The Dealmaker: 3/24/2017

Ryan Companies breaks ground on Banner Health clinic. “The new [’29,350 square foot healthcare clinic in Phoenix, across from Desert Ridge Corporate Center’] will provide primary care services, dermatology services with spa and laser treatments and x-ray imaging.” More about the clinic at AZRE, including a photo from the groundbreaking ceremony featuring ten unidentified folks demonstrating extreme shovel-readiness. (Office time-waster idea: The first person to correctly identify ALL those in the photo wins dirt from the groundbreaking.) http://bit.ly/2nMUmFt

Phoenix is one of the fastest-growing cities in the US. Here’s the breakdown. “Eleven major metropolitan areas — including Phoenix — are growing at a pace of more than 1,000 persons per week….” For the breakdown, forecasts, and a 22-image “Population Change Per Week” slideshow (2010-2016), head to Phoenix Business Journal. http://bit.ly/2nfsN4P

Homebuilder buys 32 acres in Gilbert for gated subdivision. Buyer: Maracay Homes. Seller: Hari C. Puri. Location: Riggs Road and 156th Street. Name: Marathon Ranch. Purchase price, broker info, number of homes, completion date and more? In Phoenix Business Journal. http://bit.ly/2nZUP4z

Glendale Planning Commission approves 51st and Bell development. (Disclosure: Rose Law Group represents Empire Group.) “Campana Trails… is proposed to feature 21 manufactured homes on nearly six acres of land.” Empire Residential: “We think… we’ve done a pretty good job creating a tough property into a pretty one.” For details on how “[t]he proposal will enhance the existing neighborhood,” tap to The Glendale Star. http://bit.ly/2n2jHrt

Surprise capital projects list will require multiple solutions. “The city does not have money set aside for the nearly $192 million in… public safety, transportation, parks and recreation, government and water projects [it] is likely to need in the next five to 10 years. City departments ranked the projects by priority and the [Surprise City Council] will need to do the same…. Several items on the list have development impact fees tied to them that must be spent by Jan. 1, 2020, and will need to start soon.” See which projects are under the gun and which ones aren’t, inYourWestValley. http://bit.ly/2nMVUiB

Home billed as world’s tallest for sale in Prescott. (It would be somewhat amusing if the home was only available as a short sale.) “A Prescott mansion as tall as a 10-story building and billed as the world’s tallest home is for sale. A buyer can get the towering 124-foot-tall house, complete with hydraulic elevator, for $1.5 million.” And you can check out the house — called “The Falcon” — at AZCentral. http://bit.ly/2oe9s3j

Light rail’s role in Glendale discussed. “During a March 7 city council workshop, Urban Land Institute presented a study… that focuses primarily on the downtown area along the Glendale Avenue corridor… The study…  contained recommendations… [W]hen councilmembers asked… about the report, most responses came back to light rail…” Here’s a sampling: “[B]eing one of the only West Valley communities with a light rail stop, it would be a huge advantage from a developer standpoint….” More in The Glendale Star. http://bit.ly/2nfnK4s

Cameron’s $5M + deals of the day – http://bit.ly/2nfm6Qk

As a supplement to the Dealmaker, we thought you might enjoy these articles!

Bill to provide $225 million in public funding for a new Arizona Coyotes arena is likely dead. Senate President Steve Yarbrough: ”At this point, I have no expectation that that bill is going to move…” However, Sen. Bob Worsley, “the bill’s sponsor,” holds out a sliver of hope, noting “no bills truly are dead until the Legislature adjourns.” As for the Coyotes, AZCentral reports that the team “will keep trying to get a new playing facility built in the Valley.” (The way this has all played out thus far brings to mind the Road Runner cartoon and the bruising Wile E. Coyote takes in his persistent pursuit of the ever-elusive bird, except in this case the roadrunner is a new arena.) More here: http://bit.ly/2nwd0Rr

Ducey signs bill banning pay-per-signature for initiative petitions. “Gov. Doug Ducey late Thursday signed into law [House Bill 2404]… [a bill] widely viewed as a [backlash] to last fall’s successful minimum-wage ballot measure, Proposition 206.” Pretty ironic, since it now means signature-gatherers will “most likely earn an hourly wage”!  Read Gov. Ducey’s statement and see what others are saying about the new law, at AZCentral. http://bit.ly/2nZC6G2

Arizona voter initiatives aim to legalize all drugs, yes, all drugs. “I-13-2018, filed by an organization called RAD Final, aims to re-legalize all drugs, ‘including marijuana, heroin, cocaine, LSD and peyote.’ ‘This initiative is 100 percent complete legalization of all drugs,’ according to [Sec. of State Michelle] Reagan’s office. ‘It forbids the government from taxing or regulating any drug.’” And that’s just the FIRST initiative! More about I-13-2018 along with details on the second initiative filed (I-14-2018) — at KTAR. http://bit.ly/2nwgrHW

Maricopa County leads nation in annual population growth.“The Census Bureau reported Maricopa County received 222 people a day in 2016. From July 2015 to July 2016, the county added more than 81,000 people.” Go to KTAR for further details, including the total population estimate, plus the county that Maricopa “knocked… from the top of the list” — a county that had topped the list for eight straight years! http://bit.ly/2nfrpiS