Tucson Development Thread [Archive] - Page 15

poconoboy61

Feb 18, 2010, 12:56 AM

Dude, I've been going out in Tucson since late '92, and therefore, do not need to prove anything to you. I do not find you credible, but you are proving yourself to be a smackass NIMBY. I wouldn't be surprised if you're one of those people who doesn't even live in the city limits, enjoys using the services in the city, yet wishes to complain about any dime spent, but doesn't spend any himself. Do you even live in Tucson?

These clubs have been open since 2009. So for you to say that you've been going to these places since 1992 shows that you really have no idea what you're talking about.

Nope, actually I am a graduate student at the U of A. I live near campus and have since I started school here. My undergraduate degree was in Urban Planning. A philosophy you learn in planning is to listen to the public. Planners often think they know what's best for a community and that's where tension between residents and planners often arises. That said, you listen to the public and they do not want this hotel, they do not want this streetcar, they don't really want anything downtown. Who can blame them? No one. Because of the inept city leadership trust has been completely shattered between the city and a LOT of residents. Since it's THEIR money the city is using to help finance this hotel, ethics should tell the city NOT to go forward.

However, the city leaders who couldn't even run a Howard Johnson's are trying to go forward anyway. Luckily this project is in the state's hands whose political orientation is a lot different than the hacks who "run" this city. They will likely kill the project, making room for this to be done the right way, which is completely through the private sector.

azliam

Feb 18, 2010, 4:19 AM

These clubs have been open since 2009. So for you to say that you've been going to these places since 1992 shows that you really have no idea what you're talking about.

Nope, actually I am a graduate student at the U of A. I live near campus and have since I started school here. My undergraduate degree was in Urban Planning. A philosophy you learn in planning is to listen to the public. Planners often think they know what's best for a community and that's where tension between residents and planners often arises. That said, you listen to the public and they do not want this hotel, they do not want this streetcar, they don't really want anything downtown. Who can blame them? No one. Because of the inept city leadership trust has been completely shattered between the city and a LOT of residents. Since it's THEIR money the city is using to help finance this hotel, ethics should tell the city NOT to go forward.

However, the city leaders who couldn't even run a Howard Johnson's are trying to go forward anyway. Luckily this project is in the state's hands whose political orientation is a lot different than the hacks who "run" this city. They will likely kill the project, making room for this to be done the right way, which is completely through the private sector.

What clubs? I haven't a CLUE as to what you are talking about. I never mentioned specific names of clubs (Zen Rock, Sapphire, Centro) that are newer, but even some of these draw good crowds on Wednesdays, Thursdays; however, there are quite a few bars and clubs between Congress, 4th Ave, and University that I've been going to for a long time...so please do not tell me I do not know what I'm talking about.

I really love your generalizations, but please remember that the VOTERS approved a 1/2 cent sales tax increase back in 2006 for half the cost of the modern streetcar project. Having lived in Tucson long enough, I understand that the city leadership sucks (and has sucked), and those same voters opposed building a cross-town freeway as well (which also sucks). It goes both ways (City leadership and NIMBY's).

kaneui

Feb 18, 2010, 8:24 AM

Hotel's profit potential questioned
Several on council vow not to use taxes for downtown site

by Rob O ' Dell
Arizona Daily Star
February 18, 2010

Tucson City Council members questioned a study showing a new downtown convention hotel would make a profit, and several pledged Wednesday that they would not use taxpayer money to pay for the $180 million hotel. It is unclear exactly what they mean, however. The hotel is supposed to be built by Rio Nuevo, which uses a special set-aside of state sales taxes. However, the last time the city-run Rio Nuevo project issued bonds in 2008, the city had to underwrite them in order to be able to sell them - which had the council questioning whether city taxpayers could be at risk again.

Councilman Steve Kozachik said the city would again have to backstop these bonds, which City Manager Mike Letcher said wasn't necessarily the case. "It's premature to say who is going to backstop the bonds," Letcher said. Kozachik was the most critical of the market study, done by HVS Convention, Sports and Entertainment. But Letcher and council members Richard Fimbres, Regina Romero and Karin Uhlich all expressed concerns about projections that the hotel will be successful, and the risk to taxpayers if it isn't. "Why is this the taxpayer's burden if this is such a wonderful deal?" Kozachik questioned.

Tom Hazinski, the managing director of HVS, reiterated his findings that the hotel would have 69 percent occupancy at an average annual room rate of $163 in 2015. Most of the council's most pointed questions were directed at the report's "extraordinary assumptions" that could alter the report's conclusions. The report says the hotel will meet its marks only if:

• A $150 million modern-streetcar line is built, for which the city just got funding on Wednesday.

• A $31 million expansion of the Tucson Convention Center is completed.

• A cost-effective union labor contract is struck.

• The city completes most other projects ever proposed for Rio Nuevo, including projects that have been killed or put on hold because of a lack of money.

The Rio Nuevo master plan on which Hazinski based his projections is nearly 10 years old and includes projects such as the UA Science Center, the Tucson Origins Heritage Park and several museums on the west side - all of which have no money. Measures passed by the Legislature last year block them from getting Rio Nuevo money until the hotel is fully funded. It also includes a Sonoran Sea Aquarium, which was killed in 2002, and it assumes there will be investments of $95 million in residential development, $300 million in commercial development and $225 million in infrastructure over 20 years.

Fimbres asked what would happen if many of the Rio Nuevo projects were delayed. Hazinski said he wasn't prepared to give specifics on how the failure of Rio Nuevo projects would affect the numbers. Kozachik told Hazinski to have those numbers when he reports back to the council in the spring. Hazinski said the failure of one of the Rio Nuevo projects mentioned would not affect the hotel at all. The failure of a bunch of the projects would have a negative effect but wouldn't derail the hotel. "It would have a result of depressing income. . . . We would have targeted a lower rate and occupancy level," Hazinski said. "It wouldn't have a devastating effect on the hotel." Rio Nuevo board member Jeff DiGregorio estimated the study cost about $30,000.

kaneui

Feb 19, 2010, 6:03 AM

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/TIAtower-1.jpg
Passengers gave a high score to Tucson
International Airport for its accessibility.
(photo: mollyeh11/Flickr)

Tucson ranked No. 3 in small airports
Sky Harbor finishes No. 5 for large airports

by Michael Truelsen
TucsonSentinel.com
Feb. 18, 2010

Tucson International Airport finished No. 3 among small North American airports in a new survey. Sky Harbor Airport in Phoenix ranks No. 5 in the large category. J.D. Power interviewed more than 12,000 passengers who took a roundtrip flight in 2009. They evaluated their departing and arriving airports in six areas:

* • Airport accessibility
* • Baggage claim
* • Check-in/baggage check process
* • Terminal facilities
* • Security check
* • Food and retail services

TIA, with 755 points on a 1,000-point scale, scored "Among the Best" in accessibility, and "Better than Most" in overall satisfaction, check-in, security, terminals, food & retail services and baggage claim. Phoenix, with 669 points, got a top rating in overall satisfaction, check-in, security and terminals. Its accessibility and food & retail services were called "Better than Most."

While the airline industry has made technological advances, researchers found that the basic needs of comfort and ease of movement aren't being met. "As much as Internet access may be a fun diversion or enable productivity for passengers, getting passengers in and out of the airport easily and efficiently is of utmost importance," Stuart Greif, vice president and general manager of the global hospitality and travel practice at J.D. Power and Associates, said in a press release. In the study, smaller airports scored better than medium and large airports as passengers have shown dissatisfaction with larger facilities. Medium airports, however, continue to maintain the same level of customer satisfaction.

A good impresson of an airport can have an economic impact, according to the study. "Passengers who report that they are 'disappointed' with the airport only spend on average about $14.12 during their visit. However, passengers who report being 'delighted' spend an average of $20.55." Among large airports, Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County scored 705 — thanks to its highly rated terminal and baggage claim facilities. Indianapolis International, with the top small airport score – 777 – because of its impressive check-in/baggage check and security facilities. Kansas City International ranks highest in the medium segment with 742 points, a score attributed to its efficient accessibility, check-in/baggage check and security facilities.

On the Web:
* Airport Satisfaction Study: www.jdpower.com/North-America-Airport-Satisfaction-Study
* J.D. Power press release: businesscenter.jdpower.com/news/pressrelease

Top 5 small airports
(fewer than 10 million passengers)

1. Indianapolis International - IND
2. Southwest Florida International - RSW
3. Tucson International - TUS
4. Jacksonville International Airport - JAX
5. Austin-Bergstrom International - AUS

Top 5 large airports
(30 million or more passengers per year)

1. Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County - DTW
2. Denver International - DEN
3. Minneapolis/St. Paul International - MSP
4. Orlando International - MCO
5. Phoenix Sky Harbor - PHX

Top 5 medium airports
(10 million to 30 million passengers)

1. Baltimore Washington International - BWI
2. Boston Logan - BOS
3. Calgary International - YYC
4. Chicago Midway International - MDW
5. Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International - CVG

kaneui

Feb 19, 2010, 6:45 AM

A bit kitschy retro, but I suppose it works for Miracle Mile signage:

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/MiracleMilesign.jpg
(photos: Zocalo Tucson)

Tucson's New Gateway
Local Artist Installs a Gateway Sculpture for Tucson

By David Olsen
Zocalo Tucson Magazine
February 2, 2010

A 30-foot neon Saguaro sculpture, one of the finishing touches of the Oracle/Main/Drachman intersection improvement project, was installed Tuesday. Artist Dirk Arnold was selected by the Tucson Pima Arts Council to design the sculpture, which fulfills the public art component of the intersection improvement.

"I call it the Gateway Saguaro," says Arnold. "It's a two-way gateway. It says 'Miracle Mile' as you are driving northbound into the historic Miracle Mile area, and as you are driving south towards Downtown, it says 'Tucson.' "The Saguaro of course is the iconic symbol of the greater Tucson area, and we did it in neon so that it would be evocative of the historic car culture of Miracle Mile during the 30s through 60s."

Arnold, who has been an advocate of saving and restoring old Tucson signs, runs the website EndangeredArchitecture.com and specializes in recreating yesterday's signs by doing laser-cut miniature refrigerator magnets. The new Saguaro gateway is expected to be fully lit and operational in a few weeks. The sculpture was fabricated and installed by Cook & Company SignMakers.

kaneui

Feb 19, 2010, 6:56 AM

After MLB spring training completes its final season in Tucson, it leaves behind Tucson Electric Park, a poorly located but pricey facility with few users for the foreseeable future:

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/TEP_-_From_Right_V2T.jpg
(photo: Eric and Wendy Pastore/www.digitalballparks.com)

White Elephant on Ajo
As TEP enters perhaps its final year of spring training, community members look back at its checkered history

by Dave Devine
Tucson Weekly
February 17, 2010

After abandoning Tucson on March 31, spring training baseball will leave behind 64 years of fond memories. It will also leave behind about $25 million in debt. Spring training began in Tucson at what eventually became Hi Corbett Field. In the first game, on a March afternoon in 1947, the Cleveland Indians defeated the New York Giants. The springtime tradition will end at the same place on a 2010 afternoon when the Colorado Rockies play the Arizona Diamondbacks "It's more than a loss of just baseball," laments Steve Thrush. "It's the loss of another attraction which was integral to Tucson's economic base." As a member of the Southern Arizona Sports Development Corporation in 1996, Thrush was one of many people who pushed the Pima County Board of Supervisors to construct a second ballpark in town to accommodate the Diamondbacks and Chicago White Sox. That project, supporters predicted, would ensure that spring training remained in town for many years to come.

The new $38 million facility became Tucson Electric Park (TEP) and was financed by bonds that have annual payments of about $3 million running through 2018. Even though the White Sox are already gone, and the Diamondbacks are departing, Thrush thinks construction of the stadium on Ajo Way was worth the investment. "From an economic standpoint, its impact was far greater that what's left on the debt service," he says. On the other hand, governmental watchdog Mary Schuh questioned the financing for the stadium in 1996 and continues to be shocked by it today. "The debt problem is the elephant in the living room that nobody wants to talk about," Schuh says. "Spring training there had a very short lifespan, but the debt service lives on." A car-rental tax, a tax on RV spaces, a hotel/lodging tax and revenues from the ballpark are supposed to fund the annual stadium operating expenses of several million dollars. The original idea was that the facility would be "revenue neutral," with income covering all costs. However, that didn't prove to be the case, and the county's general fund has had to contribute.

More recently, the economic recession and loss of the White Sox has negatively affected revenues. Departure of the Diamondbacks means there will continue to be decreased income in the future. Schuh points out that the loss of spring training will also result in fewer tourists who rent cars and stay in town. That will translate into an even lower stadium revenue stream. "Where will the revenue come from?" Schuh wonders about the money needed to pay the ballpark's debt service. Pima County's stadium district director, Chris Bartos, understands those economic concerns. In his budget for the next fiscal year, he's reducing both revenues and expenditures. Bartos is hoping for some new revenue from possibilities including college baseball tournaments, Japanese professional teams holding spring training in Tucson, and an international player-development program during the summer. Thrush suggests also using Tucson Electric Park for other events to raise needed revenue. Bartos agrees, but indicates there are hurdles. The stadium concessionaire, he says, has a contract running through 2012, and that presents problems. "The concessionaire has an impact on our ability to hold events," Bartos says. "We have to go through them, and it really hurts us with promoters."

Schuh says she's infuriated by such county contracts that didn't account for the possibility of teams leaving. "Back in 1996," she recalls, "nobody asked: 'What if the glory days stop?' They thought it would go on forever. Whoever wrote those contracts should be put in stocks in a public square. They didn't protect the taxpayers and left gaps to let the teams thumb their noses at us. "The elected officials need to be included," Schuh adds. "It happens over and over again that the public is left holding the (financial) bag." Phil Gutt, who represented the Southern Arizona Innkeepers Association back in 1996 but now speaks only for himself, says he was concerned that TEP would not be adequately supported by its revenues. "I didn't think it would make it," Gutt says of the financing, "but the supervisors had their minds made up. "It's sad to see them leaving," Gutt adds about the spring training teams, "but it's not surprising. Baseball ownership holds venues hostage (for financial benefits) until they can extort a better deal from someone else."

While Hi Corbett Field will continue to have baseball on summer nights thanks to the independent minor league Tucson Toros team, TEP could largely become a mostly empty shell, especially after the departure of the Triple-A Tucson Sidewinders team after the 2008 season. Former Tucson Citizen sportswriter Corky Simpson is distressed by that potential future. Simpson says he was at first opposed to TEP because he thought its location was the result of strong-arm political tactics by former county supervisors Dan Eckstrom and Raúl Grijalva. "There's no doubt in my mind it should have been built downtown," Simpson says of the ballpark. But by the time TEP opened in February 1998, with a 6-5 Diamondbacks victory over the White Sox, Simpson had changed his mind. In a column, he called the new facility "a beautiful green jewel." "I hoped it would be a big success," Simpson remarks. But he thinks the eventual outcome has been a disaster, due to sub-par maintenance and poor summertime field conditions. "It really is a white elephant," Simpson says about Tucson Electric Park. "It's just a shame."

somethingfast

Feb 19, 2010, 4:23 PM

incredibly bad choice of location no doubt made by corruption within the city council. im sure jim click, don diamond and humberto lopez made millions off this fiasco. tucson, you can thank your fearless leaders and civic titans for yet another blow to your wallets. fuckin' tucson...:koko:

kaneui

Feb 20, 2010, 7:40 AM

A flattened out Jácome Plaza will soon host a new downtown mercado (farmer's market) as well as provide a new gathering place for downtown events:

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/JacomePlazaredo.jpg
(photo: Downtown Tucsonan)

Construction begins to change Jácome Plaza
by Teya Vitu
Downtown Tucsonan
February 19, 2010

The grass mound at Jácome Plaza is fenced off and getting leveled in a makeover for the south end of the plaza encircling the Joel D. Valdez Main Library. Graders started scraping away grass and dirt Feb. 18 with the intention to have a two-level plaza finished by the end of March or early April, said Julie Parizek, project manager for capital planning and development at the Tucson Parks & Recreation Department.

The project will create a flat area with stabilized, decomposed granite for the Alan Ward Downtown Mercado that will stretch 10 feet back from the sidewalk at Pennington Street. A 2-foot retaining wall will separate the market area from the slightly higher library level, which will flatten what was a 4-foot high grass mound. “The whole area has seen its life cycle run through,” said Stacey Weaks, the landscape architect at Norris Design who designed the makeover. “We are making the turf area flat so the city can host events.” That will add about 200-by-80 feet of extra space for the ever-expanding Tucson Meet Yourself.

The $90,000 project is funded with an $80,000 Back to Basics grant from Mayor Bob Walkup and $10,000 from the Downtown Tucson Partnership. Parizek said it’s really a $150,000 project but park crews rather than a contractor are doing the initial grading before local contractor M. Anderson comes in, and electrical conduits won’t be installed in the retaining wall at this time. One lane of Pennington Street may be closed during construction and no parking will be allowed between Church and Stone avenues.

poconoboy61

Feb 20, 2010, 10:28 AM

What clubs? I haven't a CLUE as to what you are talking about. I never mentioned specific names of clubs (Zen Rock, Sapphire, Centro) that are newer, but even some of these draw good crowds on Wednesdays, Thursdays; however, there are quite a few bars and clubs between Congress, 4th Ave, and University that I've been going to for a long time...so please do not tell me I do not know what I'm talking about.

I mentioned those clubs downtown... the only ones that U of A students actually go to. They're only open Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.

I really love your generalizations, but please remember that the VOTERS approved a 1/2 cent sales tax increase back in 2006 for half the cost of the modern streetcar project. Having lived in Tucson long enough, I understand that the city leadership sucks (and has sucked), and those same voters opposed building a cross-town freeway as well (which also sucks). It goes both ways (City leadership and NIMBY's).

Yes, they voted for REGIONAL transportation projects and they get a 4 mile long trolley. Yippee. People here would much prefer that streets get repaved or that we have a crosstown freeway. Having a trolley that will serve so few people is a huge slap in the face to taxpayers. Why should people subsidize something that will serve absolutely no purpose to the vast majority of them?

There was a poll on KGUN the other night asking how many people plan to take the trolley around downtown when it eventually opens. 68 percent of people said they do NOT plan to take the trolley when downtown, 27 percent of people said the DO plan to take the trolley when downtown, and 5 percent were unsure. That to me sounds like a horrible investment. City officials have actually said that they believe Tucsonans will "grow to love" the trolley. Why should people have to "grow to love" something they're paying for? Shouldn't they love and support the project beforehand?

combusean

Feb 20, 2010, 12:01 PM

Yes, they voted for REGIONAL transportation projects and they get a 4 mile long trolley. Yippee. People here would much prefer that streets get repaved or that we have a crosstown freeway. Having a trolley that will serve so few people is a huge slap in the face to taxpayers. Why should people subsidize something that will serve absolutely no purpose to the vast majority of them?

I feel as if I am reading azcentral.com before December 28, 2008.

azliam

Feb 20, 2010, 5:54 PM

I mentioned those clubs downtown... the only ones that U of A students actually go to. They're only open Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.

You're clueless...and you initially stated that the clubs are really only open two days of the week...now you're saying Thursday-Saturday:

Yes, there's street activity on the weekend. I believe I was the person who carried on the argument that there is no other city in Arizona that has a pedestrian-friendly zone as large as the one that extends from the University, down University, to 4th Avenue, to Congress Street.

But again, there are five other days than the weekend. Go downtown on a Tuesday night and tell me how much pedestrian activity you see. Hell, go downtown on a Tuesday afternoon and tell me how much pedestrian activity you see.

...and you need to learn to live outside of your little circle. Tucson is comprised of alot more than just you and your U of A students. Having said that, you need to get out more often because many of those BARS AND CLUBS are open more than just Thursday-Saturday...I've tried some great bloody mary's at quite a few places on Sundays in the area. For example, Bison Witches is always packed (Bumsted's, Surly Wench, IBT's, Hotel Congress among others)...

azliam

Feb 20, 2010, 5:55 PM

I feel as if I am reading azcentral.com before December 28, 2008.

:tup:

kaneui

Feb 20, 2010, 6:38 PM

Probably more than any life-changing transportation option for most Tucsonans, the new streetcar will spur new infill development--particularly additional housing--which is sorely needed to energize the city center. (And if you want to complain about student or elderly housing--well, that's where lending funds are available at the moment.)

Walkup was right, streetcar is a 'game changer'
by Mark B. Evans
www.tucsoncitizen.com
February 19, 2010

Tucson Mayor Robert Walkup has had trains on his brain for four years. Ever since voters created the Regional Transportation Authority in 2006 the ever-optimistic Walkup has been tooting the horn of the modern streetcar. He has said he believes the streetcar will be a “game changer” for downtown redevelopment. It was hard to take him seriously, what with all the rotten Rio Nuevo news the past few years.

But darned if he wasn’t right. The streetcar will connect the university area to downtown and the downtown to the West Side, a connection riven long ago by Interstate 10. The RTA, which is supported by a half-cent sales tax, will pay for half of the streetcar’s estimated $150 million construction cost. The city was supposed to supply the rest and has been hoping for a federal appropriation to cover it. Last week the feds ponied up the city’s half. Well, almost half, about $63 million, but it was enough for the RTA to announce that it will release its half now. Which means construction can start this year and be done by the end of 2012.

