The Dealmaker is a daily note of the day’s top real estate stories served just in time for lunch. Bon Appetit! Subscribe here to receive the Dealmaker to your inbox
Microsoft continues Arizona expansion, spends $20M on El Mirage land to build data centers. (Disclosure: Rose Law Group represents Microsoft.) AZCentral reports on Microsoft’s purchase and plans for the 151 acres located “south of Olive Avenue between Dysart and El Mirage roads.” http://bit.ly/2Y7XESl
Phoenix riding $3.5B bioscience wave with jobs, new space, research And Christine Mackay, Phoenix’s community and economic development director, is looking for even more. A Mike Sunnucks’ report for RLGR. http://bit.ly/2GXYISI
An Independent examination of Museum Square: A proposed vision for Old Town emerges. Bringing energy to Main St.! Scottsdale Independent looks at the plans and talks with the team behind the proposed “Museum Square, a 7.34-acre site comprised of a [190-room] hotel, [‘300-plus’] residential units and open space in Old Town.” http://bit.ly/2XYiGTa
Taylor Morrison Q1 net blows past estimates. Sales and closings post “all-time first quarter highs” as the “impact of acquisitions kick in.” Get the positive earnings-report numbers and enjoy upbeat remarks from TM chairman and CEO Sheryl Palmer, in Builder. http://bit.ly/2PH1BKA
Neighbors oppose demolition of 1918 home. The owner of the “William F. McElroy” house, at 7019 N. Central, is looking to tear it down (for a “subdivision of 10,000-square-foot lots”?), while the “Historical Preservation Commission is exploring what options it has to save” it. north central news. http://bit.ly/2DLEMAD
Best cities for first-time buyers in 2019. “Texas, it would appear, is a prime destination for those looking for an affordable house.” But, hey, Arizona didn’t fare too shabbily either, with two cities landing in the top 15! SmartAsset via Builder. http://bit.ly/2IVQFs5
Arizona housing department quietly rolls out eviction prevention pilot program. “The pilot program is designed to stop evictions before they reach a courtroom, providing emergency cash grants to low-income households who have missed rent and received a five-day ‘pay or vacate’ notice.” AZCentral. http://bit.ly/2XXvxVy
New 40-acre Phoenix industrial park coming to Avondale. The “new two-building, Class A industrial regional distribution center” called 101 Logistics Park is going up at 101st Ave. and Roosevelt. JLL repped developers Seefried Industrial Properties and Crow Holdings Capital Real Estate in the land deal. Tap to AZRE for rendering and design details. http://bit.ly/2DKNGP3
Phoenix has added more construction jobs than all other metros. More than all others COMBINED! Okay, so that’s a flat-out fib just for the fun of it. But the Valley did add more hardhats than “any metro area in the nation during the past twelve months.” As an AGC spokesperson puts it in AZRE: “Phoenix has gone from being the poster child for the construction depression to the best job market for construction workers in the country.” http://bit.ly/2IVNEb6
Canadian group buys Gilbert center. An entity based out of the tongue-twister Saskatoon, Saskatchewan has purchased Gilbert Crossings shopping center, located at Gilbert and Guadalupe roads. Mike Sunnucks reports on the deal, in RLGR. http://bit.ly/2XXvBog
Hickman’s controversy goes national with documentary. “Tonopah residents and activists who have been fighting against nearby Hickman’s Family Farms operations [with claims of ‘adverse health and other issues’] just got a national boost via the documentary ‘Right to Harm.’ ” Hickman’s, however, pushes back with some fighting words of its own. West Valley View. http://bit.ly/2UV7G7b
New River residents feud over whether to become a city. Proponents of incorporating “New River and Desert Hills into its own city” say it “will allow locals more control over future development and provide increased water security.” Opponents say “it will do just the opposite and increase taxes all the while.” AZCentral. http://bit.ly/2VFDHEI
Ex-administrator of Pinal irrigation district indicted for misuse of $275K. Thunderbird Irrigation Water District administrator Suzanne Perkins “allegedly… used the funds on personal items like clothing, groceries, electronics, beauty products, and home furnishings.” Maricopa Monitor. http://bit.ly/2Y3IugS
Talk Derby To Me! This Saturday Is The Scottsdale Polo Party’s Kentucky Derby Party – http://bit.ly/2GSp6NP
As a supplement to the Dealmaker, we thought you might enjoy these articles!
Click here for 2019 Arizona Legislative News
Robocalls hit 3 million a day in Arizona, but help may be on the way. The number of robocalls has increased “more than 1.4 million a day from just a year earlier.” AZ officials hope the Telephone Robocall Abuse Criminal Enforcement and Deterrence Act will bring that number down. Press one for details. http://bit.ly/2GXZoHK
Billboard slams Sinema as ‘corrupt’ on net neutrality. You can view the billboard along I-17 near 7th St., but why waste gas making the trip or risk an accident by taking your eyes off the road to gawk at it when you can see the sign (and read a report about it) right here in AZ Mirror. -> http://bit.ly/2UV7SDr
THREE DEMS WALK INTO A BARR…Sinema, other moderate Democrats fret they made a ‘big mistake’ backing Barr. “Three Senate Democrats voted for William Barr to be attorney general. Now at least two of them say they might have made a mistake.” POLITICO. http://bit.ly/2VaPtY9
Ethics Committee dismisses complaint against Kern. Rep. Anthony Kern’s “stint as a volunteer deputy with the Tombstone Marshal’s Office” got a big 10-4 from the House Ethics Committee on Wednesday. The story on the complaint against Kern and why it was put in a chokehold, in AZ Mirror. http://bit.ly/2URGZ3j
Bill would allow Arizona attorney general to change words on ballot measures. “Supporters say the change helps clarify the attorney general’s role, while opponents — mainly progressives — fear it would lead to biased descriptions that could sink statewide proposals.” AZCentral. http://bit.ly/2ZSswrF
Water in the West: Snow news may not be good news. GOOD NEWS: “This past winter has brought desperately needed snowfall to a large portion of the American West.” BAD NEWS: A Bureau of Reclamation hydrologist sees it as a one-off. Discover. http://bit.ly/2DLADwF
