[IN-DEPTH] Dirt Wars: The battle over the future of downtown Phoenix. “You can’t walk too far before coming to a construction site with cranes in the air, but you’ll likely pass a deserted, empty lot or a seemingly abandoned building along the way.” Now, there’s a legal battle brewing over development of one of those downtown lots — at McKinley and Second, where a multimillion-dollar, multistory apartment complex has been proposed. And while columnist Antonia Noori Farzan notes in her lengthy New Times piece that it’s a fight that could put other downtown projects in jeopardy, she also opines that if Phoenix’s core never reaches the vibe of “Seattle or downtown San Francisco or even downtown Denver… maybe that’s okay.” http://bit.ly/2siEJot
Arts Discovery Center, not a desert one for Scottsdale. Taking inspiration from recent visit to an art exhibit at Oslo’s Vigeland Park, and noting that in Scottsdale “lies the canvas to do something transcendent,” Valley PR guru Jason Rose urges the city to “plant the grounds of the Civic Center with works large and small” which would not only serve as “enrichments of the community’s soul” but also “become assets and anchors of a new tourist attraction ” At Scottsdale Independent. http://bit.ly/2rYIEtr
DEJA ZONING – Rezoning OK’d at Evelyn subdivision in Apache Junction. The other day we mentioned AJ’s corrective rezoning of Hughes Place subdivision. Well, it’s happened again. AJI reports that by a vote of 6-0, City Council has approved the same for The Evelyn subdivision “on Main Drive between West First Avenue and West Broadway.” What’s noteworthy is that The Evelyn, like Hughes Place, has also been “incorrectly rezoned dating back to the city’s incorporation” in 1883. Coincidence? http://bit.ly/2rJl3NQ
Phoenix, Las Vegas housing markets return to average growth, 15 years later. “Home prices in Las Vegas rose 6.4% over the year, while those in Phoenix rose 5.6%.” Says one industry analyst: “In the boom and the bust they were clearly the incredibly hot spots… They’re no longer so outstanding and unusual.” Additionally, as the WSJ notes,“neither city is close to its previous peak.” So how far are we from our 2006 high? Click it: http://bit.ly/2qKH61q
U.S. home prices continue to rise, new data show. “[A] 5.8% annual gain in March, up from 5.7% last month and setting a 33-month high.” Head to Forbes for the 10- and 20-City Composite indices, info on “regional variations,” plus the link to the complete S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller report. http://bit.ly/2rv5WXo
Economists, housing experts expect 4.8% rise in home values. That’s the forecast from the recently released Zillow Home Price Expectations Survey. “The [Q2 2017] survey… also asked more than 100 housing experts and economists about the impact of international buyers on the U.S. real estate market.” How much, if at all, do international buyers “effect… inventory and home values”? Where are officials introducing “policies in attempts to limit international home buying activity”? Find out in Builder. http://bit.ly/2ruNFcy
Pending home sales fall below 2016 levels. “[NAR’s] Pending Home Sale Index… slumped for the second straight month, dropping 1.3 percent… The decline of sales was nearly nationwide in scope and all four regions are now running lower index numbers than the previous April.” NAR’s Yun weighs in on the numbers and discusses the “double whammy” that he says will continue to be a factor in “fading contract activity” — at Mortgage News Daily. http://bit.ly/2rv00xy
Why big box isn’t dead in Phoenix (or anywhere else). “The big box retail industry is undoubtedly changing, but it’s far from dead, even by retailing standards.” PBJ takes a look at CBRE’s report “The Big Box is Dead?” which “shows that 13 retailers have expansion plans this year, with the openings spanning more than 40 million square feet” — and how “Phoenix’s big box space is just about filled up too.” http://bit.ly/2qFfLPf
Cameron’s $5M + deals of the day – http://bit.ly/2rfSzJY
As a supplement to the Dealmaker, we thought you might enjoy these articles!
Phoenix & Canada: An underrated North American business partnership. “From the beginning of its urbanization process about a half century ago, Phoenix became a hub for Canadians, specifically the Canadian business elite, who view the metro area as a warm second home.” Forbes explores this — can we call it “Icy-Hot”? — relationship, including how “Canadians were credited with saving Phoenix’s housing market during the Great Recession.” http://bit.ly/2rYI7YD
Why suburbs are where innovation will happen. “Many might think that the suburbs would be the most resistant to change and adaptation,” but the very first mayor of the recently incorporated town of Fishers, Indiana (yes, a suburb — of Indianapolis), sees it differently. In this Governing piece, Mayor Scott Fadness (who is still in office) looks at how suburbs such as Fishers are well-positioned to adapt to “transformative technological change” and “redefine themselves as entrepreneurial laboratories of innovation.” http://bit.ly/2qG6o5L
Best and worst states for seniors. The site SeniorAdvice has identified “the most and least accommodating states” by using “the first… scoring system specifically designed to identify and measure the livability for seniors”: SeniorScore™ (a name, btw, that would be perfect for describing the dating habits of cougars and manthers.) See which list Arizona lands on, in Builder. http://bit.ly/2rYF2aI
Ballot images same as ballots, Pima County judge rules in voter privacy case. Ballot images are an “exact replica of a voted ballot” and are “produced by vote tabulation machines.” The case involved an “election activist” who “wanted to have access to the images despite the fact that access would deny voters their privacy rights.” The ruling by Pima County Superior Court Judge Richard Gordon, which was basically a huge “DON’T GO THERE” to plaintiffs, was “hailed by voter privacy proponents.” Read the court’s decision at ADI. http://bit.ly/2qGdnvn
‘I NEED NAMES!… AND MAYBE SUNSCREEN?’ – Queen Creek Councilman Benning collecting signatures to oppose legislation expanding school vouchers. “SB 1431 is a major school voucher expansion bill that will extend eligibility to all 1.1 million state schoolchildren.” The group Save Our Schools opposes the bill, especially member and Queen Creek resident (and councilman) Robin Benning, who endured “triple-digit weather” for hours to gather signatures for a petition against it. The story at Queen Creek Independent. http://bit.ly/2siPIhW
Investigation of Pinal court kept secret. A Pinal County Superior Court employee filed a complaint of “harassment and discrimination by people in management positions at the court. After months of interviewing various employees, [the Arizona Department of Administration] filed its findings [on the allegations] in October.” But if you’re PinalCentral or a Pinal County official, obtaining a copy of that report isn’t as easy as 1-2-3. Tap through and you’ll see what we mean. http://bit.ly/2ssVKLW
Rose Law Group Reporter’s Top 10 Misspelled Words by State. “Google users often check it for correct spelling. The search engine recently released a study of most misspelled words according to state inquiries.” Senior Reporter/Writer Phil Riske has come up with this wacky “list of misspelled words by state.”–> http://bit.ly/2rpa2y0 |
