, is expected to be 633,700, sometime in the 2030s.

If Mesa had that many people today, it would be No. 22 on the population list, right behind Baltimore. But most of the cities ahead of Mesa are still growing - most of them faster than Mesa.

[HooverDam]

Waveyard, Mesa optimistic on scaled-back water park

New Waveyard agreement requires ending old one

2 comments by Gary Nelson - Mar. 9, 2011 10:15 AM
The Arizona Republic

Mesa officials are working with Waveyard Development LLC to build an outdoor sports park next to the new Chicago Cubs stadium in northwest Mesa.

Waveyard executives began floating the idea last year as a way to salvage at least some of what initially had been touted as a $250 million sports-themed resort that would have occupied all of Riverview Golf Course and four adjacent softball fields.

It was four years ago this month that Waveyard chose Mesa over Surprise for the development, and city voters approved it in November 2007. Waveyard was supposed to have opened in January 2010, but the project withered in the Great Recession and not even a deadline extension granted by the city could save it.


Waveyard's initial development agreement with Mesa is still technically in force until July, but the first step in coming up with a new one is to mutually end the old one, City Manager Chris Brady said.

A new agreement won't look much like the original. Brady crafted that deal to make sure Waveyard couldn't buy the city property until it had solid financing for its entire project, which was to have included an upscale 400-room hotel with a huge indoor water park, as well as outdoor sports features such as a whitewater rafting river and scuba lagoon.

Those safeguards were meant to ensure that Waveyard wouldn't rip up the golf course and then leave with the project half-finished, as has happened with several high-profile Southeast Valley developments in recent years.

If anything, a new agreement would be even more tightly drawn, Brady said.

"If we were to give some option, it would be a much shorter period than before, with the idea that at some point we would make (the land) available" to other parties, Brady said.

The most likely site is the softball complex on the northern end of Riverview Park. Brady said the city plans to keep those fields open until someone, be it Waveyard or another party, implements a solid redevelopment plan.

When that happens, Brady said, the city probably will build replacement fields at Red Mountain Park.

That's not the west-side locale the city had promised it would find when Waveyard was first proposed. But Brady said Mesa never found a good site on the west side and the Cubs' complex will boost the city's west-side recreational inventory with several practice fields that area residents can use most of the year.

City Councilman Dennis Kavanaugh said he and council colleague Chris Glover met last week with Jeffrey Gustin, a Waveyard principal who now is taking the lead in discussions with the city.

"They're looking at combining the whitewater experience with the rock-climbing, mountain-climbing experience as well," said Kavanaugh, who added that financing should be easier now that Waveyard won't have to build a hotel.

"I was encouraged by the meeting," Kavanaugh said.

Kavanaugh opposed the original Waveyard plan but backs a smaller one next to the Cubs complex.

"Adding this component really adds to the flavor of it being a destination that could work throughout the year," he said. "That's always a challenge for anything here in Arizona."

Waveyard founder Richard Mladick said he's optimistic that a Mesa project will work, but it's too soon to know its details and cost.

"We weathered a very, very harsh economic downturn and we've come out of it," Mladick said. "The capital markets are starting to free up. We're starting to see a loosening of the money supply. We're very optimistic."



Read more: http://www.azcentral.com/community/m...#ixzz1G84GHRtd

Well I hope something gets built, it would be good for Mesa. But if they scale it back too much I'm not sure how it'll be any different from Sunsplash, Big Surf or Water World.

I'm still bummed about the Cubs/Mesa going for that location too, seems like such a missed opportunity for their downtown. I wonder what they'll plan to do with HoHoKam, it would be a shame just to let it rot. Its still a pretty decent location and a nice park, it seems like it would be economically feasible to fix it up and try to attract another Western team (StL Cardinals, Minnesota Twins or Houston Astros).

[HX_Guy]

About time they built something locally!

First Solar to build plant in Mesa
Phoenix Business Journal - by Patrick O'Grady
Date: Thursday, March 17, 2011, 10:10am MST

First Solar Inc. will have more than its headquarters in the Phoenix area as it announced today plans to build a full-scale manufacturing plant in Mesa.
The Tempe company (Nasdaq:FSLR) is one of the world’s largest solar panel manufacturers and the move bolsters the Valley’s solar credentials.
First Solar has been considered a leader in the Phoenix area’s solar ecosystem despite lack of a local manufacturing facility. Its only U.S. facility is in Ohio. It has others in Malaysia, Germany and Vietnam.
The company has said more capacity will help it meet the surge of demand globally, particularly in the U.S., which is expected to be one of the biggest markets for solar.


