I know Tempe officials said many months ago that the rubber was fatigued by the intense western sun, but I just watched a 12 News clip and eye-witnesses heard an "explosion" and had to duck from objects flying in the air.

Personally, if I were a Tempe resident (especially one who paid a premium for one of those condos on the water) I'd be pretty pissed that the city didn't replace the thing when they were supposed to. As it stands right now, maybe this will compound to help downtown Phoenix's real estate market recover faster.

I can't believe that NO ONE has any pictures? What does the lake look like today?

Plinko, its 10:30. Im not even out of bed yet. Youre complainong too early.

There are some pictures on azcentral.com.

I wonder what happened to all of the fish? Free white water rapid ride down to the gulf?

search on twitter. there are some decent ones from ppl on the LRT

Someone had mentioned something about the old Regions location.

It is going to be Canteen - the place that was originally slated to open next to Fate/Nine|05 before the falling out.

Glenn are you sure the name isnt a coincidence?

I guess you are right John. They are slightly different concepts. Seems suspicious to me though.

Here is the write-up about Tempe's Canteen:
http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/bel..._canteen_m.php
http://www.canteentequilabar.com/

I guess it is a different owner..but they sure sound alike.
Writeup about the Phx Canteen - http://www.downtownphoenixjournal.co...ntown-phoenix/

yeah. I've pretty much learned that when you post something, you have one thing right and one thing wrong every time.

Canteen was Matt Carter's concept downtown. He withdrew from the project when Nine|05 failed.

Apparently the coincidence of two places having the same name is unimaginable to you.

:)

I think the coincidence was actually that one was called Canteen & had a tequila bar attached to it called El Ray...and this one is just both concepts mashed together and called Canteen. It's a coincidence like how Armegeddon AND Deep Impact came out about the same time. Seems like someone stole an idea.

Also, it is hard following all of this stuff from Seattle. Gimme a break

I have two pictures. Let's see if I can get them up here.

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_c773xDs_9uU/TE...-21-120141.jpg

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_c773xDs_9uU/TE...-21-121147.jpg

^ Maybe Tempe will need to change their name to "Skeeter Flats." Will need to do so if they don't get the insects under control.

--don

My initial reaction was that this isn't as bad as it looks. Tempe was already planning on replacing the dams, already has a lot of the parts on hand, and Bridgestone has already agreed to pay a substantial portion of that cost due to the warranty issues. Another major cost that I haven't really seen talked about though is all the private equipment that has almost certainly been damaged by this. All those boats in the marina and the floating docks around the lake probably sustained a fair amount of damage, and the city of Tempe is probably going to be liable for a lot of that damage.

From the looks of the docks that I saw, they all seemed to be ok. The lake wasn't that deep so they are just resting on the wall and ground.

It's obvious that they'll fill lake back up but when?

According to the City Council member on NPR this morning, all of the boats are fine.

There was a story in the republic say they would have it ready by the Iron Man in November. Looks like they are going to replace all the bladders now that there is no water to worry about. It said they are going to release water from Roosevelt to fill it back up.

I am glad that they will be filling the lake back up in Nov. It is nice that Bridgestone will help pay for this. At the same time who in their right minds would have thought that a black rubber inflatable device would have lasted 20-25 years in the first place. Once the new rubber has been installed I believe the city needs to look for a better long term solution. I think this is what happens when you try to do something on the cheap - you end up paying more in the end anyways. They are LUCKY noone was hurt. The lawsuit would have costed more than the dam. With that being said I hope to see water in there soon and that mosquitos don't breed in the mean time...

If I remember correctly there was originally going to be a "waterfall" effect of water poring over the damn then being recirculated back to the lake. There was some engineering problem that prevented this. If water was covering the damn it would have protected the rubber from the sun.

Yes, that was how the lifespan could reach 30 years. The east side is suppose to be totally find because it gets a lot of runoff so the dams get submerged more often meanwhile the west side only gets submerged when the lake releases water which is probably only twice a year.

Tempe duck spelled it damn, lol.

Oh ok, who ever though of this idea of black rubber dams in Phoenix must also of thought of putting paper houses here. Once the sun burns it all hell breaks loose.

