AZRE November/December 2020

NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 2020

AIA AWARDS

p40

Press Roastery

Architect: The Construction Zone, Ltd. Contractor: The Construction Zone, Ltd.

INSIDE:

Healthcare Building Trends p. 28 | AAED p. 49

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2020: It wasn’t all bad

L

ike everyone around the country, I am sure looking forward to the day when COVID won’t come up in conversation, or in a story I’m working on.

The pandemic has defined 2020 and will be a defining period in our country’s history for the impact — both in lives lost and livelihoods affected — it had across the country. There can be no diminishing the tremendous loss people in the United States have endured in 2020, and we can only hope to be better equipped to handle the next pandemic.

If you narrow your focus down to how Arizona’s economic development sector performed in 2020, the news is not all negative. In fact, you could almost say that 2020 was a success in terms of growth in Arizona.

In this issue, we take a look at the Arizona Association for Economic Development and how this group managed to grow and evolve during the COVID-19 Pandemic. We barely scratch the surface of the amount of company expansions and relocations in our Arizona Wins feature, which includes news from around the state. We didn’t have the editorial space to include all of the economic activity that is happening around the state. According to figures compiled by the hard working folks at the Greater Phoenix Economic Council, there were 7,434 jobs created by companies moving into or expanding their operations in the Valley. And, those companies have leased or built more than 6.4 million square feet of space.

This edition also takes a look at the latest and greatest healthcare facilities that are opening throughout the Valley. In all, there were six different facilities in the Greater Phoenix market that opened this fall and there are more under construction.

By all indications, Arizona heads into 2021 with a solid amount of forward momentum, with many people and companies looking at the state as a place to prosper. The pandemic may have slowed Arizona’s growth, but the train is picking up steam as 2020 ends.

President and CEO: Michael Atkinson Publisher: Amy Lindsey Vice president of operations: Audrey Webb EDITORIAL Editor in chief: Michael Gossie Associate editors: Steve Burks | Alyssa Tufts Intern: Christa Freer Contributing writer: Carrie Kelly ART Art director: Mike Mertes Design director: Bruce Andersen MARKETING/EVENTS Marketing designer: Heather Barnhill OFFICE Special projects manager: Sara Fregapane Executive assistant: Brandi Collins Database solutions manager: Amanda Bruno AZRE | ARIZONA COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE Director of sales: Ann McSherry AZ BUSINESS MAGAZINE Senior account managers: David Harken | April Rice Account manager: Sharon Swanson AZ BUSINESS ANGELS AZ BUSINESS LEADERS Director of sales: Sheri Brown EXPERIENCE ARIZONA | PLAY BALL Director of sales: Laura Schwartz RANKING ARIZONA Director of sales: Sheri King

Steve Burks Associate editor, AZRE steve.burks@azbigmedia.com

2 | November-December 2020

AZRE: Arizona Commercial Real Estate is published bi-monthly by AZ BIG Media, 3101 N. Central Ave., Suite 1070, Phoenix, Arizona 85012, (602)277-6045. The publisher accepts no responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts, photographs or artwork. Submissions will not be returned unless accompanied by a SASE. Single copy price $3.95. Bulk rates available. ©2020 by AZ BIG Media. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from AZ BIG Media.

AT A GLANCE

15

2005

2020

Celebrating YEARS as one of Arizona’s largest Exclusive Healthcare Design Firms

Annual workload consistently comprised of

95% REPEAT CLIENTS

The industries leader in

11 35+ 550+

Registered ARCHITECTS Dedicated EMPLOYEES Projects Overall

Innovative & Inclusive Healthcare Design techniques.

480.471.8267 www.archsolteam.com

CONTENTS

FEATURES 2 Editor’s Letter 6 Trendsetters 10 Executive Profile 12 After Hours 14 New to Market 16 Big Deals

49

20 Legislative Update 22 Education

24 Transportation

14

28 Healthcare 40 AIA Awards

49 AAED

40

On the cover: Press Roastery

Architect: The Construction Zone, Ltd. Contractor: The Construction Zone, Ltd.

4 | November-December 2020

GO TO store.azBIGmedia.com to purchase subscriptions, digital issues and plaques

28

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TRENDSETTERS

10

STORY CANVAS

Arizona’s tallest precast parking structure will bring more than 2,000 new parking spaces to midtown Phoenix to support the Park Central revitalization.

But the new $38 million Catalina Parking Garage is going to be a lot more than that.

The project’s development team has selected an artist team consisting of Diana Calderón, Edgar Fernandez and Miguel Godoy to create a massive new set of murals on the south side of the garage. Titled “The New Archive,” the new murals will decorate six 21-foot by 10-foot panels, a more than 1,260-square-foot surface which will become one of the largest public art installations in Arizona. Forty-six artists responded to the Call for Artists sent out over the summer

by Artlink, Park Central’s partner 501(c)(3) organization serving the arts.

The new murals are designed to fit a vision to celebrate the history of Arizona, the heart of the community and neighborhood, the mid-century-modern architecture and the mix of healthcare, education, technology, and businesses in the area. Embedded in the mural are four key words that speak to the core values of both the project and the community — Community, Education, Health, Equity.

Plaza Companies and Holualoa Companies are teaming up to redevelop Park Central, and the new 10-story, 551,750-square-foot garage was constructed on the south side of Park Central to accommodate the growing use of the property as a central Phoenix mixed-use destination.

Sundt praised for light rail work

to expand Valley Metro’s capacity and being acknowledged for the work is very rewarding.”

The construction manager at risk project added 1.9 miles to the existing 26-mile Valley Metro rail system. The work included Engineering News-Record (ENR) Southwest adding two new stations and expanding the selected Valley Metro’s Gilbert Road Light light rail on Main Street in Mesa from just Rail extension as the best project in its east of Mesa Drive to Gilbert Road. Public art highway/bridges category for 2020. ENR is installations were added at the new stations the construction industry’s principal trade and the Main Street and Gilbert Road station’s publication.

“Our team, along with our partner Stacy and park-and-ride facility. Additional work on the Witbeck, are very proud of this achievement,” project included utility relocation, overhead power conversion to underground duct bank, said Chris Elison, Project Manager for drainage improvements and landscape work.

Sundt’s Transportation Group. “Being able Gilbert Road Light Rail Extension By the numbers:

1.9

3 650

9,000

CLEAN SWEEP Thoma-Holec Design swept the top three awards in the Best Commercial Senior Living category at the American Society of Interior Designers Arizona North chapter’s 2020 Design Excellence Awards. In all, Thoma-Holec Design collected six awards.

Here are the categories and awards given to Thoma-Holec Design projects: Best Commercial Senior Living First Place: MorningStar at Santa Fe (Santa Fe, NM) Second Place: LivGenerations Pinnacle Peak (Scottsdale) Third Place: MorningStar at Rio Rancho (Rio Rancho, NM)

Best Healthcare Facility First Place: LivGenerations Pinnacle Peak – Memory Care (Scottsdale) Best Hospitality Facility Third Place: HarborChase of Prince William Commons (Woodbridge, VA)

YEARS TO COMPLETE TONS OF RAIL INSTALLED

CUBIC YARDS OF CONCRETE POURED

910,000

Best Singular or Special Function Space First Place: LivGenerations Pinnacle Peak (Scottsdale)

6 | November-December 2020

MILES ADDED

POUNDS OF REBAR PLACED

Single-family rental market booming during pandemic

The National Rental Home Council and John Burns Real Estate Consulting released their market index on the singlefamily rental market and it showed strong growth during the pandemic. The single-family rental market index rose to 76 (on a 0-100 scale) in the second quarter of 2020, up from 63 in the first quarter. The report found that key drivers of the market’s expansion include high occupancy rates for singlefamily rental homes and rising consumer demand for extra space away from dense urban centers.

Other report highlights were: • The Southeast and Southwest (including Arizona) were

seeing most growth.

• Occupancy rates jumped 15 percent from first, to

second quarter • 60 percent of operators report homes are spending less

time on market, up from 35 percent in first quarter • Projected index was at 75 for the next six months, a more

than 20 point jump year over year

Rent’s Due Marcus & Millichap released a Special Report that examined the second quarter rent collections in the various property types across the country. It was no surprise that retail properties (single-tenant and multitenant) fared the worst of all product types, with 74.3 percent of multi-tenant properties meeting obligations in the second quarter.

Medical office was the best performing product type, with 99.8 percent of tenants staying current on rent obligations.

SmartAsset released a study that sought to determine the best cities where renters can afford to live alone.

The study compared the 100 largest U.S. cities across five metrics: average rent for a unit with fewer than two bedrooms, percentage of housing units with fewer than two bedrooms, median earnings for full-time workers, cost of living and unemployment rate.

Cincinnati took the top spot in the study for the third year in a row, while Tucson held on to the No. 4 spot. According to the report, Tucson fared well in three of the metrics, average rent for a unit with fewer than two bedrooms ($628), annual cost of living (roughly $19,600) and May 2020 unemployment rate (8.4 percent).

Two other Arizona cities were in the top 25, with Glendale at 19 and Phoenix in a tie at 23.

2Q Rent Collections Vary by Property Type Med. Office Multifamily Office Industrial ST Retail MT Retail Payments Made 60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Note: Includes publicly traded U.S. equity real estate investment trusts that disclosed the percentage of second quarter collections in July 2020 earnings releases

7

TRENDSETTERS How

“The New Normal”

will effect office space demands

CBRE released a Viewpoint report for the U.S. office sector that looked at the potential impact that remote working will have on office demand.

The report stated that, “for the real estate professional, the questions can be grouped into two main categories: the future of office density, and the share of office workers who will work remotely, either fulltime or part-time.”

The findings of the report were that the impact of remote working on office demand may be minimal, as some companies will actually add space in order to reduce workplace density. CBRE’s findings assume a 15 percent increase in remote working and a 15 percent increase in office space per worker due to social distancing, leading to only a 2 percent decrease in overall office demand.

DATA CENTER SECTOR

HOLDING

STRONG

Market attracting office attention

Phoenix’s business-friendly environment and diverse workforce continues to attract new tenants to the market and support existing companies as they develop short- and long-term strategies in the new pandemic economy, according to the new JLL Q3 Phoenix Office Insight Report.

According to the report, the Phoenix market posted just over 300,000 square feet of positive absorption during the third quarter and average asking rents increased Change in Vacancy Rate by from $28.05 in Q2 to $28.29 in Q3. At the Scenario in the Next 3 Years same time, office activity remains slower than this time last year, with tenants seeing Working Remotely Increase in Space

more landlord concessions and underIncrease from per Worker

construction space holding steady at just Pre-pandemic, % (relative to base)

under 1.9 million square feet, with no new Base A 10% B 15% C 20% D

projects breaking ground at this time.

