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  #1201  
Old Posted Jul 21, 2014, 8:34 AM
HX_Guy HX_Guy is offline
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Moving pretty quick...and here's a webcam!

http://oxblue.com/open/DPRPhoenix/ArizonaCenter



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ASU law school construction in downtown Phoenix continues

It's only a dirt lot now, but the future site for Arizona State University's law school is beginning to take shape in downtown Phoenix.

Construction started this month on the $129 million Arizona Center for Law and Society, a six-story building at Second and Taylor streets that will house the Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law.

The law school's dean, Douglas Sylvester, is so enthused, several times a day he pulls up a webcam on his computer that shows an aerial view of construction.

"I know what they are supposed to be doing," he said, "so it's fun to see it happen."

The university is funding the bulk of the project through construction bonds. The rest will come from private donations and the city of Phoenix, which is providing land and $12 million.

The law school now is on the Tempe campus, housed in a building that dates to the 1960s with less than 150,000 square feet of space. Employees are spread out over six other buildings on campus. The new site will bring everyone together in a building that is just under 275,000 square feet.

Downtown Phoenix was chosen because ASU already had a growing campus there, and the location is close to courts and the legal community.

The building's exterior will be Arizona sandstone and glass, with the law school occupying about two-thirds of the space. Also planned are a restaurant, a university bookstore and two levels of underground parking.

Two think tanks, the Lincoln Center for Applied Ethics and the McCain Institute for ­International Leadership, will move in as well. The ASU Alumni Law Group, a non-profit legal firm believed to be the first teaching law firm associated with a law school, also will occupy space.

The building will include several energy-efficient features and is designed to be open to the public. A great hall, with seating for 150 to 800, will be available to the public for events, for example.

"We want members of the community to come in and use it as much as possible," Sylvester said.

ASU's law school was ranked 31st among more than 200 law schools in the country in the most recent survey by U.S. News & World Report. The University of Arizona's James E. Rogers College of Law is ranked No. 40, and the private Arizona Summit Law School in Phoenix is not ranked.

The extra space will allow the ASU law school to expand and fits in with the school's mission of becoming an urban, comprehensive law school. The juris doctor program will remain about the same at about 550 students, Sylvester said. But the school plans to expand graduate and continuing-education programs, bringing total enrollment to about 750.

A formal groundbreaking ceremony is planned for the fall.

State universities' presence in downtown Phoenix

More than 11,000 students take classes at ASU's downtown Phoenix campus. The campus is home to the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication, the College of Health Solutions, the College of Nursing and Health Innovation, the College of Public Programs and the School of Letters and Sciences. The campus also has a residence hall, Taylor Place.

The university is also adding classroom space in the Arizona Center and soon will start work on the ground floor of the Westward Ho for the behavior-health program in the College of Public Programs.

Downtown is also home to the Phoenix Biomedical Campus, which includes the University of Arizona College of Medicine-Phoenix and Northern Arizona University's physical-therapy doctoral program.

Also under construction by UA: a $136 million research building called the Biosciences Partnership Building. The university is also building a $100 million outpatient cancer-treatment center to the north.

The law school will occupy about two-thirds of the new building, which will be constructed with Arizona sandstone and will include energy-efficient features. Also planned for the space are a restaurant, a university bookstore and two levels of underground parking.

In 2008 the school moved into the 100,000-square-foot building, which includes digital newsrooms, media laboratories, a 150-seat auditorium and classrooms.

The A.E. England Building is next to Civic Space Park and provides space for classes, offices, meetings and events. It also houses the Fair Trade Cafe and Gallery

http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/...enix/12929857/
Had anyone heard about ASU taking up some ground floor space in the Westward Ho? That seems new.
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  #1202  
Old Posted Jul 21, 2014, 9:28 AM
Jjs5056 Jjs5056 is offline
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I hadn't heard anything; it seems that every year or so, signs appear 'for lease,' and disappear. If it leads to just one of the ground level spaces being publically-accessible/active space, then I take back a lot of my ASU criticism. But, if they simply move some classrooms in that are inaccessible unless you have a SunCard, I'll be happy to see life along that stretch of Central, this would probably be their biggest missed opportunity yet.

It's great they renovated the AE Building, but it would've been even better if a guard didn't kick me out from trying to walk in the top level of it. It's great they renovated the post office, but I wish I could see what was done to the interior - unfortunately, a SunCard is needed to enter... These buildings all served a public use in their first life and that's what makes their restoration so special; keeping them under lock and key is disingenuous to their story, and makes me wonder how many of these 19-year olds know or care about the old, crappy building they're sitting in?

