Another Big Weekend in DTMesa Between Black Friday and Cyber Monday

The BIG WE [that catchy phrase from Natalie Lewis in the City Manager's office]  is all-hands-on in a public relations campaign regenerating The New Urban DT Mesa.          Public and private partnership forces are re-turning and targeting their interests to the heart and central core of Main Street. Make your mark and plan your time to be here.    Read more >>

Right Out-of-the-Box Today : The Merry Main Street Winter Holiday Tree



Many hands - and two hydraulic lift trucks -  are right at work now unpacking, assembling, and lifting the pieces of a totally wired and decorated artificial tree into place, rising  today on the SE corner of Macdonald & Main Streets on the west side of The Bank of America Building.

Comments are welcome from readers on the choice of an artificial tree - "a one-time investment" - here in The New Urban Downtown Mesa, a living green city.
[anybody wanna make a bet if it's Made in China?]

Central Mesa Hot-Spot @ Baseline & Val Vista Drive?

 



Yours truly is "hot" to promote and highlight investments and developments in Mesa all over the place with a focus on The New Urban Downtown Mesa - that is central on this BlogSpot.
Arizona Republic's reporter Maria Polletta published an article today about south-central Mesa
Central Mesa emerging as development hotspot
Proposed projects range from small-scale infill developments and academic facilities to lavish housing complexes — all welcome in District 2, a sector oft overlooked in favor of downtown's storied history or the Phoenix-Mesa Gateway area's tech-heavy allure.

Image from mesaaz.gov

Let's - for the sake of engaging readers - start with being open and transparent.
The reporter takes more than a few clues from Mesa City Council member Alex Finter who represents District 2 generally bounded by Baseline, Gilbert, Brown, and Power Roads.
[Image shown at left is from his webpage on the official City of Mesa website.] 
He served as Mesa’s Mayor until September 18, 2014, when he resumed his role as the District 2 Councilmember. Finter’s term on Council runs until January of 2017.
In the private-sector, Finter is a businessman and partner at Worldwide Investments LLC., a domestic LLC registered in Graham County - not here in Maricopa County - dealing in agricultural lands in Mesa and Australia.
http://www.mesaaz.gov/city-hall/mayor-council/councilmember-alex-finter

City Councilmember Alex Finter pointed to chic shopping center Dana Park Village Square, the future Gilbert Road light rail extension and a blossoming rental market for young professionals as catalysts.

He is directly quoted saying: "These [development] folks are smart . . . they don't spend $100 million here, $25 million there, unless the support is going to be there".
It's a parallel universe of BIG MONEY who want to invest in real estate.
So, readers might wonder how that support - it boils down to a change in the City of Mesa's General Plan - is going to get "there"? . . . no doubt it helps to point out certain proposed actions to the media who in a perfect world are fair and balanced.
The article starts with "Enviable demographics and a few key amenities have helped south-central Mesa quietly catch the eyes of deep-pocketed developers, prompting a recent surge of investment that will likely top $200 million . . . Some of the sites in question have been vacant for decades, and there are plenty of others that could benefit from some TLC . . ."
Huh?? Tender Loving Care from "deep-pocketed developers" -that would be refreshing.
The article goes on to feature "some of the bigger-ticket items" [identified to the reporter] that are or could be on the way - readers will please notice the choice of words taking note that it's one thing to cite an example of a real estate  development success [Dana Park and adjacent "green apartments"] and another thing to advocate for a real estate development proposal [the Mark Taylor "posh apartments"] whose progress will depend on approval of an amendment and change in the General Plan for the City of Mesa to convert 21.85 acres from employment to mixed-use activity.
No mention of the pending public hearing on December 1, 2015 to approve/disapprove a significant change in the city's General Plan was made in the Arizona Republic report on Monday, November 23, 2015 @ 06:02 a.m.
Two days later - yesterday -
What does this change, if approved - it's not a small matter to amend the city's General Plan and must be done in a public hearing with The City Council whose members will vote on the issue after public discussion in favor or against it - mean?
A PUBLIC HEARING
In the example of Dana Park it's always been a highly-admired and successful suburban shopping center right on the borderline with the City of Gilbert that has one of the highest per-capita incomes in Arizona [location and demographics]. It has never been short on "amenities". Whitestone REIT is a real estate investment trust taking the 63-year old concept of shopping malls to the next level.
READERS PLEASE NOTE: The article does a great job covering all the council districts in Mesa in KNOW YOUR MESA DISTRICTS

