Glendale/West Valley Development Thread

[Obadno]

Originally Posted by ASU Diablo

Development starting to finally pick up in Glendale. 2 15-story apartment towers going up near State Farm Stadium...

https://www.azcentral.com/story/news...um/8138984001/

Any Renderings? Article is behind a paywall

[ASU Diablo]

Originally Posted by Obadno

Any Renderings? Article is behind a paywall

Nah just the site map I posted

[ASU Diablo]

Still mind-boggling that a $1B project is going up in Glendale and West Valley! Should be an awesome resort...

https://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/...na-lagoon.html

VAI Global Development, a newly formed entity that’s behind the planned $1 billion resort and lagoon entertainment complex in the Phoenix metro, has unveiled new details about the project that’s now set to open in late 2023.

The 60-acre Glendale resort will include the soon-to-be largest hotel in Arizona with 1,200 rooms, a 360-degree concert stage, a dozen restaurants and a 6-acre lagoon. The Sheraton Downtown Phoenix is currently the largest hotel in the state with more than 1,000 rooms.

Named after the words vitality and Wai, which is known as fresh water in Hawaiian, the resort aims to become a premier international destination featuring day and nightlife entertainment in a “experiential” hospitality setting.

“[Arizona] has always been home for me and it’s always been a market that really hasn’t been tapped into when it comes to this large-scale resort,” Grant Fisher, president and co-owner of VAI Global Development, told the Business Journal. “Choosing a city like Glendale that’s so pro-growth and you see the way Phoenix is trending, everything is pushing west, it was such a good opportunity as far as regionally, that’s why we chose Arizona.”

Edit: According to AZ Central article, it has recently topped out as well and opening up late 2023. AZ Central also has more renderings (and probably not behind a paywall)

https://www.azcentral.com/story/news...s/10528938002/

[ChaseM]

Steinhauer Properties the developer chosen by the city of Peoria to develop Stadium Point at P83 released updated renderings on their site.
https://steinhauerproperties.com/pro...stadium-point/

[Obadno]

After all this time the west valley is finally getting some height.

[skiesthelimit]

Flew in from Chicago right over all the stadium area development and thought ya’ll would appreciate some pictures from above!

Northern Development


Resort Development

[ASU Diablo]

Hopefully this doesn't get too political but I'm glad the report was released, offering full-transparency into future water availability in the Buckeye area.

Building further out West is about to get more expensive...

https://www.azcentral.com/story/news...x/69796936007/

A newly released state report on groundwater supplies under the desert west of Phoenix signals difficulty ahead for developers wishing to build hundreds of thousands of homes there.

It also signals the start of an effort by Arizona’s new governor to shore up groundwater management statewide. Gov. Katie Hobbs released the modeling report Monday afternoon, and it shows that plans to add homes for more than 800,000 people west of the White Tank Mountains will require other water sources if they are to go forward.

The Arizona Department of Water Resources had developed the model showing inadequate water for much of the development envisioned as far-west suburbs, but had not released it during then-Gov. Doug Ducey’s term. Hobbs mentioned it during her State of the State address, along with other initiatives, including a new council dedicated to updating the state’s 1980 groundwater protection act for a new era of scarcity.

[muertecaza]

Originally Posted by ASU Diablo

Hopefully this doesn't get too political but I'm glad the report was released, offering full-transparency into future water availability in the Buckeye area.

Building further out West is about to get more expensive...

https://www.azcentral.com/story/news...x/69796936007/

Yeah, if nothing else I'm glad to see the 100-year requirement being enforced.

[ChaseM]

I know Peoria has been trying to revitalize Downtown to be more like Downtown Chandler and Gilbert but they seem to get a lot of pushback from people in that area. I wonder if they should focus on making the Arrowhead/P83 area their new Downtown, it just makes more sense since that’s where a lot of the investment and development seems to be heading.

[az_daniel]

Originally Posted by ChaseM

I know Peoria has been trying to revitalize Downtown to be more like Downtown Chandler and Gilbert but they seem to get a lot of pushback from people in that area. I wonder if they should focus on making the Arrowhead/P83 area their new Downtown, it just makes more sense since that’s where a lot of the investment and development seems to be heading.

"Downtown" Peoria has been so thoroughly gutted that it effectively no longer exists. With the city's most recent demolition of the century old Edwards Hotel in 2021, there is simply nothing left. Turning around and wanting revitalization under an "old town" moniker seems a bit disingenuous, IMO. I hope I am wrong but the city has done so much damage that it will take a herculean effort to see even 1/4 of the success of Gilbert and Chandler.

[combusean]

The downtown isn't going away. It will always have that weird mix of land uses and parcels, the city government is still there, and there are a lot more historic buildings than I ever realized. If commuter rail ever comes through, it'll likely stop there as well. There's also a LOT of vacant land not near single family homes that could support higher density than the city typically sees. It would be a shame for the city to let the area continue to decline.

[ChaseM]

Stadium Point looks like its becoming more official as the project officially has its own website and a nice video overview of the project

https://stadiumpoint.com

[Obadno]

After years and years of slow progress ASU announced a big expansion for West Campus including 500 new beds, a new academic building and new colleges to be housed at the campus. They want to triple the student count from 5k to 15k

For years, much of the nearly 300 acres at Arizona State University's West Campus in Glendale has sat vacant as the public university continued to invest millions of dollars in its other three campuses across metro Phoenix.

But now, plans call for construction of a $33.5 million academic building on West Campus totaling 55,000 square feet, according to documents on file with the Arizona Board of Regents, which oversees the three state public universities.

This 4-story building will include student gallery space, computer labs, drawing labs, faculty offices and future growth spaces for the campus.

