Arizona Center Development

[combusean]

I vaguely remember a restaurant called Brick there, which reading on Yelp closed due to poor service and sewer odor. It was well integrated into First Fridays and I saw some synth concert there one night. Sad that none of that exists anymore.

I too agree they should have knocked it down. The renovation is tacky and disposable.

[PHXFlyer11]

Originally Posted by Phxguy

I really like the new renovation but I don’t know who it’s for. It feels like the Center is consistently on this precipice of return but never reaches it. I guess like you and the other poster said, we’ll just have to wait for the new office, campus, hotel, residential concepts and ANOTHER renovation to downsize the cinema. At this point, I wonder if it would’ve just been better to knock down the center as whole and start over with the Center inverted to address the streets.

https://youtu.be/R1wio6Ewu1U
Here’s a video from a channel called Retail Archaeology. He’s a Valley-local who films dead or dying shopping centers. This one covers the Az Center from this past November. Check out the comment section, it’s interesting to read how the Center used to have a plethora of nightlife.

I recall going in the early 2000's and I remember a pretty bustling food court on the second level! It's interested how with more people than ever down there the mall is less successful.

I think that you need a draw, and it very much becomes a compounded effect. If you can get a few good retailers in then the rest will come and people will come. You need critical mass, and it's not just on the population day/night, it's critical mass from having enough of a reason to visit the retail.

I agree with your comment on "now knowing who it's for." You're either a shopping/entertainment destination or you're a school. Right now there is no identity.

[CrestedSaguaro]

Originally Posted by combusean

I vaguely remember a restaurant called Brick there, which reading on Yelp closed due to poor service and sewer odor. It was well integrated into First Fridays and I saw some synth concert there one night. Sad that none of that exists anymore.

I too agree they should have knocked it down. The renovation is tacky and disposable.

I'm going to go the extra mile and say that will be the ultimate destiny of the retail component if they can't turn the place around after AC is completed and Palmcourt goes up.

Keep the garage, rip the retail out along with the theaters. Extend Taylor through as a paseo, build outward facing retail with a smaller theater and a bowling alley, get an Urban Target as was already suggested and build a mixed use tower on the corner surface parking lot.

[combusean]

Originally Posted by RonnieFoos

I'm going to go the extra mile and say that will be the ultimate destiny of the retail component if they can't turn the place around after AC is completed and Palmcourt goes up.

Keep the garage, rip the retail out along with the theaters. Extend Taylor through as a paseo, build outward facing retail with a smaller theater and a bowling alley, get an Urban Target as was already suggested and build a mixed use tower on the corner surface parking lot.

If there's a lesson for the developers of tomorrow it's that renovating dead malls for retail is a dumb idea if they can't be repurposed into a different use.

If they can't service the debt and the opportunity zone still exists many, many developers and investors will be eyeing the parcel.

[combusean]

Can anyone attest to the accuracy of this? It seems to be doing better than I thought.

https://www.arizonacenter.com/wordpr...re-for-web.pdf

[TJPHXskyscraperfan]

Originally Posted by combusean

Can anyone attest to the accuracy of this? It seems to be doing better than I thought.

https://www.arizonacenter.com/wordpr...re-for-web.pdf

What don’t you think is accurate?

[TJPHXskyscraperfan]

I don’t understand how they haven’t managed to get a couple clothing stores by now. With the schools all around, offices, residents, tourist, convention goers I always see going through there wondering where the shops are. Even with the amount of online shopping people still want to try on their clothes. We literally have no good area in Phoenix for shopping, the Biltmore area for a few spots or you’re driving out to Scottsdale.

[exit2lef]

Originally Posted by TJPHXskyscraperfan

I don’t understand how they haven’t managed to get a couple clothing stores by now. With the schools all around, offices, residents, tourist, convention goers I always see going through there wondering where the shops are. Even with the amount of online shopping people still want to try on their clothes. We literally have no good area in Phoenix for shopping, the Biltmore area for a few spots or you’re driving out to Scottsdale.

Awful conversation I overheard just last year: Two visitors from out-of-town ask a random AZ Center restaurant employee why the place is so dead and where they can find more activity. Random restaurant employee tells them to go to Mill Avenue in Tempe.

10 years ago, I would have completely understood that response. Now, there's so much more in downtown Phoenix, but it's nowhere in evidence if your view of downtown Phoenix is filtered through the bubble of the inward-facing Arizona Center.

