Tempe Development Thread

[HooverDam]

^I wasn't referring to anything you posted other than the younger thing. I was just generally saying, I like it the way it is, please don't ruin it. And I don't know why you wrote "techno?"- is that not the kind of music they play at places like AZ88's? I'm not really sure what its called, but I do know its loud and annoying and prevents me from having any sort of conversation with my friends. Also, a more interesting drink menu doesn't appeal to me as I don't drink- I'm a very easy to please, steak and potatoes kind of guy and Monti's fills that need very well in its current state.

[Vicelord John]

I wrote "techno?" because I was questioning you. I didn't remember implying there should be techno, so I was wondering why you used the word. You have to realize, not everything is catering to you. You are mentioning what you prefer like its the only thing anyone prefers. Wake the fuck up and look around, there are a lot of people with a lot of tastes. Most young people DO drink and want something more interesting than steak and potatos. For instance, Donovan's serves up a mean seafood tower that really appeals to younger groups.

Just to prove that I have no quarrels with Monti's. I just had a request for casual downtown Tempe dining and I sent a 7 top there, like 30 seconds ago.

[HooverDam]

I'm not asking EVERYTHING to be catered to me. I know I have specific tastes and not everyone fits my tastes, but I do enjoy Monti's the way it is and was just stating that I hope it doesn't change too very much.

Also, your hateful tone is really unnecessary.

[jvbahn]

Well, Tempe could use a balance of hipper places, but don't displace the younger, creative crowd that made Tempe interesting in the first place.

[jvbahn]

HooverDam, I love blowing wads of cash drinking overpriced cocktails and listening to electronic music while eating lame versions of Asian fusion food. That's what you're supposed to do in Scottsdale. It's meant to give you the illusion that you'll somehow get laid, haha. Anyway, Monti's is awesome, I'm exhausted with hip places too. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate cutting-edge modernist design and a sountrack from Kraftwerk, but sometimes I just want a bloody steak with a potato that I can't see through the sour cream, butter and chives.

But above all else, come one guys, what ever happened to talking about SKYSCRAPERS/URBAN DESIGN and the fact that the PHX metro area needs more of it, rather than everyone acting like a bunch of bitchy teenage girls?

[Azndragon837]

Michael,

I would also like to welcome you to the forum. It is good to hear that Monti's will still be operating. I have to admit, I have eaten there only twice, the first time at a company Christmas party (City of Tempe) this past December, and the second a few weeks later with some friends. I also know a few of the employees that worked or used to work there. Awesome food, great interior!

Michael Kelly is a superb architect, I work with his wife Grace in the Planning Department at Tempe. If any one of you forumers want to see what Michael Kelly has done, look no further than the North Tempe Multi-Generational Center. That building is a gem for North Tempe (Google it to get directions, it's pretty tucked-in from the major roads). It was recently opened, and it celebrates the desert with a modern and contemporary twist.

As for Tempe Gateway, plans have been submitted already. It will be an 8 story office building with several retail spaces on the first floor. The architecture will be similar to the U.S. Airways building, but not exactly like it. The parking garage will be added onto the exisiting one, so do not worry about a massive garage locating on the Monti's site or near Mill Avenue.

-Andrew

On a side note about the "techno music" debate: I love electronica music (Trance preferably), but absolutely despise the nightclub scene. Fake people and drunk people everywhere, I will refuse to enter a club even if one pays me. I'd rather go to a rave, thanks. Also, clubs that blare the techno music is the annoying kind of techno (I label it House and Club music). Trance (in my opinion) is the best of the electronica genre, and you can only get the best if one attends a rave, where a DJ will spin the music live, or anything in California.

[sundevilgrad]

Originally Posted by 100smillave

I admit that a stucco-covered, boxy sonoran-style rowhouse is not, to some, electrifying at first glance. Such a structure is utilitarian by nature--materials at hand were used to create a sturdy shelter from a harsh climate. Furthermore, most of the real fun at La Casa Vieja is in the eclectic, funky interior that has evolved and changed over time.

