BUSINESS

Chandler aims to grow municipal airport business

BY KEN SAIN Staff Writer

City officials want to make one thing very clear: Don’t expect to see American or United planes landing at Chandler Airport. “When we think of airports, we think of Sky Harbor, we think of Phoenix-Mesa Gateway. We don’t think of small regional or general-aviation airports,” City Manager Joshua Wright said. “They’re not designed to be a passenger airport and that’s never been the plan for Chandler.” Wright said the airport will remain focused on business and executive travel only. To help it with that mission, the city is currently reviewing applications to manage the airport – the third busiest of its kind in the Valley. Deer Valley and Mesa’s Falcon Field rank ahead of it. Wright said the need for the position became apparent after City Council reviewed its plan for the airport and the surrounding airpark last summer. “It comes from the Council’s … renewed commitment to growing the airport and the airpark area,” Wright said. “I think we’ve realized in the last few years it’s one of the last frontiers in terms of the growth of Chandler.” He said it is time for a higher level of leadership and management. The person hired will be responsible for the daily operations at the airport, as well as assisting with the development projects inside the airport’s fences. The city makes clear in its posting that it is looking for someone with economic development experience.

The city’s master plan for the Chandler Airport shows the location of existing facilities.

(City of Chandler) seeAIRPORT page 29

Global café-bakery picks Chandler for 1st state foray

ARIZONAN NEWS STAFF

Acafé-bakery chain with more than 1,000 locations worldwide has picked Chandler for its first foray into Arizona. After eyeing the market for the past year, 85° C Bakery & Café has selected the growing Chandler Ranch at 1920 W. Chandler Blvd. near Dobson Road with the help of NewQuest Properties. A NewQuest spokesperson said the café signed a long-term lease for 3,555 sf in Chandler Ranch “after witnessing first-hand the strong attendance at 99 Ranch Market’s recent grand opening.” “85° C Bakery & Café knows the type of redevelopment we’re doing. The 99 Ranch opening was a shining example of the high demand in the Chandler market,” said Naoyuki Kondo, an associate with NewQuest Properties’ Asia-Pacific Retail team. The sweet shop will open in spring 2022. Another NewQuest tenant in Texas, Somisomi Soft Serve & Taiyaki, also has jumped on board at Chandler Ranch. It will open in early 2022, backfilling 1,470 square feet previously occupied by Tao Healing. NewQuest’s Asia-Pacific Retail team is focused on assembling a destination mix of Asian, Mexican, Mediterranean and American restaurants and eclectic shopping experiences. Other businesses opening by year’s end include Kura Revolving Sushi Bar, Uncle Lee’s Kitchen, Meet Fresh and Ramen Hood. “These are new-to-market brands, in many cases, that are well-known to people who’ve relocated or are visiting from California and Texas,” Kondo said. Heather Nguyen, development partner of the specialized group, is partnering with Kondo on Chandler Ranch’s leasing. They have been targeting new-to-market internationally recognized brands for the 117,565-square-foot redevelop-

Wright said most of the airpark outside the fences has already been developed. A presentation to Council in August said only 470 acres remain to be developed in the more-than-3,000-acre airpark. “It’s actually further along than most people would think,” Wright said. “But we also need to make sure that we’re very careful and very strategic about those last few pieces, to make sure they are exactly the right use and they fully complement the existing business sector there.” Chandler Economic Development Director Micah Miranda said the city is pursuing businesses that fit within its strategic plan. Those include aerospace, high tech, software, and health care businesses, among others. “If they don’t align with the strategic plan, we’re very protective of that space,” he said. “We will work with them to find an alternative space that might work better.”

seeAIRPORT page 30

The City of Chandler will hold a Special Bond Election on Nov. 2, 2021

A bond election is an opportunity for taxpayers to decide what community improvements or enhancements they are willing to pay for through property taxes. Will your property tax rates increase? No. Learn more about what this bond election means for you and our City at the web address below.