Now, I don't want ASU classes open to the public, but for the programs to be thought about with the integration of the public in mind. For example, I can't find any 'behavior health program' specifically, but if it involves working with seniors in any way, it would be great to partner with the Ho itself and have tours led by ASU and selected Westward Ho residents of the property. Plenty would even pay given the right marketing, and a positive spin could be given to the fact that it was turned over for our seniors. I also don't see why 1 room, or at least 1 retail space, couldn't be dedicated to an extravagant cafe where the tours could end for lunch/dinner and be opened at night for music. These seniors don't have the plague and a venue open until 10/11 would be a nice pregaming spot for the bars to the north.
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  #1203  
Old Posted Jul 21, 2014, 9:40 AM
Jjs5056 Jjs5056 is offline
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OTOH, that's also the first time I read about the two additional 'think tanks' moving into the Law Center; hopefully, in spite of its terrible design, it brings enough traffic to the area for retail to pick up nearby.

There really aren't many vacancies, but maybe the ground level of the Van Buren garage at 1st/VB could benefit, along with any of the Taylor Mall spaces meant for retail and not office space (are there any?). Otherwise, this area is really haphazard which is unfortunate - wish either 1st or 2nd would be used for back of house instead of switching back and forth. Too bad Freeport took its eastern retail spaces off the market and that the Security Center is apparently not interested in activating its ground level.

Wish the west piece of retail from the Ramada could've remained with the Law Center being built along 2nd. That could've turned into a cool, college-oriented strip.
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  #1204  
Old Posted Jul 28, 2014, 4:15 AM
MegaBass MegaBass is offline
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If you ever need to pump up your bike tires or fix something loose while you're out around Downtown, ASU has a great little set up on the south side of the Cronkite building within Taylor Mall. h/t This Could Be PHX
Seen similar setup at the Polytechnic campus. I'm surprised Tempe campus hasn't followed suit.
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  #1205  
Old Posted Aug 14, 2014, 5:13 PM
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PHX31 PHX31 is offline
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/\ That new service station contraption is pretty cool and likely very handy.

There used to be a little bike shop or co-op type place where you could get your bike fixed, or just pump up your tires on the Main Campus in Tempe. It may have cost a marginal amount to get something fixed on it, or maybe you just had to tip the student a buck or two working it. But you could get free air and possibly use the tools yourself if you wanted, I can't remember.

It was located behind the Undergraduate Academic Services building across Orange Mall from the MU.

Does anyone else remember this? I used it a couple times when I was at ASU in the late 90s early 00s. I'm pretty sure it closed when I was in school, probably the early 00s. Now it is some spare instructional space.

G.E.s.v.
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  #1206  
Old Posted Aug 14, 2014, 6:03 PM
Tempe_Duck Tempe_Duck is offline
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Originally Posted by PHX31 View Post
/\ That new service station contraption is pretty cool and likely very handy.

There used to be a little bike shop or co-op type place where you could get your bike fixed, or just pump up your tires on the Main Campus in Tempe. It may have cost a marginal amount to get something fixed on it, or maybe you just had to tip the student a buck or two working it. But you could get free air and possibly use the tools yourself if you wanted, I can't remember.

It was located behind the Undergraduate Academic Services building across Orange Mall from the MU.

Does anyone else remember this? I used it a couple times when I was at ASU in the late 90s early 00s. I'm pretty sure it closed when I was in school, probably the early 00s. Now it is some spare instructional space.

G.E.s.v.
When I was at ASU in 2011, it was located in the back of the SRC. Not sure if it is still there after the remodel but the physical location still appears to look the same.
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  #1207  
Old Posted Aug 14, 2014, 6:18 PM
MegaBass MegaBass is offline
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Originally Posted by Tempe_Duck View Post
When I was at ASU in 2011, it was located in the back of the SRC. Not sure if it is still there after the remodel but the physical location still appears to look the same.
Yeah it's behind the SRC or as it is now known as the Sun Devil Fitness Complex. There are a few air pumping stations around campus i.e. behind Physical Education West but these stations could use better identification/signage.
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  #1208  
Old Posted Aug 18, 2014, 10:03 AM
Jjs5056 Jjs5056 is offline
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1) Found a bit more information regarding the Westward Ho tidbit; the Behavioral Health Program conducted a study that found tenants were disconnected and reported low access to health services. As a result, a recommendation was providing more health service guidance/consultation on-site:

http://cabhp.asu.edu/presentations/p...nitiative/view

Not sure if that means we might see 2 spots taken: one for classroom space and another for some kind of clinic; or, just the latter.

Hopefully, it turns out better than I am imagining, because it would be great to activate the ground level along Central, if only to raise awareness that the building isn't abandoned and maybe give residents of the city more pride in its history. According to this link ( http://changemakerasu.tumblr.com/pos...r-asu-students ), there was a time when ASU was supposed to have students in an entrepreneurship class test out a retail business on the ground level - a shame that fell through. A cafe or restaurant/bar with authentic, historic materials from both the site and the time of its prominence would be respectful to the building and excite tenants and provide a use for every demo.