But is it a “game changer?” It sure looks that way. Several developers have plans for significant commercial developments west of I-10 in the Rio Nuevo district, but their agreements with the city have been contingent upon completion of the streetcar. Walkup has said that he has commitments from developers for more than $500 million (yes, half a billion) in new development on the West Side. The streetcar will make it easy for downtown visitors, especially conventioneers, to cross I-10 to visit their planned shops and restaurants. Plus, the streetcar will travel what is developing into the city’s primary dining, nightlife and entertainment corridor: Congress Street downtown, Fourth Avenue, the UA’s Main Gate Square bordering University Boulevard, and to a lesser extent, Speedway north of the UA.

Besides the West Side developments, as soon as the U.S. Department of Transportation announced the $63 million for the streetcar, the Arizona Board of Regents issued a statement touting the streetcar and its importance to the UA and its intentions to put student housing downtown, which would be a further boon to downtown shops and restaurants. And most importantly, if the streetcar spurs these commercial developments, the taxes collected from them will benefit Rio Nuevo, giving it more money to complete several stalled projects, among them the West Side museums, parks and historic gardens.

But while there were back pats all around Thursday at the ceremonial check presentation to the city, significant obstacles remain before any game gets changed downtown. The RTA and fed money doesn’t pay for a vital bridge across I-10 and if there’s no bridge, there’s no streetcar connection to the West Side. Rio Nuevo and the city need to pay for that and right now there’s a question as to whether Rio Nuevo has the money. The state has taken over Rio Nuevo but has yet to appoint a new board to run the Multi Facilities District. And the state is requiring all Rio Nuevo funds be used to expand the Tucson Convention Center and build a connected hotel first before spending money on other projects.

And there’s a funding gap. Government construction bids have been coming in lately 20 and 30 percent below estimates, which means there’s a chance the streetcar can be built for less than the $150 million estimated in 2006. If not, the city or Rio Nuevo will need to come up with the money but the city’s broke. All of these obstacles can be overcome, though. The city has the chance to finally turn Rio Nuevo around and put more than a decade of mismanagement and millions of wasted dollars behind it and achieve what it has wanted since the beginning – a revitalized downtown. Success is within reach, Tucson. Don’t #@%& it up.

combusean

Feb 21, 2010, 4:49 AM

After MLB spring training completes its final season in Tucson, it leaves behind Tucson Electric Park, a poorly located but pricey facility with few users for the foreseeable future:

Does Tucson *really* need, what is that 11 baseball fields within walking distance from TEP with massive acreage of surface parking?

Keep TEP, convert it to an outdoor pavillion, and just redevelop everything else mixed use/low density urban--2-3 storiesish. Would sort of be on the way to the airport with a streetcar extension as well.

kaneui

Feb 21, 2010, 6:53 AM

Does Tucson *really* need, what is that 11 baseball fields within walking distance from TEP with massive acreage of surface parking?

Keep TEP, convert it to an outdoor pavillion, and just redevelop everything else mixed use/low density urban--2-3 storiesish. Would sort of be on the way to the airport with a streetcar extension as well.

With the departure of spring training, they probably won't need all those practice fields, although the Kino Sports Complex (where TEP is located) could be a much more attractive and viable regional recreational draw if the county got more creative with the layout and maintained it better.

Certainly, with more infill development happening nearby (two new buildings at UPH Kino Hospital and the 65-acre Arizona Bioscience Park west of Kino Parkway), TEP won't feel quite as remote as it did when first built in the 90's. However, to make it more profitable for the near future, it needs to be marketed aggressively--not only as a sports facility but also as a multi-purpose event venue.

combusean

Feb 21, 2010, 9:29 AM

The article seems to misidentify the costs. It says the stadium itself has an upkeep of millions of dollars, but the true costs include all of KSC. The athletic fields and parking have huge upkeep but limited profit appeal as is, reconfiguring without redeveloping would cost money the authority doesn't have.

KSC is huge. There has to be way more than $25 million (the amount left on the debt) in the land it sits on alone.

kaneui

Feb 21, 2010, 7:50 PM

More details on the modern streetcar:

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/streetcarrender.jpg
(render: city of Tucson)

Here's quick background on Tucson's streetcar plan
City explains how it will be built, operate

by Rob O ' Dell
Arizona Daily Star
February 21, 2010

This week Tucson learned it will receive $63 million from the U.S. Department of Transportation to help build a $150 million, four-mile modern streetcar connecting downtown and the University of Arizona. With the money secured and the project on the verge of becoming reality, here are 10 things you might want to know, as answered by city transportation officials:

1. They call it the modern streetcar. What's the difference between this and Phoenix light rail?

The Tucson modern streetcar is a smaller vehicle that will operate by sharing the travel lane with automobiles. METRO light rail in Phoenix is a larger vehicle that usually operates as multicar trains in its own right-of-way. Both use ADA-compliant, low-floor vehicles and allow passengers to enter at the same level as the stop platform.

2. How much will it cost to ride?

The fare will be the same as local Sun Tran buses - to create a regional integrated fare policy. The city is working with the University of Arizona on a universal pass program, where students, faculty, and staff can ride the modern streetcar with their CAT card. The city will also be working with special events to have their admission tickets include streetcar rides for a minor surcharge.

3. Will city taxpayers have to subsidize the streetcar the way they do buses?

As with all transit systems, there will need to be a subsidy. Sun Tran is working to increase fare-box return through the use of "smart card" technology that will allow the system to recapture a higher percentage of operating costs.

4. Since Rio Nuevo is a beneficiary, will Rio Nuevo or the Regional Transportation Authority help cover any operating deficit?

The Tucson modern streetcar has not approached Rio Nuevo to help fund operations. RTA funds approved by voters for the streetcar include an estimated $13 million for operations. But the amount has not been determined because the city of Tucson currently has an application in process for a Federal Transit Administration grant for operations.

5. How fast will it go? How long will it take to run from one end to the other?

The modern streetcar will travel at speeds similar to buses. A travel forecast was done in 2008 projecting that it would take roughly 25-30 minutes to travel from one end to the other - University Medical Center to the area downtown west of the Santa Cruz River.

6. Does this mean residents and businesses along the line will face two years of traffic delays and disruption from the construction, à la Interstate 10?

No. Construction for the Tucson modern streetcar will be phased in sections, which will minimize disruption. Construction will be accompanied by extensive community outreach and education, and a business assistance program.

7. As long as they're tearing up the streets, are they going to get rid of those extended curbs and diagonal parking on Congress Street that is eating up a traffic lane so other vehicles have room to maneuver around the train?

No. The Tucson modern streetcar will be constructed in the left lane on Congress Street and will not require the addition of a third westbound traffic lane in place of the existing curb bulbs and angle parking on the north side of the street. Any decision regarding the number of lanes on Congress Street will be made outside of this project.

9. Will it stop at traffic lights? How often will it stop? How many trains will there be?

Yes. The Tucson modern streetcar will stop at traffic lights. Because it shares the travel lane with automobiles, it will follow all of the same traffic control devices. There will be seven modern streetcar vehicles.

10. What hours/time will it run? What kind of ridership is projected for Tucson's streetcar?

The current plan is for the modern streetcar to operate 20 hours per day (most likely from 6 a.m. to 2 a.m.) with 10-minute frequency during the day and 20-minute frequency during the evening. The current ridership estimate for the Tucson modern streetcar is 3,600 boardings per day.

kaneui

Feb 23, 2010, 6:21 PM

The new owners of the Coronado say it will remain as low-income housing, but with the new streetcar line to pass right by it, that promise may not last long:

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/CoronadoHotelApts.jpg
(photo: James S. Wood)

Coronado Hotel is sold for $760,000
New owners say it will be kept as low-income housing

Dale Quinn
Arizona Daily Star
February 23, 2010

After a months-long bidding process, the historic Coronado Hotel, which provides low-income housing for the elderly, has been sold for $760,000 cash. Coronado Apartments LLC bought the apartment building at 402 E. Ninth St., near North Fourth Avenue, according to documents filed with the Pima County Recorder's Office. The new ownership plans to maintain it as low-income housing, said Kenneth Silverman, manager of Coronado Apartments LLC. The new owners met with residents last week to invite them to stay, he said. The goal is to provide a smooth transition, he said. "We wanted to make it seamless for them," Silverman said. The 42-unit hotel, built in 1928 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places, was put up for sale in October by Downtown Development Corp. of Tucson. Its price was listed at $670,000.

Pima County bid on the apartment building, looking to spend $700,000 in bond funds to preserve the low-income housing there. The Community Partnership of Southern Arizona also bid on the property with the goal of keeping it as a place where the elderly and disabled could find affordable living space. The county's bid was rejected, as was the Community Partnership's $674,000 bid. "Our hope would be whoever was successful in getting the property would consider maintaining it as affordable housing," said Neal Cash, the organization's president and CEO. In all, there were fewer than 10 offers for Coronado Hotel Apartments and it was sold to the highest bidder, said Glenn Lyons, CEO of Downtown Tucson Partnership, which manages the Downtown Development Corp.

The buyer has until May to renew a contract to receive federal Section 8 housing funds that will subsidize low-income housing there, Lyons said. Silverman said he has a meeting Wednesday to renew the contract. Keeping the apartments as low-income housing wasn't a condition of the sale, Lyons said: "The purchaser had the right to do with the building as they saw fit." Some money from the purchase will go toward other affordable-housing projects, Lyons said, adding that it's premature to discuss where any of those projects might be located.

Silverman said there are no plans to relocate the current residents. If money permits, there are plans to improve the property, he said. "We can make a profit and still take care of those people in need," he said. County Supervisor Richard Elías had concerns about how long the new owner of Coronado Hotel Apartments would keep it as low-income housing. Plans for the modern streetcar call for it to pass right by the apartment building, and that could make the hotel a more desirable property for other uses, Elías said. "Low-income people should have the advantage of low-income transportation, maybe more so than anybody else," Elías said.

azliam

Feb 23, 2010, 10:03 PM

kaneui

Feb 24, 2010, 9:55 AM

Costco will be the first retail anchor of The Bridges, a 350-acre infill development that will include the Arizona Biosciences Park, where over $8M of infrastructure work is currently underway:

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/Costcosite.jpg

South-side Costco seems a sure thing
Area's third store will be located at I-10 and South Kino Parkway

Rob O'Dell
Arizona Daily Star
January 20, 2010

South-side residents could be shopping at a new Costco Wholesale by March 2011, after development plans for the site were approved by the city last week. The developer - Eastbourne Investments Ltd. and Retail West - still need city approval for grading and building plans, but both sides anticipate final construction approval by March. Costco representatives did not return calls for comment on Monday. But Cindy Ayala, president of the nearby Pueblo Gardens Neighborhood Association, who was involved in talks with the company, said she was told opening is planned for March 2011, a date that was confirmed by other sources.

The new Costco - the third in the Tucson region - would be on 14 acres at Interstate 10 and South Kino Parkway. It is part of a larger commercial project that would cover about 115 acres from I-10 and Kino west to South Park Avenue. The other Costcos are at East Grant Road near East Tanque Verde Road, and off North Thornydale Road near West Orange Grove Road. That retail "power center" is the anchor of a larger 350-acre project called "The Bridges," bounded roughly by I-10, East 36th Street, Park and Kino. In addition to a retail development, plans for the site include a 65-acre biosciences park to be developed by the University of Arizona at Kino and East 36th Street, and 110 acres for an upscale housing development.

The new Costco would measure 180,000 square feet, which is a "big-box" under Tucson code that classifies every store of more than 100,000 square feet as a big-box store that has to follow special rules. After years of city debate about the property, the City Council voted 6-1 in March 2007 to allow a big box on site, but with extra conditions put on Eastbourne, including $2 million to pay for job training, business-assistance programs, neighborhood improvements, economic-improvement grants to area nonprofit organizations, and improvements for pedestrian access and roads. That money will be matched with $4.5 million the city expects from construction sales taxes at the site.

Jim Portner, a consultant for the project's developers, said the 14 acres will be sold to Costco after the final construction permits are obtained from the city. The remaining retail will be developed by Eastbourne and Retail West, he said, although there are no other stores currently signed on to move in. Portner said he expects interest to perk up once the Costco is under construction. Developers said they are in talks with another major retail anchor but wouldn't name it, although there has been significant behind-the-scenes speculation a Walmart is coming. The developers are doing several types of infrastructure work on the site, Portner said, adding that the county is doing major sewer line work as well.

Ernie Duarte, city director of planning and development services, said he hopes the final permits for the project can be issued in March. Portner said that despite recent criticism charging the city is anti-business, the city has been a key partner. "Our experience has been absolutely the opposite," Portner said. "It's really helped make a very clear review process." Although the project was finally approved by the council in 2007 after years of discussions, construction work was later delayed by county flood-control work that needed to be done on-site. The new Costco can't come soon enough for local residents, including Ayala, who said the store will bring shopping and jobs to the south-side area. "The neighbors are all supporting this as something that we need," Ayala said. "Where the other Costco is, it's a pain. This is great. It's good for this side of town's economy."

kaneui

Feb 25, 2010, 6:42 PM

Cox Communications gift gives MOCA plaza plans a lift
February 25, 2010
by Teya Vitu
Downtown Tucsonan

A gift from Cox Communications will allow the Museum of Contemporary Art to begin work on an outdoor plaza this summer. “It’s a great transformative gift,” Randi Dorman, MOCA’s president, said of the three-year funding. Neither Cox nor MOCA would disclose the amount. “We appreciated that Cox has committed to creating a world-class museum in Downtown Tucson.” MOCA will build a plaza on the driveway space of the former Tucson Fire Department headquarters that the museum now occupies. When the fire station bay doors are open, the plaza will serve as an outdoor extension of the engine bay area, which is MOCA’s main exhibition hall. “It will be a public space and a space for sculptures,” Dorman said. “We have to figure out programmatically what we will be doing.”

Cox focuses its community giving on enhancing the quality of life and improving the urban core. “Our attachment to MOCA is our way of ensuring that we pay off those priorities… through a world-class Downtown destination,” said Lisa Lovallo, Cox’s vice president in Tucson and also vice president of the Tucson Downtown Partnership’s board. The Cox gift attaches a corporate name to MOCA, another step adding to the legitimacy of MOCA following a pair of Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts grants for $160,000. MOCA for its first 10 years functioned in warehouses, very temporary quarters or didn’t have exhibit space at all. “We view ourselves as a startup,” Dorman said. “This gift kicks off our sustainability stage.” MOCA has its public grand opening March 6 with an exhibition called Made in Tucson, Born in Tucson, Live in Tucson.

kaneui

Feb 28, 2010, 12:28 AM

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/QuikTripwaterharvesting.jpg
Troy DeVos, director of real estate for Tulsa, Okla.-based QuikTrip Corp.,
shows desert landscaping at a new store in Tucson. QuikTrip volunteered
to have its 12 new gas stations comply with a Tucson ordinance taking
effect in June that will require new commercial developments to get at
least half of the water needed for landscaping from rain.
(photo: Yvonne Gonzalez)

Tucson set to require rainwater harvesting on new commercial buildings
Feb 26, 2010
Yvonne Gonzalez
Cronkite News Service

Rain falling on the roof of this new QuikTrip gas station trickles into pipes that water willow acacia trees and native shrubs. The parking lot slopes, directing water into deep gravel that keeps it around for the desert landscaping rather than having it run down East Speedway Boulevard. Designing 12 new Tucson stores to harvest rain makes good business sense when it comes to water bills, said Troy DeVos, director of real estate for Tulsa, Okla.-based QuikTrip Corp. And helping the environment is an added benefit, he said. "It's a great opportunity to make a difference and really help out," DeVos said. "And we'll be saving money in the long run."

Starting in June, a city ordinance that's the first of its kind in the nation will require all new commercial developments to obtain at least half of the water for landscaping from Tucson's annual rainfall of 11 to 12 inches. City Councilman Rodney Glassman, who pushed for the ordinance, said this type of water conservation should be the rule rather than the exception. "Tucson is at the bottom of the Central Arizona Project, so we're most impacted by future drought," he said. "We're planning for the future." The ordinance will require what's commonly referred to as passive harvesting, which instead of storing rainwater in tanks channels it immediately to landscaping.

The cost to outfit a commercial development for passive harvesting varies by the size of the building and the type and complexity of landscaping, pipes and drains installed. Glassman said the cost is slight, in part because it can be incorporated into the design, and that complying with the ordinance can be as simple as sloping a parking lot. "Any cost incurred is at the discretion of the developer," he said. Paul Green, executive director of the Tucson Audubon Society, a conservation group that advocates rainwater harvesting in homes and schools, said he would have preferred requiring businesses to get all of their landscaping water from rain. But he called the 50 percent mandate a start. "If we catch at least some of the rainwater, we'll be using less from the Colorado River," Green said. "It's an important first step." Even though the ordinance doesn't take effect until June, QuikTrip volunteered to be the one of the first commercial projects to comply, DeVos said. "We want to keep rainwater here, not let it run off and be wasted," he said.

Christina Bickelmann, a Tucson-based conservation specialist with the Arizona Department of Water Resources, said rainwater harvesting is an important practice that needs to be incorporated into landscaping. "Everyone's getting more conscious of water, and rainwater harvesting is an integral part of water conservation," she said. To draft the ordinance, Glassman organized a group of stakeholders including the Southern Arizona Builders Alliance to negotiate the details and language. David Pittman, executive director of the builders group, said the ordinance originally would have required businesses to meet all of their landscaping needs with rainwater, which would involve installing expensive cisterns. During the negotiations, the mandate was reduced to half. "If it had required cisterns we would have opposed it," Pittman said. "I'm philosophically opposed to government imposing its will on others, but we do live in a desert and it's important that we conserve."

Robert Medler, manager of governmental affairs for the Tucson Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce, said the ordinance is misleading because it only looks at water from one perspective. "The same year the ordinance was passed, Tucson sold part of its CAP allocation because not all of the water was being used," he said. "It's a mixed message." The chamber, which wasn't included in the negotiations, is also against the ordinance because it doesn't give commercial businesses any incentive or tax break to comply. "There was no carrot, only the stick," he said. Glassman called the cost to businesses negligible and the benefits to the community great. "It encourages the use of native vegetation and is environmentally conscious," he said. "It's the right thing to do."

kaneui

Feb 28, 2010, 12:45 AM

UniSource still planning to break ground later this year on its new downtown headquarters:

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/UniSourcesite.jpg
In about two years, the new UniSource Energy headquarters will
occupy this downtown site at 88 E. Broadway. In preparation for
construction, drilling crews recently gathered soil samples.
(photo: Roger Yohem)

UniSource HQ activity
by Roger Yohem
Inside Tucson Business
February 26, 2010

The new $45 million corporate headquarters for UniSource Energy is moving forward in downtown Tucson. Crews have been drilling around the two-acre site of the old Santa Rita Hotel, at 88 E. Broadway, taking core samples of the soil in preparation for construction. Joe Salkowski, communications director at UniSource, said a construction timeline will be set soon with groundbreaking later this year. Completion is planned for late 2011.

The company’s building design team includes Tucson’s Swaim Associates and Davis, in Tempe. Phil Swaim is a native Tucsonan and has been active locally for more than 40 years. Mike Davis, CEO of Davis, is also a Tucson native and graduate of the University of Arizona College of Architecture. The Phoenix division of Ryan Companies is the developer and general contractor. Ryan’s in-house design-build staff will work with subcontractors to build the shell and interiors, with local companies given preference in the bidding for contracts. Tucson-based UniSource is the corporate parent of Tucson Electric Power.

kaneui

Feb 28, 2010, 4:37 AM

No sooner did the modern streetcar receive federal funding last week than a new discussion surfaced about where the future extensions of the streetcar should go.

The vision of Glenn Lyons and the Downtown Tucson Partnership is to put the first extension down Broadway to Park Place mall to facilitate further infill development and access for eastside residents, thereby adding additional sales tax revenues for Rio Nuevo and creating a major commercial corridor that could eventually be Tucson's version of Central Ave. in Phoenix (albeit on an east-west axis).

Others are suggesting a line down Sixth Ave. or Kino Parkway to connect with the airport as the next priority, while some want an extension up Campbell Ave. or Oracle Rd. to reach the foothills and/or northwest side.

Any suggestions or ideas from other forumers in this regard?

Locofresh55

Feb 28, 2010, 9:05 PM

Why not put a streetcar line along Aviation HWY so DM personnel can use that line from the Alvernon /Aviation area straight to downtown. You would want the Air force people with a chance to go to downtown without having to drive or taxi. They would be right near Congress and 4th avenue where there are alot of Air Force folks.

kaneui

Mar 1, 2010, 10:07 PM

Gadsden eyes senior housing on West Side
Downtown Tucsonan
March, 2010

Urban Innovations, a Chicago-based real estate investment company, wants to collaborate with the Gadsden Company to build a 143-unit senior housing project on the 14-acre West Congress city-owned lot for which Gadsden has the development agreement. Gadsden won City Council approval Feb. 17 to shift its first development project from the northwest corner of the property at Avenida del Convento to the northeast corner at the Santa Cruz River.