Read more: First Solar to build plant in Mesa | Phoenix Business Journal

[HX_Guy]

Follow up story...looks like they will employ 600! Good news!

First Solar Mesa plant to employ 600
Phoenix Business Journal
Date: Thursday, March 17, 2011, 10:28am MST - Last Modified: Thursday, March 17, 2011, 10:36am MST

First Solar Inc.’s Mesa plant represents a $300 million investment and 600 lines for the Phoenix area.
Construction will begin in the second quarter and be complete a year later with the first shipments beginning in third-quarter 2012, officials from the Tempe company announced Thursday morning. That will mean some 400 to 500 construction jobs.
Click here to read about other Arizona companies hiring.
The facility will have four manufacturing lines with the capacity to produce solar panels with a total output of more than 250 megawatts. The new factory, in combination with First Solar’s recently expanded facility in Perrysburg, Ohio, will up its U.S. capacity to more than 500MW per year.
The Mesa facility is located on a 135-acre site, formerly home to a General Motors Proving Grounds and is designed for expansion. It will include a 3MW rooftop solar installation as well as a testing facility.
“Supportive state and federal policies have provided the visibility needed for the U.S. to become our fastest-growing market, and the Mesa factory will enable us to meet that growing demand,” said Bruce Sohn, president of First Solar, in a statement. “Programs such as Department of Energy loan guarantees and the solar investment tax credit are crucial to helping the renewable energy industry quickly reach the scale needed to compete with fossil fuels. Over the long-term, programs like these facilitate the market growth and investment that will support the future expansion of this factory.”
“First Solar’s presence in Arizona has been a great engine in driving our renewable energy sector forward,” said Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer. “And now its plans for a 135-acre technology campus - with 600 quality jobs and the potential for hundreds more - will propel Arizona into its second century, while promoting the Arizona Commerce Authority’s plan for business attraction, retention and expansion.”


Read more: First Solar Mesa plant to employ 600 | Phoenix Business Journal

[glynnjamin]

That is good news. These are the kinds of jobs that I like to see coming to Phx. I'm still not sure why that whole Solar City thing hasn't picked up but in light of the nuclear issues in Japan, maybe now is the time for solar power to make their move.

[HooverDam]

Great news for Mesa indeed, I'm glad the old GM proving ground is finding a new use. I didn't see it in the clip HX posted but the AzCentral article also mentions "depending on future demand, the facility could eventually employ as many as 4,800 people."

[HooverDam]

Downtown Mesa getting hipper with new businesses

Entrepreneurs, funky new businesses bring edginess to Mesa's formerly staid central core

5 comments by Gary Nelson - May. 21, 2011 06:39 AM
The Arizona Republic

This is not your grandfather's downtown Mesa.

Widely scorned only a few years ago as a sleepy enclave that rolled up its sidewalks at 5 p.m., Mesa's historic center is taking on an edgy new feel.

There's a comic-book store with a built-in coffee bar; they don't mind if patrons sit on the couch looking at their wares for hours on end.


There's going to be a movie theater aiming directly at an audience that thinks going to the big chain outlets is a drag.

In the fall, a museum dedicated to the history of movie monsters will bring visitors face-to-face with a hideous 15-foot-tall space alien.

Amid all this, a creative incubator for artists and entrepreneurs has settled on Main Street for its new headquarters.

These, coupled with such legendary mainstays as the Nile Theater (which is installing a coffee bar) and Inside the Bungalow signal a new kind of downtown Mesa. And it's not by accident.

Melissa Woodall, who focuses on downtown for the city's economic development department, said the new businesses are feeding off "a very concerted effort to bring activities to downtown during the daytime as well as evening hours."

Events such as Second Friday and Motorcycles on Main have gotten people used to a downtown open after dark. The Mesa Arts Center, open six years, anchors a growing creative presence. The coming of light rail sparks hopes that the neighborhood will become one of Arizona's premier pedestrian and residential destinations.

The effort to revive the area is even going underground - literally. Bill Jabjiniak, Mesa's economic development director, said the city and businesses are cooperating to rebuild utilities under the alleys north and south of Main Street. The project includes fire-sprinkler stubs that will accommodate future redevelopment.

That project, costing about $2 million, was approved by the City Council this week.

David Short, president of the Downtown Mesa Association, said the new businesses are feeding off one another and also benefit from the mix with older, more traditional establishments.

