USAA, Sunbelt start construction on 400-acre development. (Disclosure: Rose Law Group represents Sunbelt Holdings.) “[The] first phase [of Union Park at Norterra] includes 309 single-family homes and a resort-style pool and recreation center. Future phases include 1,100 more homes, 1,100 multifamily units, a hotel, office space, and boutique retail shops…. USAA owns the land [at 19th Avenue and Happy Valley], and Sunbelt is developing the project.” Phoenix Business Journal. http://bit.ly/2h9bOze
True Life drops Farms, offers golf course. “[True Life] will build a small golf course — if it is allowed to build homes on the 101-acre site of the defunct Ahwatukee Lakes Golf Course. And it also warned that if [state Superior Court Judge John R. Hannah Jr.] orders the company to restore the old course, the land will remain barren indefinitely.” For more on these “bombshell” court-brief “disclosures” [bombshell? sounds like somebody’s been spending way too much time with Nancy Grace], head to AFN. http://bit.ly/2y7lLD8
KOA-style campground planned at Tomahawk and U.S. 60 in Apache Junction. Applicants are seeking to rezone 16.87 acres at the N.E. “corner area to construct a KOA-style campground with commercial businesses… The conceptual plans set aside 4 acres of freeway frontage for a proposed 300- to 350-room hotel, restaurant and retail uses.” More on the possible rezone plus an aerial of the property at Apache Junction Independent. http://bit.ly/2z6vcaV
Pima County gives OK to raising chickens in certain residential areas. “The zoning amendment allows the keeping of [up to eight] female chickens for personal food production in small-lot residential zones where it currently is prohibited, including TH Trailer Homesite, CR-4 Mixed-Dwelling Type, CR-5 Multiple Residence, CMH-1 and -2 County Manufactured and Mobile Home and MU Multiple Use zones.” (BTW, this new zoning amendment also allows something else: A fantastic alternative for the anti-humor punchline to that old chestnut: “Why did the chicken cross the road?” ANSWER: “To get to a CR-4 Mixed-Dwelling Type.”) More in REDNews. http://bit.ly/2yRuTja
TRI Point profit soars on land sale. “3Q deliveries up 9%, orders up 36%, backlog up 32%,” and further details up, 100%, over at Builder. http://bit.ly/2xnZuS8
Housing demand, home prices to increase as families relocate from recent hurricanes. <– “[That] according to Freddie Mac’s latest monthly Outlook for October. The report analyzed the effects of the recent hurricanes, saying it could create a tighter inventory squeeze along with an increase in mortgage delinquencies.” HousingWire. http://bit.ly/2gDBrrm
WATT’S WITH CARSON? – Carson and Watt call on Congress to take on housing finance reform. “[A]t the [MBA] Annual Meeting in Denver, [FHFA] Director Mel Watt reiterated his recent sentiments that it is time for Congress to take on housing finance reform because the conservatorship of the government-sponsored enterprises has gone on too long. [HUD] Secretary Ben Carson also said that Congress needs to address the future of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and said that HUD will be an ‘active participant’ in those discussions moving forward.” HousingWire. http://bit.ly/2yOaFGR
Neighbors talk, Tempe listens. “[T]he plan is to build a fire station on [Estrada Park] property [near McClintock and Warner]. Some residents in the area have said in the past they do not object to fire and rescue capability being housed nearby but are unhappy that precious green space would be lost and unwanted facilities added as part of the construction. After weighing input from residents in the area [the city of Tempe made a few changes to the plan.]” Wrangler News. http://bit.ly/2yOe6xh
Gilbert plans for $1.2M Page Park Center to bring health care, jobs. “Renovation work [for Page Park Center at the Gilbert library] building… is expected to wrap up in February… The town is spending [HUD] funds [on the renovation]. The feds require that the funding support services for lower-income residents such as employment resources, dental services and mental health counseling.” AZCentral reports that “[i]f Gilbert had rejected the money, the funds would have been divided among other communities.” http://bit.ly/2yL9b0V