Urban Innovations bought the Armory Park Apartments, a senior housing project behind Armory Park, and plans to move those tenants to the new West Side complex, said Jerry Dixon, a Gadsden partner. The project is contingent on Urban Innovations getting Low-Income Housing Tax Credits from the Arizona Department of Housing. Urban Innovations and Gadsden also asked for a development agreement revision to allow Urban Innovations to move forward if the Gadsden development agreement falters, or even allow Urban Innovations to buy the property.

kaneui

Mar 1, 2010, 10:50 PM

The Rialto block is the third of six façade restorations to be completed downtown, with the Zen Rock, Beowulf Alley Theatre and Roy Place buildings to follow later this year:

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/Rialtoblockfacade-1.jpg
Rialto Block owner Don Martin envisions a collection of bars and restaurants
for the building. Its façade renovation was completed last month.
(photo: Downtown Tucsonan)

Updated buildings primed for new tenants, visibility
Teya Vitu
Downtown Tucsonan
March, 2010

Façade improvements continue Downtown as Zen Rock and Beowulf Alley Theatre get ready to bring historic looks to their buildings, and the former Walgreens building is already shrouded with scaffolding. Façade work finished at the end of January for the Rialto block, stretching from the Rialto Theatre to Fifth Avenue. Owners Don Martin and Scott Stiteler received $125,000 in city façade improvement funds toward the estimated $275,000 to $300,000 costs to install 1920s features. The duo went for large windows and glass doors with prismatic glass cubes above and wainscoting below the windows.

Martin and a team of architects, developers, restaurateurs and bar owners meet most Thursdays to master plan the block. “That’s what we’re trying to figure out, the financing and timing,” Martin said. “The general direction is we are seeing a restaurant.” Martin also envisions a small courtyard bar immediately next to the Rialto, another small bar upstairs that he’s thinking of calling the Don Martini, and a live music venue for the former Skrappy/Trailways building at Fifth and Broadway. Behind the Rialto Block is a small parking lot that Martin wants to convert into an outdoor stage and courtyard, possibly covered. He’s particularly enthused by the corner of Fifth and Congress, which has an angled entrance to what will be the property’s major tenant, likely a restaurant.

The Rialto Block joins The Screening Room, 127 E. Congress, and The Scott, 64 E. Broadway, as the three finished projects in the city’s $520,000 façade improvement program, which is overseen by the Downtown Tucson Partnership. Each property had to match the city funding. The next two façades in the works are Zen Rock, 111-121 E. Congress, and Beowulf Alley Theatre, 11 S. Sixth Ave. Zen Rock will get $80,000 and Beowulf Alley $32,750. Zen Rock nightclub owner Luke Cusack wants to start construction around May. Zen Rock is the only façade design to include a ubiquitous 1920s Downtown Tucson feature: an awning, which Cusack finds ideal for evening thunderstorms as people line up to get in. Downtown architect Bob Vint is taking the Zen Rock buildings look back to the 1930s, when it was a Piggly Wiggly market. That will involve stripping off later facades to get to the original brick and installing a new window wall.

Vint also is the architect for Beowulf Alley, which he will give a 1930s/1940s Streamline Deco-Moderne look based on railroad and airplane designs of the era. He wants to achieve this with a ribbon of glass blocks above the streetfront window and above that an imposing 26-foot high wall with three horizontal grooves and Beowulf Alley’s name. Beowulf Alley Managing Director Beth Dell hopes to start construction by June and have the new façade and marquee ready for opening night of the fall season on Sept. 26. “Having an illuminated front and dressed up front will change this block. Those who have not heard of us will know us (if they drive by),” Dell says. The Beowulf Alley façade will give Downtown its fourth lighted theater marquee along with the Rialto, the Fox Theatre and The Screening Room.

The former Walgreens building at Stone Avenue and Pennington Street should have its restored original 1929 Montgomery Ward façade by the end of May or early June. Passersby may not have noticed much happening on the scaffolding the past couple months as workers to this point have mostly worked from the inside out, said Reid Spaulding, director of the Pima County Facilities Management Department. The Walgreens building, which Spaulding has renamed Roy Place building in honor of its architect, is not part of the city’s façade improvement program. The county has about $600,000 in 2004 bond money for the façade work. “We only have enough funds to do the Stone side, the corner and 20 feet of the Pennington side,” Spaulding said. Glass reinforced concrete is being used to create decorative historic features such as lintels, cornices and window tracery.

Nothing has been firmed up to sell or find a tenant, though the University of Arizona’s College of Architecture and Landscape Architecture has shown the most interest so far. One challenge a tenant will have to deal with is the 1940s heating and cooling system. “The tenant will be responsible for that,” Spaulding said.

kaneui

Mar 4, 2010, 6:29 AM

With the modern streetcar to start construction later this year, stakeholder meetings for the Mercado District/Tucson Origins Heritage Park area west of I-10 are scheduled to begin next week to discuss funding issues, phasing strategies, and opportunities for alternate area development to aid in funding for the numerous projects that have been on hold:

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/MercadoDistrict-walkstreet.jpg http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/RammedEarthhomesrender-MercadoDistr.jpg
El Paseo walk street -- part of the Mercado District's next phase
(renders: Tom Wuelpern)

And a few photos from this past year of the Mercado District:
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/MercadoDistrictfamily.jpg http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/MercadoDistrictatnight.gif
(photos by Jane (L) and Roger(R) at http://mercadodistrict.blogspot.com/)

Economic ‘thaw’ brings work to Mercado District
by Teya Vitu
Downtown Tucsonan
March 03, 2010

Grandiose museums are no longer part of the West Side redevelopment project, but $45 million in landfill removal and historical work have not gone to waste on 60 acres of city-owned land south of Congress Street. “The economic thaw has started on the West Side,” Rio Nuevo project director Jessie Sanders told the City Council on Feb. 17.

The Mercado District of Menlo Park has gotten refinancing to allow construction of seven luxury homes, and hopes are to have financing in place to finish the Mercado San Agustin this fall, said Jerry Dixon of the Gadsden Company.

Designs are 90 percent complete for a $13 million Cushing Street bridge, which has gotten approval from the Federal Emergency Management Administration, and could start construction in fall, city Transportation Director Jim Glock said.

Gates are being fabricated for the Mission Gardens and should be installed in spring, Sanders said.

kaneui

Mar 5, 2010, 7:15 PM

The Vail Academy for grades K-8 will join Vail High School this fall at UA's Science and Technology Park to introduce kids to science and engineering early on:

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/TechParkK-8school.png
The Vail Academy will be the nation’s first K-8 school located at a research park.
(render: Inside Tucson Business)

UA Tech Park breaks ground on K-8 school
By Victoria Blute
special for Inside Tucson Business
February 26, 2010

A problem that became a solution — that’s how Superintendent Calvin Baker describes Vail High School’s launch 13 years ago when the University of Arizona agreed to host the charter school’s campus at the University of Arizona’s Science and Technology Park on Tucson’s southeast side. The experiment was so successful that Vail Academy, a K-8 addition of 225 students, will open in the fall.

The Vail Academy will be the only K-8 school located at a research park anywhere in the nation — a distinction that makes UA Associate Vice President Bruce Wright believe the school is ahead of the game. “I think we’re at the leading edge of what other research parks will examine over the next few years,” he said. The high school and the soon-to-open K-8 school will help students make a connection between the classroom and beyond. “Going to school here, kids can see the relevance of science, math and engineering,” he said. “The beauty of the school being in the Science and Technology Park is that the students are literally surrounded by the real world.” Baker added: “When our students go to the cafeteria, they’re mixing with engineers and software developers and accountants and secretaries.” Wright said he believes an innovative partnership will come from the school’s collaboration with UA. The interaction between one of the region’s largest employers and students makes a difference in the long run, he said.

The park has 40 companies and more than 7,000 employees onsite, a significant number of whom are UA graduates, according to Wright. “An important fact is that the average wage [of a Park employee] is over $70,000 a year, which is twice as much as the average salary in Pima County.” He said a big part of the school’s mission is to stop the “brain drain” — the loss of well-qualified employees to other states for better-paying jobs — by starting students at the school, having them interact with the employees, and then return as employees themselves. For example, some students who have attended Vail High School have come back to work at the park. “They were washing glassware and beakers at first as they worked through high school and their after-school employment with the company,” Wright said. After graduation, two were hired back by the same pharmaceutical testing company.

“One young lady became so excited that she went onto UA and got a master’s degree,” Wright said. “She had no intention of going into science, engineering, chemistry or anything of that kind.” Wright said this is an example of the power of going to a school like Vail High School, where students are seeing technology development and work-studies. Wright said that with the new addition, the school will continue to help young students face their fears about subjects like math, science and engineering—fields of study at which students often cringe. He said the school tries to create a variety of events to show children the benefits of science and technology. “Last year we had people from the (UA) Mars program come. IBM put together a game around engineering that was really fun for the kids, too,” he said. “We have kids all the way from five or six to 13, 14 years old. We have a whole variety of things to say to kids—that you ought not to be intimidated by it.”

Vail High School Principal Dennis Barger is also looking forward to the addition and being able to emphasize science and technology to even the youngest students. “We want them being hands-on with technology, learning that from the time that they’re little,” he said. “Adults didn’t grow up in a technological age, but we want our kids to grow up learning that those are tools that can be used every day.” Barger also said that the school aims to introduce concepts about science and technology to younger children. “For instance, playing with Legos at the early years and then upper elementary level — there are Lego competitions with Lego robotics,” he said. “We want them to do some programming, get them to do things. We’re getting those fifth- graders excited about building something.”

Because Vail High School and the Vail Academy are part of a charter school – public school that isn’t part of a traditional school district and isn’t subject to the same state regulations – they are able to control variables such as class size and study focus. Baker says parents can expect the new school to boast small class sizes, which, in his opinion, helps a school be more connected to students. “We expect to only have one classroom per grade level,” he said. “The bigger a system is, the more uniform its needs have to be. But a small organization, a small setting...it’s just easier to get by with less rules and less regulation and to be attentive to individual needs of students.”

Baker said he is confident that there will be an abundance of interest in the Vail Academy — a prediction he bases on the fact that Vail High School and all elementary schools in the Vail School District have received excelling ratings from the state. Vail High School piqued the curiosity of Frances Massingill a few years ago when she was deciding where to send her son, Kyle. Despite having other public schooling options, Massingill said Vail High School seemed like the only good fit. “We were living in TUSD (Tucson Unified School District), but we weren’t finding what we needed there,” she said. Massingill tried a few different charter schools, but ended up choosing Vail High School because of its unusual circumstances as a charter – it’s one of the few charter schools operated by a traditional school district in Arizona. “To me I think...it’s such a unique situation,” she said. “It’s extremely rare by virtue of that you have the backing of the whole school district and yet it’s a charter school.” “One of the things we really liked was that every teacher knows every kid,” she said. “If a kid starts to slip up, it’s not just that one teacher that’s there; it’s multiple teachers who are there. They know the principal on a personal level.”

Massingill, who is on Vail High School’s planning committee, said she’s looking forward to what the Vail Academy will offer younger students. She later explained that even while the school’s structure is changing, the eagerness from the current teachers is unmistakable. “[Teachers] are just very excited about bringing science and technology all the way down to the little guys and the enthusiasm is really high,” she said. “It’ll be fun to have little kids around.”

kaneui

Mar 6, 2010, 7:17 AM

Speaking of schools, midtown's Salpointe Catholic High School will begin a $35-40M redevelopment of its 36-acre campus with a new master plan submitted as a Planned Area Development (PAD) under the city's building regulations:

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/SalpointeHSmasterplan.jpg
Under a new zoning process, Salpointe Catholic High School’s campus will
embark on a $40 million extreme makeover.
(render: The Planning Center)

Salpointe campus redevelopment is first school to test city's zoning PAD
By Roger Yohem
Inside Tucson Business
March 05, 2010

Before they could even begin to plan a massive makeover of their 36-acre campus, Salpointe Catholic High School officials faced a challengingly long list of fixes. Neighbors in the midtown neighborhood wanted traffic congestion eased, especially at start and end of the school day. School administrators wanted to alleviate crowded-space issues for offices, performing arts and athletics. And students wanted their parking concerns addressed. City of Tucson Development Services made it clear it would not issue building permits on a piecemeal basis to the school on a block bounded by Glenn Street on the north, Mountain Avenue on the west, Copper Street on the south and Cherry Avenue on the east. The makeover includes a mix of new construction and fixes to existing building and landscape flaws to bring them up to code.

Development Services wanted to work from a master plan, similar to what a developer would submit. The solution was setting up the campus as a Planned Area Development (PAD) under city’s building regulations. A PAD is essentially a comprehensive, mini-zoning code for a specific piece of property. They also include both existing and possible future uses. “Salpointe is the first school to do a redevelopment as a PAD,” said Mike Grassinger, principal owner of The Planning Center. “What makes this different is every zoning request before now had a list of conditions attached to it. Under PAD, there are no conditions. They are all written into the plan.”

This approach to development has been common for large properties. The city’s regulations require that a parcel for a PAD be at least 40 acres. In this case, City Councilwoman Karin Uhlich, whose Ward 3 includes the school, helped secure a waiver from the requirement. The City Council approved Salpointe’s PAD late last year. In the comprehensive plan developed by Grassinger’s team and Grenier Engineering, major renovations will reduce traffic issues with a redesigned plan for entry and exit to the campus and improved student drop-off and pick-up areas.

To resolve code concerns, parking lots will be re-configured, landscaped and fenced. The sports practice fields will be used for event parking and a $2 million parking garage will be built. A new $12 million football stadium is being planned that will incorporate a student cafeteria. The softball field will be reoriented, and the gym and fine arts center renovated. Building plans include a new $10 million performing arts center and a $1 million chapel. “Over the years as schools started doing festivals, day care, and football fields with lights and noise, they fell out of code compliance,” said Grassinger. “From the neighbors and the city, traffic and the stadium became the main issues here. The parking plan moves it all off the streets to the interior of the campus.”

Greg Aiken, director of operations for Salpointe, said the $35 million to $40 million redevelopment project could take 40 years to complete. Monies will be raised through a fund-raising campaign that’s yet to be launched. “We took to the city anything we could dream of. As it unfolded, we realized the zoning would have incorporated impossible hoops to jump through,” said Aiken. “City officials were very helpful, they gave us advice on how we might reach this long-term objective.” Due to the current economy, there is no set timeline for any of the projects in the plan. Aiken said the work will be done “domino by domino.” A priority is fixing the baseball and softball fields and the entryway off Glenn Street “to get our students off the road quicker and safer.”

Grassinger believes PADs are a good first step by the city to become business friendly. Because property owners get zoning “that is ordinanced from day one,” it provides long-term certainty. “There are no conditions attached, that helps the business community. Whatever conditions the city wants are in the document. PAD looks at a lot of different scenarios and writes all those scenarios into the plan,” Grassinger said. The city’s old system favored conditional uses. Any revisions, however minor, required another public hearing. That extra step has been eliminated and will save future costs for both the city and property owners. It also will help problem properties that can’t be fixed easily through the standard zoning process. Plus, the city’s Land Use Code Committee is looking at this as a tool for infill districts. In certain areas of the city, the 40-acre size and single ownership requirements could be dropped.

The PAD process could accelerate the local economy’s recovery. It assures property owners and financial lenders that the city cannot come back and change the zoning rules after the fact. “It sets the stage for down the road when you are ready to develop,” Grassinger said. “With a PAD in place, you can take it to the bank the next day and start work on getting a loan for your project. Then, it’s just a matter of timing.”

Locofresh55

Mar 6, 2010, 4:17 PM

kaneui

Mar 6, 2010, 7:14 PM

State's plan to sell properties may displace downtown artists
by Coley Ward
Arizona Daily Star
March 6, 2010

The state plans to auction off 10 properties, all but one in Tucson's downtown, early next month. Buildings going on the block include the leaky, creaky home of the nonprofit Gloo Factory, 106 E. Council St., and the former home of ArtWORKS! at Toole, 35 E. Toole Ave., an inner-city program for high school youth. It will be the largest auction of properties that the Arizona Department of Transportation acquired more than 15 years ago to make way for the extension of the Aviation Corridor, before plans for the road changed. Between 1986 and 1991, ADOT purchased 37 properties for a proposed expansion of the Aviation Corridor through downtown. The city's easement over six of the properties expired last month and control over the lands reverted back to the state. "We've sold off a couple over the years, but we held off on selling any properties that might have affected the Downtown Links," said ADOT spokeswoman Teresa Welborn. "But now we're selling those, too."

The sales have triggered concerns that Tucson's downtown artists will be displaced. "Just selling these buildings off to balance the state's budget deficit will work in the short term, but be much more painful in the long run," said Dwight Metzger, who owns the Gloo Factory, which prints buttons, bumper stickers, T-shirts and pamphlets for social justice groups. For years, many of the city's artists and grass-roots organizers have taken refuge in downtown warehouses. The warehouses weren't glamorous, but they provided affordable workspace. Moreover, the warehouses were a natural fit for the artists who called them home.

BICAS, a downtown bicycle co-op, leases one of the buildings that ADOT intends to sell next month. The nonprofit has leased the former boxing gym at 1080 N. Contzen Ave. since last April, when it feared it would have to move from its longtime home in the Steinfeld Warehouse at 101 W. Sixth St. BICAS was able to stay at the warehouse and now uses the old gym as a metal shop, where co-op members can weld art that is sold in BICAS's boutique. "I was under the impression that when we leased this building we'd probably have it for a while, but I knew there was a chance we might not," said Erik Ryberg, a BICAS board member.

Two state lawmakers from Tucson have heard the artists' pleas and are trying to help. Democrats Phil Lopes and Daniel Patterson have introduced legislation that would allow the state to sell buildings directly to a city or county instead of going to public auction, but neither is optimistic the bill will pass. "Unless I can find another bill to amend it to, it's not going to go anywhere," Lopes said after a committee declined to hear the bill this week. The Tucson City Council, at the urging of Councilwoman Regina Romero, recently voted to support the measure.

ADOT has auctioned off a handful of properties in the last six months. In October, Peach Properties paid $252,000 for Zee's Warehouse, 1 E. Toole Ave., which is vacant but was once home to Zee Haag, an artist. In November, developer Steve Fenton paid $101,000 for the building that is home to Solar Culture, 31 E. Toole Ave., a gallery and music venue. The next month Fenton paid $512,000 for the building at 15-19 E. Toole Ave., which housed the rehearsal space of Salvador Duran, a Latin singer and flamenco guitar player, in addition to Astro Fab furniture makers, and artist Jessica McCain's studio. All have since moved out. Both of the warehouses Fenton bought face a vacant lot where Pima County and the city of Tucson plan to build a new courthouse. That project is on hold.

Not everybody thinks the sale of the state's buildings to private investors is a bad thing. Solar Culture owner Steven Eye said he's happy with the work Fenton has done. Eye says Fenton has improved the building at 15-19 E. Toole Ave., removing paint from the brick walls by blasting them with walnut shells. "As someone who's been here on the block for going on 23 years, it's amazing to see the progress that's happening in a short amount of time," he said. Progress is coming, but at what cost? Metzger has thus far raised $22,000 to "save the Gloo Factory." But he knows his resources are limited and he'll likely have to find a new building. "I'm looking at alternatives," he said.

AUCTION PROPERTIES
The auction will be held at 11 a.m. on April 6 at the ADOT Tucson District Office, 1221 S. Second Ave. Before the auction, potential bidders must pay ADOT 10 percent of the minimum bid, or $100,000, whichever is less. You can view aerial photos of the plots at http://www.azdot.gov/Highways/ROW/PropMgmt/index.asp online.

65,483-square-foot lot north of Tangerine Road and east of Rancho Vistoso
• Minimum Bid: $313,600
• Required Deposit: $31,360

6,975-square-foot lot at 1080 N. Contzen Ave.
• Building size: 1,722 sq. ft.
• Minimum Bid: $93,600
• Required Deposit: $9,360

17,358-square-foot lot at 35 E. Toole Ave.
• Building size: 15,445 sq. ft.
• Minimum Bid: $380,000
• Required Deposit: $38,000

46,569-square-foot parking lot on Toole Avenue, between Sixth and Seventh avenues.
• Minimum Bid: $652,000
• Required Deposit: $65,200

18,375-square-foot lot at 119 E. Toole Ave.
• Building size: 23,385 sq. ft.
• Minimum Bid: $360,000
• Required Deposit: $36,000

5,950-square-foot lot at 102-106 E. Council St.
• Building size: 4,627 sq. ft.
• Minimum Bid: $287,000
• Required Deposit: $28,700

2,960-square-foot lot at 174 E. Toole Ave.
• Building size: 2,756 sq. ft.
• Minimum Bid: $207,000
• Required Deposit: $20,700

Two parcels totaling 47,501 square feet at 406 N. Church Ave. and southwest corner of Perry Avenue and Sixth Street.
• Building size: 8,511 sq. ft.
• Minimum Bid: $1,394,000
• Required Deposit: $100,000

12,381-square-foot lot at 534, 536, and 538 N. Stone Ave.
• Building size: 12,771 sq. ft.
• Minimum Bid: $561,000
• Required Deposit: $56,100

12,196-square-foot lot at 546 N. Stone Ave.
• Building size: 2,164 sq. ft.
• Minimum Bid: $195,000
• Required Deposit: $19,500

kaneui

Mar 6, 2010, 7:23 PM

Even with two appointees yet unnamed, the new Rio Nuevo board can now convene a quorum to address some immediate business, namely the convention center expansion and hotel:

6 from Tucson area, 1 Phoenician named to Rio Nuevo board
by Rob O'Dell
Arizona Daily Star
March 6, 2010

Seven of the nine new members of the board that will oversee Tucson's Rio Nuevo downtown redevelopment district have been appointed by Gov. Jan Brewer and Senate President Bob Burns. Six of the seven are from the Tucson region, with one Brewer appointment being from Phoenix. Brewer had five appointments, Burns two and House of Representatives Speaker Kirk Adams has two, although they haven't been made yet. Current Rio Nuevo Board Member Jeff DiGregorio said he hopes to convene a meeting of a quorum of the 13-member new board within two weeks. He said he's hopeful Adams will make his two appointments before the meeting, although a spokesman for Adams said there's no timeline for the picks to be finalized.

