A Chicago developer was given final and unanimous approval Monday night to build four high-rise condo buildings next to Mesa‘s Fiesta Mall – a project that will give home-seekers a chance to live up to 25 stories above the ground in a major retail area.
Fiesta Towers, a 540-unit condo development, sailed through the City Council on Monday night, less than a year after plans were unveiled for what would be Mesa’s tallest buildings at the corner of Westwood and Grove Avenue.
The council approved the huge development, which has been touted as having "all the right ingredients" to breathe new life into one of Mesa’s main shopping districts.
Illinois-based developer Roszak ADC said two of the condo towers will be between 10 and 20 stories, and the other two will be somewhere between 19 and 25 stories.
The firm plans to sell condos for anywhere from $200,000 to $700,000 each. Construction probably won’t begin for at least a year.
"I’m thrilled by it," Councilman Tom Rawles said before the meeting began. "It will be a boom to the area. Luxury condos will bring in high-income people. It’s a win-win for everybody."
City officials overwhelmingly supported the Fiesta Towers proposal through each approval stage. The project has encountered little, if any, opposition from residents since it was introduced in November.
Fiesta Towers was billed as a luxury condo complex that will offer a swimming pool, concierge, game room and a media room that will also have mini-theatres where residents can watch DVDs.
The ground floor of the complex will consist of retail space for restaurants, a cafe, a salon/spa and a gourmet market.
Tom Roszak, president of Roszak ADC, has said Mesa is a prime location for the highrise condo complex because of its proximity to the freeways and Fiesta Mall.
"It has all the right ingredients that would support a project like this," he has said.
The city had previously rezoned the corner Westwood and Grove Avenue to accommodate the 4.9-acre mixed-use development.
At least 2,500 people have requested information about Fiesta Towers, which is expected to rise above Mesa’s 16-story Bank of America building.
Reese Anderson, an attorney representing the developer, said the community is eager to see the area revived to its former glory. Much of Mesa’s recent growth has been to the east.
"There has been a perception that the area is going downhill," Anderson said. "If you ask people, they are looking for it to come back and be revitalized."
Anderson said the next step will be for the developer to obtain construction permits and approval from the Arizona Department of Real Estate to begin selling units. That could take between eight months to a year.
By Sarah Lynch
Tribune