2) Is the PURL lab at the Security Building officially dead? Is there a leading tenant in that building? Just wondering who is responsible for letting the 1st floor sit empty for so long. These plans were drawn up in 2011 and there has never been a single tenant on the ground level. It's not acceptable for The Security Building, Professional Building, Westward Ho, Luhrs and Barrister buildings to have all survived and be so totally separated from the urban fabric aside from a Subway and just-opened bar at Luhrs after 5 years of searching.

http://www.maricopa.gov/imagine/photos.aspx
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  #1209  
Old Posted Aug 18, 2014, 2:39 PM
MegaBass MegaBass is offline
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Originally Posted by Jjs5056 View Post

2) Is the PURL lab at the Security Building officially dead? Is there a leading tenant in that building?[/url]
What happened to PURL? Haven't heard anything about them after the announcement that their going out of the Security Building.

Last edited by MegaBass; Aug 18, 2014 at 4:23 PM.
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  #1210  
Old Posted Aug 18, 2014, 3:28 PM
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HooverDam HooverDam is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jjs5056 View Post
2) Is the PURL lab at the Security Building officially dead? Is there a leading tenant in that building? Just wondering who is responsible for letting the 1st floor sit empty for so long. These plans were drawn up in 2011 and there has never been a single tenant on the ground level. It's not acceptable for The Security Building, Professional Building, Westward Ho, Luhrs and Barrister buildings to have all survived and be so totally separated from the urban fabric aside from a Subway and just-opened bar at Luhrs after 5 years of searching.

http://www.maricopa.gov/imagine/photos.aspx
Yah PURL is gone, not sure if it exists anywhere else now. The County owns the Security Building and uses the entire thing as far as I know, its a big shame. They use the ground floor but have put up all that awful opaque film and there's security you have to pass to get into the building. Its a real shame such a use is in there.
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  #1211  
Old Posted Aug 18, 2014, 6:37 PM
Jjs5056 Jjs5056 is offline
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Originally Posted by HooverDam View Post
Yah PURL is gone, not sure if it exists anywhere else now. The County owns the Security Building and uses the entire thing as far as I know, its a big shame. They use the ground floor but have put up all that awful opaque film and there's security you have to pass to get into the building. Its a real shame such a use is in there.
The County is just awful. They've single-handedly ruined downtown, IMO, with honorable mention going to whoever - if anyone - had power to stop the Westward Ho conversion.

With all of the heinous buildings they've butchered southern downtown with, or the new buildings they've erected in place of historic stock in the warehouse district, they couldn't find space that wasn't in a historic building? The building is brought up every time I am at an event at the Westin; most everyone thinks it's abandoned. What a great sign on one of the most important corners to have that ground level blacked out; what could be a gateway to someday sparking development westward along VB looks like market blight. Even if Central Station happens, there's no retail for what's supposed to be our big retail block... with perfect spaces just across the way... /rant.
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  #1212  
Old Posted Aug 18, 2014, 7:14 PM
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I talked with people at the PURL (long time ago) to try to get the Lantern on top of the Security Building back to it's old glory at night... but they said they'd have to try to get in contact with people at the County. As you can imagine, nothing ever happened.

Having its lantern all lit up at night would be an awesome addition to downtown's nighttime presence.
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  #1213  
Old Posted Aug 18, 2014, 8:10 PM
Jjs5056 Jjs5056 is offline
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I remember that post - that's a shame it never went anywhere. Watching the construction of 1000' towers from my house right now, and listening to people in the NYC forum complain that a board member reduced one of the building's height from 1400~ to 1200~ and then there's Phoenix where we can't get a lantern on our 1 historic building lit and its ground floor used.
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  #1214  
Old Posted Sep 2, 2014, 4:34 PM
MegaBass MegaBass is offline
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The top floor of the Arizona Center is under construction to accommodate the arrival of ASU staff, including the College of Letters and Sciences. (Photo by Tynin Fries)

ASU moving some professor offices to the Arizona Center

Quote:
Tucked in a hotbed of commerce on the foundation of an old high school, it’s only fitting the Arizona Center will open new offices and classrooms as part of an ongoing expansion of the Downtown campus.

The development is nearly complete. Located on the third floor, some of the University’s offices are already open and functional, even though it’s not finished.

In 2013, ASU signed a lease to rent out the space for some facilities there. Soon, the area will open up to students for classes in subjects such as foreign languages and English.

The Arizona Center has been a popular spot not just for students, but for residents from all over downtown. It attracts everyone from sports fans to art gurus on their way to First Fridays every month.

Patrick Panetta, real estate project management director at the University, said the move should help with the many classes at the downtown campus.

