Phoenix Development News (3)

[HX_Guy]

The lot next to Hanny's has an interesting shape and is quite wide, even without the alley/parking entrance but it's narrower. 44 Monroe is basically 135' x 138' whereas the lot is 200'x115' but really there is an area where it goes down to 99' so that's really as long as you could go. Still though, that's a 19,800 sq ft footprint vs 18,630 of 44 Monroe so I would think it's doable if 44 Monroe could do it, unless that narrow 99' really messes up the turning radius of vehicles.

[Arquitect]

Originally Posted by HX_Guy

The lot next to Hanny's has an interesting shape and is quite wide, even without the alley/parking entrance but it's narrower. 44 Monroe is basically 135' x 138' whereas the lot is 200'x115' but really there is an area where it goes down to 99' so that's really as long as you could go. Still though, that's a 19,800 sq ft footprint vs 18,630 of 44 Monroe so I would think it's doable if 44 Monroe could do it, unless that narrow 99' really messes up the turning radius of vehicles.

I might be wrong, but I think that the southern portion of the lot is considered an alley right-a-way, so there would be a setback that would reduce that 115' dimension. If that is not the case, then that gives a little more room for development. A building wrapping behind Hanny's would be awesome.

[exit2lef]

All of the detail about parking is interesting, but can we think big and envision a project that does not add any parking at all to the existing surplus Downtown? A light rail station is across the street, and there are numerous parking garages within a two block radius. Many are full during the day but not during the evening, making a variety of shared use scenarios possible.

[HX_Guy]

Originally Posted by Arquitect

I might be wrong, but I think that the southern portion of the lot is considered an alley right-a-way, so there would be a setback that would reduce that 115' dimension. If that is not the case, then that gives a little more room for development. A building wrapping behind Hanny's would be awesome.

I don't think the southern portion is part of the alley, I don't think that lot has an alley because as you can see on the 44 Monroe block, the alley isn't included in the parcel outlines.

[RichTempe]

Just a randon pic of downtown from the top of the AZ Center garage:

[rocksteady]

http://www.azcentral.com/community/p...r-culture.html

Glad to see people downtown are looking at things like this to lure more conventions, young people, and more importantly, new residential development. I can't believe the 6th largest city in the country only has 9,000 people living downtown.

We have to start somewhere and I'm happy to see two new breweries opening this year. I've always felt that if Phoenix had a more attractive bar and restaurant scene then residents and tourism will follow. There has been a nice uptick the past couple of years, so lets hope some condo highrises are on the horizon.

[HooverDam]

[QUOTE=rocksteady;6452859]. I can't believe the 6th largest city in the country only has 9,000 people living downtown.

That number sounds WAY high to me actually. That is, if Downtown is defined as 7 to 7, McDowell to Lincoln or so.

Though I guess you'd have to go through and figure out how many units are at all the condo and apartment complexes, what their occupancy is like, etc. But 9K just feels high.

[poconoboy61]

[QUOTE=HooverDam;6452952]

Originally Posted by rocksteady

. I can't believe the 6th largest city in the country only has 9,000 people living downtown.

That number sounds WAY high to me actually. That is, if Downtown is defined as 7 to 7, McDowell to Lincoln or so.

Though I guess you'd have to go through and figure out how many units are at all the condo and apartment complexes, what their occupancy is like, etc. But 9K just feels high.

Agreed, 9,000 is ridiculous. Seeing as the media seems to believe anything between Bethany Home to the 17 and in between 7th Street and 7th Avenue is downtown, I would question what definition they're using here.

[rocksteady]

[QUOTE=poconoboy61;6453068]

Originally Posted by HooverDam

Agreed, 9,000 is ridiculous. Seeing as the media seems to believe anything between Bethany Home to the 17 and in between 7th Street and 7th Avenue is downtown, I would question what definition they're using here.

Then that's even more tragic than I thought. lol

[Arquitect]

I would bet that they are using the area in between the 7's and from McDowell to Lincoln, and I'd venture to say that the 9,000 is probably correct. 9,000 people really isn't that many, and between the apartments, condos, and the neighborhoods within that area, I'd say that 10,000 people wouldn't be too much of a stretch. Still dismal numbers for what should be an urban area.

By the way, along the lines of urban dwelling, the Shemer Art Center on Camelback and Arcadia is having an exhibition called MicroDwell, focusing in minimal living. It is definitely something worth checking out for those of us who advocate for denser living.