"I think it's a neat little organic evolvement of downtown," he said. "Some of these businesses that are showing success are attracting other businesses."

Short said he expects, among other things, a brew pub to open downtown before the light-rail extension begins running in 2016.

All this activity, Jabjiniak said, "is indicative of where the market is at.

"People with creative minds are looking for a place to call home, and downtown Mesa is a good alternative."

Four new operations, all within a block or so of each other on the northern side of West Main Street, offer a glimpse as to what is going on.



Read more: http://www.azcentral.com/community/m...#ixzz1N1Chwo9C

This is very good news, glad Mesa is getting ahead of the game and getting things rolling even before LRT is installed. Hopefully they'll zone early enough for TOD that by the time LRT comes through their downtown they already have projects underway.

Im especially interested by the line about the off beat movie theater. I haven't heard anything about that, I wonder where it would go. The PHX Metro in general can use a lot more unique theaters to supplement Camelview & the Valley Art. Film Bar and that restaurant/bar at Scottsdale Quarter are good starts but every Valley city with a historic Downtown ought to have a cool theater.

[HooverDam]

More on the Cubs, Wrigleyville West and Waveyard:

Destination concept for new Cubs park will begin to emerge

30 comments by Jim Walsh and Art Thomason - May. 28, 2011 07:20 AM
The Arizona Republic

The city and the Chicago Cubs are taking another shot at building a regional destination similar to Downtown Disney, Mill Avenue or even Fisherman's Wharf.

No, Mickey Mouse and the San Francisco Bay aren't coming to Mesa with the construction of a new Cubs spring training facility at Loops 101 and 202, the present home of Riverview Golf Course.

But Mesa Mayor Scott Smith said the idea is the same: Draw fans for a full day of fun that might include a meal, people-watching, shopping and other entertainment beyond a Cactus League baseball game.


"We're not going to build a stadium that's spectacular. We'll build an experience that is spectacular," he said.

Smith said the concept, which includes the new ballpark and the adjoining Wrigleyville West, would be unique for the Cactus League. He said final details in the development plan likely would emerge now that the city has chosen a design team and builder with extensive experience, Populous (the Kansas City, Mo., sports architecture firm known formerly as HOK Sport Venue Event) and Hunt Construction.

"The whole idea of Downtown Disney is to create a gathering place," Smith said. "If we do our job right, if we create something good, it will sell itself."

Downtown Disney, in Anaheim, next to Disneyland, is a mixture of restaurants and unique shops with fountains and live music.

Mesa voters decided on Nov. 2 to spend about $99 million on the new baseball facility and infrastructure, with the Cubs paying for Wrigleyville West.

"I don't know if it's as much a significant step forward as an announcement that will get some momentum rolling," said Robert Brinton, president of the Mesa Convention and Visitors Bureau. "People were saying, 'what's happening?' "

Scottsdale-based Hunt Construction Group Inc. poured $50,000 into a political action committee campaigning for voter approval of the new stadium, according to a report filed with the City Clerk's Office.

The Cubs contributed more than $100,000 to the war chest. Other donations came from Scottsdale-based Rural/Metro Corp. - $15,000 - and United Mesa Fire Fighters' political action committee - $2,000.

Smith said no elected officials were members of a six-member panel that selected Populous and Hunt. The panel included three city representatives and three Cubs representatives.

Mark McGuire, the Cubs executive vice president and a member of the selection committee, said the team wants to ensure the project stays on track for a 2014 opening, but has no reason to rush construction, either.

"It's a slower start than we all anticipated," he said, adding the project should start moving forward at a faster pace because Populous and Hunt have extensive experience working together. The two companies designed and built the Philadelphia Phillies spring complex in Clearwater, Fla.

"We're excited and we think it will be a great team," McGuire said. Because of Populous and Hunt's experience and the availability of Hohokam Stadium in the near future, the city and the Cubs have a better opportunity to avoid needless expenses, such as paying overtime to finish the project by a certain deadline, he said. "The idea is to get them started right at the beginning so we can design something efficient," McGuire said.

One example of unresolved details is what a plaza connecting the ballpark to Wrigleyville West should look like, Smith said.

"There's no other place where this exists," he said.

Smith and McGuire agree that baseball facility is the easiest part of the development. It is expected to include a 12,000-15,000 seat stadium with dimensions similar to Wrigley Field, either six or seven practice fields and a 50,000- to 55,000-square-foot clubhouse with facilities for the medical treatment of injured players.