Although nine new members will be appointed to the board, it initially will have 13 members, because the legislation allows the four incumbent board members to serve the remainder of their terms, which expire in mid-2011. The current board members are Anne-Marie Russell, executive director of the Tucson Museum of Contemporary Art; DiGregorio, owner of the Royal Elizabeth Bed and Breakfast; former Pima County Supervisor Dan Eckstrom; and former state Sen. Victor Soltero.

Brewer's appointments:
• Jodi Bain, founder and principal of Bain Investments, LLC; vice president and general counsel for Town West Realty.

• Edwin Biggers, former president of the Hughes Missile Group.

• Carlotta Flores, owner and executive chef of Tucson's El Charro Café.

• David Jones, president and chief executive officer of the Arizona Contractors Association. He is the only member appointed, so far, from outside the Tucson area.

• Alan Willenbrock is vice president and financial adviser for Morgan Stanley Smith Barney in Tucson, with 24 years of experience in the financial services profession.

Burns' appointments:
• Craig Finfrock, owner and broker of Tucson-based Commercial Retail Advisors, LLC.

• Alberto Moore, owner of the Tucson real-estate firm Alberto Moore and Associates.

kaneui

Mar 8, 2010, 6:43 PM

Work on Julian-Drew, carriage house apartments set for April
by Teya Vitu
Downtown Tucsonan
March 08, 2010

Rental apartments in the historic Julian-Drew Building and the carriage house to the rear will be the next step in the changes taking place at at Broadway and Fifth Avenue. Construction financing with Alliance Bank was secured in February to allow Julian-Drew owner Ross Rulney to start construction work inside the building by the end of April, he said.

Rulney intends to build 11 loft units into the gutted, 9,300-square-foot carriage house, though some of the units may be combined to make larger units. He also plans to add two apartments downstairs in the 1917 Julian-Drew building and upgrade the existing 12 units upstairs. He hopes to have the new units ready by the end of the year.

The Julian-Drew project started two years ago as condos, including renovation and condo conversion of the Tiburon Apartments behind the Julian-Drew. Economic forces reduced the Tiburon work to upgrades to common areas and changed the Julian-Drew and carriage house plans from condos to rental.

kaneui

Mar 9, 2010, 8:06 AM

Hotel first item on new Rio Nuevo board agenda
by Teya Vitu
Downtown Tucsonan
March 08, 2010

The newly appointed Rio Nuevo board members will meet for the first time at 3 p.m., March 16 in the Grand Ballroom at the Tucson Convention Center. After getting introduced to the administrative rules, the new board members will get a full debriefing on the history and current status of the proposed 525-room convention center hotel, said Jeff DiGregorio, a sitting board member for the Rio Nuevo Multipurpose Facilities District. “There are some imminent milestones coming up very quickly,” DiGregorio said. “The decision will be whether to build this thing.”

The Rio Nuevo board in the next couple months will get a final feasibility study and try to assemble a capital plan to fund the estimated $200 million hotel. The board has had no official quorum since the Legislature on Nov. 24 decided to expand the body from four members to nine members with new members appointed by the governor and Legislature. Gov. Jan Brewer and state Senate President Bob Burns in early March appointed their members, but House Speaker Kirk Adams had not made his appointments as of March 8. The governor gets five appointments and Burns and Adams each two.

(for more, go to: http://www.downtowntucson.org/news/?p=1828)

kaneui

Mar 11, 2010, 11:20 AM

UniSource HQ to shift 360 more employees
Downtown site will include retail and residential space

by Tom Beal
Arizona Daily Star
March 11, 2010

The new Broadway headquarters of UniSource Energy Corp. will bring an additional 360 workers downtown by the end of next year and will incorporate retail and residential space in the new building. Tucson City Councilman Steve Kozachik said the development will be "an absolute shot in the arm for the surrounding businesses." "I've seen the concept drawings. They've got some ground-level retail, with some residential involved in it," Kozachik said.

UniSource, parent company of Tucson Electric Power Co., plans to make the new headquarters a showcase for energy efficiency. It will apply for LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification from the nonprofit U.S. Green Building Council, spokesman Joe Salkowski said. The headquarters, where 425 of the company's 1,100 employees will work, will occupy a two-acre lot on the south side of Broadway between Scott and Sixth avenues. It is the site of the recently demolished Santa Rita Hotel.

The company is currently headquartered downtown in the UniSource Energy Tower, 1 S. Church Ave., but only 85 of the company's employees have offices there. Salkowski said the additional employees will come mostly from the utility's site at Interstate 10 and East Irvington Road. That will allow UniSource to move about 300 workers there from nine modular buildings. Salkowski would not talk about the features of the utility's new headquarters in advance of a news conference UniSource has scheduled for this morning. "It will be an energy-efficient building," he said. "We're certainly advocates for energy efficiency and have been working with local builders to encourage development of energy-efficient homes for many years. This will be, in a sense, our own energy-efficient home."

kaneui

Mar 11, 2010, 6:53 PM

An aggressive construction timeline has UniSource moving into their new nine-story downtown headquarters building by the end of 2011:

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/UniSourcehqtrsbuilding.jpg
(render: UniSource Energy Corp.)

UniSource reveals new HQ design; work could start in May
by Teya Vitu
Downtown Tucsonan
March 11, 2010

UniSource Energy/Tucson Electric Power plans to start construction on its new Downtown headquarters building as soon as May, a company official said. UniSource last year bought and demolished the Santa Rita Hotel on Broadway between Sixth and Scott avenues with intentions of building a new, LEED-certified, nine-story headquarters to consolidate as many as 425 employees Downtown. The new UniSource/TEP tower would join the new Martin Luther King Jr. Apartments now under construction next to the Ronstadt Transit Center as the first two substantial buildings erected Downtown since the Evo A. DeConcini Federal Building & U.S. Courthouse opened in 2000.

Unisource/TEP would move out of the UniSource Energy Tower, Tucson’s tallest building, where TEP occupies half of the 20th and 18th floors, all of the second floor and most of the ground floor. “The timeline is extraordinarily aggressive,” said Steve Lynn, UniSource’s vice president of communications and governmental relations, and also a Downtown Tucson Partnership board member. “We’re breaking ground, probably, in May or June,” Lynn said. “We must have the building completed and occupied by the end of 2011.” TEP currently has 85 administrative, legal, communications and budgeting staff Downtown. The Downtown consolidation will move about 350 employees in accounting, information technology and similar tasks Downtown from TEP’s Irvington Road facility. “We’re bringing everybody who doesn’t have a field responsibility Downtown,” Lynn said. Lynn said the TEP tower will have 170,000 square feet of office space and stand 165 feet tall, about the same height as the historic Chase Bank (former Valley National Bank) building, 2 E. Congress St.

The power company plans to split the lot into three thirds: the building with street-level retail on the north third, a parking garage on the middle third; and a separate development on the third closest to the Tucson Children’s Museum, Lynn said. The new tower reconsolidates UniSource/TEP offices as had been the case prior to 2001, when the power company owned and occupied what is today the University of Arizona’s University Services Annex building, 220 W. Sixth St. TEP considered consolidating anywhere in Tucson but decided to grow in Downtown. “We chose Downtown because it’s important for businesses like ours to be in the city center,” Lynn said.

Don B.

Mar 11, 2010, 8:17 PM

^ That is one massive, squat building. Still, better than a vacant lot or a kick in the head.

--don

BrandonJXN

Mar 12, 2010, 1:31 AM

This is going to be one huge building as that lot is MASSIVE.

BTinSF

Mar 12, 2010, 1:40 AM

Nice to know they are spending their rate increases on something visible.

kaneui

Mar 12, 2010, 5:38 AM

This is going to be one huge building as that lot is MASSIVE.

The render is probably a bit deceiving since the office tower will occupy only the northern third of the block. With total square footage of 170k, each floorplate will be less than 19k s.f.--not exceptionally large for office buildings.

As noted in the article, the middle third of the block will be a parking structure and the southern third reserved for a separate development--probably the residential component.

kaneui

Mar 12, 2010, 6:51 AM

From TEP's official press release, here are three more renderings of their new headquarters building. It's not the most striking architecture, but has a good mix of glass, stone and shade, and will be a significant addition to the east side of downtown. (And hopefully the ground-floor retail will be easily accessible to pedestrians along Broadway, with visibility to users of the streetcar that will pass right in front of the building.)

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/UniSourcehqtrs-lookingS.jpg
looking southeast from Broadway

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/UniSourcehqtrs-lookingNE.jpg
looking northeast along Scott Ave. (the southern third of the block shown vacant)

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/UniSourcehqtrs-lookingNW.jpg
looking northwest along 6th Ave.

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/UniSourcehqtrs-lookingSW.jpg
looking southwest from corner of Broadway and 6th Ave.
(renderings: UniSource Energy Corp.)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Media Contact: Joe Salkowski, (520) 884-3625
Financial Analyst Contact: Jo Smith, (520) 884-3650

New Unisource Energy Building Will Bring Employees Together
In Solar-powered, Energy-efficient Addition To Downtown Tucson

Tucson, Ariz. – A new headquarters planned for UniSource Energy Corporation (NYSE: UNS) will allow the company to bring more employees together in a solar-powered, energy-efficient building in the heart of downtown Tucson. UniSource Energy, the parent company of Tucson Electric Power (TEP) and sister utility UniSource Energy Services (UES), is planning to build a nine-story office building on a two-acre lot on East Broadway between Scott and Sixth Avenues. Construction crews will break ground later this year, and the building is scheduled to be complete before the end of 2011.

The building will provide 170,000 square feet of office space for more than 425 TEP employees – a significant increase from the 85 company employees who currently occupy leased space downtown. The additional downtown office space will allow TEP to organize the remainder of its approximately 1100 Tucson employees more efficiently in existing offices at the company's Irvington Road campus. "We'll be able to bring our staff together and make other improvements to our working space that will help us do business more efficiently and effectively," said Paul Bonavia, Chairman, President and CEO of UniSource Energy and TEP.

The new building will include about 8,700 square feet of ground-floor retail space as well as a conference center, meeting rooms and nearly 600 parking spaces in a three-level subterranean parking garage and an integrated above-ground parking structure. A photovoltaic solar array will help power a building that has been designed with energy efficiency in mind. UniSource Energy plans to secure a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Certification for the new building from the U.S. Green Building Council to ensure that it meets high standards for energy-efficient construction and environmentally sensitive design. "We are committed to energy efficiency and environmental stewardship," Bonavia said, "and the construction of our new headquarters gives us an opportunity to lead by example."

The building's long, rectangular footprint minimizes its exposure to direct sunlight from the east and west, and an integrated shade structure will shield its western face. The building will be clad with high-efficiency glass and will feature energy-saving lights, HVAC units and other mechanical systems. A rainwater harvesting system will help ensure that all landscaping needs are met with recycled water. "It is a privilege to work with a client that is focused on energy efficient design," said Mike Davis, CEO and Director of Design for DAVIS, the principal design firm. "It has allowed our team the opportunity to incorporate unique solutions that will make this the greenest office building in Tucson." Davis is a Tucson native and a graduate of the UA College of Architecture. His firm is being assisted by Tucson-based Swaim Associates, which has been active in the city's development and design community for more than four decades.

The building will be developed by Ryan Companies, a leading national commercial real estate firm with offices in Phoenix and six other cities. As the Developer and General Contractor, Ryan Companies will be utilizing its in-house design/build services in conjunction with subcontractors to build the shell and interiors; local companies will be given preference in the bidding for construction contracts. "This project is a significant development not only for Ryan Companies but also for the City of Tucson," notes Todd Holzer, vice president of Ryan Companies' Southwest operation. "We look forward to building a lasting relationship with both the City of Tucson and UniSource Energy."

Tucson Mayor Bob Walkup said UniSource Energy's new headquarters building represents a significant step in downtown redevelopment. "This is going to be a great building with a magnificent design that shows off the best of what we hope to accomplish downtown through strong partnerships with private investors," Walkup said. "The timely review and completion of this project will help us show this community that downtown Tucson is open for business." UniSource Energy's primary subsidiaries include Tucson Electric Power, which serves more than 400,000 customers in southern Arizona, and UniSource Energy Services, provider of natural gas and electric service for about 235,000 customers in northern and southern Arizona. For more information, visit www.uns.com.

Here's a youtube video with an aerial perspective: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_rJj_dh9IHc&hd=1

kaneui

Mar 12, 2010, 7:46 AM

With his downtown luxury condo project (The Post) unable to secure financing, Don Bourn is considering a boutique hotel on his vacant Congress St. parcel, potentially at a lower price point than the proposed Convention Center Sheraton:

Downtown developer looks to hotel as condo plan stalls
by Rhonda Bodfield
Arizona Daily Star
March 12, 2010

A major downtown property owner who has gone through a number of fits and stops on a project in the heart of downtown is exploring the concept of a midrange hotel along Congress Street. Developer Don Bourn bought most of the block of East Congress between Scott and Stone avenues from the city for $100 in 2004. The city tore down the 19th-century Pusch building, paying the $500,000 demolition costs, to make way for a condominium project. Although it was supposed to be under construction in mid-2007, the site has yet to be rebuilt. Bourn, who said the market crash dried up financing for the project, added that he remains committed to building there and is doing a preliminary feasibility study to see if a five-story, 120-room hotel would be more viable than the condo project. "With the residential market the way it is, we're considering a variety of alternatives, and we've talked to some hotel groups about partnering up," Bourn said.

Bourn confirmed that the Kansas-based True North Hotel Group, which specializes in extended-stay hotels, is among the partners he has been working with. Company representatives could not be reached for comment. Acknowledging that "the hotel market is not doing that great right now either," Bourn said he's weighing other options as well, from waiting out the market to looking at office space and retail uses on the ground floor. But the hotel concept makes sense, he said, because downtown amenities such as restaurants and health clubs would be a draw for visitors. There's a business population downtown that might find it convenient, he said, and the modern-streetcar project makes it more promising. He said he didn't see it as direct competition with the city's $180 million proposed downtown convention hotel, which would be the hub of the Rio Nuevo redevelopment project. "It would be a low-cost alternative to a more expensive hotel, so I see those uses as complementary."

Bourn said he has discussed the concept with City Manager Mike Letcher, who encouraged him to pursue the feasibility study. Letcher was unavailable for comment. Bourn said he expects to have some initial feedback on the project within the next month. "Our thought is to do something nice that's a real asset to the community," he said. "Everyone is eager to have something built on that site, but everyone wants something to be successful there, too, so we need to study our options carefully."

Councilman Steve Kozachik, who has continued to raise questions about the viability and liability of the city's new proposed hotel, said he's had discussions with Bourn and sees such projects as an alternative. He said he'd be willing to discuss setting aside a pot of funding, say $12 million, to provide small loans to downtown developers to help boost their ability to get financing from the banks for their projects. He added: "The city has all these vacant spaces downtown. We need to start some of these things. And the way I see it, if we come up with a 'bridge' loan to generate private-sector development, we're still far below the level of exposure the city is going to take on if it decides to finance this $170 million hotel."

BrandonJXN

Mar 12, 2010, 6:00 PM

Does Tucson really have the demand for a boutique hotel?

kaneui

Mar 12, 2010, 6:36 PM

Does Tucson really have the demand for a boutique hotel?

It won't have a chance unless the convention center expansion is done and more businesses move downtown, and would be just a less expensive option for business travelers and conventioneers than the proposed Sheraton (rather than a NY/LA-style boutique hotel). Nevertheless, financing will be hard to come by, so the developer is just trying to figure out what can be done with that lot--he got a hell of a deal from the city on that property, so I'm guessing he's feeling some pressure to get something built.

Locofresh55

Mar 12, 2010, 6:56 PM

azliam

Mar 12, 2010, 7:54 PM

It won't have a chance unless the convention center expansion is done and more businesses move downtown, and would be just a less expensive option for business travelers and conventioneers than the proposed Sheraton (rather than a NY/LA-style boutique hotel). Nevertheless, financing will be hard to come by, so the developer is just trying to figure out what can be done with that lot--he got a hell of a deal from the city on that property, so I'm guessing he's feeling some pressure to get something built.

...and he should be feeling some pressure. That lot has been sitting vacant for quite a while now.

BrandonJXN

Mar 13, 2010, 12:40 AM

kaneui

Mar 13, 2010, 7:03 AM

It is a big eyesore to have a vacant lot on congress st where there are so many new projects being built/planned. Why not just put an extended stay hotel instead of a boutique hotel. I still think that the gadsen co would want to put a boutique hotel near the mercado district. Just get a well known hotel name there that will put a decent 4-5 story hotel that way we don't need an eyesore vacant lot.

True North Hotel Group (one of the developers that Don Bourn is supposedly talking to) has built Hampton Inns in Phoenix and Yuma, as well as similarly-priced properties such as Residence Inns, SpringHill Suites, etc., so he is certainly not looking at a pricey boutique hotel for the Congress St. parcel.

Gadsden Co. had originally announced a 125-room boutique hotel for their planned Convento District west of I-10 to be run by Quinta Real, the upscale chain from Mexico. However, it remains to be seen whether that is really feasible, as there are not that many business travelers in downtown, and their development may not be as high-end as initially planned. (Right now, it looks like the first Convento District project will be affordable housing for seniors.)

http://www.truenorthhotels.com/portfolio/index.php

http://www.quintareal.com/

kaneui

Mar 13, 2010, 7:18 AM

If it were me, I would put something like this on the site of The Post.

http://www.building.co.uk/Pictures/web/s/g/y/30PROJ01.jpg

I would then move the hotel to that lot behind Wig-O-Rama and propose this design for it. I would also intergrate Wig-O-Rama into the new building. And replace the wig shop for a restaraunt or something.

Your idea for the Congress St. lot is not so dissimilar from Bourn's own render for The Post condo project, which would have had street-level retail/restaurants:

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/ThePost-rendering.jpg
(render: Bourn Partners)

About Wig-O-Rama--it's a shame they didn't take advantage of the facade restoration funds they were awarded by the city, as that corner is one of the most visible in the downtown area and definitely in need of some work. (That money was eventually given to the W. A. Julian (Zen Rock) building and the Beowulf Alley Theatre, both of which plan to do their restorations this summer.)

kaneui

Mar 13, 2010, 9:48 PM

The local diocese says it will cede ownership of the crumbling Marist College over to the city if Congressman Grijalva secures $2M in federal funds for the historic building. However, the city is unsure if it has an additional $3-4M needed for upgrades to make the structure useable:

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/MaristCollegebldg2008.jpg
(photo: Arizona Daily Star)

Old building downtown may fall into city's hands
by Rhonda Bodfield
Arizona Daily Star
March 13, 2010

The Tucson City Council has agreed to take over ownership of a historic downtown building devastated by water damage in the hopes that Congressman Raúl Grijalva can get a federal appropriation to save it. Grijalva has sought $2 million for the 95-year-old Marist College building, a former Catholic school in the St. Augustine Cathedral block. Directly across from the Tucson Convention Center and under the care of the Catholic Diocese of Tucson, it's on the National Register of Historic Places and is considered the tallest example of unfired adobe brick architecture in the state. It is also falling apart. Empty for eight years, three corners of the building crumbled in a 2005 storm. It has since been braced and covered with tarps to protect it from rain. And increasingly, the vacant building has been the target of vandals. "I think it's important," Grijalva said. "I think it will add to this whole downtown revitalization effort. The whole idea is to preserve what's left of our old architecture." With Congress unable to give money to the diocese, the diocese agreed to cede ownership if the appropriation comes through.

Background materials provided to the council indicate it could potentially provide a forum for downtown community events or house nonprofits or Access Tucson and Channel 12. It also could house a new Tucson Visitors Center, and serve as a venue for the $820,000 short video intended to highlight Tucson's cultural birthplace. City officials expect to know by May if the money will come through. The city's historic preservation officer, Jonathan Mabry, said the funding would be enough to restore the building. "I think if we get the federal appropriation, then the prognosis is good for the patient," Mabry said, noting it's not in danger of imminent collapse because of the stabilization. "But every year that passes, the potential for more damage exists. It needs to have a permanent solution soon."

