MyPlanPHX Shaping Phoenix’s Future
Since debuting last August, MyPlanPHX has received more than 10,000 submissions. The online initiative – launched by Mayor Greg Stanton, Phoenix City Council members and community leaders – allows Phoenix residents to share ideas for helping plan the city’s future. According to Joshua Bednarek, PlanPHX project manager, ideas collected so far fall into four primary themes. >> Read More…
New Stores Commit to Mostly Empty Shopping Center in Laveen
Baseline Village Center, the nearly 16-acre commercial development on the northwest corner of Baseline Road and 35th Avenue, will soon see more retail activity after sitting mostly vacant for more than four years. Big Lots will soon shut its doors at Baseline Road and Central Avenue and serve as the center’s anchor tenant in >> Read More…
Building Fuels Real Estate Improvements
As people continue searching for hints of an economic recovery, attention on the real estate market has been growing greater by the day. Several reports show Phoenix-area housing on the rise, as well as increased activity in the commercial sector. Naturally, this trend carries over to the South Mountain area, where one local developer >> Read More…
Narrowing High Capacity Transit Options
As part of an ongoing Alternative Analysis to determine the best high-capacity transit options for the South Central Phoenix Corridor, Valley Metro and the City of Phoenix are now evaluating three potential routes to come up with a recommended transit type and alignment. The three route alternatives, which stretch from Washington Street to Baseline >> Read More…
Developer Turning Preservation into Profit
In a time when the next best “thing” in commercial real estate often gets constructed from scratch, artist-turned-developer Michael Levine prefers the contrary approach. An advocate for preserving buildings in the warehouse district south of downtown Phoenix, Levine has bought and saved seven structures from a date with demolition since 1992. One of the >> Read More…
Area Businesses Get New Owners
The change in seasons also carried over to the local business community, where several long-time establishments have new owners. Last month, A. Wayne Smith sold The Farm at South Mountain to Pat Christofolo, who also owns Santa Barbara Catering and co-owns The House at Secret Garden with her son, Dustin. Smith owned the >> Read More…
Residents Shaping the Future of Phoenix
In late August, Mayor Greg Stanton, Phoenix City Council members and community leaders launched MyPlanPhx, an online initiative that allows Phoenix residents to provide input about the city’s growth during the next 10 years. With two specific projects needing input – updating the city’s general plan and community planning along the light rail line – the South >> Read More…
Low Inventory Affecting Home Pricing
A recent housing report released by Arizona State University’s W.P. Carey School of Business shows Phoenix-area home values rose 29 percent during the last year. But for homeowners in select spots, the news can be a bit deceiving. According to Carlie Back, Realtor at Keller Williams Lifestyle Realty, changes in values vary from city >> Read More…
Questions Surrounding Freeway
Uncertainty remains the only sure thing in the ongoing battle to build the South Mountain Freeway. The Arizona Department of Transportation and the Federal Highway Administration continue to work on a Draft Environmental Impact Statement detailing the effects of the proposed project. The process includes changing the freeway’s size from 10 lanes to eight lanes >> Read More…
Considering Transportation Route Alternatives
METRO and the City of Phoenix held two public meetings last month to seek input on route and transit mode alternatives for the five-mile South Central Avenue corridor from Washington Street to Baseline Road. The meetings were part of a 24-month alternatives analysis to determine whether bus rapid transit, modern streetcar or light rail would >> Read More…
