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THE REGION’S BUSINESS MAGAZINE
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SPECIAL REPORT: Lloyd Construction Company
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IBM-Tucson: Innovation in “The Silicon Desert” www.BizTucson.com www.BizTucson.com
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BizLETTER
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Volume 11 No. 2
Publisher & Owner
Steven E. Rosenberg Brent G. Mathis
Creative Director Photo: Steven Meckler
ver the past 40 years, adventurous winemakers have been discovering that grapes love the sunny days and cool nights of high desert grasslands as much as cows do – not to mention humans who relish a glass of wine and a quick escape from the desert heat. Today this scenic area, previously best known for ranching, great steaks, horse racing and rodeos, is now also attracting wine lovers in droves.” That is freelance journalist June Hussey’s lead-in to our cover story as she “takes one for the team” and journeys south to the beautiful countryside of Sonoita, touring the area’s 14 wineries. Creative Director Brent Mathis adds captivating photos to this fascinating feature. To further whet your appetite, Hussey continues, “Steak lovers and wine lovers alike can thank Spanish missionaries for bringing cattle and wine making to the new world. Centuries later, in 1973 to be exact, University of Arizona soil scientist Gordon Dutt, along with Blake Brophy, established the first experimental vineyard on the Ignaciode Babocomari Ranch near Sonoita. Dutt developed a system of water harvesting utilizing hillside berms to reduce erosion and provide the amount of water needed to irrigate, and modern winemaking was officially underway in Arizona. In 1978, Dutt founded Sonoita Vineyards, focusing on French varietals because of the soil’s close resemblance to that of Burgundy, France.” Once you’re fully relaxed, Hussey takes us on another adventure to our “Silicon Desert” as IBM Tucson celebrates a milestone of four decades of world-changing technology. VP Calline Sanchez and her amazing team provide in depth interviews, along with some of the key achievements over the years. Tucson’s love affair with IBM began in 1978 when the company set up shop at its brand new, state-of-the art facility at 9000 S. Rita Road. Fortyone years later, Tucson’s population is double in size and IBM’s Rita Road site is part of the business complex known as UA Tech Park at Rita Road, home
to approximately 40 tenant companies. IBM’s presence here clearly helped set the stage for Tucson’s rise as a high-tech corridor. Speaking of milestone anniversaries, an inspirational homegrown success story is the topic of a special report. Lloyd Construction Company celebrates its 50th anniversary as one of our region’s leading commercial construction companies. Founder Bill Lloyd, Sr. came to Tucson from Illinois with $50 in his pocket and earned an engineering degree from the University of Arizona. Through sheer determination and a great work ethic, he founded the company in 1969. Today, Lloyd’s two sons, Bill Jr. and Brad, lead the company with every type of project imaginable, adding beauty and modern sophistication to the city’s skyline as well as meticulous historic preservation for projects such as Downtown’s Historic Train Depot. One major development that Eric Swedlund reports on is the recent $15 million gift to the University of Arizona’s Center for Integrative Medicine by it’s world-renowned founder Dr. Andrew Weil. More exciting news at the University – the completion of the $400 Million Banner-University Medical Center tower as Jay Gonzales files the report. And important news for South Tucson as El Rio Community Health Center’s Cherrybell facility opened recently.
Steven E. Rosenberg Publisher & Owner BizTucson
Contributing Editors
Jay Gonzales Donna Kreutz
Contributing Copyeditors
Elena Acoba Diane Luber Dave Petruska
Contributing Technology Director
Mike Serres
Contributing Project & Event Coordinator
Maricela Robles
Contributing Writers
Elena Acoba Lee Allen Rhonda Bodfield April Bourie Rodney Campbell Mary Minor Davis Jay Gonzales June C. Hussey Tara Kirkpatrick
Tiffany Kjos Christy Krueger David Petrusk David Pittman Steve Rivera Eric Swedlund Valerie Vinyard Romi Carrell Wittman
Contributing Photographers
Carter Allen Amy Haskell Erik Hinote Brent G. Mathis Chris Mooney David Sanders Member:
Arizona Builders’ Alliance DM-50 Southern Arizona Leadership Council Sun Corridor Inc. Tucson Advertising Federation Tucson Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Tucson Metro Chamber Visit Tucson
BizTucson Phone: 520.299.1005 Subscription Information:
www.BizTucson.com subscriptions@BizTucson.com Advertising information:
Steve Rosenberg 520.299.1005 or 520.907.1012 steve@BizTucson.com BizTucson is published quarterly by Rosenberg Media, LLC., Tucson, AZ ©2019 All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is prohibited. Opinions expressed in columns or articles do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher.
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Please send address changes to: BizTucson, 4729 East Sunrise Drive, #505 Tucson, AZ 85718.
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BizCONTENTS
FEATURES
SUMMER 2019 VOLUME 11 NO. 2
COVER STORY: 42
SONOITA WINE COUNTRY A Taste of Success
DEPARTMENTS
118
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BizLETTER From the Publisher
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BizMEDICINE New Banner-UMC Hospital Tower
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BizLEGISLATION Champion of Ban on Texting and Driving Praised
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BizMEDICINE Dr. Andrew Weil Donates $15 Million
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BizOPTICS SBA Contract Worth Up to $2.5 Million
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BizWORKFORCE Governor Approves Occupational Licensing Reforms
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BizTRIBUTE Donald R. Diamond
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BizHEALTHCARE El Rio Opens Cherrybell Health Center
BizHOTELS 60 HSL Expands Hotel Holdings BizEDUCATION 62 Pima Community College Addresses Industry Needs BizAWARDS 101 Bringing New Ideas to Market BizHOTELS 104 Hotel at TCC Coming Next Year
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Lloyd Construction Company at 50 SPECIAL REPORT 2019
THE REGION’S BUSINESS MAGAZINE
LLOYD
CONSTRUCTION BUILDING TUCSON FOR 50 YEARS
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BizWORKFORCE 106 Aerospace & Defense Workforce Summit WOMEN WHO LEAD 108 BizLEADERSHIP Amber Smith and Barbi Reuter, Tucson Metro Chamber Liz Pocock, Startup Tucson 112
BizFUNDING Sister Jose Women’s Center Assists Homeless Women
114 116
BizLEADERSHIP Amalia Luxardo, Women’s Foundation of Southern Arizona
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BizTECHNOLOGY IBM Tucson: Innovation in the “Silicon Desert”
124 128
BizINSURANCE Lovitt & Touche Joins Global Broker
BizTRIBUTE Ann Blackmarr
BizSALES Sales Guru Jeffrey Gitomer
BizCONSTRUCTION 130 New To Market: Projects in the Region BizAWARD 138 Boys & Girls Clubs’ Honors Dedicated Philanthropists BizDEVELOPMENT 140 Tour Showcases Downtown Evolution BizAWARDS 142 25th Annual Cornerstone Awards 144 Unsung Heroes Honored BizTRIBUTE 146 Karl Eller
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ABOUT THE COVER Discover: Sonoita Wine Country – A Taste of Success Photo and Creative Design by Brent G. Mathis 12 BizTucson
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BizMEDICINE
New Hospital Tower Rises in Tucson Banner – UMC Tucson Provides State-of-the-Art Healthcare
PHOTOS: DAVID SANDERS
By Jay Gonzales When a brand new hospital goes up in the 21st century, with all its attendant technology and facilities, the cliché, “all the bells and whistles,” doesn’t really do justice to the project. At the April opening of the new, nine-story hospital tower at Banner – University Medical Center Tucson, University of Arizona President Dr. Robert C. Robbins was so taken by what he saw, that the cardiothoracic surgeon said he’s hoping his day job can run smoothly enough so that he could have a chance to work in one of the new, state-of-the-art operating rooms. And he didn’t look like he was joking. “This facility provides the providers and the patients an opportunity to deliver and receive absolute state-ofthe-art healthcare,” Robbins said to an audience of several hundred who were invited to a ribbon-cutting and celebration of the opening on April 11. The hospital opened to patients on April 22. “As we get new provosts and a new senior VP for research and innovation, I’m not going to have much to do,” Robbins said, almost wistfully. “Maybe things will be running a little more smoothly south of Speedway so I can get to hang out over here and have lots of fun.” Sarah Frost, CEO of Banner – University Medical Center Tucson, considers leading the opening of the new tower a “once-in-a-lifetime” project for an administrator who worked her way through the ranks. 24 BizTucson
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She once was a business analyst at Pima County when it operated Kino Community Hospital, now a part of Banner – University Medicine. Frost is CEO of both Banner – UMC Tucson and Banner – University Medical Center South, the former Kino Hospital. “To be able to do it here in this amazing community in Tucson, it just warms my heart,” Frost said at the opening. “I’ve been so fortunate to work alongside amazing professionals that have made this happen. And to think it’s been over four years of us doing this and we’re here – it’s an amazing feeling.” “Here” is a 670,000-square-foot tower that took four years and cost $446 million to build. There is $50 million of state-of-the-art technology. There are 228 private patient rooms, 22 new operating rooms, new diagnostic imaging and cardiac catheterization labs. The hospital still has the only Level 1 trauma unit in the region. The tower replaces older sections of the original hospital building that opened in 1971. This increases capacity from 479 to 649 licensed beds and adds 96 new adult ICU beds. Aesthetically, its openness and spectacular mountain views give the feel of a hotel or resort whose focus is to be pleasing to the eye while also being functional. The main cafeteria is on the ground floor just off the main encontinued on page 26 >>>
Fast Facts & Figures • 10,400 cubic yards of concrete
were used in construction, equaling about 31.2 million pounds.
• At the peak of construction, there
were more than 400 workers on site at a time.
• The entire fifth floor is devoted to women’s and infant services, with 12 light-filled labor and delivery suites and 24 maternity rooms.
• All private rooms have a private bathroom and shower.
• There are recliners and sofa
sleepers in all patient rooms.
Dr. Robert C. Robbins President University of Arizona
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BizMEDICINE
continued from page 24 trance, easily accessible for visitors and with a view of the Catalina Mountains. While it is nine stories now, the building was designed to accommodate two more floors on top. The former entrance on Campbell Avenue has been moved to Elm Street off Campbell. The address is 1625 N. Campbell Ave. The tower was designed by architects Shepley Bulfinch, engineers AEI and GLHN Architects & Engineers of Tucson. The lead contractor was a joint venture of DPR Construction and Sundt Construction. “I think it’s beyond what people were imagining,” said Dr. Chad Whelan, an internist who was hired as CEO of Banner – University Medicine last September. “You picture what a building’s going to be like, you picture the technology in it, and when you see it all come together in a place that is really built for healing, it’s unbelievable. I think it’s beyond anyone’s expectations.” Whelan has opened a new hospital before. He was at the University of Chicago Medical Center when it opened 26 BizTucson
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a 10-story, 1.2 million-square-foot hospital in 2013. Whelan came to Tucson after serving as president of Loyola University Medical Center near Chicago. “That was a great experience. It really was,” Whelan said. “But I’ll tell you, this one feels more special. That was a beautiful, big, high-tech building. This one is all about high tech and high touch. It’s really built for the patients and the family. “Architecturally, it’s a beautiful building. It’s built with light and healing in mind. But behind the walls and in the operating rooms, there’s no place else that has the level of technology that this place has. This is the most advanced hospital out there.” With the hospital as the centerpiece of the UA College of Medicine Tucson, Robbins said he expects the college will attract top faculty, students, administrators, doctors and nurses. “People will want to come to work here,” Robbins said. “This is going to be a place where they’re going to be excited to come to work and perform their
craft.” Ron Shoopman was on the Arizona Board of Regents when the UA and Banner came together in a partnership to operate the medical center in conjunction with the UA College of Medicine. “We needed a clinical partner that we could count on,” Shoopman said. “We understood our responsibility to be the provider of doctors for the future, not only for Phoenix and Tucson, but for our whole state and beyond. So it was worth the time and effort and the blood, sweat and tears it took to put it together.” One of the outcomes is the new hospital tower that sits in the center of Tucson to provide state-of-the-art healthcare to everyone in the region. “We are certainly interested in access and high-quality education at an affordable price,” Shoopman said. “We also care about the future of this state. We’re interested in making sure that the people of Arizona have the kind of healthcare they need.” Biz www.BizTucson.com
PHOTO: DAVID SANDERS
From left – Wilma Wildcat; Becky Kuhn, COO, Banner Health; Ron Shoopman, Chair, Arizona Board of Regents; Jonathan Rothschild, Mayor, City of Tucson; Sarah Frost, CEO, Banner – University Medical Center Tucson; Dr. Chad Whelan, CEO, Banner – University Medicine; Dr. Robert C. Robbins, President, University of Arizona; Wilbur Wildcat
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PHOTO: COURTESY BRENDAN LYONS, LOOK! SAVE A LIFE
BizLEGISLATION
Gov. Doug Ducey congratulates Tucson safety advocate Brendan Lyons before statewide supporters at the HB2318 bill-signing ceremony.
Champion of Ban on Texting & Driving Praised Arizona Joins 47 States Restricting Motorists’ Cellphone Use By David Pittman Brendan Lyons, a Tucson safety advocate, has been called “a life saver” and “a force of nature” by state lawmakers for his efforts in leading a long and difficult campaign that proved instrumental in banning texting while driving in Arizona. In signing HB 2318 into law on April 22, Gov. Doug Ducey praised Lyons for his role in getting the legislation to his desk. “There are many people deserving of credit for pushing this bill over the finish line, and one of them is Brendan Lyons,” said the Republican governor, thanking Lyons for his “tireless advocacy in order to save lives.” Lawmakers noted there have been many other unsuccessful efforts at the Arizona Capitol over the past decade to prohibit texting while driving. Nonetheless, those failures did not detour Lyons, who continued fighting for change year after year. “I apologize that it has taken us so long to pass this legislation,” said Rep. César Chávez, a Phoenix Democrat, from the House floor. “This bill has not come to light because of us, the legislators. It is because of a tireless champion who has been here for many, many years and who I consider to be a 28 BizTucson
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friend – Brendan Lyons, thank you. Thank you for calling us out, for harassing us in the hallway and making sure this day would eventually happen. This bill will make Arizona a safer place to live.” Lyons, executive director of Look! Save a Life, has testified before House and Senate committees for six consecutive years in his crusade to establish an Arizona law to prohibit texting while driving. In those appearances he has been accompanied by supporters, many of whom were family members of those killed or injured in crashes caused by distracted drivers. Those supporters often held up photographs so lawmakers could see the faces of crash victims. Lyons himself has experienced the evil of distracted driving, first having responded to these incidents as a former emergency medical technician and fireman, later as a trauma survivor. “Sadly, as a former firefighter I’ve seen firsthand how devastating these crashes are, not only to those who have fallen victim, but to the families left behind to pick up the pieces,” Lyons told members of the Senate Transportation Committee www.BizTucson.com
on Feb. 20. Lyons himself has experienced the evil of distracted driving, first having responded to these incidents as a former emergency medical technician and fireman, later as a trauma survivor. “Unfortunately, I’ve also lived this painful reality. According to my crash report, on Oct. 4, 2013, a motorist traveling at 45 mph struck my girlfriend and I from behind as we were bicycling in a dedicated bike lane on the morning of her birthday. I sustained numerous spinal and pelvic fractures, was treated for a traumatic brain injury and forced to a lengthy hospital recovery and lost my career as a firefighter. I went through months of doctor’s appointments with seemingly endless physical, cognitive, occupational and vocational rehabilitation. I’m lucky to be standing before you as a survivor.” Lyons told lawmakers that there was strong evidence that most people in Arizona support actions to regulate distracted driving. He said that while the Arizona Legislature had failed to address the issue, 26 jurisdictions in the state – including Oro Valley, Tucson and Pima County – had adopted local hands-free/anti-texting ordinances. “To further underscore the significant growing trend, of those 26 ordinances, 15 of them have been adopted since the start of 2018,” Lyons said. “But this isn’t about numbers, this is about lives, such lives as Salt River Police officer Clayton Townsend, DPS officer Timothy Huffman, former Phoenix firefighter Thomas Hull, Daniel Wilson, Emanuel Patton, Linda Doyle and many, many others.” Sen. Lisa Otondo, D-Yuma, praised Lyons and his supporters. “I’ve sat on the Transportation Committee for many years, and I’ve seen the same families here holding up pictures of their loved ones,” she said, wiping a tear from her eye. “I want to say thank you, thank you, thank you, for continually coming here and reliving your nightmares in order to educate not only these two chambers, but all Arizonans. ...Thank you Brendan; you’ve saved lives.” With the enactment of HB 2318, Arizona joins 47 other states that prohibit texting while driving. “The signing of a statewide ban on texting and driving enhances the safety of all Arizonans, replaces a patchwork of local ordinances and provides clarity to law enforcement and drivers alike to end this dangerous driving behavior,” Ducey said. The law prohibits holding or supporting a wireless device while driving; writing or reading any text-based communication while driving, and watching, recording or broadcasting video while driving. Violations are a primary offense, allowing officers to pull over drivers for only texting and driving. Civil penalties provide up to a $150 fine for the first offense and up to a $250 fine for the second and subsequent offenses. A criminal penalty provides up to six months in jail and a $2,500 fine for causing a crash resulting in serious injury or death. While the law takes effect immediately, the penalties will not begin until Jan. 1, 2021. Lyons said the new law is far from perfect. He maintains penalties should be steeper, exemptions at stop lights should’ve been excluded and points on driver’s licenses should have been incorporated. “But am I happy? Absolutely,” Lyons said. “This is where compromise comes in.”
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PHOTOS: CHRIS MOONEY
From left â&#x20AC;&#x201C; University of Arizona President Dr. Robert C. Robbins; Dr. Andrew Weil, founder of UA Center for Integrative Medicine; UA Senior VP for Health Sciences Dr. Michael D. Dake and Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine Executive Director Dr. Victoria Maizes.
