The Dealmaker: 11/30/2016

Lucid Car Company YouTube Video. WATCH: Lucid Car Company, State, County and City officials announce the big Casa Grande deal — one of the biggest things that could happen for the State of Arizona! (Note: Last we checked, the press conference starts around the 9:30 mark on the YouTube time bar. So don’t forget to swipe forward — you know, unless you happen to get a kick out of time spent staring at company logos.) http://bit.ly/2gKHQ1W

How Arizona and Casa Grande beat 60 markets to land a $700M auto plant. Brian Barron, Lucid Motors director of manufacturing: “Arizona made us feel as if they were more of a partner for our success… We believe in Casa Grande, and we believe that we have picked the best location for our facility.” But what specifically “helped seal the deal”? Find out in this Phoenix Business Journal“EXCLUSIVE”—> http://bit.ly/2fE5p0m

Casa Grande officials pledge to make sure Lucid Motors gets to finish line. Kevin Reagan reports in Casa Grande Dispatch: “[Mayor Bob Jackson] sees [Lucid’s] arrival as a catalyst that will propel Casa Grande into being a leader in technology and advanced manufacturing. There will not be any delays in this [500-acre] development on behalf of the city, Jackson promised, as he expressed a desire to speedily move the project forward.” http://bit.ly/2gGqgzS

What happened to Mountain Shadows Resort? “After laying fallow for more than a decade in tony Paradise Valley, retro glam returns with… a 183-room hotel, 42 hotel condominiums, a new restaurant and bar headed by chef Chuck Wiley, an 18-hole short course (all par 3), fitness center, swimming pool, event space and more. [Expected] to open in early 2017.”  See the renderings, plus go back in time with “Only in Arizona” columnist Mark Nothaft who serves up vintage photos and gives us a glimpse of Mountain Shadows’ Rat-Pack-esque history — in AZCentral. http://bit.ly/2gl6CZv

Scottsdale group planning $25M country club for car buffs in Maricopa.(Disclosure: Rose Law Group represents the developer of Apex Motorsports Club.) Phoenix Business Journal: “Scottsdale-based Private Motorsports Group is under contract to buy [280 acres] in the city of Maricopa near Highway 347 and State Route 238…. Apex Motorsports Club… is slated to have a four-mile asphalt race track, a kart track, 200 car condominiums and 12,000-square-foot club house.” http://bit.ly/2g7bJcX

$63M Mesa multifamily project breaks ground. “[L]ocated at 8350 E. Baseline Rd., [Aviva, from multifamily developer Housing Trust Group], will consist of 325 one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments, a large state-of-the-art clubhouse, a 150-foot resort-style pool, and extensive green space. Monthly rents will range from $1,050 to $1,500.” For further design details and renderings of this “luxury gated community,” click to AZRE. http://bit.ly/2gGxfsu

Construction starts on Mesa light-rail extension to Gilbert Road. “After a delay of a few months, initial work on the segment began in October…”  But don’t bolt for the train station just yet, because you’ll be super early — “[c]ompletion is expected in about two years.” For a preview of the artwork and a look at the roundabout rendering, plus info on the construction timeline, see Chris Coppola’s report in AZCentral. http://bit.ly/2gy1FKB

Home prices recover ground lost during bust. “[P]rices have climbed back above the record reached more than a decade ago, bringing to a close the worst period for the housing market since the Great Depression…” Zillow’s chief economist Svenja Gudell, index co-developer Robert Shiller, Fannie Mae’s chief economist Doug Duncan, and Redfin’s chief economist — all share their views in this Wall Street Journal report on the latest S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price index. http://bit.ly/2g7hwiS