For students hanging around downtown Phoenix or living on the Downtown campus, there has historically been little to do aside from major events. Nothing against Starbucks and all the independent coffee shops in the area, but when you don’t want to study or grab a cup of joe, you can either sit outside in the Civic Space Park or inside the University Center. Time-killing is a bleak activity in the surrounding financial district. The coolest thing until now has been the few nearby theaters, city hall and access to the arts district.
But things are looking up for downtown, with the grand opening of CityScape, a two-story catch-all urban development that includes entertaining amenities like a bowling alley, comedy club, Urban Outfitters, Gold’s Gym, banks, a pharmacy and grocery store, and a variety of dining options.
CityScape, after hosting its first Oktoberfest in late October, had its official grand opening this past weekend, where artists like Macy Gray and Third Eye Blind consummated the Scape’s push for becoming an entertainment destination in its own right.
In addition to revitalizing lifestyle options for students, the development gives other nine-to-fivers some reason to hang around after work. And people who come down for concerts or sporting events can also kill time while stimulating our city’s economy.
Although we don’t look forward to all the sweaty businessmen and women boarding the light rail after a cardio day at Gold’s, we’ll gladly accept the cultural hub it’s going to bring after hours, like the Friday night concert series and two entertainment lounges.
All this month, CityScape will feature the 26 Blocks exhibit, which glorifies 26 blocks of Phoenix by some of the best local writers and photographers we’ve got to offer, including the work of a few ASU professors and alumni.
Phoenix and its sprawling development have earned Phoenicians the title of being excessively car-happy. But the development will be sure to provide incentive for more light rail use, surely at the pleasure of green-minded Mayor Phil Gordon. And with such skimpy nearby parking lots and congested streets, the CityScape’s location increases the need for foot over four-wheel traffic — a plus for all cities.
It no longer requires a huge sporting event or concert for people to come into town, which is how it should be. Phoenix and its fair weather should be experienced in a safe, people-friendly and semi-low-key environment. Although we have no idea why we didn’t develop this sooner, CityScape is sure to become a central nerve of the rail and cultural experience.
Among the bit of adrenaline that ASU students have added to the Phoenix scene around its campus, particularly with the construction of the Taylor Place residence halls and movement of the nursing and journalism schools downtown, the CityScape development manager Mike Moloznick said the expected revenue from the ASU students was a huge factor in its development.
“If it wasn’t for the campus being there, we would not be there,” he said in an August interview with The State Press.
