Arizona Center Development

[PHX06]

The graveyard of dead palm trees makes me sad when I pass it. I hope they remove them and start construction on Palmtower soon!

[thespiandave]

Originally Posted by Warren Peace

Although having a Meow Wolf would be fun to add to the area, I think Arizona Center needs a bit more foot traffic. With all of the new residential towers going up, all the new residents might be drawn to something like a Target for all of their daily living needs.

Arizona Center seems to have a lot of vacant space that a Target could easily fill.

Totally agree! The more people are drawn to this place and have the chance the linger, the more popular it’ll become. I’d love to have a smaller Target or something similar within the downtown area.

[Warren Peace]

Yet another vacancy underway. Hooters is abandoning their corner spot. It's a shame so many women will now have to make better career choices to pay their way through law school.

I also happened to notice that the AMC theater is now left with a single light bulb along the exterior wall amidst what used to be an abundance of decorative lighting. Although the timing is right for embracing the post-apocalyptic design motif that Arizona Center seems to be targeting, I'm not yet convinced consumers are ready to embrace it. Any word on what's to come from this property with PalmTower's increase in foot traffic that seems to be a couple of years away?

[exit2lef]

Originally Posted by Warren Peace

Yet another vacancy underway. Hooters is abandoning their corner spot. It's a shame so women will now have to make better career choices to pay their way through law school.

I also happened to notice that the AMC theater is now left with a single light bulb along the exterior wall amidst what used to be an abundance of decorative lighting. Although the timing is right for embracing the post-apocalyptic design motif that Arizona Center seems to be targeting, I'm not yet convinced consumers are ready to embrace it. Any word on what's to come from this property with PalmTower's increase in foot traffic that seems to be a couple of years away?

The Arizona Center is in sad shape. With Hooter's leaving, I believe the only food service tenants left are Jersey Mike's, Omoide, and Cold Stone. It's astonishing that with so much growth at ASU on one side and the Biomedical Campus on the other that this recently updated complex can't attract more tenants.

[combusean]

AMC24 and Hooters drag down the entire complex...you can say what you want about the girls there but the concept is pretty passé overall. Probably any chain restaurant in the world would be a better draw.

I'd probably take a vacant lot over the AMC24 at this point. Something like a Centerpoint 11 facing the NW entrance would be a proper anchor for Arizona Center and leave a couple acres for almost anything.

[Obadno]

There is already more than enough people near by to fill AZ center with chain restaurants and fast food. The center was already nearly dead before COVID so that isnt the reason.

At this point they cant get tenants because of their poor management.

[combusean]

"Destination retail" without an anchor is doomed to fail. It also doesn't help the modernization is hideous, way too busy, and completely misses the mark. They have way more advertising for *other businesses downtown* than they do tenant signage, which kind of tells me who they really care about.

300+ apartments on that hard corner isn't going to save this place.

[Obadno]

Maybe theyll end up flattening the whole thing and starting over

Might be preferable to just ditch the whole "AZ CENTER" concept. It never really panned out. Very 80's/90's vibe wise hasnt aged well.

[YourBuddy]

- get a food hall/grocery type anchor where the hooters was with multiple vendors that aren’t chains that you see everywhere. Something like an Italian market/restaurant.

-redevelop the exterior of the mall to have windows or open areas to see into the mall. It looks so clunky and closed off right now.

-redevelop the rooftop area for bars and outdoor lounges.

-Redevelop the movie theater to be half the size and build a couple apartment/condo towers on the opened up areas.

- I like what Biltmore and Scottsdale are doing with the luxury lifetime fitnesses at their malls, seems like a good option here as well.

-it needs shops that cater to what people in downtown Phoenix need, not suburb map shoppers.

[thespiandave]

Originally Posted by combusean

"Destination retail" without an anchor is doomed to fail. It also doesn't help the modernization is hideous, way too busy, and completely misses the mark. They have way more advertising for *other businesses downtown* than they do tenant signage, which kind of tells me who they really care about.

300+ apartments on that hard corner isn't going to save this place.

I personally would *love* a smaller Target here. The closest one is Camelback / 16th and college students / young professionals would visit it frequently. I think they’d come for a few small toiletries, then grab a coffee or visit a more boutique store.

