The Dealmaker: 6/22/2017

New roads and freeways for Pinal County drive toward November ballot. (Disclosure: Rose Law Group represents a coalition of property and business owners throughout Pinal County working to bring new transportation infrastructure to the county.) “[The] innovative and comprehensive transportation plan… address[es] a long list of concerns including inadequate connections from I-10 to local roads and businesses, and the need to improve… existing north-south and east-west roadways which don’t have the capacity to address current demands….”  Tap to Rose Law Group Reporter for Pinal Partnership’s press release and a detailed list of the proposed projects. (For a map of the projects and more on the plan and its approval, see Dealmaker item below.) http://bit.ly/2s05WuP

Pinal road excise tax on ballot in November. “The Pinal County Board of Supervisors [unanimously] passed a resolution Wednesday approving a Regional Transportation Plan and Transportation Excise Tax and calling for a Nov. 7 election date. The plan and half-cent transportation excise tax are intended to allocate about $640 million in transportation funding over the next two decades…” More in Casa Grande Dispatch. http://bit.ly/2sFXOS9

The doctor is not in on ASU biomedical center in Phoenix. “Plans to massively expand [ASU’s] footprint on the downtown Phoenix Biomedical Campus with the help of a billionaire doctor are off, university officials confirmed Wednesday. ASU no longer is negotiating the development of about seven acres of city land with NantWorks, the company led by Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong…” AZCentral. http://bit.ly/2sYUcOb

Contour on Campbell luxury condominiums are topped off. “Contour on Campbel, located at 2300 E. Campbell Ave… includes 111 one- and two-bedroom condominiums ranging from 1,000 to 1,700 square feet and are priced from the $300,000s.” AzBigMedia has further details and a rendering of the Liv URBN development, but the real highlight is the time-lapse construction progress featuring the topping-off grand finale. Sweet! http://bit.ly/2rZTQ5a

Peoria and development firm inch closer to office complex. “The City Council approved a ground lease for [Plaza Del Rio Management Corp] to develop… a commercial office complex [on] a 14-acre property at the Loop 101 and Peoria Avenue… Sharon Harper, President & CEO of Plaza Companies, said the agreement is an opportunity to create a new economic engine in the area.” Further deal and development details at YourWestValley. http://bit.ly/2sFZ7kj

Apache Junction City Council discusses setting aside property for business uses. Council members and city officials kick around the “city’s downtown redevelopment and implementation strategy,” but it’s what  Councilwoman Christa Rizzi said in this Apache Junction Independent piece that really grabbed our attention: “It’s very interesting… that the topic is resurfaced about land acquisition because many years ago… I got slapped hard for bringing that conversation up…” Talk about rough-and-tumble politics! Click through for all the blow-by-blow. http://bit.ly/2rVZWs8

A VILLAGO SETBACK – Casa Grande council overrules planners on Villago. “Communities Southwest is requesting changes… One sticking point… was… the side yard setback. Council members said they were concerned that allowing a smaller side yard… would make the development feel cluttered… Planning commissioners ultimately voted 5-1 to allow for the smaller setback, which was overturned by council Monday.” The upshot from the setback setback? Planning Director Paul Tice explains in PinalCentral. http://bit.ly/2sVMQKF

Sedona Vista Village breathes new life into retail center. “Sedona Vista Village is set to transform the faltering… Sedona Village Factory Outlets with a renovation and by adding the town’s first Westin hotel to anchor the newly purchased 9-acre development…” AZRE reports that “Marty Aronson, head of Sedona Pine Tree Ventures, LLC, purchased the property… [when he] recognized the potential of the factory outlet location… [while] traveling from the I-17 to the Village of Oak Creek and Sedona.” See what Aronson has to say about the site improvements; plus, view a hotel rendering that showcases the pool and a sunglass-clad mystery man striding away from it — at AzBigMedia. http://bit.ly/2tyaGtH

New home sales should rebound as existing sales stagnate. “New home sales should rise 6.8 percent from April… and should continue gaining gradually over the next year… [while] existing home sales [are expected] to edge 0.3 percent lower month-over-month in May…” So how did Zillow’s existing home sales forecast pan out? Find out in this article’s sidebar “Surprise.” http://bit.ly/2s04qsz

Size matters: The difference between today’s glacial housing recovery and a normal rebound is about 1,000 square feet. This Builder Magazine article looks at a Calculated Risk post from housing economist Tom Lawler,  a post which the article contends “illustrates a housing pain point” — that “housing’s new-home market is producing too few small, lower-priced homes, creating a ‘shortfall’ as a result, and causing upward pressure on home prices.” http://bit.ly/2rZRMd6

The would-be Woodwards are opting out of journalism. “Of the past 11 winners for the National Society of Newspaper Columnists’ College Columnist Award… fewer than half entered journalism professionally.”  In the Daily Beast, columnist Jesse Rifkin “tracked down and interviewed four of those former national winners” to find out why they “eschewed the profession” and to see if “[t]heir answers may help lead to solutions to the problem…” http://bit.ly/2sGfv43

Why women don’t run for office. “While women have proven that they can raise money and win elections at comparable, if not higher, rates than men, too few women run for office at all… POLITICO has examined the factors that dissuade women from running — starting at a young age and persisting over the course of their educations and careers — and the key moments when they could be urged to reconsider.” —> http://bit.ly/2sFHDo3

Can states and cities really uphold the Paris climate deal? “Early this month, President Trump formally announced his intention to pull the U.S. out of the Paris climate accord… But within hours, a slew of governors, mayors and companies pledged to uphold the landmark deal’s mission… [Governing] asked environmental experts for the most effective and politically practical ways they can help do that.” http://bit.ly/2rW6jvn

Regents adopt special tuition rate for ‘dreamers’ ahead of court ruling. “On Tuesday… the state Court of Appeals [ruled] that while… federal policy permits those in DACA to remain without fear of deportation, they are still here contrary to federal law. Unless overturned, that voids the policies of permitting them in-state tuition. As it turns out, the universities already have a back-up plan.” By Howard Fischer, Capitol Media Services via Arizona Capitol Times. http://bit.ly/2sVGTx3

Arizona ranks 32nd in revenue generated by college athletics. Arizona Business Daily breaks down athletic-revenue data from Dept. of Education. The revenue numbers — especially by state and by school in Arizona — are a sure bet to ratchet up the rivalry between the Sun Devils and Wildcats. http://bit.ly/2sVKb3m

Burns weighs new lawsuit in his battles with Corporation Commission, APS. “The move follows the 4-1 vote… by the Arizona Corporation Commission to reject the bid by [Bob] Burns to compel [APS] and parent company Pinnacle West Capital Corp. to comply with the subpoena he had issued… Burns told Capitol Media Services… he is weighing whether to file yet another legal action, this one asking a judge to determine whether the other commissioners have any right at all to decide anything involving the [APS].” Arizona Capitol Times. http://bit.ly/2rGTyjZ

HIGH MAINTENANCE – San Carlos District sues U.S. over maintenance charges. “[The lawsuit]  accuses [the Bureau of Indian Affairs] of charging excessively high rates for the operation and maintenance of the San Carlos Irrigation Project, which oversees Coolidge Dam, San Carlos Reservoir and other infrastructure related to the irrigation of farm land in Pinal County.” PinalCentral. http://bit.ly/2sZTzU9