Tempe Development Thread

[azsunsurfer]

Does anyone have any updates on all of the Tempe driven RFPs?

-There's the one for the old Performing Arts Space (I thought Culdesac was the successful offeror?)
-There's the one off of Mill and 3rd near that historic house
-The Food City on Scottsdale near McKellips
-The Old Big Lots on Baseline (although this one was more recent so I doubt there's been any movement)

Maybe there are other's I am missing??

[combusean]

Originally Posted by RichTempe

They've cleared all the office buildings off the northeast corner of 52nd St. & University which is about 17 acres. Not sure if anything specific is planned yet for the site or if Tempe is just getting it ready for redevelopment.

https://maps.app.goo.gl/b8FGJGYCuEDi2HLd6

Did we discuss this? It's been struggling for a while and its unbelievably bad design made it unlikely for another office tenant.

More on it anyways:

https://azbex.com/planning-development/opus-group-planning-300ksf-industrial-park-near-sky-harbor/

https://www.cbre.com/properties/properti...920-west-university-drive-tempe-az-85281

[Forrester1998]

Originally Posted by azsunsurfer

Does anyone have any updates on all of the Tempe driven RFPs?

-There's the one for the old Performing Arts Space (I thought Culdesac was the successful offeror?)
-There's the one off of Mill and 3rd near that historic house
-The Food City on Scottsdale near McKellips
-The Old Big Lots on Baseline (although this one was more recent so I doubt there's been any movement)

Maybe there are other's I am missing??

You can find information on current and past (aka canceled or awarded) RFPs on the Tempe Procurement Portal.

https://tempe-gov.bonfirehub.com/portal/?tab=pastOpportunities

They dont really differentiate between big and small RFPs here, but you can find the big projects via sorting by "Department," and these big projects are almost always under either "Community Development" or "Economic Development." You can see more info about these (including updates) by clicking on the "View Opportunity" tab.

For the projects you asked about, it looks like the one for the Performing Arts Space (124 E. 6th Street) was awarded to The Hampton Group in January of last year (I think Culdesac was actually one of the unsuccessful solicitors). The one off Mill and 3rd (
401-405 South Maple) looks like it was canceled, I think in this case there actually were bids but none that the city thought were sufficient. Ungortunate, but perhaps there will be another RFP attempt in the future. For the Scottsdale Road/McKellips and the Big Lotz spaces I dont think there were official RFPs yet, I think the most recent news was the city purchasing the land, maybe we will get RFPs sometime soon.

[builder03]

7th Street Construction Progress:













New restaurant in the Moeur House now under construction
https://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/food-drink/glai-baan-owners-to-open-new-tempe-restaurant-22115532/


Riverside neighborhood infill development progress:

SEC of 5th St and Roosevelt


2 different townhome developments at 806 & 800 W University Dr

[Forrester1998]

Very cool to see the downtown progress. Exterior work on Astria looks to be happening very quickly.

Also, appreciate you getting the shots of Riverside infill projects. I've said this before, but IMO the Riverside neighborhood is maybe the most underrated aspect of Tempe's urban development. Between all the development on Farmer + Rio Salado as well as all the infill townhome projects its cool to have a real urban fabric on both sides of Mill instead of just the downtown core, especially cool that there is some for sale stuff. And the Riverside neighborhood definitely isnt done yet. In addition to the last little bit of Farmer Avenue stuff that has been slow walked (First and Farmer, anybody?) there will definitely be more of these infill townhome projects popping up as the remainder of the old single family housing stock gets replaced. Theres a couple pockets of homes that have been maintained well and are probably set for awhile (e.g., the section of 3rd street off Roosevelt has avoided the blight that overtook most of the neighborhood and I believe they actually have cultural resource area zoning now) but even a cursory examination of many of the remaining homes just walking by or looking at Google Maps/street view reveals how many newly vacant lots or how many of the still standing homes are either obviously unoccupied or in disrepair. Fairly or not, this area was considered to be a rough neighborhood by Tempe standards for a long time, Im sure theres plenty of people who still hold this prior but in my experience people's opinions of the neighborbood have changed a lot too.

Did you happen to see if there was any work being done on the NW corner of Roosevelt and 7th streets? I figured work had started on the planned townhomes there but doesn't seem like it since you didnt get a shot of it.

[builder03]

Originally Posted by Forrester1998

Did you happen to see if there was any work being done on the NW corner of Roosevelt and 7th streets? I figured work had started on the planned townhomes there but doesn't seem like it since you didnt get a shot of it.

I pass by there regularly and there has been no work on that particular site.

