Tempe Development Thread

[ciweiss]

http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/local/tempe/article_38e4c6a6-9130-11df-9766-001cc4c002e0.html

Developer sells Hayden Ferry Lakeside plot

The Hayden Ferry Lakeside property has been sold, in what is the third major land transaction to take place recently in Tempe’s Mill Avenue District.

The deal came just after the University Square block at University Drive and Myrtle Avenue changed hands, and weeks after Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen snapped up an eight-story office building.

The trio of sales coincides with an increase in leasing downtown office space and shops, said Sheri Wakefield-Saenz, the city’s community development manager.

“I would say it’s a very good indicator that we’re well on our way to some recovery in Tempe,” Wakefield-Saenz said.

The Hayden Ferry Lakeside property spans the south side of Tempe Town Lake, from Mill Avenue to Rural Road. It was sold by its original developer, SunCor, to Scottsdale-based Sunbelt Holdings. The deal included several Valley developments owned by SunCor, which decided to sell many of its properties because of the real estate slump. The price was not disclosed.

Sunbelt wanted Hayden Ferry Lakeside for its potential when the economy recovers, president and CEO John Graham said.

“We bought it because we think it’s a very key location and has a very good future,” he said.

The deal includes 16 acres and an option to develop 15 acres now owned by Arizona State University. Sunbelt also bought the 2,500-space parking garage and 25,000 square feet of retail space attached to that structure. The sale did not include the west end of the project, where SunCor built two office towers and two condo buildings.

Sunbelt will look to SunCor’s master plan for a hotel and more condo and office towers before considering any alterations, Graham said. The company will clean up the vacant land for now, but any major work will wait until demand returns.

“In light of the commercial market, it is at least a few years away,” Graham said.

Another significant sale is the University Square property, a full block on University Drive where 3W Companies won approval for a 300-foot-tall cluster of offices, condos and a hotel. Tuscon-based Sundt Construction paid $10.13 million for the site of slightly more than three acres.

The block was once full of businesses, but 3W tore down all but one low-slung slump block building in preparation for construction. The plans stalled at the front end of the real estate crash.

Sundt plans to demolish the sole building and turn the block into a parking lot, Wakefield-Saenz said.

“Their immediate intent is to clean up the site and reduce some of the visual blight that’s there now,” she said.

Sundt plans to have the parking lot ready when the fall semester begins in August. The company will evaluate development plans as the economy recovers, Wakefield-Saenz said.

The other major downtown transaction involved Seattle-based Vulcan Real Estate buying the eight-story Tempe Gateway tower at Mill and Third Street. Microsoft’s Allen paid $35 million and is actively trying to lease a building that’s sat idle since Phoenix-based Opus completed the tower a year ago. Opus filed for bankruptcy protection at the time. No leases have been announced since the June sale.

However, Tempe has seen a fairly active interest in leasing downtown properties since about May, Wakefield-Saenz said.

“It’s another good step in the recovery,” she said.

[ciweiss]

http://www.azcentral.com/business/reales...15/20100715tempe-hotel-projects0716.html

Plans for downtown Tempe Hotels sidetracked by the economy


Brad Hultquist says he has watched the Arches Plaza in downtown Tempe, which used to house his salon, slowly "decay."

In 2006, the Tempe City Council approved plans to transform the 1960s-era brick buildings into University Square, a $500 million megaplex of development that would span a city block near University Drive and Forest Avenue. Developer Tony Wall's project was to include a high-rise Westin hotel, office and retail space and condominiums.


Hultquist and Dave Cheren, the owner of neighboring Arches business Dave's Dog House, fought to stay but were forced to move out in 2008 to make way for the swanky development.

Today, the Arches lot is littered with trash and weeds. The west windows of the dilapidated building are shuttered with particle board, and the east window where Hultquist's Grooming Humans Hair Studio once stood, is still plastered with copies of his goodbye message.

"We will have to leave our beloved little spot in the Arches. Since August . . . 1988, my staff and I have tried to provide the friendliest service," he wrote.

Hultquist moved his studio into a space across the street. Each day he waited for construction on University Square to launch, hoping to be one of the first stores to move back into a retail space.

But the project went into foreclosure, and the building slowly deteriorated. It was recently purchased by Sundt Companies for a bargain $10.13 million.