 

MISS PIGGY: Official Diva for Small Business Saturday | American Express

And now for a très importante message from the fabulous Miss Piggy, official diva of Small Business Saturday®.
#SmallBizSat is Nov 28. Get up, get out, and #ShopSmall.
AND HERE A LOCAL DTMESA OFFICIAL NEWS RELEASE from Cori Garcia, Communications & Marketing Manager @ Downtown Merchants Association . . . [she's not a diva]

For Immediate Release 

November 19, 2015

2nd Annual Small Business Saturday Indie Fest in Downtown Mesa

Downtown Mesa embraces and celebrates the fact that a majority of it's businesses are locally and independently owned. Support the mom and pops and other small businesses from around the valley at the 2nd Annual Indie Fest, on Small Business Saturday, November 28th from 11am to 5pm. In addition to 50+ Main Street businesses opening their doors and offering specials, over 75 small businesses from across the valley will be participating in a vendor fair, accompanied by live music, art demonstrations and lots of prizes to be given away! Spend $35 at brick and mortar downtown businesses and redeem $5 in Downtown Dollars. 

Did you know that for every $100 spent at an independently owned business, $73 goes back to the local economy, versus only $42 when spending at a chain? Support your community by shopping small this holiday season. 

Another benefit to shopping downtown this season – any purchase at a participating business grants customers a $2 off coupon for the new ice skating rink at City Plaza! Be sure to check out all the Merry Main events at www.merrymainst.com.

For more Indie Fest information please visit https://www.facebook.com/events/511132042378871/. 

Cori Garcia

Marketing and Communications Manager

Downtown Mesa Association 501 c(6)
Ultimate Imaginations Inc. 501 c(3)
p 480.890.2613

c 619.980.2674

Cori@DowntownMesa.com 

www.DowntownMesa.com 

All-New Residential Treatment Program @ River Source on 2nd Avenue



According to a press release
Mesa, AZ (PRWEB) October 29, 2015.
One of Arizona’s leading drug and alcohol addiction recovery centers, The River Source, has announced the creation of an all-new residential treatment program that specifically caters to women. The new program will be located in downtown Mesa, Arizona, the third-largest city in the state.

In addition to integrative medical detox and holistic therapy services, the new program for women 18 years and older will include accommodations for pregnant mothers, as well as couples treatment and family therapy sessions. The women-only compound in Mesa features such amenities as a yoga ramada, dry sauna, basketball hoop, outdoor fire pit, lounge area with television, quiet seating areas and beautiful desert landscaping.

“We chose the Mesa location because of its year-round warm weather, sunny skies and great views of the nearby mountains,” Westbrooks said. “Hiking excursions will be offered as part of our holistic therapy services, since exercise is a key component of healing and recovery."

The River Source accepts clients who live in Arizona and all over the nation, offering customized recovery plans and the ability to treat co-occurring disorders. Located roughly 20 minutes from Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, the new women’s program will house clients for up to 90 days. The River Source also offers a recovery guarantee, meaning if any client completes 90 consecutive days of inpatient treatment or the Full Continuum of Care and relapses within one year, they can return to The River Source for additional treatment free of charge.

