The most recent edition of the Federal Reserve Board’s Beige Book, looking at the country’s economic activities as of late November, reveals uniformly moderate economic growth across all of the board’s twelve districts. The publication, based upon interviews with business and community leaders, as well as economists and markets experts, is valued not because of the hard numbers it may provide, but because of the anecdotal and attitudinal takes offered by participants in the field. The new report indicates that respondents in four of the dozen districts revealed “little to no growth,” with another five saying that economic activity remained “below pre-pandemic levels for at least some sectors.” Overall, the report notes “higher-than-average growth of manufacturing, distribution, and logistics, homebuilding, and existing home sales.” Continues the Beige Book: “Banking contacts in numerous Districts reported some deterioration of loan portfolios, particularly for commercial lending” for the retail and hospitality sectors. Northern New Mexico and Colorado comprise a part of the Kansas City-based 10th District, which saw a moderate increase in residential and real estate activity, “while commercial real estate conditions continued to worsen at a modest pace.” Construction supply sales in the 10th District “continued to rise modestly, but were expected to decline heading into the winter months.” Southern New Mexico and west Texas are a part of the 11th District, which is based in Dallas. Interviewees in this district reported that activity in the housing market remained robust, while “home sales continued to outperform expectations, particularly in suburban locations, and inventories remained exceptionally light.” Builders in the 11th District said they were “raising home prices both to cover higher construction costs and to slow down sales, given the heavy backlogs. New home development was active, and contacts noted that builders and developers were chasing land and lots.” The 12th District, based in San Francisco, includes all of Arizona, where “residential construction activity continued to grow strongly, supported by low interest rates and the current telework environment.” Contacts throughout the 12th District reported “increased demand for new and existing homes, especially in suburban areas and vacation home destinations, which kept inventories low and raised home prices further.” “Several contacts noted increases in construction costs and long project timelines due to labor shortages and supply chain disruptions,” 12th District sources additionally reported. By Garry Boulard
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Plans are underway for the building of a new swimming pool inside Denver’s Congress Park, on the immediate southeast side of the city. The project, with an estimated cost of anywhere from $6.7 million to $7.4 million, will replace the long-standing Congress Park Pool, which was built in 1955. City officials have said that the existing pool, while remaining popular with swimmers, has been challenged by a series of structural issues related to its age. The new pool project at 850 Joseph Street will comprise 50 meters, with a 25-yard cross course, and will include a pool deck as well as parking lot built to Americans with Disabilities Act standards. Also included in the project: the building of a new bath house and underground detention vault. Demolition of the existing Congress Park Pool and bath house will precede the construction. The project will be funded out of the $937 million Elevate Denver general obligation bonds approved by local voters in late 2017. The subject of several public input gatherings, the new Congress Park pool project is expected to get underway early next year with an early 2022 completion date in plenty of time for the summer swimming season. By Garry Boulard In a move to secure the construction of a new 150,000 square foot Costco outlet, members of the Longmont City Council have approved an incentives package worth just over $12.5 million. Longmont and Costco officials have been engaged in ongoing talks for months now with the hope of seeing the chain build on a nearly 50-acre site on the south side of the city near the suburban Harvest Junction South neighborhood. The project will also see the construction of a fueling station. In a statement, City Manager Harold Dominguez said the incentives package “is required for Costco to locate in Longmont specifically and very similar to other agreements along the Front Range.” The package will include nearly $6.2 million in site development costs. If all of the final details can be worked out, the project will launch sometime in 2021, with an anticipated early completion date of the summer of 2023. Based in Issaquah, Washington, the Costco Wholesale Corporation is the second largest retailer in the world, next to Walmart, with annual revenues in excess of $152 billion. With a growing presence in the West, the membership-only Costco currently has around 35 locations in Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. The company’s locations typically measure anywhere from 73,000 to 205,000 square feet, with an average store size coming in at 144,000 square feet. By Garry Boulard The developers launching a plan to update a well-known downtown Albuquerque hotel may be eligible for both federal and state tax credits due to its new status