There are several things that I think may become more apparent with better renderings (3-D models hopefully) and future tenant announcements...
1) If you look around the perimeter of the site plan, there are tables and umbrellas peppered around the entire project, except for the west side, which has the garage exit. This tells me that there is an attempt to engage the surrounding area to a greater extent than what I believe has been decried in the forum. There must be doors and windows on the exterior streets verses the walled-in designs of AZ Center and Collier. The sidewalks in several places around the perimeter look fairly wide, which may allow for some cafe opportunities.
2) There is another large restaurant site on the NW corner, across from Renaissance Square. This is an opportunity for something unique that might not be found anywhere else in Phoenix (Let's hope).
3) The SW corner has 5-6 stories of retail. That is at least somewhat similar to Horton Plaza, with it's several floors of retail. This is definately something different from the basic Phoenix, 2-level shopping mall.
4) Another positive thing that should be stressed is that
thousands of commuters will daily pass right by Cityscape on three sides via Light Rail, with a station across the street. These are people going anywhere from the Spectrum Mall area to Mesa's doorstep. This has got to be an incredible advertising opportunity to pull locals and visitors alike to the project and provide the !@*#-load of people previously mentioned for it's success.
The one thing that does disappoint me is the lack of a larger, continuos park space. I suppose to make this financially attractive, the developers want to include as much leaseable space as possible, while situating it in a setting where people want to spend their time and money. They are in this to make money, after all... (Shocking, I know!)
Let's do this again in a few weeks when we have the final design and hopefully, more complete renderigns.