Thanks for all of your comments,
Michael Monti

I'm glad that the history of your building is being preserved. I can't wait to see the plans! I do agree with you, the interior of Monti's is the heart and soul of it's character, that and the food.

I'm no architect, and I'm definitely no historian, but I think what I would like to see from the building is a bigger presence. The building right now is very understated. By bigger presence I don't mean height, I mean something that will make it standout against it's surroundings.

[loftlovr]

Michael-
Kudos for joining up and posting-
Also- a bigger Kudos for not selling out Montis.

Great article too- (Michael/ JimInCal for posting)

I am in love with your building and the Hayden Ferry Silo Mill across the street and I certainly hope the developers don't turn either in to Disney Land...
It is comforting knowing you are confident in Michael Kelly...

Vandercook-
It always amazes me how high you place yourself on the foodchain of life.
-giving Michael Monti feedback....
You should consider feedback before you give it.

Moving on, I look forward to the color renderings later this week!!!

[combusean]

$15.4 mil lakeshore hits $93.6 mil

Katie Nelson
The Arizona Republic
Mar. 30, 2007 12:00 AM

With land values around Tempe Town Lake skyrocketing, some longtime owners of nearby land are biding their time.

Private property within the 743-acre district that surrounds the lake went from being worth $15.4 million to $93.6 million in the past nine years.

Arizona State University and the Scott family are among those watching the values rise from the sidelines.

The Scotts are the only family to own land on a lakeshore dominated by city- and corporate-owned property. The Scotts have owned and operated the Papago Riding Stables for more than 40 years, making a living off taking people on trail rides and boarding horses for owners throughout the Valley.

"Well, he got lucky," Clay Scott said of his dad, who originally bought and ran the business. "We just started out to run a riding stable. We're not a developing type of people, but the value has just increased as things built up around him."

The Scott family gets nearly constant offers to buy their five acres of prime property.

"Business is good, so there is no real incentive to sell," he added. "But the offers keep coming and they keep adding zeros onto them checks."

When the lake was completed in 1999, much of the surrounding shores were barren. The Papago Riding Stables and Tempe Beach Park were there, but other acreage was "largely vacant and underutilized," said Neil Calfee, Tempe's deputy community development manager.

Some of the land had been used for household and private landfills. Other lots were - and still are - being used for parking lots for ASU.

When construction on the lake started in August 1997, it marked the end of 31 years of waiting from the time the project was hatched by a group of ASU students in 1966.

"Welcome to this historic occasion when we say to all: We will build this dream together and with partners, old and new, we will stand strong together and say with confidence that Rio Salado is a reality," then-Mayor Neil Giuliano said at a groundbreaking ceremony.

Giuliano and former Mayor Harry Mitchell were major backers of the Rio Salado plan. Meanwhile, current Mayor Hugh Hallman was one of the project's most vocal critics. Hallman said he believed the city was taking a big risk with taxpayers' money by building the lake without firm commitments from developers.

To an extent, those concerns held water. Plans for the first big-ticket development, a 1,000-room, $150 million Peabody hotel and convention center, eventually collapsed.

Since then, though, the ever-present construction projects are sure signs that artists' renderings are turning into actual bricks and mortar, just as the increasing land values prove the lake is developing into a cash cow for those who are willing to buy the land. Examples include the new Tempe Center for the Arts, scheduled to be completed this summer, and an increasing number of condo complexes taking shape directly on Town Lake's shores.

The lake is ranked as the third-most popular private tourist attraction in the state, according to the Arizona Office of Tourism. Only Chase Field and the London Bridge have higher annual attendance, according to self-reported numbers.

Read about Tempe City Hall and Tempe development buzz on Katie Nelson's blog at www.azcentral.com/community/tempe.

[Vicelord John]

Originally Posted by loftlovr

Vandercook-
It always amazes me how high you place yourself on the foodchain of life.
-giving Michael Monti feedback....
You should consider feedback before you give it.

I don't place myself high on the chain of life.