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Dr. Andrew Weil Donates $15 Million
Gift Advances UA Center for Integrative Medicine By Eric Swedlund The father of integrative medicine is making a major commitment to ensure that Tucson and the University of Arizona remain the epicenter of the growing health and preventive care movement. Dr. Andrew Weil, surrounded in March by UA officials in the new Health Sciences Innovation Building, announced his $15 million donation that will establish two endowed chairs and an endowed fund to support integrative medicine, which emphasizes health and well-being with a personalized focus that combines conventional medicine and alternative methods. Founded in 1994 by Weil, a Harvardeducated physician, the UA Center for Integrative Medicine will now be known as the Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine. Weil’s gifts, which add to his previous donations of $5 million, will establish the Andrew Weil Endowed Chair in Integrative Medicine, the Andrew Weil Endowed Chair for Research in Integrative Medicine and the Andrew Weil Endowed Program Fund for Integrative Medicine. “I’m very happy. This is a wonderful day and it’s been long in coming. I’ve been working at this for most of my life,” Weil said. “We’ve become the world leader in integrative medicine education and for a long time we’ve wanted to have a home and financial stability. “I firmly believe that integrative medicine is the way of the future. Through its emphasis on lifestyle modification and bringing in less expensive natural therapies to mainstream medicine, I very much believe we can lower healthcare costs and improve outcomes. I feel confident that one day we’ll be able to drop the word integrative and this will just be good medicine.” To announce the donation Weil – the www.BizTucson.com
Lovell-Jones endowed chair in integrative rheumatology and clinical professor of medicine and professor of public health – was joined by UA President Dr. Robert C. Robbins, UA Senior VP for Health Sciences Dr. Michael D. Dake and Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine Executive Director Dr. Victoria Maizes. Both Weil and Robbins, a cardiac surgeon by training, talked of meeting before Robbins started as president. At dinner, Robbins told Weil that he was a longtime fan and couldn’t understand why the university had never seen what it had in the Center for Integrative Medicine, but that he was committed to making this a top priority. “I just wanted to meet him and come see this great center. Where does it all flow from? Well, the center of course is the spirit and the program,” Robbins said. “All of what Andy has thought of and built upon over the years – you should eat the right foods, you should exercise, you should not smoke, you should get enough sleep, you should manage stress – if we all follow the guidance of our sage leader here, we’ll end up living longer, healthier lives that will be more productive and more fulfilling.” Since 1994, when the UA made medical history by creating the world’s first program in integrative medicine, the center has directly or indirectly impacted an estimated 8 million patients worldwide. More than 1,800 fellows now work in medicine around the world. “To have the University of Arizona be the epicenter for this movement around the world, we have derived incredible benefits as a university,” Robbins said. “Andy is right. When you train others to go out all over the world, you can go to any city, any region of the world and find one of your fellows and they’re evangelizing your message all over the
world and it came from the University of Arizona. “I hope this will be not only validation, but a celebration of your life’s work. Having the whole team that you’ve built, we couldn’t be more proud and pleased and happy that we can finally get the program to where it needs to be.” Weil said a portion of his donation will start the process of raising funds for a new, dedicated facility for the center, with the university committed to raising the rest. Weil said he hopes to be able to break ground on a showcase facility within a year. “Since we’ve been in existence, we’ve had visitors from all over the world come to see our center – and it’s very embarrassing for them to come to this little shabby house,” Weil said of the center’s current location at 1249 N. Mountain Ave. “We have this reputation and now I look forward to having a physical presence as well.” The center launched with the strong support of Jim Dalen, then VP for health sciences, the College of Medicine and the Tucson community, Weil said. Current health sciences leadership remains committed, Dake said. “Obviously Andy has been a change maker and I think today’s announcement certainly cements his legacy and the commitment to integrative medicine at the University of Arizona,” Dake said. “This is something we’re really looking forward to developing at even a higher level.” The inaugural holder of the Andrew Weil Endowed Chair in Integrative Medicine will be Maizes, who has been the center’s director since 2004. Maizes received her medical degree from the University of California, San Francisco, completed her residency in family medicontinued on page 32 >>> Summer 2019
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BizMEDICINE continued from page 31 cine at the University of Missouri, Columbia, and her fellowship in integrative medicine at the UA. Weil said Maizes has carefully nurtured the growth of the center in her tenure as director. “When our program started, we had a residential fellowship and we took four fellows at a time. The main criticism I got all the time was ‘How are you possibly going to change anything in medicine by training four people a year?’ But there was a method in what we were doing,” Weil said. “Over the years that fellowship existed we graduated about 35 people and many of them are now in influential positions, they direct centers at other universities, they’ve written textbooks and so forth. But more importantly, it gave us a chance to develop a really solid curriculum that we could translate into a distributed learning format and reach many more people.” This UA Center of Excellence trains more than 500 residents and fellows annually. The center has alumni leading integrative medicine programs at the Tufts Center for Complementary and
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Integrative Medicine, the University of Southern California Institute for Integrative Health, the Cleveland Clinic Wellness Institute and the University of Kentucky Integrative Medicine & Health program, among many others, including international programs in Israel, Canada, Brazil, Japan, Thailand, Korea, Pakistan and other countries. Yet Weil has even greater goals. The center has taken the basic elements of its 1,000-hour online fellowship and developed a condensed curriculum of 200 hours, designed to be embedded in residency training. “That’s where we feel we can make the most difference,” Weil said. “Residency is where attitudes and practice habits are formed. This curriculum is now in 74 programs around the country and Canada, Taiwan and Germany. Our goal is to have this be a required, accredited part of all residency training in all fields.” Though education was the driving focus at the inception of the center, research has become an equal mission. Dr. Esther Sternberg, director of research for the Andrew Weil Center for
Integrative Medicine since 2012, will be inaugural holder of the Andrew Weil Endowed Chair for Research in Integrative Medicine. Internationally recognized for her research in brain-immune interactions and the effects of the brain’s stress response on health, Sternberg is founding director of the UA Institute on Place and Wellbeing, an interdisciplinary institute linking health professionals and design professionals to research and create spaces that support health. She received her medical degree and trained in rheumatology at McGill University in Montreal. The third focus area for Weil’s gift will be funding the Andrew Weil Endowed Program Fund for Integrative Medicine, which will support the center’s teaching and research mission in perpetuity. Today, Weil is among the most recognizable faces in healthcare, both at home and abroad, but in its early days, the center was alone in its aim of “redesigning the education of physicians, physicians-in-training, and allied health professionals.” “We believed we could impact our
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nation’s struggling healthcare system by providing it with doctors trained to focus on the innate healing potential of patients. In addition to the best practices of modern medicine, we emphasized nutrition, a healthful lifestyle, natural therapies and mind-body interventions, and spirituality,” Weil said. “Perhaps those concepts were seen as radical in some circles, but today they are accepted as mainstream by most practitioners.” Weil encountered skepticism in regards to natural and preventive medicine, but built a body of scientific evidence to support the use of botanical remedies, mind/body therapies, acupuncture and other treatments once considered “alternative.” His successes extend beyond the UA. Weil is also a best-selling author and has made good on his goal of being the “Paul Newman of integrative medicine,” with his after-tax profits from Weil Lifestyle commercial products going directly to the nonprofit Weil Foundation. He is also a founder and co-owner of the growing group of True Food Kitchen restaurants. A frequent lecturer
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and guest on talk shows, he is an internationally recognized expert on medicinal plants, alternative medicine and the reform of medical education. Directing his business success directly back to his integrative medicine vision was always part of Weil’s plan. “It makes me very happy to be able to do it and I hope it will stimulate other giving and really establish the University of Arizona as the place to learn about integrative medicine,” Weil said. Having trained more people than any other institution, the Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine has an impact that spreads worldwide, but each innovative step reverberates first in Tucson. Next up for Weil is a clinic, slated to be open in early 2020, where community patients can receive the type of integrative care that Weil has long sought. “I’m very happy to announce that in partnership with Banner Health, we will be opening an integrative primary care clinic here in Tucson,” Weil said. “We believe we have a model that will be sustainable, profitable, replicable, and if we can demonstrate, as we think we
can, that integrative medicine produces better outcomes at lower costs than conventional medicine for the management of common health conditions, I think Banner will be enthusiastic about replicating this throughout its system and eventually this could be a new model for healthcare in the country.” Another potential way to capitalize on the reputation of both Weil and his namesake center would be to coordinate the integrative medicine message with the tourism industry and market Tucson as a city of wellness. The building blocks for such a move already exist, so the next step is to share the vision and bring stakeholders together for planning, Weil said. A consortium of travel agents, restaurants and hotels could come together to create wellness packages, which would include a visit to Weil’s clinic. “I’ve proposed over time making Tucson the national destination for health and wellness,” Weil said. “It would make so much sense because health tourism is big business around the world. We are positioned to be the national wellness destination.” Biz
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BizOPTICS
Growing Optics
“
The vision we’d have at the end of five years is that we would have a smoothly functioning, integrated process to be helping companies grow and thrive in a worldwide economy.
”
–– John John Dennis Dennis President, President, Strategy1 Strategy1
FALL FALL 2012 2014 SPRING 2015
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SPECIAL REPORTS: SOUTHERN ARIZONA LEADERSHIP COUNCIL COMMUNITY FOUNDATION FOR SOUTHERN ARIZONA TUCSON JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTER
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SBA Contract Worth up to $2.5 Million By Eric Swedlund Tucson’s optics industry is poised for a period of growth, with a new Small Business Administration contract aimed at coordinating workforce development, business assistance and promotional efforts. The contract, awarded to Arizona Technology Council member Strategy1, is for $500,000 in the base year of 2019, with annual options that could extend the total to five years and $2.5 million, said John Dennis, president and co-founder of Strategy1. Dennis is also co-chairman of Optics Valley, a committee of the Arizona Technology Council that was formed in 2017. “Optics Valley represents a rebirth of the optics cluster here in Arizona,” Dennis said. “This SBA contract provides a huge boost to our ability to recruit members and grow the Optics Valley Committee’s program services and influence.” The new development efforts continue the work of the original Arizona Optics Industry Association, which was founded in 1992 as the world’s first optics cluster. The goal, Dennis said, is to become “the leading organization for galvanizing optics innovation and talent – and to provide a central network for established optics leaders.” Today, Tucson and Arizona’s status as leaders in the optics industry is well known. Optics Valley has a mission to “catalyze, convene and connect optics, photonics, astronomy and supporting businesses throughout Arizona” – all of which will receive support from the SBA contract. “We look at both optics technology as well as optics applications,” he said. “When you think about companies, optics is a critical enabling technology.” Dennis emphasized that the funding comes in the form of a contract, not a grant, and has clear deliverables. The award is initially for a single year – but SBA intends it to be a five-year program. “At the high level, the three initiatives we have are: How do we help existing optics companies grow? How do we help the entire system create more new optics companies? And how do we help increase the visibility of optics in the community?” Accomplishing those goals will depend
on partnerships that include Pima Community College, the University of Arizona Tech Launch Arizona and Tech Parks Arizona. “There is a worldwide shortage of trained professionals for optics, both degreed and technical,” Dennis said. The three-pronged effort will facilitate the growth of existing optics companies with proactive workforce development, including mentoring and coaching; promote the formation and development of new entrepreneurial companies for optics and photonics technologies and applications by supporting existing incubator programs; and enhance the visibility of the optics industry as a critical enabling technology for the “Fourth Industrial Revolution” through marketing and participation in industry conferences and trade shows. “The vision we’d have at the end of five years is that we would have a smoothly functioning, integrated process to be helping companies grow and thrive in a worldwide economy,” Dennis said. “Optics will be a bigger part of people’s lives in the future, but whether or not they will see it and realize it is an open question.” Additional partnerships will include technology advances and breakthroughs developed at the UA’s College of Optical Sciences, BIO5 Institute and Steward Observatory – and a business support network that includes the Arizona Commerce Authority, Small Business Development Corporation, Startup Tucson, Southern Arizona Leadership Council and the Tucson Metro Chamber. The new SBA contract aligns with the rededication of the UA College of Optical Sciences, now named for James C. Wyant, the college’s founding dean. In November, Wyant announced a commitment of $20 million to the college to endow 10 new faculty positions. That pledge followed Wyant’s $10 million donation for graduate student scholarships. “That raises the visibility even more of what is a world-renowned organization that will create more action, more spinoffs, more startups,” Dennis said. “Our charter is: How do we help those companies grow?” Biz www.BizTucson.com
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BizBRIEFS
Melody Hudson
Melody Hudson is now public relations and marketing director for the Gordley Group. She joins Gordley after serving as the communications leader for Honeywell Aerospace’s integrated supply chain. Previously she was associate director of public relations for R&R Partners and PR manager at Gila River Casinos’ corporate office where she led media relations, contract management, crisis communications, internal and external communications, reputation management and executive relations for three casinos. Biz
Diana Dessy Diana Dessy joins Rancho Sahuarita Management Company as director of land assets. She she is responsible for supporting the company’s development activities and commercial & residential sales. She’ll work with the executive team to implement the long-term vision for the award-winning master-planned community. Dessy brings 20+ years of experience in asset management and real estate development from the Anthem Equity Group. She’s an active member of Commercial Real Estate Women Tucson. Biz 36 BizTucson
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Governor Approves Occupational Licensing Reforms One Accepts Licenses from Other States
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Arizona’s sending a clear message to people across the country – if you’re moving to Arizona, there is opportunity waiting for you here.
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Doug Ducey Governor, State of Arizona –
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By David Pittman Arizona has two new laws on the books governing occupational professionals, including a groundbreaking acceptance of licenses from other states. When Gov. Doug Ducey signed H.B. 2569 into law April 10, Arizona became the first state in the nation to recognize occupational licenses from anywhere in the United States. “This bill means for those trained, qualified professionals moving to our state, we are making it easier for them to get work without having to wade through costly red tape, while still protecting public health and safety,” said the Republican governor. “Arizona’s sending a clear message to people across the country – if you’re moving to Arizona, there is opportunity waiting for you here.” “There’s dignity in all work,” Ducey said. “And whether you make your living as a plumber, a barber, a nurse or anything else, you don’t lose your skills simply because you moved here. That’s what this bill is all about.” In order to qualify for an Arizona occupational license under the new law, applicants must have been licensed in their professions for at least one year and be in good standing in all states where they are licensed. Individuals seeking to work in occupations that require a background check, such as nurses and behavioral health professionals, will still need to complete those background checks. Signing of the legislation fulfills a priority identified by Ducey in his State of the State address earlier this year. Arizona Director of Boards and Commissions Emily Rajakovich said the idea behind the universal occupational licensing law began in the governor’s office. “Last year, the governor convened a staff team on licensing reform and tasked us to think big,” she said. “This was the most ambitious licensing reform we could get done.” Arizona House Majority Leader Warren Petersen, a Maricopa County Republican, sponsored the bill, which he described as a “common sense” approach to eliminate unnecessary burdens keeping people from employment. Petersen said he’s heard many complaints from those frustrated by the difficulty they experienced in getting Arizona occupational licenses despite having credentials in other states. “We’ve heard of some people that have had to wait weeks, months or even more than a
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year before their relicensing was completed,” he said. The universal licensing recognition proposal received two Democratic votes in the state Senate and five in the House. No Republicans opposed the legislation in either chamber. The Tucson Metro Chamber supported the bill. “The ability for new Arizonans who work in licensed professions to transfer their credentials in good standing from their previous place of residency allows them to seamlessly integrate into Arizona’s workforce, and that benefits workers and employers,” said Robert Medler, VP of public affairs for the chamber. “Workforce is the number one issue we hear about at the chamber. This change in Arizona law is a step in the right direction for tomorrow’s economy.” Opponents of the bill contend occupational licenses ensure professionals are trained to do their jobs safely. They worry many states have easier licensing requirements than Arizona. Occupations affected by the new law include barbers, behavioral health professionals, chiropractors, contractors, cosmetologists, dentists, real estate agents, nurses, optometrists, pharmacists, physicians, respiratory therapists and veterinarians. Six days after approving the universal licensing legislation, Ducey signed S.B. 1401, which was dubbed the “blow-dry freedom bill.” The measure exempts people who only blow-dry, shampoo and style hair (no scissors involved) from burdensome cosmetology regulations meant for more technical salon services. The measure removes what supporters describe as excessive and unnecessary occupational licensing requirements to blow-dry hair. “It’s ridiculous that government bureaucrats would require 1,000 training hours before someone can start a job blow-drying hair,” Ducey said. “This bill ends that foolishness.” An April 28 editorial in the Wall Street Journal, which ran under the headline “Arizona’s Licensing Liberation,” praised Gov. Ducey and the state legislature for enacting the new licensing laws. It said in part, “Arizona’s state motto is ‘Ditat Deus’ – ‘God Enriches’ – but residents might want to thank Gov. Doug Ducey and lawmakers, too,” for adopting reforms “that will make it easier to earn a decent living.” Biz www.BizTucson.com
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BizBRIEFS
Johanna Cordero Johanna Cordero joins Pacific Premier Bank as a VP, Relationship Manager. Johanna has been a resident of Tucson for 27 years. She has worked in the financial industry for more than 13 years, with a focus on helping small to mid-size businesses, developing solid business relationships. Cordero participates in several professional groups and has a passion for volunteering.
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Barton Budman Barton Budman is the new CFO for Ascent Aviation Services, one of the largest aircraft maintenance operations in the world. The firm provides fully integrated aviation maintenance, repair and overhaul, line maintenance, storage and reclamation services to owners, operators and lessors of wide-body, narrow-body and regional aircraft. He has 30+ years of executive-level financial and operational management experience. He previously served as CFO for Commercial Jet and VP Finance/Division Controller for AAR Landing Gear Services. Biz 40 BizTucson
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WINE COUNTRY A Taste of Success
PHOTOS: BRENT G. MATHIS
By June C. Hussey
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Millions of Americans love a good wine with their steak or fish or duck – but who knew that the picturesque rangelands around Sonoita, an hour southeast of Tucson, would ever be acknowledged by experts as bona fide wine country? Over the past 40 years, adventurous winemakers have been discovering that grapes love the sunny days and cool nights of high desert grasslands as much as cows do – not to mention humans who relish a glass of wine and a quick escape from the desert heat. Today this scenic area, previously best known for ranching, great steaks, horse racing and rodeos, is now also attracting wine lovers in droves. How many is a drove? Last summer Arizona Hops & Vine, a relative newcomer on the Sonoita winemaking scene, attracted 3,000 campers over a three-day weekend to enjoy local wine and live music under the stars. Their so-called “Bad Decisions” event will be recreated at Patagonia Lake this summer in order to better accommodate the anticipated crowds on Aug. 9, 10 and 11. Grapevines, Winemakers Take Root
Steak lovers and wine lovers alike can thank Spanish missionaries for bringing cattle and winemaking to the new world. Centuries later, in 1973 to be exact, University of Arizona soil scientist Gordon Dutt, along with Blake Brophy, established the first experimental vineyard on the Ignacio de Babocomari Ranch near Sonoita. Dutt developed a system of water harvesting utilizing hillside berms to reduce erosion and provide the amount of water needed to irrigate, and modern winemaking was officially underway in Arizona. In 1978, Dutt founded Sonoita Vineyards, focusing on French varietals because of the soil’s close resemblance to that of Burgundy, France. Sonoita Vineyards became the first to be licensed shortly after the state passed a Farm Winery Law in 1982, and it continues to flourish today. Dutt, 89, lives in Tucson. Summer 2019
The Sonoita region’s rocky soil, rich in minerals, coupled with the romantic notion of making and drinking wine have since attracted a parade of hearty winemakers to the Sonoita/Elgin area – Arizona’s first recognized American Viticultural Area. Kent Callaghan of Callaghan Vineyards was among its early leaders. When Kent and his father, Harold, planted the Buena Suerte Vineyards in 1990, Kent told Lana Bortolot of Wine Enthusiast magazine, “There was literally nothing going on in the industry. I think there were three other vineyards in the area. There was not a lot of creative thinking…planting basically what you’d plant in California.” In her Feb. 7, 2017 article, “Raising Arizona: Outsider Wines Travel to New Heights,” Bortolot wrote, “Callaghan has come a long way, as have Arizona wines in general. His current winery, Callaghan Vineyards, was named an Arizona treasure in 2006 by former Gov. Janet Napolitano – and his wines have been served at the White House three times.” To this day, fellow winemakers and neighbors say they are grateful that Callaghan mentors newcomers, generously sharing his AVA-specific knowledge with those eager to learn. Today, out of some 96 licensed wineries in the state, 14 operate in the Sonoita AVA, with two more on the way. All are eager to be discovered by the uninitiated. Despite today’s high concentration of wineries along the Arizona/Elgin Wine Trail, the bulk of Arizona’s wine grapes are actually grown in nearby Cochise County, an area geographically blessed with a slightly wetter and more temperate climate. Frosts as late as May in the Sonoita region can make fall harvests unpredictable. Winemakers must be prepared to rely on grapes grown outside of their AVA to meet their production requirements. A small producer like Lightning Ridge – 1,000 cases per year – typically uses 85% www. continued on page 44 >>> BizTuc-
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BizWINERIES continued from page 42 estate-grown fruit, with the balance coming from Willcox. Sonoita Vineyards frequently sources supplemental fruit from Willcox and Lodi, California to produce its 4,000 cases a year. Economic Impact
Ride the range today between the Huachuca, Santa Rita and Whetstone Mountains on horseback or Range Rover and you’ll see rows of grapevines peeking out from among the flowing golden grasses that otherwise characterize the Sonoita/Elgin area. Its production scale is and will always be a far cry from the bounty of Napa or Sonoma, but its setting is uniquely appealing and easily accessible from Tucson. After summer monsoon rains, the vines grow plump and grasslands verdant, creating a pleasing escape from the searing desert. Grazing longhorns don’t seem to mind sharing their fertile
landscape with local farmers toiling in the face of petulant weather gods in order to bring forth their precious harvest. Many a farmer would agree with winemaker Karyl Wilhelm’s observation that “mother nature can be a mother.” Passion Over Profit
Profit is not the only measure of success when one is living off the land. Much like neighboring ranchers, Sonoita winemakers tend to pursue their profession out of a passion for their craft and for the agreeable lifestyle. “I think we’d all say we’re a success in the fact that we’re doing what we love doing – and we’re able to sustain what we’re doing and grow,” said Lori Reynolds, Dutt’s granddaughter and thirdgeneration Sonoita winemaker. “But none of us are wearing minks yet.” “It’s difficult to describe how hard the producers of Arizona wines work,” said Jean Snell, who with her husband, Pete,
opened a tasting room at St. Philip’s Plaza in Tucson. “We have the utmost respect for the knowledge they have in all the diverse aspects of producing wine – farming, weather, chemistry, winemaking, production, distribution, marketing, social media and more. Many have one or two employees; some have just their family to make it all happen.” While these Sonoita AVA wine producers may be comfortable enough wearing sweatshirts, wine-thirsty consumers have in fact helped turn Arizona’s wine production into a $25 million industry, yielding as many as 300,000 gallons in a good year. According to the Arizona Winegrowers Association, the decade between 2006 and 2015 saw the industry grow from nine to 97 licensed wineries in Cochise, Santa Cruz and Yavapai Counties. Still, growth in Arizona lags far behind demand. According to Julie Mur-
On Becoming Winemakers
PHOTO: BRENT G. MATHIS
Karyl Wilhelm, Wilhelm Family Vineyards “My husband Kevin Wilhelm is a pilot. He just retired from the U.S. Air Force after flying an F-16 for almost 30 years. I met him back in ’90 in the first Gulf War in Saudi Arabia. I was flying in the back as a paramedic, doing aeromedical evacuation. I got my degree in biomedical engineering and worked with prosthetics and patients. Then the military took us off to different places. We eventually moved to the Tucson area so that he could continue to fly the F-16 and not be gone so much. We had 3- and 4-year olds at the time. Then we moved to the Sonoita area. We liked the elevation, the mountains, the seasons and the space – and found out after we’d purchased 20 acres that Sonoita was, at the time, the state’s only AVA. So my farm boy said, well, how hard can it be? Today I’m engineering fine wine for good health.” Megan Stranik, Arizona Hops & Vines “My youngest had started kindergarten and it was time for me to go get a job. My husband was a border patrol agent and we were living in Vail. I grew up Orange County. I was not a farmer and I had no idea that this is what I wanted to do – until I volunteered in the vineyards here for harvest. I loved it and they hired me to work full time. I thought, ‘maybe there’s a chance that I could do this for myself.’ And my husband said, ‘you’ve got to give up this fantasy to start a winery, we’re never going to have the money.’ So I divorced him. I took a class at the small business association in Tucson on how to write a business plan, got some investors and planted the vineyard in 2011 – all while working for the other wineries. I would take the scraps home and propagate the vineyard that way It was just a labor of love.” 44 BizTucson
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Lori Reynolds, Sonoita Vineyards “I was born out here. My mom used to set me in my carrier and I would just babble, babble, babble to all the customers coming in. So I just grew up doing this. I graduated from the University of Arizona with a bachelor’s of science in veterinary science with a minor in chemistry – because I wanted to be a veterinarian more than anything. But after mentoring under some different vets in Tucson, I thought, ‘no, this is not me.’ I wanted to continue my education and I was talking to my grandpa (winemaker Gordon Dutt) over Christmas and telling him I wanted to get my master’s in something and he said, ‘I don’t know why you’re babbling. You were born to make wine.’ ” Ann Roncone, Lightning Ridge “I had a regular job in a cubicle office near San Jose when I started making garage wine as a hobby. I found somebody down in Gilroy that had a backyard vineyard. I bought 300 pounds, made some wine and I thought, ‘This is so exciting.’ It just kept snowballing. Every year I’d get a new little tank or another little barrel and I took every course I could at the University of California, Davis. The first two weeks of September I’d take vacation time and work as a cellar rat at local wineries where I learned a ton. That’s when I told my husband, ‘Screw engineering – this is what I want to do.’ We looked around in California and couldn’t afford anything. He had done his grad work at University of Arizona, so he knew Tucson. We found out Sonoita was a recognized viticulture area, came down, bought a 20-acre parcel and took the leap. We moved here in ’04, planted in ’05, had our first harvest in ’07 and built the building in ’09. That’s when it hit me – this is actually happening.” www.BizTucson.com
phree, outreach director for the Arizona Farm Bureau, at 2.8 gallons per person, Arizona’s per-capita wine consumption is slightly higher than the national average – and in-state wine production meets just under 1% of the state’s demand. The recent signing of Senate Bill 47, designating the Santa Cruz Valley as a National Heritage Area, could be just the boon the area needs to take its economic impact to the next level. According to Vanessa Bechtol of the Santa Cruz Valley Heritage Alliance and Visit Tucson, many such designated areas see a significant increase in tourism following their designation. That could mean increased job creation and wine sales on the vine-studded horizon. Neighbors Helping Neighbors
Meanwhile, many Sonoita winemakers work their fingers to the bone on a shoestring budget. “We wear many,
many hats, all of us. We’re making it, growing it, producing it, and then selling it in the tasting room. So it’s every day. We’re up before the sun doing this,” said Wilhelm, owner of and winemaker for Wilhelm Family Vineyards. Finding reliable, affordable help is an added challenge with the high cost of living in Sonoita so it’s a seven-days-aweek labor of love for these small business owners. They couldn’t do it without relying on and supporting one another in the fields and in their tasting rooms. “We don’t see each other as competitors,” said Reynolds. “We’re neighbors and we each bring something a little different to the table. Megan (Stranik of Arizona Hops & Vines) has an amazing Cabernet on her table that I love. Karyl (Wilhelm) has a Temperanillo that I love – lots of rich flavors. And Ann’s Multepulciano (Ann Roncone of Lightning Ridge), I would bathe in it,” Reyn-
olds said. “We do different things and we are recognized as being unique in what we do,” added Wilhelm. “Yes, we all do wine, but everyone’s palate is different and everyone is getting a different experience when they walk into our different tasting rooms or when they walk into different events that we all have. I think that enriches this whole area.” There’s an old joke among winemakers – “to make a small fortune in the wine business, start with a large fortune.” Yet one need not necessarily have a large fortune to start making wine in Sonoita AVA, as long as one is resourceful. Arizona Hops & Vines, owned by sisters Megan Stranik and Shannon Zouzoulas, opened seven years ago for less than $100,000, according to Stranik. “We planted everything from cuttings, salvaged poles from the dead vineyards continued on page 47 >>>
From left – Megan Stranik, Lori Reynolds, Ann Roncone and Kar yl Wilhelm www.BizTucson.com
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PHOTO: JANELLE
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PHOTO: COURTESY VISIT TUCSON
Gordon Dutt Founder of Sonoita Vineyards
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continued from page 45 in the area,” Stranik said. “The dump would call me and we scrounged everything. If you look at our tasting room, it literally has trash screwed to the ceiling because the ceiling caved in and insurance didn’t cover it. But people come in and say, ‘That’s so cute.’ Seven years later, we don’t have any money in the bank but we don’t have any credit cards either.”
