According to a Press Release from our good friend Doug Bale, the last time that the Drip will host "last Saturday night" musical happenings is the last Saturday of August.  I hope I haven't confused you, but apparentlly, Saturday night August 30th is when the event is happening.  8:30 PM - Admission is $3, plus $5 if you bring your own wine.  for more info contact Doug Bale at predure@hotmail.com .

Perfoming on Saturday night, August 30th at the Drip Coffee Lounge will be Jump Back Heart Attack, Mike Montoya & Doug Bale.

Watch for a soon coming Italian Dining experience at the Drip.  That's what I heard.

If you are a "First Fridays" veteran, you already know where everything is on Roosevelt and probably on Grand Avenue so this First Friday, do something new and different.  Stop by the Royal Coffee Bar and it's neighbor the Sweet Pea Bakery for some Java and a goodie and check out their "local Artist's work on display".  The 2 establishments are right next door to each other on the corner of 2nd Ave & Jackson in the Warehouse District. 

They have plenty of seating available both indoors and outdoors.

Royal Coffee Bar website

Sweet Pea Bakery website

According to a story today at azcentral.com by Angela Deligiannis, the Burton Barr Library in Downtown Phoenix will get it's own Coffee Shop called The Open Book Cafe, opening in the Spring. 

The coffee shop will be on the first floor of the library at 1221 N. Central Ave., near the entrance on the west side of the building, facing Central Avenue.  Construction is now under way

Open Book Café will offer wireless Internet access, outdoor seating and areas for studying and relaxing.

read the whole article

In preparation for its fall opening, the Sheraton Phoenix Downtown Hotel is opening a recruitment unit in the Arizona Center.

Called the Sheraton Recruitment Center, it opened on Tuesday, July 15th, in the retail, movie and restaurant complex located across the street from the hotel at Third and Van Buren streets in downtown Phoenix.

"This is an incredible opportunity for people looking to work in the downtown area. With the opening of the light rail at the end of the year and all of the new residential developments in the area, we're excited about the impact this will have in breathing some life into downtown Phoenix," said Cindy Radamaker, director of human resources at Sheraton Downtown Phoenix.

The Sheraton Recruitment Center will be open Mondays through Fridays from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Candidates may also visit www.sheraton.jobs/phoenixdowntown and apply electronically.

The 1,000-room Sheraton Phoenix Downtown, scheduled to open in October, will feature a 3,500-square-foot fitness center and a 4,500-square-foot outdoor pool and sundeck.

Due to such a great interest in the August 5th Downtown Business Coffee, we needed to switch locations to accommodate all those who have RSVPed.  So please be sure to note the NEW location:

Tues., August 5, 2008        8 - 9 a.m.

Mi Amigos at the Arizona Center

455 North 3rd Street

Parking available in Arizona Center parking garage (entrance to garage is on 5th Street, north of Van Buren)

Rick Simonetta, Valley METRO Rail CEO, will provide a passenger's perspective of what riding the new light rail system will be like.

Coffee will be provided. As always, there will be time for Q&A with me and Rick.

Thanks for the great response, and if you haven't yet done so, please RSVP to mayor.rsvp@phoenix.gov

And thanks again to everyone at Sonoma Casual Dining for hosting my July Downtown Business Coffee meeting. For anyone who couldn’t attend in person, here’s a summary of what we covered.

 We talked about some great, free resources that are available if you’d like to start-up a business in Downtown Phoenix. The impact of small, independent businesses on our economy is BIG – and we want to see more small and independent businesses. And so we want to help you through what can, admittedly, feel like a daunting permitting process.

 City of Phoenix Business Customer Service Center

These folks can help advise you before you sign a lease or buy a building.

If you’d like to start up a business, of any size, anywhere in Phoenix, and you’ve never owned a business before, this office can guide you for FREE on the most efficient route through the required processes and procedures. They’ll give you a big picture of which city departments you’ll need to work with, provide clarification on city regulations, and refer you to other government agencies you’ll also need to work with. Just a few examples of what Phoenix Business Customer Service Center can assist you with: site location, market research, business-name registration, licensing, rules for home-based businesses. Call 602-534-2000 or email bcsc@phoenix.gov.