[combusean]

Being next door to the convention center and largest hotel in the state pretty much guarantees that you have to have some sort of "comfort" options.

The City Target has been thrown around before and would work for the simple reason that the retail donut surrounding Downtown is a constant thorn.

Something like the Ferry Building in SF with small-market vendors supported by an all-day farmers market would be ideal there, but the retail shops are just not designed for that--the ceilings are way too low.

I do wish the owners would just flatten the whole thing and start over, maybe keeping the gardens. Attempting to revive an inward-focused 1980s dead mall that was a mistake from day 1 has proven to be a mistake from day 1 itself.

[az_daniel]

Originally Posted by combusean

Something like the Ferry Building in SF with small-market vendors supported by an all-day farmers market would be ideal there, but the retail shops are just not designed for that--the ceilings are way too low.

This was my exact thought, and I was going to reply this until I saw that you already got to it. A permanent showcase of local foods, crafts, and imported goods is on a short list of uses that could save it - and only because it is something that Phoenix does not have yet. It is just too internalized and suburban in nature to ever be salvaged without some kind of big idea that utilizes all or most of the complex. I think the reno is nice, but only internally. The entire perimeter is an uninviting dead zone that no merely cosmetic facelift will ever solve.

[exit2lef]

I just took the time to read the signs on the windows of the former Hooters at the Arizona Center. It’s amazing how the three remaining sites are all near malls that are already dead (MetroCenter and Fiesta) or transformed in a way that makes them less of a fit for Hooters (Desert Sky). Not a single Hooters in Chandler, Gilbert, or Scottsdale. It seems like their site selection has not been re-evaluated in decades.

[bchris02]

Originally Posted by exit2lef

I just took the time to read the signs on the windows of the former Hooters at the Arizona Center. It’s amazing how the three remaining sites are all near malls that are already dead (MetroCenter and Fiesta) or transformed in a way that makes them less of a fit for Hooters (Desert Sky). Not a single Hooters in Chandler, Gilbert, or Scottsdale. It seems like their site selection has not been re-evaluated in decades.

Is Hooters still popular? It always seems to come up on those lists of has-been chains that don't have much time left. The remaining locations are in places that were booming back in the 80s and 90s when Hooters was in its heyday.

[somethingfast]

hooters are as popular as ever. Hooters? not so much.

[exit2lef]

Originally Posted by bchris02

Is Hooters still popular? It always seems to come up on those lists of has-been chains that don't have much time left. The remaining locations are in places that were booming back in the 80s and 90s when Hooters was in its heyday.

Exactly. The fact that they haven't pursued expansion in areas that would make sense and have restaurants running on fumes in dated locations tells me the chain as a whole is probably well past its peak.

[SunDevil]

My wife and I love that the AMC there is almost empty. We take advantage of it for every major movie release. We didn't have to buy tickets ahead of time on opening night of any of the new Star Wars movies.

There isn't any movie theater near 36th St and Thomas where I live so we might as well go to the least crowded one in the city.

I know that low attendance is actually a reason for AMC to get rid of it... but imagine if half of it was converted to something else and the rest was turned into a "dollar" movie theater where they showed old movies and arthouse stuff. Being near ASU downtown and light rail might make it work.

I'm a several glasses of wine in right now so maybe I'm not making sense; but it's Friday so eh

[Obadno]

Originally Posted by SunDevil

My wife and I love that the AMC there is almost empty. We take advantage of it for every major movie release. We didn't have to buy tickets ahead of time on opening night of any of the new Star Wars movies.

There isn't any movie theater near 36th St and Thomas where I live so we might as well go to the least crowded one in the city.

I know that low attendance is actually a reason for AMC to get rid of it... but imagine if half of it was converted to something else and the rest was turned into a "dollar" movie theater where they showed old movies and arthouse stuff. Being near ASU downtown and light rail might make it work.

I'm a several glasses of wine in right now so maybe I'm not making sense; but it's Friday so eh

They basically did this with the movie theater on Mill, It was a Harkins, then it became a couple of actual stage theaters from like 2010-2014 then back to a movie theater as an AMC

[thespiandave]

Not sure how long it’s been closed, but it looks like Subway is no more. Saw this sign when I was walking through today.

https://imgur.com/gallery/SeM3cOU

[Obadno]

Have we considered that the property manager is pushing these tenants out?