Baseline a sluggish first half 1 1.1 -1.2 -2.4 -3.6 Despite

of 2020,

the Phoenix office market showed signs 10% Increase 2 3.7 1.5 0.4 -0.8 of growth during the third quarter. The 15% Increase 3 5.0 2.9 1.8 0.7 Chandler

led the way in Q3

submarket with over 176,000

square feet of net gains

20% Increase 4 6.4 4.4 3.3 2.2

coming from the finance and insurance sectors. The Tempe submarket was a close second experiencing over 100,000 square feet of occupancy growth.

The fundamentals of a business friendly environment, along with a diverse workforce, continues to stir interest in Phoenix as an attractive metro area to relocate and expand. While office transaction activity is slower than a year ago, interest from out of market occupiers could be an indication of green shoots ahead.

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and newer

entrants Stack and Vantage have yet to begin on their major campuses.

Vacancy has now tightened to nine percent, and rumors of enterprises and cloud services moving workloads from higher cost areas abound.

The major land rush that has descended on Phoenix since 2018 DATA CENTER CONSTRUCTION UPDATE FOR PHOENIX MARKET has moved into a new phase, as data center operators turn toward leasing newly-constructed and await

space

the potential local OPERATOR LOCATION SIZE (SF) POWER COMPLETED developments of Microsoft and Google.

According to the Cushman Goodyear 418,200 4.5 MW Q3 2020

Stream Data Centers

& Wakefield Summer 2020 Data Center Update, the first half of

Phoenix Aligned Energy 100,000 13 MW Under Construction

2020 was the best half of absorption on record

for the Phoenix

Stack Infrastructure

Avondale 1 million 150 MW Planning stages market, with 27 MW taken up from a mix of interested parties.

This

Vantage

Goodyear 250,000 32 MW Planning stages outpaces the currently space active

under construction, although

most local operators have extensive land banks for further phases, Source: Cushman & Wakefield’s Data Center Advisory Group

8 | November-December 2020

COVID as a job creator

LOCAL FIRM THRIVING IN PANDEMIC With the residential housing market across Arizona and the U.S. experiencing steady growth despite COVID-19, Earthworks Environmental LLC has seen an increase in business of 20 percent compared to a year ago.

The Mesa-based woman/minority-owned environmental compliance firm operates in Arizona, Florida, Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Ohio, Iowa, Wisconsin, Indiana, Illinois, Minnesota and Texas. The firm primarily serves land developers, vertical developers, commercial construction and land-holding companies.

“Our growth has been impressive considering we haven’t added any new states,” said Earthworks Environmental Principal Cherie Koester. “It’s several things.

The market is there across the country.

Interest rates are low. In Arizona, people

are moving here from other states. We’re also seeing more projects and home builders here.”

Koester said the firm is consulting on nearly 900 permits nationally, including more than 500 in Arizona. She said her firm hired a new employee whose sole job is to apply for the new Arizona Department of Air Quality (ADEQ) construction general permit (CGP).

“We’re active in Arizona now from Flagstaff to Bisbee,” Koester said.

Earthworks Environmental employs a proprietary program, ERX, a reporting software program that puts all aspects of environmental compliance into one program. This includes any permits and inspections. Koester said nearly 75 percent of the violations in her industry occur in the paperwork process.

“ERX can adapt to changes and is very customizable,” she said. “There is no program out there that has that capacity.”

A growing pipeline of ground-up and tenant improvement business — combined with ongoing COVID-related precautions — has prompted Stevens-Leinweber Construction, Inc. (SLC) to create a new position focused on quality control and safety.

Terry Pagano has been promoted from Superintendent to Quality Assurance Manager to assume the new role.

“The quality and safety requirements of today’s construction industry are evolving quickly. This new position puts StevensLeinweber ahead of that curve – helping us manage everything from our response to the current COVID pandemic to our long-term integration of technology and our ability to capitalize on market expansion opportunities,” said SLC President and CEO Jamie Godwin. “Terry brings a tremendous attention to detail and a strong understanding of process improvement to this new role. His skills will be a notable asset in the months and years ahead.”

In his new position, Pagano develops standardized quality plans for SLC and oversees their implementation based on each job’s specific requirements. He is also taking on progressive responsibility for SLC’s safety initiatives. This includes creating official COVID-related plans ranging from facemask, hygiene and temperature screening policies to job site sign-in protocols that support effective tracking and tracing.

Pagano additionally serves as an in-house resource for employees, providing guidance on COVID self-monitoring and testing.

9

EXECUTIVE PROFILE

Still opening doors Andersen has found success on second continent

By STEVE BURKS

A

s a young professional working his way up the ranks of the London real estate market, Jackob Andersen didn’t have to open many doors by himself.

“Every job I had as a young man I was head-hunted for, I never sought, which I think tells a story in itself,” said Andersen, who grew up in England and began his professional career in London. “The respect I had learned by going to an English boarding school was what I portrayed to the people that I worked for, and they picked up on that very quickly and they empowered me to be the best employee I could be and that gave me drive to work harder for them.”

That drive was noticed by other companies, making Andersen a much sought-after person. He was, however, very savvy in the way he handled his career, careful to treat everyone with professionalism and respect, coming or going.

“Treat everyone as you wish to be treated and that has led me to always have solid professional relationships,” Andersen said. “The door was always open for me to come back. Yes, people were angry or annoyed that I was head-hunted and went somewhere else, but that was to further my career and they understood it. They remained my friends, those people, and still do to this day.

“You should never shut the door behind you, as it were, because you never know what is going to happen in life and you might want to open that door up again.”

As a successful 26-year old in London, Andersen had no idea where life would take him when he accompanied his father on a cruise through the Carribbean in 1999. It was on that cruise that Andersen met his

10 | November-December 2020

future wife Jamie, an Arizona State University student and Mesa native, an event that would bring him across the pond and out west to become a success on another continent.

Andersen started from scratch when he arrived in Arizona in 2004, noting, “I came here as a 31-year-old man and that is a whole new start in life. Rather than having established a career for 11 years over in England and knowing a boatload of people in Central London, I went to knowing absolutely nobody. So that’s a tough one.”

At the time, the Arizona economy was booming and real estate was leading the way.

“When I got here in 2004, the market was rocking and rolling,” Andersen said. “It was amazing how little help was out there for anyone, even friends and family, because everyone and their mother was a realtor, everyone was in the real estate business, money was fluid and no one needed help from anyone. I just had to find my own path.”

Andersen’s real estate skills and personality that he fine-tuned in London quickly became apparent, as he started his own company, Saint Holdings, and now 16 years later is one of the biggest developers in Pinal County and Arizona. His ability to know just where to be and who to talk to led to the arrival of a Tractor Supply Company distribution center to the Central Arizona Commerce Park in Casa Grande, a Saint Holdings development.

His personal connections with people helped draw Lucid Motors to Central Arizona Commerce Park and his self-ambition and drive led the way for Nikola Motors to choose Inland Port Arizona in Coolidge as their new manufacturing home.

While all of these successful ventures are great for Pinal County and the state of Arizona, it wasn’t all sunshine for Andersen and Saint Holdings. There were plenty of years with very little activity on the thousands of acres of land that the company owned and were developing in the region.

“It takes lots of patience and you can’t be disheartened when something doesn’t go your way, you have to just keep plugging at it,” Andersen said. “If you’re a glass half empty person and see things on the negative side all of the time, land and land development is probably not for you.”

Andersen, who is always moving forward with a positive attitude, has been rewarded for his patience as he maneuvered his way through the real estate world in Arizona.

And his work has produced and will continue to produce developments that will positively impact the lives of thousands of people in the communities where he works.

“Having companies like Lucid increasing the GDP of the county by 33 percent, is pretty nice for the population of Pinal County,” Andersen said. “And the jobs that are going to be created for their children and their grandchildren and the spinoffs from that will have a lasting effect.”

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AFTER HOURS

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Restoring homes and restoring hope

KARL OBERGH: Shown speaking during a Central Arizona Shelter Services event, Obergh is a board member for organization that helps the homeless community.

By CHRISTA FREER

I

f there is one word to describe Karl Obergh, it is passionate. He is a husband and father of two, the CEO of Ritoch-Powell and Associates, a philanthropist and he’s spent a majority of his life restoring historic properties in Flagstaff and Phoenix.

The excitement and joy that he pours into all of his projects is self-evident.

Obergh has been restoring historic buildings since he was a teenager, mentored by his stepfather at the time.

12 | November-December 2020

He prides himself on being able to update a building to current codes and accommodate for modern conveniences while still maintaining the structural, architectural and interior integrity of the building. The home he currently lives in with his family is a perfect example of this: built in 1916, the home was at one time converted into a 6-plex but Obergh and his wife Di An were able to revert it back to a single family home that has been featured

in The Arizona Republic and on the Roosevelt Neighborhood Historic Home Tour in Phoenix.

Obergh paid his way through college by restoring historic buildings in Flagstaff with his stepfather Robert Dalegowski. Civil engineering was a way for them to really connect with one another, and the work they did together in Flagstaff would later provide valuable insight into Obergh’s future business endeavors.

KARL OBERGH: Obergh is shown an event where Amazon made a donation to Central Arizona Shelter Services.

“We would do the projects that everybody just couldn’t do because they didn’t know what the risks were and we would go ahead and take them,” he says. “It was a challenge. That kind of helped me with my own businesses, having to solve problems super quick but taking the risks and understanding the challenges and what needs to happen to make a project successful.”

After earning his degree in civil engineering from Northern Arizona University, Obergh joined the ranks at Ritoch-Powell and Associates, an awardwinning engineering and surveying company based in Phoenix. Some of Ritoch-Powell’s featured projects include the Desoto Central Market in Phoenix, Desert Trails Bike Park in Mesa and Pioneer Community Park in Peoria. Currently they’re working on inspections at Phoenix Sky Harbor airport and a variety of roadway and transportation projects, including the Phoenix light rail system. The company is also taking charge of the Barrister Building’s restoration and redevelopment in Downtown Phoenix.

Something that Obergh has been passionate about regarding his work with Ritoch-Powell is making sure that county-wide civil planning standards are ADA compliant.

“Seventy percent of us in the world are going to have some sort of disability, right?” he says. “So we need to design while we’re capable now.”

He emphasizes the importance of designing a city with its most vulnerable population in mind, focusing on multimodal transportation: “On the sidewalks we need to make sure there isn’t any vertical separation between the concrete panels because a wheelchair might not be able to get over it, or a person that has some visual issues or disability doesn’t trip over it,” he says. “A lot of people don’t think about it because they don’t think they’re going to be the ones in that situation.”

