By Corina Vanek | Arizona Republic
Arizona Center, once a destination for downtown dining and nightlife, has struggled in recent years to attract and retain businesses to serve the growing downtown.
Phoenix officials hope the new, local owner of the center will help turn things around.
“Arizona Center is one of those lost shopping assets,” Karla Scott, economic development program manager for Phoenix, said.
The center has been struggling since the Great Recession, and the Covid-19 pandemic stopped any momentum the recovery might have had, she said.
Phoenix-based Presson Corporation, led by Daryl Burton, a real estate developer and property manager who has been involved in major projects throughout the region, bought the retail and office portions of the center in July for $27 million, according to real estate database Vizzda.
The center is located at Third and Van Buren streets.
Burton said he is looking forward to working on the Arizona Center but declined to comment further on the plans until he has had a chance to make some progress.
Burton has been involved with projects including the adaptive reuse of a former Lockheed Martin campus near Goodyear, now called Flite.
