PHOENIX, Arizona — First Place®AZ broke ground Tuesday on First Place-Phoenix, a new $15 million residential property for adults with autism and different abilities with a one-of-a-kind approach to combining apartments, a residential training program and a national leadership institute to advance more independent and community integrated living options.

Joining in the groundbreaking were Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton; Arizona Department of Housing Director Michael Trailor; First Place Founder, CEO and SARRC Co-founder Denise D. Resnik; First Place Capital Campaign Cabinet Member and former ULI Arizona Board Chair John Graham; First Place Board Chair Sara Dial; and First Place participants and their families.

First Place AZ is a 501(c)3 non-profit working hard to ensure that housing options for people with autism and other special abilities are as bountiful as they are for everyone else. First Place-Phoenix, an 81,000-square-foot property, is located in the heart of the urban area at 3001 N. Third Street in Phoenix.

“Phoenix is proud to be an inclusive place to live and in the forefront of pioneering new housing options for people of all abilities,” said Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton. “By leading, collaborating and finding creative solutions such as First Place-Phoenix, we continue to be worthy of PBS NewsHour calling Phoenix ‘the most autism friendly city in the world.’”

According to Michael Trailor, Arizona Department of Housing director, “First Place models housing innovation. Its Transition Academy beta site is situated in a multi-generational affordable housing property and continuously demonstrates the benefits of supportive neighbors, friendships and learning among different age groups and abilities. With the development of First Place-Phoenix, another option is being added to the mix and informing the marketplace through its thoughtful and leading-edge approach.”

Denise D. Resnik, First Place AZ founder, has been contemplating new home options for years. Her 25-year-old son, Matt, has autism.

“First Place is the result of collective and cumulative impact. For 20 years, we have built a supportive community, which has set the stage for First Place. For most of those years, we’ve been researching, planning, collaborating and dreaming with partners across the state and North America,” said Resnik. “Together, we are raising the bar on available residential, training and employment opportunities, with plans to replicate the First Place model and license our programs and curriculum.”

“While First Place represents many things, the most important is that it will be home for the people who live there, including our son Matt, and provide more families with peace of mind,” added Resnik.

First Place-Phoenix will feature three main components:

• First Place Apartments: 56 studio, one-, two- and four-bedroom units for lease by residents, supported by a suite of independent living services and amenities
• First Place Transition Academy: A two-year, tuition-based residential training program for participants focused on independent living skills, career readiness and interpersonal relations
• First Place Leadership Institute: A national training center for professionals, direct service support providers and medical personnel, a robust site for research and public policy advancements

A $21.3 million comprehensive capital campaign continues; $15 million is dedicated to the development of First Place-Phoenix. The campaign represents charitable, private and public sources and also includes start-up operational funding, and fellowships for Teach For America alumni and Arizona State University doctoral and post-doc students. Early funding made the current First Place Transition Academy beta site possible, along with its collaboration with the Southwest Autism Research & Resource Center (SARRC), which serves as the Academy’s operating partner.

Hardison/Downey construction of Phoenix is the general contractor and RSP Architects of Tempe is the architect. Residents are expected to move into First Place-Phoenix in 2018.  Interested residents or participants in the First Place Transition Academy may apply online.

For more information or to become involved, email [email protected] or visit www.firstplaceaz.org.

130-acre Planned Unit Development ushers in new era for infill site

PHOENIX, AZ— The Phoenix City Council has unanimously approved a Planned Unit Development (PUD) application for 130 acres in and around the iconic Metrocenter Mall development, located on Interstate 17 between Peoria and Dunlap roads in Phoenix, Arizona. The new zoning allows for  multiple new uses besides retail, such as office, senior housing, multifamily housing and healthcare. It also allows for increased height and density at the infill site, which boasts the highest surrounding residential density in all of the metro Phoenix market.

The PUD encompasses 130 acres, with 83 acres of that occupied by Metrocenter Mall, the adjoining Macys and Sears anchor spaces, and the 10-acre land site of a future Walmart Supercenter.

“This is a landmark moment that we have been working toward for quite a long time,” said Warren Fink, COO of Carlyle Development Company, the owner of Metrocenter Mall. “After several years of collaboration with the City, the community and its leaders, we now have the official green light to redevelop this valuable infill site in a very significant way, first and foremost by bringing in dynamic new uses that will make this a true urban village for Phoenix residents.”

Under the PUD, approved uses at Metrocenter could range from senior housing and multifamily housing to corporate office, healthcare and additional retail, restaurant and entertainment amenities. The PUD allows for a height increase up to 180 feet (approximately 15 stories). It also allows Carlyle to almost double its current 800,000 square feet of existing space, to a total 1.6 million square feet. The PUD additionally includes an amendment to the sign ordinance, allowing construction of three electronic billboards along Interstate 17 between Peoria and Dunlap roads.

