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Plans are underway to redevelop the longtime Benjamin Supply building near downtown Tucson.

Traffic on East Sixth Street speeds past the Goddess of Agave mural on the old Tucson Warehouse & Transfer Co. building. A major redevelopment plan means the longtime mural would be removed.

The building, adorned with the towering β€œGoddess of Agave” mural, is being reimagined as a luxury appliance and plumbing showroom with steel and glass architecture.

Benjamin Supply, a plumbing supply company within the 1918 Tucson Warehouse and Transfer Building complex, was founded in 1950 and was bought in 2022 by Central Arizona Supply, which is planning the renovations.

Central Arizona Supply is a family-run business from the Phoenix area that started in 1968 as a local parts supplier and today has locations throughout Arizona, including Benjamin Supply. The third generation of the Smith family now runs the company and chose to keep the name Benjamin Supply.

Benjamin Supply owners seek to redevelop the building with five new tenant spaces to bring luxury appliances and plumbing retailers to Tucson.

The Benjamin Supply building, at 440 N. Seventh Ave., is within the Rio Nuevo district, and the board has been asked to assist with the remodel to recruit new tenants to Tucson.

Jeremy Smith, with Central Arizona Supply, has presented the Rio Nuevo board with plans to turn the old brick building into a design center, possibly with a restaurant.

He foresees creating five new tenant spaces to bring luxury appliances and plumbing retailers to Tucson.

The β€œGoddess of Agave” mural did not have a clear coat applied when it was painted in 2016 and has begun to fade and peel, Smith said. He has reached out to artists about painting a smaller mural on one of the new walls.

The owners of Benjamin Supply hope a major redevelopment will lure luxury appliances and plumbing retailers to Tucson.

The $5.2 million project would be a glass-and-metal building, and owners are asking the board to rebate the district’s share of taxes, based on sales, up to $2 million.

The Rio Nuevo District is a municipal tax collection and special taxing district created in 1999 by voters and receives an incremental portion of state-shared funds from sales taxes collected within its boundaries.

Previous investments, downtown and along Broadway’s Sunshine Mile, have largely focused on bars and restaurants.

The building that houses Benjamin Supply is being reimagined as a luxury appliance and plumbing showroom with steel and glass architecture..

Some board members have expressed an interest in lowering their dependence on entertainment businesses and bringing in high-revenue retailers.

The board heard the presentation from Central Arizona Supply and is set to decide on its support at a future meeting.

Go to rionuevo.org for information on upcoming board meetings and agendas.

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Contact reporter Gabriela Rico at grico@tucson.com