"They've built numerous stadiums. They know what works and doesn't work," Smith said.

But achieving the right experience by incorporating Riverview Park, the baseball facility and Wrigleyville West is "uncharted territory," Smith said. He said the city should know how the entire project will look near the end of summer, with pictures and drawings.

Also unresolved is the status of another piece of the puzzle - Waveyard.

At least in the short term, Mesa is holding on to a 25-acre site where Waveyard would be located, he said. Mesa is paying Waveyard $150,000 for preliminary engineering studies that must be completed before building anything on the property.

Richard Mladick, Waveyard's co-founder, said he is still hopeful of securing financing to build a smaller version of his water sports park.

He suggested Waveyard would be a good addition to the overall vision for the Cubs stadium development because it could draw people during the off-season.

"Wrigleyville by itself needs help. It needs year-round entertainment to complement that," Mladick said. "When you don't have an event, you have a giant empty parking lot."



Read more: http://www.azcentral.com/community/m...#ixzz1Nqdw5db7

I'm glad they're at least talking about making the area a more year round destination. Its unfortunate how most area's around our Spring Training parks just sit fallow 9 months out of the year (Peoria's done a better job than most keeping their park well programmed).

[MegaBass]

ASU breaking ground on their Polytechnic Residential and Dining Halls on the 21st.

[nickw252]

http://www.azcentral.com/community/m...-code0622.html

Ideas behind the code

Mesa addressed nine goals in its zoning-code revision. Here are three.

- Make it easier to use. Mesa reorganized the code, putting most-used items first. There are more tables and illustrations to describe abstract concepts. Items are now alphabetized, and most key terms have hyperlinks in the online code, making it easier to look up definitions or other relevant parts found elsewhere in the code.

- Encourage infill. Mesa wanted to trim the red tape that often prevents investment in small lots, allowing builders in some cases to write their own zoning rules. Instead of following rigid requirements for landscaping, parking and storm-water retention, developers also can team up and negotiate with staff to complete necessary on- and off-site improvements.

- Increase flexibility. The code streamlines applications and the number of commissions developers must visit for variances. It more clearly spells out expectations for builders and rewards those who go above and beyond code requirements by offering increased density or expedited reviews.

View the document

Mesa is expected to introduce the revised zoning code Monday and approve it July 7. Check it out at mesaaz.gov/planning.



Read more: http://www.azcentral.com/community/m...#ixzz1PxcMy07W

Sounds like this could be good for infill and transit oriented developments.

[MegaBass]

http://a1.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphot..._7791777_n.jpg

Got a shot of this sign for dining and residence hall on Thursday waiting for the intercampus shuttle. They also said that a recreation center is soon to come as well.

[nickw252]

http://www.azcentral.com/community/m...-colleges.html

At least eight companies are interested in building mid- to high-rise, mixed-use housing in downtown Mesa, according to the city's economic development director.

"It's coming," Bill Jabjiniak told the steering committee that is overseeing the iMesa community-development initiative. "Just let the market bring it. Financing is still an issue."

Jabjiniak also said downtown, other locations in west Mesa, and the Power Road area are prime candidates to attract a four-year college or some other school beyond the junior-college level.

Some schools, he said, have looked into using vacant retail space in the Fiesta district.

Jabjiniak's comments were part of a more than hourlong briefing for the benefit of the iMesa committee, which is assessing Mesa's needs and assets before it begins to recommend specific programs to improve the city.

iMesa was launched in January by Mayor Scott Smith to seek ideas for "transformative" projects to enhance Mesa's quality of life over the long term. Citizens have entered dozens of ideas on the iMesa website, imesa.mesaaz.gov.

Mark Schofield, chairman of the steering committee, said he previously served on Mesa's Economic Development Advisory Board and, in a recent conversation with Jabjiniak, learned the city's economic staff already is implementing many of the ideas he's pushed for years.

"We've got a team that is very entrepreneurial, and this is what we have needed for Mesa to move forward," Schofield said.

Jabjiniak briefed the panel on Mesa's overall economic development strategy and numerous actual or potential success stories.

Rather than stick to a textbook definition of economic development, he said Mesa's strategy is "whatever it takes to get the deal done. I don't care what that is. Let's find a way to say yes to a lot of things."

Among his comments:

- In the third quarter of this year alone, Mesa announced 1,540 new jobs with average salaries of more than $54,000.

- The city is expanding the definition of "T" in the HEAT acronym, which previously stood for health care, education, aerospace and tourism. Tourism is still key, but "T" now includes technology, a bow to the recent deal for a huge First Solar plant and other tech initiatives.