PHOTOS: BRENT G. MATHIS
Tasting on the Trail
Before being bitten by the winemaking bug, Arizona native James Callahan, of Rune Winery, Vineyards and Tasting Room, graduated with a history degree from ASU. He interned in Walla Walla, Washington, New Zealand and Sebastopol, California before making wine for Pillsbury and Aridus in Willcox. In 2013, he started Rune, an off-grid winery and tasting room in Elgin. Camping in a tent on his property in the beginning, he planted vines and constructed a bare bones infrastructure over time. Today Callahan’s outdoor tasting room is supported by a Quonset hut filled with merchandise and powered by solar panels. When nature calls at Rune, a porta-potty answers. Enveloped by the fresh air, quietude and breathtaking views of nature inside such a light footprint, one could easily sit in his Adirondack chairs sipping wine all day. And why not? Rune’s motto is “every wine has a story” and every wine produced there has a label depicting a dramatic block print scene in black and white. Callahan said that each label represents a piece of a bigger story. If he were to someday publish a book of his intriguing labels, it would most certainly sell well alongside his tasty wines. Excited to be visiting Rune was John Boulet, a Tucson cardiologist now living in Green Valley, an easy 45-minute drive. Boulet said, “We love Arizona wine. We’ve been drinking it for years and it keeps getting better. We love tasting the different varietals that tend to work in this region.” Boulet said he likes to bring friends to Sonoita every couple of months. “They’re amazed to learn about it. It’s interesting to watch people enjoy Arizona wines,” he said. Another Rune taster, Arlene Hamper, was introducing Sonoita wine country to friends from Montana. She said she visits at least twice a year, enjoys talking www.BizTucson.com
with the winemakers and meeting interesting people. She also rarely misses the Blessing of the Vines, a springtime tradition at Sonoita Vineyards. These guests’ remarks sum up the feelings of many – a visit to wine country is about far more than trying and buying wine. It’s about fun and adventure. It’s about experiencing the grapes as they grow on the vine, ferment in the vat, finish in the bottle, then emerge full and unique on the palate. Pairing Arizona Wines
Novelty can be a great differentiator. Throwing tradition to the wind, Arizona Hops & Vine pairs wine in their tasting room with snacks like barbecue potato chips and Cocoa Puffs cereal. Don’t knock it until you try it. You could discover a new breakfast wine. Doug Levy, chef and owner of Feast, the popular Tucson eatery on East Speedway, both serves and sells wine from a well curated list of recognized wine regions like northern Italy and southern France as well as lesser known but equally pleasing areas of Arizona, including Sonoita AVA. Levy and his wine buyers pick their wines with an eye toward quality-to-price ratio as well as wines that are food-friendly, interesting and representative of their region or varietal. “Arizona has a couple of great microclimates that are viticulture-friendly, especially for Mediterranean varietals, but for others as well, and winemaking here has steadily gotten more consistent and serious since we’ve been pouring them. The wines coming from Arizona now are markedly better than they were 20 years ago,” Levy said. He said he enjoys introducing his guests to Arizona wines and together with his staff is always happy to suggest pairings. Among his personal favorites are the Callaghan Petite Manseng with his shrimp and octopus salad and the Dos Cabezas Aguileon with his duck breast. Feast also offers wine dinners with Arizona winemakers. In the past, such dinners have featured Sonoita AVA winemakers Callaghan Vineyards, Dos Cabezas and Rune. “As a general rule, people are pretty pleasantly surprised when they try Arizona wines,” Levy said. “I think they’re dismissive at first, thinking it’s not possible to raise grapes in the desert. But once we explain the varying types of climate and soil in Arizona, they’re usually willing to try and the wines quash any
preconceived notions about Arizona wine.” Spinoffs
Even though the United States consumes more wine per capita than any other country and wine is produced in all 50 states, according to the Arizona Wine Growers Association, no man or woman can live on wine alone, regretfully. Therefore, to supplement wine sales, savvy Sonoita wineries are branching out. For example, Flying Leap distills spirits and packages spices under a subsidiary label Arizona Rub. It sells products at seven retail locations around the state. Wilhelm Family Vineyards opened Tastings & Tapas at Ventana Village Shopping Center at Kolb Road and Sunrise Drive in Tucson last year, pairing their Spanish style wines with tasty Spanish inspired bites prepared in their commercial kitchen. To take wine and adventure to the next level, Wilhelm also organizes and hosts winemaker cruises to different destinations every year – next stop, Italy. Even non winemakers are riding the wine wave through Southern Arizona. In February 2018, Pete and Jean Snell – who have owned a PR and marketing agency and Fleet Feet, an athletic shoe store – opened Arizona Wine Collective, a Tucson tasting room in St. Philip’s Plaza. It features wines from up to 18 different Arizona wineries. Believers in local products, Jean said their mission is to turn more people on to Arizona wines. “After Fleet Feet we were exploring and trying to figure out what our next endeavor would be – so Pete started working part time at Callaghan Vineyards,” Jean said. “Wine and wine tasting had been our hobby for many years, and Pete wanted to know more about the process of making wine. “That’s when we discovered that many people really like Arizona wines, but it was not readily available in Tucson. We explored a number of scenarios and came up with a tasting room where people could taste, drink and take home wine from multiple Arizona wineries in one cool spot. “Truthfully, many folks – including some Arizona winemakers – thought we were crazy to have only Arizona wines,” Jean said, “but we’re passionate about Arizona wine and confident in our ability to make it shine.”
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BizWINERIES Grape Expectations
Touring Sonoita’s 14 Wineries Getting There From Tucson’s desert floor to Sonoita’s cooler wine country is an easy drive. Take I-10 east for about 25 miles then take Exit 281 onto AZ 83 South towards Sonoita. You’ll be rolling in ocotillo-studded Santa Rita foothills when you see the sign, “You are entering wine country.” Don’t let the cactus fool you, you are almost there. The first vines you’ll see on this route are those of the family owned and operated Charron Vineyards in Vail, about six miles from the turnoff. It is the closest of 14 wineries currently offering tasting rooms within the Sonoita AVA. Continuing south another 19 miles, mesquite and prickly pear soon give way to grass, juniper and scrub oak as you ascend to 5,000 feet.
PHOTOS: BRENT G. MATHIS
Your first sip of local wine experienced in the wild grasslands of Southern Arizona is an exhilarating feeling that is impossible to put into words. Whether you choose to stay on AZ 83 or turn left onto AZ 82, be sure to visit the wineries in between along Upper Elgin Road. It’s easy to hit three or more tasting rooms on a day trip (as long as you have designated a driver). Expect to pay $10 and up, per tasting. Each winery has its own unique charms which are best discovered and judged in person. Hours and days of service vary. Some are open daily and others just on weekends. When you go, you can plan your tour route ahead of time or just let the day unfold. Either way, you’re in for some breathtaking scenery as you discover local wines from the winemakers who are often pouring them.
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1. Charron Vineyards 18585 S Sonoita Hwy, Vail, AZ 85641 charronvineyards.com Charron’s first Merlot and Cabernet Franc vines were planted in spring 1994, yielding commercial wines by 1999. In 2000 the White Merlot won the Governor’s Choice Award and has sold out every year since. The current winemaker learned the trade from the ground up. She started working in the vineyards as a teenager.
8. Rancho Rossa Vineyards 201 Cattle Ranch Lane, Elgin, AZ 85611 ranchorossa.com After two decades of making beer and wine at home, Chris Hamilton established Rancho Rossa on 300 leased acres in the Sonoita AVA in 2000 with the goal of making “ultra-premium varietal wines.” She specializes in a hands-off approach – “allowing our grapes to make the wine with as little intervention from the winemaker as possible.”
2. Dos Cabezas Wineworks 3248 AZ-82, Sonoita, AZ 85637 doscabezas.com Dos Cabezas WineWorks has been growing grapes and producing wines since 1995. In 2002 Todd Bostock joined the team as winemaker. By the end of 2006, his family moved the winery to Sonoita, sourcing fruit from two estate vineyards – Pronghorn Vineyard in Sonoita and Cimarron Vineyard in the Kansas Settlement region.
9. Callaghan Vineyards 336 Elgin Road, Elgin, AZ 85611 callaghanvineyards.com Winemaker and longtime mentor to many Sonoita AVA winemakers, Kent Callaghan has been producing “award winning wines since 1990.” He has been featured in Wine Enthusiast and his wines have been served at the White House.
3. Arizona Hops & Vines 3450 Highway 82, Sonoita, AZ 86737 azhopsandvines.com When they started their venture, sisters Megan Stranik and Shannon Zouzoulas figured they’d make more money if they made both beer and wine, but quickly learn that winemaking is more forgiving, in part due to its higher alcohol content. Their hops garden is all that remains of the original idea. 4. Rune Winery, Vineyards, Tasting Room 3969 Highway 82, Sonoita, AZ 85637 runewines.com According to Rune’s website, a rune is “a mark or letter of mysterious or magical significance” and “wine is the most ancient and influential beverage ever known to mankind. Through its craft, a story of time and place is bottled and consumed.” 5. Hannah’s Hill Vineyard 3989 State Highway 82, Elgin, AZ 85611 hannahshill.com Ann and Jim Gardner have stated that their estate has micro-climates resembling the Rhone regions of Europe and that the mineral rich soil creates a “spicy lift” to their wines. The vineyard is located in the shadow of the Mustang Mountains and named for their daughter, Hannah. 6. Wilhelm Family Vineyards 21 Mountain Ranch Drive, Elgin, AZ 85611 wilhelmvineyards.com Specializing in Spanish varietals, sangria, dessert wines and even winemaker cruises, Wilhelm proudly states that the family has been “producing ultra-premium Arizona wine since 2003.” 7. Deep Sky Vineyard 124 Elgin Rd, Elgin, AZ 85611 deepskyvineyard.com Starting with a small vineyard south of Mendoza, Argentina, Deep Sky’s owners couldn’t help but notice the climate and soil similarities here in Willcox and Elgin, Arizona. They soon took root in Southern Arizona, planting not only Malbec grapes but also Rhone varieties of Viognier, Grenache, Mouvedre, Syrah, Petite Syrah and Counoise.
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10. Flying Leap Vineyards & Distilllery 342 Elgin Rd, Elgin, AZ 85611 flyingleapvineyards.com Flying Leap Vineyards was founded in 2010 by three lifelong best friends – Mark Beres, Marc Moeller and Tom Kitchens. They met at the U.S. Air Force Academy and served distinguished careers in the air – before turning turned their attention to the soil, with vines in Willcox and Elgin and seven tasting rooms in Arizona. 11. Kief-Joshua Vineyards 370 Elgin Road, Elgin, AZ 85611 k-j-vineyards.com Winemaker Kief Joshua Manning grew up in Scottsdale and first started making beer and wine in his closet while attending classes at Arizona State University. He holds degrees in wine technology and marketing as well as enology and viticulture from the University of Melbourne in Victoria, Australia. 12. Village of Elgin Winery & Distillery 471–473 Elgin Road, Elgin, AZ 85611 elginwd.com This is the home of Arizona’s first winery, distillery and brewery facility. The winery has been producing wines from Arizona grapes “since the post-prohibition resurgence.” They also operate under the Four Monkeys label. 13. Sonoita Vineyards 290 Elgin-Canelo Road, Elgin, AZ 85611 sonoitavineyards.com Arizona’s oldest commercial vineyard, Sonoita Vineyards was founded by University of Arizona soil sciences professor Gordon Dutt, widely known as the founding father of Arizona wine. With Dutt’s granddaughter now the winemaker, the winery celebrated the start of the 2019 growing season with its 41st annual Blessing of the Vines. 14. Lightning Ridge Cellars 2368 Hwy 83, Elgin, AZ 85611 lightningridgecellars.com This small family winery, established in 2005 , offers wines based on winemaker Ann Roncone’s Italian heritage – including classic Italian varietals Sangiovese, Nebbiolo, Montepulciano, Primitivo, Malvasia and Muscat Canelli.
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Heavy Equipment Firm Vermeer Southwest Opens Local Dealership Vermeer Southwest industrial equipment has opened its first dealership in Tucson to better serve and equip its current and future customers and give them a local, committed presence in the Pima County marketplace. “We firmly believe the best way to deliver our brand promise is a full parts, service, rentals and sales presence within the community we serve,” said Kyle Pieratt, president of Vermeer Southwest. The new location offers 7,500 square feet for operations, including a showroom, parts warehouse and four full-service bays. The new dealership is located at 1790 W. Sahuaro Drive in Tucson near Grant Road and Interstate 10. Vermeer Southwest has been serving Tucson customers for more than 30 years. Even so, Pieratt said, “We felt the need to invest longterm in this market and are committed to supporting our loyal customers in Tucson. We want our dealerships to be customer-centric with a local leadership that has full autonomy to deliver our brand promise every day.” Kerry Yard is the store manager in Tucson. He joined the company in 2007 and has served on the senior management team for the past 10 years. Vermeer Southwest offers a full line of equipment for the underground construction, landscape, surface mining, solar, tree care, wood waste processing and organic recycling industries. It also carries seven other brands – Sherrill, McLaughlin, Vac-Tron, Yanmar, Atlas Copco, DCI and Felling Trailers. The company has developed hundreds of products over the years. Innovative farmer and Vermeer founder Gary Vermeer invented the wagon hoist in 1943. Fellow area farmers soon wanted their own hoists, so he opened Vermeer Manufacturing Company in 1948 to meet the need. Vermeer introduced its horizontal directional drill in the 1990s and this technology helped quickly install the network of fiber optics needed to support the rise of the computer age. Vermeer Southwest also has a dealership in Gilbert as well as locations in New Mexico, southern Nevada and western Texas. The company supports it products with dedicated, factory-trained sales staff, an extensive parts inventory, experienced service technicians and top-notch service facilities. Biz 50 BizTucson
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BizTRIBUTE
Donald R. Diamond
‘A Powerful Force for Good’ By David Pittman The life of Donald R. Diamond – an immensely successful and influential real estate investor/developer, businessman and philanthropist in Tucson for more than 50 years – came to an end March 25 in the Diamond Children’s Tower at Banner-University Medical Center Tucson. He was 91. Diamond leaves a legacy of philanthropy that will continue to have positive impact on Tucson and Southern Arizona for decades to come. He also leaves Diamond Ventures, the leading Arizona real estate development company he founded in 1988, in excellent position for continued success. “Donald Diamond was a charismatic and visionary leader who drove development in Southern Arizona for many years and prepared us for the extraordinary economic progress that can be achieved here,” said Ron Shoopman, former president and CEO of Southern Arizona Leadership Council and current chair of the Arizona Board of Regents. “Donald realized his dreams, but it wasn’t about himself – it was about the quality properties he created and his extraordinary philanthropic contributions.” At a memorial ceremony two days after Diamond’s passing, Stuart Mellan, CEO and president of the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona, called Diamond “a one-of-a-kind leader.” “His business ambitions were large and his dreams for our community were large,” Mellan said. “Donald was a powerful force for good in our community, a fulfiller of dreams and a visionary who always cast his gaze toward the future. Because he was so smart, I sometimes felt he actually knew the future. Certainly he knew things before I did.” Diamond was a natural leader. He had the ability to convince others to join him. Mellan said, “His leadership would translate vision into reality. Look around our community and you can plainly see this – over and over again.” Last fall, the Diamond Family Foun52 BizTucson
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dation committed more than $747,000 to the United Way of Tucson and Southern Arizona in order to retire its debt, thereby increasing the organization’s ability to expand its early education initiatives. “The quality of life would be much different in Tucson and Southern Arizona without the caring compassion and generosity of the Diamond Family Foundation,” said Tony Penn, president and CEO of the local United Way.
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Donald realized his dreams, but it wasn’t about himself – it was about the quality properties he created and his extraordinary philanthropic contributions.
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– Ron Shoopman Former President & CEO Southern Arizona Leadership Council and Current Chair Arizona Board of Regents
Diamond spearheaded the construction of the Tucson Jewish Community Center, which opened in 1989. He also contributed millions to University of Arizona projects including the Eller College of Management, Center for Judaic Studies and McKale Center renovations. In 2007, the Diamonds made one of
the largest charitable gifts in Arizona history – $15 million toward development of the Diamond Children’s Medical Center on the Banner campus. Dr. Fayez Ghishan – director of Steele Children’s Research Center, physician-in-chief at Diamond Children’s Medical Center and UA professor – has said that lead gift for the Children’s Medical Center enabled university officials to approach the bond market to borrow the additional money needed to make the hospital a reality. “When they learned we had $15 million, we got another $60 million within 24 hours,” he said. The Father’s Day Council Tucson – which raises funds for the research center – honored Diamond as a Father of the Year in 1998. The Diamond family also was instrumental in establishing and supporting the Steele Children’s Research Center. Diamond Ventures has also supported Integrative Touch for Children, Tucson Youth Development, Primavera Foundation, Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona, Tu Nidito and the Salvation Army. Mellan credited Donald’s wife, Joan, for insisting the Diamond family share its success with the community. He said Joan “had a very big heart” and was “a strong partner with Donald in making our world and community a better place.” “Their significant financial contributions have vastly improved the quality of life for thousands of people and it will continue to do so for decades,” said Donald Pitt, a Tucson lawyer and longtime friend and business associate of Diamond’s. “Don used his success as a businessman and developer to carry out a value system his wife brought out in him to the greatest extent.” The Diamonds had three daughters – Jennifer, Deanne and Helaine. The couple shared a strong conviction about helping children because of the tragic death of Deanne at age 14 from comwww.BizTucson.com
PHOTO: CARTER ALLEN PHOTO: DARCI SLATEN
plications from asthma treatment. “My wife and I always felt the philanthropic gifts we made toward children’s health gave meaning to the life of our daughter, who passed too soon,” Diamond said shortly after Joan died. “We thought our contributions gave purpose to her life because it has resulted in so much good in the lives of so many other children.” Diamond was incredibly opportunistic in business. He made his first fortune in New York as a Wall Street commodities broker. He made a second in land acquisitions and real estate development after moving to Tucson in 1965. “If you had money, there were great opportunities,” Diamond said in a 2009 interview with BizTucson. “I was buying real estate at $900 to $1,000 an acre. My God, it was a steal. A lot of the land I purchased was against the National Forest, and that was like being on the water where I came from. I bought as much as I could.” A 450-acre acquisition in the Catalina Foothills became Pima County Estates, a custom-home site. Another 160-acre foothills purchase is now The Canyons, a premier luxury-home location. Diamond also scooped up nearly 13,000 acres of the Howard Hughes estate properties. On and on it went. Diamond also was an original owner of the Phoenix Suns and an initial investor in the Arizona Diamondbacks. He was an owner and president of NBC affiliate KVOA-TV from 1971 to 1982. He was a partner in Arizona Mail Order from 1975 to 1998. He became an owner of Old Tucson Studios in 1984, which is now owned by his daughter, Helaine Levy. But the Diamond business best positioned for continued success is the aptly named Diamond Ventures. The company specializes in residential and commercial real estate and private equity investments. It has owned more than 25,000 acres of developed and planned residential property and has made more than 2 million square feet of industrial, retail and office transactions. Pitt said, “Donald set up an outstanding business, which has an incredible staff and is in the capable hands of David Goldstein (president) and Helaine, who has a great combination of her mother and father’s finest attributes and will continue to oversee Diamond Family Philanthropies.”