"Of course it makes you sad, but we've been there watching it decay for so long. You become kind of numb to it," Hultquist said. "But if you're a visitor who came back to see what it's become, you would be devastated."

University Square was one of a host of hotel projects proposed in the past decade in downtown Tempe and around Town Lake. The tourism boost was supposed to help reinvigorate the Mill Avenue District with hundreds of consumers.

"At one point we had about 12 different (proposed) hotel (developments)," said Sheri Wakefield-Saenz, Tempe's Community Development manager. "In early to mid 2000s . . . Tempe was really that place where the industry leaders were looking to expand. . . . There was clamoring demand."

As proposals stacked up, the council waived height requirements for high-rise hotel developments, and developers began clearing out small businesses. The city drew criticism for flooding the market with too many hotel developments.

But a 2006 study commissioned by Tempe backed the city's goals of wooing luxury hotels and a major hotel with enough conference space to attract large conventions.

The study noted Tempe's hotel market was underbuilt. The city had some of the highest hotel-occupancy rates in the state. There was more demand than the 47 hotels and motels in Tempe could handle. About 80 percent of the city's hotel-room rates were under $150 a night, according to the study, which meant Tempe could benefit from tapping the luxury market.

At the time of the study, Tempe officials were convinced that three hotel projects in downtown Tempe and at Town Lake were just around the corner. Hayden Ferry Lakeside, Rio East and an expansion of Tempe Mission Palms would help meet the demand.

The Hayden Ferry Lakeside project was supposed to include a hotel on the south bank of Town Lake. Mission Palms' expansion would have increased the number of rooms by more than 60 percent. Plans at Rio East, which was part of the Pier 202 project near the eastern part of Town Lake, included an upscale hotel.

None of those projects materialized.

The only hotel that was built near downtown Tempe was Aloft, which opened in 2009 on the north shore of Town Lake.

But Wakefield-Saenz remains certain that when the economy rebounds in a few years, Tempe will see construction of a luxury hotel and larger hotel with conference space.

"The demand . . . will still be there," she said.

Stephanie Nowack, president of the Tempe Convention and Visitors Bureau, agrees.

She points to several groups that wanted to host their conventions in Tempe but the existing hotels could not accommodate the size of the group.

David Rosenbaum, director of sales and marketing for Fiesta Resort Conference Center near Broadway and Priest Drive, said the resort increased its conference space two years ago and has seen a major boost in its group bookings.

"We've done great with groups of 200 to 400," he said. "I could see the potential for a large conference center in Tempe capturing the major conventions."

But some hotel-industry analysts think the economy is so bad that construction of new hotels is unlikely in the Valley for at least the next few years.

John Pappas, a principal owner and Valley lodging analyst with Scottsdale-based SCS Advisors, won't even predict when the Valley will see a new hotel built. Arizona's hotel industry was doubly hit because of the recent passage of a tough immigration-enforcement law, he said.

[SunDevil]

Originally Posted by ciweiss

Sundt plans to demolish the sole building and turn the block into a parking lot, Wakefield-Saenz said.

“Their immediate intent is to clean up the site and reduce some of the visual blight that’s there now,” she said.

Sundt plans to have the parking lot ready when the fall semester begins in August. The company will evaluate development plans as the economy recovers, Wakefield-Saenz said.

Immediate and only plans. More parking is not needed around campus, there is light rail, the orbit, the flash (for getting around campus), buses, and tons of bike lanes/paths and bike racks. It's already built for dense living conditions, a parking lot is an insult.

[mwadswor]

Originally Posted by SunDevil

Immediate and only plans. More parking is not needed around campus, there is light rail, the orbit, the flash (for getting around campus), buses, and tons of bike lanes/paths and bike racks. It's already built for dense living conditions, a parking lot is an insult.

It's better than a dirt lot, and it may help accessibility of Mill. Us on this board may think Mill is accessible via light rail and the orbit (which it is), but parking is pretty limited in the area, and as a result a lot of people with cars are skipping Mill and heading to Tempe Marketplace. Yes, any actual structure would be better, but a parking lot isn't nothing, and it's a sign that they don't want to invest in any sort of structure because they want to retain the option of putting something substantial there when the economy recovers.

