A common thread weaving through the business of arts and culture, the reimagining of master-planned communities, cutting-edge data centers, advanced lab spaces, and the new breed of elite hotels is clear: a commitment to sustainability, innovation, and economic vitality and impact.
These dynamic topics were front and center at the 20th Annual Trends Day, where industry leaders gathered to discuss the present and look to Arizona’s future.
In celebration of the 20th anniversary of Trends Day, past Chairs were recognized; many of them were in attendance.
Held by the ULI Arizona Council, Trends Day always begins with an economic outlook—global, national, and local. Julia Coronado, founder and president of Macropolicy Perspectives, delivered this year’s economic outlook.
“Where we are right now, the U.S. economy continues to outperform and global inflation cools,” Coronado said. “The U.S. has had a very strong recovery in comparison to other countries. Inflation is the process of repeated price increases—abated to a large extent, but prices are still higher than pre-pandemic. But the U.S. economy is this gigantic ocean liner, and it’s hard to knock it off track.”
Coronado said consumers have settled “into a groove” where, as with every economic expansion, at the heart of it is a self-sustaining positive feedback loop. She added that Americans rate the economy better when asked about their own circumstances, thanks to a small post-election bump.
“Commercial construction has become a headwind to overall GDP growth,” Coronado said when addressing the industry. “Commercial real estate construction is declining, despite some partial offset from the CHIPS and Science Act; delinquencies are low but on the rise. Still, U.S. productivity and business formation have been strong, and the profit share of GDP is at an all-time high.
“The U.S. is starting 2025 on solid footing,” Coronado maintained. “It’s still going to be a strong economy, even with all this uncertainty.”
From left to right: moderator Scarlett Spring, executive director, Phoenix Bioscience Core; Adam Denmark, vice president, science and technology design dtrategist, SmithGroup; John Grady, senior vice president, Northeast region executive, Wexford Science + Technology; and Steven J. Lester, M.D., consultant, Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, Mayo Clinic; medical director, Discovery Oasis, discussing lab space at the 2025 ULI Arizona Trends conference.
Peter Madrid/ULI
Sustainability, innovation, the arts, and economic vitality
The first of the six main panels addressed the topic of clean, wet, and dry lab space, which is becoming more common as people generally talk about lab spaces within the market as they support research at the commercial, manufacturing, and university levels.
“Lab space is an emerging product type,” said moderator Scarlett Spring, executive director of Phoenix Bioscience Core. “We’ve seen a post-pandemic explosion.” She noted that “Cities like Boston and San Francisco in that market are in a class by themselves. Markets like Seattle and Philadelphia have the infrastructure to support the expansion of the lab space market. A lot of it has to do with the density of the research and time it has to grow.
“Future health care is going to be through strategic partnerships, relying on commercialization to get it out to broader spheres,” Spring added. “A next economic frontier is going to be in health care manufacturing. The framework is already in place. Life sciences and the medical device sector should grow in tandem with the semiconductor industry.”
Public funding for arts and placemaking
There is no better way to feel the vibe of a market than through the ability to attract and promote a vibrant arts and culture community, said Chris Camacho, president and CEO of the Greater Phoenix Economic Council, and moderator of a panel that discussed the public funding of arts and culture in Arizona.
“These cross sections should enhance the neighborhoods we live in to be places that we’re proud of,” Camacho said.
Yet a relatively low base of funding exists for the arts community, prompting the question: how can communities activate more of this funding?
“The harsh reality is that the state of Arizona is 48th in the nation for public funding of the arts in terms of per capita spending,” said Christina You-sun Park, executive director of the Arizona Commission on the Arts. “We need to collaborate, come together, and push the public narrative. That festival you went to, those things on the weekend you attend, they create jobs and bring business to the local hotels.”
Geri Wright, executive director of the Arizona Theater Company, said she has seen a shift from people subscribing for the entire year to a transactional ticket exchange. Since Covid, she added, there is “a lot competition with our screens.”
“People weren’t able to go out [during Covid],” Wright said. “There was no replacement for live performance art that people want to see when they go out. That’s a conversation you wouldn’t have had. But in the last five years, you did. The bottom line is, people don’t want to see that on their TV screens or social media feed.”