I wasn't able to make it near the dam, but I got a couple pictures from further up the lake this afternoon.

http://img25.imageshack.us/img25/9732/photo4xrm.jpg
http://img215.imageshack.us/img215/5633/photo2vc.jpg

I think painting the rubber white would have helped to protect the black rubber from the harsh sun and elements.

Now pay me $10,000 for my consultation fee. LOL.

--don

A lot of years they release water in August/September because of the monsoon. Any idea how they handle the runoff while they're rebuilding the dams? Just channel it through a section they're not working on, and hope there isn't too much water?

What about some sort of shade structure over the rubber dams?

What about a dam made from concrete? Would that make too much sense? The only maintenance would be the moving gates, and they could produce a small amount of power, to power all the lake's amanities.

What about a beaver dam?

I gotta imagine that they've considered this and the cost of even a primitive concrete dam is exponentially more expensive than the rubber bladders which need to be periodically replaced. Also, the pedestrian bridge that is supposed to be constructed over the dam later this year (or next) will provide additional shade - and perhaps a sprinkler system that actually works - to keep the dams wet.

With the rubber dam you would think they would have had some redudancy built.

Just drove by the dam on the Priest bridge. It looks like they have deflated the other 3 bladders.

I'm pretty sure the decision to go with rubber dams has more to do with the potential for runoff than cost. The ability to deflate the dams during times of heavy river flow is important. It takes more than "a primitive concrete dam" to channel the amount of water that the salt needs to be prepared to handle during a 1,000 year flood.

Regardless of construction material, you can't build a dam without flow control; every concrete dam has a control system to manage flooding both upstream and downstream. That's just part of the whole point of building a dam. By requiring only a 'primitive' system, I was referring to the relatively small size of the salt river at the current dam site as opposed to the dams upstream that are needed to create larger reservoirs. In that sense, any dam created for Tempe Town Lake would be less-intensive and sophisticated than ones holding larger amounts of water. The rubber dams are a good compromise, because they seem to manage flow well at low cost, they obviously just require more frequent replacement and/or maintenance. Essentially, I think we both agree.

Heh, cool. Well, less cool if you're a fish, I'm sure the alligator's happy though.

http://www.azcentral.com/community/t...d-dam0723.html

Tempe gets four new businesses on Mill Avenue
by Dianna M. Náñez - Jul. 27, 2010 10:46 AM
The Arizona Republic

The old saying, "When one door closes, another opens," could become a mantra for downtown Tempe.

At least four independently-owned businesses are scheduled to open next month in the Mill Avenue District, taking over spaces where other businesses couldn't survive.

Downtown Tempe stakeholders have long pushed for more independent businesses after watching a slew of chain stores close in the past decade.

Nancy Hormann, president of Downtown Tempe Community Inc., which manages downtown for area landowners, hopes Valley residents will support the new business ventures of people living in their community.

Kanpai Sushi restaurant is opening at Seventh Street and Mill Avenue where Uno Chicago Grill closed late last year after a long run serving deep-dish pizza. Canteen Modern Tequila Bar will try to make a go of it at Sixth Street and Mill,another high-profile downtown corner where Region's Bistro & Bar opened and closed twice in just over a year.

The tequila bar is backed by Julian Wright, who has had success on Mill with La Bocca, a restaurant and wine bar that draws regulars for cocktails, brick-oven pizzas and bruschetta.

Stan's Metro Deli is making a comeback downtown after closing about a decade ago. The popular traditional Jewish deli first closed in 1990 after a kitchen grease fire destroyed its building. The deli reopened in downtown Tempe, only to close in the late 1990s shortly after the business was sold.

Stan's is expected to open in August with the original owners at the southwestern corner of Fourth Street and Mill, in a space where two Vietnamese restaurants closed in the past couple of years.

Qiana Shaw and Roy Wilson are finally debuting Poppa Maize, a gourmet popcorn shop, next to MADCAP Theater just west of Mill and Seventh Street.

Shaw, a Youngtown resident, and Wilson, a Phoenix resident, had such success with their popcorn shop in north Phoenix that many customers lobbied for a Southeast Valley location.

