Recession took toll on potential Scottsdale developments

Development brochures for some of Scottsdale's most ambitious projects from a few years ago show pretty pictures of lushly landscaped shopping plazas with fountains and a mix of shops, condos and offices in opulent settings. Those computer-enhanced images are yellowing now. Some of the Northeast Valley projects have stalled and the optimism and free-flowing investment cash of the era before 2008 seem like a mirage. Unearthing the publicity pamphlets recently, while cleaning my desk, took me down a memory lane of hope and hype. Nordstrom, Bloomingdale's and Macy's were touted to open at CityNorth by 2011. Westcor promoted plans for 190-foot condos and a shopping center with a retractable roof at Palisene northwest of Loop 101 and Scottsdale Road. Across the road to the east, DMB Associates heralded designs for its One Scottsdale project with 1,100 residential units, 400 hotel rooms and 1.8 million square feet of shopping, dining and office space. Henkel AG did open its North American headquarters on DMB's 120-acre site in 2008, but One Scottsdale's other buildings have not made it off the drawing board.

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