(Editor’s note: News releases are published unedited, unless they contain factual errors.)
Will Feature Memorabilia On Loan From by Mesa Entrepreneur and Collector Michael Pollack
SCOTTSDALE, Arizona (October 18, 2016) — A new co-working space will be unveiled on October 19 at SkySong, the ASU Scottsdale Innovation Center — and will feature some incredible pieces of old-time Americana.
The space is located on the ground floor in SkySong 1, and is named 1951@SkySong for the year Scottsdale was incorporated. The space is a next step in ASU’s efforts to support the region’s entrepreneurial enterprise. Community startups can purchase tiered memberships with access to varying levels of space, technology, training and mentoring from ASU faculty and the university’s Entrepreneurship + Innovation experts.
In honor of the year 1951 the space will be adorned with Americana on loan from the collection of Scottsdale real estate entrepreneur Michael Pollack.
Pollack, a renowned collector of rare memorabilia, is president and founder of Michael A. Pollack Real Estate Investments. From his sought-after Frank Polk Slot Machine collection to owning the largest 3D Advertising Museum in the world to a beautiful collection of rare Baranger displays, Pollack owns some of the biggest collections around the globe. On display at the 1951@SkySong co-working space will be 28 pieces of Pollack’s Americana collection, from classic juke boxes to old gas pumps to neon signs from the 1950s era.
The décor may hint of yesteryear but the vibe and amenities are as modern as they come, with high-speed wifi, teleconferencing technology for collaborations, direct connections to Silicon Valley companies, and data experts to help build company profiles. The stimulating vibe will reflect that of SkySong with collaboration, openness and community among the prevailing qualities. Members can sit at designated desk spaces, on couches, or on modular furniture that can be re-arranged to meet team needs. The 6,500-square-foot space also includes multiple meeting rooms, lounge space and recreational features. Members can use the conference rooms for staff or client meetings.
“SkySong is the perfect fit for a co-working space that will be populated with striving innovators,” said Sharon Harper, President & CEO of Plaza Companies. “Entrepreneurs, ASU students and faculty, small business owners, freelancers and startups alike will feel right at home in this new extraordinary space. And thanks to Michael Pollack, an innovating entrepreneur in his own right, 1951@SkySong will have a unique look and feel.”
Pollack’s penchant for advertising memorabilia started when he was 14, when he would buy electric beer signs on Saturdays at a flea market near his home in San Francisco and then sell sold them on Sundays to antique dealers around the Bay Area. Today his own Pollack Advertising Museum, housed in his corporate offices in Arizona, is home to over 110 Baranger displays and more than 7,000 other three-dimensional advertising pieces sprawling over 6,000 square feet.
“An amazing entrepreneurial space needs a connection with the past and I am thrilled to be able to provide this connection with selections from my collection,” said Pollack. “SkySong’s innovative spirit is a reflection of the bold dreams and vision the country had in 1951, when this memorabilia was part of the nation’s fabric. I applaud the entrepreneurial spirit of Arizona State University for the opening of 1951@SkySong.”
“SkySong, the ASU Scottsdale Innovation Center, is one of the leading hubs of innovation and entrepreneurship in the Valley,” said Sethuraman Panchanathan, executive vice president of Knowledge Enterprise Development and chief research and innovation officer at Arizona State University. “1951@SkySong helps us be of greater service to the community and we are excited to house some of the university’s most groundbreaking programs and initiatives here.”
Other memorabilia on display will include a Dog’n Suds neon sign, a Bob’s Big Boy statue, an ASU Devil neon sign, a Mobil gas metal sign, a barber pole, a rocket-shaped gumball machine, a Coca-Cola bottles vending machine, metal Route 66 signs, a cowboy neon figure, a Marilyn Monroe neon sign and a Wurlitzer juke box.
The 1951@SkySong name represents the year Scottsdale was incorporated. On June 25 of that year, with a population of about 2,000 living within an area of less than a square mile, the town incorporated and adopted “The West’s Most Western Town” as its official motto.
