By Monica D. Spencer | InMaricopa
What was proposed in 2021 as a sprawling hospital campus with a hotel, cabanas fronting the palm tree-lined pool and a seven-story luxury condominium tower could now end up being developed as nothing more than an office building and more apartments.
The city is expected to enter into a third contract to sell land near Copper Sky for a downsized medical complex, but not necessarily a hospital, this time with California real estate and construction group BR Red Copper Sky.
The contracts were moved from the consent agenda to the regular agenda for discussion on Friday, meaning city council members will engage in discussion and decide whether or not to approve the contracts.
Under the terms of the previous contract, the city would have sold the land to Phoenix hospital developer S3 Biotech. There were stipulations over the sale, including hard and swift deadlines. Permits were to be submitted by March 30, followed by construction beginning a month later and the medical campus opening by June 30 this year.
None of that happened.
The hospital deal died when the company violated the contract terms. Maricopa Chief Strategy Officer Rick Horst confirmed on April 3 the city terminated the agreement due to “the many unmet deliverables over the past few years.”