as a historic structure. Last year Arrive Hotels and Restaurants, based in Los Angeles, announced its purchase of the former Hotel Blue, a six-story structure built in 1965 and located at the intersection of Central Avenue and 8th Street. The company said it would likely invest around $22 million upgrading the hotel, which was originally a part of the Downtowner Motor Inn chain, before subsequently becoming both a Quality Inn and Ramada Inn property. In announcing the historic status of the 75,000 square foot hotel, the National Park Service, which oversees the historic places list, said the former Hotel Blue represented an “exceptional example of a mid-20th century motel on Route 66 in Albuquerque.” More than 95,000 historic structures and properties have now been listed with the National Register of Historic Places. This month the agency also declared the Sam Hughes Neighborhood in Tucson, known for its early 20th century bungalow architecture, as a historic district. At the same time, The First Avenue Hotel in downtown Denver, an example of Italian Renaissance Revival architecture completed in 1907, was also added to the historic places list. By Garry Boulard Work may begin before next spring on a project that will see the repurposing of a former Residence Inn hotel on the south side of Santa Fe. The Provo, Utah-based PEG Companies wants to turn a cluster of more than a dozen two-story buildings once branded as a Residence Inn, and located at 1698 Galisteo Street, into affordable housing units. The company purchased the Santa Fe hotel in the fall of 2018, along with other hotel properties in Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Mesa, Tampa, and St. Louis. At the time of those purchases, a PEG Companies press release said the firm wanted to expand its “geographical footprint.” Last year the company also announced plans to develop similar properties within Federal Opportunities zones nationally, spending up to $250 million in those zones. To date, the PEG Companies, an integrated commercial real estate investment firm, has developed nearly 3,000 multifamily units nationally. According to the Santa Fe New Mexican, most of the former Residence Inn rooms on Galisteo Street will be converted into “450 to 490 square foot studio apartments.” A smaller segment of rooms will measure 790 to 850 square feet. The overall complex, to be called the Aria Apartments, will also include a swimming pool, clubhouse, bike storage area and community fire pit. The Santa Fe Residence Inn was built in 1987 as part of an extended-stay chain operating with the slogan “It’s not a room. It’s a Residence.” By Garry Boulard Tackling a long-standing challenge, members of the Flagstaff City Council are officially describing a lack of affordable housing as a city-wide emergency. That description is the heart and soul of a resolution approved by the council requiring city staff between now and next fall to come up with a plan to increase the affordable housing stock in Flagstaff. That plan, as envisioned by the council, is expected to more fully explain Flagstaff’s incentives efforts to spur affordable housing construction, while also tackling the sensitive issue of resident resistance to such projects. More specifically, the resolution states that city will launch a public outreach effort to “educate the community about the critical role affordable housing plays in a thriving community and combating ‘Not in My Backyard’ opposition to housing and affordable housing.” The resolution passed by the council is particularly designed to put all previous Flagstaff affordable housing city policies into one reader-friendly document. According to city documents, some 49% of all households in Flagstaff are currently classified as low income, with nearly 22,400 residents living in households that are regarded as “cost-burdened,” meaning that more than 30% of their income goes to housing costs. A recent survey conducted by the city indicates that due to the lack of affordable housing options a large 43% of respondents indicated they had had plans to move out of the city in the next several years. By Garry Boulard Overturning an earlier federal district court ruling in El Paso, an appeals court has ruled in favor of allowing the Trump Administration to continue construction of a border wall between the U.S. and Mexico. In December of 2019, US District Judge David Briones for the Western District of Texas ruled that it was illegal for funding intended for more than one hundred military base construction projects to be diverted for the controversial wall project. In handing down that decision, Broines, responding to a suit filed by the Border Network for Human Rights, said border security could not “override the public’s interest in the executive branch complying with the law.” The El Paso-based Border Network is an immigration reform and human rights advocacy group. The Border Network group had additionally claimed that it suffered financially as a result of the funding diversion due to the fact that it was forced to “divert time and resources to help its members deal with the harmful effects of border wall construction.” At the time of the Western Texas District ruling, the Trump Administration had transferred just over $3.6 billion in military funds to continue construction along the border. Now, in a 2 to 1 decision, the 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans