Coming soon...

Downtown Phoenix continues to add the fine-grained development that will give birth to a real city:

* GS3 Condos at Third Avenue and Portland Street continue to move through the city's permitting process, seeking several variances in April.

* The "Gallery" Bar and Grill at Third Street and Roosevelt (at Canvas) received variances to allow outdoor dining and live music.

* Sister's Express Cafe apparently will open at Artisan Village in the live/work space along Roosevelt and nearest Seventh Street.

* Portland Place is moving forward on its second phase. It's hiking the prices in the few remaining condos in the first phase to match the second phase's prices.

Updates and links

Odds and ends:

New Residents. Central Phoenix's population will swell a little bit more as closings just occurred in the second building in Tapestry on Central (the portion of the complex facing Central). Meanwhile, closing is supposed to take place in mid-July in the first phase of Portland Place.

Sun Mercantile/W Hotel suit. The lawsuit filed by various groups in an effort to save the Sun Mercantile building is now rolling into its fourteenth month of existence, and still going strong. The case is now in the discovery phase. I'll say it again: developers, do quality urban projects and respect the buildings and parks that are already in place, or you will face some powerful resistance. (See 44 Monroe as an example of doing it right.)

Light rail as economic development tool. Even light rail advocates like myself will admit the project is partly about economic development. Read a libertarian response (starting on page 4).

Fellow bloggers. After perusing the sites of various downtown Phoenix-related bloggers, I have to wonder: am I the only one who's not a real estate agent?