See This > Live Action/Time-Lapse Video: Creative Place Making

Jesse Perry @ MrDowntownPhx does The New Urban DTMesa BIG TIME in a self-produced You Tube upload. He told your MesaZona blogger about it late-day yesterday.
[More background details to follow, with thanks to Cori Garcia, Communications & Marketing Manager for Downtown Mesa]

Completed Mural in Downtown Mesa right off the light rail on the Surf and Ski shop at 137 w Main St. Dedicated to the destroyed signs of historic mesa, this image is a compilation of two vintage neon signs of the Chicken & Waffles Marquee Drive-in the was once along Main Street in Mesa, AZ. Wall is done in spray paint and measures 14' wide by 9' high.

• Category People & Blogs

LISC Phoenix 2015 Annual Celebration & Awards Event

Yours truly took up the invitation from Terry Benelli [posted on this site 30 Sept 2015], Executive Director of Local Initiatives for Sustainable Communities LISC/Phoenix, for yesterday's well-attended breakfast at The Phoenix Art Museum presented by BBVA Compass with featured guest John Graham, President of Sunbelt Holdings, in an interview with Mark Sapp.
The program was opened by Bryce Lloyd with opening remarks by Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton and Brad Parker, BBVA Compass.

The Awards Program featured exemplary citations for
- The Caterpillar Foundation's partnership and commitment to neighborhood revitalization. This is the first time the foundation has invested in the Phoenix area where LISC will use that investment to help expand employment and financial security for low-income families, as well as to turn blighted land into vibrant community space that adds value to the surrounding area.

Michael Trailor, in the image to left, for six years Director of the Arizona Department of Housing, exemplary advocate to understand housing issues and targeting resources and joining with other community leaders in an effort to end homelessness and build more sustainable communities
- Cloubreak Communities Victory Place 5-acre development that supports and creates transitional and permanent supportive housing for vets.
It's a four-phase project that will provide 273 residential units in a campus dedicated to both veterans' housing and service partners US VETS, Community Bridges, AZ Behavioral Health Corps, Phoenix VA, and Bethesda Community Baptist Church.

Due to limitations of space and time and high-tech equipment, your blogger will leave it to the able LISC video staff for a more complete professional presentation of the annual celebration and awards event with details of what said when the program started exactly on time @ 08:55 a.m. closing at 09:50 with Terry Benelli acknowledging thanks to LISC's community leaders and partners, community developer sponsors, community builder sponsors, and community planner sponsors.
The big roster includes BBVA Compass, AZ Community Foundation, Banks Nordstrom, State Farm, JP Morgan Chase, National Bank of Arizona, BMO Harris Bank, Northern Trust, Bank of America, US Bank, Alliance Bank of Arizona, AmTrust Bank, Cardinal Cap Management, and Wells Fargo.
27 Community Sponsors are featured in the awards program, among them the cities of Phoenix, Mesa and Tempe, Valley Metro, Friends of Transit, Gorman & Company [who built Escobedo @ Verde Vista here in DT Mesa], Community Development Partners + Perlman Architects who built El Rancho del Arte, Urban Development Partners with both Charles Huellmantel and Todd Marshall who built Encore on First in attendance.

Keep an eye out for a transcript and video of the whole interview with John Graham, seen in the image to the left.
To be brief and get to the point, recently Sunbelt Holdings has diversified away from suburban into new urban downtown infill development, currently on Marina Heights in Tempe and Portland Place in central downtown Phoenix - both transit-oriented along Valley Metro Light Rail.

There's plenty of potential for new urban DTMesa infill development - or as Mesa mayor John Giles puts it "20 acres of vacant City-owned properties" that can be connected to city-owned utilities - most notably the centrally-located on Main Street whole square block where Brown & Brown Chevrolet operated an autodealership for 85 years purchased a short time ago by John Graham and Sunbelt Holdings, who will be joining the other developers mentioned here investing and planning Mesa's future.
Site 17, part of where Rendezvous Park was the center of city life, remains the biggest piece of vacant real estate in the central urban core regeneration puzzle, after being demolished and cleared for a time-share development that didn't happen.


Plans for Phase 2 of Rancho del Arte were on view at yesterday's event