April 8, 2026 Economic Development and Arts Subcommittee Meeting: Arts, Opportunity Zones, and Economic Overview
Economic Development and Arts Subcommittee Meeting - April 8, 2026
The subcommittee met to discuss several items including approval of minutes, consent agenda, withdrawal of the Downtown Phoenix Entertainment District implementation plan, an update on Opportunity Zone 2.0 guidance, presentations from cultural organizations, and an economic overview focusing on land and real estate.
Consent Calendar
- Minutes approved unanimously.
- Consent agenda item approved unanimously.
Public Comments & Testimony
- No general call to the public; however, a speaker was registered for item 3 (Entertainment District) but the item was withdrawn, so the speaker was not heard.
Discussion Items
- Downtown Phoenix Entertainment District Implementation Plan: Staff requested withdrawal to allow additional stakeholder engagement and coordination with sister departments and full city council. Councilwoman Pastor moved to withdraw but requested it come back in May. Staff indicated they needed more time, but after discussion, the motion to withdraw passed unanimously. Councilwoman Pastor expressed disappointment about delays, noting it is a high priority and only two meetings remain.
- Opportunity Zone 2.0 Guidance Update: Presentation by Ryan Tuhill and Jasmine Lombrera. New federal guidance requires a new map; the city can designate up to 33 qualified census tracts from eligible tracts based on stricter criteria (median family income ≤70% of MSA). Staff identified eligible tracts, then recommended eligible tracts based on development potential, now engaging council districts, and will bring a final map for council approval on April 22 to meet the May 8 state deadline. Council members discussed community engagement; Councilwoman Pastor noted she has many districts and may need more time, but staff emphasized the hard deadline. Council members expressed support for the tool, citing success like Paradise Valley Mall and IKEA.
- Upcoming Events and Programs at Cultural Organizations: Presentations from Ballet Arizona, Children's Museum of Phoenix, Phoenix Art Museum, Pueblo Grande Museum, and Shemer Art Center. Each highlighted upcoming events, visitor statistics, community programs, expansion plans, and economic impact. Council members praised the presentations and discussed future items, including a request to hear from the Science Center in September.
- Phoenix Economic Overview and Update (Part 3: Land, Real Estate, and Economic Geography): Presentation by Ryan Tuhill and Zandon Keating. Discussed Phoenix's advantage of available developable land, greenfield vs. infill development strategies, examples of mall redevelopments (Park Central, Paradise Valley Mall, Metro Center), and the importance of infrastructure. Highlighted that construction sales tax has increased 168% since 2017. No questions from committee; chair praised the series.
Key Outcomes
- Minutes and consent agenda approved unanimously.
- Item 3 (Entertainment District) withdrawn unanimously; direction to bring back at a future meeting.
- Opportunity Zone update received; staff to continue council district outreach and bring final map for approval on April 22.
- Cultural organizations' presentations received; future agenda items: request for entertainment plan by June (Councilwoman Pastor), and request for Science Center presentation in September (Councilwoman Stark).
- Meeting adjourned.
Meeting Transcript
Good morning and welcome to the April 8th, 2026 Economic Development and Arts Subcommittee meeting. I'd like to call the meeting to order at 10.05. And then I will turn to our city attorney Dave Benton to explain public comment. Morning, Madam Chair, members of the subcommittee. During citizen comment, members of the public may have address the subcommittee for up to three minutes on issues of interest or concern to them. These issues being addressed, however, must be subject matters that fall within the jurisdiction of City. The Arizona open meeting law permits subcommittee members to listen to the comments or prohibit members from discussing your acting on the matters presented. Thank you, Madam Chair. Thank you. And now I will turn to our interpreter, Elsie Duarte, to introduce herself. Thank you, uh Madam Chair. As stated, my name is Elsie Duarte. I will be providing Spanish interpretation during today's economic development and arts subcommittee session. I will now take a moment to introduce myself to our Spanish speaking audience. But escuchar la reunion in espanhol presencialmente, favor de passar por unos audífonos ubicados al entrada de la sala de camaras. Las personas registradas para ser un comentario publico sepan que podran hablar libremente sin interrupciones durante el tiempo disponible. Sus commentarios serán interpretados al momento que usted termine de hablar. Gracias. Thank you, Madam Chair. Thank you. Um we do not have any general call to the public, so we'll go to item one, which is approval of the minutes. Do I have a motion? I move to approve minutes. Second. I have a motion and a second. All those in favor, please say aye. Aye. Um hearing none, the motion passes unanimously. Item two is a consent agenda item. Do we have any questions on this item? No. Do you have a motion? I move to approve the consent item number two. Second. A motion and a second. All those in favor, please say aye. Aye. Any nays? Hearing none, the motion passes unanimously. Turn to our assistant city manager on item three. Good morning, madam chair and members of the subcommittee. Item three is an update or was listed for discussion and possible action this morning on the downtown Phoenix Entertainment District implementation plan. This was an item that was continued from the April meeting. Staff had requested that at that time it would be continued so that we could do some work with our sister departments throughout the city who would be impacted by this plan. And then this morning we were asking that the item be withdrawn at this time to be brought back at a future date in order to give staff time to do additional stakeholder engagement. So there are many organizations that are listed in this. Also, we need to also get with all the full city council as well. So we're asking um respectfully, um, madam chair, members of the subcommittee if this item would be withdrawn today. Thank you. Um Ginger, I do have a question, David, because we do have um a speaker on item three.
openpublica.com