But opening on Mill was only a dream for the two friends until the Downtown Tempe Community sponsored a free-rent-on-Mill-Avenue contest last year. The contest accepted proposals from a host of independent entrepreneurs hoping to win one year of free rent. Poppa Maize was selected to open at DMB Associate's Centerpoint on Mill complex, which stretches from University Drive to Sixth Street along Mill, in a space formerly occupied by a Sportsfan sports apparel store.

Winning the contest gave Shaw and Wilson the financial boost they needed to afford the expansion.

"We're really excited . . . we're going to bring 26 of the most unusual flavors of popcorn to downtown Tempe. Like our Phoenix store, we plan to make it a fun place to be," she said.

Poppa Maize sells flavors as exotic as cake batter, white chocolate cherry and blueberries and wings and ranch, in addition to more traditional fare like candy bar caramel and cheesy chipotle. Sodas in unusual flavors will be added to the Tempe menu.

Shaw invites Southeast Valley residents to visit the shop and propose their own crazy popcorn concoctions. "Cookies and cream was actually a customer request for our Phoenix store. It was so popular we kept it on our menu," Shaw said.

Hormann says Mill Avenue District restaurants seeing success have focused on service, quality food and making customers feel like they are among friends.

"You have to create that familiarity downtown . . . become a place where people know you when you walk in the door and maintain that community friendliness," she said.

Also helping businesses is a campaign to market the availability of free or affordable parking downtown, which was promoted after many customers complained about paying for parking to shop or eat on Mill.

Hormann highlighted a paved lot at Fifth Street and Farmer Avenue that offers free parking except during major events. A lot with 267 spaces at Maple Avenue and Fifth Street is free for the first hour and the City Hall parking garage at Fifth Street and Forest Avenue offers free covered parking for the first hour and charges nothing after 6 p.m. and on the weekends.

Here's some good news...

http://phoenix.bizjournals.com/phoen...l?surround=lfn

Limelight Networks moves to downtown Tempe


Limelight Networks, an online content delivery network based in Tempe, announced today it will be the first tenant in the Tempe Gateway building owned by Seattle-based Vulcan Real Estate.

Limelight, founded in 2001, is leasing 65,000 square feet of Class A office space spread over two stories of the eight story, 260,000-square-foot building in downtown Tempe. The new office will become home to 200 Tempe employees in early 2011. The lease is valid for eight years with renewable options. Limelight officials declined to name the price they paid for the space.

Limelight’s headquarters, which have always been located in Tempe, were previously spread across five separate offices and totaled about 35,000 square feet in space. Limelight Vice President of Marketing Paul Alfieri said that although the company is consolidating into one building, they are actually doubling their space - which, he said, was necessary as the company has grown in the last few years.

“In nine years we have gone from startup business to global company, and have had to hire a significant amount of employees in that time,” Alfieri said. “We simply needed more space.”

Limelight has 600 worldwide employees today, compared to about 250 employees just two years ago, with the highest number of employees in Tempe. Alfieri said Limelight plans to hire more people to work in the new office, although a specific number has not yet been determined.

The office, which was purchased by Vulcan in June of this year, was the real estate company’s first purchase outside of Seattle.

“Today’s news represents an exciting milestone not only for our Tempe Gateway building but also for the downtown Tempe area as a whole. Tempe Gateway will represent a world-class headquarters for one of Tempe’s most innovative and fastest-growing homegrown companies,” said Ada Healey, vice president of real estate at Vulcan Inc., in a prepared statement.

Very good news. Hopefully that places fills up quickly and we get some ground floor retail.

Great news. Not only a new tenant dt, but doubling their office space, so it's not just shifting business from 1 part of Tempe to another part, but actually growing.