“I grew up just a few blocks from Metrocenter, which has been an important part of my life and the lives of so many other Phoenix residents,” said Mayor Greg Stanton. “It feels good to help this area maintain its vitality as one of our Valley’s most important and recognizable retail and employment areas.”

“The zoning designation for this project was unanimously supported by the Village Planning Committee, Planning Commission and Phoenix City Council, a clear message that our community is anxious to see this development plan move forward,” said Phoenix Councilwoman Thelda Williams, in whose district Metrocenter is located.  “Many people have worked hard to move this project forward and the end result will be such an asset in our community.”

The balance of the PUD – approximately 45 acres – encompasses land and businesses around the mall loop road, such as Castles-N-Coasters, College of America and the former Sports Authority big box.

“Our focus is on opportunity,” said Fink. “We are in active talks with a number of potential development partners now, and will move forward with a balance of creativity and strategy. Our objective is to develop projects that respond to market demand and that reinvigorate this land site as its highest and best use.”

One of the first projects to move forward at Metrocenter will be the construction of a 148,000-square-foot Walmart Supercenter. The anticipated new Supercenter will sit directly adjacent to Metrocenter Mall, at the site of the former Broadway building. The development, which is in pre-construction, marks the single largest capital investment in Metrocenter Mall in decades.

Other benchmarks on the horizon include the extension of Light Rail to the Metrocenter site. That on property Light Rail stop is expected to be open as operational by 2023.

Built in 1973, Metrocenter Mall totals 1.3 million square feet and is home to more than 120 retailers, department stores and services. Enhanced by a $32 million renovation in 2007, the mall features upgraded common spaces, food court, security systems, children’s play area and community room. In 2012, the mall was purchased by New York-based Carlyle Development Group (CDG), an expert in repositioning under-valued real estate assets through creative development strategies and focused management. CDG is now actively stabilizing and marketing Metrocenter Mall to new vendors and for new uses, with a goal of transforming the retail landmark into a multi-faceted, mixed-use shopping, dining and entertainment hub. For more, visit www.metrocentermall.com and www.carlyle-usa.com.  

Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton, McCarthy Cook & Co. and JLL Celebrate the Creation of a new hub for Phoenix Central Arts District and Renaming of Viad Corporate Center to Central Arts Plaza

PHOENIX, AZ – Unveiling their new vision for Phoenix’s Midtown submarket, California-based McCarthy Cook & Co. and the Phoenix office of JLL joined Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton this week to celebrate the official renaming of Viad Corporate Center to Central Arts Plaza.

Built in 1991 as the Dial Corporation headquarters and still the headquarters for Dial Corp.’s successor, Viad Corp., Central Arts Plaza totals 500,000 square feet in 24 stories at 1850 N. Central Ave. The project anchors the newly created Central Arts District, an area bounded by Roosevelt Street, Virginia Avenue, Seventh Street and Seventh Avenue in Phoenix. It is also directly adjacent to the Phoenix Art Museum, Phoenix Theatre and Arizona Opera, and is a short walk to the Heard Museum and Phoenix Metro Light Rail.

The Central Arts District is home to the greatest concentration arts venues in the Phoenix metropolitan area.  In 2014, McCarthy Cook joined forces with Midtown business and arts leaders to create the Central Arts District. “We saw an opportunity to embrace and support this extraordinary concentration of the cultural jewels of Phoenix,” said Edward Cook, Co-President of McCarthy Cook. “Renaming Viad Corporate Center to Central Arts Plaza underscores our commitment to this vision, and recognizes our project’s role as a hub connecting the numerous prestigious firms located at the building to the Central Arts District’s vibrant art scene.”

Central Arts Plaza provides Class A office amenities including unobstructed 360-degree views of the entire Valley, a full service café and outdoor lounge, 10,000-square-foot fitness center, 150-person conference center with breakout boardroom and the 200-seat Playhouse on the Park performance theatre. The project has an outstanding park, sculpture garden and major water feature open to the public.

Central Arts Plaza encourages the arts on site with attractions ranging from opera in the lobby to a rotating lobby gallery that will feature art from local artists and students attending nearby schools.

“Central Arts Plaza is a world-class office project located at the heart of the new Central Arts District, with a unique mix of amenities found nowhere else in Phoenix,” said JLL Managing Director John Bonnell, who leads the project’s exclusive leasing broker team including JLL Vice Presidents Brett Abramson and Chris Latvaaho. “The unrivalled quality of this project and its nexus to the burgeoning arts scene and new residential and retail developments is a great combination, and the reason the project consistently outperforms nearby Downtown and North Central properties.”

“Central Arts Plaza provides tenants a unique opportunity to enjoy a Class A atmosphere, first class on-site amenities and accessibility to the entire Valley,” added Abramson. “A building of this quality will most likely never be duplicated.”

California-based McCarthy Cook currently owns more than 1 million square feet of Class A office space in Phoenix. JLL is the exclusive leasing broker for the company’s Phoenix portfolio.