From left – Helaine Levy, Nathan Levy, Joan Diamond and Donald Diamond at Diamond Children’s Medical Center ceremony in 2007.
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BizBRIEFS
Jo Alenson Jo Alenson has joined R&A CPAs as marketing manager. She has nearly 40 years of experience in industries including airline/travel, global distribution systems and internet startups for brands including United Airlines, Accenture and Hewitt Associates. Alenson previously served as director of marketing, communications and publishing for the Western National Parks Association and has worked in marketing for Canyon Ranch wellness resorts and UA Presents, the performing arts presenter at the University of Arizona. Biz
Chad Driedger Northern Trust Wealth Management promoted Chad Driedger to president of its Tucson and Southern Arizona regions. Driedger, a lifelong resident of Arizona, has been with the company since 2007. He is a member of the CFA Society Tucson and the Tucson Desert Angels. He serves on the finance and investment committees of the United Way of Tucson and Southern Arizona. He holds bachelorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s and masterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s degrees from the University of Arizona.
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El Rio Healthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 14th community health clinic, the Cherrybell Health Center, opened March 4 at the corner of 22nd Street and Cherrybell Stravenue. The opening was attended by local dignitaries including Tucson Mayor Jonathan Rothschild, Ward 5 City Councilman Richard Fimbres and Pima County District 2 Supervisor RamĂłn Valadez.
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BizHEALTHCARE
El Rio Opens Cherrybell Health Center
PHOTOS: CHRIS MOONEY
By Romi Carrell Wittman El Rio Health opened its 14th community health clinic, the Cherrybell Health Center, on March 4 to much fanfare. Local dignitaries, residents of Ward 5 and many others were invited to tour the new center, which houses more than 150 medical professionals and offers primary medical care for children and adults. El Rio CEO Nancy Johnson said the new center means a lot of things for the organization. “It’s another fully integrated campus,” she said of the new 50,000-square-foot clinic designed by BWS Architects and built by BFL Construction.. “Patients can get medical and dental care, behavioral healthcare here. There’s an on-site pharmacy, state-ofthe-art lab facilities with mammography, ultrasound and X-ray services. We also offer wellness programs. It’s a fully integrated, one-stop shop for healthcare.” Johnson pointed to the ample research that indicates that those who receive their healthcare in an integrated model are healthier. In addition, Johnson noted that El Rio’s payment model – it accepts most commercial health insurance plans and Medicaid, and offers a sliding-scale payment method for those who lack insurance – makes healthcare accessible to all. “We take care of everyone,” she said, adding that in this community El Rio serves one in 10 people for primary medical and dental care. “We take care of the most vulnerable.” Located at the corner of 22nd Street and Cherrybell Stravenue, the new Cherrybell Health Center replaces an older, smaller facility located near Broadway and Euclid, which will be demolished as part of the Broadway corridor expansion. The new building will get roughly 50 percent of its electricity from photovoltaic panels, which also serve as shade structures for patient and employee www.BizTucson.com
parking. “Being located in Ward 5, we’re embedded in all those neighborhoods. We’re one-stop care, but we’re also strategically convenient for people since we’re open until 8 p.m. and on Saturdays,” Johnson said. She also noted that same-day care is always available. The nearly 50-year-old El Rio Health got its start thanks to President Lyndon Johnson’s famous War on Poverty. This initiative funneled millions of dollars into cities across the U.S. with the singular goal of bringing quality healthcare to all Americans. In 1970, a local community group formed to apply for federal grants to start some kind of community health center. The group secured land on Tucson’s west side and got the help of Pima County, which donated an old juvenile detention center and $50,000 to get the facility up and running. In October of that year, the first El Rio neighborhood health center opened with a small staff of medical and dental professionals to serve about 10,000 patients. Today El Rio Health’s 1,300+ employees serve more than 107,000 patients with an annual budget of $160 million. It’s one of the largest community health centers in the country and is a nationally recognized model of integrated healthcare. The Cherrybell Health Center doubles as a teaching center as well. “This center was built to accommodate medical students, pharmacy residents, family medicine residents,” Johnson said. “We also have pediatric and adult dental residents.” Integrated dental care has long been standard practice at El Rio – meaning dental hygienists are embedded in the clinics and can provide fluoride treatments during well-child visits. The new facility will also serve 1,600 HIV/AIDS patients who were previously served at a small clinic near St. Mary’s Hospital. The new clinic space is
twice the size of the old clinic. “We take care of more HIV/AIDS patients than any other clinic in Southern Arizona,” Johnson said. El Rio Health relies on a number of sources for its budget, including funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Patient payments and insurance are, of course, another part. Grants and fundraising help fill in any gaps. The El Rio Health Foundation raises some $1 million annually to cover programs that aren’t otherwise funded. As an example, Johnson said, “Medicare doesn’t cover dental care, so foundation monies are used for that.” She also noted that funding for educational programs – like the one El Rio offers to parents of kids with asthma – all comes from monies raised by the foundation. CEO Johnson said that many upcoming projects are in the works for El Rio. Its Southeast Campus at Golf Links and Kolb, which has been in operation for the past 10 years, will be expanded to offer additional services for women, more dental care and behavioral health services as well as physical therapy. The expansion is expected to be completed in November. In addition, El Rio’s shared partnership with Tucson Medical Center, named HealthOn Tucson, will open additional neighborhood clinics, including one near Fourth Avenue and University. HealthOn Broadway, a small clinic located downtown at Stone and Broadway, has been open for almost two years and offers an array of primary care services. Reflecting on the opening of the new center, Johnson said she is most proud of the fact that the new facility will enable El Rio to serve even more people. “We’re a self-funded company,” she said. “Most of us who work here are patients of El Rio ourselves and we think this is what primary care should look like.” Biz Summer 2019
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BizBRIEF
Tucson Subaru Shares the Love With YOTO For the fifth year in a row Tucson Subaru presented a large check to local nonprofit organization Youth on Their Own as part of Subaruâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s national Share the Love event. YOTO board members formally accepted the donation of $53,627. This brings the total that Tucson Subaru has contributed to YOTO to more than $300,000. During the Share the Love event,
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Subaru of America donates $250 for every new Subaru vehicle sold or leased to the customerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s choice of charity. Nationally the company has given more than $140 million since the program started in 2008. Founded in 1886, YOTO is a dropout-prevention program that supports the high school graduation of homeless unaccompanied youth in the Greater Tucson area by providing assistance, ba-
sic human needs and one-on-one guidance. With community contributions and support, YOTO has helped more than 16,000 students stay in school, remain focused on the goal of graduation and become self-sufficient, productive adults within their community. Tucson Subaru is owned by the DiChristofano family that has been in the automotive sales and service business in Tucson since 1972.
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BizHOTELS
PHOTOS: COURTESY HSL PROPERTIES
HSL Expands Hotel Holdings HSL Properties opened its 11th hotel â&#x20AC;&#x201C; its second along the busy Interstate 10 corridor in six months. The Hampton Inn and Suites, Rita Ranch-Tech Park on Rita Road, greeted its first customers May 20. Diamond Ventures is a partner in this project. The hotel off the I-10 exit for Rita Road has 104 rooms and is a short walk from the University of Arizona Tech Park at Rita Road. Raytheon, IBM and the Arizona Technology Council are among the tenants at the Tech Park, and the hotel is within walking distance of the Target fulfillment center. Tucson-based HSL Properties opened 60 BizTucson
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its 10th hotel in December 2018. It also is a Hampton Inn and Suites, in Marana off the I-10 Twin Peaks Road exit at 6300 W. Marana Center Blvd., across from the Tucson Premium outlet mall. The 101-room hotel was the first to open in Marana since 2009 when the Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain debuted, and is the cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s tallest building at four stories. HSL Properties and Cottonwood Properties co-own The Ritz Carlton, Dove Mountain. Both of the Hampton Inn and Suites feature conference space, free Wi-Fi, a business center, swimming pool, recreation center and free parking.
The company also purchased a 13.59acre site adjacent to Tucson Premium Outlets to build an apartment complex and is building an apartment complex in Rita Ranch near Valencia and Nexus roads. HSL Properties, founded in 1975, currently owns and operates more than 10,000 apartment units and a number of other real estate holdings ranging from office buildings to call centers and industrial parks. HSL is the largest apartment owner in Southern Arizona and one of the largest in the state.
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BizEDUCATION Lee Lambert
Chancellor Pima Community College
Pima Community College Addresses Industry Needs Chancellor Sees Future in Centers of Excellence By Lee Allen Pima Community College Chancellor Lee Lambert recently extended an invitation for members of the media to meet with him at what was billed as “a non-newsworthy event.” To the contrary, there was plenty of news regarding the future of Pima Community College, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. The college head spoke for nearly an hour. He addressed how PCC planned to fill what he sees as gaps in its education model that was designed to help increase the region’s skilled workforce. Closing five gaps – in the areas of educational achievement, technology, sustainability, skills and global diversity – reflects Lambert’s efforts to put the “community” back in “community college.” “We’re on the right trajectory to62 BizTucson
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ward solving these problems,” Lambert said. “We have a vision and know where we’re going.” One success is in the Hispanic student population, the largest segment of the district’s attendance. Pima confers more associate degrees to Hispanics than any other Arizona community college, Lambert said. “If you look at community colleges nationwide, Pima has been consistently ranked in the Top 20 (in total Hispanic enrollment) for the last several years.” The rankings come from U.S. Department of Education figures as presented in Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education magazine. “When I arrived here in 2013, we didn’t have a focus on online education, and now Pima Online is the fastest growing part of the college – our larg-
est campus based on headcount – with a 900% growth in courses in the last five years,” Lambert said. “That speaks to technology advances that give more opportunities for students to access higher education because student success is our North Star.” When Pima Community College officially opened in August 1970, it enrolled 3,500 students. Once inertia had been overcome, that number continued to rise until it reached around 70,000. Since that high-water mark, enrollment numbers have decreased to the point of what Lambert said was becoming problematic. Enrollment in the fiscal year ending June 2018 was 41,987. “The birth dearth is real – with more students who are graduating than new arrivals coming in as direct high school replacewww.BizTucson.com
PHOTOS: COURTESY PIMA COMMUNITY COLLEGE
ments,” he said. The administration is working to fix existing problems while addressing the future with its planned Centers of Excellence concept. That ambitious endeavor encompasses the next decade of development at a cost around $300 million to be financed mostly through bonds and an intense fundraising effort by the Pima Community College Foundation “We want to shape the future – not just react to it. We want to be part of creating the future of learning as it relates to the future of work. There are many jobs that go unfilled, not because there aren’t people to fill them, but because those people are unskilled,” he said. The current so-called Fourth Industrial Revolution is underway – when our lives are changed by accelerated technological advances. As a result, Lambert said, the skills demand has been ratcheted up with a need to develop more hybridized workers. “We’re getting a lot of regional and national attention on our concentration of lifelong learning, reskilling and up-skilling.” Lambert acknowledged that a general education curriculum that offers foundational elements necessary for going on to a university has long been the bread and butter of community colleges. However, those traditional enrollment categories are morphing into what he called “working learners” and “learning workers” – working adults who return to the classroom to upgrade their skills for existing but ever-changing jobs or seek certification in areas that will help them climb their career ladders. “Education is no longer a linear equation,” he said. “It’s an ecosystem now where workers go in and out of that system throughout their lifetime in order to stay current with technology developments. We need to pivot our operations to be consistent with our major industries’ changing needs and the needs of students who are trying to keep current with industry requirements.” PCC’s efforts to address those challenges mean building long-term relationships with its students. Lambert said, “Wherever you are on life’s road, we’ll take you further.”
Demion Clinco Chairman Board of Governors
Board, Funding Supports New PCC Initiatives By Lee Allen While Chancellor Lee Lambert may be the sole captain of the ship that is Pima Community College, he’s getting crucial support from his “crew” – Pima Community College’s five-member district governing board. “The college has gone though a lot of transformation over the last couple of years to reach the current point where PCC is now the economic ladder for workers in the region,” said Board of Governors Chairman Demion Clinco. “Everyone in the community deserves not just an opportunity, but a premier opportunity to receive the best education possible. Having a good college is not good enough – we need to have a great college.” Toward that end, the board and administration have sold $65 million in revenue bonds that will fund Centers of Excellence to train district residents for jobs in sectors – such as nursing, driving autonomous trucks and avionics – where highpaying job possibilities exist. It’s a strategy to align the college’s traditional educational trajectory with the overall economic development strategy of the region. “We’re focused on investing in programs currently constrained by existing spatial limitations,” Clinco said. For instance, $20 million is earmarked for expanding the healthcare curriculum at PCC West Campus, while another $40 million will go into larger facilities at the Downtown Campus’s growing automotive sector. Groundbreaking for the Applied Technology Center is expected in the fall. Additionally, Gov. Doug Ducey’s proposed state budget includes $20 million meant for enlarging the aviation technology center at the Tucson International Airport to align with aerospace industry efforts. “That will get us through Phase I of a multi-phase effort as a result of a boardordered study looking at redundancies in the system,” Lambert said. “The board has been clear in its commitment to judicious stewardship with community resources, and to see that dollars are properly utilized,” he added. “Although that’s a lot of money, it will get eaten up quickly, and we’ll be looking to a public-private partnership to stretch those dollars even further and accelerate our abilities to deliver on promises to the community. We’re focused on investing into programs that are constrained by existing spatial limitations. “We wouldn’t be able to do what we’re able to do without the support of the governing board,” Lambert said.
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BizBRIEFS
Dan Peterson Dan Peterson is CEO and chief administrative officer of Valor Health, a Tucson-based provider of compassionate care and services for people living with chronic diseases and life-limiting illness. Peterson oversees the companies Valor Health Services and Valor HospiceCare for primary care, care management, palliative medicine and hospice. He joins Valor Health after 10 years at CareMore in Southern Arizona, where he helped launch and grow the care provider as its VP and GM. Biz
Jimmy Furtado Jimmy Furtado is the new director of restaurants for the JW Marriott Starr Pass Resort & Spa. He handles dayto-day operations for the resortâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s seven restaurants. He joined Marriott Starr Pass after serving as assistant director of restaurants at the Sheraton San Diego Hotel & Marina. Furtado has also held positions in guest services and operations at the W Montreal and the Westin Montreal in Quebec, and the Sheraton Pasadena Hotel in California.
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SPECIAL REPORT 2019
THE REGIONâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S BUSINESS MAGAZINE
LLOYD
CONSTRUCTION BUILDING TUCSON FOR 50 YEARS
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VP, Lloyd Construction
Bill Lloyd Jr.
President, Lloyd Construction
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PHOTO: BRENT G. MATHIS
Brad Lloyd
BizCONSTRUCTION
Building Tucson for 50 Years
Lloyd Construction Celebrates Quality, Longevity By Christy Krueger
A multi-generational family business that reaches 50 years with hopes of many more to go has good reason to celebrate. Lloyd Construction’s owners, President Bill Lloyd Jr. and VP Brad Lloyd, aren’t letting the occasion slip by quietly. They’re remembering and recognizing the employees, their families and the businesses who helped the company get to where it is today. The brothers have placed advertising on city buses commemorating the milestone and have plans for several appreciation events. The celebration will also be intertwined with many bittersweet memories – company founder Bill Lloyd Sr. passed away 12 years ago. Lloyd Construction has earned a reputation for quality work and relationships formed with project owners. “We do things right, we appreciate our team and we give back to the community,” Bill said. “We all leave a piece of ourselves in each project.” The proof is not only in the amount of repeat business Lloyd earns, but also www.BizTucson.com
in the consistency of recognition from the community. Lloyd Construction has won the Cornerstone Building Foundation’s Contractor of the Year Award five times in 25 years, an award a company is eligible to win only once every four years. It’s About Family
Though Tucson is dotted with highly visible examples of Lloyd Construction’s work over the last 50 years – buildings at the University of Arizona, hotels, medical centers, schools and everything in between – what stands out to the Lloyds are the people who have made it happen, many of them along for the ride for longer than Bill and Brad have been working for the company. Their stories of what Lloyd Construction means to them and why they stay are what sets the company apart, Brad said. “Our employee retention is high. We treat everyone like family – it’s how we were raised,” he said. The bond began with employees
long before Bill Jr. and Brad were old enough to work at the company that Bill Sr. started on a shoestring in 1969, borrowing money against his car to fund his first project. “Early on in my career I really didn’t know what to think of Bill Sr. He was kind of scary,” said Mike Gilbert, a project superintendent who has been with the company for 36 years. “Once I got to know him, it became clear. His logic was simple – a fair day’s pay for a fair day’s work. “I really wish I could have learned more from him,” Gilbert said. “Bill Jr. and Brad follow the exact same principles – work hard and do a good job. The Lloyd family is so strong and has helped so many people, including their employees, that when they say extended family, they really mean it.” The mantra of “family” is so strong, there are countless stories of employees working in the community or helping each other all in the name of Lloyd Construction. continued on page 75 >>> Summer 2019
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BizCONSTRUCTION
BIOSPHERE 2 LANDSCAPE EVOLUTION OBSERVATORY LAB
About 19 years ago, I hired on with Lloyd Construc“ tion. I went to work for the Lloyd ‘family,’ and I can
SAHUARITA TOWN HALL
say that with great sincerity. Everyone at Lloyd works together like a family. Bill and Brad are like brothers to me, and I call Mrs. Lloyd, ‘Mom.’
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– Peter Robertson, Project Superintendent ORO VALLEY AQUATIC CENTER
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Almost everywhere I go in the city, I can spot one “ of the company’s projects where I had a hand in the
PHOTOS: ERIK HINOTE
AC HOTEL TUCSON DOWNTOWN
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building. It makes me proud and makes me feel good to be part of Lloyd Construction Company.
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– Ernesto Ortega, Project Superintendent
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They helped me through a really bad time when “ I lost my son and I honestly could not have done it without the support of the Lloyd Construction family. They strive to treat all their employees like family.
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– Debbie Clark, Warranty & Closeout Manager
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UA COLLEGE OF ARCHITECTURE, PLANNING & LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE
1. Martin Romo, Safety Coordinator and Matthew Unger, RSP - Safety Director 2. Taylor Mount, Project Engineer; Ross Avila, Estimator; Tom Stephens, Project Engineer; Matthew McCulloch, Project Engineer; Albert Flores, Project Engineer; Kris Robertson, Project Engineer 3. Robby Garvey, Project Manager; Amy Cotner, Project Manager; Drew Neptune, Project Manager; Matt Anderson, Project Manager; Paul Pena, LEED AP, Director Pre-construction Services
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continued from page 71 Anthony French, project superintendent, helps the Tucson Rodeo Parade Committee every year, keeping the historic wagons and buggies in working order so they can be used year after year. “It feels good to work on the wagons that have been in a parade that dates back to 1925 and will continue to be in the parade if they are taken care of,” French said. French was also part of a group of employees who were working on a project for the Vail Unified School District when they became aware that one of the school district’s employees had lost her home in a wildfire. “Mike Gilbert asked several of us if we would like to volunteer to clean up the property,” French said. “I knew that the Lloyds paid to rent equipment to help with cleanup and thought it would be great to help out. Mike Gilbert, Nick Georgiopolous, Jeremy Berryhill, Ray Prall and I spent a day there cleaning up the debris. The family was so grateful, they shared the story and it got published.” 4. Debbie Clark, Warranty and Closeout Manager; Clarie Pemberton, Office Manager; Shannon Murray, Marketing Director; Sina Goharriz, IT Director
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While the Lloyds like to say they build everything from outhouses to clean rooms, the type of work has varied throughout the years, sometimes dictated by the economy or building trends. “There’s always a first time for a type of project, but prior to taking it on, we do our research,” said Brad. “For the first one, there is a learning curve; from there it opens us up to do more.” Examples where one project has led to others include schools, detention centers, medical research labs and athletic facilities. “What makes us unique is that we are not defined by a niche,” Brad said. “By remaining local, we’ve had the honor of building whatever Tucson and the surrounding communities need – everything from municipal projects such as police and fire stations, courthouses and detention centers to public facilities such as museums, public parks, sports and recreation facilities, K-12, higher education and military facilities. We do private projects – hotels, apartments, office, retail, manufacturing, healthcare and more.” continued on page 77 >>> Summer 2019
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PHOTOS: BRENT G. MATHIS
Outhouses to Clean Rooms
BizCONSTRUCTION Lloyd Construction Support for Education In an effort to remove the stigma of construction as a “blue collar” job, Lloyd supports activities that raise the awareness of the value of a career in construction and the trades. Below are but a few examples from a long list of community activities. Skills USA Challenge Brings together kids for a weekend of competition. Lloyd Construction recently sponsored the TeamWorks contest that tests the skills of top-scoring contestants in carpentry, masonry, electrical and plumbing. They form teams for a project that involves all of these components. Schools involved included:
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Benson High School
VAIL THEATRE OF THE ARTS SAHUARO HIGH SCHOOL
Canyon Del Oro High School Catalina Magnet High School Cienega High School Pima County JTED at STAR Sahuarita High School San Manuel Jr./Sr. High School Santa Rita High School Star Academic High School Willcox High School
Southern Arizona Construction Career Days Gathers more than 2,000 students from area schools to the Tucson Rodeo Grounds to introduce them to the trades. In 2018, students who visited Lloyd’s booth had to read plans and assemble a geometric dome. In 2017, students assembled luxury dog houses, which were then auctioned off to benefit the Humane Society of Southern Arizona.