Meanwhile Phoenix plants a couple of new trees at the main bus station and calls it a day. :brickwall:

Anyone know what happened to Pier 101/Southbank? The project just rolled over and died once they built the infrastructure and dug out all the building footprints for construction. Even the time line on their website stops after "completion of linear park" in '09: http://southbanktempe.com

Here's a new picture from the ITSB site.
http://img69.imageshack.us/img69/5756/itsb2.jpg

and crane
http://img299.imageshack.us/img299/1777/itsbcrane.jpg


I didn't notice the boom crane in the background before, but I would guess that it's for the rooftop solar panels on the Noble Library.

http://www.azcentral.com/community/t...t-bid0828.html

Centerpoint winning bid expected within the week

A winning bid will be selected on the Centerpoint Condominiums in downtown Tempe within the week, according Mark Winkleman, chief operating officer for ML Holdings.

ML Holdings, successor to Mortgages Ltd., began taking offers on the condos a couple of months ago after the two towers failed to sell at a foreclosure auction.


Winkleman told The Arizona Republic on Tuesdaythat ML Holdings was reviewing 10 bids, which were narrowed from more than 300 original offers.

"Within the next few days we expect to accept one of the offers," he said. "It's a big deal. We're excited."

The 10 interested buyers included "qualified real-estate investors from around the country," he said.

Development of the Tempe condos and several other major Valley real-estate projects funded by Mortgages Ltd., which was Arizona's largest private real-estate lender, stalled after the lender was forced into a high-profile 2008 bankruptcy. The Tempe condo's 22-story tower is nearly complete, while extensive work is needed on the project's 30-story tower. The towers have 375 residential units.

Proceeds from the Centerpoint sale will go to pay back the development's investors. CB Richard Ellis was marketing the condo project.

Seeing the project complete would be a major boost for downtown Tempe, which has struggled in the economic downturn.

Many downtown business owners had hung their hopes on the sales boost Tempe officials had said would come from having hundreds of residents living in luxury condos off of Mill Avenue. But those hopes died when the half-finished building turned into an eyesore.



Read more: http://www.azcentral.com/community/t...#ixzz0xg0LTUh8

Finally some good news....

Tempe Centerpoint condos purchased by Cleveland company


Downtown Tempe business owners are celebrating this afternoon's announcement that Centerpoint Condominiums has been purchased by the Zaremba Group, a national real estate company based in Cleveland with an office in Scottsdale.

The condos sold for $30 million. They were marketed for sale after failing to sell at a foreclosure auction in April. ML Managers LLC., successor to Mortgages Ltd., had originally loaned the condo's developers, Tempe Land CO., about $135 million to build the towers.


"This is the largest loan that Mortgages Ltd. made and it's our largest asset," said Mark Winkleman, chief operating officer of Managers LLC. "It's important to the investors of Mortgages Ltd. that it be sold."

He added that the sale was the result of "a very intense marketing process that lasted several months. We had initial interest from over 300 potential buyers throughout the United States, Canada and England. Even though the process is substantially less than the investors had invested in it, we are confident that this is the highest amount we could have got and best buyer for this project."

The sale is subject to approval from the bankruptcy court and a vote by investors. Zaremba owns Barolo Place, a condominium project in Scottsdale and apartments in Mesa and Peoria.

Seeing the project complete would be a major boost for downtown Tempe, which has struggled in the economic downturn.

Many downtown business owners had hung their hopes on the sales boost Tempe officials had said would come from having hundreds of residents living in luxury condos off of Mill Avenue. But those hopes died when the buildings remained empty and began looking tattered.Development of the Tempe condos and several other major Valley real-estate projects funded by Mortgages Ltd., which was Arizona's largest private real-estate lender, stalled after the lender was forced into a high-profile 2008 bankruptcy.

The Tempe condo's 22-story tower is nearly complete, while extensive work is needed on the project's 30-story tower. The towers have 375 residential units.

Proceeds from the Centerpoint sale will go to pay back the development's investors. CB Richard Ellis was marketing the condo project.


Centerpoint Condominiums timeline

July 2005: Tempe marked groundbreaking for developer Avenue Communities' first two of four proposed 22-story towers near Mill Avenue and Sixth Street. City officials said the luxury project signaled the transition to the kind of downtown Tempe had long envisioned. The four towers on the 5 acres were to include 700 residential units, retail, a boutique grocery store, a penthouse level with a pool, private theaters, concierge service and wine lounge. The units' pricing was expected to start at about $250,000. City officials said the influx of condo dwellers would move downtown Tempe toward the kind of "24-hour life" that would boost area businesses' customer base.

