Marks Graycor’s second Mesa, Arizona industrial project for Metro Commercial Properties

PHOENIX, Arizona – Graycor Construction Company has completed the panel tilt on East Valley Commerce Center Phase II, a two-building, 363,000-square-foot industrial project being developed by Metro Commercial Properties in the heart of Mesa’s US 60 corridor and captured on drone video as the property begins vertical construction.

The project follows the completion and lease-up of East Valley Commerce Center Phase I, a nearby, 340,000-square-foot industrial project built by Graycor for Metro Commercial Properties in response to the area’s growing demand for mid-size, Class A industrial space.

Phase I achieved stabilization in May 2018 with the expansion of Times Microwave Systems.

“Manufacturing and aerospace are just a few of the booming business sectors in the Southeast Valley,” said Todd Ostransky, Graycor Construction Company Vice President of the Southwest Division. “Collectively, they’ve created a surge in demand for modern, flexible buildings that can accommodate everything from light manufacturing and assembly to sales and distribution. Metro designed East Valley Commerce Center to fulfill that need, making the project a welcome addition to the market.”

“We continue to see a strong demand for industrial space across the entire Phoenix market,” said Metro Commercial Properties Principal and COO Ryan Foley. “We’ve also experienced significant early interest in East Valley Commerce Center Phase II which offers premium industrial space on a great site that is hard to come by these days.”

East Valley Commerce Center Phase II is located on 21 acres at the southwest corner of Auto Center Drive and Horne Street, one mile east of Mesa Drive and less than one mile from the US 60 Superstition Freeway full-diamond interchanges at Mesa and Stapley drives.

At completion – slated for June 2019 – Phase II will total 363,000 square feet in two concrete tilt-up industrial buildings. Both buildings will offer space to accommodate office, warehouse, manufacturing and light industrial uses, with amenities that include a 32’ clear height and 42 loading doors per building, consisting of 32 direct truck well doors and 10 grade-level doors each.

Scottsdale-based McCall & Associates is the project architect for East Valley Commerce Center Phase II. Chris McClurg, Ken McQueen and Kurt Saulnier at Lee & Associates are the project’s exclusive leasing brokers.

Graycor represents 98 years of building experience and employs more than 1,500 construction experts. Locally, the Graycor legacy extends over more than three decades, with a portfolio that includes Prologis Park Riverside, Liberty Logistics Center II, 10 West Logistics Center (Phase I awarded Best of NAIOP AZ Spec Industrial Project of the Year), Gilbert Spectrum Business Park, East Valley Commerce Center, Chandler Airport Center, AMC Esplanade Fork and Screen Conversion, Buckeye Logistics Center, Camelback Collective, JW Marriott Hotels & Resorts Camelback Inn Renovation, Salvation Army Southwest Divisional Headquarters and women’s shelter, FedEx Chandler Sorting and Distribution Center, Home Depot Distribution Center, Mountain Vista Medical Office Building, and Sunrise Assisted Living of Chandler. Tenant improvement and interior deliveries include Davis at Hayden Ferry Lakeside, StitchFix.com, InEight Hard Dollar and Southland Engineering at Papago Buttes, which was named among the Top 10 Offices in Arizona by AZRE Magazine.

Wilson replaces Maria Felix, who retires after more than 13 years on bench

PIMA COUNTY – The Pima County Board of Supervisors voted 4-1 on Tuesday, March 5 to appoint Kendrick Wilson to Justice of the Peace for Precinct 9.

Wilson most recently served as a prosecutor for the Pascua Yaqui Tribe. Prior to that, Wilson was a deputy county attorney with the Pima County Attorney’s Office.

Through his work with the Pascua Yaqui Tribe, Wilson won the tribal nation’s first jury trial conviction of a non-tribal member in 2017. The prosecution was the result of changes made to U.S. laws under the Violence Against Women Act. Prior to the changes, non-Native Americans were not subject to criminal prosecutions in tribal courts.

