Mancuso’s Restaurant – which has had Italian eateries in Kierland Commons and The Borgata in Scottsdale — is moving into the Collier Center development in downtown Phoenix.

Scottsdale restaurant Mancuso’s at the Collier Center will open this summer in an 8,700-square-foot space previously occupied by Kincaid’s. That business-oriented restaurant closed last year.

Collier Center Downtown Phoenix

The location is located at Third and Washington streets in downtown Phoenix.

“The exciting growth of downtown Phoenix, with new businesses, new residents and visitors, plus increased activity at the Phoenix Convention Center, are all reasons now is the time to come downtown,” said Bobby Mancuso, president of Mancuso’s Restaurants, in a statement. “We are looking forward to bringing this vibrant part of the city our award-winning traditional Italian food, just as we did for 25 years at our former The Borgata of Scottsdale location.”

The Mancuso family has operated Italian restaurants in the Phoenix area for years. The Borgata location closed with the redevelopment of the retail complex into residential uses.

Another concept at Kierland Commons called Bobby’s Restaurant and Lounge had its last day on April 30 with the Mancuso’s moving onto a downtown concept.

Another new restaurant called The Park is also opening this summer at the Collier Center.

The Park is going into the former Stoudemire’s space. It is a food-truck food and craft beer concept and will include live music.

RED Development handles the leasing at the Collier Center.

RED also owns CityScape in downtown Phoenix and has brought popular restaurants and retailers into the Town & Country shopping center on Camelback Road and 20th Street.

Charles Skaggs, RED’s senior leasing broker at the Collier development, said the Mancuso’s and The Park are elevating the restaurant mix at the mixed-use development.

Anyone who has driven through downtown Phoenix recently has seen the construction on every corner and dozens of new restaurants and coffee shops.

May 2, 2016, 6:00pm MST

Contrastingly, if they drive four miles north of downtown along 7th Avenue, they’ll encounter a neighborhood with rich history and 20-year-old small businesses surrounded by historic districts like Woodlea and Pierson Place.

The Melrose District In Downtown Phoenix, AZ

The Melrose District, nestled between Camelback and Indian School roads, is a place to shop for vintage clothing and antiques, eat at locally-owned restaurants and service your car at an old-school auto body shop.

It might stick out like a sore thumb in comparison to the new developments downtown, but that’s exactly what has made the district so successful over the years.

Melrose prides itself on being “a shining star in the Metro Phoenix area,” but what really shines is the rich vintage culture there. What makes vintage work so well in the Valley? Some store owners in the district say it’s because of Phoenix’s unique history, the supportive community and being able to adapt to change.

Phoenix’s unique history

More people are buying and selling vintage artifacts than ever before, according to a study by The Association of Resale Professionals. In fact, the U.S. resale industry has seen an average growth of 7 percent each year since 2012. Many cities have hopped on the vintage trend, and Phoenix in particular has become a destination for some of the best quality vintage at a cheap price.

Arizona’s southwestern roots make it a prime location to find vintage vests, cowboy boots and denim. Phoenix specifically is well-known for its mid-century modern architecture, which makes vintage furniture highly sought after too.

Retro Ranch owner Indigo Hunter said customers often come through her store looking for 50’s, 60’s and 70’s pieces.

“A lot of people have ranch-style homes, and the furniture works in it because it’s scaled properly,” she said.

Sarah Bingham, co-owner of Antique Sugar, said high rates of retirement and the ideal climate in Arizona also benefit the vintage culture.

“People come here to retire from all over the country, and then when they get here they have all their fabulous clothes,” she said.

Due to the abundance of vintage clothing in Arizona, Bingham said store owners can afford to sell their merchandise for cheaper prices than you’d find in Los Angeles or New York.

“And the climate’s really good…we don’t lose a lot of our stuff to rot because it’s dry here,” she said.

The district’s supportive community

The tight-knit community within the Melrose District is another reason vintage culture has lasted in the Valley. The majority of the district is made up of passionate small business owners as opposed to “big boxes,” as Hunter calls them.

“A lot of those are vintage and antique shops, and you kind of feel like that’s our tribe,” she said.

Bingham said she’s been to other towns where the resale industry is cutthroat, but that’s not the case in the district.

“We actually go out for cocktails with all the shop owners often,” she said.

Jeanne Wiesley, the owner of Pearly Mae’s, agreed that the Melrose community is uniquely friendly. Wiesley moved her store to the district in 2014 and said she was instantly welcomed with support.

“Everybody encourages everyone else’s success,” she said.

For instance, if she doesn’t have an item that a customer is looking for, Wiesley said she will happily send them to another store in the area because they would do the same.

