Ben Graff Discusses Phoenix Commercial Real Estate and Zoning Trends in Q&A with AZ Big Media’s AZRE
Ben Graff, a partner in the Quarles & Brady Phoenix office and leader of the firm’s Land Use, Zoning and Development team, addressed a variety of commercial real estate and zoning topics trending in the Phoenix area in a Q&A in the May-June issue of AZ Big Media’s AZRE.
In the Q&A, Graff discussed methods for creating affordable housing, dealing with opposition to proposed developments, and more. An excerpt:
Ben Graff, partner at Quarles, has made a career of ushering in new possibilities. As a zoning attorney, he helps clients change a site’s designation to a higher and better use. Sometimes that means an adjustment to how dense an apartment building can be. On other occasions, the transformation is more drastic – like getting approvals for the development of retail, restaurant, Class A office and luxury multifamily where a landfill once stood.
“That’s a great example of what I do for a living,” Graff explains. “In that case, it was taking a literal pile of garbage and turning into one of Tempe’s prominent developments – Rio2100. That came with every challenge under the sun, but over the years, we were able to slowly but surely rezone the property to MU-4, which is the most intense mixed-use category in Tempe.”
AZRE magazine sat down with Graff to learn about the housing affordability issue in the Valley, how the rezoning process can be used to halt development and the importance of consensus building.