By Rebekah Morris | AZBEX
A packed house was present on Wednesday, September 13, 2023, in Scottsdale to hear all about the Valley’s hot Retail & Restaurant development projects from some of the most active players in the space:
- Walt Brown Jr., Founder, Diversified Partners, LLC
- Angie Grendahl, Director of Development, Thompson Thrift
- Joshua Simon, Founder & CEO, SimonCRE
- Amy Malloy, Managing Partner, Evolve Ventures, LLC – Moderator
The experts are in agreement the level of tenant activity in the space is ‘off the charts’. Simon stated that rental rates have increased 30% in the last 24 months. Grendahl stated that while not as many offers are coming through, the ones that do are of higher quality. All pointed at various times during the discussion to the high cost of capital, risk of time delays, and city regulation as some of the biggest risks to bringing new projects across the finish line. ‘It ain’t getting any easier’ was a prevailing theme of the discussion.
