![]() Construction could begin later this year on a 210-unit apartment complex in a midtown neighborhood of Phoenix. The Dallas-based Trinsic Residential Group wants to build the four-story project on a 3.2-acre site at the southeast corner of Third Avenue and Coolidge Street. The site is located in a primarily residential area, populated with mostly one-story structures. As planned, the project will see the construction of 116 one-bedroom units, 56 two-bedroom units, and 46 studio apartments. Designed by the Phoenix-based Rich Barber Architects, the building’s exterior will feature multiple colors, with shaded upper floor balconies, and ground floor frontage treatment including storefronts, door entryways and stoops. The project’s site will include some open space, with the city requiring the preservation of at least half of the existing trees lining the perimeter of the property. Specializing in garden-style and multifamily suburban projects, Trinsic has spurred the development of multi-unit projects in Florida and Texas, as well as Arizona, including a new 251- luxury unit community soon to be completed on N. Central Avenue in Phoenix. By Garry Boulard
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![]() Albuquerque will see the building of new condo space with the redevelopment of a 121 year-old historic downtown building. Members of the Albuquerque City Council have given their approval to the sale of the Rosenwald Building, located at 320 Central Avenue SW, to a private developer interested in the property for its condo potential. Measuring 42,000 square feet, the Rosenwald Building was designed by well-known architect Henry Trost and added to the National Register of Historic Places list in 1978. Upon its completion in 1910 the Rosenwald Building was hailed as the first reinforced concrete structure in Albuquerque history. Upon the opening of the building, the Albuquerque Journal said the city had gained the “distinction of having within its boundaries the handsomest, most up-to-date, and most complete department store in the southwest.” The building was named in honor of merchants Aron and Edward Rosenwald. The building underwent a renovation in 1981, with the upper floors largely turned over to offices, and lower floor used for retail, including most recently a sandwich shop. In 2009 the City of Albuquerque purchased the structure for $1.7 million. Plans for the redevelopment of the three-floor structure include building a 1,100 square-foot Albuquerque Police Department substation, with condo space on the first and second floor. The police substation will house offices, a reception area, and kitchenette, among other features.The initial Rosenwald department store sold everything from clothing to home furnishings, and featured what was then called a “phonograph” store. The project is being designed by Albuquerque-based FBT Architects. By Garry Boulard ![]() Defying expectations, nonfarm payrolls saw an increase of 850,000 last month, according to the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics survey. That figure was significantly up over the last report, pegging national job gains at 583,000, and a substantial improvement over April of 2020, during the first full month of the pandemic, when job losses were in excess of 21 million. The national unemployment rate, meanwhile, has dropped from nearly 15% in April of last year to 5.9% today. Although that 5.9%, according to labor analysts, shows real progress, it is still more than the historic 3.5% jobless rate in February of 2020, one month before the Covid-19 outbreak. According to the BLS, the new numbers reveal particular gains in “leisure and hospitality, public and private education, professional and business services, retail trade, and other services.” The report also indicates that residential construction firms have seen their payrolls increase by more than 51,000 workers; even as the nonresidential sector declined by 7,000 workers. By Garry Boulard ![]() Plans are now underway for the construction of a 20-unit apartment project on the southeast side of Colorado Springs that will be geared for low-income seniors. The project belongs to Silver Key Senior Services, which is based on Colorado Springs, and will go up on a three-acre site off the 1600 block of S. Murray Boulevard, adjacent to the organization’s headquarters. In a statement, Jason DeaBueno, chief executive officer of Silver Key Senior Services, said his organization “understands the importance of offering affordable quality housing to seniors in our community and is currently working to expand options in the future by adding housing as a service pillar.” As currently planned, the U-shaped apartment complex with have three floors, with up to 70% of the units set aside for residents having incomes at 30% or less of the area’s median household income. The remaining units would go for tenants earning between 40% and 60% of the area’s median income. Silver Key Senior Services was founded in 1970. Through the years it has offered everything from transportation services to nutritional food assistance and medical equipment to the seniors of Colorado Springs and larger El Paso County. It is thought that the organization has provided services for up to half a million seniors and their families in the last five decades. An earlier cost estimate for the project, which at the time called for 70 units, came in at $12 million. Plans for the new project are expected to be finalized by the end of this year, or early in 2022. By Garry Boulard ![]() A school in Santa Fe for the academically gifted may move into brand new quarters, depending upon the fate of a general obligation bond this fall. Launched seven years ago, the Mandela International Magnet School is currently located inside the more than 50 year-old Larragoite Elementary School at 1604 Agua Fria Street. School district officials have long wanted to build an entirely new facility for a growing program that attracts up to 275 students a year. Although the one-story Larragoite building has been the subject of several upgrades in recent years, it is thought that it would be more economically viable to build an entirely new school, a project with an estimated $22.5 million price tag. As planned, the new school would go up at the Agua Fria Street location. The Mandela project will be one of several school facility construction and renovation efforts that will be funded by the proposed $100 million general obligation bond. The Mandela school is based on the International Baccalaureate model, which offers accelerated learning programs with an emphasis on global learning. The concept was launched six decades ago by the London-based United World College. South African President Nelson Mandela served in the mid-1990s as an honorary president of the college. By Garry Boulard ![]() An index appraising office investment opportunities and general economic development conditions in nearly two dozen U.S. cities, has given high marks to both Denver and Phoenix. Published by Newmark Group, Incorporated, the Newmark Opportunity Index notes that, on a national scale, the country’s industrial market in the last year “fared better than any other sector during the pandemic, with demand and rents for industrial space on the rise, and an uptick in industrial sales volume.” At the same time, the survey notes that office vacancy rates jumped from 13% in early 2020 to nearly 16%, “resulting in many asset owners offering substantial concessions, thereby reducing effective rents.” Of Denver, the report accompanying the survey, notes that the city’s “industrial leasing market ranked in the bottom half of the pack with tepid absorption and rising vacancy.” At the same time, “real estate assets in growing secondary markets like Denver have been attractive to investors, as evidenced by its #3 ranking among capital markets metrics.” The report additionally posits that “strong prospects for continued economic and population growth will make Denver a continued target for investment dollars, particularly in the multifamily space.” Overall, the index gave Denver a 12 ranking out of a possible 22 for investment opportunities. Newmark is more bullish on Phoenix, giving it a 4 ranking, and noting that despite an increase in office vacancies and decline in rents, the city was “one of the areas least impacted by pandemic restrictions,” predicating a “quicker economic recovery.” Noting that Phoenix is substantially outperforming other Sunbelt markets, Newmark predicts that the city is “likely to continue experiencing economic growth and will remain a target for investors.” Based in New York, the Newmark Group is regarded as one of the largest commercial real estate advisory firms in the country. By Garry Boulard Five new office buildings, equaling 2.7 million square feet, are planned for construction in Goodyear, Arizona with first phase work beginning at the end of the year.