has sided with the White House, declaring that the Border Network group had failed to establish that the wall construction project had “perceptibly impaired” its mission. The court added that the Border Network group also did not demonstrate whether any of the funds it spent to educate members on the wall construction project would have gone for another purpose. It is thought that ultimately legal challenges against the transfer of funds for the wall project will end up in the U.S. Supreme Court. By Garry Boulard After two years of talks with city officials, a company specializing in satellite development has announced plans to build a sweeping 122-acre campus just to the northeast of the Albuquerque International Sunport. The company, Group Orion, is a subsidiary of Theia Group, a privately held aerospace firm based in Washington. Theia is in the process of spearheading a worldwide network of more than one hundred satellites equipped with radar and infrared cameras that can see through darkness, clouds, and foliage. Details of the Albuquerque project have been presented to the Albuquerque Environmental Planning Commission by the Albuquerque-based Consensus Planning firm. Those plans include the construction of a one-story light manufacturing center measuring some two million square feet, as well as an eight-story combined office and laboratory structure. An additional part of what is being called the Orion Center is expected to include the building of a hangar, parking structure, and extended-stay hotel. According to city documents, the project will be built in phases. A public input meeting on the project was conducted last September. At the time of that meeting, Nyika Allen, director of aviation for the city, noted that the proposed Orion Center is a “potentially monumental project not only for our neighborhood, but for the entire community.” It is expected that work could begin on the site, which is owned by the City of Albuquerque, next year, with an anticipated campus opening in 2023. By Garry Boulard Voters in Grand Junction may decide sometime next spring on a ballot proposal calling for the construction of a new city community center. As part of a contract with the city, the Louisville, Colorado-based GreenPlay LLC, a park and green space consulting company, has put together a proposed master plan that includes the center. Planning for what is being called the Parks, Recreation, Open Space Master Plan was launched this summer and included a survey and public input process attracting responses from more than 3,000 Grand Junction residents. That input indicated that roughly 63% of respondents, in a corner of the state where outdoor recreation is highly valued, selected the building of a new center among the public and park improvement initiatives they are most enthusiastic about. A report on the survey presented to the Grand Junction City Council additionally noted the importance of trails, open space, and parks. By contrast, noted the report, “shade structures and recreation programs and activities received above average importance ratings, but below average needs-met ratings.” Among those selecting a center as a top priority, respondents said they most desired such a facility to have an indoor warm water leisure pool, as well as a fitness center, indoor track, and multi-use gymnasium. Other respondents listed the creation of new walking trails with access to the north-to-south Green River, and the building of more park shelters. Funding for putting together the master plan is coming from a $56,000 grant provided through the Great Colorado Outdoors, with the proviso that the planning process must be completed by next summer. The Great Colorado Outdoors effort uses a portion of proceeds from the state’s lottery to pay for park, open space, and trail projects. How the building of the center itself will be funded is a question that remains to be answered, although some Grand Junction officials, as well as survey respondents, have suggested tapping into revenue from medical and recreational marijuana sales, as well as raising local sales and property taxes. By Garry Boulard New funding in New Mexico of up to $100 million is being provided for small businesses impacted by the pandemic economy. Members of the New Mexico State Legislature have approved a CARES Relief Grant Program for both for-profit businesses as well as nonprofit organizations, as long as either entity has 100 or fewer employees. The individual grant amounts will vary between $2,000 and $50,000, depending upon the size of the staff, with around 40% of the grants targeting businesses located in rural areas. By law, the grants can be used for general businesses expenses, as well as purchasing personal protective equipment and the cost of retrofitting a business space to meet Covid-19 safety guidelines. Applications for the grants through the New Mexico Finance Authority will be taken during a two-week period between December 7 and December 18. Approved grants from the program are expected to be announced before the end of the year. In signing the legislation making the grant funding available, New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham remarked: “We must continue to evaluate how we can get more assistance to more New Mexicans who need it in this time of crisis.” By Garry Boulard |
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