That lot is the last site on that part of Central for an intense development for a generation and it's a block away from the light rail station.

I don't get how a big box like the twin (at least in massing) to Artisan Lofts they had been expecting would be preferable to a more slender tower project.

Perhaps the argument isn't so much as height but massing, and the developer is proposing some thiccboi like Stewart over there. RAA has been, at least in the past, a fairly reasonable neighborhood association for development.

All of my friends who live there say that you have it backwards. The developer keeps claiming they are "working with the neighborhood." Not really. One meeting to tell everyone how much steel is better than wood without answering questions, and then basically...nothing. If they want the neighborhood on board, don't pretend to talk to folks when you aren't. That lot was supposed to be a mirror building (and was supposed to included amenities that both buildings would share). The Artisan folks have given up on that, but are pretty wary of being told "suck it up, buttercup" and then "we have TRIED talking to them." One or the other, folks. The lot owner seems to propose a bunch of two-phase projects, and then only completes phase one while waiting for the market to heat up. Fine, but don't be surprised when people who believed you aren't just going to roll over so you can make an extra buck.

The 75-foot zoning on that site is dumb. It's surrounded by 250 foot zoning on three sides and a block from light rail. Spot zoning, down or up, makes no sense.

If somebody can build 250 feet at the old spaghetti factory, I don't know what's so special about the lot across the street.

Politics
 

All zoning is sort of dumb that way. As it stands, it's zoned for 75' and the developer is asking to have it amended. That takes a process that's supposed to involve the neighbors. I've seen lots of developers negotiate that successfully, and this one isn't. Maybe he could ask the other developers about how to talk to the neighbors.

Nice video update from Maricopa County on the progress of 225 W Madison.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5R5vVQ26mc

300,000 square feet of regulatory bodies' leased space from around Phoenix will be closed and brought back to "the mothership" once the County Attorney relocates.

Hopefully they can clear out of the securities building! Especially the first floor

This.

The Civil Division of County attorney won't be moving, unfortunately, for the foreseeable future if ever. Madison is already filled I hear. Maricopa County also owns the 222 N. Central building, so there's no lease cost and therefore no real incentive to vacate. Even if County Attorney moved, there are several other County offices in that building including Justice Court Administration, Public Fiduciary, Offices of Legal Advocate and Legal Defender, and County Human Resources.

I'd love for the County to clear out the first floor of the Security building to make for some retail, but that might take a public effort, maybe have the City of Phoenix help encourage them - I hate that the whole facade is essentially dead to the street when historical photos show the building bristling with activity at ground level. There is also a beautifully restored ballroom on the 8th floor and conference room with a rooftop deck on 9 that would be good event spaces if they were open to the public for reservation (I could be wrong about the public availability). The County at least deserves credit for restoring the building and doing a darn fine job of it, however.

tl;dr: 222 N. Central won't be affected much, if at all, by the Madison rehab.

The Ballroom up there was once home to the ASU urban lab, I spent some time in there as an undergrad, Dont know when they left or why, could be a cool spot for high class dining, or an event space as you said, The First floor too would be great for some restaurant facing the street. Hopefully with Kinnnect and Central station and 200 Manore and everything coming online the county will try to get some lease money. I mean the ugly little garage next door is now full in its long dead 1st floor retail pads.

Rose & Crown is moving to the retail fronts facing the lightrail station next to the stadium.

I dont think it will have any charm there without being in the old house but im sure having a pub there will be great for buisness generally even if the atmousphere is dead.

Sort of.

They're going to be operating from inside Coach's Corner which is the sports bar directly behind the light rail station. Sounds more like they'll just be hosting soccer events, to me.

I found this landing video that was posted on 11/9. It's a great aerial showing the up-to-date progress of downtown:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0zofln-oaxQ

^ That video really helps you appreciate the scale of Block 23.

I didn't realize how little the Link is horizontally compared to the rest of the high rises in Phoenix. It's thin on all sides.

Yeah its skinny compared to most buildings in town less than 1/4th of a block.

Just drove by and apartments/homes have been demoed

https://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/arts...t-row-11024955

Finally some news regarding Desert Viking’s Blocks at Roosevelt Row after months of silence. The bungalow housing the paint supply has been demolished but the plans are to move forward with phase 2. Phase two includes the new building between the Flowers building and the recently demolished bungalow and incorporating a restaurant into 909 N 5th St which it sounds like they’ve already secured a tenant for. I’m just glad this project isn’t dead!

Trying to make sense of these. Six FAA evaluations submitted for the Kierland Optima development. Two for cranes at 280'/230' and 4 for buildings at 150'/150'/150' and 127'. I'm assuming that the ones for buildings 1 and 2 are the buildings that are currently completed, just not sure why these were just submitted today (1 and 2 show EXIST). But it looks like two more are coming at 150' each.

Crane at 280': https://oeaaa.faa.gov/oeaaa/external...89958671&row=0

Crane at 230': https://oeaaa.faa.gov/oeaaa/external...89958667&row=1

Building 1 at 150': https://oeaaa.faa.gov/oeaaa/external...89958474&row=4

Building 2 at 150': https://oeaaa.faa.gov/oeaaa/external...89958482&row=3

Building 3 at 150': https://oeaaa.faa.gov/oeaaa/external...89958483&row=2

Building 4 at 127': https://oeaaa.faa.gov/oeaaa/external...89948134&row=5

Wall Street Journal ranks Sky Harbor as the #3 best large airport in the US. As a regular biz traveler, I agree!

https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-bes...d=hp_lead_pos7

Some exerpts:

‘Phoenix, third-best overall, benefited from a low percentage of canceled flights, short average delay and taxi time for departing aircraft and cheap on-site parking rates.

Denver, Phoenix and Orlando are all strong business and leisure destinations that benefit from ample airline service and low fares. All three airports spend heavily on improvements. (Airports in the U.S. can charge each departing passenger $4.50 built into the ticket price. That helps pay for major construction projects.)

Strong Apartment Demand
 

https://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/...ey-latest.html

The primary drivers of multifamily demand are expected to remain firmly in place around the Phoenix metro over the next several quarters, according to a report being released this week by NorthMarq Capital.

This is NorthMarq's first multifamily report, now that Pete O'Neil has taken over as director of research. He moved over from Colliers International, where he had a similar position.

Demand has allowed vacancy rates to remain low, even as new units have come online, he said.

"Multifamily vacancy in the Phoenix market fell 10 basis points in the third quarter, dipping to 5.7 percent," O'Neil said. "The rate is identical to one year ago and has remained in a very tight range since 2016."

As large employers continue to add jobs in the market, Maricopa County is leading the country in annual population growth.

"These new residents will need places to reside, and if current patterns hold, nearly 40 percent of the new households in the Phoenix metro area will choose rental housing," O'Neil said.

The local investment market is expected to remain active through the rest of 2018 and into 2019, he said.

"The renter demand that has kept vacancy tight even as these new developments have come online has buoyed the investment market and should continue to support a healthy investment climate in the coming quarters," he said.

Several investors have said they are very bullish on metro Phoenix, with plans to buy thousands of more units over the next year, including Los Angeles-based Tides Equities LLC and Phoenix-based 3rd Ave Investments.

Looking at new construction, there were about 2,500 multifamily permits pulled during the third quarter, with more than 6,500 permits issued year to date. This represents a 6 percent increase during the same period in 2017.

"Developers are forecast to bring approximately 8,500 new units to the Phoenix market in 2018, down from the nearly 9,000 apartments that came online in 2017," O'Neil said. "Deliveries have averaged 6,300 units per year since 2013."


Good news! Looks like we will continue to be busy discussing many new projects over the coming months.