[builder03]

City council approved the proposal to convert the Tempe Oasis hotel into multifamily at the 6/25 council meeting. Will be nice to see the new food/bev addition with this conversion.

https://www.yourvalley.net/stories/contr...ng-council-shares-safety-concerns,701119

[RichTempe]

Originally Posted by combusean

Did we discuss this? It's been struggling for a while and its unbelievably bad design made it unlikely for another office tenant.

More on it anyways:

https://azbex.com/planning-development/opus-group-planning-300ksf-industrial-park-near-sky-harbor/

https://www.cbre.com/properties/properti...920-west-university-drive-tempe-az-85281

Well, it looks like whatever it is has started construction. Fencing is up all around the cleared land and heavy equipment is on-site. They are digging a large hole at the hard NE corner of University and 52nd St.

[RichTempe]

Last night in downtown Tempe from the Centerpoint garage:

[Mr.RE]

Great view! The 30-story tower on 7th will fill in the skyline nicely.

[builder03]

https://mailchi.mp/tempe/tempe-this-week-july-6-2026?e=ffeb8a2bae

"Demolition of the old Food City shopping center on Apache Blvd. is scheduled for this month, making way for Dorsey Station, a new mixed-use, affordable housing development. Interior work at the site at 1338-1352 E. Apache Blvd. begins this week; demolition will follow starting the week of July 20."

[muertecaza]

Originally Posted by builder03

https://mailchi.mp/tempe/tempe-this-week-july-6-2026?e=ffeb8a2bae

"Demolition of the old Food City shopping center on Apache Blvd. is scheduled for this month, making way for Dorsey Station, a new mixed-use, affordable housing development. Interior work at the site at 1338-1352 E. Apache Blvd. begins this week; demolition will follow starting the week of July 20."

Looks pretty good!

Here's an article on Astria topping out:

https://azbigmedia.com/real-estate/final...-tempe-second-tallest-building-in-tempe/

[azsunsurfer]

Not a big update but it looks like they've updated the Novus leasing information. Not a big change but it looks like Marriott will be the next hotel operator for the site that was previously proposed as office space. If you look on the second page you can see an updated rendering...They've shrunk the height from 12 stories to 7 probably because the new site is a larger lot compared to the original site along Rural (which will now be a 3 story mixed use office/ retail building).

https://images1.loopnet.com/d2/HcRNVP5aQ...NjkkbzUkZzEkdDE3ODQxMzkxNzAkajMzJGwwJGgw

[Forrester1998]

Some notable building permits filed on the Tempe Community Development page recently.

1) New development coming in the Riverside neighborhood. Demo + construction permits filed for Wilson Row, a 6 unit townhome development that will be replacing the now unoccupied single family residence at 351 S. Wilson St: https://epermits.tempe.gov/CitizenAccess...AKI&agencyCode=TEMPE&IsToShowInspection=

2) Building permits filed for Flats at Beck Ave, a planned 2 story 72 unit apartment building at 5454 S. Beck (just south of Baseline). This one fits in fairly well with the rest of the multifamily along this stretch of baseline, although this particular development is sort of sandwiched between some storage facilities. No link for this one yet but you can see the permit application by entering "Beck" for the street name in the Building Permits search: https://epermits.tempe.gov/citizenaccess/Cap/CapHome.aspx?module=Building&TabName=Building

3) Somebody mentioned this, but the demo permits for the Dorsey Station project have been filed, so if they havent started that demo yet it should start soon. At least I thought I had seen that permit but I cant seem to find the link to that one quickly rn.

As an aside, sometime in the past year somebody on the city of Tempe staff took the effort to substantially improve the Community Development page navigation for mobile devices, if one of the members of this page had something to do with that I would like to say thank you for your efforts, it is significantly improved now.

[HubDevil]

As I near retirement - looking to split time between Maine and AZ. Big ASU sports fan so my desire would be to live near the action in Tempe, rather than out at one of these big retirement communities. I am aware of ASU's Mirabella but that trends a bit older, not set up for hosting visitors and pricey. However my keg party days are well behind me - so looking to see if anybody has advice on where a late 50's active couple would be most comfortable and be somewhat car independent.

Thanks !

[combusean]

Anywhere near the action in Tempe is going to be noisy student hell. Good luck trying to enforce a noise complaint.

