[CrestedSaguaro]

Phoenix has approved a request from TrueNorth for 2 six-month extensions for their 19-story office tower which is apparently to be built in phase 3 of the Ro2 development. I believe this is proposed for the lot on the south-side of Portland between 2nd and 1st Streets.

Developer gets extension for downtown Roosevelt Row high-rise office

By Corina Vanek – Reporter, Phoenix Business Journal
Jan 8, 2020, 9:50am MST Updated Jan 8, 2020, 2:56pm MST

Phoenix City Council approved a request from True North Studio Wednesday afternoon to extend the development timeline of a 19-story office building it has planned for the Roosevelt Row Arts District.

True North Studio was the successful respondent to a city-issued request for proposals in 2017 for redevelopment of the historic Knipe House and six additional parcels near Roosevelt Street. The company proposed building multiple buildings totaling 354,000 square feet of commercial space, 77,000 square feet of retail space and 1,100 parking spaces. The plan included restoring the historic home and turning it into a restaurant. At the time of the proposal, the development was estimated to cost $151 million, according to city documents.

The agreement allowed True North Studio to complete the project in phases:

-The first phase was renovating and preserving the Leighton G. Knipe House, which has since closed and is planned to reopen as a restaurant later this year.

-The development's second phase included buying an acre of land near the Knipe House to develop a five-story, 135,000-square-foot office and retail building. True North Studio received permits for the building and is expected to begin construction soon.

-The third phase, the 19-story office tower, is the subject of the extension request. True North Studio is asking the city for two six-month extensions. The first would allow the company to close escrow by June 15. If True North does not close escrow by then, they would be able to extend the timeline to December 15.

"This is a three-phase project," said Dorina Bustamante of True North Studio. "We have closed on the acquisition of both phase one and phase two. Although phase one is close to completion, both phases have experienced typical construction delays. Therefore, we've asked the city for an extension for the acquisition of phase three."

The whole project, known as the Ro2 development, is part of a major wave of planned developments for True North in the Roosevelt Row area.

So far, the developer has finished building the Cambria hotel on Portland and Third streets and is the landlord for Punch Bowl Social, which is still under construction but has not yet opened despite a planned fall 2019 opening. The firm recently opened two other Roosevelt-area restaurants, Josephine and Coup de Grâce.

The company’s highest-priced purchase, the Ten-O-One office building and accompanying parking lot at Roosevelt Street and Central Avenue, cost $15.25 million and is under renovation. True North Studio plans to create the “land yacht club” around the parking garage, which will have Airstream trailers surrounding the garage in what is envisioned as housing for artists.

True North, led by Jonathon Vento, is also the developer of the planned Meow Wolf hotel and art exhibition, which was announced in early 2019.

Source: https://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/...-downtown.html