Although the diocese maintains the plumbing, council members were advised it would cost another $3 million to $4 million to update the interior space. If the city takes possession, it could be in the situation of having a building that it doesn't have a use for or the money to fix up, cautioned Deputy City Manager Richard Miranda. "There is an issue of buyer beware." Housing and Community Development Director Albert Elías said the timing of the transfer could be such that it doesn't occur until the federal government appropriates the money. "If we don't get more money and no other partners come forward, we could just stop and secure the perimeter and we'd still be in a better place than we are today," he said.

Taxpayer activist John Kromko said while he questions whether there are better uses for the money, he has a bigger concern. "We just want to be sure that once the project is completed, the city doesn't sell the building to an insider for $1." But Councilwoman Regina Romero said it's her hope to prevent the building from falling further into disrepair and becoming even more "of an eyesore, an embarrassment and probably even a liability. If we have the opportunity to explore a solution, why not?"

kaneui

Mar 13, 2010, 10:20 PM

2 more Tucson men appointed to Rio Nuevo board
March 13, 2010

A commercial real estate broker and a county supervisor's aide are the final appointees to the new board that will oversee the Rio Nuevo downtown Tucson redevelopment district. Arizona House Speaker Kirk Adams appointed Tucson broker Mark Irvin to the board Friday along with Scott Egan, who's on the staff of Republican Pima County Supervisor Ray Carroll. The board was established by the state Legislature because of concerns with Tucson's handling of the project.

The board now has nine new members with eight being Tucson residents. The first meeting of the new board will be March 16 when it has a study session regarding the status of the proposed convention center hotel.

Information from: Arizona Daily Star, http://www.azstarnet.com

kaneui

Mar 17, 2010, 5:43 AM

With its Tuesday meeting occupied with voting questions, the new Rio Nuevo board will meet again next week, hopefully addressing the convention center expansion and hotel:

New Rio Nuevo board stuck on voting issue
by Teya Vitu
Downtown Tucsonan
March 16, 2010

The newly appointed Rio Nuevo board members met for the first time March 16 amid confusion on whether the new board members had any voting rights. Rio Nuevo legal council Bill Hicks said the board’s archaic weighted voting process was not addressed in the November legislation that gave the governor, State Senate president and House speaker the right to appoint board members. The Rio Nuevo board now consists of four prior board members – Anne-Marie Russell, Jeff DiGregorio, Victor Soltero and Dan Eckstrom – and nine newly appointed members. Hicks said the board could assume the old voting system was voided by the new legislation but he recommended the prior four-person board formally rescind the weighted votes, which gave the two board members appointed by Tucson five votes each and the two appointed by South Tucson one point each.

DiGregorio and Soltero were the only prior board members present March 16, and the new board members did not overrule Hicks’ suggestion so the voting matter will be straightened out at the next board meeting scheduled for 3 p.m. March 24 at the Tucson Convention Center. In coming weeks, the new board will tackle numerous housekeeping issues as well as deciding on whether to commit to a $200 million convention center hotel and how to finance it. The new board must consider if it wants to hire its own executive director and staff or maintain the intergovernmental agreement with Tucson, where Deputy City Manager Richard Miranda serves as Rio Nuevo’s executive director and city Finance Director Kelly Gottschalk services as Rio Nuevo’s treasurer. That will determine how independent the Rio Nuevo board wants to be from the city, which has run Rio Nuevo since the beginning.

In the past year, the old Rio Nuevo board has assumed more direct control, and that was reinforced by the Legislature taking away appointing powers from Tucson and South Tucson. But city staff members still operate the Rio Nuevo Multipurpose Facilities District, handling things like record keeping, insurance, procurement, project management and finances. The new board brings together real estate and finance professionals; a Downtown restaurateur; a former Indianapolis city council member involved in building a new football stadium and expanding the convention center; a voice from the Pima County Board of Supervisors; and a former president of Hughes Missile Group, the predecessor of Raytheon Missile Systems.

Gov. Jan Brewer got five appointees and state Senate President Bob Burns and House Kirk Adams each got to appoint two board members.

Brewer appointed:
• Jodi Bain, a commercial real estate attorney, founder and principal of Bain Investments, and vice president and general counsel at Town West Realty.

• Edwin Biggers, former president of Hughes Missile Group and president of Pepperdine University’s Board of Regents.

• Carlotta Flores, owner and executive chef at El Charro Café.

• David Jones, president and chief executive of the Arizona Contractors Association and a former city councilman in Indianapolis, who was involved in expanding that city’s convention enter and building a stadium for the Indianapolis Colts..

• Alan Willenbrock, vice president and financial adviser at Morgan Stanley Smith Barney.

Burns appointed:
• Craig Finfrock, owner and broker of Commercial Retail Advisors

• Alberto Moore, owner of the real estate firm Alberto Moore Associates and involved in international business including American university programs in China

Adams appointed:
• Mark Irvin, managing member of Mark Irvin Commercial Real Estate

• Scott Egan, executive assistant to Pima County Supervisor Ray Carroll.

The four board members appointed by Tucson and South Tucson are allowed to complete their terms through June 2011.

kaneui

Mar 17, 2010, 6:45 PM

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/MLKApts3-10.jpg
webcam shot on March 17
(webcam: transview.org)

Framing complete, MLK ready for final push
by Teya Vitu
Downtown Tucsonan
March 17, 2010

A topping-out party March 22 will celebrate the completion of framing of the six-story, 68-unit Martin Luther King Jr. Apartments at Fifth Avenue and Congress Street. The new $23 million public housing project is for low-income seniors and the disabled who meet federal eligibility for public housing. The structure has taken shape under the 125-foot crane that has been in place at the east end of Downtown since January 2009. Insulation and drywall started enclosing the structure in March and will continue in April. The ambition is to finish construction in September and have residents move in by the end of the year, said Ann Vargas, project manager for the city’s Housing and Community Development Department. “Within the next sixth months, there will be a transformation of the landscape that realizes the revitalization efforts for Downtown,” Vargas said.

By Aug. 1, the $13.5 million, 285-space, three-level garage beneath MLK should be open to the public, and Vargas also expects completion of the Depot Plaza between MLK and Fifth Avenue. It will be an urban pedestrian setting with commemorative art of King. The new MLK Apartments is the largest structure built Downtown since the Evo A. DeConcini Federal Building & Courthouse opened in 2000. The city will start taking reservations in April from people who want to live at the MLK. Residents of the old MLK Apartments, today’s private-sector One North Fifth Apartments, will have first dibs, and Vargas said about 30 former MLK residents are interested. The MLK is funded by most of a $9.8 million HOPE VI grant from the U.S. Housing and Urban Development Department; $8 million in federal low-income tax credits; $1.27 million in Pima County bonds; $750,000 from the federal Home Loan Bank affordable housing program; about $2 million in city HOME Investment Partnership funds and other federal funds that pass through the city.

kaneui

Mar 19, 2010, 5:56 AM

In this Arizona Illustrated interview about downtown development, City Councilman Steve Kozachik suggests that the new Rio Nuevo board have a Plan B for a smaller, less expensive convention hotel if developer Garfield-Traub's new pro-forma for the 26-story Sheraton doesn't pencil out:

http://ondemand.azpm.org/videoshorts/watch/2010/3/17/kuat-downtown-development-update/

kaneui

Mar 20, 2010, 6:55 AM

Once all contractor bids are received, Garfield Traub can provide the Rio Nuevo board with a guaranteed maximum price for the proposed convention center Sheraton:

Bid packages go out on downtown hotel project
Inside Tucson Business
March 19, 2010

As part of the on-going process to determine costs involved with building a 525-room hotel at the Tucson Convention Center, construction managers Turner-Sundt last week released 200 pre-bid work packages totalling $190 million. About 150 contractors from within the Tucson region have pursued work on the project and received the packages. The work includes construction of the hotel, a parking garage, and demolition of the convention center’s west entrance. Kurt Wadlington, senior project director at Sundt Construction, said the hotel will be a $145 million to $160 million project, depending on how the bids come in.

Turner-Sundt is accepting bids for work including structural steel, concrete, masonry, thermal and moisture protection, doors and windows, plumbing, HVAC, electrical, and landscaping. In mid-May, Turner-Sundt hopes to provide final bids to developer Garfield Traub, which in turn, will present them to the Rio Nuevo District Board to decide whether to move forward with the project, though the City of Tucson would have to weigh in because it would be responsible for backing bonds to pay for it. A state audit of Rio Nuevo’s operations and the sale of bonds to finance construction are pending.

Contractors with bid questions can contact Sundt at (520) 750-4702.

kaneui

Mar 21, 2010, 3:13 AM

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/HaciendadelSolroad.jpg
The new entrance will replace "the tiny, winding road so many people got
lost on," resort officials say.
(photo: Hacienda del Sol)

Ranch has needed it 'since 1929'
New road to Hacienda del Sol
Arizona Daily Star
March 20, 2010

Hacienda del Sol Guest Ranch Resort will hold a public celebration April 6 for the grand opening of a new road and entrance it has built. The new direct road from Hacienda dol Sol Road replaces "the tiny, winding road so many people got lost on," the resort says in a news release. "The Hacienda has needed this entrance since 1929 when it was a finishing school for girls," Rick Fink, co-owner of Hacienda del Sol, said in the release. Tom Firth, also a co-owner, added, "Our objective was to create an upscale entrance for our guests that complements the resort's ambience and the quality of our neighborhood. We knew how important it was to invest the time and money to do this right. Hacienda del Sol is here to stay."

BY THE NUMBERS: The eight-month, $500,000 project includes:

136,000 square feet of paving.

150 new indigenous trees.

1,300-foot stretch of road with 30,000 square feet of multicolored brick pavers (100,000 brick pavers).

330,000 pounds of boulders.

100+ parking spaces.

IF YOU GO

What: Grand opening of road and entrance to Hacienda del Sol Guest Ranch Resort. The inner courtyard will have live jazz, complimentary champagne and wine, cake and Executive Chef Ramiro Scavo's signature carving station. Tours will be offered of the recently renovated guest rooms, banquet and event areas and Hacienda's private gardens.

When: April 6, a Tuesday, 4:30-6:30 p.m. with a 5 p.m. ribbon-cutting ceremony.

Where: The resort at 5501 N. Hacienda del Sol Road.

To attend: Reservations are required for the event; call 299-1501.

kaneui

Mar 25, 2010, 5:54 AM

As expected, Tucson's rate of growth has continued to decline according to recent U.S. Census Bureau estimates, as the metro area (Pima County) gained only 10,368 new residents during the year ended July 1, 2009. With a total estimated population of 1,020,200 as of that date, Tucson is ranked as the nation's 52nd-largest metropolitan area. Even with the recent slowdown, however, Tucson has grown nearly 21% during this decade--faster than either Albuquerque (18%) or El Paso (11%), two similar-sized Southwestern cities.

For more info.:
http://www.census.gov/popest/metro/metro.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Table_of_United_States_Metropolitan_Statistical_Areas

NolaV

Mar 26, 2010, 4:40 PM

Rumor has it that the Rio Nuevo Board will have to recogfigure membership since the members MUST reside in the City limits, who will they choose and how will that affect the Rio Nuevo District?

kaneui

Mar 26, 2010, 6:21 PM

Rumor has it that the Rio Nuevo Board will have to recogfigure membership since the members MUST reside in the City limits, who will they choose and how will that affect the Rio Nuevo District?

Apparently, two of Gov. Brewer's five board appointees are ineligible, since three of the five have to be residents of Tucson or South Tucson, so she will be appointing two new ones shortly. However, the actual Rio Nuevo TIF District boundaries will remain the same (see the boundary map in the metro Tucson project list). For now, the board will continue to meet weekly to get up to speed in order to make some crucial decisions about the proposed convention center expansion and Sheraton hotel.

http://www.azstarnet.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/article_5893c54b-448d-51fa-a7fe-561d3ec45376.html

kaneui

Mar 27, 2010, 8:39 PM

The new streetcar was a factor in the announcement of a new 10-story tower for the Marriott University Park, reportedly the most successful hotel in Tucson:

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/MarriottUniversityParktower.jpg
All of the ground-floor retail space has been pre-leased for
the Marriott expansion.
(render: J.L. Investments)

Marriott University Park to add retail, multi-screen theater, up to 132 suites
$35 million building

By Roger Yohem
Inside Tucson Business
March 27, 2010

Despite the economy, the commercial and retail area west of the University of Arizona’s Main Gate is burgeoning and the Marshall Foundation is moving ahead with plans to develop property it owns to add another 132 suites to the Marriott University Park in a complex that will also house a six- to eight-screen movie theater and new retail space. The parcel to be developed is a parking lot immediately east of the existing 250-room, nine-story hotel on the south side Second Street. Officials with the Marshall Foundation say the $35 million venture is economically sound, even in an uncertain economy, because the foundation adheres to the golden rule of real estate: location, location, location. “Obviously, this Marriott is a very successful hotel with great occupancy because of its location next to the university, doing business with the university, and hosting business conferences,” said Jane McCollum, general manager of foundation. “And its location near the modern street car route is another reason for expansion.” J.L. Investments will develop the property with co-owner Tom Warne as the project manager.

Warne said the project is down to a few plan amendments and zoning approvals that are still needed from the City of Tucson. Once those are in place, the final design and construction drawings will be done, financing options explored, and a construction timeline set. He said the new building will be nine or 10 stories high with up to 132 hotel suites, mixed-use retail space on the ground floor, and the theater on the second floor. “We already have leased all the retail. We needed those leases to move forward,” said the Marshall Foundation’s McCollum, although she would not identify the tenants. “We’ve always planned to build a movie theater, that concept has been on the books for about 10 years,” she said. “It will enhance the media arts program at the university, as we are dedicating two screens to the university during the week.” The theater also will create opportunities for hosting film festivals and private screenings.

The existing Marriott hotel has 233 rooms and 17 suites, with just under 12,000 square feet of meeting space. Opened in 1996, it also has a restaurant and fitness center. Mark Van Buren, general manager of the hotel, called the planned expansion a “home run.” “We have such a great location. For many reasons, we already are the most successful hotel in the greater Tucson area,” Van Buren said. “Many of our guests are what we call business transients. They do business with the university, do training and are gone. People don’t realize there is a lot more business activity going on here than in other parts of town.” McCollum believes the larger Marriott University Park and the city’s planned downtown convention hotel will complement each other. The streetcar’s “university-downtown connectivity” will be an economic booster. For example, she said, Marriott guests will be able to ride the streetcar to events downtown. Likewise, downtown hotel guests can easily get to merchants, restaurants and entertainment on Fourth Avenue and University Main Gate areas. “That kind of traffic is great for economic development without the infrastructure issues. They spend their money and leave,” she said.

Both McCollum and Warne praised the “cooperation and unanimous support” the development has received from the West University Neighborhood Association and the city council. She said both groups see the social and economic benefits. In the past two years, Warne said he has appeared before Mayor and Council nine times. He said every meeting “was extremely positive and constructive. They know this project will generate a lot of retail sales taxes and bed taxes.”

kaneui

Mar 27, 2010, 10:07 PM

Although another $1M or more is needed to complete the replica of the historic Mission Gardens at the proposed Tucson Origins Heritage Park, a local contractor and blacksmith have donated time and materials to install new mesquite-plank gates and ocotillo fencing to secure the entrances in the adobe perimeter wall built last year:

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/MissionGardensgate.jpg http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/MissionGardensocotillogate.jpg
(photos: city of Tucson)

http://dot.tucsonaz.gov/projects/project.cfm?cip=663A9BB2-E468-E114-9D339C76A737EF96

kaneui

Mar 28, 2010, 8:02 AM

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/SanXavierMissiontowers.jpg
The upper reaches of the east bell tower of Mission San Xavier del
Bac shows its age next to the restored west tower.
(photo: Kelly Presnell)

Tough economic times clip White Dove's wings
Historic San Xavier Mission lacks funds to complete repairs

by Doug Kreut
Arizona Daily Star
March 28, 2010

A prominent feature of Mission San Xavier del Bac - which has graced the desert southwest of Tucson for two centuries - faces unchecked decay now that critical funding has been cut. Work to repair and restore the mission's deteriorated east bell tower was supposed to be under way this spring, but not a dab of new mortar has been applied. A previously approved $150,000 grant from the Arizona Heritage Fund to kick-start the project was abruptly canceled last year. Persistent efforts to get the funding restored have failed, so the bell tower will languish for the foreseeable future - making eventual restoration ever more costly, said Vern Lamplot, executive director of the Patronato San Xavier. The group oversees fundraising and restoration for the mission, which attracts 200,000 visitors annually.

Restoration of the tower was to be the last major step in more than two decades of work that has included repair of walls, renovation of the west tower and meticulous cleaning of religious art inside the mission. Lamplot said the Heritage grant - opening access to matching grants - would have been sufficient to launch the $1.5 million tower project. With those funding arrangements on indefinite hold, the Patronato has turned to a smaller project - restoration of an arcade outside the mission's sacristy. Work there began this year and is scheduled for completion by May 2011. Lamplot said the Patronato has raised much of the $300,000 needed for the arcade work. Because the project is smaller and more manageable, Lamplot said, "If we had to stop it suddenly, it wouldn't be too big a problem. "The tower project is very different" because the tower's interior will be exposed while the work proceeds, Lamplot said. "We wanted to have reliable grant funding before starting so it will be open to the elements for the shortest possible time," he said.

THE TOWER'S FUTURE

The east bell tower of the mission has always been an eye-catcher - mainly because it has remained unfinished since Tohono O'odham workers, under the direction of Spanish Franciscans, stopped work on the building in 1797. The tower's missing top might be quirky, but it's not the problem. The problem is that the tower - which is to be left in its incomplete state for historical purposes - is showing serious deterioration inside and out. Restorers want to stabilize it, remove a damaging cement plaster that traps moisture, and replace it with a "breathable" lime mortar. Similar work was completed on the west tower in 2008. "That east tower is seriously in need of work right now," said Bernard "Bunny" Fontana, a writer, historian, educator and one of the founders of the Patronato San Xavier. "If you look at that tower, you can see stuff falling off of it," Fontana said. "It could eventually get to the point where it's dangerous and we need to take some emergency measures."

There is a glimmer of hope. Lamplot, who has tried repeatedly to get the Heritage funds reinstated, said state officials "told us that we wouldn't have to apply again. They said that when the funds were restored, we would be informed." So far, silence. "We're waiting for the economy to improve in hopes of getting the funding," Lamplot said. "But it's hard to tell when that might happen." Fontana, known for a wry sense of humor, noted that the stalled tower-restoration effort might actually amount to a sort of "historical continuity." "It's almost certain," he said, "that the reason the tower was never finished in the first place is that they ran out of money" back in 1797.

WORK IN PROGRESS

While the bell tower weathers in the desert sun, a restoration crew is tackling the painstaking job of stabilizing and restoring the sacristy arcade. "The arcade was added to the east side of the church in the early 1800s - no one is sure of exactly when," said Bob Vint, architect for restoration work at the mission, often called the White Dove of the Desert. "It's made of unfired mud adobe and is in a deteriorated condition." A crew from Morales Restoration & Builders, with a long history of work at the mission, is removing a layer of cement plaster, stabilizing joints and supports, and then making repairs with mud adobe and lime mortar.

Removing the cement plaster and replacing it with adobe and lime mortar materials like those used by the original builders is part of an effort to rid the entire mission of cement plaster. The impermeable cement - applied during earlier renovations in an ill-conceived effort to shore up the building - actually did more harm than good by trapping water that gradually caused structural damage. The work on the arcade is aimed not only at restoring the structure but also increasing resistance to potential earthquake damage. "We excavate every single joint and make sure they're stable," said Daniel Morales, who directs the crew's work. "It's quite involved. You can't just come in and replaster. You can fix the top all you want, but that won't be good if you don't stabilize the bottom first."

Virtually all the work, including removal of the cement plaster and applying the lime mortar, must be done by hand, as gently as possible. "We're trying to keep the vibration to a minimum to protect the bricks behind the plaster," Morales said. Meanwhile, the Patronato is continuing to raise money from donors and fundraising events to ensure completion of the arcade work and some smaller projects. "That's money we have to find each year, but it's worth it," Lamplot said. "San Xavier is unique. It's regarded as the best example of Spanish Baroque architecture in the United States."