City of Phoenix Development Services Department’s Office of Customer Advocacy

This office was created to give you FREE advice about project-specific permits required through the City of Phoenix Development Services Department. You’ll usually call the Office of Customer Advocacy when you’re a little further along in terms of knowing what you’d like to do and where. Call them if you’d like to remodel an existing commercial building, renovate a historic building, convert a residential structure to business use, or revitalize a neighborhood retail center. Again, for free, these city staffers can explain all that’s involved in obtaining building permits and, ultimately, that certificate of occupancy. 602-534-7344.

Maricopa Community Colleges Small Business Development Center

For any existing small business firm or individual interested in owning a business. One-on-one business counseling is FREE, while small fees may be charged for costs associated with training courses. www.maricopasbdc.com or 480-784-0590

City of Phoenix Downtown Development Office Artist Storefront Program

Offers matching funds for up to 50% of the cost of exterior improvements for commercial properties with an arts use within the Artist Storefront Program boundaries (McDowell Road to Buckeye Road, 19th Ave to 16th Street – map of this area is available through the Web site I’ll point you to). Award amounts range from $5,000 to $100,000. Call 602-534-9484 or visit  www.phoenix.gov/DOWNTOWN/   and then, in the far-left column, click on “Artist Storefront Program.”

Thought we would give you a brief pictorial representation of some of the "new life" on Grand Ave in Downtown Phoenix.  If you have not ventured on to Grand Ave from 7th Ave to 15th Ave, it is and has been home to a growing number of Art Galleries, Coffee Houses, Night Clubs, etc.   Starting at the East end of Grand, the recently relocated Chez Nouz Jazz Club/Bar is opened and thriving.  Moving just a block or so down the street on the north side, the Paisley Violin is getting more and more colorful with little artist's bungalows behind the Paisley and the Paisley in the process of getting their Liquor License.  Just a few doors to the West on the same side of the street is a newly transformed warehouse building & home I believe to a local Architect.  On the 1200 block of Grand, on the south side, a former, small Motor Hotel, I'm guessing is getting a facelift while new development plans are being worked on.  Finally, just a few doors to the West at 1301 Grand is the newly refurbished Bragg's Pie Factory building which will be home to artists, creative retail & professional offices as well as a Coffee House/Cafe.

All in all, the progress is really quite impressive and worth your time to stroll down the street on a First or Third Friday night or any other night for that matter.

Well, we’re on a roll – 50 people came to my first Downtown Community Coffee on May 10th at Palatte, and at least 100 people attended my first Downtown Business Coffee on June 3rd at Tom’s Tavern. The Community Coffee meetings are quarterly, and the Business Coffee is monthly.  Speaking of which …the next Downtown Business Coffee is Tuesday, July 8th, 8-9 a.m., at Sonoma Casual Dining, 25 West Van Buren (southeast corner of 1st Ave. and Van Buren).Validated parking will be provided by ASU at the University Center Garage, 1st St. and Polk. This event is open to all downtown businesses and employees, and anyone interested in doing business in Downtown Phoenix. Speakers (besides myself) will be Kimber Lanning and Greg Esser. For anyone who doesn’t know them, Kimber is founder of Local First Arizona, a grassroots, non-profit that raises public awareness of the economic and cultural benefits that locally owned businesses provide. Kimber also owns Modified Arts in downtown Phoenix and Stinkweeds, a local music store.Greg Esser is an artist, community activist, small business owner and founder and past-president of the Roosevelt Row Community Development Corporation.We’ll all talk about the economic impact of the independent businesses popping up throughout Downtown Phoenix – and share information on some new resources available to those who’d like to start-up. For anyone interested in doing any kind of business in Downtown Phoenix, these coffees are a great place to network – you can meet, talk and brainstorm with business owners, developers, city staff and, I can assure you, at least one elected official. We’ll leave time for Q & A.  While I’ll provide the coffee, I hope you’ll buy breakfast at Sonoma – because one of the reasons behind these monthly meetings is to support our downtown businesses and introduce you to a different place every time. So we can get a head count for the coffee, please do RSVP to mayor.rsvp@phoenix.gov.The owners of Palatte and Tom’s Tavern told me they were pleased with the crowds at the coffees we’ve held so far – so if you or anyone you know owns a downtown coffee shop or eatery that would like to host one of the community or business coffees, be sure to let me know – the person in my office to contact is Tiffany Huisman, 602-534-9514 or tiffany.huisman@phoenix.gov.One of the other reasons for these coffees is that they are part of my Downtown Marketing Initiative. For a few months now, we’ve been trying to pull in as many people as possible who invest in or have any interest in. Our goal is to share information and resources – to find ways we can collaborate and collectively market Downtown Phoenix. Because WE all know we’ve got a good thing going here – and it’s time we let the rest of the city, the rest of the Valley, the state and the country know.