Combining arts and culture in the commercial space is something with which Sharon Harper, chairman and CEO of Plaza Companies, is well familiar. Her philosophy is to turn around opportunities such as top tier real estate space and activate art.
“All of us want to do projects tying in with the bio sciences,” she said. “The leadership in this room and in the business community needs to do things differently, and each of us can do our own thing. Remember that project, that space, that hotel room; collectively recognize the value that it will create for you. The sustainability of art is so important. We can do it from a business perspective.”
Rethinking master-planned communities
Metro Phoenix is home to numerous master-planned communities; they stretch from the far reaches of the East Valley to the bustling and fast-growing West Valley. But as land and infrastructure become more expensive, the industry faces an affordability headwind.
“The players have changed; there are fewer of them able to play in that space,” said Gadi Kaufmann, chairman of RCLCO and moderator of a panel, “Breaking the Mold: The Evolution of the Master-Planned Community.”
Greg Vogel, founder and CEO of Land Advisors Organization, explained that the scale and size of the master-planned community in Arizona is changing. More equity is needed to complete infrastructure, and horizontal costs have exploded. Still, amenities are the key to a successful master-planned community.
“Density requires proximity to something,” said Adrian Foley, president and CEO, development, for Brookfield Properties. “The key is to create a cool product co-located with an amenity core village. A master-planned community with this stuff for my kids. A place where people want to be. Density creates that space.”
The master-planned communities panel was followed by the annual keynote lunch address. This year’s presenters were National Geographic photographer and filmmaker Pete McBride and adventure writer Kevin Fedarko. Their presentation, “Into the Canyon: Between River and Rim,” chronicled an incredible hike through the Grand Canyon—a 750-mile (1,200 km) odyssey on foot.
(From left to right: moderator Erin Vogel, former vice president, Cove Club and Four Seasons Cabo del Sol; Grant Fisher, president and CEO, VAI Resort; Fisher, Geoff Gray, managing director, The Global Ambassador, and Michele Wheeler, president and CEO, JacksonShaw, speaking on a panel on the The New Elite Hotels at ULI Arizona Trends conference.
Data Centers, AI, and Hospitality
The afternoon sessions included panels on “The New Elite Hotel,” “Strategies for Growth in Arizona’s Data Center Market,” and “AI in Commercial Real Estate.”
Arizona is on the cusp of becoming a true travel destination for the luxury traveler looking for something different, said Geoff Gray, managing director of The Global Ambassador, a luxury hotel meticulously curated for the jet-setting traveler in Phoenix.
“The luxury traveler is looking for something they can’t get anywhere else,” Gray said. “Luxury is about an experience, and feeling comfortable and welcome. It’s an emotional experience.”
Michele Wheeler, president and CEO of JacksonShaw, agreed. “It is less and less about the product and more about the experience. You want to visit that city, and explore and experience that city,” she said.
Looking for that experience in the Valley of the Sun? Look no further than the $1.2 billion VAI Resort under construction in the shadow of the Arizona Cardinals football stadium in Glendale, Arizona.
“It is built for you . . . there is something for everyone. VAI is a state of awesomeness,” said Grant Fisher, the resort’s president and CEO. “I like to say we are going to surprise with luxury and lead with entertainment. VAI Resort will really be a category creator in the hospitality market.”
For the family, there is Mattel Adventure Park, right next door. For foodies, there will be 12 restaurants at the resort including Bar Mar, whose kitchen will be led by Michelin-starred chef and philanthropist José Andrés.
The highlight of the data center panel was the economic impact facilities had in Arizona in 2023: 81,000 jobs, labor income of $6.23 billion, and contributing $21.9 billion in GDP.
“There is a strong misconception that there are no employees at data centers, yet a national study shows they are economic drivers,” said Dan Diorio, director of state policy for the Data Center Coalition. “They offer really good paying jobs across a wide number of sectors.”
From the panel on AI technology within the commercial real estate industry, attendees learned about operational efficiencies that are helping brokerage firms such as CBRE improve user experience. “We have this unique database of transactions that no one else has,” said James Cooper, global head of analytics engineering and AI for CBRE Investment Management. “We’re seeing this more with digital assistants on the operational side.”
