Mayor Phil Gordon's State of Downtown Address

[thisrocks at mac.com]

Thank you Maureen for posting the invite. Mayor Phil Gordon  
definitely spoke to us all tonight: educators, residents, developers,  
businessmen, artists, politicians, medical professionals, students,  
and everyone in between. Here are some highlights:

Attendees proceeded to the top floor of convention rooms at the  
Phoenix Convention Center. Exhibitors spread out in one room and  
Mayor Gordon held court in another. There were artists who  
participate in the Copper Square “Performance Street” entertainment  
program: a lady with a python, a man on stilts, and a very tall man  
crafting balloon animals.

There was a healthy array of food from several Downtown Phoenix  
restaurants including Palazzo and Tom's Restaurant & Tavern. And a  
bevy of other exhibitors including: a new energy drink called Kaboom;  
a jazz band; Sherry Rampy of Realty Executives; artist James Angel;  
Made Art Boutique; Downtown Phoenix Public Market; Arizona  
Telemedicine Program; and several loft projects from the Downtown  
Phoenix Urban Form Project and Loft Tour with members of the City  
Planning Department.

Mayor Gordon spoke to a full house for well over 45 minutes,  
espousing the current and future attributes of Downtown Phoenix.
- "...$2.3 billion and over 7 million square feet of planned or  
proposed new construction and it will rise. Such an exciting time to  
be in Downtown."
- Downtown revenue up 166% to $43 million in revenue.
- With such close proximity of sporting events, cultural activities,  
Light Rail, education resources, scientific research, medical  
facilities, art venues, all 10 minutes from Sky Harbor Airport, there  
is "nothing else like it anywhere."
- "The [Phoenix] bird will soar again."
- 6300 new high paying jobs being created in downtown.
- "Without the arts community, there is no downtown."
- The Arizona Telemedicine Program got lots of stage time as members  
of the pioneering project demonstrated using the technology. This is  
a vast network across Arizona that allows patients to be seen and  
diagnosed by doctors who are hundreds of miles away using synchronous  
video telecommunications. For more information visit: www.  
telemedicine.arizona.edu.
- For the first time, Arizona State University and University of  
Arizona emblems will be featured on a tan baseball cap underscored by  
the words "Downtown Phoenix." Each attendee was given one of the ball  
caps. This is because ASU and U of A are teaming up to create the  
Phoenix Bioscience Campus Downtown. ASU will also open the Walter  
Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication next year.
- The biggest message I think Mayor Gordon wanted to get across is  
that Downtown Phoenix is and will have it all: Education from ASU   
and U of A; Research, BioMed, and Science from the likes of TGen and  
Ribomed; Arts from Symphony Hall and Herberger Theater as well as  
many other events like First Friday Art Walk; Hotel infrastructure  
like the new Sheraton; New retail and restaurants like the late 2006  
opening of Hanny's (as a restaurant rather than in its original form  
of an upscale clothing store) by Karl Kopp, owner of AZ88;  
Residential opportunities from people like Eric Brown, president of  
Artisan Homes who is responsible for several Downtown Phoenix  
residential projects; Greenspace provided by a new park; and of  
course more and more business.
- "Downtown Phoenix is the place to live, work and play!"

I agree!
That's all for now!
Aaron

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