![]() Some seven years after the City of El Paso announced its intention to build a multi-purpose arena requiring the demolition of a historic neighborhood, efforts may be underway for the building of another large project in the general area. City officials have indicated that they will soon begin a process of soliciting letters of intent to develop 18 properties that exist within the boundaries of the Duranguito neighborhood. Those properties were earlier purchased to make way for the arena project. A protracted legal battle on the part of preservationists and community activists finally led to a vote by the El Paso City Council earlier this year to consider another site for the arena. Now, members of the council have voted to sell those 18 properties, which the City purchased for $13.2 million, with the council also looking at an ordinance allowing for the building of restaurants, bed and breakfasts, and other businesses within the larger Civic Plaza area. While it may be a sticky thing, any new projects involving the eighteen Duranguito properties will not involve the demolition of the whole of Duranguito itself. A scheduled public hearing regarding the ordinance is expected to both make clear the City's intentions, while undoubtedly raising preservationist concerns that somehow Duranguito may be once again endangered. The Duranguito neighborhood is regarded by many as the birthplace of El Paso itself, with one- and two-story buildings dating to the mid-19th century. By Garry Boulard
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![]() The national hotel industry has seen a slight decline in revenue and growth, a pattern that has been in play throughout most of 2023, according to a new report. The real estate analysis service CRBE is reporting that overall hotel revenue softened during the second quarter of this year “amid tepid demand.” This weaker performance, said the report, has been driven by “more Americans electing to travel overseas at a time when inbound international travel has recovered only modestly.” Adding to the challenge: a 12.5% increase in “short-term rental demand, resurgent cruise ship bookings, and the depletion of excess consumer savings.” The revenue drop-off has seen both economy and midscale hotels hit with declines of 4.4% and 1.6% respectively. But for all of that, the report predicts that urban-based hotels remain the best poised for future growth, with revenue between now and 2027 set to increase on a 5.5% annual basis, and resort properties also poised for revenue increases. “Urban markets, such as New York, Chicago, and Washington DC, are expected to exhibit healthy growth this year and next,” the report asserts, “especially compared with markets that have already recovered, such as Charleston and Savannah.” An industry growth rate of just under 4% may well be achieved next year due primarily to “stronger inbound international travel from Asia-Pacific, as visa delays and airlines’ long-haul capacity improves, along with continued improvements in business and group travel.” Downward pressures on the market include ongoing higher interest rates as well as increased oil prices, and both the “burndown of excess savings and resumption of student loans payments.” Despite this year's rather flat occupancy numbers, the hotel industry continues to see a growth in construction projects. In a survey released several months ago, Lodging Econometrics showed that more than 1,000 new hotels were in the process of being built, representing a total of 140,300 rooms. Those figures for the early part of this year comprised a 9% increase over the construction picture for the same period of time in 2022. By Garry Boulard Long-Planned Mayo Research and Innovation Hub in Phoenix May Soon Get Final City Approval10/17/2023 ![]() The next important step in the creation of a 120-acre biotech research hub in Phoenix will be taken later this week with a vote by the Phoenix City Council. For upwards of a decade, plans have been in the works for the building of the hub, which will belong to the Rochester, Minnesota-based Mayo Clinic. The big non-profit organization, founded in 1864, has long had a presence in both Phoenix and Scottsdale. Opening the Mayo Clinic Hospital in 1987 at 5777 E. Mayo Boulevard, Mayo has also wanted to see the development of a hub that would spur research while also attracting biotech companies to set up operations in Arizona’s largest city. What is being called the Discovery Oasis Paradise Ridge health corridor and biotech research hub will go up on the north end of Phoenix on land just to the south of Loop 101, between 56th Street and 64th Street. Earlier this month, members of the Phoenix Planning Commission gave their unanimous approval to the project, sending it on to the city council. It is expected that the Discovery Oasis hub will ultimately see the construction of some 3.3 million square feet of facilities that will include an outpatient clinic, patient services, medical equipment manufacturing, and research and development space. Early plans for the project indicate a decided emphasis on sustainability practices, with the installation of a drip irrigation system designed to minimize water waste, dual glazed windows, and LED lighting throughout the campus. According to city documents, Phoenix in the last two decades has emerged as a major player in the bioscience and biotech world, with more than $4 billion in new and expanded facilities comprising upwards of 6 million square feet. By Garry Boulard ![]() Plans are moving along for the building expansion of one of the most popular museums in Arizona. Officials with the Western Spirit: Scottsdale’s Museum of the West, which is located at 3830 N. Marshall Way, are envisioning an addition to the current facility that will house two floors and two new galleries. An important step forward was taken last month with a vote by the Scottsdale