It's part of my work. I am relaying the message I hear from my guests who I've sent there on my recommendation.

If you were a restaurant owner, I'm sure you'd like to hear feedback from your customers and people who send you customers.

also, regarding the article sean posted. Does anyone have the artists renderings of what Town Lake is supposed to look like upon completion?

[combusean]

^ Any customer or anybody who works in the hotel industry has a "right" to give feedback to Mr Monti. If he doesn't want it, he won't use it. Quite simple, really.

[100smillave]

Folks,

I left town for a few days after posting and things went berzerk.
I am spread rather thin these days, but let me just make a few rhetorical points:

1. I strive not to take offense where no offense is intended. Frank feedback is useful, and I will integrate it into our business where it makes sense. I'm all grown up now, I can take it.

2. My enemies are self-appointed (corallary to number 1, above).

3. Monti's-as-you-know-it is here for quite a while yet; and,

4. Stagnation is death. Just ask Bobbie McGee's, the Beefeater and Mike Pulos' Spaghetti Company, inter alia. I could not sit back and let this happen to my place.

There are ways to honor tradition while embracing the contemporary era. The Hayden House/La Casa Vieja serves the interest of nobody if it fades away and becomes a dusty museum. We will preserve the building's historic segment, and I hope all will reserve judgement until the plans for the surrounding properrty are further along.

Thanks for your comments,

Michael

[Vicelord John]

Well said Michael. From what you said it sounds like you understand that change is needed to keep up with new clientele but still keep the restaurants integerity. I love it!

[plinko]

Originally Posted by John_Vandercook

also, regarding the article sean posted. Does anyone have the artists renderings of what Town Lake is supposed to look like upon completion?

I got this rendering from the City of Tempe in like '95 or '96...back when every other city in the Valley thought Tempe was making a billion $ mistake. Who's laughing now? Somewhere I have plans from like 1990 that even show an island in the middle of the lake connected to both sides via pedestrian bridge.



The scale and quality of the developments being proposed now is much much larger than anyone could really have anticipated. And it's only going to get better. BTW, the big blue glass tower way off towards McClintock in that pic was the ill-fated 34 story Peabody Hotel project. Note that it also pre-dates lite rail (back then Tempe was in the process of deciding to go it alone with their own line).

I too would love to see a 3-D model or rendering of the lake with all the proposed and built developments. It would make the above rendering seem even shortsighted!

[Vicelord John]

yeah I was thinking that rendering looked a lil light on the development. I remember my friends telling me how stupid tempe was when they built the lake, and telling them it would work.

[SethAZ]

on the corner of 5th and Mill I saw a sign that said that there was a gelato spot opening there. i think i like that better than a drug store.

[vertex]

Yup. You asked about this corner several threads back. Check the replies...

[SethAZ]

you're correct, we did discuss it but i was under the impression that we had not come to a consensus on exactly what was going there. now we know. i'm just happy to see that high profile corner being complete. i live in downtown tempe and pass it almost everyday and for as long as i can remember it's been boarded up.

[andrewkfromaz]

Originally Posted by SethAZ

on the corner of 5th and Mill I saw a sign that said that there was a gelato spot opening there. .

I knew downtown Tempe needed a Gelato Spot! I occasionally go to the one on Camelback at 32nd St. and it's striking how many people hang out there. I'm really excited about Restaurant Mexico going in next door as well, I think the new location will be just the thing for a subtle re-imagining (as marketers would say) of the business to draw the younger, newly moved to Tempe set.
I hope that Monti's will also be revamped, not enough to kill its character, but to draw a wider range of customers. The intersection of Mill and Rio Salado is incredibly key for downtown Tempe, and so I see no reason why a well-managed Monti's shouldn't flourish. Michael, I wish you the best of luck. I can't wait to see drawings.

[andrewkfromaz]

Also, while on College/Veterans Way this morning, I noticed a Qwest car, a Southwest Gas truck, and several City vehicles at the Armory/Stadium Lofts (or whatever it's called) site. Looks like blue-staking to me!