In such a busy part of Phoenix, some people may worry that moving offices and classrooms will create an issue with parking, especially with the Phoenix City Council’s decision last month to raise the rate of parking meters in the downtown area.

Panetta said this would not be a problem, because parking spaces accompany the leased space.

Along with Panetta, others seemed optimistic about the new location downtown. English instructor Mark Haunschild is one of these.

“We’re really excited to be in a new place,” Haunschild said.

Although the move will bring the commotion of a busy outdoor mall, Haunschild said even with the surrounding establishments, there wouldn’t be much of a problem.

“Things are more quiet (at the Arizona Center),” Haunschild said. “I think the Arizona Center is far less crowded than Taylor Mall.”

He said they are still working out all the kinks of running a new facility.

“It’s a new location,” Haunschild said. “We’re trying to help direct students through here.”

With the new expansion, the Downtown campus stretches from the Sun Devil Fitness Center on First Avenue over to the Arizona Center at Third Street. It will be the tenth building included in the campus.

Exercise and wellness freshman Darion Leahy is taking an English class this semester that could possibly end up a couple of blocks down the road at the Arizona Center in the future.

“It’s close,” Leahy said. “As long as I have time to get over there, it shouldn’t be a problem.”
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  #1215  
Old Posted Sep 2, 2014, 5:59 PM
Leo the Dog Leo the Dog is offline
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Those date palms at the AZ center look terrible. If over trimmed like that, they will eventually die from their own weight. The trunk narrows and once it begins to grow upwards, that choke point won't be able to hold the weight of the canopy from wind/disease etc.
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  #1216  
Old Posted Sep 2, 2014, 6:08 PM
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Those date palms at the AZ center look terrible. If over trimmed like that, they will eventually die from their own weight. The trunk narrows and once it begins to grow upwards, that choke point won't be able to hold the weight of the canopy from wind/disease etc.
The Arizona Center did something dumb!?
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  #1217  
Old Posted Sep 3, 2014, 9:31 AM
Jjs5056 Jjs5056 is offline
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Fitting that ASU and Arizona Center have teamed up.

It's official... ASU leased 15,000 square feet of ground level space at the Westward Ho- essentially, the entire Central frontage. As noted, access is via a door on Central for ASU only. Gotta love that community integration.

Oh, and the lease is for 15 years.

https://azregents.asu.edu/businessan...Ho%20Lease.pdf
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  #1218  
Old Posted Sep 3, 2014, 8:58 PM
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KEVINphx KEVINphx is offline
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Originally Posted by Jjs5056 View Post
Fitting that ASU and Arizona Center have teamed up.

It's official... ASU leased 15,000 square feet of ground level space at the Westward Ho- essentially, the entire Central frontage. As noted, access is via a door on Central for ASU only. Gotta love that community integration.

Oh, and the lease is for 15 years.

https://azregents.asu.edu/businessan...Ho%20Lease.pdf
THIS IS CRAP - maybe they will also block in all windows facing a public ROW. . . ugh.
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  #1219  
Old Posted Sep 4, 2014, 12:29 AM
Jjs5056 Jjs5056 is offline
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Originally Posted by KEVINphx View Post
THIS IS CRAP - maybe they will also block in all windows facing a public ROW. . . ugh.
(I know you are being sarcastic) I'm sure there won't be much done in the way of making the windows transparent so that at last there's an illusion of activity. Look at the 311 (411?) building- used to have transparent windows into the cafe and bookstore and is now an opaque monstrosity.

I'm sure they'll slap a shiny white ASU somewhere... Maybe on the antenna? They've seriously destroyed the hope for this part of downtown to revitalize. Right next to one of only two clusters of nightlife in all of downtown and with developable lots all around... Why build retail across from a closed off row of classrooms?

It's BS how residents have been completely kicked out of the central part of downtown between the post office and this. To think that this whole floor could've been something had the right person negotiated with the owner- a grocery pre-DeSoto or cocktail parlor pre-Bitter/Twisted would've been fab. Still, out of 15,000 square, they couldn't dedicated ANY portion to public use?
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  #1220  
Old Posted Sep 9, 2014, 12:09 AM
MegaBass MegaBass is offline
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The Sun Devil Trolley (Ollie the Trolley) will be operating between the hours of 7pm-10pm Monday's-Thursday's and will stop at numerous locations throughout campus. ASU ID required to ride.

ASU Mercado NE Corner of 5th Street and Van Buren
School of Nursing NW Corner of 3rd Street and Fillmore
McKinley Lot At Parking Lot on McKinley
Cronkite School/UCENT NW Corner of 1st Street and Fillmore
2nd Avenue Lot On 2nd Avenue parking lot
3rd Avenue Lot On 3rd Avenue parking lot
4th Avenue Lot On 4th Avenue parking lot
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