Phoenix Mart

Don and I skipped out of our duplicate bridge night and headed down to the Outlet Mall to hear a presentation about the coming Phoenix Mart project.  This project is HUGE and will make a great impact on Casa Grande.

Jeremy Schoenfelder who is a Vice President of General Administration with AZSourcing answered questions and gave an overview of the project.

Construction will be just east of Overfield Road.  (Take Florence Blvd east a couple miles past the mall.)  About 585 acres of land has been purchased.  Actual ground breaking for phase one should begin around March with projected completion of phase one estimated to be March of 2013.  They propose a soft opening in spring with the Grand Opening in fall after winter visitors return.  The purpose of the Mart is a place where wholesale buyers can come and meet with manufacturers who sell various goods.  The site is geared toward wholesale buyers but we as individual shoppers can buy ones or twos also.  There were original rumors that there would be a bunch of restaurants out there but right now there are only plans for a food court which will just service employees and shoppers.  There will also be a convention center and probably hotel or resident accommodations.  One third of the 1.5 million square foot facility will be for Chinese manufacturers, one third for US companies, and one third for other countries to represent their goods.  Phase One is anticipated to bring well over 1,000 jobs to Casa Grande.

Here are some artist renditions of the proposed building and surrounding area.

I will put some links here to past articles about the project in case you aren’t up to date on local news.

Phoenix Mart Initial Announcement

Second Announcement

The investors with the Phoenix Mart project bought the outlet mall, which is off Jimmie Kerr Boulevard and are using it as their current headquarters.  Some of the empty retail space will be used as a site for initial vendors to get trained into the Mart idea.  Present vendors already located there will remain.

 

 

Bingo!!

That was FUN!  I got to be the caller at the big Bingo game last night.  While I still like to be playing with dobber in hand trying to win one of those big jackpots, being the caller was exciting too.  It was a little nerve wracking at first because there are so dang many buttons and widgets and gizmos on that machine but once you get started, it’s not so bad.  I forgot to advance the board a couple times but friendly folks at the tables kept an eye on me and helped me along.  Of course I threatened the whole room and said they had to be kind because I know where most of them live and I could get even. 

Before we started the first game, everyone held a salute as we yelled “Dobbers Up” and wished each other good luck.  I tried to get a picture of everyone so had to do it in thirds.

One very lucky gentleman won the final black out jackpot and took home $602. 

As the bingo players left the room, the volunteers from the softball team entered to pick up all the tables and chairs.  WOW!!!  They have that job down to a science!  They had everything cleaned up and put away in a very short time.  I send a very hearty THANK YOU to them as it is a HUGE contribution to making the bingo event so successful.

Tis the Season

Thanksgiving has come and gone so now it’s time to decorate for the Christmas holiday.  The front foyer up at the reception desk looks warm and welcoming.  I hope you folks back east or up north can read the weather report on the TV set to see that we’re in the 70s by day with lots of sunshine.

The tree is decorated.

Santa is here to welcome you.

And the “Giving Tree” is asking for gifts to be donated to needy children.

The third section of the new sewing room arrived and all three pieces are now in place up by the north side of the ballroom.

I’ll post an on-line album here showing many photos of the pieces being brought into place. 

		Sewing Room Installation VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

Inside the current sewing room, the ladies are hard at work. 

A lot of charitable work is created here by making quilts, pillow cases, baby blankets, little dresses, etc. for needy people in the community and sometimes over seas.  These busy bees make a great contribution with their labor of love.

Since I was in the neighborhood, I made a quick stop at the stained glass room.  Even though there was a sign on the door about being closed for a class, they were kind and didn’t chase me out.  I caught them hard at work at their masterpieces.

Right next door is the pottery room and there were a few folks working in there too.

These craft rooms are always busy.

On the way home, while camera was still charged, I found a few more Creekers enjoying the day.

I believe pickleball has the largest group of participants.  Their bulletin board tells the story about how many different levels of play, times of play, lessons, etc. etc.  There should be some play for everyone at all skill levels.

Tuesday must be men’s day by the looks of the golf course.

Shuffleboard was just gearing up and cleaning the courts to get ready for play.

It looks like work continues with the construction of the Palm Creek float.  Must be ready for the big parade this coming weekend.

Whoops….must run and help get set up for the big bingo game tonight.  Have a good day!