My friend lives at the Grove on Main in Downtown Mesa and takes the light rail into town and absolutely loves having the best of both worlds. Something low key outside his door and when he wants to party it up that's, what, 15 minutes away by uber

[muertecaza]

Originally Posted by HubDevil

As I near retirement - looking to split time between Maine and AZ. Big ASU sports fan so my desire would be to live near the action in Tempe, rather than out at one of these big retirement communities. I am aware of ASU's Mirabella but that trends a bit older, not set up for hosting visitors and pricey. However my keg party days are well behind me - so looking to see if anybody has advice on where a late 50's active couple would be most comfortable and be somewhat car independent.

Thanks !

Originally Posted by combusean

Anywhere near the action in Tempe is going to be noisy student hell. Good luck trying to enforce a noise complaint.

My friend lives at the Grove on Main in Downtown Mesa and takes the light rail into town and absolutely loves having the best of both worlds. Something low key outside his door and when he wants to party it up that's, what, 15 minutes away by uber

Second Mesa - there are finally some decent options along the light rail, and more under construction. Pretty limited SFH options, but a decent amount of rentals. The Grove is nice. I think Eco Mesa is a good option too. The Chicanos por law Causa building just opened. And I think they just opened the refurbished former assisted living place now called "Forge" Tower could be an option but I don't have experience with it.

If looking closer to Tempe, depending on how car-independent you want to be, Culdesac could be a cool option. There is a community aspect there that seems like it might appeal to you. And it's one of the few Tempe places that are going to be less studen-focused.

[Forrester1998]

New minor PAD amendment filed for the South Tempe Square retail development at the NW corner of Rural and Warner, which is currently under construction: https://epermits.tempe.gov/CitizenAccess...APE&agencyCode=TEMPE&IsToShowInspection=

Not sure what the changes, a minor PAD amendment can be basically anything, but more importantly this prompted me to check Google Maps/street view to see if any progress updates are visible and the answer is yes as the developers (presumably) uploaded this aerial shot of the construction in March: https://maps.app.goo.gl/4HBEoJ3eHVjYanZj6?g_st=ac

This development is supposed to open later this year, its not exactly the definition of an ideal urban retail development obviously but it does highlight one trend in recent retail development, where strip mall type complexes are increasingly being oriented with the actual businesses along the street and the parking lot separated from the arterials by the buildings. TBH I have sort of mixed feelings about this but overall I think I like it. For one it incentivizes the devs to make all sides of the building look presentable (as opposed to having a backside of the building facing the SFRs thats super ugly and plain), there will be somewhat more shade for any pedestrians on the adjacent sidewalks, and patrons of the businesses will have somewhat less traffic noise while there. Maybe the biggest downside is that its maybe less convenient for businesses to accept deliveries when they are open (since the deliveries will happen via the front door as opposed to the standard setup where they can go through a separate back entrance). Primarily a win in my book though.

[Forrester1998]

Another big city of Tempe website update. If you are familiar with the Tempe Development Map website, you will probably be happy to hear they rolled out a big update recently that includes a lot of improvements:

https://experience.arcgis.com/experience...3AdataSource_5-19cd85d6b0d-layer-2%3A101

Among the big improvements:

1) All projects now displayed on one map w/ color coded status instead of having four different maps based on project status.
2) Almost all projects that have made it to at least the meetings stage now include project document links. This was a big shortcoming in the previous iteration as very few projects had links, theres still a couple missing but mostly complete.
3) It seems that all the projects that had previously been latently included on the projects map despite being obviously long dead have been removed (e.g. Hilo at Mill/7th, the proposed hotel at 6th and College, the 100 Mill hotel). There are a couple projects I saw that I was surprised were still there but this change makes me a lot more confident in the projects that ARE still listed.
4) Summary information for the project (Use/Floors/Max Height/SQFT) can be viewed for all projects without going to the project documents, although residential projects dont include unit count. Interestingly, this means there are a couple projects that havent gone to meetings yet (and therefore dont have public facing documents yet) but do have summary info on the website (more below!)**
5) Lastly, if you zoom in enough you can get a satellite view, which (inexplicably IMO) is more recent than Google Maps/Earth views.

**Summary info for notable projects that havent gone to public meetings yet:
1) 1100 Lemon (Student MultiFam replacing Regency at NE corner of Terrace/Lemon): 17 stories/200 ft.
2) Sakara (Student MultiFam replacing Greenhouse APTs on Terrace): 10 stories/125 ft
3) South Pier Lot 1 (Office): 16 stories/309.5 ft

[xymox]

Originally Posted by Forrester1998

3) South Pier Lot 1 (Office): 16 stories/309.5 ft

Would this be the 2nd tallest in Tempe - or do we have another one going up in the downtown core that will be taller than this? Anyhow, that's some unexpected height for that area - will peek up above the residential buildings up on the shore.