Tempe officials are reporting an increased interest in the property surrounding the light rail line, which is scheduled to open in December.
According to the city of Tempe’s Web site, there are currently 18 developments along Apache Boulevard, the vast majority of which are residential.
“We’ve had development projects on Apache [Boulevard] for a long time and the light rail is super-charging those efforts,” said Chris Baxter, community development and marketing specialist for the city of Tempe.
Baxter said Apache Boulevard, which makes up a portion of the new light rail line, has suffered since the openings of the Loop 202 and Route 60.
“Apache Boulevard and Mill Avenue used to be freeways that people would drive along while traveling between the East and West coasts,” Baxter said. “When the 60 opened up, they started using that instead. The light rail is bringing more people back to those areas.”
Mike Zipprich is the co-manager of the SunAmerican Group development company, which is building Campus Suites on the Rail, a student apartment complex at the intersection of Apache Boulevard and McClintock Drive. Zipprich said the light rail is going to attract renters and homebuyers looking for a convenient place to live.
“It’s the new ‘urban living’ concept: being able to ride the rail to work and school,” Zipprich said. “I think a lot of [developers] see it as an opportunity.”
Baxter also said the city was hopeful that the light rail would bring more customers to local businesses near downtown Tempe, which have suffered from drops in revenue over the first few months of the fiscal year because of construction and the completion of Tempe Marketplace.
“Our city is doing better than most,” Baxter said. “Our developments are continuing to go forward, and light rail is a big part of that.”
Architecture sophomore CJ Pennington said the new form of public transportation would help breathe life into the area surrounding ASU by helping students access off-campus businesses.
“A lot of students on campus don’t have any form of transportation other than a bike or skateboard,” Pennington said, “so having the light rail is going to open them up to a lot of places off campus and around campus [instead of] having to stick to places in the MU.”
Not everyone agreed with the city’s prediction of that the rail would revive the local economy. Religious studies senior Tyler Azeltine said officials were too optimistic about the impact the rail would have.
“I don’t know that it’ll change where people are taking their business,” Azeltine said. “They’re still going to the same places, they’re just using a different means of transportation to get there.”
Reach the reporter at derek.quizon@asu.edu.
