Developer seeking state land for 2 Scottsdale auto lots

A developer hopes to acquire more than 29 acres of state trust land for two car dealerships on Scottsdale Road just south of Loop 101.

Diversified Partners of Scottsdale submitted preliminary plans to the city last week for two car lots, with one dealership housed in a 90,000-square-foot, two-story building. A second building is not mentioned in the plans.

The 29.37-acre site southeast of Scottsdale Road and Union Hills Drive is scheduled to be sold at auction at 10:30 a.m. May 15 at the Arizona State Land Department.

The minimum bid is $10.2 million, or $348,051 per acre.

Walt Brown Jr., Diversified Partners CEO, said he expects other bidders for the state land.

"We have been talking to banks, talking to hotels that want to be there," Brown said. "We are trying to work our way through it."

No specific car brand has been identified for the development, he said.

But Diversified's plans submitted to the city include architectural drawings labeled Lexus Scottsdale.

The site is one of the first targeted for development within an area of state trust land called Crossroads East. It includes about 1,000 acres between Scottsdale and Hayden roads from Princess Drive north to the southern edge of Grayhawk.

"If we're successful, we plan to put it in production within a year or year and a half," Brown said. "It sure is great real estate."

The site's proximity to the Loop 101 and nearby shopping centers with great tenants make it an ideal location, he said.

Development will require some major drainage improvements including a channel for storm water set back at least 50 feet from Scottsdale Road, Brown said, adding that its unclear how much the work will cost.

It will be similar to a drainage channel on the west side of Scottsdale Road for a series of car dealerships in Phoenix.

Cadillac dealer owns nearby site

A Lund Cadillac dealership was approved in 2002 for a site northeast of Scottsdale Road and Union Hills Drive.

Lund still owns the land, but its plans, approved by the Scottsdale Development Review Board in 2003, have expired, said Greg Bloemberg, a city planner.

Lund Cadillac did not return calls seeking comment about its plan for the site.

Apartment plans advance
TDI Real Estate Holdings, of Irving, Texas, has submitted plans to the Scottsdale Development Review Board for the second phase of its apartment project at One Scottsdale, northeast of Scottsdale Road and Loop 101.

The project, which surfaced in October, would include 677 apartments on 24 acres at the northeastern edge of the 120-acre One Scottsdale site.

The Henkel North America headquarters, formerly Dial, is the only existing building on the northeastern corner. It was completed in December 2008.

The apartments would be developed in two phases with 388 units in the first phase and 289 in the second phase.

Apartments would range in size from 748 to 1,280 square feet.

TDI previously estimated development costs for the first phase at $65 million.

by Peter Corbett - Apr. 6, 2012 08:48 AM The Republic | azcentral.com



Developer seeking state land for 2 Scottsdale auto lots