November 2005: Tempe City Council approves Avenue Communities' request for a height change that would make Centerpoint the tallest building in the city. The vote was 5-2 in favor of the height change. Members Ben Arredondo and Len Copple voted against the approval. Mayor Hugh Hallman favored the added height, saying the towers would fix the "fundamental flaw downtown" by integrating housing into the mix that is dominated by bars and restaurants. The developers said the extra floors were needed because the cost of construction had increased 80 percent in the preceding 18 months.

Ken Losch of Avenue Communities called the height-addition process "painful" but said it will be worth it in the end. "We see Tempe becoming a world-class environment," he said. "It'll be on par with Miami's South Beach in the next 10 years. The approval paved the way for three of the four condo towers to be built to 30 stories, which would soar 39 feet over Sun Devil Stadium, the highest man-made Tempe structure at the time. Prior to the council approval the towers were approved 22 stories and 15 stories.

February 2006: Attorneys for Phoenix question Centerpoint's height, saying it would affect safety of planes from Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.

Oct. 2006: Federal Aviation Administration gives go-ahead for Centerpoint's 30-story tower.

June 2007: Centerpoint finishes roof on its first 22-story tower. The building was the tallest in Tempe at 258 feet. The other three towers have approval from the city to reach 30 stories.

June 2008: Mortgages Ltd., the state's largest private commercial real-estate lender, files for bankruptcy following the suicide of its CEO. Centerpoint, among the slew of high-profile Valley developments backed by the lender, is in jeopardy. In the months to come, stakeholders enter extensive legal negotiations.

December 2008: Developers for Centerpoint had worked to get court approval for a second financier to back project. That effort did not result in financing and developer filed bankruptcy. Second 30-story tower is about half finished.

February 2009: City officials and Ken Losch disagree over information Losch had provided Tempe on efforts to find financing for condos.

January: Towers in foreclosure with auction set for April.

April: Towers fail to sell at auction and M.L. Manager LLC, formerly Mortgages Ltd., readies to market towers for sale. Area merchants complain that towers are rundown, tarp covering windows is falling off and transients are entering towers for shelter.

September: M.L. Manager official announces buyer, making way for the condos to be completed.



Read more: http://www.azcentral.com/community/t...#ixzz0yQwt4O2l

The article on Business Journal had a bit more info, including that they will be now for rent instead of for purchase and marketed to students and upper classmen.

http://phoenix.bizjournals.com/phoen...0/daily51.html

This can turn very bad really quick. I hope this does not turn into another Vue or Block 1949, two other high-end luxury rental units. Nothing but constant partying, holes in the wall, noise complaints, etc.

I hope they keep a tight leash on this place and try to price out most under grads and hopefully it is more along the lines of Grigio.

Who's complaining about noise at the Vue? The Taco Bell next door?

Look at it this way. There are about 5-6 of these complexes (including Vue and Block 1949) that are shamelessly marketed towards the party crowd. Every student I know that lives in one of them enjoy living there, and those that seek a quite place to live simply never consider moving into these places in the first place.

If you think these housing complexes are creating some class of innocent students who are being denied an education, or if you think a hole in the drywall isn't a routine job for most apartment custodians, you're fooling yourself.

Parties have gotten out of control. There is a reason that places vacancy has spiked over the school year and that is because upperclassmen and graduate students don't want to be around constant partying. I for one want Centerpoint to be successful but if it tries to become another Vue, it is going to crash and burn.

Hallways looks like a warzone. At hole in the wall every half a foot is out of control. Cops getting called nightly due to stupid people and noise complaints. Underaged drunks running around everywhere.

I know partying is going to happened and I'll be the first one there cheering you on while you pull a handle of vodka. But I have been to enough ASU parties (final year at ASU) to know that if Centerpoint markets too hard to be another Vue, Vista or Block (class A rental with very little control), there will be very few tenants and it will be a pretty big failure.

Do you think Yuppies and Adults want to live in this kind of environment? Heck most people over 21 don't want to live in this environment.