On the heels of the BusinessWeek designation as Best Place in Arizona to start a business, here is a list of some of the positive economic events that either have taken place in Tempe over the last three months or are coming forward in the next couple months.
Tempe Economic Development was vital in recruiting 25 new businesses last year and added hundreds of new jobs to the city. The Development Services Department has, so far this year, never seen a higher level of private capital investment -- $327 million this fiscal year. Much of that comes from new projects along the light rail line.
Development:
- Regency just opened -- 44 new condos, rehabilitating a 1950s building into state of the art housing just one block from ASU (www.regencytempe.com)
- Campus Suites on the Rail, at Apache and McClintock, will open this fall with new rental housing for students on the light rail line (www.campussuitesontherail.com)
- The Vue on Apache and Rural will also open with new rental housing for students. The development is almost completely filled. (www.thevueonapache.com)
- Tempe Gateway opens this July with 1,300 new parking spaces, new office space and retail space that is nearly 100% leased. (www.opuswest.com)
- Grigio Metro is pre-leasing for the opening in August with 180 move-ins anticipated. (www.grigiometro.com)
- Nearly 90% of the 525 apartments at Grigio Town Lake are leased. The Valley's most expensive luxury apartments. (www.grigio.com)
- 675 South is a 12 unit, five-story condo green-friendly infill project. Located just off Mill and on University, the project will be finished by July. (http://www.675south.com)
- The historic Fifth and Mill Building will be 100 percent occupied in late May. (www.tempe.gov/maps)
- New parking garage adjacent to City Hall in downtown Tempe opened on March 13, wrapped with 12,000 sq ft of office/retail space and including 438 parking spaces. (www.tempe.gov/parking)
New and Expanded Businesses:
- Medplast is adding a 20,000-square-foot clean room, a 20,000-square-foot white room, and many new engineering jobs by the end of the month. MedPlast Tempe focuses on the medical market and surgical tools. (www.medplastgroup.com/)
- MedImpact, the nation's largest pharmacy benefit management recently opened its southwest regional office in Tempe, and will eventually house as many as 200 employees. (www.medimpact.com)
- City Market and Deli has leased more than 2,000 square feet of space on the first floor of the Hayden Ferry Lakeside Retail Office Loft and is set to open this month. (http://www.citymarketanddeli.com/)
- Segway of Tempe is moving into Hayden Ferry Lakeside later this month to provide tours of Tempe Town Lake and sales of the Segway machines. 602 909-9188
- Knoll, Inc., a worldwide leader in the design, manufacture and distribution of branded furniture and textiles for corporations, healthcare organizations and educational institutions as well as residences. Knoll is increasing its showroom size by 70 percent when it moves to Tempe, leasing 6,500 square feet in the Retail Office Lofts, a three-story office and retail building, at Hayden Ferry Lakeside. The new location will be one of 20 Knoll showrooms throughout North America. The company also distributes its products through a U.S. and Canadian dealership network. Knoll also has locations throughout Europe, South America, Asia and the Middle East. (www.knoll.com)
- LandAmerica’s new Tempe facility includes 41,000 sq. ft. to house LandAmerica’s title production for Arizona, Nevada and California, as well as the escrow production for all LandAmerica branches, escrow officers and account managers in Arizona. Approximately 65 positions will be new hires.
- Arizona Production & Packaging, a leading manufacturer of liquid nutritional supplements, will be relocating its corporate headquarters and manufacturing operations to a Tempe facility. The 67,000 square-feet facility, located at 7303 South Kyrene Road, will house the company's office, distribution and manufacturing operations. (http://azpack.com/)
- Asic North, a Vermont based computer chip designer, is moving it’s new design center to Tempe. (www.asicnorth.com)
- While banks everywhere are closing and reorganizing, Comerica is going strong., and just opened a new branch on Mill Avenue that will cater to international students and global businesses. (www.comerica.com)
Sports/Tourism Business Development
- Spring Training continues to bring millions of dollars into the State and local economies. Tempe’s strong partnership with Arte Moreno and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim insures that kids and amateur ballplayers have a home throughout the year when the pros are back in LA.
- Global company, Athletic Republic, has opened a performance sports training center south of Kiwanis Park on Kyrene. Since 1990, over 570,000 athletes have taken advantage of the 160 facilities throughout North America, the United Kingdom, Russia and Japan. (www.athleticrepublic.com)
Fantastic. I see there are tons of specials available now, too.
Posted by: Ethan Harton | April 20, 2009 at 11:32 AM