To revive the struggling Fiesta District, Mesa believes it’s time to bulldoze a half-mile stretch of dead and dying shopping centers.
And to lure new development, the city plans a massive streetscape project that would add trees, colorful asphalt murals at intersections and massive entry monuments that light up at night and define the area.
The city is moving forward on this drastic shift after a redevelopment consultant studied the area for a year. California-based Kreuzer Consulting Group told Mesa that the suburban-style area has to become an urban center.
“The days of this corridor being a big-box corridor are gone,” said Rick Kreuzer, the company’s president.
Mesa plans to begin with a $11.5 million streetscape project, mostly on Southern Avenue. Several monuments would define the district. They’d include lattice monuments filled with chipped glass that will light up at night and feature a massive “Fiesta” sign.
“At night it will be a really vibrant entry monument that will really let people know they’re entering something new and exciting,” Kreuzer said.
Mesa has talked with major property owners to develop the concept, City Manager Chris Brady said.
“We’re looking at a vision that’s going to be much more than what you have today,” he said. “It’s not just about taking the same think and trying to make it work. It’s really a whole new vision of the area.”
Mesa plans to narrow Southern from Alma School to Dobson Roads, from six lanes to four. That would create more room for grass and trees — and separate sidewalks from traffic. Traffic studies show only minor increases in congestion, as the city would keep existing lanes at intersections.
The project would begin in 2013 and take a year to complete. The city hopes the district will get property owners interested in redeveloping the shopping centers north of Southern, from Alma School to west of Longmore.
Mesa wants the entire stretch of centers to be linked by new roads that break the properties into smaller, more walkable blocks. A grassy “village green” would run north and south, linking Fiesta Mall with the new development to the north.
Kreuzer envisions three- to four-story buildings with a mix of office, retail and housing on upper floors.
Property owners have to buy into the plan for it to work. Kreuzer said the new streetscape is a start to that.
“Developers respond to those things,” he said. “When they see the city’s on board and they’ve got a willing partner, it’s much more inclined to take off.”
Kreuzer sees a captive audience for many of the projects. He said few of Mesa Community College’s 30,000 students live nearby, and that Banner Desert Medical Center’s 7,000 employees don’t stick around after work either. That creates a lot of opportunity for new housing and restaurants, he said.
Fiesta Mall manager Matt Rhorer said the new streetscape should eliminate some of the blighted surrounding properties.
“I’m glad to see the city focusing on this area,” he said. “It’s an outdated area. There’s just so much potential.”
Mesa Councilman Dennis Kavanaugh said the city is talking with 12 higher education organizations about locating in Mesa, whether downtown, along Power Road or in the Fiesta District. One developer recently bought the shopping center that was home to Best Buy and Borders, he said, and is considering an educational use.
“A lot of the higher educational institutions are looking at the Fiesta area because you can adapt a lot of those big-box buildings to education,” he said.
He figures it could take three to eight years for major redevelopment to happen.
Also, Mesa is planning a $9.4 million police substation at the northwest corner of Grove Avenue and Westwood. It would be the first building to feature new design guidelines for the district.
Mayor Scott Smith said he remembers going to the 1979 grand opening of Sears at Fiesta Mall. He said sheep grazed nearby as farmland was disappearing, and that it’s time for another major transformation.
“We recognize it’s more of an urban place now than a suburban place,” Smith said.
• Contact writer: (480) 898-6548 or ggroff@evtrib.com
TiMc posted at 10:15 pm on Tue, Nov 1, 2011.
I never heard anyone who spoke at the meeting tonight suggest or mention "bulldozing". Sounds pretty inflammatory. Perhaps there's some sensitivity to the issue because of the light rail/Main Steet imminent domain; regardless, this project is very encouraging news for West Mesa and those of us who live here!
gil the baker posted at 6:55 am on Wed, Nov 2, 2011.
so let's see, mesa dropped about 14 mil on downtown redevelopment in the late 90,s
and we all see how well that worked out. now let's do it again in another past it's
prime area only we will just drop 10 mil . could fill a lot of pot holes around town for
that kind of money.