Michael Hardesty said he experienced a similar camaraderie when he bought one of the largest vintage stores in the district, Zinnias at Melrose, in 2009. Hardesty even received advice from some of the shop owners on the ins and outs of the neighborhood and how to make his business last.

Adapting to a changing environment

Despite the district’s overall success over the past two decades, not all businesses have stood the test of time.

“Stores are going to come and go, and that’s not necessarily a red flag,” Hardesty said. “It’s just life.”

“Everything’s changing all the time,” Hunter said. “You pretty much always have to stay on your toes and be aware of what’s going on.”

One way Hunter and the other store owners have kept their businesses alive is by going online to cater to a younger demographic. For some of the owners, the prospect of going online is intimidating initially, given their longtime comfort with in-person interactions. Even so, having a digital presence has helped financially.

Wiesley said she recently started selling more of her inventory through Ebay and Etsy accounts during the summer.

“It’s a new world for me, but if it pays the bills we’re going to do it,” she said.

Another way vintage stores in the district have adapted is by pushing heavily on social media. In lieu of print advertising, Hardesty said he advertises aggressively on social media and through email campaigns.

“Social media has helped a lot and really developed our brand,” he said.

For stores that make a living off of vintage artifacts, developing a strong brand is particularly important with all of the new development downtown. Fortunately, the vintage store owners see more opportunities from Phoenix’s development than threats.

Bingham, who recently relocated her store from the district to a new downtown building, said business is better than ever. In fact, she credits the changing environment to some of the store’s recent success.

“I say the more people the better,” Bingham said.

Wiesley moved to Phoenix in 1979, when she said people hardly ever went downtown. With the recent revitalization taking place, she’s shocked to see so many people walking around.

“I would rather have a high-rise there and show growth and potential in what our city can be to young and old,” she said.

Hunter is also in support of the developing culture, but cautions against too much change.

“I know that they’re building up downtown, but we still have to take care of the culture and the small business and not make it too corporate,” Hardesty said. “People are in business to make money, so it’s tough.”

Phoenix’s recent cultivation coupled with the need to grow digitally to continue making profits presents new-age opportunity to an old-age culture. But with a supportive community and unique history to back it up, the owners believe Phoenix’s vintage culture will continue to prosper.

“I think there’s always going to be a place for vintage,” Wiesley said.

BY CHLOE NORDQUIST/CRONKITE NEWS | April 29, 2016

Once in danger of demolition, a housing project in south Phoenix is getting a new lease on life with a $44 million renovation.

The Coffelt-Lamoreaux Housing Project near 19th Avenue and Buckeye Road, built for Korean War veterans, now houses many low-income individuals and families in the Phoenix area.

“Most of the affordable housing we’re able to develop these days are multi-family buildings,” said Mike Trailor, director of the Arizona Department of Housing. “So this property is unique because there are 300 duplex units on 38 acres.”

Construction workers broke ground on the renovations Wednesday after three years of planning. The units will be gutted and redone with new appliances, flooring, plumbing and more. However, workers will preserve the outside because of the historical status of the buildings.

The Housing Authority of Maricopa County had slated the complex for demolition and had planned to sell it to private investors.

“We didn’t want to see Coffelt demolished, but they were not happy with the current condition of the property,” said Brian Swanton, Arizona market president for Gorman and Company Inc. “The housing authority gets a very small amount of money each year from the federal government to maintain this development, and it’s just woefully inadequate.”

A combination of federal, city, local and private entities helped come up with the $44 million renovation money, which included trust funds and historic tax credits.

The reduced rent housing eligibility is based on a number of qualifications.

For residents like Yolanda Ramirez, the affordability and location are important to her as a mother.

“I need to afford my kids because I don’t have a husband,” Ramirez said.

In late 2012, during the discussion of demolition, the community realized that nearly two thirds of the nearby elementary school students came from the homes.

“There was a lot of community pushback,” Arthur M. Hamilton School Principal Nicole Shamblin said.

The elementary school would have been shut down as a result of low enrollment, officials said.

“That would’ve been a complete disaster not just for Coffelt, but for the surrounding community as well,” Swanton said. “So this became (the Board of Supervisors’) top priority redevelopment project, and they asked us to step forward and find a way to recapitalize the development to save it from being demolished.”

The Coffelt-Lamoreaux homes make up the the oldest operational public housing project in Maricopa County. They were developed in 1953 and taken over by the city of Phoenix in 1959.

“As a community, if we can do a better job of providing decent, safe, affordable housing, and we give people opportunities, we become stronger as a community,” Trailor said.

The development will offer residents a health clinic, tutoring, a robotics program and county services like parenting, financial literacy and job training, according to Maricopa County. Officials expect to finish the renovations in 18 months.