Showing posts with label New Urban Mesa. Show all posts
Showing posts with label New Urban Mesa. Show all posts

Wednesday, May 06, 2015

Republica Empanada: An Extraordinary Property in New Urban Downtown Mesa gets recognized by the City

Press Release from the City of Mesa Newsroom
05/05/2015 8:52 AM
You can read the entire release here: http://www.mesaaz.gov/Home/Components/News/News/199/ 

While The City of Mesa’s Extraordinary Properties Campaign has recognized three commercial property owners who exceed design standards, there is one on the list that brings "simple urban industrial chic" design to downtown that was done by the owner Marco Meraz with friends and family doing much of the work during a two-year renovation.
The mid-century architecture is a unique contrast to the brick and stucco rows showcased along Main Street. Its location at the northeast corner of Hibbbert & First Avenue adjoins a thriving urban community garden providing a hands-on greenspace where residents can plant and grow their own foodMesa Urban Garden
This Pan-Latin bistro,specializing in Arizona's largest variety of South American style savory empanadas, adds international flavors for both residents and visitors alike The menu offerings represent the different regions and tastes of Latin American comfort food.

Hmmm ... what early-day pioneer back in 1878 could ever have imagined in  their wildest plans that Mesa would be the location in Arizona for the largest variety of South American-style savory empanadas?

The restaurant has seating and service both inside and outside - you can see images taken by the photographer Ivan Martinez by going to RE's website. Local place with international flavors.

In plugging new urban downtown businesses like I do all the time, whether it's retail, services, education, arts-and-entertainment, recreation, or foods & drinks & eats, you gotta taste some of the whopping local, domestic and international 18 beers here from Tempe, Chandler, Phoenix, Maui Hawaii, Cali, Oregon, Colorado, France, Mexico, Nicaragua and Costa Rica. Wines are stocked from Argentina, Chile, Spain, Italy and Mexico. 

While the City of Mesa recognizes the architecture of commercial properties, MesaZona blog recognizes the accomplishment of an owner and his friends and family bringing different tastes and flavors to downtown. 
Mesa may be conservative in its politics, but there's no doubt it enjoys diversity in the menus offered on/off Main Street.

Monday, April 06, 2015

Q2 2015 Economic Development Report

The City of Mesa Office of Economic Development has just released an eight-page quarterly newsletter for Q2 of this year.

Some of the investment and expansion initiatives highlighted in the report are:  
See the whole newsletter after clicking on Read More

+ Morphing of vacant-in-2014 retail giant Macy's Fiesta Mall location into an office center for 1,300 employees to be developed by Verde Fiesta I LLC. It didn't take long for the city to plan and to regenerate a vacancy that was ripe for development - and find a developer .Construction of the remodel is scheduled to begin in Fall 2015.
Old shopping malls are regenerated into corporate campuses.

+ A $25 million dollar manufacturing expansion is planned at one of two AeroTropolis inside
the Mesa Micropolitan Area at the Mesa Falcon Field Economic Activity Area (FFEAA). The company, SDI, manufacturer of initiators used in the production of airbag inflators, broke ground last month on a 64,000 sq. ft. expansion of its facilities and acquired an additional 19.6 acres adjacent to its existing facility - Anybody else curious for what developments those extra 19.6 acres will be dedicated to??
An old World War II-era training site is regenerated into an AeroTropolis as an economic engine. Mesa has not just one but two!  EXCELLENCE IN AEROSPACE Click on Plaque

AEROTROPOLIS: 
"One of the ten ideas that will change the world "
                                             -Time Magazine 2011  


According to what's said on this 2008 plaque mounted on the City Hall Plaza Heritage Wall, in 2011 over 100 companies adjacent to Mesa's two "airports" employed more than 10,000 high valued jobs.  Now, just four years later, the two Aerotropolis in Mesa are propelling the growth of more than just jobs . . . stay tuned-in for a look at a report here on MesaZona blog
 

WaPo FRONT PAGE HEADLINE: The AI boom is so huge it’s causing shortages everywhere else

The hundreds of billions of dollars being spent by tech companies on AI projects are diverting resources from other parts of the economy. ...