Light-rail preparatory work begins this month in Mesa

courtesy of  Gary Nelson – May. 2, 2012 The Republic | azcentral.com The first inklings of light-rail construction will appear along Main Street this month. Traffic restrictions can be expected as workers prepare to move utility lines between Sycamore Street and Mesa Drive. Work this month will include verifying the location and depth of underground utilities that need to be moved, and some surveying. The first phase of actual construction, moving the utility lines, is expected to begin in June, after a ceremonial groundbreaking on May 30. The approximately $200 million, 3.1-mile extension is being funded by federal grants and a county transportation sales tax that voters approved in 2004. It is expected to begin carrying passengers in late 2015, a key element in Mesa’s ambitious efforts to transform its downtown into a multifaceted urban community. Early planning already is under way to run the tracks another 2 miles east, to Gilbert Road, but money for that hasn’t been allocated and there is no projected timeline. Metro light rail has appointed Lisa Procknow as community outreach coordinator for the Mesa project. She’s available at 602-495-8213, 623-533-1352 or lprocknow@metrolightrail.org.    ...

Downtown leg of Mesa light-rail accelerated

Gary Nelson – Dec. 6, 2011 Courtesy of  The Republic | azcentral.com Editor’s Note: Light Rail Connect promotes Live, Work, Ride in the light rail corridor.  Fortified by hot coffee and a $35 million federal grant, Metro Light Rail kicked off the next leg of construction Monday with a promise to open the downtown Mesa leg a year early. Monday’s event at the doorstep of the Mesa Arts Center served chiefly to unveil signs that will mark the 3-mile extension from Sycamore Street to east of Mesa Drive. Actual work in the form of utility relocation won’t begin until spring. But Steve Banta, CEO of Metro Light Rail, made news when he told the shivering crowd, “Our desire is to deliver the project a little bit early. We’d like to deliver it at the end of 2015.” That would be seven years after Mesa celebrated the opening of its busy Sycamore light-rail station on a December day that was even more blustery than the inhospitable weather that greeted Monday’s crowd. “We are here today to stake our claim on the extension of Mesa light rail down to the center city,” Banta said. The extension, he said, “is progressing very well” with local funding in hand and last month’s congressional approval for about half of what the federal government is expected to kick in. Banta said Metro continues to work with merchants along the extension to help their businesses survive construction. “We will work hand in hand with them to minimize that impact,” he said. Mike James, Mesa’s transit director, said there will be traffic disruptions when crews begin infrastructure work along the...

Mesa AZ to host Republican presidential debate, next to Light Rail

by Art Thomason – Nov. 1, 2011 Courtesy of The Arizona Republic [Editor’s Note: The Presidential debate next to the light rail extension in Mesa at the Arts Center shows the powerful will show up. Light Rail Advisors supports free and open political debate] Mesa will host the Republican presidential debate on Nov. 30. Arizona Republican Party Chairman Tom Morrissey made the announcement Tuesday that Mesa Arts Center will be the location.    The $98 million performing arts venue was a major reason that CNN, which is hosting the debate, selected Mesa, said Mesa City Councilman Dennis Kavanaugh. “When CNN toured the MAC recently they were simply blown away by all of its facilities which are well suited for handling all of their trucks and equipment,” he said. “I think it’s huge for the city to actually acquire an event like this. It’s a major news event that will have CNN headquartered here for a couple days for the debate. It’s an opportunity to showcase the city for a major national event like this.” The nationally televised debate is being sponsored by the Arizona Republican Party and will be conducted and aired live on CNN at 6 p.m. local time on Nov. 30. The arts center, which opened in 2005, is a world-class facility well-suited to host this world-class event, Morrissey said in a prepared statement. The complex is situated on a seven-acre campus and incomes more than 212,000 square feet of theaters, studios and exhibition space. “Mesa Arts Center is an ideal venue for the debate,” said Morrissey said in a release. “This state-of-the-art facility will be front and center as Arizona...

