Main street with retail, office, commercial planned as last piece in Peoria community

Construction on the final piece of a major Peoria community is set to begin next year. It will include a new core commercial area covering 320 acres.

Five North at Vistancia is the name of this high-quality lifestyle center, which includes a retail and restaurant corridor along a main street with plenty of open space to allow pedestrians to walk and connect.

There could be new office, hotel, health care and education space between El Mirage Road and Loop 303, just north of Vistancia Boulevard. This could all help Peoria compete with other cities for new jobs and employers.

Five North is the last of the seven communities to be built in Vistancia. It will feature 2,000 apartments, in a range of styles and densities. The property will also include a continuation of the Discovery Trail that spans the entire Vistancia.

Five North's first phase will concentrate on a portion retail, and will be developed in a joint-venture. The remaining 320 acres of land will be sold to other developers.

Find the best chef-driven restaurants

Mark Hammons is the principal of Land Resources Inc., and the general manager for Vistancia. He said that their team would focus on bringing chef driven restaurants to Vistancia. They will also create an environment fun with outdoor dining, concert in the park, and other activities.

Hammons, speaking to the Business Journal, said: "We are looking for the best of the class and first-to-market." "We have spent a lot time with restaurateurs from central Phoenix, Scottsdale and Gilbert."

The first phases are scheduled to begin in 2024 Q1 and be completed by 2025. Hammons stated that the initial infrastructure will represent a 30 million dollar investment, but the overall value will be determined by the projects built in Five North.

Five North can also create thousands of jobs, and attract industrial employers like research and development and suppliers to the 40 billion Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. plants located 10 minutes away.

Peoria mayor Jason Beck said in a press release that the high-quality tenants, and jobs at Five North Vistancia would make our community even more desirable. We envision the development as attracting additional businesses and meeting the needs of residential growth expected in the northern area of the city.

Vistancia is partnering with Peoria, Western Retail Advisors, and Colliers International in order to promote the new commercial opportunities. Retail development in the West Valley has increased significantly with several shopping centers under construction.

Nelsen Partners of Texas is the architect for the site's first retail phase. The firm has also worked on prominent retail developments in the Valley, including Kierland Quarter, Scottsdale Quarter and Goodyear’s new downtown. The general contractor for the project has not yet been chosen.

TSMC offers motivation

Hammons stated that they always intended to develop this site as a mixed-use project, but are now moving forward because of the rapid growth of the area. The Loop 303 runs from Interstate 17 up to U.S. Highway 60.

He said that when TSMC entered the picture, it really motivated him to work on the project. "We knew that now was the right time to rebrand and replan that commercial core area," he added. "Once the dominos fall with opening and a few things happening here, I truly believe that there will be lots of interest and we will have a successful community."

Northpointe will include 3,250 single family homes. Hammons stated that they still have 2,000 acres to develop at Northpointe, which could be completed in the next 5 to 10 years.

Vistancia has more than 8,500 homes and a population of approximately 17,500. The first community opened in 2004, and it contains four different communities, including Northpointe Village at Vistancia Blackstone at Vistancia and Trilogy at Vistancia.

IHP Capital Partners, based in Newport Beach, California and Varde Partners, based in Minneapolis acquired Vistancia by 2021.

In the last few years, the growth of commercial and residential development in the north part Phoenix Valley has accelerated after TSMC announced its plans to build a new semiconductor complex. Hundreds of Taiwanese workers have moved to the area in order to set up TSMC Arizona operations. This has led to an increase in housing and other amenities.