![]() The site of the one-time thriving Fiesta Village shopping center in southwest Mesa may soon be the home of an upscale 220-unit apartment complex. The project will encompass a full block between Stewart Street and Alma School Road and will include a clubhouse and an emphasis on landscaped green space and clusters of apartment buildings. What is being called the Landing at Fiesta Village will be developed by the owner of the property, W.M. Grace Companies of Phoenix, and will additionally include retail and restaurant space. The project is expected to be reviewed by Mesa’s Planning and Zoning Board later this month. To get the project underway, zoning for the site will most likely be classified as planned area development for commercial and multi-family use. Opened in 1979, Fiesta Village was once one of the most popular shopping centers in Mesa with a theater, restaurants, and dozens of stores. It began to lose customers in the late 1990s, resulting in a subsequent exit of tenants and empty stores. By 2010, after the last tenant had left, all of Fiesta Village was closed off and surrounded by a barbed-wire fence. If the project is approved by the city, Fiesta Village will be demolished, with actual construction work beginning later this summer or early fall. By Garry Boulard
0 Comments
One of the most iconic and unusual parks in El Paso is slated to receive a major upgrading and renovation.
The Murchison Rogers Park, located at 1600 Scenic Drive, overlooks El Paso and Juarez at an altitude of 4,200 feet. Opened in 1963, the park features a small front parking lot, walking space, and tables for picnics, but is largely defined by the breathtaking views it offers. But now, city leaders say they want to improve the feel and substance of the park, and have entered into an agreement with the El Paso Community Foundation toward that end. Improvements will include expanding available parking space, planting new shade trees, and constructing paths that are Americans with Disabilities Act compliant. The centerpiece of the upgrade will be the construction of cantilever lookouts with safety railings that will be situated so as to provide continued sweeping views of the city. With the project designed by the Santa Fe-based Surroundings Studio, the park upgrade is expected to cost at least $5.3 million to complete. Of that figure, the El Paso Community Foundation, an endowment that funds nonprofit groups and the community at large, will provide $3.5 million in funding. Total fund-raising for the project will most likely be completed by 2020, with the actual work on the project beginning shortly afterwards. By Garry Boulard Nearly 10 million people were working in the nation’s construction industry by the end of the year 2016, a significant increase over the previous 5 years.
Of that total, according to an analysis just released by the National Association of Homebuilders, more than 3.8 million were in residential construction. While such numbers, according to the NAHB, show a national industry on the mend, they are still below the pre-recession peak year of 2006 when the industry had more than 11 million workers, with an excess of 5 million in homebuilding. Nevertheless, says the report authored by Natalia Siniavskaia, assistant vice-president for housing policy research with NAHB, the latest numbers represent “five consecutive years of steady job gains.” The NAHB numbers, drawn from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, also show that some 23 percent of the national construction workforce is made up of self-employed workers. Writes Siniavskaia: “The high self-employed rates in construction reflect a common practice of builders and remodelers to maintain a relatively small payroll and rely on subcontractors for a large share of the construction market.” The report additionally shows that in measuring construction employment by Congressional districts, southern Arizona and Colorado have recorded up to 11,000 jobs per district, with New Mexico seeing an average of 5,000 to 7,000 jobs on average in its three Congressional districts. By Garry Boulard ![]() Up to 41 new homes will be built near Rio Rancho as part of the once-again growing Mariposa Planned Community. The residences are set to go up on 10 acres purchased by the Albuquerque-based Price Land and Development Group, with construction expected to begin this fall. Launched in 2005, the Mariposa project on the northeast side of the city was advertised as a sustainable community with acres that “roll across the high desert, a mile above sea level.” Those acres totaled 6,500, with 2,500 of that number dedicated as open space that will never be developed. Although the community was stalled by the Great Recession, it began to see a return to new home construction with a new overall developer around 2015. The area now features a modern community center, fitness center, and swimming pools, with high-end, luxury homes listed for between $220,000 and $439,000. The Price Land and Development Group has been responsible for the creation and development of similar gated communities in both Albuquerque and Santa Fe. By Garry Boulard A currently vacant 34.6-acre site near the intersection of Troy Avenue and U.S. Route 50 in east Pueblo may soon see the construction on 15 of those acres of a new and long-awaited softball complex featuring an 800-seat grandstand.
The other portion of the site, which is divided by an arroyo, comprises almost 17 acres and, according to city documents, would be used for the creation of a community solar garden. Members of the Pueblo City Council have advanced the project, proposed by District 2 Councilmember Larry Atencio nearly a decade ago, by voting to purchase the land in question for just over $196,000. Once that purchase is completed, city officials say they will focus on developing the site and building the complex, a project that could cost around $3 million. Funding for the project is expected to come from several sources, including the Great Outdoors Colorado program, which invests a portion of the state’s lottery proceeds to develop and build parks and open spaces. By Garry Boulard What is being billed as an improved approach to national emergency preparedness on the part of the Federal Emergency Management Agency is seeing a renewed emphasis on building code enforcement nationally.