[combusean]

The problem where I could understand that response is that Phoenix doesn't have a shopping strip and things have to be discovered among a god-awful plethora of anti-urban buildings. This is extremely difficult to fix, but San Jose has somewhat remediated that with maps of downtown encouraging people to walk around and do just that.

[PHXFlyer11]

Originally Posted by combusean

The problem where I could understand that response is that Phoenix doesn't have a shopping strip and things have to be discovered among a god-awful plethora of anti-urban buildings. This is extremely difficult to fix, but San Jose has somewhat remediated that with maps of downtown encouraging people to walk around and do just that.

Ugh. Downtown San Jose is awful. I literally don't leave the hotel when i go there. Not much desire to go out there. Paper Plane is an OK bar but most of the restaurants suck.

[TJPHXskyscraperfan]

Anyone notice the purple lights at the Top of the APS building? I had to do a double take, looked like a whole new building. Definitely a nice touch. Now just give free rent to the retail so it can fill up,lol!!!!

[combusean]

Originally Posted by PHXFlyer11

Ugh. Downtown San Jose is awful. I literally don't leave the hotel when i go there. Not much desire to go out there. Paper Plane is an OK bar but most of the restaurants suck.

I don't want to start a city vs city discussion about my new home but I will say this: The food in Phoenix is unusually good compared to my travels in Northern California, especially on the low to mid-range end. I've especially found that restaurants when I lived in Downtown Phoenix had staying power, like I'd want to visit them multiple times for a night out and not feeling guilty for being sticker shocked at the bill as is the case in Norcal.

I would kill for a Carly's on the Alameda. Or a Pita Jungle. Or The Grand when I visited there last. There wasn't much open but I always felt a fair price for the meal during my glory days in Phoenix.

One other thing I can say is that the best burrito I've ever had was next to the best bar I've ever been to, and I did that combo many times before we were all ordered to stay at home.

[azliam]

Originally Posted by TJPHXskyscraperfan

Anyone notice the purple lights at the Top of the APS building? I had to do a double take, looked like a whole new building. Definitely a nice touch. Now just give free rent to the retail so it can fill up,lol!!!!

Anyone able to snag a pic of that? I'd love to see more buildings downtown add a little color to them at night.

[ASU Diablo]

Originally Posted by TJPHXskyscraperfan

Anyone notice the purple lights at the Top of the APS building? I had to do a double take, looked like a whole new building. Definitely a nice touch. Now just give free rent to the retail so it can fill up,lol!!!!

And move the proposed Goodwill location here instead! I did notice a building lit up the other night and I couldn't figure out which one it was...now it makes sense that it was APS building. Thanks!

[CrestedSaguaro]

Originally Posted by ASU Diablo

And move the proposed Goodwill location here instead!

This!

[PHXflyer]

Originally Posted by TJPHXskyscraperfan

Anyone notice the purple lights at the Top of the APS building? I had to do a double take, looked like a whole new building. Definitely a nice touch. Now just give free rent to the retail so it can fill up,lol!!!!

Are we sure it's purple? Last I noticed, it was blue as was the top of the Hyatt in support of first responders and healthcare workers

[Classical in Phoenix]

Originally Posted by PHXflyer

Are we sure it's purple? Last I noticed, it was blue as was the top of the Hyatt in support of first responders and healthcare workers

It was purple Wednesday when I went by.

[gymratmanaz]

Just drove around downtown. APS is Blue around the top, The Stuart is blue around the top (2 small sections of purple in the middle), The Hyatt has a chunk of blue at the top, The Sheraton has a white heart made up of lit rooms making the pattern, The United Healthcare building has blue around the top, and two other buildings that i don't know the official name of are topped or lit in blue. NICE TRIBUTES PHOENIX!!!!!!

[DesertRay]

Originally Posted by gymratmanaz

Just drove around downtown. APS is Blue around the top, The Stuart is blue around the top (2 small sections of purple in the middle), The Hyatt has a chunk of blue at the top, The Sheraton has a white heart made up of lit rooms making the pattern, The United Healthcare building has blue around the top, and two other buildings that i don't know the official name of are topped or lit in blue. NICE TRIBUTES PHOENIX!!!!!!

I go up to the roof every night to look at these tributes and to salute the front line workers. It's a nice sign of unity.

[plinko]

Pictures?