Helping people is something that Obergh is particularly dedicated to. He

was homeless for most of his childhood and his family’s history with mental illness is something that drives him: “Sometimes this stuff is in your DNA,” he says. “I decided that I needed to be, instead of embarrassed about it, a poster child about it. So I talked about it and I started helping people.”

He started looking into statistics of those who suffer from mental illness or disorders and began focusing on the homeless and transient community. He joined the board of directors at Central Arizona Shelter Services (CASS), a non profit organization that has been serving the Phoenix area for 35 years. CASS helps to stabilize homeless individuals and advance community solutions to homelessness. Their programs include emergency shelters, employment training and job-seeking resources, rapid re-housing assistance and more.

Working in conjunction with CASS,

Obergh and CASS CEO Lisa Glow have been busy developing a program to assist the transient population of Phoenix.

Obergh explains that a transient person is not necessarily homeless and that there is a problem of criminals hiding amongst the transient and homeless communities. Their main goal right now is to separate the homeless and transient people from one another and assist them as quickly as possible. Obergh recognizes that a mental and physical decline is somewhat inevitable the longer someone stays on the streets: “We need to start separating and helping with any addictions and why they have those addictions, how we can help with those addictions, any mental health, illness or disorders,” he says. “You’d be surprised how many people, if we can pull them out, we can fix them. And then once we do that we can separate the criminal element from that.”

13

NEW TO MARKET A

D

E

SENIOR LIVING A SPRINGS AT COOLEY STATION DEVELOPER: Continental Properties GENERAL CONTRACTOR: McShane Construction Company ARCHITECT: Phillips Partnership LOCATION: 4210 E. Williams Field Rd., Gilbert SIZE: 276 units on 14 acres VALUE: WND START/COMPLETION: September 2020/ Q1 2022

14 | November-December 2020

MUNICIPAL B SOUTHEAST JUSTICE COURTS AND ADULT PROBATION COURT DEVELOPER: Maricopa County GENERAL CONTRACTOR: Johnson Carlier ARCHITECT: Gould Evans LOCATION: 222 E. Javelina Dr., Mesa SIZE: 109,000 SF VALUE: $27 million START/COMPLETION: September 2020/ Q1 2022

MEDICAL OFFICE C AUVIANA DEVELOPER: Jason Mussman MD, Regency Specialties GENERAL CONTRACTOR: FWD Partners ARCHITECT: Edifice BROKER: Colliers International in Arizona LOCATION: 14753 W. Mountain View Blvd., Surprise SIZE: 52,000 SF VALUE: WND START/COMPLETION: October 2019/ October 2020

C

B

F

INDUSTRIAL D LANDING 3 DEVELOPER: Marwest Enterprises, LLC GENERAL CONTRACTOR: Willmeng Construction ARCHITECT: Ware Malcomb ENGINEER: Hunter Engineering BROKER: CBRE LOCATION: 7827 E. Ray Rd., Mesa SIZE: 525,000 SF VALUE: WND START/COMPLETION: August 2020/Q3 2021

OFFICE E 101 NORTH RENOVATION DEVELOPER: ScanlanKemperBard and Black Salmon GENERAL CONTRACTOR: StevensLeinweber Construction, Inc. ARCHITECT: Nelsen Partners BROKER: JLL LOCATION: 101 N. 1st St., Phoenix SIZE: Approximately 30,000 SF VALUE: WND START/COMPLETION: September 2020/ Q2 2021

INDUSTRIAL F 101 LOGISTICS PARK DEVELOPER: Seefried Industrial Properties and Crow Holding Capital Real Estate GENERAL CONTRACTOR: Wespac Construction Inc. ARCHITECT: DLR Group BROKER: JLL LOCATION: 10205 W. Roosevelt St., Avondale SIZE: 652,146 SF VALUE: $40 million START/COMPLETION: Q3 2019/Q3 2020

15

Cross-town rivals Two groundbreaking projects in works on each side of the Valley

By STEVE BURKS

J

ust a week apart in late September, a pair of never-before-seen sports, recreation and entertainment projects were announced on opposite sides of the Valley.

In the West, Glendale was chosen as the site for a one-of-a-kind attraction, as Crystal Lagoons released its plans for an island resort and mixed-use facility that would make Glendale an even more appealing entertainment destination for the region.

Just one week before Crystal Lagoons announced its plans, Legacy Sports Park broke ground at the former General Motors Proving Grounds site in southeast Mesa. Legacy Sports Park is a $250 million project that features an indoor arena, outdoor stadium and a multi-purpose building that can hold

Crystal Lagoons

16 | November-December 2020

16 NBA-sized basketball courts.

Both projects, when completed, will become major economic drivers for the Valley and are projects that have not been seen in Arizona or the Southwest United States before.

“Not only will this be a great example of experiential retail, which is the only area of growth in brick & mortar development over the past 10 years, but this project further cements Westgate as the largest Sports and Entertainment District in Arizona,” Glendale city manager Kevin Phelps said about the Crystal Lagoons project.

“This is going to be a game-changing project for the region,” said Dan Hermann, president of Ziegler, which helped line up the financing to make Legacy Sports Park a reality. “You have

major national investors investing in this project. As this project is successful, the money is going to be poured back into the efforts around the Valley around Youth sports. As we got to tell that story to the investors over a six week period, they really warmed up to it and those folks are going to be excited to come out and also see this as it's built out. Looking forward to those first investor visits.”

Crystal Lagoons is a concept that has been seen around the globe. The main feature of the project will be an 11-acre public access lagoon that will be up to 10-feet deep. Crystal Lagoons has developments across the globe including Dubai, Japan, Brazil and South Korea. These monumental crystalline lagoons surrounded by white

sand beaches, can be accessed via ticketed entry. The company was formed in 2007

by Fernando Fischmann, a biochemist who turned into a real estate developer.

The company launched its first U.S. water basin, 7.5 acres in size, in Tampa, Florida.

Fischmann made a name for himself and his patented water treatment technology when he built the San Alfonso Del Mar lagoon in his native Chile. San Alfonso Del Mar is in Algarrobo, Chile and 1,000 yards long is the largest swimming pool in the world, according to the Guinness Book of World Records.

Fischmann developed the technology that keeps the water in his company’s lagoons crystal clear and reasonably priced to maintain. Crystal Lagoons has a total of 176 projects in development or negotiation in the United States.

The developer of the project, ECL Glendale, LLC, has reached a development agreement and Government Property Improvement Lease from the City of Glendale.

The project is slated to be located at Cardinals Way and the Loop 101, just south of State Farm Stadium and Westgate Entertainment Center. The overall cost to bring the project to life has not been released, but the estimated cost to build the lagoon alone would be $6.5 million.

While the 6.5 acre wholly public accessible lagoon will be the marquee attraction, there will be other reasons to visit the area. Visitors will have the opportunity to enjoy seven islands, each with their own theme, retail spaces. There will be Fly and 4-D theaters, venue space, restaurants, a family entertainment center, amusement rides, office space, 600 plus hotel rooms and more.

Another key attraction with the resort that brings a unique food and beverage experience to visitors is Aerophile’s Aerobar. At 130-feet tall, it will be the highest element in the development and will provide guests a unique view of Glendale’s Sports & Entertainment District and the Valley.

More down to earth, Legacy Sports Park is being developed by Valley-based non-profit Legacy Cares, which was started by Chad Miller, whose father Randy J. Miller had a vision for an all-inone-place sports facility for his children with they were kids. Now 25 years later, Legacy Sports Park offers more than the

Legacy Sports

Legacy Sports

Miller’s ever could have imagined.

The 320-acre park, which is being built by Waltz Construction, has plans for 23 soccer fields, eight baseball and eight softball fields, 20 sand volleyball courts and 40 pickle ball courts. All of those sports will have a feature stadium or court, with soccer’s stadium being an 8,000-seat venue that can also host other sports like football, rugby or lacrosse. There is also an outdoor events and festival area that spans 50 acres.

The indoor facilities feature a 6,000seat multipurpose indoor arena, as well as a multipurpose venue that can hold multiple basketball and volleyball courts for large-scale tournaments. There is also a 75,000 square foot eSports Arena,

a 50,000 square foot gymnastics, cheer and dance center, as well as a sports performance center, general fitness center and bars and restaurants.

“One thing you need if you want to be an elite athlete, you have to have elite facilities and this will be an elite facility with the fieldhouse, the fields, the hotel,” said Peter Luukko, chairman of Oak View Group Facilities, which will be the facility management company.

“We’re going to bring an entertainment piece to this. That’s where the world is going right now and this is the first of its kind. As much as we may be involved at the highest level of sport, this is the integration, this is where our business is going.”

17

MULTIFAMILY/SALES

$98.5M | 359,057 SF

ARCADIA COVE APARTMENTS 2252 N. 44th St., Phoenix BUYER: Priderock Capital Partners, LLC. SELLER: Investcorp International, Inc.

$96.7M | 387,347 SF

$88M | 32,143 SF

METROPOINTE APARTMENTS 7017 S. Priest Dr., Tempe BUYER: Cortland SELLER: Rockwood Capital LLC. BROKER: Institutional Property Advisors

SUPERSTITION SUNRISE RV RESORT 702 S. Meridian Rd., Apache Junction BUYER: The Carlyle Group BROKER: HARRI5 Manufactured Housing & Commercial Brokerage

$90M | 535,239 SF

$79M | 354,756 SF AVANA CORONADO

NOVA NORTH PHOENIX 31113 N. North Valley Pkwy., Phoenix BUYER: The Praedium Group SELLER: Liv Communities BROKER: Institutional Property Advisors

700 N. Coronado St., Chandler BUYER: Greystar SELLER: Crow Holdings

RETAIL/SALES

$20.3M | 52,138 SF

16TH ST. & CAMELBACK SHOPPING CENTER 1625 E. Camelback Rd., Phoenix BUYER: Agree Realty Corporation SELLER: Menin Development, Inc. BROKER: Newmark Knight Frank

$13.5M | 42,281 SF

TESLA SERVICE CENTER 2077 E. University Dr., Tempe BUYER: Solana Beach Storage SELLER: Cohen Asset Management, Inc.