CANYON DEL ORO TRACK & STADIUM
Support for
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Tucson Mentoring Kids UA American Society of Civil Engineers Vail Pride Day and VailFest Bill Lloyd Sr. Scholarship benefiting UA College of Architecture Planning and Landscape Architecture students
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continued from page 75 “Because we’re local, we’re better able to serve the project owners,” Brad said. “We’re able to ensure superior quality at the time of construction and we remain the owner’s single-source contact through and long after warranty. We build relationships. Those relationships allow us to construct buildings.”
GENERAL MYER ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
I accepted a job referral out of the carpenters’ “ union hall in 2003 for a three-day call out. I once
asked Shorty Pemberton why he had called out for a carpenter to work only three days. He replied, “After three days I would know if you were worth keeping.” Almost 16 years later I am still a part of the Lloyd family.
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– Ron Serr, Project Superintendent
From left –
Debbie Clark Warranty and Closeout Manager Michelle McConnell Estimating Assistant Clarie Pemberton Office Manager
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Brad and Bill grew up in Tucson and are passionate about contributing to the community and supporting local nonprofit organizations. They donated work for the garden at Brandi Fenton Memorial Park and a playground at Ronald McDonald House. They often donate time and materials for organizations and efforts such as Volunteer Day for the Arizona Builders Alliance that benefits a different nonprofit each year. Lloyd employees participate in fundraisers and volunteer at a variety of local charitable organizations. The family atmosphere has been such that a few families have started at Lloyd Construction. Project superintendent Jerry Pemberton, also known as “Shorty,” and office manager Clarie Pemberton have a unique office romance story. Soon after Clarie went to work for Lloyd, she recognized Shorty. She went to her childhood diary and realized the two had danced together in junior high school in 1963. After parting ways for 30 years, they were reunited as Lloyd employees and later married. Recently, the Pembertons suffered a tragic loss when their great grandson died while waiting for a liver transplant. A family friend had set up a GoFundMe account for the transplant and Lloyd Construction made a generous donation. “He passed away, but I want people to know the kind of loving family the Lloyds are,” Clarie said in sharing the story. The funds will cover medical and funeral expenses. Tim Shute, who has been with Lloyd almost all of its 50 years, mostly as a project superintendent, is thankful for the work and the relationships he’s formed there. “It’s the best company I ever worked for,” he said. “It has been a blessing for me.” Biz Summer 2019
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Family and Community are Foremost
PHOTO: BRENT G. MATHIS
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MEINEL OPTICAL
Tim Shute
Tim Shute has worked at Lloyd Construction for 49 years – longer than either of its owners, Bill and Brad Lloyd. Shute fondly remembers the sons of the late founder, Bill Lloyd Sr., making regular appearances in the office when they were very young. “Bill Jr. was giving me orders when he was six or seven,” Shute said.
MLK APARTMENTS
Shute was working for a Tucson homebuilder before being hired by Lloyd Construction. He went through the Association of General Contractors’ superintendent training program at Pima Community College. In 1999, he became Lloyd’s senior project superintendent.
KINO HEALTH CENTER
PHOTOS: ERIK HINOTE
Through the years Shute earned multiple certifications and gained extensive experience, honing his skills in varous aspects of construction such as logistics, safety and security.
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Medical, science and technology projects are among his forte. “I was at the University of Arizona for 14 years and built many of the labs constructed during that time,” Shute said. “I built everything from tuberculosis labs to clean rooms.” The Sarver Heart Center and the Meinel Optical Sciences Building are two well-known campus projects that Shute oversaw. “For a different organization, we’re building an eight-acre facility with labs to develop corn that can be grown anywhere,” Shute said. “The final stage will be installing automated, intelligent equipment that will maintain a consistent environment in the greenhouse. That’s what I love about this job, there is always something new to learn.” www.BizTucson.com
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From the Ground Up Bill Lloyd Sr. Built a Generational Company By Christy Krueger It’s emotional when Lloyd Construction team members talk about their company’s founder, Bill Lloyd Sr., who passed away in 2007. He left behind a wife and three sons – two sons, Brad and Bill, now run the business. But they aren’t the only ones at the company who consider him family. “I miss him dearly,” said Tim Shute, a project superintendent and a Lloyd employee for almost 50 years. “He was like a brother to me and a great mentor.” Bill’s story and therefore the story of Lloyd Construction began in Hoopeston, Illinois, where Bill grew up on a farm while suffering with severe asthma, said Brad. “When he graduated high school, he weighed a whopping 96 pounds and he was slowly suffocating.” In 1959, Tucson was a place where people with respiratory problems and illnesses would come to deal with their health issues, taking advantage of the dry air. “One day his uncle told him to get www.BizTucson.com
in the truck and he drove him down to Tucson,” Brad recounted. “He dropped him off at the steps of Bear Down (Gym), gave him $50, told him he loved him, and went back to Illinois.” With no other family in Tucson to lean on, Bill registered for school at the University of Arizona and began working his way through college. “He lived in Santa Cruz dorm,” Brad said. “To support himself he did landscaping work on the highway, he was an RA in his dorm, he sold programs at the UA football games, he served ice cream at Austin’s Ice Cream Parlor on Country Club and Broadway and he did concrete work whenever available.” While enrolled at UA, he met his future wife, Barbara. The two married and she worked to help support them while he completed his engineering degree. Bill eventually took a job with real-estate developer Del Webb in Las Vegas. Being a young superintendent with Del Webb meant being moved frequently. It was not how Bill wanted to raise his family. He made the deci-
sion to go back to where he felt most at home – Tucson. Brad said Bill Sr. had plenty of job offers when he got back, but was taken by the urge to open his own business. “It was funny because they had absolutely nothing,” Brad said. “They had their clothes and their two vehicles. So he took his Ford Bronco to the bank and got a loan on it.” It was enough to fund Lloyd Construction’s first project, building outhouses on Mount Lemmon for the Girl Scouts. Before long, the word was out on Lloyd Construction. Shute was working for a homebuilder as a cement finisher when a friend told him about Lloyd Construction, a new company doing a lot of concrete work. Shute was hired and the first large job he worked on was pouring concrete slabs for University Medical Center. “We started building $1 million homes in the ’70s,” Shute recalled. “There was one other employee; we were both laborers. We did three or continued on page 83 >>> Summer 2019
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continued from page 81 “We started building the company again and hiring people four homes, then switched. Bill Sr. preferred commercial conback,” Bill said. struction. We went to D-M (Davis-Monthan) and built dorms As the company grew, new employees were added to keep and houses there.” up with the workload. That included Clarie Pemberton and Although Barbara is no longer actively involved in the busiJerry “Shorty” Pemberton, who both went to work for Lloyd ness, she had a strong presence from the start. “She was an inat almost the same time in the strumental part in the foundation early 1990s. They were not marof Lloyd Construction,” Bill said, ried to each other when they listing her roles as office clerk, acstarted at Lloyd, but are now countant, materials delivery and procurement person. He vividly husband and wife. remembers her moving equipWhen discussing memorable ment from site to site using her times, Shorty remembered a crew cab, one-ton, manual-transparticular company Christmas mission truck. party. “I put on my city clothes According to Bill, Barbara was and shaved my mustache. I went also frequently in charge of apup to Bill Sr. and he didn’t recogplying for and picking up permits, nize me. He told Bill to ‘get rid which involved hauling her ramof that salesman.’ ” bunctious sons to the permitting With Lloyd Construction office downtown. “It’s been said reaching its half-century mileshe could get a permit processed stone this year, Bill and Brad – Bill Lloyd Jr. faster than anyone in town berecognize their dad’s achievePresident cause they couldn’t wait to get ments in building the company Lloyd Construction ‘those Lloyd boys’ out of there.” and for their own opportunity to There were dark times, too, grow up in it. “To have a secondsuch as when Bill Sr. was diaggeneration business, especially in nosed with cancer and he planned to shut down the company. construction, working with people for 50 years – it’s a source Bill and Brad held it together with three staff members. And of pride,” Bill said. “We still have the older generation and the for a while their middle brother, Bryan, who owned a successnew generation, and we take care of each other.” ful business of his own, came in to help. Biz
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To have a second-generation business, especially in construction, working with people for 50 years – it’s a source of pride.
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The
Faces Behind Superintendents In Charge By Mary Minor Davis
There are countless examples of Lloyd Construction’s award-winning work throughout the region: the AC Hotel Tucson Downtown, Vail Academy and High School, the Oro Valley Aquatic Center and more. It’s easy to appreciate the quality of these and other noteworthy projects, but what often goes unnoticed are the many moving parts and people behind the scenes in the construction of these diverse buildings. The people at the center of it all – overseeing the machinations of multiple people, actions and environments – are the superintendents of Lloyd
Construction. They are the ringmasters that make magic happen. “These people are completely in charge,” said Bill Lloyd Jr., president and co-owner of the company along with brother, Brad, who serves as VP. “They are the first people on the job in the morning and the last to lock up at night. These are the folks who make sure everyone goes home safely at the end of the day.” The responsibilities of Lloyd’s 15 superintendents embody the entire construction process – a myriad of responsibilities that include managing the surveyors; following the protocols
for permitting, utilities installation and materials management; safety, quality control; managing the subcontractors, and more. “They are absolutely in charge of everything – and accountable for everything,” Bill said. All but two of Lloyd’s superintendents have come up through the company ranks over the years. Mike Gilbert, Peter Robertson, Tim Shute and Shorty Pemberton have nearly 150 years of combined experience with Lloyd. Bill Lloyd describes them as the “geniuses” of the team because he has yet to see a construction challenge they haven’t
1. Project Superintendents Jason Mejias, Mike Gilbert, Shorty Pemberton, Peter Robertson 2. Project Superintendents Sean Heydel, Dennis Manley, Max Mejia
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the Buildings been able to solve – even when others have said it couldn’t be done. One example was at a renovation at the 390th Memorial Museum at the Pima Air & Space Museum. The 390th museum is dedicated to the 390th Bombardment Group that fought in World War II. One of the museum’s irreplaceable treasures is the J-Wall, which features signatures of many veterans of the 390th Bombardment Group. The plaster wall needed to be moved and no one thought it could be done without destroying it, or at a minimum, damaging it.
“Our guys figured it out. They created a movable bracing system from recycled, on-site job materials at no cost to the owner,” said Brad. “The elaborate cradling system allowed them to remove and relocate the wall without the loss of a single signature. The skill level these guys have, it’s amazing.” “We’ve got kids and grandkids in schools here,” Pemberton said. “We want to build things that are safe. People know we are associated with Lloyd, and they’ll tell us if we’re not getting it right.” As the superintendents discuss the vast footprint of their responsibilities,
there is a moment when the magnitude hits home. “It’s scary when you stop and think about it,” Pemberton said. “We don’t think about it. We do what we’ve got to do,” Gilbert said. “We put our boxing gloves on and go to work every morning and do what we can to help everyone get the job done right and safely.” The superintendents share how they worked up through the ranks in the trades, pushed by their fathers to earn a living and to always do it right. They share that knowledge with young peocontinued on page 86 >>>
3. Project Superintendents Ernesto Ortega, Ron Serr, Lalo Hernandez, Howard Smith, Brian Prescott, Chris Velasquez and Adam Pearson
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continued from page 85 ple coming on the job today. They mentor those who want to learn, cultivating that passion for wanting to work with their hands. The challenge today is finding those young people who want to work hard on the job. A stigma has grown up around construction, labeling it “blue collar” and devaluing the importance of trades today. Bill Lloyd says the industry is really “the heart of the community.” Lloyd Construction has been working to bring technical education back to the schools, and Brad says he devotes a lot of time supporting JTED (Joint Technological Education District), career days and other venues that allow him to speak on the value of working in the trades toward a career in construction. “What sets these guys apart,” said
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Bill, pointing to his superintendents, “is that we have individuals who are willing to pass down their decades of knowledge to anyone on the job site – Lloyd employee or subcontractor. Whether safety training or skills training, we invite our subcontractors to join us on site or in a classroom setting, whenever we host an internal training.” “We care about our owners and we care about the product,” Gilbert said. “If we need to keep the job moving, the Lloyd team has skilled craftspeople and laborers that allow us to self-perform in support of our subcontractors to stay on schedule. We’re just like a bunch of cowboys. We’ve got each other’s back.” One of the most important components of the superintendent’s job is quality control. Bad inspections can
ruin a company, not only in the regulatory world, but also in the community overall. This puts the superintendent on the front line to ensure inspections happen on time – and are passed every time. “The inspections are a big part of the job,” Pemberton said. “The job is our reputation. Inspectors know we’ll do it right, and that’s why we have great relations with them.” Robertson agreed. “This,” he added, holding up a cell phone to allude to technology, “isn’t going to get up at 2 in the morning and go make sure concrete is poured right. It’s needed for certain aspects of the industry, but at the end of the day, it’s all about the people building the buildings.”
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PHOTOS: ERIK HINOTE
390TH MEMORIAL MUSEUM J-WALL
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HISTORIC TRAIN DEPOT
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PHOTO: ERIK HINOTE
Making the Old New Again Restoration Projects a Welcome Challenge By Christy Krueger Brad Lloyd loves the challenge of restofor the original source of material to use. ration projects. As the VP at Lloyd Con“When we work on anything historical, struction, he’s gained plenty of experiwe have to match the existing features,” ence from the company’s work on projects Brad said. where the old becomes new. If the original material is no longer Structures don’t have to be on the Naavailable, they replicate the look with totional Register of Historic Places to be day’s material. They also bring old buildconsidered historic. But to fit the definiings up to code, make them compliant tion, they must be at with the Americans with least 50 years old and Disabilities Act, and add historically significant, energy-saving devices. Brad said. That gener“Restoration can ally means the building be more difficult than is important on a local, new construction,” state or national level, is said Shannon Murray, tied to a historic event, is Lloyd’s marketing dia pristine example of an rector. “There are a lot architectural style, or it of unknowns about the was designed by a master original construction, architect. so there can be unex“Even if it’s not on pected issues.” Almost as the National Register, we challenging is the short – Brad Lloyd have to take care of it like time window for UA VP it is to maintain the culresidence hall projects Lloyd Construction tural history of the build– most must be finished ing,” said Brad. within the 75-day winLloyd has worked on several residence dow during the school’s summer breaks. “To accomplish this, we run multiple halls at the UA that date back decades, some to the early years of the university. crews 23 hours a day, seven days a week “The basic issues with the halls is the with specific tasks scheduled down to the plumbing, electrical, fire sprinklers and hour,” said Brad. ventilation,” Brad said. “We tear out the One of Lloyd’s most visible and exold and put in new. It allows buildings to tensive projects was downtown’s Historic have a new life because they have new inTrain Depot, originally built in 1907. frastructure.” “The depot basically had wood trusses In updating older buildings, Lloyd team and an A-frame structure. It had deteriomembers try to save whatever they can, rated over the years from being vacant, but when that’s not possible, they search continued on page 92 >>>
PHOTO: COURTESY LLOYD CONSTRUCTION
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We bring in a new heart and soul for the building.
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continued from page 91 and we had to be really creative with this one,” Brad said. The terrazzo floors and tile walls needed to be patched. Lloyd had to find the original mine for the material to match the terrazzo floor. They went to Mexico to find the match for the tile. “Instead of removing and replacing the historic windows, we researched and figured out how to make the existing windows look brand new,” Brad said. “We sandblasted the windows with walnut shells. This was unheard of in Tucson at the time.” The process saved the City of Tucson a substantial amount of money while preserving the historic features of the Depot. For Brad, the extra work was worthwhile. “I can’t tell you how proud I am every time I see it.” Lloyd’s latest restoration endeavor is the historic Pima County Courthouse with its signature dome – a symbol of Tucson. “We’re remodeling the inside of the building while protecting the historic aspects,” Brad said. In the Dillinger Courtroom, which will serve as a museum, the woodwork, plaster ceilings and judge’s bench will be restored. There will also be an audio museum piece that will tell the history of the courthouse. Lloyd’s restoration work includes providing the owner with documentation of utilities and systems that are underground and in walls where they’re not visible. “When we build, we document everything. It’s part of turning over a project. We give them everything we can,” Brad said. The Lloyd’s long history in Tucson and their attachment to the community gives them a great appreciation for the buildings and their past stories. “We take a building with an iconic presence and make it safe and functional again,” Brad said. “We bring in a new heart and soul for the building.”
PHOTO: COURTESY LLOYD CONSTRUCTION
UA DORM – YUMA HALL
Biz
When I started working at Lloyd Construction, “ my father had passed away and my mother, sister,
and brothers eventually moved out of Arizona. At that time, I didn’t realize that I needed to fill a void. The folks at Lloyd Construction did just that. With support, strength, and compassion, they have empowered my growth as a person.
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Mud Huts to Smart Buildings
Technology Now a Big Part of Construction By Mary Minor Davis The construction industry has been evolving since the dawn of man. Mud huts and stone monoliths brought an end to nomadic life and eventually led to urbanization. Thousands of years later, the Industrial Revolution that began in the 18th century changed by leaps and bounds how we build things. Today, revolutionary advances in everything from project management software to building materials have turned the construction industry into a leader in human and process advancement. Lloyd Construction has immersed itself in the newest technologies, realizing countless benefits in all aspects of how it does business. “It was not so long ago when you showed up on the job with a Yankee screwdriver and a hand saw as your primary tools of the trade,” said Jason Mejias, a project superintendent at Lloyd. “We transmitted proposals and plans via fax machine, struggling to make copies of 42-inch-by-30-inch diagrams on copy machines geared for 8½-by-11, not to mention the expense of purchasing plan sets for each subcontractor. Pagers drove you to a landline to connect, and then there was the bulky bag phone where maybe you could find a signal to call and connect on a job site.” Flash forward just 30 years later and technology has changed everything. From cordless tools to smartphones, web-based applications and greener materials, Lloyd builds with responsible choices that are efficient, affordable and long-lasting, www.BizTucson.com
All those faxes and fuzzy copies? Now there’s technology that allows everyone on the project team to access all documents digitally in real time online, be they CAD-based images, schematics
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It was not so long ago when you showed up on the job with a Yankee screwdriver and a hand saw as your primary tools of the trade. – Jason Mejias Project Superintendent Lloyd Construction
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or other documents converted to PDFs. “Technology has made it a lot easier to communicate across the board,” said Dennis Manley, also a superintendent. “Many of the unknowns are removed, and it provides real-time collaboration.” Robotics, drones, video technology and web- and cloud-based platforms all ensure that everyone on the project
team is up-to-date with progress and changes on any given job. From there, project managers and superintendents can use the information to assess quality and timing on the job site, marrying the human element with data that once took days – even weeks – to reach the team. New construction materials and preengineered parts simplify construction and add to the durability and quality of a given project. Perhaps one of the greatest changes on the site is the use of prefabrication. In lieu of building on site, entire sections of buildings can be assembled compartmentally and then put in place by a crane. “It takes less manpower; quality control is much better because it’s all right there in front of you,” Mejias said. “You can actually sheet and insulate walls, put in utilities and then set them in place. If you can prefab, that’s always exciting.” Motion detectors and timing systems for energy platforms help reduce energy use. Building automation in general is now the norm – smart buildings that can run entire facilities with a computer. Green projects are also a regular part of the business, said Brad Lloyd, VP of the company. LEDs, solar panels, low volatile organic compounds and higher thermal insulation systems are now generally part of any architectural plan. “It is the responsibility of any contractor to build respectfully to the Earth,” Lloyd said.