I’m happy to report that 50 people stopped by my first  Downtown Community Coffee on May 10 at Palatte. When I asked people to raise their hands if it was their first visit to Palatte, hands went up for the majority of the group. That’s part of the reason for these neighborhood meetings at different restaurants and coffee shops around downtown – to introduce people to our hidden gems. To start showing people all the great things there are to do and see downtown on nights or weekends. Because once you find out about these places that have great character as well as great food, the type of places that beg for you to relax and hang out, you want to go back. And you start telling your friends, who start telling their friends.  
The other part of the reason for these coffees is to update you on current issues related to downtown. At the May 10 Community Coffee we explained the Phoenix Parks and Preserves Initiative that was on the May 20th election ballot. I’m also happy to report that voters approved this initiative overwhelmingly. Out of 108,389 votes cast in the May 20 election, 89,612 votes, or 83 percent, were in favor. This means voters approved to extend the 1/10 of one percent sales tax that voters originally approved in 1999 for parks and preserves improvements and land acquisition. This is a great thing, and I'll blog here in the future about what this means to downtown residents. The other part of the reason for these coffees is that they are part of my Downtown Marketing Initiative. You can hear more about what this marketing initiative is, and how you or your business can be a part of it, by attending my first Downtown Business Coffee on Tuesday, June 3 at Tom’s Tavern, One Renaissance Square (northeast corner of Central & Washington), from 8:15–9 a.m. I’ll say a few words, someone from the Downtown Phoenix Partnership will give a brief presentation on a new campaign to help promote downtown businesses, and then we’ll have Q&A and time for me to talk informally with those attending.You’re welcome to buy your own breakfast at Tom’s (check out the menu at http://www.tomstavernphoenix.com/) – but the coffee is on me!Please RSVP to mayor.rsvp@phoenix.gov                                                                    While I’ll hold the neighborhood/Community Coffees quarterly, the Downtown Business Coffee will be held monthly – I’ll continue to let you know right here about dates and locations for each kind of coffee meeting. See you there!

I'm inviting downtown residents and anyone interested in downtown Phoenix to join me at a Community Coffee this Saturday, May 10, 2008, from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m. at Palette, 606 North Fourth Avenue (the corner of Fourth Ave. and Fillmore). This is the first in a series of Saturday morning meetings I'll be hosting quarterly at different locations throughout the downtown area. They are meant to give us all a chance to meet informally to talk about timely topics plus any topic on your mind related to downtown Phoenix. Plus, they are meant to give us a chance to drink coffee! This Saturday, Phil Richards, Chair of the Phoenix Parks and Preserves Board and Initiative campaign, will join me. He’ll provide information about the Initiative, also known as Proposition A, which is on the May 20, 2008 ballot. However, the majority of the hour will be devoted to Q & A. You’re welcome to buy your own breakfast from Palette (check them out at www.downtownbrunch.com) – but the coffee is on me!No RSVPs are required. Hope to see you there!

May 5 - 9. Every day Daily Grind at the Phelps Dodge Tower, 1 N. Central Ave. is hosting a different local artist who is selling their unique items just in time for Mother's Day! Jewelry, pottery, hand-blown glass, candles, clothes & more. Stop by every day to see what is new.

For more information call 602 252 2737.