ASU also has clearance from ABOR to sign a ground lease with American Campus Communities Inc., which will build student housing on 2.36 acres at the southeast corner of 49th Avenue and Verde Mall on West Campus. ASU retains the right to lease all or a portion of the facility at an annual cost exceeding $1 million, according to ABOR minutes.

The 134,264-square-foot residence hall will include 500 beds.

ASU's West Campus has 5,000 students, with plans to triple that to 15,000.

As part of its growth strategy ASU West is launching three new schools this fall: The School of Technology, Innovation and Entrepreneurship within the W.P. Carey School of Business; The School of Interdisciplinary Forensics in the New College of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences; and The School of Integrated Engineering in the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering.

ASU also will create the Education Complex at ASU, which will be part of the Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College, creating a space for collaboration on new ideas and educational innovation through social embeddedness.

ASU planned a groundbreaking ceremony at the West Campus, at 4701 W. Thunderbird Road in Glendale, on March 29. Scheduled speakers included ASU President Michael Crow, Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs, Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego and ABOR Regent Larry Penley.

[MiEncanto]

I was out at ASU West a few months ago for an event and was impressed. It looks wayyy nicer than I had remembered from like 10 years ago. It honestly feels like a legit college campus and should be a great asset for the West side.

Too bad it's not an actual separate college that could offer D2 sports cuz that's really what this state lacks and it pisses me off, but that's another discussion....

[Obadno]

Originally Posted by MiEncanto

I was out at ASU West a few months ago for an event and was impressed. It looks wayyy nicer than I had remembered from like 10 years ago. It honestly feels like a legit college campus and should be a great asset for the West side.

Too bad it's not an actual separate college that could offer D2 sports cuz that's really what this state lacks and it pisses me off, but that's another discussion....

It is a nice little campus probably the nicest in the City. Originally they wanted to try to copy the UC system and have several independent AZ schools with Tempe/Downtown being the primary.

They have not yet hit that vision and still treat Polytech and West as satellite campuses, but I think both are big enough to start the process of making them independent if ABOR will allow it.

I still wish MCC would become Mesa College or Mesa University its big enough and offers 4year degrees, Same thing with Glendale and Chandler/gilbert.

What is crazy is between AZ Christian, GCU and ASU West that whole part of Glendale has the highest concentration of higher education in the city or will soon. Should be interesting to see how that changes the area over the next several decades.

[MiEncanto]

Originally Posted by Obadno

It is a nice little campus probably the nicest in the City. Originally they wanted to try to copy the UC system and have several independent AZ schools with Tempe/Downtown being the primary.

They have not yet hit that vision and still treat Polytech and West as satellite campuses, but I think both are big enough to start the process of making them independent if ABOR will allow it.

I still wish MCC would become Mesa College or Mesa University its big enough and offers 4year degrees, Same thing with Glendale and Chandler/gilbert.

What is crazy is between AZ Christian, GCU and ASU West that whole part of Glendale has the highest concentration of higher education in the city or will soon. Should be interesting to see how that changes the area over the next several decades.

The reason it never became like the UC system is Crow. He regularly brags about how inefficient it would be to have multiple colleges and it's far better for him to control everything. He may be right about efficiency but it also just feels like a lack of diversity in types of higher ed experiences.

Now that comm colleges can do 4 year degrees I hope some of them spin off into a small liberal arts college with D2 sports. I think EAC in Safford would be cool, perhaps Central AZ near Coolidge. Everyone is hyper focused on technical training these days but we're still gonna need normal undergrads and it would be nice to have some mid sized schools and not everyone trying to be a large research university.

Every time I see a kid who is good at sports leave AZ to play at some small Midwest or East coast D2 school it pisses me off.

[xymox]

Originally Posted by MiEncanto

The reason it never became like the UC system is Crow. He regularly brags about how inefficient it would be to have multiple colleges and it's far better for him to control everything. He may be right about efficiency but it also just feels like a lack of diversity in types of higher ed experiences.

Now that comm colleges can do 4 year degrees I hope some of them spin off into a small liberal arts college with D2 sports. I think EAC in Safford would be cool, perhaps Central AZ near Coolidge. Everyone is hyper focused on technical training these days but we're still gonna need normal undergrads and it would be nice to have some mid sized schools and not everyone trying to be a large research university.

Every time I see a kid who is good at sports leave AZ to play at some small Midwest or East coast D2 school it pisses me off.

There was talk not too long about about using ASU West as the 'free' public 4 year university to satisfy the state constitutional requirements around that. (IIRC there was some pending lawsuit around that and that was the proposed solution) But seeing how they are moving big schools to the ASU West site, seems like that is unlikely now.

[azliam]

Construction is set for another (Desert Diamond) West Valley casino on the southeast corner of Northern Parkway and the 303:

https://www.abc15.com/news/business/...-valley-casino

[combusean]

I thought the Reservation expansion would have generated similar controversy... is this part of the existing deal, do they have more land to acquire still or what?

[MiEncanto]

Originally Posted by azliam

Construction is set for another (Desert Diamond) West Valley casino on the southeast corner of Northern Parkway and the 303:

https://www.abc15.com/news/business/...-valley-casino

I can't wait for the paid consultants to start talking about the economic development benefits and multipliers! Despite basically every thoughtful academic study showing that gambling and casinos are definitely NOT real economic development. Which seems pretty obvious considering nothing of value is being created and it's mostly a bunch of folks just moving some limited discretionary dollars around in the economy.

I'm totally opposed to most limitations on gambling- it's a free country. But I hate it when people try to act like it's a factory going in or economic multipliers. I do think it's kinda sad when you see social security checks burning themselves in casinos, which is a serious source of their revenue.