SUPPORT THE MISSION
The Patronato San Xavier is holding a fundraising concert April 18 at the mission, 1950 W. San Xavier Road.
The concert, featuring flamenco music, begins at 5 p.m. Admission is $75.
Call 407-6130 for reservations. Proceeds will support continued restoration work.

kaneui

Mar 30, 2010, 6:40 PM

Along with the new Depot Plaza underground garage opening in September, this city-owned parking garage at Plaza Centro will provide needed parking for 4th Ave. and Congress St. businesses:

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/PlazaCentrogaragerender.jpg
(render: Downtown Tucsonan)

New multi-use parking garage set for E. Congress
by Teya Vitu
Downtown Tucsonan
March 30, 2010

Construction can start on a 378-space Plaza Centro Garage once $5.6 million in certificates of participation are sold to fund the project. The City Council in February approved an amendment to the Plaza Centro development agreement that included a go-ahead on building the garage, said Chris Leighton, parking coordinator of the city’s ParkWise division. Leighton estimates breaking ground possibly in August for the four-level, above-ground garage at 345 E. Congress. It will be wedged between Congress, the railroad tracks and the new Fourth Avenue underpass, which already has an elevator in place to link the underpass sidewalk with the garage level. “The garage’s location starts solving the Fourth Avenue parking problems,” Leighton said.

The garage could be done as soon as summer 2011, Leighton said. It will serve the east end of Downtown, including Hotel Congress, the Rialto Theatre and, principally, the proposed Plaza Centro housing and retail project, the brainchild of developer Jim Campbell, who also suggested the alignment for the Fourth Avenue underpass. “I’m not quite ready to figure out exactly the direction I want to go with (Plaza Centro),” Campbell said. “I still have a bunch of balls in the air with it.”

kaneui

Mar 31, 2010, 6:31 AM

The $11M first phase of the Grant Rd. widening/improvement project will stretch from 15th Ave. to Castro Ave. (including the Oracle Rd. intersection), and is scheduled to begin construction in summer, 2011:

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/GrantandOracleRdsintersectionrender.png
rendering of Grant/Oracle intersection
(render: RTA)

See Grant Rd. plan at Wednesday open house
by Dylan Smith
TucsonSentinel.com
March 19, 2010

Check out the planned improvements to Grant Road at an open house Wednesday evening. The Regional Transportation Authority will hold an information session at the Tucson Association of Realtors, 2445 North Tucson Boulevard, from 5:30 - 8 p.m. The first phase of upgrades to the roadway are planned to break ground in summer 2011, beginning with the West Grant and North Oracle Road area.

Where & when:
* Grant Road Improvement Plan Open House
* 2445 N. Tucson Blvd.
* Wednesday, March 24, 5:30 - 8 p.m.

www.rtamobility.co
http://www.grantroad.info/

Don B.

Mar 31, 2010, 4:57 PM

Nice series of updates for Tucson. Thanks, Kaneui. :)

--don

atbg8654

Mar 31, 2010, 5:38 PM

kaneui

Apr 1, 2010, 7:28 AM

Nice series of updates for Tucson. Thanks, Kaneui. :)

Even in the midst of the depressed economy, with the modern streetcar green-lighted, the new UniSource HQ going up, the ongoing facade restoration program, and the expected convention center expansion and headquarters hotel, Tucson is adding some significant new development in the downtown area.

Along with the new mixed-use tower at the Marriott University Park, we should see more TOD announcements over the next several months for additional projects along the streetcar route.

atbg8654

Apr 1, 2010, 2:41 PM

Ya Im hoping the streetcar helps clean up some deteriorating streets and streetscapes as well as spruce up the 4th Avenue roughness. UA, downtown and everything in between should be fun to watch transform from now on

kaneui

Apr 1, 2010, 5:58 PM

Of the 37 downtown properties acquired by ADOT under the original plan to complete the Barraza-Aviation Parkway, 11 have been sold thus far and ten more are headed for the auction block on Monday:

Lots of warehouses on block at April 6 ADOT auction
by Teya Vitu
Downtown Tucsonan
April 01, 2010

Ten state-owned warehouses and sundry other properties along the Aviation Corridor will go on the auction block April 6, the most warehouses the Arizona Department of Transportation has offloaded at one time in the Warehouse District. City easements on several warehouses expired and finalizing an alignment for the Downtown Links northward extension of the Barraza-Aviation Parkway led ADOT to auction off so many properties at one time, ADOT spokeswoman Teresa Welborn said. The auctions start at 11 a.m. April 6 at the ADOT District Office, 1221 S. Second Ave. The combined minimum bids for the properties is $4 million, but if recent ADOT warehouse auctions are any indication, the sale totals will be much higher.

ADOT acquired 37 properties, mostly warehouses, from 1987 to 1991 to clear them away to build a state highway to link Barraza-Aviation Parkway to Interstate 10. In the intervening years, the city took over the road project and realigned the route. So far ADOT has sold 11 properties, but the state has collaborated with the city and tenant artists for years to find ways to disperse the warehouses to support the arts district that has evolved in them over the decades. “The people have been able to lease below market rates for a long time,” Welborn said. “It was an incubator site we were able to provide.”

Downtown Warehouse District properties up for auction include:

• 35 E. Toole Ave., 17,358 square feet with a 15,445 square-foot warehouse. Minimum bid: $380,000.

• Toole Avenue parking lot between Sixth and Seventh avenues, 46,569 square feet. Minimum bid: $652,000.

• 119 E. Toole Ave., 23,385-square-foot building, 18,375-square-foot lot. Minimum bid: $360,000. • 102-106 E. Council St., 4,627-square-foot building, 950-square-foot lot. Minimum bid: $287,000.

• 174 E. Toole Ave., 2,750-square-foot building, 2,960-square-foot lot. Minimum bid: $207,000.

• 406 N. Church Ave, 8,511-square-foot building, 31,228-square-foot lot, and Perry Avenue at Sixth Street, 16,273-square-foot lot. Minimum bid: $1.394 million.

• 534, 536, 538 N. Stone Ave., 12,771-square-foot building, 12,381-square-foot lot. Minimum bid: $561,000.

For more info.:
http://www.azdot.gov/highways/row/propmgmt/PDF/April_6_2010_Auction.pdf

kaneui

Apr 2, 2010, 6:16 PM

An interview with a Garfield Traub exec has no new revelations, but confirms the fact that convention center hotels no longer get built without some public sector financing:

Some questions - and answers - about the TCC hotel
by Teya Vitu
Downtown Tucsonan
April 02, 2010

Garfield Traub Development and Starwood Hotels (Sheraton) were selected from a field of four development teams in November 2007 to build a 707-room convention center headquarters hotel to support a Tucson Convenion Center expansion and spur major conventions and conferences to commit to Downtown. Two-plus years later, financing still needs to be rounded up for the $200 million project and the proposed hotel was reduced to 525 rooms. The Downtown Tucsonan recently talked about where things stand with the hotel with Steve Moffett, president of Garfield Traub’s hospitality division.

Q: More than two years have passed since Garfield Traub was picked to build a TCC hotel but a hotel is still not under construction. Why not?

Moffett: We were selected two years ago but we did not sign our development agreement until May of last year (2009). Since we have signed our development agreement, we’ve been working diligently. It takes about one year for architects to draw a building to get it ready for construction. We’re under that year time frame. We’re right on schedule. When we were selected we had positioned the hotel a little further north of of where it currently is. About the same time we were selected, the city was undergoing an urban renewel plan with a company called EDAW. EDAW suggested McCormick Street cut through from Church all the way through to Granada. The problem was where McCormick met Granada, that’s where we had the hotel. So the city said to us “we need to have you consider another site.” It took us several months to work with the city to get that site.

Q: What still needs to happen before hotel construction starts?

Moffett: The next thing we need to do is our contractor needs to get bids from about 160 contracts going out to bid. We need to get a guaranteed maximum price for the hotel in order to complete the capital plan that gets to presented (to the Rio Nuevo Board and City Council).

Q: When is hotel construction expected to start?

Moffett: Our schedule is we’d like to start construction in August of this year, finishing up in fall of 2012.

Q: What is the status of the new TCC main entrance on the east side and what role will it play?

Moffett: We had to move our hotel to a new spot because of a McCormick Street extension. The problem we were faced with is our ballroom sits exactly where the current entrance is on the west side of the convention center. The first thing we need to do is tear down that main entrance. So you need to create a new entrance. So we had to start construction on a new entrance on the east side. We are redoing that entire parking lot (on the TCC’s east side). You’ll see (the new main entrance) starting to close in and we’ll start working on the inside (in April). That construction will be done in May.

Q: This hotel was originally proposed at 707 rooms. Why was it reduced to 525 rooms?

Moffett: Short term (the city) said don’t consider the arena. Only consider the first expansion of the convention center and tell us how big the hotel needs to be. The city told us not to consider those plans (for several convention center expansions and a new arena). We’re taking the convention center and we’re adding 33,000 square feet of exhibition space immediately west of the existing exhibit hall and on top of that we’re building 22,000 more square feet of meeting space. We were told what would it take to support just that one expansion of the convention center. Starwood said we would need between 500 and 550 rooms.

Q: Whatever happened to the proposed new arena?

Moffett: That’s a city question. When we had the original contract (to build the arena), the former city manager said that wasn’t progressing as fast as he wanted and he wanted to go a different direction. What I do know is the state Legislature told the Rio Nuevo district you can only concentrate (Rio Nuevo spending) on a hotel and arena, but do the hotel first.

Q: How will the hotel be financed?

Moffett: The hotel will be publicly owned with tax-exempt bonds to finance the hotel.

Q: Are the revenue estimates reasonable and how are they determined?

Moffett: We have three sets of projections. Starwood did an income projection based upon the full year of 2008 performance of the market in Tucson and they looked at other convention hotels and the number of rooms we have. They updated that in the fall 2009 and they updated it again in early 2010. The 2010 projection actually considered the whole year of 2009, which was a reduced projection because 2009 was a bad year in the industry. Because these are tax-exempt bonds, the district has to have a third party, independent of our team, come in and project the income. (Rio Nuevo) hired a company called HVS. In my opinion, the revenue estimates from HVS are conservative and the estimates from Starwood are very reasonable.

Q: How will the debt service be handled?

Moffett: The debt service from the bond will be paid first from revenue from the hotel, second from the city hotel occupancy tax (6 percent) from this hotel that will pledged to pay debt service. Then you’ve got 2 percent of the city sales tax from the hotel will be pledged to debt service and there is a 2 percent surcharge on guests of only this hotel, and there are debt service reserves of roughly $15 million.

Q: Under what scenario would the city’s general fund be tapped to pay down debt?

Moffett: I don’t think there is a scenario where the general fund would be used. There would have to be a certain (very low) occupancy for several years before you burn through some of the funds available. In my opinion, you have too many entities marketing this hotel to ensure the success to ever allow that to happen. One of the groups that will be marketing this property is a group Starwood has called the Convention Collection. That’s a group right now of 32 convention center headquarter hotels that are all over 500 rooms. In 2009, the average occupancy, and remember 2009 was one of the worst years in the history of the hotel industry, was 67.2 percent. 69 percent is not far fetched at all (for Tucson to come out ahead).

Q: Why is this project important for economic development in Tucson?

Moffett: Tucson has a convention center and Tucson is not in the convention business. Why is Tucson not in the convention business? Because you don’t have a headquarters hotel. Every time a person attends a convention and stays overnight in any city in the U.S., they spend an average of $300 to $350 a day, more than 10 times what is spent by people who don’t spend the night. Those conventions don’t just fill this hotel. We’re only going to be able to give a room block of about 400. You’re going to have conventions that are going to need 1,000 rooms, 1,500 rooms. All of the conventions need more rooms. Those are going to become citywide events.

Q: If this hotel is needed, why isn’t the private sector doing it?

Moffett: Convention center headquarters hotels cost on average $300,000 a room to build. In order to support that with private funding, that hotel would have to charge an average of $300 every night throughout the year. In Tucson that can’t happen. We will get an average daily rate of $163. Twenty years ago if you were trying to build a hotel, a bank would lend you 80 to 90 percent of the value of your hotel. Today I can at best get 50 percent of my cost from a traditional lender. It has to have public assistance in some sort of fashion. Full service convention center hotels have all had public support in the last 20 years.
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kaneui

Apr 3, 2010, 7:09 AM

Under pressure from adjacent business owners, UniSource will be adding over 2,000 s.f. of ground-floor retail along the Sixth Ave. side of their new headquarters building, in addition to 8,700 s.f. facing Broadway:

Retail space added to new UniSource HQ
by Dale Quinn
Arizona Daily Star
April 1, 2010

Responding to concerns from neighboring businesses, UniSource Energy Corp. has agreed to add retail space to its planned downtown headquarters. The power provider, which is the parent of Tucson Electric Power Co., recently unveiled plans for the building that included 8,700 square feet of retail space - but none of that was located along South Sixth Avenue. That worried Tim Fuller, who owns the building across the street on Sixth Avenue. He had concerns about his property facing the "dead side of a building" that wouldn't generate much foot traffic. He also was worried about several unsightly electrical boxes designed to sit along Sixth Avenue as part of the new building's power system.

To alleviate that anxiety, the building's designers met with Fuller on Wednesday and told him of new plans to add more than 2,000 square feet of retail space, with some facing Sixth Avenue, said UniSource spokesman Joe Salkowski. They also said they would move the electrical boxes to a place where they would be shielded from the street, Salkowski said. "Is it perfect? No," Fuller said of the design changes. But he quickly added that he was grateful UniSource addressed his main concern: the lack of retail space along Sixth Avenue. "They came and met with us, they listened to what we said … and they did what they said they'd do," Fuller said. Fuller owns the property at 135 S. Sixth Ave. that housed Barrio Food & Drink, which quietly closed its doors about a month ago. He's remained tight-lipped about who might be moving into the property, but he did say it would remain a restaurant.

Janos Wilder - the restaurateur who owns the Janos Restaurant and JBar at the Westin La Paloma Resort & Spa in the Foothills - confirmed his attendance at a meeting where the UniSource building's designers discussed its Sixth Avenue facade. But Wilder, who has expressed interest in opening a restaurant downtown, would not say whether he had any plans to move into the space once occupied by Barrio.

One of Fuller's tenants, Terry Etherton, who owns the Etherton Gallery, said the appearance of the UniSource building along Sixth Avenue would be very important to anyone running a restaurant. Etherton said he supports construction of the new building, in part because it will replace the long-deteriorating Santa Rita Hotel. But the initial design was "woefully weak as far as retail," he said. "We want something that's going to create some foot traffic and bring people downtown," Etherton said.But after the meeting Wednesday, Etherton said he was encouraged by UniSource's decision to focus more of the retail along Sixth Avenue, which is important because UniSource is developing a key piece of property in the heart of downtown. "They have a great opportunity right now to make a statement and do something that's real sensitive to our neighborhood," Etherton said. The neighborhood association in nearby Armory Park hasn't yet taken a formal position on the building's design, as some residents support it and others say it clashes with the historical area.

andrewsaturn

Apr 5, 2010, 5:27 AM

Seems like a great place for students to hang out, especially the mobile-limited freshman...wish UA had that when I was there...

Yea, I'm really excited for this project and the streetcar. I always walk past that ugly vacant lot next to the hotel and I'm sure glad that they're building something that is needed especially for a growing university :awesome:

kaneui

Apr 5, 2010, 6:27 PM

Kozachik to request freeze on hotel plan
Current funding hard to track, and so is the oversight, he says

by Rob O'Dell
Arizona Daily Star
April 5, 2010

Tucson City Councilman Steve Kozachik will call for a halt to all spending on a proposed convention center hotel because of confusion over whether the city or Rio Nuevo is in control of the project. "Who's been keeping track of the money? Nobody," Kozachik said, adding that as a whole, the city and the newly appointed Rio Nuevo board were "completely dysfunctional" in overseeing a new convention hotel. The freeze on funding would affect only about $3.8 million of the $17.5 million that Garfield Traub and its contractors are set to receive from building a new east entrance to downtown's Tucson Convention Center and designing a new convention hotel. The development team already has been paid the remaining $13.7 million.

Kozachik said the freeze is needed because the new Rio Nuevo board is currently lost trying to figure out what money was spent and what current contracts it has. All the while, Garfield Traub is being paid because the city is currently approving payments sent its way by Greg Shelko, the former Rio Nuevo director who is now a consultant to the new Rio Nuevo board. Until the city and the new Rio Nuevo board - which basically used to be a city agency but is now a separate entity because of legislation passed by the state - can agree on a new intergovernmental agreement that defines the responsibilities between the two, Kozachik said, the hotel should be put on hold. The current agreement between the two is outdated because of Rio Nuevo changes passed by the Legislature. "We need to stop spending the people's money until we figure it out," he said. "I want to stop the design until we know we're going to build it. The city can absolutely do that. . . . Right now, what's being done is irresponsible."

Other City Council members and Rio Nuevo board members were noncommittal about cutting off the funding for design. Although the council is slated to discuss Rio Nuevo in two different items on Tuesday - one about staffing and one about a new agreement - Councilwomen Karin Uhlich and Regina Romero said there wasn't a formal proposal, so they couldn't comment. Romero said she agrees with Kozachik that the relationship between Rio Nuevo and the city needs to be better defined with a new agreement. She also said she shares Kozachik's position that any funding of the hotel cannot hit the city's general fund. Councilman Rodney Glassman said he wants Rio Nuevo money to be spent on revenue-generating projects such as the hotel and a new arena, and he chided previous councils for not spending money on Rio Nuevo projects.

Rio Nuevo board member Craig Finfrock said the board is more interested in forming a coherent and workable organization, and it wants to work to potentially hire a new attorney, accountant and executive director before taking drastic measures such as stopping work on the hotel. "We need to create our organization and then get our arms around the project," Finfrock said of the hotel, adding that he believed much of the board agreed. One aspect that Finfrock said he would oppose was shutting down the construction on the east entrance of the TCC, which is currently in progress. About $1.5 million of the $3.8 remaining to be billed to Garfield Traub is for the east entrance.

However, Rio Nuevo board member Scott Egan said he tended to agree with Kozachik's call to freeze funding, adding that he wants to put a limit on new spending until the board determines what happened to the money previously. Although he would like to stop hotel spending, Egan said, the contracts must be looked at to determine the costs of stopping the contract. In addition, he said, the Rio Nuevo board is in the midst of finding a new lawyer, and he said he doesn't want to freeze spending until the new legal representation is secured. The city is waiting for a capital plan from one of its financial advisers on how the hotel would be funded with bonds and what the cost of financing would be. The city would almost certainly have to back the bonds, because Rio Nuevo's funding stream is so limited over the course of the next eight years. Kozachik has an unlikely ally in his hotel-spending halt in liberal activist Jody Gibbs, who has been highly critical of the city's decision-making on Rio Nuevo and other planning areas. Gibbs said the hotel will be good for the hotel developer but not for taxpayers. "The city of Tucson will be left there standing on the corner holding the bag," Gibbs said. "For the city to put money into this is insane. I support him."

azliam

Apr 5, 2010, 8:12 PM

andrewsaturn

Apr 6, 2010, 6:48 AM

It's upsetting to read that this whole hotel plan is kind of a mess right now. Isn't the construction of the hotel suppose to start SOON anyway? Someone commented on KVOA saying they know someone in construction assigned to the project who says they are going to break ground next month...I hope things get organized quickly because I am too getting fed up with nothing happening.

kaneui

Apr 7, 2010, 8:51 AM

While the new Rio Nuevo board tries to sort itself out (yet another of the governor's new appointees resigned this week due to residency ineligibility - http://azstarnet.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/article_09ba6610-6cc4-565a-834d-7cc81cedef9f.html), it appears Councilman Kozachik has little support in questioning the proposed convention center hotel: first the city attorney told him the matter couldn't be discussed as it wasn't on the council's agenda, then Mayor Walkup objected to him trying to block payments to the developer for design services.

City to provide Rio Nuevo staff till June 30
But council says extension depends on new agreement

Rob O'Dell
Arizona Daily Star
April 7, 2010

Tucson will provide staff free for the new Rio Nuevo board until June 30, the City Council decided unanimously Tuesday, but won't continue after that date unless a new agreement with the board is drawn up. The council also voted unanimously to renegotiate the intergovernmental agreement with the new Rio Nuevo board before June 30, which would refine how the new board and the city will interact. The current agreement between the two is moot because of the Rio Nuevo reforms passed by the state. June 30 is the end of the city fiscal year. The city will also immediately begin tracking the costs of services provided to Rio Nuevo, something it hasn't done for more than a year, since then-City Manager Mike Hein told staff to stop billing Rio Nuevo for work done on the redevelopment project.

On a related issue, the council did not vote on a proposal by Councilman Steve Kozachik to cut off the remaining funding for design of a Tucson Convention Center hotel. Although the council talked about it briefly and Kozachik proposed cutting off the funding, city Attorney Mike Rankin cut off the discussion because the item wasn't on the council agenda. Kozachik said he wanted to stop all the remaining $3 million in design being done by developer Garfield Traub until the city and the Rio Nuevo district determine they are going forward with the hotel. However, he said he was not interested in stopping construction of the new entrance to the Convention Center, which makes up about $1.5 million of the $3.8 million still left to be paid to Garfield Traub out of a $17.5 million contract. Mayor Bob Walkup objected to putting the funding on hold, saying the process would "never recover." "We're confident the data will support a convention center hotel," Walkup said, a statement challenged by Kozachik. Walkup said the council wouldn't have authorized it if it didn't make sense.

kaneui

Apr 7, 2010, 9:05 AM

Although two of the three of downtown properties auctioned off on Tuesday went to previous buyers of ADOT parcels, the remaining seven did not receive any bids:

3 downtown lots sold to bidders in ADOT auction
by Coley Ward
Arizona Daily Star
April 7, 2010

On Tuesday, the state of Arizona sold three of its downtown Tucson properties at auction. The largest parcel went to Geoff Shephard, president of Arizona Autopark, who paid $652,000 for a 46,569-square-foot lot on Toole Avenue, between Sixth and Seventh Avenues. Shephard said he would continue to use the lot, which the city has rented since 1987, for parking. "We'll be offering a very good deal to city employees - the cheapest in downtown," he said. This is the second time that Shephard's company has owned the parking lot; years ago he sold it to the state - one of 37 properties that the Arizona Department of Transportation bought between 1986 and 1991 for a proposed expansion of the Aviation Parkway corridor through downtown. The city's easement over six of the properties expired in February, and control of the lands reverted to the state. Now ADOT is divesting itself of its Tucson properties.