Here is the museum's website:

http://www.shemerartcenter.org/

[Sepstein]

If you google population zip .com you can kinda of get a idea! Was surprised how densely populated some areas were not in downtown but west of I-17 from McDowell and northern is around 8500 a square mile

[Leo the Dog]

Madison St jail population (at capacity)? This would add to the DT population figure.

[Jjs5056]

editing.

[ryanmcv]

Originally Posted by rocksteady

http://www.azcentral.com/community/p...r-culture.html

Glad to see people downtown are looking at things like this to lure more conventions, young people, and more importantly, new residential development. I can't believe the 6th largest city in the country only has 9,000 people living downtown.

We have to start somewhere and I'm happy to see two new breweries opening this year. I've always felt that if Phoenix had a more attractive bar and restaurant scene then residents and tourism will follow. There has been a nice uptick the past couple of years, so lets hope some condo highrises are on the horizon.

According to the Downtown Phoenix Partnership's website, the population within a 1 mile radius of 1st Ave & Washington is 16,386. This obviously includes areas that are not technically "downtown," but it helps to put things into perspective.

http://downtownphoenix.com/reports/d...ail-report.pdf

[combusean]

^ That's still 5300 a square mile, a third the density of the ASU student ghetto and less than the density of many mature Phoenix suburbs. Maryvale runs 8000 - 9000 a square mile, some others start around 6k.

[Sepstein]

Zip Atlas.com is the site

[poconoboy61]

It looks like there will be a review tomorrow of the pre-application for "Encore on 2nd," the name of the future development near 2nd Street and Roosevelt. It's good to see some movement, even if it isn't the most ideal proposal.

Also, only a week to the RFP period closes for Central Station. Hopefully we'll see some high quality proposals.

[Jjs5056]

I guess "Encore" is their linen of income-restricted housing for seniors. There are Encores in both Tempe and Mesa, with a second Tempe addition planned for later this year.

They're great projects and you can tell these developers have experience working in city centers by some of the fantastic choices they made. Check out the Encore on Farmer when you get a chance - you'd be impressed.

I wonder if the live/work apartments will be branded separately?

Regarding the RFP for Central station, I wouldn't get your hopes up; at any given time, the city has a ton of projects out for RFP that sit stale ir receive crummy bids. There are several lots along 2nd Abe, the .2nd st lots we've been discussing, and there's upcoming ones for Central, the lot on Aams/Central, Matador retail space, and the Barrister Building.

[Arquitect]

OpEd Piece on AZCentral by the designers of Hance Park:

http://www.azcentral.com/opinions/ar...iewpoints.html

An interesting read on their intent. Doesn't give any specifics on the feel or design of the project, but it is still good to see this get some coverage.

[Arquitect]

Great news on the Hotel Monroe front, they are pushing to have it open before the Super Bowl. Also, an interesting note about how they are going to deal with parking (since we have been talking about that issue in downtown).

An iconic building in downtown Phoenix that has sat vacant for more than two decades is about to get a $40 million makeover, according to its new owners. Movie buffs might recognize the mid-rise tower from the opening scenes of Alfred Hitchcock’s “Psycho.”

The Art Deco building, known as Hotel Monroe, is scheduled to open as a boutique Hilton or Marriott hotel in time for Super Bowl XLIX, which will be played in Glendale on Feb. 1. Minneapolis-based CSM Lodging paid $7.85 million for the 12-story tower in late December.

Built in 1931, the property never has been a hotel — but the last failed plans for it were to transform the office building on the southeastern corner of Central Avenue and Monroe Street into one. No word yet on the new hotel’s name.

Bill Upshaw, president of CSM Lodging, called the property formerly known as the Professional Building a “historic jewel in downtown Phoenix.” His company has experience in renovating old buildings into boutique or high-end hotels, including a 19th century train depot along the Mississippi River into the Depot Renaissance Minneapolis Hotel.

“Our company has a particular love for bringing landmark properties back to life, transforming them into hotel space the public can enjoy, and providing a future of commercial viability,” he said, crediting the city of Phoenix with being helpful with the purchase.

Phoenix has promised to provide some parking for the hotel on a nearby city-owned site and ensured the owners lower property taxes through a government property lease excise tax, known as GPLETs to the Arizona property ownerswho have them. GPLETs allow developers to avoid paying certain property taxes through deals that title their land and buildings to a city with an exclusive right to lease the property back.

source: http://www.azcentral.com/business/re...nclick_check=1