City Council approving the project. The 43,000 square-foot museum, which was opened in 2015 and features exhibits exploring the state’s Western heritage, operates at the site of the former and historic Loloma Transit Station. Those exhibits include a celebration of the region’s Native American, Spanish, and Mexican settlers, along with the contributions of Americans who moved to southern Arizona from other places in the country. The mission of the museum, according to its website, is to offer “high-quality exhibitions, educational programs, and community outreach addressing regional history, particularly as reflected by the arts and dynamic cultural exchanges that have marked the transition of the Old West into the New West.” The expansion is expected to cost around $12 million to complete and will comprise nearly 11,400 square feet of new exhibition space. Project designer is the Phoenix-based Studio MA. Among the displays expected to be housed in the museum’s expansion: the extensive Eddie Basha Collection of American Indian and Western American fine art. That collection was cultivated by the late Eddie Basha, Jr., owner of Bashas’ Incorporated, a grocery store chain primarily located in Arizona. The City of Scottsdale entered into a management agreement with the museum nearly a decade ago and is expected to provide some $40,000 in city maintenance costs associated with the facility’s expansion. By Garry Boulard ![]() Lumber prices saw a modest increase in September of 1.3%, according to a new report just issued by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. While that increase shows a gradually upward trend starting in the spring of this year, it is nothing like the double-digit jumps hitting the construction industry two years ago. The softwood lumber picture has improved so much, in fact, that some sources have recently predicted that the US will soon become a net exporter of the material. That trend is by any measure historic: “The US was last a net exporter in offshore softwood lumber trade from 2009 through about 2016, when domestic market conditions were weak,” notes the site Fastmarkets. Overall building material prices have seen a less than 2% increase so far this year, says the BLS report, a tend once again comparing favorably with where things stood between 2020 and 2021, when the average increase was between 14% and 16%. The new report additionally shows a decline of 0.7% in gypsum building materials in September, marking the sixth consecutive monthly decrease, along with a 3.7% drop in steel mill products. The costs of moving materials from one place to the other have also seen an overall decline since the fall of 2022. According to a National Association of Home Builders analysis, “year to date, the prices of rail, truck, and deep-sea transportation of freight have fallen 1.5%, 7.0%, and 7.3%, respectively.” By Garry Boulard Luxury Southern Colorado Retreat Property, in Increasingly Expensive Market, Scheduled for Auction10/16/2023 ![]() A southwestern Colorado mountainside retreat near the border with New Mexico is set to go to auction later this month. Located on 35 acres adjacent to the San Juan National Forest in Pagosa Springs, the two-story, 3,600 square-foot home was built in 2019 and includes such features as an open floor plan, natural wood finishes, and lofted ceilings. The larger property site is populated with a nearly 1,800 square-foot guesthouse, just over 700 square-foot cabin, and a garage featuring a large workshop. The cabin, built in 1971, has recently been updated. Earlier listed for $4.4 million, the property now, according to a press release issued by the company Phantom Luxury Auctions, “will now be sold to the highest bidder.” The property has been listed by the Team Pagosa Realty Group, which is based in Pagosa Springs, and represents the upper end in real estate listings for retreat sites in the region. While the town of Pagosa Springs has seen a decline in its population from more than 1,700 people in 2010 to around 1,500 today, according to the latest Census figures, real estate prices, due largely to an infusion of second-home owners, have substantially increased. The average Pagosa Springs home value is now at around $544,000, up from $252,000 a decade ago, according to the site Zillow. Notes the Pagosa Daily Press: “Lower interest rates during the pandemic, combined with Paycheck Protection Program spending, made it possible for investors to purchase large numbers of single-family residential homes in the area, resulting in a “real estate market that was unnaturally torqued.” By Garry Boulard ![]() The next step in building a stadium for a popular Albuquerque soccer team has been taken with a City decision to lease the land needed for the project. As announced by Mayor Tim Keller, roughly seven acres out of the 365-acre Balloon Fiesta Park on the north end of the city will be given over to the building of a permanent home for the New Mexico United team. Noting that the site is currently underutilized, Keller said the presence of the stadium will enrich "one of our most frequented areas and provide new economic activities." He further described the project as a "significant win for our city and a potential game-changer." Officials with and fans of the New Mexico United team have long wanted to see a stadium built for the sport. In the fall of 2021, Albuquerque voters rejected a $50 million bond to fund the project. Despite that loss, the team's ownership earlier this year announced that it was still determined to build a stadium that could hold around 10,000 seats, committing some $30 million to the project. The project will be additionally supported by infrastructure improvements undertaken by the City. The team has agreed that no games will be played in the stadium during the one-week Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta, which takes place every year in