Downtown Tucsonan - November 2007 - (Page 13)

Vital Signs The Sheraton The Marriott a tall order but one that each of the responding teams feel they can best fulfill whether they use city-owned land or private property, with or without tax-exempt revenue bond financing. If there is any consistency in the quartet of planning printouts, it’s in the fact that while each is similar enough to qualify relative to basic terms and conditions outlined in the RFP, the differences exceed the similarities. some took the high road, some took the low road, and some wanted to build their own road. two of the proposals are scoped out within city-owned land. two others site generally on private property neighboring city land. all submittors indicate they will negotiate for at least a portion of tax-exempt revenue bond financing. tallest of the tall orders in terms of height (as well as cost) comes in a 30-story, 707-room, $203 million plan by Garfield traub development of dallas and includes hotel facilities flanking the tcc’s main western entryway and nearly attached to the existing convention center, with an elevated walkway from the Leo Rich theatre to the area proposed for a new arena. Garfield traub was selected over two years ago to build that arena, which is now under design. Garfield traub officials are pleased their plans have hotel facilities (and parking for 700 vehicles) in very close proximity to tcc with a proposed elevated walkway that will cross Granada avenue to reach the intended site of the new arena adjacent to the Interstate 10 frontage road. this site plan sitting on the convention center western parking area leaves little space for expanded retail with approximately 40,000 square feet of retail possible along Granada. In their RFP Executive summary, presentors noted: “team members have vested interests in the successful outcome of this development and tucson’s future. the interdependency among this development’s components and the arena and other area development make the concept of a ‘master development team’ a logical choice to maximize planning efficiencies and synergies.” other members of this team include the tucson office of sundt construction, Inc. (arizona’s largest general contractor) in partnership with turner construction company (the nation’s leading general builder) and Rick Engineering company of tucson for civil and traffic engineering services. should Garfield traub be selected number one, expect the hotel neon to glow sheraton and the facility to start marketing the corporate theme: “You don’t just stay here, you belong.” two other proposal options take up almost as much skyline, coming in at 28-stories tall with between 700 and 709 hotel rooms. at $188 million, arizona-based southwest Value Partners (and Faulknerusa of texas) would like to construct their Hyatt Hotel [“Experience the destination”] on the site of the current arena. this team has a strong retail partner in General Growth Properties, owners of Park Place and tucson Mall. their originally submitted renderings included several different approaches and architectural styles in an effort to achieve iconic status. as initially conceptualized, this team would build on an extended Mccormick street between the tcc exhibition halls and today’s arena, linking Granada and church avenues. calling early mock-ups “open-ended,” company representatives say they’re trying for “a parklike-citylike environment” with sufficient open space. Retail possibilities remain under discussion. another home team is tucson-based centro nuevo Partners (with Phelps development of colorado), who pro- Among the nearly 100 written comments that were received at the public forum was one that urged: “At this point, a sand castle will do. Just push the start button.” pose a $165 million hotel at the site of the existing Hotel arizona, 181 w. Broadway, adding their planned 28-story tower to the existing 14-story hotel, which would undergo renovation. In a recent interview with the Tucson Citizen newspaper, Roger Karber, centro nuevo’s managing partner, indicated a desire to go beyond this particular RFP. “we want to be the catalyst for a complete revitalization of downtown,” he said, indicating a desire to play a prominent part in tcc expansion, development of a new arena, redevelopment of existing lodging facilities, and construction of nearby multi-use leaseable square footage. centro nuevo’s proposal also includes a revitalization of the old santa Rita Hotel property, a few blocks to the east, along Broadway between scott and 6th avenues. Hotel partner in this endeavor is the Hilton chain where “travel is more than just a to B…travel should take you places.” the cnP/Phelps proposal response points out their team could provide the earliest completion to the hotel project because renovation of the existing Hotel arizona would bring 248 rooms into the market within 18 months. “a Hilton convention center Hotel would create an iconic Gateway to downtown tucson with a feel of a boutique property rather than typical 50-rooms-per-floor convention center hotels,” according to their RFP response. tucson-based nor-Generations is teaming with the folks at Marriott to build on nor-Generations’ own property, located on the west side of Granada. they were the only respondent proposing to pay construction costs upfront and seeking reimbursement at a later date. their plan calls for a phased development, initially a $76 million, 10-story, 300-room hotel with 150 condos and another potential 250 hotel rooms to be considered at a later date. developer allan norville has written a creative interpretation of RFP details into his plan, including unique items such as an exhibition center as a permanent home to his gem and jewelry operation, a traditionally large part of the annual Gem, Mineral and Fossil showcase. His plan offers retail and entertainment options, restaurants, residential housing facilities, and a grocery store. He is partnered with a hotel chain that promises that “You earn more than points, Marriott gives you rewards.” october 19th was the deadline for all four teams to take staff, committee, and public input and suggestions under advisement and amend their proposals if they chose to do so. the selection committee met again after that for a final review of the initial submissions and a look at any changes that might have been made before making their recommendations. committee members are: Kendall Bert, tucson Regional Economic opportunities, Inc., chris sheafe, Rio nuevo citizens advisory committee; Karen Valdez, Business development Finance corporation; Jonathan walker, Metropolitan tucson convention & Visitors Bureau, and downtown developer Randi dorman. with all parties having made their respective contributions, from criticism to constructive critique, all input is now on its way to Mayor and council for a final ballot. “we’ve scheduled the recommendation of the top-ranked team to go to council on november 13th,” says Barr. according to RFP wording: “the winning team will enter into a Memorandum of understanding (Mou) and begin negotiation of related agreements for the services selected and agreed upon.” “our goal,” says Barr, “is to complete the Mou agreement details by the end of this calendar year. a subsequent timeline relating to actual construction groundbreaking will differ depending on which team and what proposal is ultimately selected.” among many who are waiting and watching the outcome of all of this preparation is Rich singer, director of the tucson convention center, who says simply: “we lack enough higher quality hotel rooms downtown, so this hotel project regardless of which team is selected is everything.” november.07. downtown tucsonan 13

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Downtown Tucsonan - November 2007 Contents From the Editor Downtown Lowdown Vital Signs Downtown Live Arts Galleries Guide Yourself Through Open Studios Performance and Film Events Museums Historic Downtown Billboard Classifieds

Downtown Tucsonan - November 2007

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