There was a time when the McDowell Road Corridor was a major commercial artery pumping a constant flow of dollars and cents into the coffers of local proprietors as well as the municipality of Scottsdale.

The Scottsdale Gateway Alliance wants to bring the success of years past back to an overlooked area they say is primed for revitalization and a comeback.

The Scottsdale Gateway Alliance, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, seeks to advance investment and revitalization opportunities in southern Scottsdale and along the McDowell Road Corridor, it’s mission statement reads.

Both municipal and SGA leaders say a major goal of the redevelopment of the McDowell Road Corridor — roughly the area of McDowell Road west from Loop 101 to 68th Street — is to bring more people to the area.

While the Scottsdale Gateway Alliance is not a city-driven endeavor, two members of Scottsdale City Council say they played a role in spurring resident interest in the effort.

“I think it probably started percolating when Virginia (Korte) and I were running for council last year,” Scottsdle Councilwoman Suzanne Klapp said in an Oct. 1 phone interview. “The idea was born from the realization that government has taken it (the corridor) to its limit — there has to be advocacy for people to get excited about the McDowell area.”

Councilwoman Klapp says she is already beginning to see seeds of interest blossom.

“It can’t be overlooked; it is a critical part of south Scottsdale,” she said. “But you cannot create a commercial district without people.”

Scottsdale Vice Mayor Virginia Korte says she views Councilwoman Klapp and herself as the “founders of the organization.”

“I have been connected to the corridor for about 40 years,” she said in an Oct. 1 phone interview, noting the recent sale of her family’s car dealership at Scottsdale and McDowell roads. “For the first time I am seeing some really positive momentum down there and it is nothing the city has done.”

The opportunities for a revitalization along the McDowell Road Corridor are ample, Vice Mayor Korte contends.

“The area is highly accessible to two freeways and is 10 minutes from the airport (Phoenix Sky Harbor),” she explained. “We have got downtown Scottsdale to the north, so I believe we have some opportunity to create or recreate a center of commerce there.”

Retail and rooftops

Two city council-approved south Scottsdale multi-family housing projects could spur the rebirth of the McDowell Road Corridor, proponents say.

The first, a Mark Taylor Residential Inc. project, allowed by a rezoning amendment of 24.5 acres of land at the southeast corner of 74th Street and McDowell Road, facilitates a mixed-use development of a new, three-story, 536-unit multifamily residential community within the existing commercial district at 74th Street.

The amendment was approved by Scottsdale City Council, Nov. 1, 2011, according to Scottsdale Independent archives.

The second, a Scottsdale Mar, LLC project, has been approved to construct a 154-unit apartment complex at the northwest corner of 68th Street and McDowell Road where a Pitre Buick auto dealership once stood.

Scottsdale City Council approved that project last April, according to Scottsdale Independent archives

“The retail is going to follow the rooftops,” Vice Mayor Korte said of the coming multi-family housing projects. “It is going to be the catalyst for bringing in additional retail.”

Councilwoman Klapp agrees.

“They (the apartment projects) are going to be a great enhancement,” she said. “They are going to draw more people who want to invest in order to serve the people who are living there.”

South Scottsdale rebirth

Jeff Berghoff, president of the Scottsdale Gateway Alliance Board of Directors, says the McDowell Road Corridor is a place in transition.

“We are a group of private citizens who have a vested interest to make sure McDowell Road does not turn into the next Van Buren,” he said in a Oct. 1 phone interview. “I have a vested interest in seeing this place succeed.”

Mr. Berghoff recently converted a car dealership at 7000 E. McDowell Road into the Berghoff Design Group headquarters by repurposing a dilapidated dealership facility.

“We want to make sure we are bringing the attention to south Scottsdale because a lot of the focus has been in north Scottsdale,” he said. “We want to be the boots on the ground. We want to draw attention to this. What could happen in south Scottsdale?”

When asked what economic development meant to the McDowell Road Corridor, Mr. Berghoff replied, “I think it means a resurgence in the area.”

Noting the redevelopment of an auto dealership shell into his design studio, Mr. Berghoff contends his business could be a prototype for what opportunities can exist along the McDowell Road.

“But I don’t know what will come first,” he said of the incoming multi-family housing products. “We as a group, we haven’t decided where we stand on it. Certainly, we are not one side or the other.”

Dana Close, SGA treasurer, echoes the sentiment of getting conversations started.

“For me, on a personal level this is my biggest platform because I live here,” she said in a Sept. 29 phone interview. “If we can combine our efforts in a positive manner and utilize the same voice we can turn this into a completely different place.”

Ms. Close contends she wants what the neighbors want — a vibrant community.

“I think what we need to do is listen to the community members … people who live here want to see amenities,” she said.

“We are not advocating for more people. We are not apartment people. But we do want to show that we are willing to roll up our sleeves and make something happen — show investors its a new day around here.”

Ms. Close says it is time for the McDowell Road Corridor to emerge as a burgeoning marketplace bringing new economic development opportunities.

“We need not be looked upon as second-class citizens of the city,” she said. “What we are not is an avenue for everyone to complain about the things we can’t change. What we can change is encouraging the current businesses that are already here.”

 

News Editor Terrance Thornton can be contacted at 623-445-2774 via e-mail at tthornton@newszap.com or follow him atwww.twitter.com/nvnewsman