Developer Steve Fenton and Peach Properties' Patricia Schwabe bought the other two lots sold at Tuesday's auction. Fenton paid $402,000 for a 17,358-square-foot lot at 35 E. Toole Ave. Previously, the building there was home to ArtWorks, an inner-city program for high school youths. Before that, it was called the Crane Plumbing Supply Warehouse. Fenton said he would restore the building and use it as an "arts-related warehouse." The building might house artist studios or gallery space, he said. Peach Properties paid $360,000 for an 18,375-square-foot lot at 119 E. Toole Ave. Once home to Baker Bros. Produce Warehouse, the building there was most recently occupied by RISE, a nonprofit social-service agency.

Both of the buildings bought by Fenton and Peach Properties have their warts. In 2007, an Arizona Daily Star investigation documented fire damage to the ceiling of the Baker Bros. building and noted that the east and west sides of the warehouse had been condemned. At the Crane Plumbing Supply Warehouse, there were extensive amounts of friable and non-friable asbestos, as well as substantial water damage to the roof and ceiling. Schwabe said she would refurbish the Baker Bros. warehouse, then convert it into a restaurant. "It needs a lot of work," she said.

Both Peach Properties and Fenton have been aggressively buying downtown buildings since ADOT started selling them last year. In October, Peach Properties paid $252,000 for Zee's Warehouse, 1 E. Toole Ave., which is vacant but once was home to Zee Haag, an artist. In November, Fenton paid $101,000 for the building that is home to Solar Culture, 31 E. Toole Ave., a gallery and music venue. The next month, Fenton paid $512,000 for the building at 15-19 E. Toole Ave., which housed the rehearsal space of Salvador Duran, a Latin singer and flamenco guitar player, in addition to Astro Fab furniture makers and artist Jessica McCain's studio. All have since moved out. Both of the warehouses Fenton bought face a vacant lot where Pima County and the city of Tucson plan to build a new courthouse. That project is on hold.

Seven properties went unsold at Tuesday's auction. The Gloo Factory, a nonprofit media-resource center at 106 E. Council St., was one of the properties that didn't receive a bid. Gloo Factory owner Dwight Metzger, who has been raising funds to buy the building but still has a way to go, said he was happy to live to fight another day. "Maybe time is on our side," Metzger said.

ADOT will continue to market the unsold properties, spokeswoman Teresa Welborn said. "They'll stay on the ADOT Web site on the page that says 'properties for sale,' " she said. If ADOT receives an offer for one of its remaining properties, it will trigger a 30-day clock. A second offer during that time will send the property to auction. If no other offer is made, the original bidder can purchase the property.

kaneui

Apr 7, 2010, 7:48 PM

Rather than a restaurant or nightclub, the first new tenant for downtown's recently restored Rialto Block will be Premier Exhibitions, whose initial six-month lease will open with "Bodies...The Exhibition" on May 15:

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/DonMartinBodiesexhibit.jpg
Don Martin, co-owner of the Rialto Block, talks about
the importance of the exhibit to downtown revitalization.
(photo: Downtown Tucsonan)

‘Bodies - The Exhibition’ coming to Rialto Block
by Teya Vitu
Downtown Tucsonan
April 06, 2010

Bodies…The Exhibition, which has fascinated audiences around the world since 2005, will have a limited engagement at the Rialto Block, 300 E. Congress St., adjacent to the Rialto Theatre, starting May 15. The exhibition will have 10 full bodies in a variety of poses, displaying all organs. One pose will be an orchestral conductor, said Cheryl Muré, vice president of education for Premier Exhibitions, which owns Bodies…The Exhibition. Bodies will have a total of 160 examples of full bodies and body parts preserved with liquid silicon rubber, a process known as polymer preservation. One exhibit includes a healthy lung and a smoker’s lung. “This is one of the most dramatic expositions,” Muré said. “We’ve had many people decide to stop smoking after coming to the exhibition.” “Bodies” currently also has exhibitions at the Luxor in Las Vegas, at the South Street Seaport in New York City, and in Dallas and Montreal. Past exhibitions included Seattle, Warsaw, Athens, Dublin, Puerto Rico and Atlanta.

Rialto Block owners Don Martin and Scott Stiteler intended to put a restaurant into the building but two months ago were approached by Premier Exhibitions. They have a six-month agreement with Premier that will likely be extended to include other Premier shows, possibly Titanic artifacts. “This is over the top,” Martin said. “I couldn’t imagine a better way to kick start this block. How cool would it be to keep this an exhibit hall.” Bodies…The Exhibition opens May 15 for a likely eight-week engagement. Tickets are $14 for children; $17 for military/veteran; $18 for students and seniors; and $22 for adults. Special rates also are available for college and school groups. Tickets go on sale April 23. Tickets are available at the Rialto Box Office or at www.bodiestucson.com.

kaneui

Apr 9, 2010, 12:55 AM

With his prior efforts in downtown revitalization, hopefully the new Downtown Tucson Partnership CEO can find a way to keep the facade restoration program going:

Downtown Partnership names Michael Keith as interim CEO
Downtown Tucsonan
April 8, 2010

Lifelong Tucsonan Michael Keith will become the interim CEO of the Downtown Tucson Partnership effective May 7. Keith will replace Glenn Lyons, who will be leaving that position to become president and CEO of the Downtown Community Alliance in Des Moines, Iowa. Keith will begin working with Lyons immediately to ensure a smooth transition. Keith is president of Contemporary West Development, which specializes in historic restoration and new residential development in downtown Tucson. He led the effort in 2007 to prepare the comprehensive City of Tucson Downtown Infrastructure Study and has been involved in several downtown renovation and improvement projects.

“Under Glenn Lyons’ leadership, the Downtown Tucson Partnership has been an integral part of the tremendous renaissance taking place Downtown,” said Larry Hecker, Chair of the Downtown Tucson Partnership’s Board of Directors. “We are well on the way to restoring downtown to its position as the heart and soul of our community. We are fortunate that a person with Michael’s skills, experience and knowledge stepped forward to ensure that the steadily gaining momentum of downtown revitalization will not slow.”

“It seems to me, looking around the country, that there is no linear progression to how downtowns get revitalized” said Keith. “Progress happens in fits and starts, quiets down, starts up again. You can feel the surge building up again in Tucson, a vibe downtown that is really beginning to intensify. I think the Downtown Tucson Partnership, with its cross-section of businesses, developers, merchants, artists, and civic leaders, must and will play an increasingly active and visible role in this resurgence.”

PHX31

Apr 9, 2010, 4:27 PM

kaneui

Apr 9, 2010, 6:55 PM

FWIW... my company just got a random fax from a company called Waters&Wolf out of Gilbert asking for quotes for engineering services for the "26-story Tucson Hotel/Convention Center" with a schedule of "2nd Quarter 2011".

The general contractors Turner/Sundt have requested that new sub estimates be returned by April 14 so Garfield Traub can provide the city with a guaranteed maximum price on the hotel on May 10. With the current economic slowdown, the developer is hoping the new hotel cost will be significantly less than previous estimates. And if all goes well, second quarter 2011 is probably a reasonable date since the hotel/convention center financing still has to be sorted out.

atbg8654

Apr 9, 2010, 8:46 PM

http://www.townwestrealty.com/SHC/

Stumbled upon this project around UA...nice little infill considering that parking space is a major eye sore

atbg8654

Apr 9, 2010, 8:48 PM

Kaneui, what is that proposed student housing building on Euclid and 4th St...where is something that big going to fit anywhere there. And I'm assuming they are waiting for a rezoning in that area...how's that going?

kaneui

Apr 9, 2010, 11:32 PM

http://www.townwestrealty.com/SHC/

Stumbled upon this project around UA...nice little infill considering that parking space is a major eye sore

Yes, nice little project with seven units (and one less unsightly parking lot). On another note, TownWest is looking at losing their option in June to buy city land for El Mirador, their big mixed-use proposal downtown, as I doubt they've been able to secure a loan. (Last I heard, they were looking at changing the project to student housing, since that is one area--along with low-income and senior housing--where financing is still available.)

Regarding the Memorial Complex proposal at 4th St. and Euclid--I just added it to the project list, but don't have any updates since the ADS article from January in post #1340. I'm sure they're busy with zoning changes, financing, historical board approvals, and plenty of neighbors who don't want an 11-story building at that location. (But since it's so close to the new streetcar line, I guess we can call this one TOD.)

kaneui

Apr 10, 2010, 4:05 AM

As noted in the following article, downtowns are on their way to becoming vibrant, 24-7, urban communities once they have a substantial number of residents in market-rate housing (and no, we're not talking just luxury condos). Having lots of professional employees is a good start, but without the residential anchor, it's still only buzzing from 9 to 5. (To wit, downtown L.A. was a huge employment center long before it began adding any significant market-rate housing during the last decade or so, and it still has a ways to go...ditto for other cities such as Houston and Dallas.)

Of course, at this moment in time downtown Tucson has precious few of either, although the addition of new corporate headquarters for Madden Media (75 employees), Providence Service Corp. (35 employees), and UniSource Energy (350 more downtown employees) is an encouraging sign. Even though Arizona still has no real market for high-end condos in its fledgling urban centers (as we have painfully witnessed over the past few years), with the right amenities and ambience, there is no reason that more reasonably priced digs wouldn't be attractive to local residents. And in that regard, downtown Tucson is making progress--numerous new restaurants, nightclubs, art galleries and retail stores, a new home for its contemporary art museum, ongoing restorations of historic buildings, hopefully an expanded convention center and new hotel, and a new streetcar line that will get folks out of their cars and walking the streets.

With these amenities coming together, we should start seeing more companies interested in a downtown location, and some new proposals for nearby housing that would allow their employees to walk, bike, or catch the streetcar to work. Now if the City Council can just get out of the way, or at least streamline the development and approval processes to allow all this synergy to come together...Tucson just might not miss the next big development cycle.

New UniSource HQ and private sector jobs are 'monumental' steps for downtown
By Roger Yohem
Inside Tucson Business
April 09, 2010

For a struggling downtown in transition like Tucson’s, its revival centers on a never-ending debate. What’s needed first, jobs or housing? The executives at UniSource Energy understand the dynamics of urban redevelopment. By building their new $60 million headquarters downtown, they hope it will re-energize private sector investment in an area that has essentially become a government center. “Two things must happen to make downtown a success over time,” said Steve Lynn, vice president of UniSource. “First is the number of people who work there. Next is the number of people who choose to live downtown. Those are the people with disposable income who will demand the amenities that merchants can provide.”

UniSource, parent of Tucson Electric Power and other utilities in the state, will break ground on its 9-story headquarters in early summer. The two-acre parcel on East Broadway between Scott and Sixth avenues was formerly the site of the Santa Rita Hotel, which closed in 2005. The utility plans to move in by November 2011 with 400 to 425 employees. When looking for its new headquarters site, UniSource officials say they had many options. “We easily could have gone to the Sunrise corridor, the Williams Centre, or other locations. But in the end, for a company with over 100 years of history in Tucson, downtown was the right place to be,” said Lynn. There are 85 employees in rented offices at the 22-story UniSource Tower, 1 S. Church Ave., owned by HUB Properties, based in Newton, Mass. Erected in 1986, it is the tallest building in Tucson and newest skyscraper constructed, according to Buzz Isaacson, principal with CB Richard Ellis Tucson.

UniSource’s move also will relocate another 325 to 350 other employees downtown. The building won’t have a cafeteria or gym on site in a bid to try to get employees out to support merchants. “Having 325 more business people is monumental. For downtown, private sector jobs are the biggest deal of all,” said Isaacson, who helped UniSource secure the new site. The headquarters will include about 11,000 square feet of ground-floor retail space, a conference center, auditorium, 600 parking spaces, a pedestrian plaza, extensive solar photovoltaics and rainwater harvesting. With its high level of energy-efficient construction, UniSource hopes to earn a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold certification. For its retail space, UniSource wants to attract some businesses to serve employees, such as their credit union, but then is hoping for mix of retailers, possibly including a café, to encourage pedestrian traffic south of Broadway and on Sixth Avenue.

Tucson City Councilman Steve Kozachik represents downtown and said the UniSource decision “will serve as a catalyst for further private sector development downtown.” “Already, I have had expressions of interest in several more downtown retail opportunities. UniSource will be at the gateway of what will be a new and thriving downtown,” Kozachik said. Lynn, who also serves on the board of the Downtown Tucson Partnership, says downtown still needs more private sector jobs. Madden Media, publisher of glossy travel publications, already has moved its 75 employees into the MacArthur Building, 345 E. Toole Ave. Providence Service Corporation, with 35 local employees and 11,000 employees nationwide, on May 1 is moving into a 10,000 square-foot building at 64. E Broadway, across the street from UniSource’s new site. “Looking at all the private sector initiatives, this is the first time I remember excitement about downtown coming from the business sector,” said Fletcher McCusker, CEO of Providence Service. “For years, the thought was downtown would develop as a government and arts mecca, but the city finally realized no revenue comes in off that. Now the color of downtown is changing to a business-entertainment corridor.”

Over the next few years, McCusker intends to buy the entire block, including the 44 Broadway Building, and move another 100 or so employees downtown. The last “most necessary” piece to revitalize downtown may be the hardest to achieve. “For a downtown in transition like ours, downtown doesn’t succeed until market-rate housing comes in. There is enough assisted-living housing in the core, a significant number of senior units,” said Lynn. “We don’t have enough free-market workforce housing.” Since there are few buildable lots downtown, market-rate housing will have to happen as infill, the rehabilitation of old buildings and/or the razing of structures. Kozachik said “the message is already out” to other businesses and merchants thinking of investing in downtown. “I’m pushing hard, working with developers to streamline the process they have to engage in dealing with the city,” he said, adding that he is pleased with the positive momentum in his ward.

kaneui

Apr 11, 2010, 1:08 AM

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/TIAcontroltower1958.jpg
Tucson International Airport’s iconic control tower circa 1958.
(photo: Tucson Airport Authority)

FAA looks at retiring iconic Tucson airport control tower
By David Hatfield
Inside Tucson Business
April 10, 2010

Tucson International Airport’s iconic 52-year-old control tower — with large letters T-U-C-S-O-N displayed vertically in neon down two of its four sides — is facing retirement. Airport officials hope to hear from the Federal Aviation Administration in August or September that a new tower will be built. Although the existing tower might still have the looks in some Tucsonans’ eyes, airport and air traffic control officials say it’s too short by today’s standards and has issues with the sun and security. Three potential sites for a new tower have been identified; all of which are on airport property but on the south side of the main east-west runway. Jill Merrick, vice president of planning and development for the Tucson Airport Authority (TAA), said all three sites give air traffic controllers the advantage of looking north and not into the sun. The existing tower located near the Executive Terminal has air traffic controllers looking southward to the main runway. Additionally, the new tower being considered would be more than twice as tall, at 225 feet, as the existing tower where the tower cab is 92 feet off the ground. The estimated $28 million to $30 million cost of building a new tower would come from the FAA, though Ian Gregor, regional communications manager for the FAA, said funding has yet to be established. The FAA has two other options besides building a new tower. Either doing nothing or renovating the existing tower. The last option won’t be considered, according to Merrick who said the FAA did a cost analysis 2½ years ago and determined that choice wasn’t worth pursuing.

In support of building a new tower Merrick said the existing tower, which was dedicated in October 1958, is one of the very oldest still in use at a commercial airport in the United States. It is the 50th busiest tower in the National Airspace System serving eight airlines, the Arizona Air National Guard, five airfreight operators and helicopter operations, the majority of which are used for law enforcement and medical activity. As part of the site selection process for a new tower, Merrick in January went to the FAA Airport Facilities Terminal Integration Laboratory in Atlantic City, N.J., where a 3-D simulator helped participants evaluate locations for a new tower. “They could model for us—as if we were in the control tower—what it would be like in real-time situations,” she said. “It was quite amazing. We could see the existing buildings and the mountains. They could show us a Southwest 737 coming in, then an American flight, an F-16 or a small private Cessna and we could see just how each would look.”

If the FAA green lights a new tower, Merrick said the hope is that it could be built and ready to use by 2014. She also said, the FAA uses a standard sort of design for towers using a concrete base topped with a glassed cab for traffic controllers. There won’t be any neon lights down its side. But that doesn’t mean the existing tower and it’s lettering are going away. Although no decision has been made on what to do about the existing tower, Merrick said sentimentality associated with it would probably mean that the structure stays. At its April 6 meeting, the TAA board of directors voted to go ahead with the two revised projects despite the State of Arizona’s budget issues. State officials told TAA they intend to stand by funding but that payments are being delayed by 18 months. If that should change, the board agreed it would review the projects and look to find other sources to pick up the state’s share of costs.

• $8.3 million to reconstruct the keel, or middle, section of the airport’s 7,000-foot runway used mostly by smaller aircraft but by commercial airliners when there are crosswinds. This is a change in plans for an item that was originally budgeted for just under $1.4 million. Merrick explained that a recent evaluation had determined the runway needed additional work, part of which was attributed to the increased use of the runway during reconstruction of the airport’s nearly 11,000-foot runway in 2007 and 2008.

Other airport construction projects

• $2.8 million to reconstruct using concrete and widen seven taxiways. This was originally budgeted at $1.8 million.

• $11 million expansion of the terminal apron allowing for increased parking of commercial airliners overnight and for use when aircraft are diverted to Tucson. Ultimately the area which is being built east of Concourse A will be used for expansion of that concourse when it’s warranted.

• $1.8 million in upgraded security monitoring to be completed this month.

About 90 percent of the projects will be paid for through federal funding with the state and TAA splitting the remaining funding.

Tower trivia
Tucson isn’t known for tall buildings and when the current control tower at Tucson International Airport was opened in October 1958, at just over 119 feet to the top, it was the third-tallest building in town. The airport’s proposed new tower, at 225 feet, would be significantly shorter than what is now Tucson’s tallest building, the 22-story UniSource Energy Tower downtown that is 330 feet tall. There’s also a difference in cost. The new tower is projected to cost between $28 million and $30 million. The current tower cost $535,000 in 1958.

Source: Tucson Airport Authority

Locofresh55

Apr 11, 2010, 11:48 PM

While I believe they should get a new tower for Tucson international, I think they should preserve the old tower and make it a museum or some type of exhibit. The tower seems iconic in a sense that they should allow people to take tours up there and be able to get a feel for sitting in an air traffic tower.

andrewsaturn

Apr 12, 2010, 4:33 AM

kaneui

Apr 13, 2010, 2:39 AM

Although they're meeting on a weekly basis, it's doubtful we'll see a decision from the new Rio Nuevo board on the convention center expansion/hotel until they get their legal and liability issues sorted out:

Rio Nuevo board wants a new lawyer
By Rob O'Dell
Arizona Daily Star
April 12, 2010

The Rio Nuevo Board is meeting in closed session to talk to to five law firms about becoming the board's legal counsel. The new lawyer would replace Bill Hicks of Ballard Spahr in Phoenix, who has been Rio Nuevo's legal counsel since its inception. The executive session is for information purposes only and no action can be taken afterwards. Board Member Jodi Bain said the group had to go into executive session because it was discussing future contacts and also because the board will be discussing past performance of Rio Nuevo's staff and consultants.

The five firms that are meeting in executive session with the board are:
- Mesch, Clark & Rothschild
- Lewis and Roca
- Gugino and Mortimer
- Gust Rosenfeld
- Snell and Wilmer

The board also voted to put out a request for informal bids to get the board insurance, which board members feel they need before making any real decisions about Rio Nuevo's future.

Locofresh55

Apr 13, 2010, 3:28 AM

Unisource is moving a lot of people downtown. I hope with the extra pedestrian activity in the coming years, there will be some good retail and maybe chain restaurants considering downtown as a entertainment venue. I always liked the idea of a mall downtown but with the economy I don't think that will be a option at all. Plus, I guess downtown tucson isn't a "strong" enough entertainment venue to draw a corporation to consider downtown as a venue but it isn't possible to not consider since we do have a bustling 4ave and other restaurants, clubs and more on the way downtown.:yes: ;)

If Unisource's building brings more traffic and the hotel really happens, they should really focus on bringing life to La Placita. I really think that they should not let that area die off, especially with the hotel still a possibility. There can be plenty of cafes, shoppes and other places to take up business at La Placita.

kaneui

Apr 13, 2010, 7:29 AM

If Unisource's building brings more traffic and the hotel really happens, they should really focus on bringing life to La Placita. I really think that they should not let that area die off, especially with the hotel still a possibility. There can be plenty of cafes, shoppes and other places to take up business at La Placita.