Greenfield Water Plant to undergo expansion. “The Greenfield Water Reclamation Plant will undergo a $48M expansion to increase capacity and provide increased wastewater treatment services for Mesa and Gilbert.” Although “Mesa, Gilbert and Queen Creek share ownership of the plant” along with “expenses associated with the facility,” AZBEX reports that “Queen Creek will not receive additional gallons under the current expansion.” Find out why with a tap through all the way to East Valley Tribune. http://bit.ly/2zQ2451
From Hawaii to Florida, five hot-spots for well-to-do snowbirds. With a little help from the site SnowbirdAdvisor, Canadian national newspaper, The Globe and Mail, serves up a “sampling of hot-spots that are new, hidden or a little off the beaten path” — and the Town of Paradise Valley makes the cut! http://bit.ly/2i3zYeo
Dealmaker BONUS: Where to find the most profitable rentals. “ATTOM Data Solutions… looked at 8,841 U.S. ZIP codes to find the best rental properties with cash-producing opportunities.” Check out data for ZIPs in Arizona (and throughout the nation) in the “Single Family Rental Cash Flow Heat Map” at REALTORMag. http://bit.ly/2z6yz1z
Flake won’t rule out 2020 presidential run against Trump. Asked “about his possible presidential aspirations down the road,” Arizona Sen. Jeff Flake “told ABC’s ‘Good Morning America,’ “That’s a long way away. I’m focused on my next 14 months in the Senate…” More on Sen. Flake’s decision to “not seek reelection,” plus, of course, President Twitter’s response — in POLITICO. Also available with a tap or two, the NY Times “Full Transcript: Jeff Flake’s Speech on the Senate Floor,” in which he says, “I rise today to say: enough.” http://bit.ly/2yLv39F
Bisbee must repeal plastic-bag ban or lose funding, Arizona AG says; ‘Arrogant’ ruling, says Bisbee. (OR: “Brnovich says Bisbee bag ban must be banned, gets blasted.”) In a container controversy that alliteration aficionados would probably find absolutely awesome, “the [AG’s] Office released an investigative report outlining the conclusion that the bag ban is unlawful… Bisbee now has 30 days to resolve the issue, or the [AG’s] Office will notify the Treasurer’s Office to withhold state-shared revenue…” We’ve already mentioned that “Bisbee Mayor David Smith blasted the decision” as “arrogant.” The mayor has much more to say on the matter at AZCentral. http://bit.ly/2xmNm3J
Mohave, River Valley to share ‘landmark’ indoor HS football stadium.“Ground will break [today]” for what’s being called a ‘landmark’ indoor high school field house that ‘all Arizonans can be proud of for decades to come.’ CORE Construction from Phoenix is the general contractor [on the $32.5 million project].” AZCentral has further details, including location, seating configurations, and construction timeline for what’s also being touted as “the ultimate indoor sports experience in a climate controlled environment.” http://bit.ly/2zOaPwa
Cities have a new target for ending homelessness: Landlords. (Actually, landlords seem like a very old target. But whatever…) “To ease landlords’ worries and house more of the homeless, a growing number of cities are offering to reimburse landlords for certain losses — unpaid back rent or repairs for tenant-caused damages — that result from accepting applicants who have rental vouchers.” But as Governingsays in its subhead, “Rental vouchers are only helpful if landlords are willing to take them. All too often, they’re not. But what if the government made it less risky?” (And if that doesn’t work, there’s always the use of force, à la the ObamaCare mandate.) http://bit.ly/2i4UZVN
Zinke announces largest oil and gas lease sale in U.S. history. “Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke has announced a proposal for the largest oil and gas lease sale in U.S. history, totaling 76.9 million acres on the Gulf of Mexico.” But is it “more rhetoric than substantive change”? Axios thinks so. –> http://bit.ly/2h84PH2
College athletes deserve a piece of the pie. With “[r]evenue go[ing] everywhere except to the hardest workers,” State Press columnist Paul Slobodzian contends that “college athletes deserve compensation for the work and time they dedicate to their universities’ athletic programs.” http://bit.ly/2zDhCry
