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Falcon Field Area Alliance - E-Newsletter July 2007
Contents
- Sabena Airline Training Center is Global Player
- Corporate Headquarters Moves to Mesa
- Business Hotel Coming to Northeast Mesa
- City of Mesa Upgrades Plan Review Services
Sabena Airline Training Center is Major Player
Early this year, Sabena Airline Training Center (SATC), a subsidiary of the Sabena Flight Academy in Belgium, moved its Arizona operations from the Scottsdale Airport to the Falcon Field Airport at 5010 Falcon Drive.
By moving to a two-runway airport at Falcon Field, SATC is expanding its fleet of aircraft to 38 planes and increasing its operations to 170 flights a day. Each year the company will train 350 students, which makes SATC the largest European flight training center in the United States.
Until recently SATC’s major customer in Arizona was KLM Royal Dutch Airlines. However, they recently received contracts with several Indian airlines such as Kingfisher who has begun sending its student pilots to SATC. This translates to a new class starting every five weeks for the next several years.
In the June 11 edition of Business Week India is described as an expanding economy with rising incomes and a large population of young people eager to travel. That has made India the world's fastest-growing and most competitive aviation market and Kingfisher is now highlighted as one of the most dominant airlines in India.
Sabena Airline Training Center is positioning itself to continue as a major player in the international flight training business.
Corporate Headquarters Moves to Mesa
The Market Builder, Inc. is relocating its state-of-the-art direct marketing operations to the Falcon Field Business District at 5135 East Ingram Street in the Falcon Commerce Park.
The company purchased the 1.65-acre site last year and selected LGE Corporation to custom-build its new 24,000-square-foot headquarters building. The Market Builder, Inc. (MBI) was formed in 1992 by Peggy and Keith Lawson and has been headquartered in various East Valley cities during its period of substantial growth.
The structure will be two-story and is being designed to accommodate a staff expansion, as well as projected future growth. It will contain 7,500 square feet of production area and 3,800 square feet of warehouse space with the remainder of the building planned to house data management and office staffing. Initially, MBI will have two small suites of space available for lease to outside businesses. MBI is a full-service direct marketing agency and fulfillment center. The company specializes in creating customized marketing strategies to strategically targeted audiences. There are many direct mailing companies in the Valley, but few that offer as many services as The Market Builder, Inc.
Business Hotel Coming to Northeast Mesa
The first hotel proposed for the Falcon Field Business District is getting off the ground. The Marriott Courtyard planned for the corner of McKellips Road and 48th Street has begun its journey through Mesa’s permitting process. The Courtyard will include 111 rooms and will feature all the new business attributes that have been added to the Courtyard product to meet the exacting requirements of the business traveler. The 2.8-acre site will also include a separate 5,000-square-foot restaurant site, providing additional dining options to the very busy business district.
Several of the companies based in the Falcon Field Business District host a large number of national and international visitors each year, including vendors, customers, and visiting corporate executives. More than 15,000 room nights a year can be attributed to just five companies.
Mesa Upgrades Plan Review Services
On July 1st the City of Mesa began to offer expedited plan review services for medium and large commercial construction projects. This service will be offered to help customers who cannot wait and are willing to pay double the cost to have it finished almost twice as fast. The City of Mesa’s Building Safety Division will offer to expedite the initial plan review applications for certain building permits at a premium that is 100 percent higher than the normal permit fee. The use of expedited services is strictly voluntary on the part of the owner and their architect/engineer team. The higher fee is needed to cover the added expenses to handle expedited projects, including overtime and outsourcing expenses, as well as internal management of these projects.
Currently, the standard process of a plan review for medium and large commercial projects is a guaranteed maximum of 22 days for the City’s review at each submittal. With the expedited process, the guaranteed maximum time for each review will be 12 working days. Small commercial and residential building permits already are guaranteed a 12 working day review.
To learn more contact:
Lois Yates
480-610-0815
lcy@falconfieldarea.org
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