Cruachan Capital, a Salt Lake City real estate developer, owns 6,000 apartments across the western United States and believes that student housing has run its course in Downtown Tucson and would like to convert these buildings to apartments for young professionals.
This conversion will add 60 units for a total of 256 apartments and increase retail space along Congress Street and Broadway and to the northeast at Congress Street and 4th Avenue.
The Rio Nuevo Board, calling this a “game-changer project” for downtown, voted unanimously to initiate an economic analysis of the project and to authorize its attorney to begin working with the developer.
Hotel Congress Copper Hall
Hotel Congress and other downtown restaurants benefit from Rio Nuevo Assistance:
The Rio Nuevo Board unanimously voted to provide $300,000 to Hotel Congress to support expansion plans for the retail area fronting Congress Street and the plaza to the north. Owners Richard and Shana Oseran, longtime downtown advocates, plan to create a daytime tasting room and evening bistro and lounge in the former Copper Hall space and improvements to the plaza to accommodate more music events and dining which have become quite popular given the outdoor location. Board members agreed to future discussions about additional funding.
Parklets at Ten55 and Penca
Additional support for outdoor dining downtown is coming in the form of five stipends of $10,000 each for restaurants wanting to open outdoor seating in the parallel parking spaces directly in front of their establishments. The City of Tucson is working to expedite the process for what they are calling “parklets”.
This combined $350,000 is dependent on the closing of the Rio Nuevo-owned parking lot at Council Street and Church Avenue, just north of the downtown YMCA, which sold for $750,000.
In other business at the Rio Nuevo Board’s regular monthly meeting:
The Rio Nuevo Board voted unanimously to guarantee a loan in the amount of $375,000 for a period of two years to support the renovation of the historic duplex at Court Avenue and Washington Street adjacent to Presidio San Agustin del Tucson Museum. All historic approvals are in place and work can begin on this significant El Presidio building.
The Board approved the next steps in the much-anticipated Tucson Convention Center (TCC) revitalization project, advancing nearly $15M in funds to complete the TCC meeting room expansion and the construction of the Lot C parking garage bringing 524 new parking spaces to the TCC. This work will be completed by January of 2022 for the Gem Show.