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BizAWARDS
Bringing New Ideas to Market I-Squared Awards Honor Innovators By Lee Allen When you’ve got a good idea, share it. Tech Launch Arizona – the University of Arizona office that turns inventions that come out of university research into services and goods in the marketplace – presented honors to its most recent group of inventors, entrepreneurs and ecosystem champions. 2019 represented the sixth year that I-Squared accolades were awarded with UA President Robert Robbins on hand to speak to the importance of these innovations in the context of the university’s strategic plan. “TLA is a vital part of our vision to make the UA a world leader in the latest industrial revolution,” Robbins said. “And in order to ensure that the work of these researchers goes worldwide, commercialization is the key.” There has been a lot of that, according to Doug Hockstad, who succeeded David Allen as TLA VP in April of 2018. He has great respect for the innovations and forward-looking collaborations from the Tucson entrepreneurial arena. “We couldn’t fulfill our mission of creating impact without everyone’s contributions – from researchers bringing us their raw inventions and ideas to entrepreneurs and investors who help us move these innovations toward being strong companies and products. Our success depends upon all of you and we thank you all for being part of this work of making a better world.” Startup of the Year – Urbix Resources, with Dr. Palash Gangopadhyay as chief technology officer – was founded to commercialize a portfolio of lithiumion battery technology. Gangopadhyay was a research professor at the College of Optical Sciences when he developed the inventions and co-founded the company along with UA alumni Adam Small and Nicholas Cuevas. www.BizTucson.com
The group has raised $5 million in development funds and is building a green technology purification plant, which is expected to generate $200 million in annual revenue. Although a fledgling startup, Urbix Resources is already being watched closely and recently earned the Exceptional Innovator of the Year award from the Phoenix Chamber of Commerce. Inventor of the Year honors went to Louise Hecker, whose laboratory developed the first highly selective Nox4 small molecule inhibitors for the treatment of fibrotic disorders. The discovery led to the launch of the startup Fibronix to bring the innovation to the world. Hecker does her research in both the UA College of Medicine and the BIO5 Institute. She was honored for the development of promising treatment for chronic and often fatal fibrotic disorders associated with 45 percent of deaths across the U.S. annually. TLA also recognized two members of Desert Angels, one of the partners supportive of university commercialization efforts – Base Horner and Gurtis Gunn – as recipients of the Ecosystem Impact Award. Desert Angels, a Tucson-based private investment group, is a leader among angel investment entities across the nation with more than 80 members who have invested in a significant portfolio of UA companies. Jennifer Barton, director of the BIO5 Institute, was named Campus Collaborator of the Year for her encouragement of faculty engagement in startup company commercialization. Dawson Baker, who is pursuing a doctorate in the optical sciences, was the first recipient of the Student Innovator of the Year award. Baker, who served as a TLA Technology Student Fellow helping generate product market-research reports for new discoveries, took
his own invention – a method of placing nanoparticles in glass – through the TLA I-Corps program and subsequently received asset-development funds for his project. Professor Emeritus James Wyant received the David N. Allen Award for Leadership and Vision. Wyant, who retired in 2013, was the founding dean of the College of Optical Sciences – which was created to apply optical technologies to real-world problems and which continues to be the most active UA college in terms of research relationships with industry. During his career, Wyant co-founded the local optics companies WYKO and 4D Technology. He recently gave $20 million to the college in support of 10 new faculty positions. It is the largest gift for endowed faculty chair positions in UA history and the college is being renamed the James C. Wyant College of Optical Sciences. The annual I-Squared event also showcased entrepreneurial faculty startups and inventions expected to make more news in the future. “We’re currently conducting an economic impact study on just what these efforts mean in the way of economic impact to Southern Arizona,” Hockstad said. “Over the last five fiscal years, we’ve assisted with over 70 startup companies and in fiscal year 2018, those companies generated over $21 million in grants and equity funding alone. “Every day our University of Arizona community is researching and inventing solutions to some of the greatest challenges facing our world. We’re honored to be the ones to help bring these inventions to the world – and look forward to continuing to grow the culture of innovation at the UA and throughout the ecosystem.”
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BizBRIEFS
Airport’s First-Quarter Passenger Rate Soars More than 1 million airline passengers were served through Tucson International Airport in the first three months of 2019, making it the fifth busiest first quarter in the airport’s history. The 1,030,119 passengers are an 8.8% increase over 2018. The all-time first-quarter record is for 1,184,938 passengers in 2008. “Airlines are continuing to schedule more flights and using larger aircraft at TIA, which shows their confidence in our region,” said Bonnie Allin, president and CEO of the Tucson Airport Authority. The increases are attributed to the arrivals of Allegiant Air and Frontier Airlines since last year, combined with the airport’s other airlines adding flights and using larger aircraft to existing destinations. The one negative in the numbers is that American Airlines’ total was down 8.4% in March, owing to several flight cancellations caused by weather and other issues. March has become TIA’s busiest month of the year driven by winter-weary residents from colder climates seeking to escape to the sunshine. American and Southwest continue to be the two busiest airlines at TIA, with American Airlines at 33.2% and Southwest Airlines at 24.8%. United Airlines is third at 15.8%, followed by Delta Airlines at 15.2%, Alaska Airlines at 7.4%, Frontier Airlines at 1.5%, Sun Country Airlines at 1.2% and Allegiant Air at 0.9%. Tucson Airport Authority is an independent, nonprofit organization operating TIA and general aviation reliever Ryan Airfield. TAA has sustained its operations since its origin in 1948 from airport-generated revenues without the use of local taxes, and continues to invest millions of dollars each year in safety, security and facility infrastructure that drive job creation and economic activity for the benefit of Tucson and Southern Arizona.
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Mighty Wurlitzer Comes to Life at Fox Theatre For the first time in more than 60 years the majestic tones of a Mighty Wurlitzer organ filled the Fox Tucson Theatre during a fundraiser in April for the Fox Tucson Theatre Foundation. Professional organist Ron Rhode played the restored wonder as he accompanied Buster Keaton’s 1920 silent film “One Week,” followed by Rhode providing backup support for mariachi group Los Changuitos Feos de Tucson during another April show. The Fox Theatre had a theater pipe organ – invented by Robert Hope-Jones and originally named the HopeJones Unit Orchestra – when it opened April 11, 1930. This organ differed from a church organ in that modifications and an electrified switch system allowed any combination of pipes and effects to be played simultaneously. For silent movies, a single musician could create the sounds of a full orchestra and also provide sound effects. But in the 1950s the then owners of the Fox sold off the organ piece by piece. However, in 2002 Dr. Malin Dollinger donated his 1922 four-manual, 27-rank Mighty Wurlitzer to the foundation, which is raising funds to cover the expense of fully restoring and annually maintaining the organ, and providing free or low-cost public events that highlight its use. It has already received a $17,500 grant from Southwest Foundation for Education and Historic Preservation and a $10,000 grant from the March and Ampel Family Fund. The restoration involved disassembling and inspecting parts to then cleaning, adjusting, repairing or replacing them with vintage or reproduction pieces. Grahame Davis, president of Pipe Organ Artisans, led the restoration. Theater organs are technological marvels. There is the console, plus pipes, thousands of moving parts, miles of electrical wiring and an enormous amount of pressurized air paths. At the Fox Tucson Theatre, the pipe chambers – 3,000 of them – are behind the walls on both sides of the stage.
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PHOTO: COURTESY RYAN COMPANIES
BizHOTELS
Doubletree by Hilton Planned for Tucson Convention Center By David Petruska Downtown’s revitalization continues with the groundbreaking of a DoubleTree by Hilton hotel at the Tucson Convention Center that will open in the fourth quarter of 2020. Tucson Mayor Jonathan Rothschild, Fletcher McCusker, chair of Rio Nuevo Board of Directors, Roy Bade, executive VP of acquisitions & development for Caliber, and Mark Beal, division manager for Ryan Companies US, were among the dignitaries on hand for the groundbreaking ceremony May 13, along with members of the Barrio Viejo Neighborhood. Caliber is the developer of the hotel and Ryan Companies is the general contractor. Swaim Architects and Within Studio Interior Design provided the design for the project. “A hotel at the Tucson Convention Center has been talked about for 104 BizTucson
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many years,” Rothschild said. “I’m very pleased to see this project moving forward. And, of course, DoubleTree is a known and valued brand here in Tucson.” There are three current DoubleTree hotels in Tucson – at Reid Park, Williams Center and at Tucson International Airport. The TCC will remain completely operable throughout construction of the hotel. It will be just the second downtown hotel built in the past 42 years. The new hotel will be connected to the TCC and will offer several amenities including a second-story pool, rooftop bar, onsite restaurant, coffee bar and 4,000 square feet of meeting space. The design includes 170 rooms, four suites and one presidential suite. This is Caliber’s 10th hotel property after recently completing the renova-
tion of the Hilton Tucson East. Hotel Management Magazine rated Caliber as a top hotel company in 2018. Ryan has built projects totaling more than 2.5 million square feet in Tucson and has built 30 hospitality projects across the country. “We have been building in Tucson for the past 25 years and have great relationships with the local labor and materials market,” said Chuck Carefoot, senior VP of construction for Ryan Companies. “We are honored to partner with Caliber on this Opportunity Zone Project that will help shape Downtown Tucson.” Opportunity Zones were added to the tax code in late 2017 and are designed to spur economic development by providing tax benefits to investors.
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BizWORKFORCE
Aerospace & Defense Workforce Summit Collaborating to Fill a Talent Pipeline By David Pittman The aerospace and defense industry is already huge in Tucson and all of Arizona – yet business and industry leaders want to see it grow even larger. Aerospace and defense is a key contributor to the Arizona economy. According to the Arizona Commerce Authority, the industry consists of 1,200 defense contractors, which employ more than 54,000 people in high-wage jobs. They produced an $11.2 billion economic impact in Arizona in 2017. “With all of us working together and really focusing on this, I think this industry is primed to really take off,” said Ted Maxwell, president and CEO of the
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Southern Arizona Leadership Council and former Air Force major general. “We have the military assets, the most air space, the best air ranges, perfect flying weather, the greatest testing grounds and the finest aerospace and defense companies.” He asked, “Who will benefit if we succeed?” The answer is: “Our families will benefit, job seekers will benefit, our students will benefit, our colleges and universities will benefit and our community and region will benefit.” Economic growth has many challenges. The most critical one facing the aerospace and defense industry – along
Ron Shoopman
with other manufacturers, contractors and businesses – is a growing shortage of qualified workers. That is the reason Southern Arizona business leaders, educators, military officials, aerospace and defense contractors, and representatives of other hightech companies met April 25 at the UA Science & Tech Park for the Aerospace and Defense Workforce Innovation Summit. The purpose was to explore creative ways to connect students and military veterans with career opportunities. The summit was hosted by the Tucson Metro Chamber. Sponsors included Visit Tucson, United Way of Tucson
Chair Arizona Board of Regents Retired U.S. Air Force Brigadier General
“It doesn’t have to be a four-year college degree. It can be a two-year associate degree or a technical certification,” Shoopman said. “We are at about 34 percent now, and getting to 60 percent will take a lot of work.” David Doré, vice chancellor of economic and workforce development at Pima Community College, said the college is establishing Centers of Excel-
“
Arizona is well positioned to be the best state addressing talent needs.
”
– Amber Smith, President & CEO Tucson Metro Chamber
lence to help meet industry workforce needs. “Higher education needs to adapt quicker and be more responsive to industry – and that’s what we intend to do,” Doré said. “We are investing about $45 million into our downtown campus, specifically in our Center of Excellence
for Applied Technology. The center is transforming the downtown campus, and we think it will transform the city as well.” The center will focus on transportation, logistics, advanced manufacturing, aerospace and defense, infrastructure, mining and energy technology. New courses in optics, diesel technology, quality assurance and autonomous vehicles are also in the works. “At our East Campus, we have what we believe is the only junior college with an active cyber-warfare range,” Doré said. “We just completed the curriculum for our new cyber-security degree program.” As part of the summit, Alec Fobeil, a military veteran and PCC student, received a cyber-security scholarship from Cisco. Nineteen more such scholarships will be awarded over the next several months. “Arizona is well positioned to be the best state addressing talent needs,” said Amber Smith, president and CEO of the chamber and emcee of the summit. “We have strong training partners in our college, university and nonprofit communities, alongside existing talent. Bringing industry together with the talent and job trainers will create a collective impact at all levels to build a thriving workforce ecosystem.”
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Amber Smith
President & CEO Tucson Metro Chamber
David Doré
Vice Chancellor Economic and Workforce Development Pima Community College www.BizTucson.com
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PHOTOS: CHRIS MOONEY
and Southern Arizona, Arizona Corporation Commission, the Center for the Future of Arizona, SALC and Cisco. The nation has too few workers and the numbers tell the story. At the end of January, the country had 7.6 million unfilled jobs – but only 6.5 million Americans who were looking for work, according to data released in March by the U.S. Labor Department. It marked the 11th consecutive month that job openings exceeded job seekers. The problem is a demographic one – baby boomers are retiring and there aren’t enough workers to replace them. And it’s worsening every day. “Did you know Arizona had a state demographer?” Ron Shoopman, chair of the Arizona Board of Regents and a retired Air Force brigadier general, asked summit attendees. “I didn’t either. But we have one, and he recently informed the regents that 10 years ago there was a dramatic shift in fertility and the number of 18 year olds who will show up here over the next decade will drop by about 25 percent. It’s not just in Arizona, but nationwide.” Shoopman said Gov. Doug Ducey supports an effort that was introduced by the regents called “Achieve 60 Arizona.” It calls for 60 percent of 25-yearold Arizonans to have completed some type of post-high school training by 2030.
BizLEADERSHIP
Two Groups Partner to Help Entrepreneurs Two Tucson organizations are pooling their considerable energy and resources in a new program to help entrepreneurs. People who are thinking about starting a business or have newly done so can get a discounted membership to the Tucson Metro Chamber and use free, customized services from Startup Tucson. Here’s what the Startup Tucson Network offers:
• Personalized, one-on-one mentoring. • The chance to network with large • •
and small companies. An almost endless wealth of experience and tips from leaders in various industries. Health insurance options for businesses of two to 50 employees.
As part of the partnership Startup Tucson has moved into the Metro Chamber’s offices. “What we’ve heard from startups is that they’ve had trouble navigating the full spectrum of resources available to them in Tucson,” said Liz Pocock, Startup Tucson’s new CEO. “Our role as a concierge is to help an entrepreneur take advantage of all of the resources in our community – not just what Startup Tucson offers.” The Startup Network puts people on the right path for where they are in their company formation and connects them with the appropriate resources, such as Southern Arizona SCORE and the Small Business Development Center.
“We have entrepreneurs that are just starting their journey and entrepreneurs that are further along that have already raised their second or third funding round,” Pocock said. “We usually encourage people to start with what we call discovery events. We have weekly Startup coffee and monthly Startup drinks. So you’re going to come there and meet other entrepreneurs, other founders, mentors, our staff – and if that vibes with you and you say ‘Okay, cool, I’m ready to talk to someone more about my idea,’ you would come to one of our labs. “The labs walk entrepreneurs through the first part of the planning process – which is to ask ‘Who is your customer, what problem are you solving for them and what’s your value proposition?’ And so we do a workshop on that. You learn with peers. We help guide you through that process. After you’ve done your first lab, that’s when you can apply to be part of the network.” The network is free to all interested entrepreneurs, Pocock said. The only requirement is that they fill out an initial growth tracker onboarding form and complete an annual update survey to show they are still active. Startup Tucson Network members can join the chamber for a reduced rate of $150. The standard, entry-level rate is $495. Barbi Reuter, board chair for the chamber, says the board’s focus is shifting to better mesh with today’s business climate. “We’ve been very intentional in the last three years or so in diversifying the
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board – and this really fits with Startup Tucson because it’s not really about gender or race. We’ve got age, we’ve got type of company, we’ve got size of company, diversity of thought, diversity of perspective, candor,” said Reuter, president, PICOR Commercial Real Estate Services. The chamber needs to grow and change with the times, said Amber Smith, who recently became the chamber’s CEO. “The chamber has been around 123 years and it’s important for us to innovate and evolve,” she said. “And you don’t see a stronger presence in that than in the startup community.” The chamber has 27 board members. Startup Tucson, founded in 2012, has five. Fletcher McCusker, a local investor known for his vision and support for Tucson’s businesses and the community as a whole, is excited about the new partnership. “It’s really invigorating,” he said of Tucson and its economic development. “It’s multi-generational now. Our young people are sticking around. The university is really very different under President Robbins. We have growth capital now. We have three venture capital funds that are Tucson-based. It’s a very Austin-like environment.” McCusker, who is president of Startup Tucson’s board and CEO of UA Venture Capital, coined the phrase “Your concierge to the innovation ecosystem” for Startup Tucson’s brochure. “We just needed to put some smart women in charge,” he said, “and look what’s happened.”
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Part of the festival is the IdeaFunding contest, where entrepreneurs can make pitches and win cash. Last year a total of $37,000 was awarded. Cox Business sponsored the $25,000 grand prize and TEP sponsored some of the smaller awards. Go to www.tenwest.com for more information. www.BizTucson.com
PHOTO: BRENT G. MATHIS
By Tiffany Kjos
WOMEN WHO LEAD
From left â&#x20AC;&#x201C;
Liz Pocock
CEO, Startup Tucson
Amber Smith
President & CEO, Tucson Metro Chamber
Barbi Reuter
Board Chair, Tucson Metro Chamber President, Cushman & Wakefield| PICOR Commercial Real Estate Services www.BizTucson.com
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BizDEVELOPMENT
Entrepreneurs Tout Benefits of Startup Tucson By Tiffany Kjos Startup Tucson has had a tremendous impact on entrepreneurs here who credit the organization with guiding them to success by linking them with resources they otherwise wouldn’t know about. Here are a few of their stories. RentLab Founded by Jacqui Bauer in July 2017
Q.
At what stage of the business did you start working with Startup Tucson?
A.
I had incorporated as a social benefit corporation (a for-profit but social-mission driven form of corporation) just before moving to Tucson in early 2018, so I was pretty early on in my effort to get my first customer. Startup Tucson popped up quickly as a potential local resource, and I started attending their events almost immediately, including the March 2018 Thryve weekend. That event was a turning point for me, when I really started receiving formal coaching and mentoring, culminating in wins at both IdeaFunding and the Social Impact pitch competitions in the fall of 2018.
Q.
A.
What did Startup Tucson do for you and your business?
Startup Tucson connected me with mentors and entrepreneurs working on similar challenges, helped me articulate my mission and strategies, and in general helped me transition to thinking of myself as an entrepreneur. The pitch competition funding was a fantastic boost to my confidence and to my ongoing effort to build a clientele. But more than anything, they connected me to the Tucson entrepreneurial community – and that keeps me going.
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Q.
A.
Would you recommend Startup Tucson to other entrepreneurs?
Absolutely! Startup Tucson has been an incredible source of practical, financial and even emotional support. Their collaborative, community-oriented approach to entrepreneurship – as opposed to a competitive, cutthroat approach – completely resonates with me.
SGNT Founded by CEO Emil Tremblay and COO Tommy Rompel in fall of 2017
Q.
At what stage of the business did you start working with Startup Tucson?
A.
While Tommy Rompel was born and raised in Tucson, Emil Tremblay moved here from Canada in 2017. Tremblay explained for the first six months of our company, Tommy and I worked on SGNT (pronounced sig-net) in “stealth” mode. In April 2018 we decided it was time to start reaching out to the Tucson community and quickly came across Startup Tucson. We began by attending Startup Coffee and Startup Drinks and shortly thereafter Liz Pocock (CEO of Startup Tucson) joined us for an introductory coffeeshop meeting. We shared with her what we were working on and the kind of people, resources and connections we required
Q.
A.
What did Startup Tucson do for you and your business?
Liz connected us with many key people in the Tucson ecosystem, some of whom are now SGNT employees or advisers. Our team has grown tremendously (to about 10 employees and 10 advisers). The ability to grow this quickly and with such incredible talent would not have been possible without the network of talent that Startup Tucson has assembled.
Q.
A.
Would you recommend Startup Tucson to other entrepreneurs?
I always recommend Startup Tucson to the people I meet and readily brag to my friends in other cities how fortunate we are in Tucson to
have such an incredible organization as the hub of innovation and startups in Tucson. Hivemetric Co-founded by Charlie Maxwell and Bryce Horner, incorporated in February 2017
Q.
At what stage of the business did you start working with Startup Tucson?
A.
Pre-revenue. Charlie Maxwell started his career in software development working for a small development and marketing agency in the space that was CoLab in 2014. In his own words: The community around the startup ecosystem and the space that Startup Tucson fostered is what drew me in and allowed me to stumble backwards into what would grow into my career path. Just being around the energy and spirit that flowed through that space and community led me to my first venture, which led me to my second, making the connections along the way necessary to arrive at my third, which is where I am now, Hivemetric.
Q.
A.
What did Startup Tucson do for you and your business?
The feedback, opportunities and experiences that Startup Tucson provided our company were absolutely fundamental in our growth. However, hands down the most valuable thing that Startup Tucson provides is community. Everyone is there because they are passionate about the same things, share in the same struggles and truly wish for your success. It’s one of the few places in the world of business where when someone says “I wish the best for you,” they mean it.
Q.
A.
Would you recommend Startup Tucson to other entrepreneurs?
I would without a doubt recommend Startup Tucson to any entrepreneur. To be fair, “entrepreneur” should be a loose term here – because Startup Tucson is beyond the organization, and beyond the companies. At its core it’s just good people.
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WOMEN WHO LEAD
Penny Buckley
Program Director Sister Jose Women’s Center
Jean Fedigan
Executive Director Sister Jose Women’s Center 112 BizTucson
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BizFUNDING
Sister Jose Women’s Center Assists Homeless Women Presentation Earned $5,000 Fast Pitch Grant
PHOTO: DAVID SANDERS
By Romi Carrell Wittman Most of us wouldn’t consider ourselves rich – yet think about this: When you woke up this morning, were you in a bed? When you flipped the light switch, did you have electricity? Was there warm water for a shower? Did you have food to eat for breakfast? These seemingly small, inconsequential amenities are a basic fact of life for most of us. But for the homeless, there are no such guarantees. The picture is even more bleak for homeless women, a population that’s growing exponentially. Last fall at the Leo Rich Theater, Penny Buckley, program director at Sister Jose Women’s Center, described a typical day for a homeless woman to the audience at the SVP Fast Pitch event. SVP, which stands for Social Venture Partners, holds Fast Pitch each year, when local nonprofits, after receiving intensive training from SVP, give their pitch to an audience of engaged community members and funders. The room fell silent as Buckley described the mounting challenges for this incredibly vulnerable group and how the center aims to help. That night, SJWC was awarded a Tucson Electric Power “Power to the People” grant of $5,000. Founded in 2009, the nonprofit center provides food, shower and laundry facilities, and personal hygiene products for women experiencing homelessness. The center also provides day programs designed to help the women regain their footing. In addition, SJWC provides 36 beds for safe sleep each night. Each month, more than 2,000 people visit the Sister Jose Women’s Center. Unlike many other shelters, Sister Jose allows pets. “Women won’t come if we don’t allow pets,” said Jean Fedigan, executive www.BizTucson.com
director of the center. “Those pets are their family – and they provide security.” One of Sister Jose’s many day programs is CREATE, which stands for Confidence, Readiness, Empowerment, Action, Transformation, Engagement. This 26-week residential program features a curriculum of life skills, job readiness, creative and expressive arts, wellness and literacy. “Women need to feel human again,” Buckley said.