$13M | 63,294 SF

WOOD PARTNERS - RAINTREE 8688 E. Raintree Dr., Scottsdale BUYER: Wood Partners SELLER: Jim Riggs

18 | November-December 2020

$10.5M | 29,896 SF

CAVE CREEK CROSSING - LOT 5 5355 E. Carefree Hwy, Cave Creek BUYER: David Wen SELLER: Kitchell Development Co. BROKER: Phoenix Commercial Advisors

$10.5M | 69,755 SF

THE SHOPS AT DYNAMITE CREEK TATUM RANCH 28212-28260 N. Tatum Blvd., Cave Creek BUYER: Scottsdale Development Partners SELLER: Cornerstone Development Partners BROKER: CBRE

It’s the big deals and the brokers who close them that make the market an interesting one to watch. Here are the top notable sales for the months of August and September. Sources: Race Carter at Cushman & Wakefield Research.

OFFICE/SALES

$27M | 107,049 SF

SCOTTSDALE GATEWAY I & II 9201 E. Mountain View Rd., Scottsdale BUYER: Healthpeak Properties Inc. SELLER: Equus Capital Partners BROKER: JLL

$8.4M | 44,772 SF

$8.1M | 22,788 SF CARVANA SERVICE CENTER

THE FORDHAM 1430 E. Missouri Ave., Phoenix BUYER: Timothy Hyde SELLER: Jevan Capital BROKER: Cushman & Wakefield

600 S. 94th Ave., Tolleson

$8.3M | 43,912 SF THE FORDHAM

711 W. Broadway Rd., Tempe

$7M | 75,000 SF

1440 E. Missouri Ave., Phoenix BUYER: Timothy Hyde SELLER: Jevan Capital BROKER: Cushman & Wakefield

LAND/SALES

$70.5M | 611 AC

INDUSTRIAL/SALES

$54.7M | 970,000 SF

17501 W. Bethany Home Rd., Glendale BUYER: First Industrial Realty Trust, Inc. SELLER: Allen & Company BROKER: Nathan & Associates

UPS GOODYEAR 16601 W. Sells Dr., Goodyear BUYER: United Parcel Service, Inc. SELLER: First Industrial Realty Trust, Inc.

$61.5M | 24.5 AC

$43.2M | 380,000 SF

36460 N. Encanterra Dr., San Tan Valley BUYER: JF Shea Co., Inc.

$49.1M | 73.5 AC SF

Haydon Rd. & Mayo, Scottsdale BUYER: AXON SELLER: Arizona State Land Dept.

$39.9M | 140 AC

Ocotillo Rd. & S. Val Vista Dr., Gilbert BUYER: Maracay Homes SELLER: Berge Family BROKER: REB Limited

$25.9M | 88.3 AC

Signal Butte Rd., Mesa BUYER: Diversified Partners, LLC SELLER: W Holdings

WEST80 8001 W. Buckeye Rd., Tolleson BUYER: Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co., LP SELLER: Westcore Properties BROKER: Cushman & Wakefield

$42M | 285,022 SF

CAFE VALLEY 7000 W. Buckeye Rd., Phoenix BUYER: AEW Capital Management SELLER: Cornerstone Arizona, LLC BROKER: Lee & Associates

$32.5M | 409,254 SF

AVONDALE 101 LOGISTICS 10209 W. Roosevelt St., Avondale BUYER: PGIM Real Estate Finance SELLER: Crow Holdings BROKER: CBRE

$24.5M | 242,521 SF

10205 W. Roosevelt St., Avondale BUYER: PGIM Real Estate Finance SELLER: Crow Holdings BROKER: CBRE 19

LEGISLATIVE UPDATE

From Proactive to reactive AMA 2020 in review W hat started as a promising year for affordable housing legislation has ended in one of the greatest property rights fights in the history of the U.S. At the onset of the 2020 session, the Arizona Multihousing Association (AMA), in cooperation with fellow real estate and housing industry partners, was on track to restoring funding to the state Housing Trust Fund, establishing a state Low Income Housing Tax Credit and partnering with municipalities to erase barriers to increase development of affordable housing.

Then the COVID-19 pandemic hit.

At the state level, an initial 120-day eviction moratorium – extended to 221 days by late July – resulted in rental property owners experiencing a loss of seven months of income.

While a patchwork of state and local aid allocated over $100 million in rental assistance, barely $21 million of it has actually been deployed between March and November. In contrast, the city of Houston deployed $15 million in rental assistance in ninety minutes and San Antonio has spent nearly $50 million since the beginning of the pandemic. The state of Texas just recently allocated another $171 million for rental assistance.

Further exacerbating the lack of assistance at the state and local levels was the lack of any rental assistance or mortgage relief from Congress. While the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued what many believe to be an unconstitutional eviction moratorium through December 31, it failed to offset the property takings with any meaningful compensation in the form of rental assistance.

As a result, tens of thousands of properties nationwide have been placed in forbearance, with thousands more slated for foreclosure in spring of 2021 unless assistance is provided.

20 | November-December 2020

Courtney Gilstrap LeVinus AMA

Left with few options, the AMA filed a special action in the Arizona Supreme Court in August challenging the state eviction moratorium on the grounds that it violated 920,000 private contracts across the state and that the legislature was not included in creating the overreaching economic welfare program.

Unfortunately, as has been the case with all the judicial challenges to the state’s emergency orders during the pandemic, the Court declined jurisdiction of the AMA’s case. In declining to hear the lawsuit, the high court left many of the state’s rental property owners with little hope as they have tried to navigate seven months of unpaid rent and an uncertain future.

Nationally, the National Apartment Association (NAA) challenged the CDC eviction moratorium on the grounds that it restricts property owners’ access to the courts, infringes upon the freedom of contracts, as well as the basis that the CDC has exceeded its Constitutionally-authorized authority.

The case is currently pending.

Regardless of what happens in the courts, the effects of the eviction moratoriums may be felt for many years to come. Just as renters have been hit hard by COVID-related unemployment and business closures, rental property owners have

shouldered an immense burden of providing free housing with little to no government participation.

Now, with up to nine months of lost rental income at stake by the end of the year, some property owners are eyeing an exit from the market altogether.

Whereas larger property owners with diversified portfolios have been weathering the COVID storm, smaller property owners – the more than 60 percent which own just seven or fewer units – are on the brink of financial ruin.

This means the “mom and pop” rental property owners that provide the majority of housing stock may sell off their investments to larger owners who may in turn renovate and “flip” the properties into high-end condos or short-term rentals, effectively removing them from the state’s rental housing stock.

The only relief these owners – often comprised of retirees, individual owners and even 401k pension funds – received was in the form of the Governor’s Rental Property Owner Preservation Fund (RPOPF). The program, which only had $5 million, was so wildly successful and efficient that it was drained in less than four weeks. Unfortunately, it remains depleted to this day.

Looking forward, the state and federal government needs to play their part. While they have spared no expense to protect the health and well being of all Arizonans, they have all but turned a blind eye on rental owners.

Only through adequate levels of rental assistance, further funding to the RPOPF and by providing more resources to increase the limited supply of housing will we be able to avert the impending rental housing foreclosure avalanche and housing affordability crisis which awaits in 2021.

Courtney LeVinus is CEO and President of the Arizona Multihousing Association.

Engaging CRE professionals in the election process

T

he 2020 election has been one of the most contentious and divisive in recent U.S. history. At NAIOP, we’ve offered our members a series of virtual programs designed to provide education on the major issues and to hear directly from candidates.

At the time of this writing, the election is less than one week away. Every Arizona voter has been inundated with mail, TV ads and text messages, many of which have hostile and hate-filled content. We’ve observed with frustration candidates who prefer to focus on ideology rather than finding solutions to the very serious problems that our state and nation are experiencing.

At NAIOP, our focus is on electing officials at all levels of government who understand what it takes to rebuild the economy in the wake of the COVID pandemic and to position Arizona for future growth. To achieve this, NAIOP has financially supported candidates from both political parties who are constructive problem solvers.

In these difficult times, we need elected officials who are willing to roll up their sleeves and get to the serious work of crafting legislation that will aid the economic recovery while protecting public health.

When it comes to ballot initiatives, NAIOP has been actively involved in the campaign to defeat Proposition 208 due to the detrimental impact this measure could have on existing

Suzanne Kinney NAIOP

small businesses and our state’s ability to attract new businesses. The need to adequately fund our K-12 public schools is real, but Prop. 208 lacks accountability for how the funds would be spent and would do more harm than good.

It is our sincere hope that education advocates and business leaders can come together in the future around a better, more sustainable plan for funding our schools. NAIOP is committed to being a constructive part of this process.

Both statewide ballot propositions, 208 and 207, received the majority of their funding from out-of-state contributors. Of the $21,601,892 contributed towards the Prop. 208 Political Action Committee, only 0.7 percent, or $151,411, came from individual Arizona donors.

The need for initiative reform is stronger than ever. Arizona voters

are being unduly influenced by wellfunded groups that do not live or do business here. This is because it is relatively easier to get a measure on our ballot than in most other states.

Back in 1912 when Arizona became a state, the notion of “direct democracy” resonated with the independent-minded citizenry that was working towards statehood for Arizona. More than 100 years later, times have changed as has the amount of money in politics. It is unlikely that our state’s founders envisioned the process being taken over by special interest groups based elsewhere. It’s time to consider how we can take back the ballot initiative process so that it better serves Arizonans. Whatever the outcome of the election, NAIOP will continue to work for pragmatic legislative solutions on behalf of the commercial real estate industry.

Our public policy mission remains to: 1. Support policies that drive demand for commercial real estate in Greater Phoenix and throughout Arizona; 2. Promote legislation that positions our state to be the preferred choice for corporate locations and expansions and; 3. Support organic business growth through public policies that encourage entrepreneurship and new business formation.

Suzanne Kinney is President & CEO of the Arizona Chapter of NAIOP, the Commercial Real Estate Development Association 21

EDUCATION

Building for the future

By STEVE BURKS

WEST POINT HIGH SCHOOL

A

s Arizona’s population has increased in the past decade, so too has the need for more schools. In recent elections, voters have been more receptive to school bond packages, which has resulted in a sharp uptick in the number of education projects being built in the state. According to the Arizona School Facilities Board, there were 25 new school construction projects as of March of 2020.

“It has been busy. We’ve been super blessed to pick up a good amount of work and a lot of it goes back to the taxpayers and them voting for those school bonds,” said Vicente Teran, project manager for CHASSE Building team. “There are a good amount of improvements getting done.

"There are 50-year-old schools like in Tempe Elementary that we’ve done work on, they are very much past their lifetime, and so it’s something that has to happen for this to continue to be a fruitful environment for students to learn in.”

General contractors like CHASSE Building Team, McCarthy Building Companies, Inc. and CORE Construction have been exceptionally busy with education projects in the past year. Some projects are completely new schools, like West Point High

22 | November-December 2020

School in Avondale (a CHASSE project), Rice Elementary in Chandler (a McCarthy project) and the new Chandler Unified School District High School #7 (a CORE project that is currently under construction).

