Crews recently assembled the steel frame of a three-story office building part of a mixed-use development with offices, restaurant space and a hotel in the heart of downtown Chandler.
Down the street, a 37,000-square-foot development billed as the city’s newest “entertainment destination” has been approved by the City Council for one of the last vacant city-owned properties in the area.
On the western edge of downtown, developers of a long-awaited apartment project are one step closer to breaking ground on land that is now used as overflow parking.
New projects are eating up some of the last available land in downtown Chandler.
Less than an acre of raw land is currently available for development in Chandler’s historic district, said Kim Moyers, the city’s cultural development director.
As the city’s core approaches buildout in the next few years and new businesses move into existing spaces in the historic district, city officials and developers are eyeing expanding the downtown east and west of Arizona Avenue and south toward the Loop 202, she said.
Here is what the city is doing to continue spurring growth in the area.
New ‘downtown’ south of Frye Road
In October, the city completed a $6.1 million road project on Arizona Avenue from Frye Road south to Pecos Road. Crews narrowed the street and widened the sidewalks to make the area more pedestrian-friendly, Moyers said.
The city has rebranded that area as South Downtown and crews put up new monument signage and decorative light poles to encourage redevelopment of the vacant spaces that line the street, she said.
Property owners have taken notice of the improvements and made some of their own.
Moyers said many of them have started putting money into their properties, redesigning building facades and painting storefronts to attract new tenants.
Looking past Arizona Avenue
The city is also purchasing property in the area as it plans to extend Washington Street and encourage future development east and west of Arizona Avenue.
The city plans to punch through Washington Street, which currently dead-ends at Fairview Street, south to Pecos Road, creating another entrance to downtown on the west side of the historic center, Moyers said.
Plans also call for building a park in the area to add additional green space, she said.
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The city will work to acquire necessary land and complete design work over the next two fiscal years, and construction is projected to start in fiscal year 2021-22, she said.
The City Council already has approved buying some land for the project. In November, the council approved buying a home on Morelos Street for $130,000 and previously purchased much of the land around the home for the Washington Street extension.
The city is also trying to assemble properties east of Arizona Avenue to accommodate larger developments.
Last year the City Council approved purchasing two homes near California and Boston streets, directly behind a new parking structure that is under construction, for future development.
Moyers said the city is purchasing the properties as they are put up for sale, not through eminent domain.
Reach reporter Paulina Pineda at [email protected] or 602-444-8130. Follow her on Twitter: @paulinapineda22.
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