“
Women need to feel human again.
”
– Penny Buckley Program Director Sister Jose Women’s Center
Women interview for a spot in the program and, once in, they have guaranteed housing, as well as a small stipend. “It’s a first step,” Buckley said. “There’s a myth that you can just go out and get a job,” Fedigan said. “If you fall far below the social safety net, it takes a lot longer to get back up. We help them make that journey.” The SJWC facility on South Park Avenue also provides meeting and office space free of charge for several community organizations, including El Rio Health, CODAC and La Frontera. Each holds office hours on site so that
women can access their services. “We think of the center as a hub,” Fedigan said. “The women are going to come here anyway, so we partner with community groups so women can make connections with those groups and the services they provide.” The center moved to its current location, a 9,000-square-foot facility, two years ago and expanded its programmatic offerings. Previously, the center operated out of a 750-square-foot home. SJWC was able to purchase the much larger facility with the help of grants and community support. The larger facility helps the center meet the needs of women, whom it’s seeing in greater numbers. “As we age, our needs become greater,” Fedigan said of the women they serve. “We’re seeing that now.” Buckley said the average age of women visiting SJWC is 47, but women in their 60s and 70s also come for aid. Buckley said the SVP Fast Pitch process was intense, but very much worth it. “A lot of people saw our pitch and it helped us to make a lot of connections,” she said. “It was really a lot of community building.” And community building is at the heart of SJWC’s mission. “We always try to get people to look at their common strengths, their common struggles,” Fedigan said. “When we do that, we discover we have more in common than we have differences.” SJWC’s mission is not an easy one, but it’s one that’s vital to this community. As Fedigan said, “We can’t solve the problem on our own – but we can make a huge difference.”
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BizLEADERSHIP
Women’s Foundation Takes Aim at Poverty New CEO Targets Financial Security for Women
We are in the midst of a gender revolution that includes a groundswell of support for women and against conditions they’ve been tolerating for decades, if not centuries. Women today continue to be paid far less than men doing the same work, bear most of the responsibility for childcare even if they work full time, and are at risk of being sexually harassed or abused in the workplace and virtually everywhere they go. Into this fray steps Amalia Luxardo, a powerhouse in Tucson who engages in tough political and societal struggles to make sure women and girls are educated, safe, respected and paid enough money to support themselves and their families. “All these issues that are being blasted all over the news are something we have to deal with as women on a day-to-day basis, and we’ve been dealing with it for decades now,” Luxardo said. “People are learning – and slowly everyone is doing something about it.” Luxardo is the new CEO of the Women’s Foundation of Southern Arizona, which raises grant money for organizations that help women and children all over this part of the state. “We collaborate to have social, political and economic change for women and girls,” said Luxardo, who has been in Tucson for eight years. “What we try to do is empower women and girls so they can increase their economic assets so they can get out of the cycle of poverty.” The foundation, headed by board 114 BizTucson
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chairwoman, Deb Dale, did a national search for a CEO and found the ideal candidate right here in Tucson. “She just had a perfect mix of skills and she’s very much a breath of fresh air. She’s very connected with Hispanic leadership circles, young Hispanic leader circles,” said Dale, who is co-owner of Smith & Dale, a Tucson firm that helps nonprofits raise money. “She’s very approachable. She’s very genuine and smart. She’s just great,” Dale said. “We’re lucky to have her in our community.” Luxardo is not new to the fundraising game. Before she joined the women’s foundation in January, she was director of philanthropy at Tucson’s Florence Immigrant and Refugee Rights Project, for which she helped raise $6 million in 2018 to respond to the immigrant family separation crisis. That’s nearly double that nonprofit’s previous program budget. Luxardo is “fully bicultural” and invested in women’s issues, particularly as they pertain to their economic status, said Miguel Cruz, the foundation’s marketing committee chairman and Tucson Federal Credit Union’s VP of marketing. Cruz met Luxardo during a funding competition – the 2017 Social Venture Partners’ Fast Pitch Tucson, where Luxardo secured a $7,500 grant for the Florence Project. “I think what’s she’s recognized for in the community is inclusion and issues related to women,” Cruz said. “She has been active in various areas of the polit-
ical spectrum with elected officials with the county and state.” The foundation has given grants totaling $4 million since it began more than two decades ago. Its major fundraiser, a luncheon held each spring, draws more than 1,000 supporters. Luxardo, an immigrant from Argentina, cut her teeth in Washington, D.C., where she lobbied for minorities in need of legal help. As a researcher and policy adviser for the U.S. State Department, she advocated for immigrant rights and brought to light issues having to do with the societal and economic impact of immigrants. “Tucson is one of those communities that just bands together really quickly – something I’ve never really seen anywhere else,” she said. “I think that that speaks volumes as to who we are as people, as to who we are as a community, as to who we could be potentially as a state. “I do have a network in Phoenix as well, and I think there’s a lot of potential to band together and do really, really great things.” Luxardo is not just focused on money, though. “Everyone can be a philanthropist. And one of my overarching goals is to change the way that people think of it – that you don’t have to come from a place of wealth and you don’t have to be a certain color to make a difference. “You can share your time, your experience – the most important thing is that you show up,” Luxardo said.
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PHOTO: CHRIS MOONEY
By Tiffany Kjos
WOMEN WHO LEAD
Amalia Luxardo
CEO, Womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Foundation of Southern Arizona www.BizTucson.com
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BizTRIBUTE
Ann Blackmarr Patron of the Arts
By Mary Minor Davis and Donna Kreutz In April, Tucson lost a beloved and devoted patron of the Tucson arts community – Gladys “Ann” Blackmarr – when she was tragically killed while crossing the street in a pedestrian crosswalk in east Tucson. If you are involved in the arts at any level, you likely knew Blackmarr. She and her husband, Neal, who predeceased her in 2011, valued the arts in the Tucson community at every level. Whether providing scholarships for students to study abroad, or serving on the boards of the University of Arizona College of Fine Arts and Tucson Symphony Orchestra as well as the UA Presents Advisory Committee, she was always on the front line of supporting what she valued as an essential part of the community experience. At the time of her untimely death, friends say she had committed to a new mission to support more local arts organizations and small theater groups. “There will never, ever be another Ann Blackmarr,” said Steve Rosenberg, publisher of BizTucson. “My aunt lived life to the fullest and was an avid world traveler, a voracious reader of books, spectator and champion of the arts… a true Renaissance woman. A pioneer in business, she broke the ‘glass ceiling,’ climbing the corporate ladder as the first high-level woman executive with Kelly Services, a national temporary services company. Later she owned and operated Kelly Services franchises with the love of her life, my late Uncle Neal. “My aunt poured her heart and soul into her family, the arts community and her career, which translated to great success in business. She was a mentor and loyal friend to many – and was a determined, self-confident, talented, creative, organized, competitive, intelligent, ethical, thoughtful and very opinionated woman,” he said. “Ann was a force of nature,” said Norma Gentry, who met Ann at a fund116 BizTucson
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raiser for the Tucson Girls Chorus eight years ago. “She was my hero. She had a big life.” Longtime friend Barbara Farmilant said, “Ann enjoyed traveling almost as much as she enjoyed the arts. Not only was she interesting, she was curious, outgoing and generous. In her last months, Ann took lessons on writing short stories. I loved it – my friend taking up writing at age 86. I will miss so much about her. She makes me want to
Ann Blackmarr do and be more than I am.” Maurice Sevigny, former dean of the UA College of Fine Arts, described Ann as a “force to reckon with – in a fun way. She was a character and a wonderful voice and advocate for the arts – especially for the students. She and her husband supported at least two students a summer to study abroad, or have internships to expand their education. By the time I left, she had followed over 120 students into their careers.” Mark Kenneth Channel first met Ann while working at the UA Foundation. He said she taught him a lot about how to cultivate relationships. “Some-
how she knew when new people moved into the community and she would take them to dinner, tell them she was going to take them to a performance and convince them to support the arts,” Channel said. “I’ll never forget her.” “Ann was a true patron of the arts,” said Lisa Comella, senior director in the UA College of Fine Arts. “Her heart was with our students and faculty. She didn’t care where you were from or whether or not you had means – she cared about helping our students and she cared about promoting the arts. I’ll always remember her kindness, her optimism and her candor,” she said. “Ann was an original.” Born in 1933 in Brooklyn, New York, Ann moved to Washington, D.C., in the 1950s. She married young and had two daughters, Mona and Carla. She did publicity for the League of Women Voters in Montgomery County, Maryland and for a small theater in Rockville, Maryland. In 1964, Ann took a job with a temporary employment agency and within her first week was promoted to manager. Now a single parent, it was here that she took the name Ann Reynolds. In 1977, she returned to head the public relations office for Kelly Services in Detroit, where she met Neal Blackmarr who owned the Kellly franchises in Connecticut. Ann joined Neal in running the Connecticut offices before retiring in the 1980s, then moving to Tucson in 1992, where they immediately got involved with the Boys and Girls Club of Tucson in addition to their passion for the arts. Ann established the G. Ann Blackmarr Endowment in Theatre Technology in UA School of Theatre, Film & Television. Contributions in her memory can be made at www.uafoundation. org/blackmarrdesign.
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Calline Sanchez
IBM VP, Worldwide Systems Lab Services and Technical Universities, Tucson Site & New Mexico State Executive 118 BizTucson
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BizTECHNOLOGY
IBM Impact on Tucson & the World 40+ Years of Innovation in the ‘Silicon Desert’
Arizona was but two years old, Congress Street was being paved for the first time and an industrious young businessman named Thomas Watson Sr. had just been appointed manager of a New York enterprise called Computing – Tabulating – Recording Company. The year was 1914 and the world, though entering a war of a previously unknown scale, was buying up the newfangled meat slicers and coffee grinders being distributed by his innovative Manhattan-based company. It would be several decades before this growing company would set up shop in Arizona – but when it did, it was here to www.BizTucson.com
By Mary Minor Davis stay. Driven by global ambition and post-war economy, Watson had by then renamed the company International Business Machines. Known throughout the world today simply as IBM, the cognitive and cloud platform company is ranked by Forbes as the 17th most valuable brand in the world. With more than 350,000 employees in 170 countries, IBM has come a long way from selling tabulating machines. From electric typewriters to mainframes, floppy disks, PCs, magnetic stripes, UPC barcodes and cognitive systems like the aptly named “Watson,” IBM has brought forth a parade of
PHOTO: BRENT G. MATHIS
By June C. Hussey
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BizTECHNOLOGY continued from page 119 products that have revolutionized the way people live and work, no doubt exceeding Watson’s wildest dreams. In the meantime, IBM’s impact on Tucson’s economy over the past 40 years is no less impressive.
In his remarks at the event, Fleming emphasized how all of Tucson benefits from IBM’s presence here. When it came in 1978, Tucson was hardly the blooming metropolis that it is today. So why did such a world leader in information technology select the Old Pueblo?
IBM’s Tucson Roots
Tucson’s love affair with IBM commenced in 1978 when the company set up shop in its brand new, state-of-theart facility at 9000 S. Rita Road. Fortyone years later, Tucson’s population is double in size and IBM’s Rita Road site is part of the business complex known as UA Tech Park at Rita Road, home to approximately 40 tenant companies. IBM’s presence here clearly helped set the stage for Tucson’s rise as a high-tech corridor – or as IBMers like Calline Sanchez affectionately call it – “the Silicon Desert.” Last year, IBM celebrated its first 40 years in Tucson with a room full of public officials from both sides of the border, media members, current and former employees and other special guests. Site Leader Sanchez – IBM VP, Worldwide Systems Lab Services and Technical Universities, Tucson Site & New Mexico State Executive – and her colleagues offered enlightening and often humorous insights about their work then and now. IBM scientists and engineers were on hand afterward to give guests an up-close glimpse at various high-tech gadgets used in data storage and retrieval, cloud computing, cyber security and artificial intelligence. Partnering with a Top-Tier University
IBM and the University of Arizona partner closely for obvious reasons. According to Stephen Fleming, VP of UA research, discovery and innovation, the university does a lot beyond graduating talented students. It conducts joint research, sponsors spinoff companies and offers mid-career training for the development of the region’s workforce. IBM is constantly seeking to attract and retain top scientists and engineers to create its breakthrough technologies. Fleming points out that the UA research enterprise alone creates a $1.2 billion annual impact – the economic impact equivalent of two Super Bowls per year every year. Overall, Fleming said, UA generates an estimated $8 billion annually in regional economic impact. 120 BizTucson
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Evolution of Data Storage
Computer storage technology has come a long way – and IBM’s Tucson team is deeply involved in advancing the state of the art.
• In 1956, a disk drive held
five megabytes.
• By 1978, a disk drive held
571 megabytes.
• Today, the entire Library of Congress runs on tape storage technology. • The DS8880, a FLASH/DISK Storage device displayed at IBM’s 40th anniversary event, can be found in the IT back rooms of 29 of the 30 top banks. It can store up to eight pedabytes of information – the contents of several million smartphones – and takes up half the floor space of prior generations. A petabyte, or PB, is a measurement of computer storage capacity equivalent to 10 to the 15th power bits of information. To put that in perspective, a one-petabyte storage system could hold 13.3 years of HD video.
Fleming offered a brief lesson in history and economics: During the 19th century, industries were drawn to river towns for the manufacture and shipment of products. Before the invention of railroads and highways, a desert town like Tucson could not compete. However, as transportation systems evolved in the 20th century, brain power eventually eclipsed water power as a primary industry magnet. A source of brain power like the UA drew IBM to this dry desert town in the 1970s like a thirsty camel to a desert spring. Generating New-Collar Jobs
Today, IBM not only employs UA grads, it also partners with nearby schools – including top-ranked Vail
School District – to generate interest and enthusiasm for “new collar” jobs. Newcollar jobs are abundant in fast-growing fields like cybersecurity, cloud computing, cognitive business and digital design – and they do not always require a fouryear college degree. Skills needed to excel in such jobs can be acquired through 21st century vocational training, innovative public education programs like P-TECH (which IBM pioneered), apprenticeships, coding camps, professional certification programs and more. IBM is working to make the technology industry more inclusive by emphasizing the opportunity that new-collar jobs provide in communities such as Tucson. Sanchez, who has three degrees herself, was a young child when IBM opened on Rita Road. Her predecessors may have had a tough time getting scientists and engineers to relocate to Tucson – yet once here, they were reluctant to leave. Tucson has that effect on people. Its magnetic allure grabs onto one’s soul like jumping cholla sticks to a tennis shoe. Giving Back
At IBM Tucson’s 40-year celebration, Tony Penn, executive director of the United Way of Tucson and Southern Arizona, called IBM “a great corporate citizen.” Sanchez agreed. “Our people care about where we live and work,” she said. This year alone, Penn said, more than 4,000 volunteers – many of whom were IBM employees – collaborated on 200 community projects throughout Southern Arizona during United Way’s Days of Caring. IBMers actually were the ones who first proposed the idea to the United Way 17 years ago. Since 2005, Penn said, IBM has contributed nearly $7 million directly to the Southern Arizona community – $2 million in the past five years alone – making a world of difference for kids, families and seniors who need, as the adage goes, “a hand up, not a hand-out.” Rock Stars of Data
IBM is a world leader in the field of information technology and Tucson is one of IBM’s major innovation centers. In 2017 alone, Southern Arizona inventors accounted for 481 of IBM’s 9,043 patents, making this the company’s 25th consecutive year of U.S. patent leadership. According to Sanchez, local scientists and engineers have contributed to IBM’s status as a top patent innovation www.BizTucson.com
“
Our ability to work and collaborate across our global footprint is essential to powering the kinds of innovation we deliver from places like Tucson – and that’s an important theme we drive home with government officials from around the world.
Ric Bradshaw Tape Media Expert
”
company in the U.S. for 25 years in a row. One of IBM’s many local patent holders, Ric Bradshaw, attended the anniversary event at Rita Road. Sanchez told the audience that she was personally star-struck when she first read about Bradshaw while she was a teenager living in Florida – and remains so today. She remembered being fascinated with Bradshaw’s vital role in discovering important details on how the NASA space shuttle Challenger went down in 1986 after tragically exploding 73 seconds after launching over the Atlantic Ocean. It was a devastating event witnessed in real time on television by millions of Americans, including students who were celebrating the first civilian passenger on a space shuttle, teacher Christa McAuliffe. Standing 6 feet, 4 inches in cowboy boots, with a full beard and ponytail reaching halfway down his back, Bradshaw shook off the rock star label Sanchez gave him as he joined her on stage. If one were to apply stereotypes, Bradshaw looks more like an aging lead singer from an ’80s hair band than a Ph.D. polymer chemist – that is, until Sanchez got him talking shop. As he led the audience through the process he and his IBM colleagues went through to famously help solve the mystery of continued on page 123 >>> www.BizTucson.com
PHOTO: BRENT G. MATHIS
– Calline Sanchez IBM VP, Worldwide Systems Lab Services and Technical Universities, Tucson Site & New Mexico State Executive
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BizTECHNOLOGY
IBM by the Numbers IBM, headquartered in Armonk, New York, is one of the nation’s largest technology employers.
• Worldwide, IBM employs more than 350,000 in 170 countries. • IBM actively innovates, invests and hires on home soil, including on 1,545 acres at UA Tech Park at Rita Road.
• Between 2008 and 2017, IBM’s capital expenditures were about $14 billion.
• IBM has been the top patent-innovation company in the United
Allen Wright
Program Director, Enterprise Storage Project Management & DS8000 PLM
States for 25 years in a row, with 9,043 patents in 2017 alone.
• IBM exported about $12 billion in goods and services, including
$3 billion in software, from the U.S. to more than 120 countries in 2016.
• IBM spends more than $9 billion with U.S. suppliers each year. IBM Tape Systems (TS4500): An IBM Tape System provides a high capacity of data storage, at a lower cost, while still being extremely scalable, durable, secure and energy efficient.
Harley Puckett
Program Director, Spectrum Protect Executive Consultant
Micah Robison
VP Enterprise Storage Development 122 BizTucson
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Banks and hospitals, for instance, can use tape storage technology to securely archive data – like a virtual library – and free up other storage resources for up-to-theminute transactions or cutting-edge research. Yet when that data is then needed – say for looking up your family’s medical history or bank transactions from years past – that data can be retrieved and made readily available at the customer’s request.
IBM Disk Systems (DS8000): An IBM Disk System provides a mixture of storage media, such as disk and flash storage, to achieve the best balance of performance and economics. Disk systems can be thought of as a very, very advanced, USB thumb drive with vastly more capacity. Data can be accessed immediately – like for grocery purchases or ATM withdrawals – which means data needs to be checked instantaneously so that transactions can be quickly initiated and completed. www.BizTucson.com
IBM Enterprise Storage and IBM Systems Team in Tucson: Back row from left – Gail Spear, Beth Peterson, Bill Terry, Micah Robison, Clint Hardy, Richard Bradshaw, Allen Wright; Front row from left – Calline Sanchez, Harley Puckett, Angelique Budaya, Christopher Ruskay, Mike Hernandez
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tape’s evidence, resurrected from the salty sea by IBMers, solved the mystery behind a tragic day for America. Digital Trade Matters
Data has become the lifeblood of the worldwide digital economy. IBM has long advocated for policies to protect and preserve the cross-border movement of data. “Doing so is essential for harnessing the full potential of data and technology to drive economic growth, expand prosperity and create good jobs,” Sanchez said. While IBM is a global company with a 100-year history of investing and hiring in the United States, Sanchez and her colleagues also know that digital trade can expand economic opportunity worldwide. “Our ability to work and collaborate across our global footprint is essential to powering the kinds of innovation we deliver from places like Tucson – and that’s an important theme we drive home with government officials from around the world,” she said. Protecting Data Privacy
Enterprises worldwide have trusted IBM as a responsible steward of their most valuable data for more than a century, Sanchez said. While she emphasized the company’s commitment to preserving that trust through robust
data security and privacy practices, she cautioned against a one-size-fits-all approach. Unlike the recent General Data Protection Regulation enacted by the European Union, Sanchez and her IBM colleagues are strong advocates for localized solutions that are aligned with each country’s unique social and business culture. In the U.S., for example, IBM has recommended a collaborative public-private approach, led by industry together with government, to develop a framework of data privacy standards tailored to America’s needs. A similar effort has already produced cybersecurity standards that are widely accepted, including by the U.S. government. “We feel this model is both practical and has a proven record of success,” Sanchez said, adding that IBM has a long-held belief in “world peace through world trade.” The Next 40 Years
With all the advancements over the past 40 years at IBM Enterprise Storage and IBM Systems in Tucson, it is practically unfathomable to imagine what the next 40 years will bring. Yet one thing is certain, Sanchez asserted – IBM’s force in Arizona will continue to lead the way.
