By Dianna M. Náñez | The Arizona Republic
Mark your calendars because Tempe city leaders want businesses and residents to party like it’s 2017, a year that is expected to bring a mass of jobs and an expansive development to Town Lake’s long underdeveloped shores.
The tough economy that pummeled Tempe, Ahwatukee and many cities nationally taught politicos to be cautiously optimistic about future fiscal gains, according to Tempe Councilman Joel Navarro.
But some financial prospects are too grand not to be recognized as a turning point. Navarro is among the city council members who believe that the future Marina Heights development and the future State Farm regional headquarters are cause for celebration for Valley residents who have long cited jobs as their No. 1 priority.
For Tempe residents critical of the slow Town Lake development, which took a nosedive in the economic downturn, the project would bring new businesses to undeveloped land on the lake’s edge.