A few years ago, Bourn Partners, the owners of La Placita, had planned to convert the upper floors into condos and tone down the bright color scheme. They never moved forward with it, so I'm guessing they had trouble getting financing. Here is a link for some renderings of the proposed makeover:

http://robpaulus.com/projects/mixed-use/la-placita/

andrewsaturn

Apr 13, 2010, 8:12 AM

If Unisource's building brings more traffic and the hotel really happens, they should really focus on bringing life to La Placita. I really think that they should not let that area die off, especially with the hotel still a possibility. There can be plenty of cafes, shoppes and other places to take up business at La Placita.

I completely agree! I didn't even think about that place! Now I actually think a lot of investment should go into that place because its kind of centro of downtown, its next to armory park, and its a gorgous architextural building. I went there once when starr pass resort first was opening up a few years ago for an interview and I thought "wow, this could be something if there was a strong attraction here!." :D :rolleyes:

BrandonJXN

Apr 14, 2010, 10:21 PM

kaneui

Apr 14, 2010, 10:42 PM

A Tucson Weekly column discusses the design challenges for two new buildings in historic neighborhoods:

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/TucsonChildrensMuseum-UniSourcerend.jpg
Some neighbors like the proposed Tucson Electric Power building (right),
while others wish the structure reflected more of the neighborhood's historic
architecture, like the Tucson Children's Museum (a former Carnegie Library).
(photo, render: Tucson Weekly)

The Old and the New
Two building proposals in historic areas have some neighbors delighted, and others concerned
by Dave Devine
Tucson Weekly
April 14, 2010

Incorporating a large 21st-century structure into a historic setting can be a daunting task. Two local proposals offer contrasting solutions to the challenge—but both a student-housing project near the UA and the new headquarters of Tucson Electric Power have their critics. "There are different philosophies," says architect Bob Vint about designing a modern building that is surrounded by historic architecture. "One is to try and blend in by matching what's there. That approach is favored by many local historic districts, but it doesn't really comply with the secretary of the interior's standards for historic preservation." Vint says it's fine to combine historic materials with modern design. "The other approach," Vint says, "is to contrast the design (with its historic surroundings) completely. The building says, 'I'm new.' That has its merits, but it shouldn't scream, 'Look at me!'"

Vint is the architect for Memorial Complex, a six-, nine- and 11-story residential unit proposed for the northeast corner of Euclid Avenue and Fourth Street, within the boundaries of the West University Neighborhood. The project is also located in the West University Historic Zone, a city of Tucson overlay that establishes height and design guidelines. Immediately around the site, the Geronimo Hotel commercial development and many of the other two- and three-story buildings date from the 1920s; however, an adjacent parking garage is newer and somewhat taller. Vint says his design for Memorial Complex relates in some ways to Tucson High School, which is down the street a few blocks. He also thinks the project has several advantages; for example, the proposal would save two of the four old buildings currently on the site, and the residential historic building would be rehabilitated using revenue from the new complex.

However, there are significant neighborhood concerns about the Memorial Complex proposal. Some residents fear additional traffic and parking demands; they also don't like the project's substantial size and the loss of two historic structures. "Those concerns are stumbling blocks," suggests West University Neighborhood Association president Chris Gans, "but I like the design. It's big and tall, but look at the massing along Euclid. (All of the space) is getting filled in." Gans hopes the neighborhood association can review the proposal next month; Vint anticipates the City Council will make a final decision sometime this summer.

Meanwhile, the new TEP building is apparently on a fast track toward construction. It is proposed for the former site of the Santa Rita Hotel on Broadway Boulevard between Scott and Sixth avenues, a location just outside of the Armory Park Historic Zone. When the original Santa Rita opened on the same block in February 1904, the Tucson Citizen used terms like "splendid" and "luxuriantly picturesque" to describe its Mission Revival architecture. "The building is of rock and brick and plaster," the Citizen reported upon the hotel's opening, "with four stories proper and the center wing, including a roof garden of six stories."

On its Web site, TEP calls its proposed structure "the greenest office building in Tucson." It will be nine stories tall, with a three-story above-ground parking garage behind it. The southern part of the lot is currently planned as open space, with uses yet to be finalized. The contemporary architectural design for the building appears to have made no concessions to its historic surroundings, including the 1901 Carnegie Library across the street, which is now the Tucson Children's Museum. Despite that, Chuck Bressi, who owns the Royal Elizabeth Bed and Breakfast near the site, loves the plans. "They took a dead piece of real estate and are bringing life to it," Bressi says. "What a way to revitalize downtown." Bressi says he would have preferred to see three or four different concepts for the project instead of just the one offered by TEP, but Bressi adds that he can live with that TEP decision. "It should look like a 2010 building," Bressi concludes of the design.

However, local historian Ken Scoville is greatly disappointed with the proposal. "It looks like just another office-park building," Scoville declares. "It's just ho-hum." Scoville thinks TEP should have looked to the original Santa Rita Hotel for inspiration. "It transitioned from the street to the building," he says. "They could do that with this new project by having porticos wrap around it, which would give the building a human scale and take away from the harshness of the architecture." Scoville believes the layout could be improved by moving the parking garage to the west side and using it to provide afternoon shade for a courtyard.

In the midst of this give-and-take, representatives from the utility company presented their plans to the Armory Park Neighborhood Association last month, and were scheduled to return on April 13. Neighborhood association president Liz Burden says reactions have ranged from supportive to disappointed. It is the interface of the parking garage with the neighborhood and the use of open space that are chief concerns, Burden observes. Nadine Rund, chair of the City Council-appointed Armory Park Historic Zone Advisory Board, mentions those same issues. Admitting she hasn't seen TEP's design yet, Rund says: "We have made it very clear that we like to have all buildings bordering the historic district blend in, even if legally we have no say." Because of that, Rund hopes the design will be shown to the advisory board for a "courtesy" review. "Particularly on the southern part of the site," Rund says of the TEP project, "we'd like to have some say."

andrewsaturn

Apr 16, 2010, 5:31 AM

:hi: I don't know if someone posted this already but here is an article about how much money we have spent on trying to improve the image of tucson as a tourist destination. With all the money that has been spent, only a little improvement has happened but were getting there slowly but surely. However, Its true that if someone had the option of touring one of three southwestern cities such as scottsdale, santa fe, or tucson;Tucson would come up last. Whatever happen to the idea of the science center with the towering rainbow :rainbow: bridge over I-10.:shrug: I'm disappointed that didn't happen. It would of put tucson on the map of a global landmark destination for sure. :apple:

How Tucson leaders broke the golden egg of tourism
WAKE UP, TUCSON: Gem show priority, really?
By Joe Higgins and Chris DeSimone, Inside Tucson Business
Published on Thursday, April 15th, 2010

Walk up to someone in Cleveland, Minneapolis, Philadelphia or anywhere that’s cold and miserable about this time of year and give them a choice of escaping to Scottsdale, Santa Fe or Tucson and we’re guessing Tucson is going to come in last. What does Tucson need to work on to change that? We’re going to cover a few of them in this and other columns.

Tucson’s competitors have spent money perfecting their image, embracing a unique market position and investing in an industry that’s clean, easy on the environment and employs a lot of people: tourism. In this column, we are focusing on investing in your tourism infrastructure.

Scottsdale voters are going to decide whether to spend $75 million to upgrade WestWorld and $50 million on a Desert Discovery Center (a la the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum). Mesa voters recently approved bonding to build a premiere destination resort and convention center property to be operated by Gaylord Hotels, whose flagship is Opryland in Nashville, Tenn. Print this storyEmail this storyPost a CommentShareThis

What are we bonding for here in Tucson? More open space and a sewer system that we’ve bonded to fix or upgrade multiple times already. We did a nice baseball stadium but put it in the wrong darn place. We spent $214,989,482.28 :sly: through Jan. 31, 2010 — give or take a hundred million — on Rio Nuevo, and what do we have to show for it?

What about our premier event, the annual gem and mineral shows? They pump $100 million of economic activity into our market each February. People come from all over the world to shop, buy and network. Apparently the lead show that has been here for years is demanding a new convention center hotel or they’re out of here. Enter the Tucson City Council PK — Pre-Kozachik — and Keystone Kops antics begin.

“We’ll do whatever it takes to protect (the gem show). If we have to reprioritize projects, we will do that,” Mayor Bob Walkup was quoted as saying in the Tucson Citizen Feb. 18, 2009.

Oh really? :yuck:

How about a presentation of the facts:

The 2005 gem shows came and went.

During the next fiscal year, Rio Nuevo spent $12.3 million on things except renovating the Tucson Convention Center or a hotel.

Major expenditures included:

• $6 million for the Fox Tucson Theatre, a truly wonderful venue but a financial disaster

• $1.3 million for Presidio and Heritage parks

The 2006 gem shows came and went.

During the next fiscal year, Rio Nuevo spent $16.7 million on things except renovating the Tucson Convention Center or a hotel.

Major expenditures included:

• $4 million for Mercado Avenue

• $3 million for Tucson Origins Heritage Park and Mission San Agustin chapel convento

• $1.5 million for the Mission landfill

• $1.2 million for Presidio and Heritage parks

The 2007 gem shows came and went.

During the next fiscal year, Rio Nuevo spent $33.2 million on things except renovating the Tucson Convention Center or a hotel.

Major expenditures included:

• $11 million for Mission Gardens and Origins Park

• $9 million for an Interstate 10 underpass

• $5.5 million for a science center (where is that again?) :duh

The 2008 gem shows came and went.

During the next fiscal year through May 2009, Rio Nuevo spent $28.6 million on things except renovating the Tucson Convention Center or a hotel. No wait, Rio Nuevo spent $553,000 on planning for a hotel. :whatthefuck:

Major expenditures included:

• $8 million for downtown infrastructure

• $5 million for a parking garage

• $2 million on on the mission site and Origins Park

• $1.4 million on an Arizona History Museum

• $1.3 million on Mission Gardens

To be fair, infrastructure and parking can help the gem shows. But, still no renovation of the Tucson Convention Center or anything of prime interest to those who run the main gem shows.

This city council has sent a clear message to those in charge of the gem shows: Rio Nuevo has spent $118 million on all sorts of things (with bonding, finance costs and projects that were planned but never started costing tens or millions of dollars more), but nothing to show that the gem show is of value to our community.

When the council members finally got rockin’ on the hotel, we were presented with quite another mess. :uhh:

The city fired then re-hired Rio Nuevo’s point man as a $100 per-hour consultant. At its grand opening, the proposed hotel will be worth $50 million to $80 million less than what it will cost to build it based on projected five-year revenues and an aggressive 10 percent CAP rate on the hotel. The hotel’s feasibility is based on marketing reports that have origins somewhere in la-la land.

Now it’s up to a new Rio Nuevo board and Councilman Steve Kozachik to bring a dose of reality and leadership to this morass.:rolleyes: Overcoming all the wasted time and effort and the distrust of citizens is a tough task.

We wish them the best in that regard. :notacrook:

Despite magic streetcars and Mayor Bob Walkup’s delusional cheerleading, downtown revitalization is riding on a knife-edge.

Wake up, Tucson. Really.:whip:

kaneui

Apr 16, 2010, 8:56 AM

:Whatever happen to the idea of the science center with the towering rainbow :rainbow: bridge over I-10.:shrug: I'm disappointed that didn't happen. It would of put tucson on the map of a global landmark destination for sure. :apple:

Yes, the city's missteps in handling Rio Nuevo are practically too numerous to mention. However, amidst all the hand-wringing about so little to show thus far, there has been a sizeable amount plowed into needed infrastructure to attract future private investment, which is one task that municipalities should be handling. (Of course, that's never as sexy as a new museum, hotel, or other more visible project.) In hindsight, they spent way too much time and money entertaining the wildly unaffordable "Rainbow Bridge" proposal and the ambitious Westside museum complex. They were seduced--as many cities are--into believing in one big project that would be the magic pill to jump-start downtown. As one local observer quipped, Tucson should stop trying for home runs and just get a few base hits.

Meanwhile, some major challenges remain: with Rio Nuevo now owning the convention center, it remains in dire need of a major updating and expansion as well as a viable headquarters hotel in order to be competitive. Without those improvements they might as well just shutter the place, as it bleeds over $3M in red ink every year in its current condition.

As far as the dismissal of the "magic streetcar"--I have no delusions that it will change the transportation habits of a significant number of Tucsonans. What it should do is encourage lots of new TOD and increased density along its four-mile route, shuttle plenty of students and others to downtown from the UofA and points in between, and provide convention-goers and those west of I-10 with a quick route to shops, restaurants and nightlife along Congress St. and Fourth Ave. And with the federal government footing half the bill, it could turn out to be one of the better investments downtown has seen in a long time.

kaneui

Apr 16, 2010, 9:10 AM

With two new law firms covering their backsides, the Rio Nuevo board is trying to wrestle back some of its assets now claimed by the city:

Rio Nuevo hires pair of law firms
Member: Move could save money

by Rob O'Dell
Arizona Daily Star
April 16, 2010

The new Rio Nuevo board's search for a new law firm ended Thursday - with the board voting to hire two of them. The board voted 9-2 to hire Lewis and Roca to serve as the day-to-day counsel for the board. Keri Silvyn of Lewis and Roca will replace Bill Hicks of Ballard Spahr in Phoenix. He has served as Rio Nuevo's lawyer since its inception in 1999. Board members Scott Egan and Dan Cavanagh voted no. The other firm hired was Gugino and Mortimer, which will assist the board with real estate.

The board is in an increasingly heated dispute with the city over which land and assets should be in possession of the district, which was spun off from the city by the Legislature last year. Before the legislation, the tax-increment-financing district was effectively a city department. The board has disputed the city's reclassification of several assets - the Depot Plaza parking garage, the west-side location for the Mission Gardens Heritage Park and other assets - from Rio Nuevo to the city just before the new board members were appointed.

Board member Mark Irvin said the paperwork to hire both of the lawyers could be done as soon as today. The board met with five firms in executive session on Monday. Irvin said the board was looking for a lawyer from Tucson, and the vote was not a reflection on Hicks, who Irvin said has done a good job for the district. The contracts' values will become public when the contracts are finalized, Irvin said, The board could save money by hiring two firms because the firms have deep knowledge of Rio Nuevo, he said. Egan said he voted no because he didn't feel comfortable with the law firms. He said he wanted to see them submit a conflict-of-interest form disclosing the business they do with the city.

In another matter, board member Dan Eckstrom, who was an incumbent from the previous board, submitted his resignation. That leaves 12 members, with the other three incumbent board members' terms ending in mid-2011. Nine will be left after that.

kaneui

Apr 17, 2010, 1:56 AM

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/Sundthqtrs-Tucson.jpg
Employee-owned Sundt Companies are leaving the southeast side after
35 years for a new $8.6 million headquarters in thriving northwest Tucson.
(render: Sundt Companies)

Sundt Companies' 100 employees moving to new $8.6 million headquarters next year
By Roger Yohem
Inside Tucson Business
April 16, 2010

After more than 35 years in the same location in an industrial site on Tucson’s southeast side, Sundt Companies’ 100 employees will move into a new $8.6 million headquarters on the thriving northwest side early next year. The 47,000 square-foot building at 2015 W. River Road at La Cholla Boulevard, is being built to attain U.S. Green Building Council LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold certification. Since 1974, Sundt Companies headquarters has been at 4101 E. Irvington Road. Its subsidiary, Sundt Construction, the nation’s 55th largest construction company, is headquartered in Tempe. “We chose this location for several reasons,” said Senior Project Director Kurt Wadlington. “It’s in a highly visible part of Tucson that’s experiencing a lot of growth. It’s close to Interstate 10, allowing convenient access to our Tempe office. We also wanted to be in an area of high-quality and master-planned commercial development, as opposed to the light industrial sector where we are today.”

The company’s current headquarters site includes offices, warehouses and equipment shops and maintenance. Over the years, many of these functions were either moved to other Sundt locations or eliminated. The site, size and layout of buildings no longer aligns with the needs of employees. The company has the site listed for sale.

The new headquarters was designed to “reflect the kind of company Sundt is today,” Wadlington said. About 37,000 square feet will be office space and 950 square feet will be an employee wellness clinic. The remaining space will be leased to tenants or held for future expansion. The two-story, concrete tilt-up plan will highlight the craftsmanship of Sundt’s concrete division. WSM Architects of Tucson designed a dramatic Z-wall lobby that will support cantilevered stairs in the space. For special events, glass walls in the lobby can be opened to the outside to connect with an outdoor patio on the north side of the building. The building has a reflection room for quiet meditation or prayer, a fully equipped fitness area, and state-of-the-art technology throughout the office. Another unique feature is an “innovations gallery,” a multi-media showcase about the company’s history. “Sundt is a company built on innovation, we want to highlight that in our new building,” Wadlington said. “The gallery will allow visitors to learn about some of our older innovations, like slip-form concrete and relocation of the London Bridge, and more modern examples like building information modeling.”

Sundt’s roots go back more than 120 years to a small construction company that was started in New Mexico by Mauritz Martinsen Sundt, a Norwegian immigrant. The company moved to Tucson in 1929 and is now owned by its 1,300 employees.

kaneui

Apr 17, 2010, 7:33 PM

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a228/kaneui/VillaCatalina.jpg
Units at Villa Catalina maintain the original architecture from the 1950s.
(photo: James Gregg)

Condos now 'historic'
National Register welcomes Villa Catalina, a complex that dates to Ike

by Dale Quinn
Arizona Daily Star
April 17, 2010

A homeowner in one of Tucson's first condos leans against the turquoise railing on his balcony, sips a martini and takes a drag from a cigarette while watching the Catalina Mountains turn pink during the sunset. Dwight D. Eisenhower is in the White House and the United States is in the throes of a Cold War with the Soviet Union. North Country Club Road and East Sixth Street - where his apartment sits - is way out there on the east side of Tucson surrounded by raw desert. This might have been the scene in the late 1950s or early 1960s at Villa Catalina, which recently landed on the National Register of Historic Places. Today the condominium complex is unveiling plaques noting its historical significance. "The place is a time capsule," said Paul Hart, an owner who worked to get the apartments on the National Register. "It hasn't changed."

Villa Catalina, 521 N. Country Club Road, was an early foray into luxury, garden-style apartment living in Tucson. America was coming out of the post-World War II era and society was changing, Hart said. The apartments weren't cheap - the first units sold for about $21,000 - Hart said. For that price in Tucson, a home buyer could opt instead for a nice ranch house. Hart, who retired from law enforcement, said he and his wife, Janet, worked for three years to get Villa Catalina on the National Register of Historic Places. The first apartments were built in 1957 and the first residents occupied their units in 1958, he said. Words in the original brochure emphasize the luxury of modern "indoor-outdoor living" and drip with 1950s nostalgia. "Every palatial sliding plate glass door and window frames a serene and delightful vista ... only a step into your own moonlit lanai ... to one of the two cooling, emerald pools ... in the breathtaking beauty of sun and shade in Tucson's stimulating, invigorating out-of-doors."

The complex was pitched to buyers as "apartments you can own," said Mark Pry, a Tempe-based historian. It signaled a break from apartment design of the past, when inner-city residents lived in small rooms in multistory buildings, said Pry, who wrote the nomination to get Villa Catalina listed as a historic location. "What was then really unusual has now become usual," Pry said. "These garden apartments brought in a whole new way of building and looking at apartments." The complex was developed by Lionel Mayell Enterprises, which built similar developments in Phoenix and Long Beach, Pasadena and Santa Barbara, Calif. They started the trend of luxury apartment living, a trend that culminated - then went bust - with the recent condo craze, when units were converted from rentals and residents were encouraged to purchase them, Pry said.

At Villa Catalina, red-brick buildings have wide, sliding glass doors that open to balconies overlooking neatly manicured lawns and citrus trees. Two pools sit beside shuffleboard courts and a putting green. Blooming purple and red flowers spread from residents' balconies. Early homeowners might have been winter residents, more commonly known as "snowbirds," or couples without children, Pry said. Wide-open living rooms were built to connect with dining areas, and kitchens were decked with modern appliances. Villa Catalina, which has 79 units in 20 buildings, is now restricted to residents older than 55. The apartments can sell for as much as $120,000, said Jerry Hancock, an agent with Long Realty who lives at Villa Catalina. The price can get even higher depending on the condition of the apartment, its location within the complex and how well the original features have been preserved. "There seem to be a lot of people who are interested in midcentury modern architecture," Hancock said. And for the most part residents appreciate Villa Catalina's historical significance, Hancock said. If an apartment has been updated, sometimes people moving in will work toward reverting back to the original stylings, he said. "Generally people like the consistency of the original design," Hancock said, "and try to maintain that."

Did you know
The apartments at Villa Catalina range from one to three bedrooms with floor plans that start at 1,000 square feet. But one apartment was custom-built to be 3,000 square feet and includes a maid's quarters.