La Ciudad de Chandler llevará a cabo una Elección Especial de Bonos el 2 de noviembre de 2021

Una elección de bonos es una oportunidad para que los contribuyentes de impuestos decidan qué mejoramientos o realces comunitarios están dispuestos a pagar a través de los impuestos sobre la propiedad. ¿Aumentarán sus tasas de impuestos sobre la propiedad? No. Aprenda más sobre lo que esta elección de bonos significa para usted y nuestra Ciudad en el sitio web a continuación.

chandleraz.gov/BondElection

Miranda and Wright said a key part of the new manager’s job will be working with new businesses inside the airport fences. “We actually provided, I think for the first time, compared to the previous airport master plans, a little more detail about the types of businesses that could locate within the airport fence line,” Wright said. He said the city has a request for proposals out right now for a possible business next to the airport’s terminal. Changes to the city’s master plan for the airpark are expected to be before Council for approval this week. Wright, who was acting airport manager before he became acting city manager, said building relationships will be a key part of the job. “There’s a lot of different stakeholders at the airport,” Wright said. “You have your hobbyist pilot, that is just doing for recreational purposes, and who just loves flying, and we welcome those people at Chandler Airport; there’s businesses that are physically located, that is their livelihood, on the airport, that are leasing land from the city, that’s an important stakeholder; you have people who fly for a living, charter aircraft or other services that are here a lot, that you want to build relationships with. “And of course, certainly not least of that, is the community around the area, all the businesses outside in the airpark area, there’s some great neighborhoods there, you want to build those relationships.” Chris Andres is the airport planning administrator. His primary focus has been securing both federal and state grants that supply most of the funding needed to run and improve the airport. Wright said Andres has a background in economic development and will be a key player in advocating for the airport with the businesses inside the airpark. The new manager, once hired, will focus on daily operations and working with the businesses inside the airport’s fences.

SATURDAY OCTOBER 30

FRIGHTFUL HALLOWEEN WINNINGS

Calling all Monsters and Ghouls, who are or become members of the Apache Legends Players Club, as we celebrate an evening of Frights and Sights awarding a share of $6,000 in cash and prizes! The events will take place on Friday, October 29th at the Apache Sky Casino and Saturday, October 30th at the Apache Gold Casino.

From 7:00 p.m. to 10: 30 p.m., secret judges will roam the gaming floor and identify contestants based on their costume and tag the contestant with one of four categories. A final panel of judges will determine 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners in each category. Announcements will be made as soon as a selection is completed.

Remember, you can’t creep over to the other property to win again!

Must be 21 years old and over. Must not be barred or excluded to participate. Must be present to win. Management reserves the right to alter or cancel this promotion at any time. See Apache Legends Players Club for more details and rules. Same-day base points required. According to the airport master plan, there are basically four kinds of operations at the facility, detailed in the chart on the previous page: Air carrier, with aircraft greater than 60 seats and/or a maximum payload of 18,000 pounds; air taxi, commuter and for-hire general aviation aircraft; military planes and helicopters; and all other aviation activity from small ultralights to large business jets. “From 2007 through 2011, operations declined 39.1 percent likely due to the effects of the national economic recession during that period,” the master plan says. “Activity at CHD has picked up since 2011. Data for last year were not

available. (City of Chandler)

BAKERY from page 28

ment. “Chandler Ranch, like our centers in Dallas and Houston, lets consumers explore and experience the best of the best of international cuisines,” Nguyen said. “In the near future, we’re hoping we’ll have leases in hand with several new-toArizona retailers as well.” “Chandler boasts the largest Asian population in Arizona, making it a natural fit demographically for Houston-based NewQuest’s innovative development/redevelopment concept,” she added. 85° C Bakery & Café opened its first store in the U.S. in 2008 in Irvine, Calif. Today, it has 67 shops in five states. According to the cafe’s website, founder Cheng-Hsueh Wu visited a cafe in a five-star hotel and “realized that the prices were set way too high for people to enjoy on a whim.” He decided to open “a cafe that provides premium coffee, bread, and cake at affordable prices” and his business has been featured in numerous major TV shows and magazines. “The name 85ºC comes from the idea that the perfect brewing temperature for espresso coffee is 85º Celsius,” it adds. “Each cup of coffee is individually brewed with Guatemalan coffee beans for a smooth, rich taste. … Each store features an in-shop bakery with over 50 varieties of pastries baked fresh hourly. Our gourmet cakes are uniquely crafted by our award-winning master chefs.”