[Source: Kevin Tripp, KTAR Radio, June 23, 2008] — The economic slowdown doesn’t appear to have affected development in downtown Phoenix. Mayor Phil Gordon said expansion of the Phoenix Convention Center will be a boon for the city. “Bookings are not slowing down, they’re ahead of projections,” Gordon said. “It’s returned a lot of needed money, both to the state and the city, just on the construction sales tax and the new, larger bookings that have occurred and will continue to occur.”
The renovation of the Convention Center is to be finished by the end of the year. The nearby Sheraton Hotel also is getting a lift from the convention center. “All the Sheraton Hotel rooms that were allocated to the convention center, I think now are booked up through 2016,” Gordon said. “The room bookings are about 20 percent over original projections, both in numbers and in average daily rate.” Gordon said the $900-million Cityscape Project also is progressing on schedule. The high-rise tower is approximately 60 percent or more pre-leased. Retail commitments that have been announced include the AJ’s grocery store and P.F. Changs.
Downtown Voices Coalition 