One Great Asset – PHX Sky Train Car Unveiled – Connects Light Rail

Courtesy of SkyHarbor Airport [Editor’s Note: Phoenix Sky Train is coming along. The roof is being attached at this very moment as you read this update. LightRailConnect supports this valuable link to make the airport more accessible to everyone] One Great Asset – PHX Sky Train Car Unveiled Five. Four. Three. Two. One. From behind the curtain and out of the smoke, the first car of the PHX Sky Train™ dazzled onlookers who broke into applause and gave each other high-fives. What began as a dream 10 years ago is now a reality. Thanks to the hard work and vision of city of Phoenix leaders and innovators, the first of many PHX Sky Train cars to come has arrived in Phoenix and was met with excitement on Tuesday, August 16, during an unveiling ceremony.   Aviation Director Danny Murphy called the day a special and extraordinarily exciting one for the city, the Valley and the State. “This is one of the most forward-thinking projects of our time,” Murphy remarked. “The PHX Sky Train will allow us to meet the expectations of the public as they travel through America’s Friendliest Airport®.” As a state-of-the-art customer service asset, the PHX Sky Train will run from the light rail station at 44th Street and Washington to the East Economy Parking Area to Terminal 4 in Stage 1 which will open in the first quarter of 2013. By 2015, the train will continue to Terminal 3 with a walkway to Terminal 2. “The PHX Sky Train will open on time and on budget,” Murphy said as applause erupted. Mayor Phil Gordon remarked how...

Opinion: Mesa on its way toward light-rail planning redemption

by Southeast Valley editorial board – Oct. 26, 2011 Our View Courtesy of the Arizona Republic [Editor’s Note: Light Rail Advisors fully supports the 3.1 mile light rail extension into downtown and to Mesa Drive. The company started LightRailConnect.com and the LightRainConnect Magazine to support business and economic growth in the light rail corridor] Mesa has a rare light-rail mulligan. And, thankfully, it knows it. The city dithered on advance planning for its initial, half-mile leg. It didn’t do enough to encourage and integrate development at its initial station. By the time it finally offered some much-needed direction for the area, the economy was in freefall. Not surprisingly, where Phoenix and Tempe have reaped billions of dollars in investment along light rail, Mesa has yet to see any appreciable economic benefit. But that’s not likely to be the case this time, now that the city is preparing for its next 3 miles of track. Mesa began studying options for redevelopment as soon as it approved the route through downtown to Mesa Drive and, eventually, Gilbert Road. Two years later, the city has created its Central Main Street Plan, a detailed yet flexible set of guidelines to help manage the change it knows is coming. Mesa also is nearly finished with a form-based zoning code for the area, which would focus less on segregating uses and more on ensuring buildings are well-designed. Those documents should be in place long before light rail opens in 2016, offering the clarity and predictability investors need to make serious infill and redevelopment proposals. And that’s important, even if the market for condominiums and high-rise buildings remains weak, because...

Mesa council struggles with downtown site near light rail

by Gary Nelson – Oct. 22, 2011 Courtesy of The Arizona Republic [Editor’s Note: Light Rail Advisors, the owner of the popular LightRailConnect.com website, endorses smart use of city land and building resources for the development of the Downtown Mesa area] Two decades ago it was the retail centerpiece of a development that was going to transform downtown Mesa. Now, however, it has become such an albatross that some on the City Council think bulldozers might be the only option. The funky building at 51-55 E. Main St. was part of the “Park Place” project in the late 1980s that also included the adjacent midrise office tower and a movie theater. Mesa bought the theater and the 51-55 building as it assembled land for the Mesa Arts Center. The theater was leveled, but Mesa kept 51-55 in hopes it could become a restaurant or some other complement to the arts center. No such luck. Over the past five years, Mesa has had at least three offers to buy and develop the building as a restaurant, but all the deals died. Bill Jabjiniak, Mesa’s economic development director, said interest remains high. Over the past year, 10 interested parties have inspected the building. Five were considering restaurant uses, and the others were looking at retail or arts-related businesses. There also have been numerous phone calls about the property, Jabjiniak said. But the only tenant at present is the Southwest Shakespeare Company, which uses part of the building for rehearsals. Most potential buyers shy away because of parking issues, the cost of redoing the building and uncertainties over light-rail construction, Jabjiniak said. The building’s future is on...