October. By Garry Boulard ![]() Legislation tackling the manner in which credit card purchase fees are imposed may be taken up by Congress before the end of the year. For years, merchants have been complaining about credit card interchange fees that they are required to pay with every customer transaction. Those fees range between 1% and 3%, and are not only burdensome on the merchant but also consumers, say critics. According to the National Retail Federation, the average American family "pays an extra $1,000 annually because of the rising cost of swipe fees." Currently, Visa and Mastercard, which represent more than 80% of the nation's credit card market, process transactions through their own networks, with merchants having no choice but to accept the swipe fee imposed by the companies themselves. As proposed, the Credit Card Competition Act will require that banks provide merchants with a wider range of payment network choices in processing transactions. One of the measure's sponsors, Illinois Democrat Dick Durbin, has charged that ultimately swipe fees increase prices on a variety of products, and added: "It's time to inject real competition into the credit card network market, which is dominated by the Visa-Mastercard duopoly." In a statement, Doug Kantor, serving on the executive committee of the Merchants Payment Coalition, characterized the Credit Card Competition Act as legislation that will "lead to lower fees and better security, while helping merchants hold down prices." Opponents of the legislation, notes the site Bankrate, have said that if the bill is passed it will "result in a cutback on credit card rewards," while also raising "card security concerns." Joining in the opposition is the Electronics Payment Coalition, which has maintained that the bill will "lead to the elimination of credit card benefits that consumers and small businesses rely on, such as credit card rewards for travel, dining, gas, points, groceries, and more." The big American Bankers Association has also weighed in, saying that the legislation could well "imperil payment system security and harm community financial institutions." It is not known when the Senate may take a final vote on the Credit Card Competition Act. A vote in the House cannot proceed until the lower chamber has elected a new Speaker. By Garry Boulard ![]() An effort to reduce homelessness in Denver through the building of small neighborhood communities has been launched, with the expectation that more such communities will be created in the near future. Mayor Mike Johnston has announced that the first site in his ambitious House 1000 initiative will see housing space, a fully equipped communal kitchen, and laundry facilities built on a fenced and gated property at 2301 S. Santa Fe Drive. That site, located in a primarily industrial neighborhood around 5 miles to the south of downtown Denver, has previously been vetted by city officials regarding zoning, environmental, and public safety issues. In announcing the opening of what is being called a "micro-community," Johnston said that it and future projects of its size will "help get unhoused neighbors off the street and into safe, supportive transitional housing while also helping us close unsafe encampments." Nearly $47 million in city funds is being used to create the micro-communities, as well as purchasing and repurposing hotels that can be used for housing. The Mayor has said that he hopes to create housing for at least 1,000 currently homeless individuals in Denver by the end of this year. While the micro-communities are not envisioned as providing permanent housing, they are seen, at the very least, as a way to get homeless people off the street, with each site offering supportive services and employment assistance. According to the publication Denverite, there are currently just under 1,400 residential units across the city being developed as part of Johnston's effort. To date, the City has "acquired 195 units in a hotel and 200 micro-community units." In a press release, the City of Denver notes that "Mayor Johnston and his team will continue working to identify additional micro-community locations." The release continues: "The work will include evaluating community feedback to deliver the best solution both for unhoused Denverites and for neighbors and businesses." By Garry Boulard ![]() Work could begin in the not very distant future on two solar farms that will belong to the utility company El Paso Electric and will operate in Dona Ana and Luna counties. The farms are in addition to the one previously opened on some 140 acres near the town of Chaparral. The projects are part of a larger effort on the company’s behalf to achieve 80% carbon-free power by the year 2035, an effort that also includes the launching of a separate solar farm in Santa Teresa which is expected to be operational by next summer. And yet one more such project appears to be in the works in nearby Fabens. The company has said that with the addition of the solar farms it will, notes the publication El Paso Matters, “increasingly have an excess of power available during the day.” In trying to achieve its goal, which ultimately includes being 100% carbon-free by 2050, El Paso Electric has been turning to a mix of sources that also include batteries and gas-fired combustion turbines. Late last month, it was announced that El Paso Electric had entered into a 20-year power purchase agreement with the company EDF Renewables North America of San Diego for the Dona Ana project. Forecast to be fully operational in 2025, the Dona Ana farm is expected to produce around 470,000 megawatt hours of clean energy annually. The Luna county project near the city of Deming is also expected to be up and running in 2025 and will upon completion generate enough energy to power 38,000 homes a year. By Garry Boulard |
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