Three surface parking lots in downtown Tucson are luring developers with visions of high-density projects.
The city was expected to issue a request for proposals this week for a 2-acre city block in El Presidio neighborhood. The block is currently used as a parking lot across from El Charro CafΓ©.
Historically the block held homes and businesses, but the buildings were razed in the 1950s when the downtown area became blighted. The Downtown Development Corp. bought the block in the 1980s and then handed it over to the cityβs Industrial Development Authority in 2008 after problems accounting for the cash from the parking operation.
The idea behind the request for proposals is to βcast a wide netβ to see what developers think the best opportunity for the site could be, said Gary Molenda, president of the Business Development Finance Corp., which runs the cityβs Industrial Development Authority under contract.
The goal is to attract βa high quality project that compliments and enhances both the El Presidio neighborhood and downtown Tucson,β he said.
After years of waiting for the time to be right for redevelopment and after years of false-start projects, the IDA board thinks thereβs enough positive momentum downtown that it would be reasonable to move forward, Molenda said.
Developers who are interested in building on the site will face a number of challenges, including expensive archaeological mitigation, but also could receive incentives through the cityβs new Infill Incentive District zoning. The zoning created set-back rules and maximum building heights that rise in steps from the adjacent one-story homes and offices.
El Presidio Neighborhood Association supports a mixed-use development on the block and had input on the design of the request for proposals, said co-president Thaddeus Pace.
βWeβre just really excited about a vibrant, innovative and sustainable development there,β he said, βone that respects not only the history of the neighborhood but also one that participates in the fabric and history of the neighborhood.β
The neighbors donβt want to see more dorm-style student apartments that are rented by the bedroom, he said. Such developments sprang up around the new streetcar line that connects downtown to the University of Arizona.
SOUTH OF BROADWAY
On the other side of downtown, two more surface parking lots south of Broadway will become housing developments.
The $13.2 million One West Broadway project, at the southwest corner of Broadway and Stone Avenue, will have six stories of apartments, retail space, offices and parking.
The developers are Art Wadlund and Rob Caylor, who also developed the One East Broadway project across the street.
While downtown has seen a lot of redevelopment along Congress Street, this project will add a lot more activity to the Broadway side, said Camila Bekat, a city economic development staff member.
About three blocks south of there, another project is in the works. The $4.2 million Stone Avenue Homes project will turn a surface parking lot into three-story row houses.
The developers are Holualoa Cos., which owns the Pioneer Building and redeveloped the Herbert apartments downtown; and Scotia Group. The project aims to ease the transition from the high-density downtown buildings to the residential Armory Park area, Bekat said.
Both of the projects have applied for an eight-year Government Property Lease Excise Tax incentive, which waives property taxes for eight years if the developer increases the propertyβs value by at least 100 percent. Also, an economic analysis must show the benefit to the government is greater than the benefit received by the developer.
The One East Broadway project was among the first to use the GPLET incentive program. The mayor and City Council will consider the new project applications at a study session Tuesday.
