Scottsdale Republic editor Chris Coppola includes in his New Year’s resolution suggestions at Number 5:
Development community: Resolve to take a deep breath before rushing forward with a slew of new proposals for apartment complexes. There are so many new projects on the books now that it would be nice to see a few more break ground and get built before a half-dozen more come to the City Council.
Unfortunately, Coppola missed his mark. He should have directed his advice to mayor Jim Lane and the anything-goes Chamber caucus on the City Council (including Dennis Robbins and Linda Milhaven). As long as ‘anything goes,’ the developers are going to keep bringing the projects forward for rubber stamping.
Entitlements for future height and density add tremendous value to the land, regardless of when construction financing may become available…and in many cases such entitlements have nothing to do with actual market demand.
Still, it’s good to see that Coppola has finally smelled the espresso.
2 Comments
When will this city get a handle on it’s downtown? 5th Ave is deplorable – tacky merchants moving in with short term leases, tobacco shop allows cigar smoking and red solo cup drinking on the city side walk and landlords raising rents with no improvements to those 50’s buildings. High rise wooden structures will over look gross parking areas and lots. Who is going to buy those high priced condos? People may want to be able to walk around the downtown but can they breath while walking on the streets with gross smoking allowed? Mercedes opened so apartment dwellers can view car dealership – Do people really want to live with noise, bad air, disgusting views and high density population? Why don’t they go back to Chicago or NY? The West’s most Western town is turning into such a downtown mess that tourism will diminish and Scottsdale will lose it’s luster. GET REAL city council. Stop the high density a preserve the city’s quality of life.
“Show me the money”.
Scottsdale homeowners are secondary to mayor Lane and his possy of Milhaven, Robbins and Klapp. 2014 funding to overwhelm voter homeowner choice alternatives is most important. Lane’s campaign money comes from real estate developers, real estate agents and primarily ….lawyers. Bars and monopoly utilities like Cox and SW Gas are also big campaign contributors. That is alot of money to payback with policy and rezoning.