Downtown PhoenixThe downtown area of Phoenix has been undergoing a major facelift since the building of the US Airways Center (formerly America West Arena) and Chase Field. Coffeehouses, restaurants, nightclubs and shopping in the Arizona Center continue to draw people downtown for the hopping nightlife. Many new restaurants have blossomed, including A [...]]]> Phoenix Downtown 2008 Projects

Downtown Phoenix
The downtown area of Phoenix has been undergoing a major facelift since the building of the US Airways Center (formerly America West Arena) and Chase Field. Coffeehouses, restaurants, nightclubs and shopping in the Arizona Center continue to draw people downtown for the hopping nightlife. Many new restaurants have blossomed, including A League Of Our Own. Incorporating the themes of Phoenix’s early history with culture and local events, Copper Square is a full square-mile hotspot for activities and action. Downtown attractions include a walk in the park at Patriots Square or delve into the new Arizona Science Center, Phoenix Museum of History or the Phoenix Art Museum.

Here’s a rundown of the 2008 Central Phoenix projects:

Light rail
Completion date: December.
Significance: The 20-mile light rail line is expected to be a crucial resource for downtown commuters and tourists. It links key downtown Phoenix spots – sports venues, hotels, restaurants, employers and ASU’s downtown campus – to Mesa and Tempe.
Cost: $1.4 billion.

W HOTEL TO BE CENTERPIECE OF RETAIL-ENTERTAINMENT-HOSPITALITY-RESIDENTIAL PROJECT

Scottsdale – The developer of the W Scottsdale hotel is planning a retail, residential, entertainment and hospitality district in old town Scottsdale that is expected to cost $500+ million when completed. The 1.1 million-square-foot mixed-use project will be built on a 10+ acre site located just east of Scottsdale Road and south of Camelback Road. A company formed by TriYar Capital in Phoenix (Steven Yari, Shawn Yari, Bob Agahi, principals), also the developer of the W Scottsdale, assembled the property for the proposed project over the past two years. The 224-room W Scottsdale, scheduled to open next spring, will be the centerpiece of the upscale development.

Walter Cronkite School, Taylor Place dorms
Completion date: August.
Significance: The ASU downtown campus opened in 2006, but these two projects will expand it. ASU’s new journalism school building is expected to bring 1,000 additional undergraduates to the campus and the first Taylor Place tower can house 750 students. The second tower, which opens in 2009, can house 550 students. By 2015, 15,000 students will take classes that are taught by downtown faculty.
Cost: Journalism building $71 million; dorms $150 million.
Completion date: December.

Phoenix Convention Center expansion
Significance: The North Building – w hich is three times the size of the West Building that opened in 2006 – will welcome its first visitors in January 2009. The project will help elevate Phoenix’s status among rival convention destinations, the city says. The expansion gives the convention center 900,000 square feet of meeting and exhibition space and is expected to bring $500 million in annually direct spending by convention visitors.
Cost: $600 million. (West Building, North Building and South Building upgrades)
Completion date: June.

44 Monroe
Significance: This June, Scottsdale developer Grace Communities expects to finish the first dozen floors of its 34-story high-rise – the tallest residential building in the state. By August, the rest of the building interior will be completed. The 196-unit condo tower will bring more full-time residents to downtown, a key component of long-term plans to bring vitality and foot traffic to the neighborhood.
Cost: $160 million.
Completion date: October.

Sheraton Phoenix Downtown Hotel
Significance: The 31-story Sheraton project will be the largest hotel in the state and will have 1,000 rooms. The hotel will help fill the need for more rooms in downtown Phoenix and will help satisfy increased hotel demand that’s expected when the expanded convention center welcomes its first visitors in January.
Cost: $350 million.