The Pascua Yaqui Tribe in 2013 was one of three tribal nations in the county to first be awarded special domestic-violence criminal jurisdiction. The recognition allows the prosecution of non-Native Americans when accused of domestic violence against tribal members on tribal lands, according to reporting in the Arizona Daily Star.

Wilson replaces Justice of the Peace Maria Felix, who retired after serving on the Pima County Justice Court bench since 2005. In 2012, Wilson worked with Felix in creating the Animal Welfare Court at Pima County Superior Court, which hears misdemeanor cases involving animal issues.

Wilson graduated from Georgetown University Law School. He was admitted to the Arizona State Bar Association in 2008.

The second of eight planned Class A office buildings at The Grand nears completion

TEMPE, Arizona – Lincoln Property Company (LPC) has officially poured the top floor of The Grand at Papago Park Center 2, bringing the building to the “topped out” stage and ushering in its final phase of construction. Grand 2 is the second of eight planned LPC-built, Class A office buildings at The Grand at Papago Park Center. The company delivered the first office building at The Grand in early 2018. That building is now fully occupied.  

LPC joined with project architect DAVIS, general contractor Whiting-Turner and other major subcontractors to commemorate the benchmark.  

“Grand 2 was designed and constructed by a stellar team, and the final product will reflect that expertise and attention to detail,” said Lincoln Property Company Vice President of Development and Construction Management Doug Klocke. “We look forward to delivering a building that passes on so many benefits to its future tenants.” 

Located at 1027 W. Roosevelt Way in Tempe, Arizona – just north of downtown Tempe and only minutes from Sky Harbor International Airport – the 352,000-square-foot Grand 2 sits in a submarket enjoying a historically low, sub-2 percent vacancy rate and a pipeline of companies who are still actively seeking new space.  

When completed in June, Grand 2 will deliver a collaborative office building that truly leads the market, with features such as 12-foot floor-to-ceiling vision glass windows and timeless contemporary furnishings. The building’s two-story lobby is accented with natural wood ceilings and joins seamlessly with a 12,000-square-foot, first-floor amenity lounge providing a full-service restaurant, TV viewing area and conference facilities with full AV technology and able to adjust to a range of group sizes.  

Tenants at Grand 2 will have access to a private fitness facility with premier Peloton equipment and a rooftop lounge complete with seating areas, an architectural shade element, catering conveniences for corporate events and sweeping views of the Papago Buttes, Hole in the Rock and Camelback Mountain.

“Grand 2 is another of our highly visible and remarkable Valley of the Sun projects,” said DAVIS Founder and CEO Mike Davis. “We were inspired by its vibrant location along the Loop 202/Red Mountain Freeway, its proximity to Arizona State University and the energy of Papago Park Center. This office space anchors the mixed-use development and is destined to become a Tempe showcase.”

LPC serves as the property manager for all office space at The Grand at Papago Park Center. Jerry Roberts and Patrick Boyle of Cushman & Wakefield are the project’s exclusive leasing brokers.

Grand 2 is part of 1.8 million square feet of Class A office space being developed by LPC at The Grand at Papago Park Center, a 60-acre mixed-use development that at build out will total 3.2 million square feet of office, multifamily, hotel, retail and restaurant destinations surrounding a dynamic central water feature.

The project has approximately one-half mile of freeway frontage on the Loop 202/Red Mountain Freeway between Priest Road and Center Parkway, on the last developable parcel within the 350-acre Papago Park Center, one of Arizona’s largest business parks. It is also served by two light rail stops and two Loop 202 freeway full-diamond interchanges. Its ingress and egress plan can reduce commute times by as much as 30 percent compared to more congested, nearby office projects.

The Grand at Papago Park Center is minutes from Arizona State University, the amenities of downtown Tempe and nearby attractions including Papago Park, Papago Golf Course, Phoenix Zoo, Desert Botanical Garden, Tempe Town Lake and Phoenix Municipal Stadium. Corporate neighbors include ADP, First Solar, KPMG, MUFG, SAP, Silicon Valley Bank, SRP, State Farm and Wells Fargo.

More about The Grand at Papago Park Center is available at www.thegrandtempeaz.com.