This is a good thing in the long-term. It could be worse, they could put another Jack in the Box or Taco Bell drive through there.

[williard]

This story is, of course, very discouraging to me, who lost my $81,000 deposit on Centerpoint.

--Mike Williard

http://www.azcentral.com/business/reales...16tempe-condo-crash-no-recovery0717.html

Experts say condominium development in downtown Tempe, which came to an abrupt halt when the recession began, will likely be on hold for the foreseeable future.

The beginning of the recession halted many planned or in-progress condo and mixed-use developments, including the Onyx tower, the South Bank, University Square, The Armory, Centerpoint and 100 Mill Avenue.

Will Daly, a real-estate agent specializing in condo sales, said those projects are unlikely to ever be completed as originally proposed.

New high-rise condo projects could possibly be built somewhere down the road, but don't expect them anytime soon, he said.

"High-rise condominiums are among the most expensive type of housing to build," he said. "As we come out (of the recession), I think investors - whether they be developers, lenders, bankers - are going to be cautious."

Even before that happens, Daly said, real-estate agents will have to find a way to get rid of the surplus of vacant units in Tempe. For example, the 104-unit Bridgeview community has about 50 vacancies. The Centerpoint towers, which are for sale, have about 380 units, which may have to be converted to hotel or office space, he said.

Most of those communities came at the tail end of a rush to develop condos over the last half of the decade. Downtown Tempe was seen by developers as a desirable market for condos because of its relative density and vibrant nearby shopping. The city welcomed the developments, which fit into its overall plan for high-density residential construction in the downtown area, according to deputy development services manager Lisa Collins.

Demand shot up, Daly said, as low interest rates and lax mortgage underwriting guidelines lured people into investing in condominiums. Developers made extravagant plans, bolstered by the high demand.

But when the market crashed, demand for condominiums bottomed out. Projects in the planning stages were put on hold and many of the newly-built projects stayed vacant.

"You had all sorts of really wonderful projects proposed . . . and a few of them got built," Daly said. "But when the house of cards collapsed, some developers got cut short."

Jay Butler, an associate professor at ASU's W.P. Carey School of Business, said the idea of attempting to transform the area from a college-student hangout to an enclave for wealthy urban professionals was flawed to begin with.

"The couple of people I know who live in central Tempe are connected to ASU," Butler said. "The idea that suddenly we're going to be attract this different group of people to come was somewhat, in my mind, unrealistic."

Tom Tokoph, a consultant for Tempe-based Urban Realty, acknowledges the market spun out of control - he recalls seeing asking prices for some properties in Hayden Ferry Lakeside in the high 800s. After foreclosure, banks sold some of those properties for about $200,000, he said.

But Tokoph believes the overall vision most developers had for the area is sound. Eventually, he said, the allure of Tempe will bring demand back up and there will be more condo development.

That is a prediction Stephen Huey and Patrick Cantelme, who share a condo in the Northshore community, are banking on. They purchased the unit, once valued at $300,000, for $165,000 in March. They plan to live in the unit for the next two to three years, then sell it for a profit - Huey said he expects the value to be more than $200,000 by that time.

"The location is a big draw," he said. "There's going to be a lot of demand in a couple of years."

[Jsmscaleros]

I'd love to see Centerpoint purchased and converted into a hotel. This would be a more feasible short-term plan as the demand for luxury condos is currently nonexistent. It would also be a great long-term investment, especially if much of the lower-level retail and common space was converted into convention space and ballrooms. Centerpoint could possibly attract a lot of expo and convention business this way - that is, the ones that are still willing to come to Arizona.

[combusean]

Its too tall for efficient use of a hotel, and the floorplates and ceilings wouldnt work for office. The fact that Daly suggested office makes me wonder how he had the lead in to the story...

I guess that's reporting these days. Call up two contacts, drive over there and hang out long enough till you interview somebody, then report what everyone already knows and question nothing.

[SunDevil]

seems to me that the easiest thing to do is to finish Centerpoint, but not as condos, as apartments. If a good enough deal is made for the purchase and with the cost of materials still depressed versus a few years ago the cost of finishing them wouldn't be so high, thus apartments would be feasible, right?