What will be a combination office and warehouse park called the Airpark Logistic Center, located along Yuma Road and Bullard Avenue, will see individual structures ranging in size from just over 320,000 square feet to more than 730,000 square feet. Master developer of the project is LGE Design Build of Phoenix, which is dividing some 170 acres at the site into five industrial lots for the project. Those lots will measure from just under 22 acres to just over 47 acres. The individual buildings, meanwhile, will include structures measuring 458,000 square feet; 576,000 square feet; and 662,000 square feet. A selling point for the project is its location near the Phoenix Goodyear Airport, some 4 miles to the east. The proposed Airpark Logistic Center is currently being reviewed by the City of Goodyear. Last month members of the Goodyear City Council approved a preliminary plat for the project. According to city documents, existing median trees and plants on South Bullard Avenue, on the eastern side of the site, will be relocated by Airpark Logistic Center to other city property. By Garry Boulard ![]() Plan have been revealed for the construction of a joint police and fire department training academy in El Paso. What is expected to be a $79.1 million project will go up on open space in the city’s North Hills, just off Martin Luther King Boulevard and at the end of Officer Andrew Barcena Drive. With the overall site measuring around 1,400 acres, it is thought that the new academy will comprise anywhere from 50 to 100 acres, with the unused land serving as a noise and view buffer for North Hills residents. According to city documents, the project, which will also include a new headquarters for the El Paso Fire Department, will enter the design phase later this year, with construction expected to begin next July. The facility will house an indoor shooting range, classrooms, a simulation room, auditorium, gymnasium, swift water rescue pool, and mock courtroom, among other amenities. The exterior of the structure will feature fire training props and an emergency vehicle training area. Funding for the Police and Fire Joint Training facility was overwhelmingly approved by El Paso voters in the fall of 2019 as part of a larger $413 million public safety bond. If all goes as planned, work on the new facility will see completion in January of 2024. By Garry Boulard ![]() In a 33 to 24 vote, members of the House Appropriations Committee have approved a massive bill that will provide nearly $11 billion for military base construction projects across the country. Just over $1.4 billion in the legislation is set for family housing initiatives designed to fund lead, mold, and vermin remediation projects in military family housing. At least $213 million will go for the construction of child development centers, facilities that serve the children of active duty service members worldwide. Just under $850 million is set to target the construction and/or upgrades to National Guard facilities, an increase of $179 million over last year’s budget, while another $149.8 million will be used to complete various base construction projects already underway. Overall, the fiscal year 2022 Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies bill has a $279.9 billion price tag, a 10% increase over fiscal year 2021’s budget. In a statement, Rosa DeLauro, chairperson of the Appropriations Committee, said the legislation “focuses on the areas vital to our veterans and their families that make daily sacrifices in service of our country.” By Garry Boulard ![]() Plans are in the discussion stage for improvements to one of Denver’s largest and most historic public spaces. Serving as a kind of intricate courtyard for its location - connecting it with the Colorado State Capitol and a number of government office buildings as well as the city’s historic Capitol Hill neighborhood - the 2 square-block Civic Central Park was opened in 1919 and named a National Historic Landmark in 1974. Now Denver officials want to upgrade a space that annually attracts up to one million visitors a year. In so doing, the city has hosted public input meetings to gather information on how the park can best serve the many people who use it. That public input for what is called Civic Center Next 100 has put an emphasis on respecting the historic character of the space, while also wanting the park to become more of an everyday destination site for area residents. In response, the city has devised a series of planning concepts for four specific parts of the park: a revitalization of the 100 year-old Greek Amphitheater; the beautification of the park’s Central Promenade; an upgrading of the McNichols Civic Center Building; and a transformation of the Bannock Street stretch of the park between Colfax Avenue and 14th Avenue into a permanent pedestrian plaza. Plans are also underway for a newly designed park central promenade. The final concept layout for the project is expected to be completed and revealed to the public this fall. Funding for the Civic Central Park upgrade project is partially coming through the Elevate Denver Bond Program, a $937 million initiative approved by Denver voters in 2017. By Garry Boulard |
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