Plaza Companies is the developer of the SkySong project in partnership with the Arizona State University Foundation, the City of Scottsdale and Holualoa Companies.
SkySong, the ASU Scottsdale Innovation Center, is home to a global business community that links technology, entrepreneurship, innovation, and education to position ASU and Greater Phoenix as global leaders of the knowledge economy.
SkySong is a 42-acre mixed use development designed to:
- Create an ecology of collaboration and innovation among high-profile technology enterprises and related researchers;
- Advance global business objectives of on-site enterprises;
- Raise Arizona’s profile as a global center of innovation through co-location of ASU’s strategic global partners; and
- Create a unique regional economic and social asset.
Companies located at SkySong enjoy a special relationship with Arizona State University, which has more than 90,000 students studying across four metropolitan Phoenix campuses, in Lake Havasu and online. ASU is one of the largest public universities in the nation.
In addition to locating its own innovative units at SkySong, through ASU’s on-site operations, tenant companies have a single point of contact for introductions to technology transfer, enterprise and innovation initiatives, researchers, faculty and programs to address their specific needs.
For more information on SkySong, visit www.skysong.com or www.facebook.com/skysongcenter.
— 30 —
About SkySong
Plaza Companies is the developer of the project in partnership with Arizona State University Foundation, the City of Scottsdale and Holualoa Companies. Lee and Associates provides the brokerage services and Plaza del Rio Management Corporation provides the property management and construction services. Architects at SkySong include Pei Cobb Fried and Partners, DMJM Design, Butler Design Group and Kendle Design Collaborative.
About Plaza Companies
With offices in Peoria, Scottsdale and Tucson, Plaza Companies is a full-service real estate firm specializing in the management, leasing and development of medical office and commercial office properties, technology and bioscience facilities, mixed-use properties and senior housing communities. Since 1982, Plaza Companies has established a proud track record as a competitive, connected and conscientious real estate firm with partnerships throughout the industries it serves. For more information, visit www.theplazaco.com.
About The ASU Foundation
ASU Foundation is an independent non-profit organization that acts as the principal agent through which gifts are made to benefit the Arizona State University. The mission of the ASU Foundation is to solicit, manage and disburse the proceeds of gifts made to ASU. www.asufoundation.org.
About Holualoa Companies
Holualoa Companies is a real estate investment firm focused on the successful acquisition, repositioning, redevelopment and disposition of real estate assets. Headquartered in Tucson, Arizona, with offices in Phoenix, Santa Monica, Hawaii and Paris, its investments span the United States and Europe and include office, retail, industrial, multi-family, hotel and mixed-use investment properties. Holualoa is an experienced investor for its own account and on behalf of a select group of private investors.
About the City of Scottsdale
Scottsdale is one of the state’s leading job centers with a diverse economy built on medical research, high-tech innovation, tourism and corporate headquarters. Scottsdale is home to nearly 18,000 businesses supplying more than 150,000 jobs. Among the city’s economic drivers is SkySong, the high-tech innovation center that helps companies grow through a unique partnership with nearby Arizona State University. Learn more at ChooseScottsdale.com.
About Michael A. Pollack
Michael A. Pollack has been an institution in the Phoenix commercial real estate market for more than 20 years. Specializing in refurbishing commercial and industrial properties, Michael A. Pollack is one of Arizona’s largest privately held shopping center owners and operators. Michael’s desire to build pride back into run down communities is a catalyst for many of his real estate ventures with the goal of making our Arizona cities better one project at a time.
Michael A. Pollack Real Estate Investments specializes in commercial and industrial property in Phoenix, and will consider any type of real estate investment for potential acquisition. The Pollack Acquisition Team reviews information on community and neighborhood shopping centers, industrial parks, warehouses, single Tenant buildings, free standing buildings, office projects, condominium projects, apartment projects and vacant commercial land throughout the western United States on a daily basis.
Contact: Mike Saucier
347.834.7476