The pandemic did little to slow down work on K-12 projects in the state.

In fact, McCarthy easily kept to its aggressive, accelerated, seven-month schedule for Rice Elementary, which was ready for students in July, but the pandemic kept those students working remotely until October.

Teran said the pandemic didn’t change the schedules on most education projects, which typically are completed under a tight, eight-week window during the summer months.

“We stayed pretty tight to our schedules and we focus our crews to finish everything up accordingly,” said Teran, who is currently working on the Hohokam Elementary School renovation and expansion in the Scottsdale Unified School District.

“But, we did see in August, wish list items if you will, from a school district appeared. Stuff like additional carpets that got replaced or putting up dividers for front office staff. We got a little bit more scope done, obviously with the students not on site, it’s easier and not much of an issue to

coordinate around that. We definitely took advantage of it.”

The Hohokam Elementary project is a unique one for Teran and CHASSE due to its history. It was designed by renowned Arizona architect Ralph Haver, whose hallmark was sloped rooflines, beamed ceilings and ribbon windows. SPS+ was tasked with preserving the classic Haver look, but modernize the building to meet the needs of today’s students.

The new plan will move the administration and lobby of the school to the front of the property, and the project will also add a stunning outdoor, shaded amphitheater where children can gather and take advantage of the Valley’s 300-plus days of sun.

Other upgrades, including property wide Wi-Fi, upgraded insulation to new and existing building and sweeping upgrades to all mechanical and electrical systems are also in the new plans.

“To the community, Ralph Haver was a legend. We really learned a lot about Ralph Haver and his impact in the design, aesthetic, everything that goes in the Valley,” Teran said. “It’s cool to see how the community has as much input as the district and the design team and the contractors to really bring them all together.”

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23

TRANSPORTATION

STILL ON TRACK Tempe Streetcar nears completion

T

he Tempe Streetcar, a $102 million project that began construction in 2017, is nearing completion and is expected to be operational in mid-2021. The Streetcar will have capacity for 125 passengers and six vehicles will be traveling along the three-mile double track alignment that borders Arizona State University campus and will run in-street from Rio Salado Parkway down Apache Boulevard with a single-track loop around Mill Avenue and the downtown district. In addition, Tempe Streetcar includes two crossing of the existing light rail line and a tie-in to the light rail at the southern terminus.

Although the pandemic has slowed much down, the construction of the Tempe Streetcar remained on schedule and will begin testing in early 2021.

Amanda Nelson, public information

By ALYSSA TUFTS

officer for the City of Tempe Transportation department, said with the onset of COVID-19, many Tempe employers have had employees working remotely and ASU has had remote learning, so traffic was reduced in Tempe and subsequently, the construction area for the Tempe Streetcar.

“In Tempe, the downtown area is especially tight, so with the Streetcar construction we’ve had to be very strategic about when and how we restrict any traffic and how that construction plays out,” Nelson said.

“One of the silver linings, if there are any of the pandemic, was that we were able to move more quickly in those areas that normally have high traffic volumes where we’re a little more restricted.”

Brian Dagsland, project manager for Stacy and Witbeck, who is managing construction on the project, said the

construction schedule has remained on time. “There have been some improvements since traffic loads have been less in the downtown area, so that’s been nice as far as being able to take up lane restrictions and having workers work safely with less car traffic. We also implemented safety procedures like face masks and keeping crew sizes smaller.”

Nelson said all the rail is in the ground, which was a major milestone for the project and all 14 stop station structures are in place, plus the structure for the catenary wires is in progress. While construction on the project has been challenging at times for nearby businesses, Nelson said, “the business community has been very supportive of the Streetcar as an amenity and as a way to bring more customers to their doors.”

“This project is very unique because we have a public private partnership between the City of Tempe, ASU and companies along the route who are partnering together to pay for $13 million of the construction expenses,” Nelson said. “So they see so much

(Courtesy of Stormer Creative)

24 November-December 2020

TRANSPORTATION benefit from it that they want to put in money to help pay for it and help bring it about.”

“One of the unique things about the Streetcar is there’s a good portion of the Streetcar that’s actually off wire, it’s a battery-powered train, so when you’re going into downtown Mill, there’s no overhead wires to power the train, which means it’s a lot more aesthetically pleasing to not have the wires of the streetcar train for a portion of the alignment,” Dagsland said.

In addition, Nelson said each of the

14 Streetcar stops will have public art created by local artists, which are currently being implemented and history panels at each of the stops with a graphic or photo and information about Tempe’s history.

One of the main goals of the Tempe Streetcar, once it is operational in 2021, is to ease traffic congestion in the everdeveloping Downtown Tempe area.

“The Streetcar will provide a new option for people to move around in the Downtown area and around ASU where there are higher volumes of traffic. It will allow students, employees and people who are visiting downtown for lunch or shopping, to not necessarily have to drive a car,” Nelson said.

“It will connect with the Metro light rail as well, so people can take their bikes on the Streetcar, (Courtesy of Logan Simpson) so it allows

people to be more multi-modal and to not have to have a car to move around in that higher traffic area.”

Nelson said the Streetcar will allow people to get on and off and explore the area since the stops are closer together.

“The Streetcar route goes through the heart of Tempe where we have the highest density of employment, of residential and ASU, and attractions like ASU Gammage and Tempe Town Lake for entertainment and recreation, and it also connects with the light rail so it can take people to and from the airport, into Mesa and into regional destinations in Phoenix.”

Dagsland echoed Nelson’s thoughts that the Streetcar will be a convenient way for visitors and residents to get to locations quicker without the hassle of parking.

“When leaving their apartment instead of hopping in a car or on a bike, they hop on the Streetcar and get to their destination without being involved in traffic. I think it will be more convenient while getting around town and the experience of going from an event at ASU Gammage or Sun Devil Stadium to a bar or restaurant on Downtown Mill will end up being a great opportunity.”

(Courtesy of Logan Simpson)

26 November-December 2020

Building Safely In 2020 www.henselphelps.com

27

HEALTHCARE BUILDING TRENDS

LATEST AND GREATEST Banner Ocotillo Medical Center opens

By STEVE BURKS

T

he $155 million Banner Ocotillo Medical Center opened to patients on Nov. 2, after a fast-tracked, roller-coaster ride for the construction team and Banner Health. The newest, full-service hospital in the Valley enjoyed a relatively smooth ride through most of construction, as Tempe-based Okland Construction and the lead architectural firm SmithGroup flawlessly executed the building plan, that included extensive use of prefabrication both inside and on the exterior.

Those plans ran head on into the COVID-19 pandemic in March of 2020.

“I think at one time we were up to a 450-person crew on site,” said Bill Smith, Senior Director for Construction Projects for Banner Health. “Things started to getting really crazy with COVID, so we implemented a lot of safety protocols, and to the best of my knowledge, we didn’t have one case of COVID on the construction team on this.

“Through all of that, this is one of our fastest projects.”

The end result is a facility that will provide vital services to the Chandler community and the Southeast Valley region. Banner Ocotillo, located on Alma School Rd., just south of the Loop 202 in Chandler, has 124 beds, with space already shelled in for future growth of up to 50 new rooms. The hospital offers key inpatient and outpatient services, such as emergency care, intensive care, endoscopy, cardiac catheterization, imaging, surgical and women’s services. The facility also acquired art from local artists, with many of the pieces celebrating Chandler, including a statement piece – a 9 feet by 10 feet mosaic of an Ocotillo by a Chandler artist.

For Banner, the facility gives the company a solid, physical presence in a part of the Valley that is growing.

“This is a high growth area and as part of Banner we’re also health insurance providers, so we have our Banner Health Network, and we have about 50,000-60,000 people that we cover from an insurance perspective that live in the Southeast Valley market,” said Laura Robertson, who is the CEO of Banner Ocotillo, as well as Banner Desert

28 November-December 2020

UV DISINFECTION TECHNOLOGY: Studies shows that ultraviolet disinfection technology eliminates up to 97.7 percent of pathogens in the operating room.

29

HEALTHCARE BUILDING TRENDS

EXTERIOR: Banner Health Ocotillo Medical Center.

Medical Center and Banner Children’s at Desert. “Our mission is about making healthcare easier so life can be better, so accessibility of care is a top priority and when Banner looked at this location, it’s about providing accessible care to the growing population in this community. We have the Banner Health Center (next door), so it just made perfect sense in terms of the services in this location.”

Construction on the 240,000 square foot facility began in Fall of 2018 and took a total of 443,215 man hours to complete. In all, it took 16,870 cubic yards of concrete, more than 29 miles of pipe and 280,000 pounds of ductwork. The facility features the latest air filtration and air movement systems, which were already planned before the pandemic hit.

“It is a state-of-the art facility and we put in a lot of air movement requirements,” said Smith. “We were actually permitted and under code for the 2014 guidelines, but the state adopted the 2018 guidelines and we 30 November-December 2020

were able to incorporate all of those into the facility, even though it wasn’t required. And then we’ve added additional measures like higher air exchange levels than code requires, higher energy efficiency than code requires. We’ve even put in specialty UV lights that are in our operating rooms to keep them clean. So, there’s a lot of new technology in this building that was already in place in case something like a pandemic happened, so we were already out in front of it.”

The UV lights that Smith mentioned are in all of the facilities operating and procedural rooms. That technology, according to Chief Operating Officer for Banner Ocotillo Nate Shinagawa, reduces infection rates by 30-plus percent. The facility also has the latest hand hygiene monitoring system in each room. There are hand sanitizing stations located outside each room and the monitoring system tracks how many people use the stations before entering the room.

“We can actually tell you, on a

particular unit, if we have 90 percent compliance, 95 percent compliance or, ideally, 100 percent compliance on hand hygiene, hand washing. That’s new technology that we implemented in this facility,” Shinigawa said.

The facility will also give each staff member who works with patients a hand-held smart device that gives them access to patient charts, lab results and more so they can access vital information at any time when at the hospital.

“From a patient safety perspective, our staff can scan patient labels, patient labs and ensure that everything is with the right patient,” Shinigawa said. “This reduces errors like that down to almost nothing, which is very, very important.

It’s a total communication tool, so you can message directly, and nurses can document into the medical records directly from those smart devices.”

Some other new technology that is in the facility is the patient lift system in a majority of rooms. This system makes it easier on staff to safely move patients

HEALTHCARE BUILDING TRENDS

OPERATING ROOM: Banner utilizes cutting-edge technology to improve safety and quality.

with a ceiling mounted lift that raises and moves the patient into or out of bed for treatment. Also, each of the four operating rooms are equipped with the latest surgical technology, and each of the 14 emergency beds are private rooms. Other features are six labor and delivery rooms, with two portable laboring tubs and 18 postpartum rooms and four nursery beds.