[Tempe_Duck]

one of the west end damns at Tempe Town Lake just blew. Water is freely flowing down stream. Currently it is about 6ft below normal water level.

Tempe Town Lake dam bursts

23 comments by Karina Bland - Jul. 20, 2010 10:47 PM
The Arizona Republic

A section of the inflatable dam containing Tempe Town Lake exploded about 10 p.m. Tuesday, sending a wall of water into the Salt River bed.

The river filled as far as the eye could see within seconds, witnesses reported.

Warning sirens started wailing within minutes, and officers rushed along the riverbed to try to warn anyone of the approaching flood.

There was no immediate word of any casualties or injuries.

Preston Swan, 24, of Tempe, witnessed the dam's collapse.

"It sounded like a big explosion," he said.

He and some friends were riding bikes in the area when section of the recreational lake's western dam erupted. It collapsed immediately and water instantly surged into the riverbed.

The waves subsided somewhat as the lake continued draining.

Maureen Howell, 24, of Tempe, said she called 911 and that police arrived almost immediately.

"We stuck around because we thought this was a once in a lifetime event," she said.

Philip Kanemeyer, 23, of Tempe said the sound of the explosion was so loud that "I actually ducked because I saw pieces flying 10 feet into the air."

"It just flooded over in seconds," he said. "It was a high wall of water."

Lukas Henderson, 13, of Tempe was biking on the north side of the lake with his sister and dad.

"All of a sudden, we heard this ka-boom and the ground started shaking," he said.

Six to eight-foot waves poured out.

"It was like, whoosh, and the lake started emptying," he said "It was amazing."

Witnesses said small animals poured up the river's banks to escape the floowaters.

Check back later on azcentral for updates.



Read more: http://www.azcentral.com/community/tempe...00720tempelake0720-ON.html#ixzz0uINT9TFL

[Vicelord John]

It was crazy to watch the flow come down river. It was like a flash flood.

[Leo the Dog]

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.

[glynnjamin]

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.

[mwadswor]

Tempe Town Lake dam bursts
by Karina Bland and William Hermann
Jul. 20, 2010 06:51 AM


Tempe Town Lake overnight became a bog after one of the four inflatable bladders at the west end of the lake exploded around 9:44 p.m., sending a wall of water into the Salt River bed.

On Wednesday morning swampy patches of earth could be seen in many parts of the lake bed, with standing water in the center.

Tempe spokeswoman Kris Baxter estimated that at least three-quarters of the about 1 billion gallons of water had drained overnight. Officials say the dam breach left some areas of the lake with three feet of water or less; the average lake depth is about 16 feet.

Tempe officials have scheduled a 10 a.m. press conference to provide details.

Tempe City Councilman Corey D. Woods said the city had been planning to replace the four rubber bladders at both ends of the lake starting last spring. However, he said, heavy rains and subsequent releases into the Salt River prevented that work from getting started on time.

"We already have two bladders in hand and were prepared to do the earthwork but couldn't," Woods said. Water was being released into the river all spring, he said.

Tempe Fire spokesman Mike Reichling said, "Fortunately, we were prepared for this exact circumstance. Within the last few months we had a drill for what we would do if this happened.

Reichling said fire officials got a call within a minute after the bladder burst and notified emergency crews throughout the Valley. Helicopters flew the length of the Salt River bed to make sure no one was in the water's path.

Reichling said eyewitnesses told officials that when the bladder exploded, it sounded like a giant balloon popping, and said water immediately began flowing into the river bed out of the lake.

The river filled as far as the eye could see within seconds, witnesses reported.

Warning sirens started wailing within minutes, and officers rushed along the riverbed to try to warn anyone of the approaching flood.

In April 2009, Tempe officials said they intended to ignore a safety recommendation from the makers of Town Lake's rubber dams because sufficient safeguards already were in place to prevent the dams from deflating.

Tempe Mayor Hugh Hallman rushed to the scene Tuesday and said authorities didn't yet know why the dam failed. The top concern was public safety, so city officials alerted all the municipalities downstream, along with the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office, he said.

Hallman said the other cities were checking their sections of the river for anyone in the water's path. Helicopters were scanning the river, along with emergency personnel.

Hallman said transients are known to camp on the river bottom this time of year.