Leon Ceniceros posted at 8:59 am on Wed, Nov 2, 2011.
Folks, just drive south from Main Street to Southern Avenue....it's nothing but broken down apartment houses, laundromats and fly-by-night auto repair shops.
Not one house has a lawn..even.
Drive around the neighborhood....the whole area is in ....DECLINE.
Go into Fiesta Mall....all the nice shops are gone. Look at the customers in the Fiesta Mall...they are mostly ...Gang-bangers and their girlfriends with the tweezed eyebrows and the heavy make-up. I wouldn't park in the Parking Structure to save my life....park outside as close to the main doors as possible and carry Pepper Spray.
Look at all the "failed" .."beautification projects" and "failed" shopping venues all around Mesa....just drive around Downtown Mesa and see what the $14 Million Dollar Beautificatin Project did there = 40% of the Stores on Main Street are "Empty"..."Boarded-up"..."Closed"...and walking around Main Street is 500% Safer than walking around.....Southern Avenue...that's for sure.
Drive down Southern from Stapley = Closes Restaurants, Closed Stores, Closed Honey-Baked Ham Store, Closed Lonestar Restaurant....Closed...Closed...Closed.
As for Broadway from Stapley going East....if the Area was any more "Run Down"...it would qualify for a United Nations Relief Fund Clean-Up....it looks like Somalia or Ethiopia...Folks.
This is just our Liberal-Progressive Mesa City Hall Bunch following in the footsteps of Obama's ..."Tax Like Heck and Spend like H*LL" ..Democrat Administration.
Kriley824 posted at 9:27 am on Wed, Nov 2, 2011.
Oh, goody, get rid of two lanes on Southern so the traffic at MCC will be even worse and harder to get in and out of. Maybe get rid of the closed businesses and use that space for "beautification". Better yet, get rid of the empty buildings and just wait a bit. Don't spend money on things that really do not mean much to the people of the area. Get rid of places that can harbor crime activity. We've gone into Fiesta Mall lately and it is such a sad place to be. Counted 16 businesses gone in just one area. The businesses that are there now mostly cater to someone other than myself, so really can't comment on those. (Think I am getting too old now lol). Fiesta Mall used to be THE mall to visit, but that time has passed.
Rich posted at 9:30 am on Wed, Nov 2, 2011.
The City of Mesa needs to get out of the development business, they are really, really bad at it.
renew21 posted at 10:25 am on Wed, Nov 2, 2011.
About time the city goes on a road diet. southern ave is too wide and the traffic counts are not big enough to support such large infrastructure. you know, that cost us, the tax payers more money when the city has to maintain our large streets.
dont like the images of the project. looks like a kid did it. colors are not good either. the city is doing what they can do on their land and that is the right of way of a public street.
gil, go downtown when there are events going on. The past 5 years has been a huge movement as business are staying open and people are gathering. It was dead 5 years ago and now is a happening place.
Leon, the area is bad, but not third world country like. I have been to a few and this place looks clean and safer then some places I have visited. However, you are right with all the empty buildings. However, the city does not want to get into the bulldozing of private property. They are failures at that. They have to maintain our streets, and they are wasteful, too big, ugly and are uninviting.
DrJCA1 posted at 11:24 am on Wed, Nov 2, 2011.
What would you negative commenters do about the bad areas of any city? Just leave them alone to decay even further? How about ignoring the gangs and punks that mess up our cities? Exactly what would you suggest the cities do?
fd123456789 posted at 1:28 pm on Wed, Nov 2, 2011.
I thought there were budget issues in Mesa?
Geepers posted at 6:29 pm on Wed, Nov 2, 2011.
As much as I would like this vision to come to fruition I don't see it happening due to the surrounding neighborhood. There are some serious problems to the north that would keep me away from the area. Unless there is a surrounding "revitalized residential" area to support a revitalized Fiesta district I would not risk my safety or the safety of my family to go to it. The Mall has nothing to offer me. It is a young persons venue, a venue that can't be sustained by young people's income. After driving many of the businesses to Riverview the city will be hard pressed to find businesses to return to Fiesta. I think with the economic times the City is in, they are not in a position to be throwing good money after bad at this time. I don't see Fiesta ever being what it once was because you take away traffic lanes, install walkways and throw in some vegetation. I hope I am proven wrong. And by the way, with traffic as it already is along Southern with the college I will certainly be finding a new route to work when the road is narrowed.
tededitedit posted at 6:54 pm on Wed, Nov 2, 2011.