There is also an added emphasis on the usage of Telehealth in the facility.

There are several rolling carts that are equipped with high-definition cameras that make it possible for physicians to do consultations with patients in the hospital without having to be on site. Also, the Intensive Care Units, are equipped with video monitoring systems that allow nurses and doctors to closely monitor those patients to quickly and accurately track changes, even during overnight shifts with fewer staff on site.

“What’s really neat about that technology is that it’s not just for our staff,” Shinigawa said. “Let’s say you 32 November-December 2020

have a community doctor that wants to do a consult with a patient. They can use that technology to do a consult on that patient without having to be in the room physically. They can have a nurse assist them, but there’s quite a bit they can do without having to physically be in the room.”

For Robertson and Shinigawa, one of the biggest challenges was having to conduct interviews for the 300 staff positions during the pandemic.

Shinigawa noted that Banner received more than 1000 applications for the 300 available staff jobs at the facility. All of the interviews were done over video.

“It was very different than seeing everyone in person, but we had a very good process and we got great people,” Shinigawa said. “You’ll find that half of our staff are Banner transfers, but the other half are new to Banner. We wanted to get a combination so we could meld the best of other places and the best that Banner has to offer. All of our staff are experienced.”

“This was certainly a lot of work,”

Robertson said. “We had to do things very differently because of the pandemic.

We had to on-board more than 300 people, so we had to do them in groups of 10, so instead of one orientation class or two, we had to do 30.”

But, Robertson said that the staff they have assembled is anxious to begin creating their own culture at Banner Ocotillo.

“I’ll tell you, it’s exciting. When you work in healthcare, you’re living a mission, you’re supporting a community,” Robertson said. “So when you sit here and think about the lives that you will support during the toughest times, that gives you the motivation regardless of the pandemic.

As well as creating a great place for employees to work.

"It’s a lot of work, but it’s really just beginning. The building is done, but now, it’s about when patients walk through this door, ensuring we’re delivering the best care, and creating the right culture supporting our medical staff.”

GREAT COMMUNITIES GREAT INFRASTRUCTURE. We are honored to provide critical infrastructure upgrades that keep our community running.

33

HEALTHCARE BUILDING TRENDS

NOW OPEN The rate of healthcare building has been steady in the last few years, with several new facilities coming online each year. These four projects are the latest to open in the Valley: HonorHealth Sonoran Crossing Medical Center Location: 33400 N. 32nd Ave., Phoenix Size: 210,000 SF Builder: McCarthy Building Companies Architect: Devenney Group Opened: September 2020 Facility details: This 70 inpatient room facility is the sixth medical center opened by HonorHealth. Medical services on campus include family centered obstetrical and gynecological care including all aspects of the birthing experience as well care for our newest patients; newborns. This entire service is supported by a team of highly skilled physicians specially trained

34 November-December 2020

to provide the highest level of care and attention that new families need during this exciting time. A variety of highly skilled surgeons will perform surgeries across using the latest technology. This includes physicians specializing in joint replacement and minimally invasive orthopedic care, spine procedures, gynecologic and general surgery procedures. HonorHealth team members will guide patients through the surgery process from pre-admission and testing, to preparing patients about what to expect before, during and after any procedure. Education classes are also available for those who are interested in learning more about

care that may impact their health and well-being. The operating rooms are slightly larger than average, to help make them ultra-flexible. This allows the surgical team to accommodate a greater array of procedures in a comfortable safe environment, with state-of-the-art technology.

Along with general medically focused services, there are other supportive care offered including emergency services staffed with residency-trained, board-certified emergency physicians; a full-service Emergency Department, serving patients of all ages, open 24 hours, 7 days a week. Sonoran Crossing also has critical care capabilities should the need arise.

35

HEALTHCARE BUILDING TRENDS Valleywise Health North and South Metro Ambulatory clinics Locations: 19th Ave. and Northern (North) and 35th Ave. and Southern (South), Phoenix Size: Both are 26,000 SF Builder: Sundt Construction Inc. Architect: DWL Architects & Planners Opened: September 2020 Facility details: The two community health center projects are approximately 14 miles from each other. Both clinics are single-story 26,000-square-foot buildings on threeacre sites. Each clinic features 24 exam rooms, an X-ray room, ultrasound rooms, lab space, a pharmacy, as well as a community learning library and classrooms.

Healthcare Construction Trends During the Pandemic McCarthy Building Companies is a very active healthcare facility builder and recently completed two noteworthy projects in the Valley — The new emergency department at Banner Boswell Medical Center in Sun City and the HonorHealth Sonoran Crossing Medical Center in Phoenix — as well as a $565 million facility in Marin County, California.

McCarthy has tracked the following trends for pandemic readiness in healthcare construction:

❶ HVAC systems and airflow are front of mind for their role in infection control.

McCarthy is seeing: • Modifications to existing systems to adapt or augment existing air filtration systems • Systems that allow for temporary isolation of supply and return air (can be portable or permanent) • UV or thermal sterilization techniques • For projects in design stages, more focus on the ability to isolate areas of the building from an airflow standpoint to control infection as well as floor-to-ceiling air circulation designs that can reduce the potential for contamination when compared to overhead systems.

Surge in touchless device retrofits for high-risk healthcare areas like doors, elevators and bathroom fixtures as well as antimicrobial coatings in and around patient areas. ❷ A focus on windows and audio systems that allow healthcare workers to effectively communicate with patients without compromising containment; thereby, effectively reducing the need for movement in and out of patient rooms.

36 November-December 2020

❸ On the permanent facility side of the equation, prefabrication plays an important role because it moves (often substantial) portions of construction off-site in a controlled, factory-like environment.

Benefits include: • Reduces the amount of workers on-site. Lower on-site worker density lowers risk of infection and also reduces the need for additional shifts that otherwise would be required to ensure a safe working environment.

• Reduces travel and congestion on and around the jobsite.

• Provides greater certainty. Prefab aspects of a given project are more likely to be completed ontime and as specified.

• Often substantially faster than traditional construction as prefab activities can begin in parallel with on-site activities.

❹ Healthcare construction clients are looking at flexible designs that allow for rapid reconfiguration and space flexibility • Multi-use consideration of spaces to allow for expedient conversion of OR suites and waiting rooms to ICU bed facilities • “Universal Patient Room” concepts, which allows conversion of more spaces into ICU bed spaces • Increased separation of outpatient services from main hospital facilities to medical office buildings • More developed designs for temporary triage spaces • Parking structure conversions Source: McCarthy Building Companies Banner Boswell: The new $106 million, 322,000-square-foot emergency department.

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HEALTHCARE BUILDING TRENDS Banner Boswell Medical Center Emergency Department Location: 10401 W. Thunderbird Blvd., Sun City Size: 40,000 SF Cost: Part of $106 million expansion of medical center Builder: McCarthy Building Companies Architect: HMC Architects Key subcontractors: SGSI, Inc., Buehler & Buehler, Southland Industries, Foothills Fire Protection, Schuff Steel (Greywolf), Cannon & Wendt, University Mechanical, Norris Design and The Berg Group.

Opened: October 2020 Facility details: The new emergency department is part of a larger $106 million expansion project that also includes a new patient tower which is expected to be completed in Q2 2021. This is the largest renovation that the medical facility has undergone in 30 years. The new emergency department increases capacity from 42 to 56 beds, allowing the department to care for up to 60,000 ED patients annually, representing a 25-percent increase.

Banner Rehabilitation Hospital West Location: 12740 N. Plaza Del Rio Blvd., Peoria Size: 65,500 SF Cost: $27.8 million Builder: Brasfield & Gorrie LLC Architect: GWG3 Opened: September 2020 Facility details: This facility is a joint venture between Banner Health and Select Medical. It is a 56-bed, all-privateroom medical rehabilitation hospital.

Banner Rehabilitation Hospital West is the first of three to be built under a joint venture between Banner and Select Medical. The new acute inpatient rehabilitation hospitals will be located in the metro Phoenix, West Valley and East Valley areas to better serve the needs of patients requiring care resulting from stroke, spinal cord injury, brain injury, amputation, neurological disorders, among other conditions.

Banner Rehabilitation Hospital West offers programs and services specially designed to help patients restore strength, mobility and independence as they heal and recover from a myriad of diagnostic conditions.

38 November-December 2020

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AIA

The American Institute of Architects

Arizona Design Awards 2020

AIA

Arizona is paying tribute to the best people and designs from the past year with the 2020 AIA Arizona Design Awards.

These awards recognize excellence in design, leadership, practice,



40 | November-December 2020

performance and education. The awards were presented at the AIA Arizona Design Awards Gala, which was held on Nov. 13 at the Phoenix Art Museum.

Here is the list of projects and people honored at the event:

DISTINGUISHED BUILDING — CITATION AWARD  Nihi Dine'é Bá Wellness Center

Architect: Orcutt | Winslow Owner: Fort Defiance Indian Hospital Board Contractor: Arviso - Okland Joint Venture

DISTINGUISHED BUILDING — CITATION AWARD  Press Roastery

Architect: The Construction Zone, Ltd. Owner: The Construction Zone, Ltd. Contractor: The Construction Zone, Ltd.



DISTINGUISHED BUILDING — MERIT AWARD  Health Sciences Innovation Building

Architect: CO Architects Associate Architect: Swaim Associates Owner: University of Arizona Contractor: Kitchell



41

AIA 2020 DISTINGUISHED BUILDING — MERIT AWARD  Flowing Wells Library Addition

Architect: Line and Space, LLC Owner: Pima County Contractor: Kappcon Inc.

2020 DISTINGUISHED BUILDING — MERIT AWARD Casa Mancusi Architect: Mancusi Design, LLC Owner: Mancusi Design, LLC Contractor: Mancusi Design, LLC

2020 DISTINGUISHED BUILDING — MERIT AWARD  SUPIMA Headquarters Architect: RSP Architects Owner: SUPIMA Contractor: Jokake Construction

2020 DISTINGUISHED BUILDING — MERIT AWARD  University of Texas at Dallas

Engineering & Computer Science West Architect: SmithGroup Owner: The University of Texas System Contractor: The Beck Group

2020 DISTINGUISHED BUILDING — HONOR AWARD Global Industrial Manufacturer Architect: SmithGroup Owner: Rio Nuevo Contractor: Sundt Construction 42 | November-December 2020

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AIA 2020 DISTINGUISHED BUILDING — HONOR AWARD

475 E Lincoln, Lincoln Union Architect: SmithGroup Owner: Montana Avenue Capital Partners Contractor: Okland Construction



2020 DISTINGUISHED BUILDING — HONOR AWARD  Asante Library

Architect: Richärd Kennedy Architects Owner: City of Surprise Contractor: Haydon Building Corp.



