The Dealmaker: 3/17/2017

Jump-starting Glendale Midtown District. “Although Midtown is ripe for revitalization it has its challenges…. For years, the city invested time and money to jump-start its decaying downtown but to no avail. Vacancy rates, population drop and unemployment rates continued to surpass the rest of Glendale. Last week, a report with recommendations [‘a basis for future strategy’] was unveiled….” Check out the report’s recommendations along with some of the challenges facing the area, in YourWestValley. http://bit.ly/2mXMEqM

Casa Grande mayor delivers first state of the city address. “The mayor referenced big development projects like Lucid Motors and Attesa… “ And in what’s sure to be a developer attention-grabber, the mayor said that “the city’s looking at the option of delaying the payment of impact fees… [which] would, in theory, encourage more development and construction.” More from mayor’s state-of-the-city and his “open for business” agenda, at Pinal Central. http://bit.ly/2mXG2c7

Private motocross track gets go-ahead despite county controversy. “With the [Pinal County Board of Supervisors’] approval, the track — River Bottom Motocross — may be constructed on a 12-acre parcel of land located… near Florence, along the San Carlos Irrigation District Canal Road…” Pinal Central reports that the land is “currently undeveloped, a graveyard of illegally-dumped tires.” But that’s not what “sparked debate” at Wednesday’s BoS meeting. “Access issues” did. http://bit.ly/2mB0oUR

Work progresses on Harrah’s Ak-Chin Casino multimillion-dollar transformation. “[From] a casino just for players to a family entertainment destination… [progress] is continuing… with brand-new steel-beamed structures rising to foreshadow its expansion. This… expansion project in the Ak-Chin Indian Community near Maricopa… could double the area’s economy…” Expansion details, including completion date estimates and images of some of the progress, at Phoenix Business Journal. http://bit.ly/2ni0J3r

Developing on tribal land: benefits and challenges developers face; comments from Jordan Rose, president and founder of Rose Law Group, which represents private developers in their deals with Native American communities. AZRE looks at successful tribal developments and talks with tribal officials about the “development opportunities” (and complexities) involved. Jordan Rose: “success occurs only when the parties truly have their goals aligned. Sometimes it’s difficult to see that in the initial excitement of the deal, but it really is crucial.” http://bit.ly/2mDKUR1

New construction beginning at a quicker pace despite decline in permits. “[H]ousing starts… reversed course, posting the year’s first gains….. Analysts had expected a downturn in permitting, but a much smaller one.” Mortgage News Daily’s Jann Swanson dives into the data for permitting and starts, charting out the “Housing Starts vs Building Permits” from 2004 onward and breaking down the activity by region. —> http://bit.ly/2nAdN1a

Cameron’s $5M + deals of the day – http://bit.ly/2mReKSW