I used to go to this mall area often. Not any more. Restaurants I enjoyed have closed. Stores I shopped at have closed or carry different lines of merchandise. Women and children feel downright uncomfortable in this area. Is a streetscape going to fix this? No. Are new signs going to fix this? No. Are trees that block business signs going to fix this? No. Changing the area's demographic, one that mostly hangs out at malls but shops at yard sales, is what would be needed. There's nothing wrong with the streets in this area. This area CAN NO LONGER SUPPORT ANY MAJOR RETAIL DEVELOPMENT or REDEVELOPMENT - no matter what it looks like.
downtownresident posted at 10:58 pm on Wed, Nov 2, 2011.
You can't be serious! Lighted street signs and narrower streets will bring development? Spend $9 million to make $500.00 in tax revenue?
You people are delusional.
gilbertgrandma posted at 6:25 pm on Sat, Nov 5, 2011.
Geepers is exactly right - unless the surrounding residential area is improved, no one will go there, especially at night. Unfortunately, that area is not safe......
Suelee posted at 6:52 pm on Sat, Nov 5, 2011.
How do narrower streets entice more people to the area? In rush hour, Alma School and Southern are so crowded that it takes multiple light changes to make through the intersection without running a red light.
Suelee posted at 6:56 pm on Sat, Nov 5, 2011.
How do narrower streets entice more people to the area??? In rush hour, Alma School and Southern are so crowded that it takes multiple light changes to make through the intersection without running a red light.
Our Tempe family uses the Target's on Longmore and Southern, the Carl's Jr and the In and Out Burger at Fiesta Mall, the Best Buy, Sears, Macy's and the sporting goods store at Fiesta Mall. We use a store in the Fiesta District almost daily and prefer it to the gaudy, poorly laid out monstrosity of Tempe Marketplace. Some stores that were in the Fiesta District and chose to relocate to the trendy Tempe Marketplace and Riverview are struggling (such as the Arby's that was across from Banner Desert) or have gone out of business (such as the Orowheat Outlet).
If you really want to see how people feel about about Fiesta Mall (3 out of 5 stars), Riverview (4 out of 5 stars), and Tempe Marketplace (3 out of 5 stars) read the reviews of residents and visitors on yelp.com. These "average" customers are very honest about what is working and what needs to be improved to attract customers to these stores.
samkat posted at 7:29 pm on Sat, Nov 5, 2011.
I lay part of the blame on the narrow minded conservatives from the old Mesa click who refuse to enact stricter zoning laws and choked off all financial incentives to make Mesa a vibrant city like our sister cities. Instead, they have turned us into low rent apartment districts that cater to the illegals. Crime is up and many citizens are avoiding these areas. Our schools leave a lot to be desired so why would any progressive business want to relocate here? Chandler has Intel and we have tatoo parlors
My wife actually worked at Fiesta mall before the Broadway shut down and we spent a good deal of time there. No more.
Look at downtown Mesa, they had an opportunity to make something of it but other than killing off many of the old time businesses to beautify that section of Main Street, what have they done? They built an arts center but never advertise what is going on there.
I am not a Mormon but just look at what has happened to the area around the Mormon Temple. It is a prime example of allowing urban decay to take over.
If Mesa wants to be a first rate city, some drastic changes to the city council structure are going to have to take place.
machoman posted at 10:32 pm on Mon, Nov 14, 2011.
Time for Mesa, to get back to what it was, Awesome.... The Fiesta District and the Light Rail, the Cubs District on Dobson and 8th will bring buisness to Mesa, Love it cant wait for the changes it is time tired of seeing Mesa fall MY HOME, OUR HOME!!!!!!!!![wink]