2020 DISTINGUISHED BUILDING — HONOR AWARD  San Luis 1 Land Port of Entry

North Annex Building Architect: Jones Studio, Inc. Owner: U.S. General Services Administration Contractor: Concord General Contracting

2020 DISTINGUISHED BUILDING — HONOR AWARD  studio 1334

Architect: debartolo architects Owner: debartolo architects Contractor: The Construction Zone / Pratt Construction

2020 DISTINGUISHED BUILDING — HONOR AWARD



44 | November-December 2020

White Stone Flats Architect: Benjamin Hall Design Owner: Benjamin Hall Contractor: 180 Degrees Design + Build



2020 COMPONENT DESIGN AWARD — CITATION AWARD 19th Avenue & Maryland light rail corridor transit stop Architect: coLAB studio, llc Owner: City of Phoenix Office of Arts & Culture Contractor: Southwest Fabrication

2020 COMPONENT DESIGN AWARD — CITATION AWARD  Gilbert Road Venue Architect: coLAB studio, llc Owner: Valley Metro Contractor: Southwest Fabrication

2020 COMPONENT DESIGN AWARD — MERIT AWARD

Our Nature Architect: coLAB studio, llc Owner: City of Chandler Contractor: Southwest Fabrication

2020 COMPONENT DESIGN AWARD — HONOR AWARD Coffee Pavilion Architect: L O C A L S T U D I O Owner: Howie Cassett + Keith Ricker Contractor: L O C A L S T U D I O

2020 COMPONENT DESIGN AWARD — HONOR AWARD The Dressing Room Architect: Mark Ryan Studio Owner: Conceptually Social

45

AIA 2020 INTERIOR ARCHITECTURE AWARD— MERIT AWARD

Bill & Joan Alfond Main Street Commons Architect: Ayers Saint Gross Owner: Colby College Design—Build: Landry/French Construction

2020 INTERIOR ARCHITECTURE AWARD— MERIT AWARD

The Grid Architect: Corgan Owner: ABI Multifamily Contractor: Alexander Building Company

2020 UNBUILT AWARD — CITATION AWARD

University of Arizona: College of Architecture, Planning, and Landscape Architecture Expansion Architect: Richärd Kennedy Architects Owner: University of Arizona

2020 UNBUILT AWARD — CITATION AWARD

Desert EDGE Architect: SWABACK pllc Owner: Desert Discovery Center Scottsdale Experience Designers: Thinc

2020 UNBUILT AWARD — MERIT AWARD

Maricopa County Southeast Consolidated Justice Courts & Adult Probation Architect: Gould Evans + Canary Owner: Maricopa County Facilities Management Department Contractor: Johnson Carlier

2020 UNBUILT AWARD — HONOR AWARD

Shoshone-Paiute New Tribal Headquarters Architect: Mark Ryan Studio Owner: Shoshone—Paiute Tribes Construction Manager: CSDI Construction

46 | November-December 2020

2020 DISTINGUISHED BUILDING — CITATION AWARD

Miramar College Science Building Architect: Marlene Imirzian & Associates Architects Owner: San Diego Community College District Contractor: DPR Construction

2020 TWENTY — FIVE YEAR AWARD

The House of 3 Courtyards Architect: Abell Architects

2020 URBAN & REGIONAL PLANNING AWARD — CITATION AWARD

South Central Equitable TransitOriented Development Planning & Business Assistance Architect: Gould Evans + Canary Owner: City of Phoenix Co-Prime: Promise Arizona

LEADERSHIP AWARDS

EDUCATION AWARDS

2020 AIA10 AWARD

2020 EDUCATOR AWARD

2020 ASSOCIATE AWARD

2020 DESIGN PEDAGOGY AWARD

2020 CLIENT AWARD

2020 COMMUNITY EDUCATION AWARD

Alison F. Rainey, AIA

Elena Rocchi

Julianna Sorrell, Associate AIA

ARC 101—102 Foundation Studio

Hazel Hare Center for Plant Science Horticultural Center Master Plan and Phase I Implementation Architect: coLAB Studio, llc Owner: Desert Botanical Garden Contractor: 180 Degrees Design + Build

Lisa D. Schrenk

PERFORMANCE AWARDS SALT RIVER PROJECT 2020 SUSTAINABLE AWARD

2020 COMMUNITY DESIGN

Hatcher Urban Corridor Architect: suoLL architects Owner: theHUB (Hatcher Urban Businesses)

2020 ARIZONA ARCHITECTS MEDAL Caroline Lobo, AIA Robert Miller, AIA

Robert Miller, AIA

San Luis 1 Land Port of Entry North Annex Building Architect: Jones Studio, Inc. Owner: U.S. General Services Administration Contractor: Concord General Contracting

2020 RESEARCH DESIGN AWARD Judith Chafee Power Houses

2020 AIA ARIZONA FELLOWS CHAIRMAN’S AWARD TBD

47

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2020

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Right person, right year Despite challenges of 2020, Hollis has led AAED growth

By STEVE BURKS

B

Believe it or not, 2020 was the perfect year for Mignonne Hollis to serve as president of the Arizona Association for Economic Development Board of Directors.

She had established the platform for her term well before the first months of 2020 when the whole world was turned upside down due to COVID. But that platform was a perfect approach for all of the unique changes that would be created by the pandemic.

“My platform for this year was, ‘Being comfortable with being uncomfortable and finding partners that you normally wouldn’t reach out to,’" said Hollis. “I had this vision for this platform, way before COVID, and a lot of it was we all just get comfortable with the people we hang out with. We get comfortable within our own circle and I was just challenging membership to think outside of their comfort zone and stretch a little bit further.”

The year definitely forced AAED members to stretch out of their comfort zones. Instead of in-person events, the group was forced to do most things online. A fair expectation for an organization only being able to hold online meetings and webinars would be to see a drop in participation. However, the AAED has actually enjoyed an increase in membership during 2020, with its numbers growing to more than 500 professionals statewide.

“While a lot of the connections have previously happened via networking events and in-person, we really haven’t lost that momentum, we just had to regroup, do things a little bit differently,” Hollis said. “We’re doing virtual road trips, we started the Economic Development for Elected Officials 101, and there’s a series

52 November-December 2020

of those, and we’ve had well over 100 attendees for each one of those webinars. When we do something, people show up.”

For Hollis, who is the executive director of the Arizona Regional Economic Development Foundation and is based in Sierra Vista, the virtual approach has been a godsend, and she feels other people who work outside of the Greater Phoenix metro area feel the same way. Instead of driving four hours from Sierra Vista to attend an AAED event in Phoenix, having those things online makes it much more accessible to members and other interested parties from the rest of the state.

“For those of us in the rural communities, and actually folks everywhere can participate in AAED to a much greater extent than before, because of travel time,” Hollis said.

“When I was planning my work during this term as AAED president, I was planning on being in Phoenix way more of the time. I figured I’d be home one week out of the month and the rest of the time I’d be in Phoenix.

But this has been fantastic. I’ve been able to participate in everything and so have everyone from those outlying communities.”

Hollis said the AAED plans to hold its Fall Forum virtually this year and so far there have been no indications of a dropoff in participation. She said that the AAED has previously had a virtual component to many of the instructional programs that the group offers, but it had not offered a virtual component for events, which are most often in the Phoenix area.

“There’s the talk about once things open up and we can travel again, we can return to in-person events and forget about Zoom meetings,” Hollis said. “But I just want the organization to think about all of the new members we have been able to reach because they didn’t have to travel and they could participate in a different way.”

Bringing new people to the AAED table was a key part of Hollis’ platform.

Her focus was finding industry segments that have not been involved with the economic development group and get representatives from those areas involved.

“Who were we missing at the table?

Do we have people in banking? Are the universities at the table? If we don’t have these people at the table, invite them,” Hollis said. “Think outside of your regular, normal circle of who you deal with every day and I was challenging everyone to broaden that base.”

With an increase in members, it appears Hollis has met her goal of bringing new voices to the conversation, despite the many obstacles that were caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It has reinvigorated us, it has refocused us, it has reenergized us, all of that with a new dedication,” Hollis said of what the events of 2020 have meant to the AAED. “I think what this year has shown us, honestly, is how resilient economic developers are in general, and how our resilient our organization has been.”

®

AAED

ARIZONA KEEPS ON WINNING

MESA: The Grid

T

here were a lot of factors working against economic development in the past year, but Arizona’s economic development community and the AAED found ways to not just survive, but thrive in the face of a global crisis. The state saw new economic growth all over, new projects were being built, new companies were arriving or expanding and new businesses were starting.

In the Valley, company relocations resulted in more than 7,000 new jobs for the local population, according to data compiled by the Greater Phoenix Economic Council (GPEC). Among the largest company relocations to occur in the past year were the expansion of ShellPoint Mortgage’s operations in Tempe, which were to bring 1,350 new positions. Also, information technology company Infosys announced it was expanding its operations and leasing 60,000 square feet of space in the new 777 Tower in the Novus Innovation Corridor in Tempe. That expansion will

54 November-December 2020

result in 1,000 new positions for the Tempe location.

The economic wins were shared with many Arizona communities in the past year, and here are reports from economic development leaders around the state:

TUCSON ■ DoorDash, the nation’s leading last-mile logistics platform, announced it will establish DashMart service in Tucson. DashMart is a new type of convenience store, offering both household essentials and local restaurant favorites to customers’ doorsteps. Tucson is one of the first mid-sized markets for the DashMart concept. DashMart has leased 8,000 square feet of space for its new operations. The company plans to add 20 jobs, with additional potential future employment based on demand.

■ Sandvik Materials Technology, a world-leading developer and manufacturer of advanced stainless

steels and special alloys, announced plans to expand its operations of precision medical wire and wirebased components to Tucson. The full expansion over five years will add an additional 20 jobs primarily in operations and manufacturing. The facility is scheduled to be operational in Q1 2021.

■ Tucson welcomed Verifone to the community with the announcement of a new customer service and tech support operation bringing 168 jobs and a total economic impact of $174 million over the next five years.

■ After a competitive, multi-state process, Nanomoneo, a biotechnology instrument company, announces that it has selected the University of Arizona Center for Innovation in Tucson for its new applied research operation.

The company plans to hire 14 people over the next five years, including research scientists, engineers and research support. The total economic impact is estimated at $17 million.

