The visionary concept for creating a new Downtown Marana and Marana Main Street, took a step closer to reality for the Town of Marana recently when Marana purchased 42.93 acres of land for $1.6 million ($0.86 PSF) from Reyher Partnership of San Diego, CA. The property is located on both sides of Marana Main Street between Grier Road and Civic Center Drive. Downtown Marana is often discussed as an opportunity to create a “heart and soul” for the town that would tie the greater Marana community together. Challenges to building a new downtown include four separate and distinct entitlements and different owners with each having their own vision of what Marana Main Street should be. One of these owners, Reyher Partners selling its interest will help bring the scope of Marana Main Street together.

The heart of Marana historically was where regional farmers came together to share information and sell goods. It provided a sense of community within a vast agricultural area. Establishing and capturing a strong sense of place is again believed critical for Marana residents as well as for visitors. The municipal complex and health center are the first major investments in Downtown Marana. Major infrastructure upgrades are needed and improved access from I-10 must be developed and include Civic Center Drive from Barnett Road to N. Marana Main Street which will terminate at Tangerine Farms Road.

The area has multiple landowners who will play an important role in the implementation of the vision for Downtown Marana. Successful downtowns need more than infrastructure, they need people. The Downtown Activity Center will include a strong residential component that will create 24/7 activity that will help local businesses succeed. It is anticipated that the activities and establishments in this Activity Center will support the Tourism and Visitor Experience target industry. Downtown Marana as currently envisioned is a large Activity Center, identified as part of the Council-approved Single Central Business District. This area can include a variety of development areas tied together with unifying design features and a multimodal transportation network that might include a trolley or other form of transit and pedestrian system. Comprehensive planning and creative techniques will need to be employed to achieve “walk-ability” and a unified design theme.

According to the Town of Marana’s website, “the entitlements are administered through four separate specific plans, each with its own development regulations and conceptual development plan. The common theme among these plans is the right-of-way alignment, the public pedestrian spaces and conceptual building layout fronting the pedestrian spaces. The downtown area is intended to reflect the main street character found in many communities with retail uses on the ground level and residential and office uses allowed on the upper levels. The buildings would be situated on the front lot line allowing for a seamless transition from the pedestrian to the built environment. Tree lined streets, casual seating areas, sidewalk cafes and small park-like amenities help create the desired look and feel.”

Marana is starting to see development interest in some of these areas and realizes that this is an opportunity to look at these four distinct planning areas comprehensively.

Three new business parks are opening in the area of I-10 and Tangerine Road with two important businesses committed to space. On the west side of the freeway, construction has begun on a new facility for Ventana Medical Systems, which will be part of the Tangerine Commerce Park. To the east of I-10, near Trico Electric, will be both Marana Technology Campus and Marana Business Park, with Towers International going into this area

For additional information on this sale see RED Comp #3085. For details on Marana Downtown District see Downtown Marana Activity Center.

Southwest Appraisal Associates (SAA) of Tucson (Steven Cole, MAI, principal) has completed construction on its new office building at 6019 E Grant Road in Tucson. Built on the last remaining lot in Old Farm Executive Park that was purchased in May 2014 by Steven Cole for $43,000 ($14 PSF) intended for construction of a new 2,100-square-foot office building. The Spanish Colonial style building is located adjacent to SAA’s former office at 6021-6023 E Grant Road.

SAA has been in business since 1982 providing real estate appraisal and consultation services to clients in Tucson and all other areas of Arizona, except Maricopa County. Assignments in all aspects of the real estate appraisal field have been completed by the firm. These include commercial, shopping centers, office buildings, airport properties, medical buildings, single-family and multi-family residential, restaurants, special purpose properties and vacant land.

The firm also specializes in absorption studies, feasibility studies, and marketability studies. SAA has completed multiple assignments for government agencies such as Arizona Department of Transportation, Pima County and the City of Tucson. This includes condemnation and right-of-way appraisals.

Venture West of Tucson was contractor for the new construction and completed the project in three months and one week to the day.

One week after SAA moved into its new building, it closed on its former office building at 6021-6023 E Grant Road for $312,000 ($128 PSF). The buyer, Vel Associates, LLC (Naren Velu, manager) will also be an owner user of the property as a software development firm.

Doug Marsh with Oxford Realty Advisors of Tucson represented the buyer, Vel Associates. Gary Best with Keller Williams Southern Arizona represented the seller and Steven Cole on the purchase of the lot at 6019 E Grant.

To learn more Best can be reached at 520.444.0799 and Marsh is at 520.232.0200. Cole at Southwest Appraisal Associates can be contacted at 520.327.0000.

For additional information, login to reference RED Comp #1950 and #2996.

Watermark Hacienda Sisters Investments, LLC, bought 10.15 acres of land from The Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary for $3.75 million ($8.48 PSF). The property was a portion of St. Anne’s Convent and sold for construction of the Hacienda Sisters Retirement Community Phase I. The property is located on Sabino Canyon Road, north of Cloud, at the southeast corner of Flaming Sky Dr and Sabino Canyon.

The project will entail several “communities within a community.” For example, one community will be comprised of residents of the casita homes, targeted to younger retirees (65+).  Casita residents will have access to all common areas of the community, including the dining venues in the independent living common and the wellness center and its dining venue, and other common areas. It is likely these residents will utilize the programs and spaces in the wellness center more often than the residents of the independent living apartments or assisted living.

The Independent Living accommodations will be configured for 150 residents in three-story buildings radiating from a common area building. The residences will include one- and two-bedroom apartments ranging in size from approximately 800-square-feet to over 1,300-square-feet and are designed to attract the “typical” resident of continuing care retirement communities (“CCRC”).

Assisted Living neighborhood will provide 64 studio and one-bedroom accommodations for residents requiring assistance with daily activities such as bathing, medication administration, dressing, etc.  The assisted living component will include a dining room, activity rooms, library, crafts room, and a small home theater.

One large home, designed to accommodate approximately 36 residents, will house the program for residents suffering from dementia. The staff in each Villa is cross-trained in all aspects of caring for the residents.  The caregivers, called Niyas, cook, clean, provide activities and all of the care for the residents of the Villas.  This program, based loosely on the Greenhouse Concept, has proven to be a very effective care delivery model.  The home-like setting allows residents afflicted with Alzheimer’s Disease to adapt and flourish more easily.

The Watermark team is proud to have selected one of the nation’s most innovative and prestigious design firms to head up the architectural design and planning for the community. Allen + Philp, based in Scottsdale, Arizona will be the lead architect.  Allen + Philps has, for more than four decades, upheld a clear mission that matches perfectly with the vision for this community: To provide great design that improves the human condition. In addition to Allen + Philp’s direct experience in designing world class continuing care retirement communities, it also has extensive experience in designing hotels and resorts around the world.  This experience is perhaps more important than their senior housing experience in that Watermark wants to create an experience for the community’s residents. It is Allen + Philp’s creative ideas and enthusiasm for the project that convinced Watermark that they were the best choice for this community.

Groundbreaking for the project is scheduled for May 2016 and opening about 16 months thereafter, in Fall 2017. Leasing  will begin at groundbreaking. Watermark recently acquired Fountains at La Cholla in a $640 Million in a 15 property portfolio sale in 11 states. See full story here  https://realestatedaily-news.com/fountains-la-cholla-sells-69-9m-640m-portfolio/

For additional information see RED Comp #2949.