The just-released 2018-2022 Strategic Plan, published by the agency, contends that “Disaster resilience starts with building codes because they enhance public safety and property protection.” The document also states that FEMA plans to actively “encourage robust code enforcement, providing education and training when needed to help convey the value of standardized, up-to-date building codes.” But the report additionally acknowledges that new building codes, or a renewed emphasis on existing codes, could prove costly to contractors and building owners. For that reason, the agency is pledging to “work with Congress to develop flexible and holistic approaches for more federal funds to be spent on risk reduction and pre-disaster mitigation.” The agency is also weighing the use of what are called “resilience bonds” to help fund such efforts. In noting that natural disasters did more than $306 billion in damages last year, Brock Long says the best approach to disaster preparedness should be one that is “federally supported, state managed, and locally executed.” Long, the Administrator of FEMA, also says the agency needs to be more streamlined and flexible in its operations, adding that he is committed to “making changes to FEMA to reflect these priorities.” By Garry Boulard ![]() West Main Street in downtown Farmington is populated with gift shops, restaurants, home furnishing stores, and offices. But like many other downtown areas in cities across the country, what the street lacks is an abundance of pedestrian traffic, a deficit even more noticeable at night when downtown Farmington sometimes seems deserted. In response city leaders, who have long wondered how to make the street and larger downtown more vibrant, have embraced a program known simply as Complete Streets, which takes a more comprehensive approach to what’s needed on West Main. That program, still in the planning stages, is offering such ideas as transforming what is now a four-lane thoroughfare into a two-lane road with tree-lined roundabouts installed at several points on the street designed to slow down traffic. Also suggested is the building of a bike path and installation of wider sidewalks. City officials have said that a revitalization of the street will also include the updating of electrical infrastructure and waste and sewer systems. The revitalization project is expected to cost at least $10 million, most of which will be funded through the refinancing of bonds. A refiguring and repurposing of downtown Farmington was identified in a report published in 2009 called the Metropolitan Redevelopment Area Plan. That document viewed an increase in pedestrian traffic as an essential revitalizing component. More details regarding the Complete Streets plans are expected to be revealed later this spring. Actual construction work on West Main could begin sometime early next year. By Garry Boulard Already operating facilities in the cities of Chandler, Gilbert, and Mesa, Orbital ATK has announced plans to add more than 260,000 square feet of new production space along Gilbert’s Price Corridor.
The company, headquartered in Dulles, Virginia, and specializing in precision weapons, satellites, and aviation systems, says it is building the new location due both to recent growth, as well as projected future work. Altogether, two buildings owned by Orbital ATK will comprise 617,000 square feet of space in Chandler. In a statement, Rich Straka, general manager and vice-president of the company’s launch vehicles division, said the vehicles to be designed and built at the new campus will prove vital to “providing cargo to the crews on the International Space Station.” Orbital ATK’s Chandler expansion comes as the company is also building a new 36,000 square foot facility in Mesa for its medium caliber cannons. Founded in 2015 after a merger of the Orbital Sciences Corporation and a portion of Alliance Techsystems, Orbital ATK last year enjoyed revenues in excess of $7.6 billion. By Garry Boulard Reflecting the durability of its brand, Lands’ End Incorporated has announced plans to open as many as 60 new stores between now and 2023.
The Dodgeville, Wisconsin-based retailer took a space hit last year when Sears Holdings, Incorporated announced it was closing around 200 of its stores across the country. Lands’ End, which is also known for its school uniforms, luggage, and home furnishings, rented out space in almost 180 Sears stores. But Jerome Griffith, chief executive officer of Lands’ End, has since announced that the company is poised for opening new locations, with up to six of those stores being built in stand-alone locations by early next year. Griffith’s announcement comes on the heels of an earnings report showing the retailer enjoying profits in 2017 of almost $40 million, a drastic upturn in fortunes after a 2016 loss of $94.8 million. “We will put our retail destiny firmly in our own hands as Sears continues to close locations,” Griffith recently remarked in a conference call with analysts. “Our real estate team is exploring opportunities and locations where we will have strong brand recognition, focusing on high-traffic areas and convenience,” Griffith added. Where the new stores will be either opened in an existing space or newly built remains to be announced. By Garry Boulard ![]() Turning aside two appeals opposing the project, members of the Bernalillo County Commissioners in a zoning meeting have given the green light to the building of a $15 million winery in Albuquerque’s North Valley. The project, set to go up on 11.4 acres near the Rio Grande on one side and the Sandia Lakes Recreation Area on another, will see the construction of a 32,000 square-foot wine producing facility and welcome center. Also included in the project will be an office, events center, and three structures with a combined space of more than 6,000 square feet that will be used for bed and breakfast lodging. According to county records, six of the eleven acres at the site will be used as a vineyard. Project owner is the Albuquerque-based Vara Wines, with offices at 315 Alameda Boulevard NE. Vara Wines is focused on premier wines and spirits, producing a modern adaptation of the first wine created in America nearly four centuries ago using a European grape variety. The commission’s zoning decision comes after the project won its initial approval in January with members of the Bernalillo County Planning Commission supporting a zone change for the site from A-1 to special use. By Garry Boulard |
Get stories like these right to your inbox.
|