The mayor said the flow was 15,000 cubic feet per second, equivalent to the amount released during heavy storm flows.

He added that the lake is now closed to the public.

Tempe police said no structures were in danger. Sheriff's deputies and police officers were riding ATVs along the river to see if anyone was in peril.

The lake stretches along the Salt south of Loop 202 from east of Rural Road to west of Mill Avenue.

Federal river flow gauges downstream showed the sudden spike in water flow rates as the lake drained. The amount of water measured at Priest Drive rose from nearly nothing at 9:45 p.m. to more than 13,000 cubic feet per second an hour later.

Such a spike in river flow is comparable to winter flash floods on rivers in Arizona's high country.

The amount of water moving in the river was less than the amounts that flowed downstream during rainy winters in the past. In January 2009, the river flowed at more than 18,000 cubic feet per second at its peak, as Salt River Project spilled water from its reservoirs upstream. During the winter of 2005, the flow peaked at about 41,000 cubic feet per second.

But in those cases, the flow was increased gradually over days or weeks.

Water that flows downstream will eventually reach Painted Rock Dam northwest of Gila Bend. The flood control dam can contain about as much water as Roosevelt Lake, far more than could escape from relatively small Tempe Town Lake.

Preston Swan, 24, of Tempe, witnessed the dam's collapse.

"It sounded like a big explosion," he said.

He and some friends were riding bikes in the area when a section of the recreational lake's western dam erupted. It collapsed immediately and water instantly surged into the riverbed.

Maureen Howell, 24, of Tempe, said she called 911 and that police arrived almost immediately.

"We stuck around because we thought this was a once-in-a-lifetime event," she said.

Philip Kanemeyer, 23, of Tempe, said the sound of the explosion was so loud that he ducked. "I saw pieces flying 10 feet into the air."

"It just flooded over in seconds," he said. "It was a high wall of water."

Lukas Henderson, 13, of Tempe, was biking on the north side of the lake with his sister and dad.

"All of a sudden, we heard this ka-boom and the ground started shaking," he said.

Six- to 8-foot waves poured out.

"It was like, whoosh, and the lake started emptying," he said. "It was amazing."

A crowd of hundreds soon gathered Tuesday night on the south side of the lake to observe the spectacle. Witnesses said small animals climbed up the river's banks to escape the floodwaters.

The lake was expected to continue draining Tuesday night and into Wednesday morning.

Tempe Town Lake, containing 977 million gallons of water, had its 10th anniversary Dec. 12.

Repairs had been scheduled to begin on the dam, which was deteriorating more rapidly than expected, in early February. But a severe winter storm postponed the work.

Hallman said replacement dams were being built but had not yet been completed.

In 2009, the dams' manufacturer, Bridgestone Industrial Products, had urged Tempe to evaluate whether the safety measures at the lake were sufficient "to prevent injury and reduce the risk of loss of life" if the dams were to rapidly deflate. Bridgestone manufactured the eight inflatable dams that contained the lake.

The eastern dams upstream are submerged and have held up. But a plan to keep the western dams wet failed, exposing the rubber to scorching sun that has damaged the material.

Tempe and Bridgestone officials have argued over whose fault that is. In March 2009, the City Council approved an agreement for Bridgestone to replace the four damaged dams at the lake's western end.

But the question of people's safety on the lake if the dams were to deflate remained a sticking point. Bridgestone recommended that the city look at increasing the buffer zone between safety buoys and the western dams, adding warning signage and enhancing the alarm system to better warn lake users if the dams rapidly deflate.

The cost to temporarily replace the dams was estimated at $2.5 million earlier this year. Tempe at that time budgeted an additional $250,000 to fund the project's contingency costs. Bridgestone was expected to reimburse Tempe up to $3 million of the costs to replace the dam.

http://www.azcentral.com/community/tempe/articles/2010/07/20/20100720tempelake0720-ON.html

[plinko]

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

[Vicelord John]

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

[PHX31]

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?

[glynnjamin]

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

[glynnjamin]

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.

[Vicelord John]

Glenn are you sure the name isnt a coincidence?

[glynnjamin]

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/bella/2010/07/coming_soon_to_tempe_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.com/2010/01/08/canteen-el-rey-world-flavors-downtown-phoenix/