AAED ■ COMSovereign Holding Corp. announces manufacturing operation to open in Tucson, creating 300 jobs and a total economic impact of $438 million. The company will manufacture wireless radio components including equipment for emerging 5G wireless phone networks.

■ Modular Mining, the global leader in the delivery of real-time computerbased mine management solutions, unveiled its new Customer Experience Center (CEC) during a ribbon cutting ceremony in January. Located in the company’s corporate headquarters in Tucson, the CEC’s opening coincides with Modular Mining’s 40th anniversary and celebrates the company’s continued growth and positive trajectory in both Tucson and the mining sector. The company employs more than 800 people globally, with nearly 350 located in Tucson.

PINAL COUNTY

Behind the leadership of Pinal Partnership, the county is moving forward to become a major economic engine for the central part of the state.

Pinal Partnership is a non-profit formed in 2005 to bring together all the people and ideas that will ultimately lead Pinal County to its full potential. Currently,

PINAL COUNTY: Fiber optics 56 November-December 2020

Pinal Partnership has more than 150 members that include public agencies; private interests in business, industry, land ownership and development; conservation, educational and Indian communities; and Pinal County residents. Some of the efforts that Pinal Partnership has undertaken in the past year are:

INFRASTRUCTURE ■ Alluvion began construction of a unique low-latency, high-density fiber optics path connecting the cities of Coolidge and Casa Grande. Roughly 32 miles of fiber will be strategically placed to provide service to existing businesses and anticipated near-term future developments.

■ Orbitel Communications built a new state-of-the-art network to deliver more bandwidth and faster Internet speeds in order to help their rural customers access the latest information regarding the virus, and stay connected to their families, friends, schools, and places of work.

LAND & DEVELOPMENT Saint Holdings is one of the largest private landowners and developers in the region. A few of the most recent ■

projects that will help shape Pinal County’s continued growth include a recent sale of approximately 1,000 acres to Nextera Energy for a 100 megawatt project. This will be the largest solar farm in Pinal County and one of the largest in the state. Another 550 acres was sold in early 2020 to S-Power for a project that will supply Intel’s Chandler campus. Additional projects include Inland Port Arizona (IPAZ) which is home to Nikola Motor Co. and Central Arizona Commerce Park (CAZCP) which is home to Lucid Motors and Tractor Supply Co. ■ Western Technologies is currently providing construction materials testing for Pinal County’s four new public buildings funded from a $63 million bond issue the Pinal County Board of Supervisors approved for several new facilities in 2019.

MARANA According to Marana’s director of economic development Curt Woody, it was another strong year, as the city welcomed a great deal of development.

One expansion to highlight was the plans for PVB Fabrications, Inc., primarily a multi-disciplined general contractor and provider

AAED

MESA: Falcon Field

of quality welding and fabrication services for the commercial, utility, government, heavy industrial and mining sectors. The company’s new facilities will include a 15,000 square foot administrative office building plus three separate 30,000 square foot fabrication/production facilities.

PVB currently employs 375 people.

The full expansion over five years will add an additional 169 jobs primarily in operations, project management, quality control, engineering, business development and finance.

Other expansion plans include: ■ A distribution/logistics firm is in escrow for 30 acres at Ina & Silberbell.

■ The Marana Micro Hospital recently opened at I-10 & Cortaro.

There is also a Home 2 Suites in conceptual stage at the same location.

Radiology Ltd has purchased land adjacent to the hospital and will begin their build soon.

■ Alicat Scientific is about to begin a 15,000 square foot facility and employee expansion.

■ FLSmidth Krebs is currently undergoing an 82,000 square foot facility and employee expansion.

■ Modern Studios recently opened a production and live studio shoot facility for film, TV, and various other media.

■ Ventana/Roche light 58 November-December 2020

manufacturing and distribution facility at Tangerine & I-10 is currently in design phase to duplicate their existing 60,000 square feet facility and build another adjacent to it.

MESA The efforts of Mesa’s Office of Economic Development have been producing major results and recently were recognized by the International Economic Development Council at their annual conference. The city won three gold and three silver Excellence in Economic Development Awards.

The gold awards were for the Office of Economic Development website, SelectMesa.com; for the multi-year economic development program at the Elliot Road Technology Corridor and for talent development and retention with the Arizona Advanced Manufacturing Institute, which is a program at Mesa Community College.

This year has been another active year for economic development in the city. Here are some of the new projects in the city: ■ Bird Dog Industrial announced Power 202 Business Park, a 330,000-square-foot Class A industrial park on approximately 19 acres on Power Road just north of Loop 202 in Mesa’s Gateway Area.

■ Boeing plans 155,000 square foot fabrication center in Mesa. The company expects to be in the facility by Q3 of 2021.

■ Marwest Enterprises announces the third phase of the Landing industrial complex near the PhoenixMesa Gateway Airport. The latest phase, dubbed Landing 3, will be a new 525,000 SF building, with the ability to lease spaces ranging in size from 5,000 square feet to 250,000 square feet.

■ Amazon to locate a 150,000 square foot delivery station facility in Mesa near Falcon Field.

■ Commercial Metals Company, a Texas-based steel and metal manufacturer, plans to construct a new facility adjacent to its current operation in Mesa and create 185 additional jobs. The new micro mill represents a net investment of $300 million. It’s anticipated the facility will be operational by early 2023.

■ Dexcom, Inc., a leader in continuous glucose monitoring for patients with diabetes, announced an expansion in southeast Mesa. The new lease at Landing 202 is 486,000 square feet and adds a facility to their portfolio that is three times the size of their west Mesa location. The new Mesa Regional Distribution Center is designed to grow with the company.

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The City of Mesa Office of Economic Development has been hard at work attracting and expanding high-tech companies to improve the quality of life for citizens, and create quality jobs and new capital investment in the community.

Today, Mesa is a global hub for aerospace, defense, medical technology, semiconductor, and cyber security companies, including some of the world’s top players in technology and innovation.

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AAED ■ Davcon Aviation, LLC and Mesa Hangar, LLC are building aircraft hangars with manufacturing space in a phased project on more than one million square feet of vacant City of Mesa-owned land on the northwest side of Mesa’s Falcon Field. The first phase is expected to be completed by April 2021, with the second phase to be completed by November 2021. The six-building, $65 million project will include large aircraft hangar space in addition to ancillary office space, aircraft staging ramp, and vehicle parking areas.

GLENDALE Glendale is in the midst of a development boom. Helped by the arrival of the Loop 303 in the western edge of the city, Glendale is becoming a magnet for new businesses. Some of the highlights for the city during the past year are: ■ Mark Anthony Brewing, makers of White Claw, Mike’s Hard Lemonade, Mike’s Harder Lemonade and Cayman Jacks selected Glendale to build their nearly one million square foot manufacturing facility. The announcement was made in early January. The facility started brewing in early October. They join Red Bull, Rauch and Ball Corporation in bringing

GOODYEAR: Elwood Logistics Center

60 November-December 2020

over 300 jobs to Glendale. The project brings nearly a billion dollars in capital investment to Arizona.

■ Red Bull North America announced their plans to expand and add an 800,000 square foot North American distribution center to their first manufacturing facility in Glendale which was announced in 2019, their first outside of Austria.

■ Visionary Automotive Group announced that it will expand Glendale’s line up of luxury dealerships with the addition of Volvo, Land Rover and Jaguar along the Loop 101 in the Arrowhead area. The dealerships will open the first quarter of 2021 and will bring hundreds of quality jobs to Glendale.

GOODYEAR GPEC President and CEO Chris Camacho referred to Goodyear as “the community of today” while presenting at the September 21 Council Meeting.

He stated, “It amazes me the change in this community … we used to talk about the community of the future and now it’s the community of today… and the envy of many in the west and the entire part of the region.”

Goodyear’s economic development team received two Excellence in Economic Development Awards

from the International Economic Development Council (IEDC).

Goodyear’s Foreign Trade Zone Program earned a Gold Award in the Multi-Year Economic Development Program category and a Bronze Award for Economic Development Organization of the Year.

Some of the highlights for Goodyear were: ■ Amazon announced they are building two new facilities in Goodyear brining Amazon’s presence here to five unique operations with more than 3,000 employees. Arizona’s second, and the region’s first Amazon Robotics facility located in Goodyear’s Tech Corridor is the largest building in Goodyear, spanning 2.3 million square feet over four levels.

■ Joining Amazon Robotics in the Goodyear Tech Corridor, Vantage Data Centers is set to begin construction and Compass Data Centers’ campus is well underway, now constructing their second building.

■ More than 3.5 million square feet of speculative development expected to be completed and delivered to the market in at least shell condition in 2020 alone. This includes the largest spec building ever built in the Phoenix Valley- Elwood Logistics at 1.3 million square feet.

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AAED

Award Season

CITY OF PAGE WEBSITE

T

he Arizona Association for Economic Development (AAED) had a lot to celebrate at its 2020 Fall Forum, which was held virtually in October. At the event, the AAED handed out awards and honors for all of the dynamic work that has been done by the economic development community around the state. AAED awarded ten EDDE Awards for Excellence in Economic Development and six Golden Prospector Awards recognizing excellence, innovation, and creativity in economic development.

Here are the winners of the Golden Prospector Awards for 2020: The Greater Phoenix Chamber of Commerce won two awards, one for their multimedia promotion, “Build Your Future Arizona – Construct Your Future” and a marketing brochure for “Build Your Future Arizona – Investor Toolkit”.

These marketing pieces supported the same mission reflected in the corresponding multimedia campaign, which was to create an awareness campaign to create a sustainable skilled craft workforce.

The City of Surprise for Deal of the Year for the Ottawa University new campus development. This project resulted in bringing a University campus to the City of Surprise, which resulted in job growth, a

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higher education level per capita, and the development of a university district along with its amenities.

The City of Page for their new Visit Page and Lake Powell website.

This website achieved its goals of increasing tourism, as well as highlighting local businesses.

City of Mesa for multimedia promotion for “Creating a Brand: Asian District, Mesa”. This project achieved its goal, which was to “create an Asian Multicultural District that is a vibrant, inclusive, day to night community that embraces all Asian cultures, attracting businesses, residents, and tourists from across the region and nation.”

Arizona Regional Economic Development Foundation for their special event, Import & Export for Small Businesses. Held on January 16th of 2020, the workshop involved a partnership with the Cochise College Small Business Development Center, Small Business Administration Southeast Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, and Nogales Municipal Government. Experts instructed business owners on how to conduct cross-border trade. Participants had the opportunity to complete necessary registration forms, as well as meet strategic partners.

HOA

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