- Final agreements to cover construction and use of Chicago Cubs facilities at Riverview should come before the City Council this fall. Several Chicago-area businesses are interested in participating in the adjacent Wrigleyville development.

- Other major-league baseball teams are interested in moving into Hohokam Stadium and Fitch Park when the Cubs leave. "Without going too far into it, we're encouraged by the activity that we've seen."

- A project to modernize downtown utility lines is part of Mesa's strategy to turn the area into a destination, with stubs for fire sprinklers to enhance safety in buildings that could host clubs, restaurants and other gathering spots.

- Mesa sent requests for proposals to nearly 1,000 colleges and universities, and some have an active interest in developing here. The City Council may get an update in the fall.

- Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport is on track to handle a million Allegiant Air passengers this fiscal year but there are no immediate prospects to add another airline.

The next major step for the iMesa steering committee will be to host meetings in six areas that have been identified as Mesa's "villages."

A map on the iMesa site shows those areas, which don't have discrete boundaries. The map shows downtown as a separate, square-mile focus area.

Mesa is hiring a PR firm to coordinate and publicize the meetings.



Read more: http://www.azcentral.com/community/m...#ixzz1ThPGNlUw

Sounds like great news - downtown Mesa needs more housing. I just hope they aren't trying to get for-profit schools in downtown Mesa. The last thing the Valley needs is more for-profit schools. Blehh

[HooverDam]

Originally Posted by nickw252

Sounds like great news - downtown Mesa needs more housing. I just hope they aren't trying to get for-profit schools in downtown Mesa. The last thing the Valley needs is more for-profit schools. Blehh

I can almost guarantee thats what it will be. Notice in the article that they mention schools are interested in moving into former retail space in the Fiesta Mall area. Thats not exactly how "real" universities operate.

If Mesa wants to be serious about attracting Higher Education to their Downtown they need to use all that empty land just NE of their Downtown to attract a school. Branch campuses for schools (like Midwestern University in Glendale) aren't going to do it, its got to be a real University. That means working to start something from scratch most likely.

The only branch campus option that would make sense is contacting BYU and trying to get them to open a location, similar to BYU-Hawai'i/BYU- Idaho. Mesa ought to be able to leverage its large Mormon Temple & population to attract the school there. BYU actually has a decent academic reputation and the LDS church would likely have the proper funding to build something of quality there.

I am however encouraged by the news that other MLB teams are looking at HoHoKam park. Lets just pray Mesa is trying to poach a Grapefruit League team, it doesn't do us any good to just shuffle around Cactus League teams. If they were smart they'd go full bore after the St Louis Cardinals who have a huge rivalry with the Cubs. Having both of those teams in Mesa with their large, dedicated fan-bases would be huge.

EDIT: You can go online to the iMesa site and vote for the idea of trying to attract a BYU campus to Downtown Mesa, I did:
http://imesa.mesaaz.gov/forums/97091...esa-?ref=title

Its quick and easy to sign up and cast 3 votes and its a lot better of an idea than most of the brain dead ones on there.

DOUBLE EDIT:
And now I suggested bringing a Grapefruit League team to Mesa, particularly the Cardinals:
http://imesa.mesaaz.gov/forums/97091...eam-to-hohokam

[azliam]

Really guys??

Enough with the garbage comments about REAL universities, etc. (as if ASU is such a stellar REAL university).

Let's stick with the word traditional instead.

[Tempe_Duck]

Originally Posted by azliam

Really guys??

Enough with the garbage comments about REAL universities, etc. (as if ASU is such a stellar REAL university).

Let's stick with the word traditional instead.

What are you talking about? Have you seen the university ranking? ASU isn't the most prestigious University but it considered a top university in the world.

[HooverDam]

Originally Posted by azliam

Really guys??

Enough with the garbage comments about REAL universities, etc. (as if ASU is such a stellar REAL university).

Let's stick with the word traditional instead.

DeVry, U of Phx, ITT Tech, etc don't generate REAL economic development. They don't often produce graduates who start real corporations that make real money. They don't spur real whole districts (like Mill Ave) to spring up around them, et cetera.

Having a traditional/real college is what a big City like Mesa needs in its Downtown. Having some for profit schools for adults is fine, but its not in any way a solution for Downtown Mesa's woes.

[PHXguyinOKC]

maybe something will finally happen with this thing

http://www.azcentral.com/community/c...er-intent.html