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Old Posted Jun 26, 2007, 5:03 PM
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Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: Chandler, AZ
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TOD Close to Reality in Mesa

Here is a follow-up to this post back in April:

Quote:
Originally Posted by vertex View Post
Yay, TOD arrives in Mesa.

Mesa project plans spurred by light rail

Jim Walsh
The Arizona Republic
Apr. 18, 2007 12:00 AM
MESA - The city's past and future are merging in the first development planned to take advantage of Metro light-rail service.

Light-rail housing/retail project moves forward

Jim Walsh
The Arizona Republic
Jun. 26, 2007 08:09 AM

The art of compromise goes a long way in politics and Planning and Zoning, with a few key changes moving Mesa's first light rail-oriented project closer to approval.

The Mesa Planning and Zoning Board recommended approval of West Main Street Station, only six weeks after voting to reject it, after developer Dan Randall agreed to a series of changes that made the development somewhat more palatable to nearby residents.

Designed to capitalize on the Metro light rail line, the project's success may prove pivotal in the redevelopment of West Main Street. It combines 55 townhouses with 13 shops at 1350 W. Main St., the site of a former automobile dealership and, later, Tracker Marine, a boat dealership.

A zoning change, to allow higher density residential development, is scheduled to go before the Mesa City Council on July 9. The development is not oriented toward light rail alone because it still offers parking for residents and visitors.

"It brings a nice breath of fresh air to an otherwise distressed part of Main Street," said Rich Adams, the planning board's chairman, who voted against the proposal June 2. "I think it would have sent the wrong signal" to recommend the council reject it again.

Mesa also hopes to capitalize on its one mile of light rail, which ends at Main and Sycamore, across from the East Valley Institute of Technology. A downtown extension to the Arizona Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints already is in the planning stages. The rail line is scheduled to open in December 2008.

City officials and the Mesa Grande Community Alliance are hoping light rail transforms the area from urban decay to urban chic, with high-destiny residential housing built for commuters looking to ride the line to work, Arizona State University or even downtown Phoenix attractions such as Chase Field and US Airways Arena.

"Any development we get in there would spark interest," said John Wesley, Mesa's Planning and Zoning director.

Adams said the key factor in winning the planning board's endorsement was changing the townhouses from an east-west orientation along Main Street to a north-south orientation. The change eliminates the possibility of townhouse residents looking down into the yards of Pepper Place neighbors.

Two-story townhouses are planned along with the three-story "live-work units," designed for professionals to live and work at the same location. In addition, a driveway onto Rogers Street was eliminated to reduce fears of residents about increased traffic.

Although some neighbors still oppose the abandonment of Standage, "no one really made a good argument on how that would impact them," Adams said. "In an overall context, it looked like the neighborhood in general was in favor."

If approved by the council, architect Fred Woods said West Main Station Village would become a guinea pig, with developers watching to see if it is successful before they redevelop other properties.

"If it sells like we're hoping it will, a lot of developments like this will come," Woods said. "If it works well, we're geniuses. If doesn't, people will say, 'look at your neighborhood.' "


>> Still looking for renderings. If you know of any, feel free to post them.
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