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PHOTOS: BRENT G. MATHIS
continued from page 121 the Challenger disaster, it was hard for a lay person to keep up, yet impossible to tune out. “We knew more about tape than anyone,” Bradshaw began. He then launched into a detailed description of how his team used a specially concocted lubricant – along with feats of creative engineering – to retrieve the shuttle’s voice and data recordings. Despite having survived the disaster, the tapes had been submerged nine feet under the sea for six weeks. The significance of the assignment – plus the omnipresence of armed federal agents keeping watch over the evidence – made deciphering the tapes a bit stressful, Bradshaw said. Yet he and his colleagues at IBM rose to the challenge. After 10 hours of “invention on the fly,” Bradshaw said, “we basically took a piece of clay and turned it into a readable tape.” That’s how the nation learned the truth. As Bradshaw described it, the Challenger did not simply explode. “A rocket booster went sideways at 25,000 miles per hour and it disintegrated from stress,” he said. Sadly, he added, the evidence suggested that passengers may very well have been alive when their vessel made violent impact with the ocean’s surface off Florida’s Atlantic coast. The
BizINSURANCE
Lovitt & Touché Joins Global Broker By David Petruska and Elena Acoba
“
We’re still going to be focused in our region, but we’re hoping to considerably grow from where we are.
”
Steven Touché President Lovitt & Touché
–
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When you have a successful business in Tucson that continues to expand over the span of 108 years, you’re bound to have suitors. The question becomes: What firm is going to make an offer you can’t refuse? For Lovitt & Touché, one of Arizona’s largest independent insurance agencies, the right match was New York-based Marsh & McLennan Agency, a subsidiary of Marsh, the world’s leading global insurance broker and risk management adviser. Acquisition by March this spring brings Lovitt & Touché opportunities that will quickly expand the business, yet leave intact its hallmark personal service. “All of our clients – when we reached out to them – the first question was, ‘Are the people who are serving our account going to be the same?’ ” said Lovitt & Touché President Steven Touché. “In all cases, yeah, they are. Nothing is changing.” Founded in 1911, Lovitt & Touché brought 181 employees to MMA from its offices – one each in Tucson, Phoenix and Las Vegas. The firm operates as Lovitt & Touché, a Marsh & McLennan Agency company. Charlie Touché remains CEO of Lovitt & Touché and will report to the chairman of MMA’s West region. Steven Touché – who has more than 30 years of insurance industry experience – will continue as president of Lovitt & Touché. Keeping all of its employees and retaining its personal service model were important points as Lovitt & Touché looked for a partner. “All of us have seen private equity buy a company and they start tearing apart the employee base,” Steven said. “Nothing’s changing – but we got tons of enhancements.” MMA brings a slew of specialty programs that meet the needs unique to certain industries, such as nonprofits, construction and healthcare. It also gives Lovitt & Touché access to larger resources of actuaries, underwriters and legal staff. Additionally, technology that a large company can invest in will help manage client accounts.
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“Prior to this acquisition, we were the leading broker in Arizona,” Charlie said. “Now, we are a part of a dynamic national organization aimed at revolutionizing the client experience.” Steven said he foresees revenue doubling in the next five to seven years as the firm is now able to secure contracts with large companies. “In the past, we get to a certain size (of prospective client) and we didn’t have the specialty structure to handle, say, a 500-employee group,” he said. “We’re still going to be focused in our region, but we’re hoping to considerably grow from where we are.” Paul Hering, chair of MMA’s West region, said Lovitt & Touché was the perfect fit for MMA. “Lovitt & Touché has had a longstanding reputation for exceptional client service and community involvement in Arizona – mirroring MMA’s own commitment to serving local businesses and communities,” Hering said. “We are eager to begin working with them as we enter a new market.” Lovitt & Touché provides expertise on issues regarding commercial property, casualty, personal lines and employee health and benefits to businesses throughout Arizona and surrounding states. It has particular proficiency in the construction, real estate, nonprofit, healthcare and manufacturing industries. “This new chapter in our company’s history allows us to strengthen our client-centric philosophy, and, as MMA’s only Arizonabased agency, Lovitt & Touché will expand on our established solutions, services and expertise to give our clients a broader array of capabilities to meet their business insurance, risk management and employee benefits needs,” Charlie said. The partnership also allows Lovitt & Touché to solidify its presence in Tucson and the region. “This ensures that our agency is going to be around for many more years,” Steven said, “and that’s a good thing.”
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PHOTO: BRENT G. MATHIS
BizBRIEFS
Hacienda Del Sol Rated Four-Star by Forbes Forbes Travel Guide honored Hacienda Del Sol Guest Ranch Resort as a new Four-Star Hotel. All of the Star Rating recipients across the globe will be showcased on ForbesTravelGuide. com. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We are thrilled to be recognized as a Forbes Four-Star property this year. We have an incredible team here at Hacienda Del Sol who consistently provide the outstanding service we are known for.
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We are extremely proud and humbled,â&#x20AC;? said Tom Firth, managing partner. Hacienda Del Sol Guest Ranch Resort is a 59-room resort in the heart of the Catalina foothills. Originally a prestigious ranch school for girls in the 1930s, it has evolved into a luxurious resort with touches of its storied past sprinkled throughout the property. Today, the resort offers two awardwinning restaurants, organic spa experi-
ences, an 800-label wine list, horseback riding and a passionate staff trained to make every guest experience memorable. The property has been featured in articles in National Geographic, Zagat Survey, Sunset Magazine, American Historic Inns and Travel & Leisure. It also has won top local awards, including Best Place for Out-of-Town Visitors and Top Five Restaurants.
Biz
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11 Groups Benefit From Wells Fargo Support Wells Fargo donated more than $5.4 million to Arizona nonprofits, schools and communities in 2018. That included these 11 organizations in Southern Arizona.
•
• The Nogales Community Develop-
• United Way of
• El
• Our
• The University of
• Junior
• The Tucson Urban League for ca-
• YMCA
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southern Arizona for its Mentor 2.0 Program
• Boys and Girls Clubs of workforce development
Tucson for
Rio Health Center Foundation for its El Rio SE Economic Development Project Achievement of Arizona Southern District for support of its goals
ment Corporation to support the city’s small business development and downtown revitalization efforts
Family Services for the New Beginnings Continuum of Care for Homeless Children, Youth, Adults and Families
reer training and workforce development
In addition, Wells Fargo’s more than 16,000 Arizona employees donated $2.8 million to local nonprofits – creating a combined impact of $8.2 million for the state of Arizona. That amounts to an average daily donation of $22,707. Wells Fargo’s local giving focused on the areas of affordable housing, small business and tribal communities across the state. For 2019, the Wells Fargo Arizona Foundation made minor changes to guidelines to help maximize the opportunities that
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Tucson and Southern Arizona for general support, 2018 Days of Caring and Cradle to Career Partnership Arizona Foundation for the Eller Economic Development Program’s business certificate program in Spanish of Southern Arizona for summer learning loss prevention
•
Youth on Their Own for its program foundation
impact Arizona communities. Now there are specific dates for grant submissions per program area – June 1 to July 10 for community development and Aug. 1 to Sept. 10 for social and human services. For more information on Wells Fargo’s grant guidelines, visit www.wellsfargo.com/donations.
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BizSALES
Is It Satisfied Customers You’re After? NO! By Jeffrey Gitomer
I’m sick of customer satisfaction. The worst companies in the world tout the fact that they won some satisfaction award. It’s not just a bad joke. It’s a pathetic statement. Every company is hoping that their customers will reorder. They’re hoping that their customers will spread the word about how great their products are and about how great their people are. And they’re hoping to proactively encourage others to place an order or do business with them. That is not customer satisfaction. That is customer loyalty. Every company must have loyalty as its mission, not satisfaction. Every company must have loyalty as its imperative, not satisfaction. Corporate-drivel mission statements talk about exceeding customer’s expectations, talk about being No. 1 in the world, talk about shareholder value, and say nothing about the one word that makes all of these things happen – loyalty. The reason that companies, especially big companies, don’t stress loyalty is because it’s much more difficult to achieve and requires both an investment and a commitment on the part of senior management. Customer loyalty is a hollow statement unless it is preceded by a mission. The company and its executives must be loyal to its employees, loyal to its product quality and loyal to its service excellence. This means they must both invest in and support a loyalty imperative. Here’s the secret: Loyalty must be given before it is received. No company can ensure customer loyalty until it has secured employee loyalty. It amazes me that big companies will lay off thousands of people in the name of profit or shareholder value, and think nothing of what it does to internal morale or the impact that it has on the reduction of service to its customers – even a reduction in the quality of its product. Loyalty is both an action and a process. Look at the best companies in the world. They have great employees. They have great products. They give great service. And they’re easy to do business with. This makes them attractive. And these are the elements that create loyalty. The one element that is most important is great service. Memorable service. Loyalty-based service. And that flies in the face of satisfaction (the lowest level of acceptable service). In my seminars, I teach the 5,000-year-old ancient Chinese proverb, “To serve is to rule.” Giving great service is an 128 BizTucson
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integral part of the loyalty process and it’s a fundamental part of “giving loyalty before loyalty is received.” Here are a few ideas to incorporate into your company’s loyalty imperative: 1. List all reasons that customers call you for service. There are probably fewer than 25. 2. List all barriers that you place in front of a customer connecting with you. There are probably fewer than 10. (Automated attendant, voicemail, lack of 24-hour availability, inadequate website.) 3. Once you have all the opportunities and all the barriers listed, have a weekend retreat with senior management and front-line people to determine best practices, generate new ideas for serving and making it easier to do business with your company. Document (record) everything. 4. Put the ideas and the best practices into action. Create a training program for best practices and invest whatever is necessary for making your company “barrier-to-placean-order” free. 5. Rather than announce all of these changes in the form of a bragging advertisement, or internal hoopla, let your customers have an opportunity to react and respond to your new and better way of doing business. Let the referral part of your business begin organically. Let it be earned, not asked for. 5.5.All members of senior management must support this process both verbally and visually. If you’re going to evolve from satisfaction to loyalty, it has to be “hands on,” not just “words on.” I wish more companies would add to their mission statement that they’ll be loyal to their employees – so that their employees would be loyal to their customers – so that their customers would be loyal to the company. That is a loyalty chain. And it doesn’t start with satisfied customers. • It starts with senior management understanding that loyalty is a way of life, not just a word. • That loyalty starts at home, not at a customer’s place of business. • That loyalty is earned by a process, not by a wave of a wand, or even by product excellence. And loyalty is easily measured. Just look at your repeat business. Satisfaction is also easily measured. Just look at the customers you lost. Biz Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of 12 best-selling books, including “The Sales Bible” “The Little Red Book of Selling” and “The Little Gold Book of Yes! Attitude.” His real-world ideas and content are also available as online courses at www.GitomerLearningAcademy.com. For information about training and seminars, visit www.Gitomer.com or www.GitomerCertifiedAdvisors.com, or email Jeffrey personally at salesman@gitomer.com. © 2019 All Rights Reserved. Don’t even think about reproducing this document without written permission from GitGo, LLC, Jeffrey H. Gitomer and Buy Gitomer. (704) 333-1112. www.BizTucson.com
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BizCONSTRUCTION
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Project: El Rio Cherrybell Campus Location: 1230 S. Cherrybell Stravenue (at 22nd St.) Owner: El Rio Community Health Center Contractor: BFL Construction Co. Inc. Architect: BWS Architects Completion Date: Jan.11, 2019 Construction Cost: $12 million Project Description: This 48,990-square-foot clinic includes exam rooms, offices, pharmacy, imaging center, dental services, ancillary services and teaching center.
Project: Location:
Royal Jaguar Land Rover Renovation 4670 N. Circuit Road Royal Automotive Owner: Contractor: Concord General Contracting Architect: Acorn Associates Architecture Completion Date: December 2019 Construction Cost: $2.8 million Project Description: This project involves a complete renovation of the showroom to incorporate new design standards.
Project:
Dove Mountain CSTEM K-8 School 5650 W. Moore Road, Marana Marana Unified School District
Location: Owner: Contractor: CHASSE Building Team Architect: Corgan Completion Date: July 2019 Construction Cost: $28 million
Project Description: Maranaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s newest K-8 school features a creative and specialized experience in an innovative 21st century learning environment.
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DEMAND TOTAL EXPERTISE INSIST UPON
A COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE PROFESSIONAL Discover why less than 1% of the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s commercial real estate professionals hold the coveted Certified Commercial Investment Member designation. www.BizTucson.com
FINANCIAL ANALYSIS, MARKET ANALYSIS, USER DECISION ANALYSIS AND INVESTMENT ANALYSIS CHAPTERS.CCIM.COM/SOUTHERNARIZONA Summer 2019
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BizCONSTRUCTION
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Project: Haciendas at the River Building 1 Location: 2626 E. River Road Owner: Michael R. Wattis Inc. Contractor: W.E. O’Neil Construction Architect: Highton Company Commercial Architectural Services Completion Date: Spring 2020 Construction Cost: N/A Project Description: This new class A office building will include 10,000 square feet of medical office space for Banner Alzheimer’s Institute, with an additional 5,600 square feet available for lease.
Saguaro Trails Sales Center Project: Location: 5700 S. Houghton Road Mattamy Homes Owner: Contractor: Caldwell Construction Architect: a.23studios Completion Date: March 2019 Construction Cost: $767,000 Project Description: Mattamy Homes recently finished construction of a sales office for its new housing subdivision on Tucson’s southeast side.
UA College of Social & Behavioral Sciences Project: at Bear Canyon Location: 4101 N. Bear Canyon Way Owner: University of Arizona Contractor: MW Morrissey Construction Architect: N/A Completion Date: Will be completed in phases Construction Cost: $500,000 for recently completed phase Project Description: Donated by the Tankersley family, the family’s homestead was transformed into an education and collaboration center for the college.
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BizBRIEFS
Joseph Kroeger Joseph Kroeger joins Snell & Wilmer, one of the largest law firms in the western United States, as a managing partner in the Tucson office. He has practiced with Snell & Wilmer since 2008, focusing on preventing employment claims and handling other complex matters. He serves as the Federal Bar Association of Southern Arizona’s board president and on the State Bar of Arizona’s Executive Council for the labor and employment section.
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Gabriela Cervantes Gabriela Cervantes joins Snell & Wilmer as the firm’s marketing and practice group specialist. She’ll provide marketing, business development and community engagement support for the firm’s Tucson office. She serves on the board of directors for the Women’s Foundation of Southern Arizona and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southern Arizona. She is member of the Tucson Metro Chamber’s Emerging Leaders Council, Tucson Young Professionals and Public Relations Society of America.
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BizBRIEFS Ernie Buck
Ernie Buck is marking 25 years with BMW Tucson. He started in 1994 at Don Mackey BMW-SAAB and worked in sales and management as the business evolved into BMW Tucson after it was purchased by AutoNation in 2008. Buck received the BMW Profiles in Achievement award four times, including the Platinum award in 2016. The University of Arizona graduate is active in the Catalina Council of the Boy Scouts of America.
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Joseph Scheeren
Joseph Scheeren, who has a doctorate in pharmacy, is the new president and CEO for Critical Path Institute, known as C-Path. C-Path is an independent, nonprofit organization committed to the improvement of the drug development process. He previously served as a senior adviser for research and development for Bayer AG. Scheeren has spent the past 36 years in the pharmaceutical industry, both domestically and internationally, in drug development and regulatory approval.
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Lisa Rulney
Lisa Rulney is the senior VP of business affairs and CFO for the University of Arizona after serving as interim CFO since October of 2018. Before that she was VP of financial services. Rulney leads divisions that include Arizona Public Media, Arizona Student Unions, Facilities Management, Financial Services and Human Resources, Parking and Transportation Services; Planning, Design and Construction; Procurement and Contracting Services; Risk Management; UA BookStores and the UA Police Department. Biz 136 BizTucson
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Kate Smith
Kate Smith is the new senior manager for the Power Project Finance group at National Bank of Arizona. The group has led the way in alternative-energy financing for 10 years. Smith studied business administration and finance at the University of Arizona and has been with the bank more than eight years. She began as the Power Project Finance relationship manager, helping lift this division off the ground.
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Ryan Harper
Ryan Harper is now COO at Carondelet St. Maryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Hospital after serving as the chief strategy officer of the Tenet Healthcare Abrazo Scottsdale Campus, where he led the implementation of a comprehensive orthopedic service line and partnered with other executives to implement initiatives focused on patient satisfaction and operational efficiency. Harper also has held positions in public affairs, healthcare consulting and the Arizona Governorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Office of Strategic Planning and Budgeting. Biz
Scott Butler
Scott Butler has joined Ascent Aviation Services as its chief commercial officer, handling all sales, marketing and customer services functions for the company. He holds a degree in aviation human factors and aerospace engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and is a licensed multiengine commercial pilot. His management experience includes more than 10 years in the aerospace industry. Previously he was the director of sales for Zodiac Aerospace. Biz www.BizTucson.com
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Center left – Click for Kids Award honorees Laurie and Larry Wetterschneider and Linda and Stuart Nelson surrounded by members of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Tucson
Dedicated Philanthropists Click for Kids Award Honors Wetterschneiders & Nelsons By Tiffany Kjos Sometimes it’s nearly impossible to quantify the effect one dedicated philanthropist has on a nonprofit. It’s even harder when you’re looking at four family members who have given countless hours and hundreds of thousands of dollars to a charity. Laurie and Larry Wetterschneider – and Laurie’s parents, Linda and Stuart Nelson – have supported the Boys & Girls Clubs of Tucson for three decades. “People think, ‘Oh, Boys & Girls Clubs is a big gymnasium and that’s it’ – but it’s so much more,” Laurie Wetterschneider said. “The clubhouse becomes a second home for many of these kids. They receive love and guidance through our staff and see wonderful role models in both the staff and older youth who are in the Help-A-Kid program. “Boys & Girls Clubs of Tucson teaches our kids that they can realize their 138 BizTucson
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dreams as long as they stay in school and study hard. The role models that the staff provide are many former club members who now work at the BGCT.” This dedicated family is the recipient of this year’s Click for Kids Award, named after local car dealer and philanthropist Jim Click. “It’s a great honor because anything in the name of Jim Click is a great honor. He has been such a phenomenal supporter of Boys & Girls Clubs of Tucson as well as many, many other organizations,” Wetterschneider said. “From the moment I toured the clubhouse and met then-executive director Bill Dawson, I was sold on the amazing work that the staff does with our youth and the fabulous facilities that the kids have available to them,” said Wetterschneider, who spent years on the organization’s board and received emeritus board status in 2009.
Her husband, Larry, lends financial support and goes to fundraisers for the organization, and her parents have supported the clubs through donations “from the day I started with the Boys & Girls Clubs,” Wetterschneider said. All together the family has given more than $400,000 to Boys & Girls Clubs of Tucson, which has six clubhouses that offer children safe places after school and in the summer. There, the youth work on homework, participate in arts and life-skills programs, learn about handling finances, and play. Wetterschneider spends about 20 hours a week at the Frank & Edith Morton Clubhouse on the Doolen Middle School campus, 3155 E. Grant Road. Much of her time is spent giving tours to prospective donors to whom she has reached out to. Her parents underwrite arts programs and Thanksgiving dinners at the www.BizTucson.com
PHOTO: CHRIS MOONEY
BizAWARD
same Grant Road clubhouse. The clubs have more than 46 programs and 4,100 card-carrying members who pay $20 per school year to utilize all of the programs and facilities at the club, and $60 for the summer session. For those who can’t afford dues, they can do some work around the club to earn their membership. No child is ever turned away. (The actual cost per child is more than $750 per year.) Lots of kids walk or bike through gang territory to their local clubhouse. Once there, they don’t have to worry about their physical safety or hunger. And they don’t have to worry about their citizenship status. “We do not ask what people’s immigration status is. Kids can come here and enjoy themselves and feel safe here,” Wetterschneider said. The clubhouses are open Monday through Friday from 3 to 8 p.m. so that kids can go there after school five days a week. The clubs have an arrangement with the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona to provide free dinners for them. During the summer, the kids get free lunch every weekday.
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Through networking with her many Tucson friends, Wetterschneider has brought in more than $1.1 million for the clubs. She also donates jewelry from her business, Laurie and Lisa Designs, for fundraisers. “No one says ‘no’ to Laurie,” said her dad Stuart. Part of fundraising is getting prospective donors to understand how much it costs to run the operation. “We have beautiful brick-and-mortar buildings that we have no debt on, so it’s hard to make people realize it costs money to run the programs,” Wetterschneider said. “The vast majority of the money is from individual and corporate support and special events. We receive limited government funding. That’s why we have such a large board. We have about 58 board members because each one of us is responsible for raising a minimum of $10,000 a year.” This year’s operating budget target is $3 million, and the clubhouses have impacted 9,000 kids. Wetterschneider was one of the founders of The Event, a huge annual
fundraiser. Her parents funded a twoyear arts program called Finding Your Voice, founded by world-famous opera singer Carla Canales of New York City. “She found talent in kids that you wouldn’t particularly think had talent – singing, dancing, writing, art – writing lyrics about their life, their experiences,” Laurie’s mother Linda said. “That inspired us to really work to beef up our art program to a higher level and that’s resulted in some amazing programs we have now.” As an extension of that effort, Catalina Rotary Club gave a $50,000 grant to build a new creative arts center at the BGCT administrative space on Grant Road. The Click for Kids Award is more than well deserved, BGCT CEO Debbie Wagner said, and it’s a big deal. “This is an expression of gratitude recognizing one person, couple or organization that’s made a substantial impact on the kids at the clubs over a significant period of time,” she said. Wagner said of Wetterschneider, “When she’s with the kids, she just melts.”
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BizDEVELOPMENT
Tour Showcases Downtown’s Evolution
Upcoming Projects • The Flin, 110 S. Church Ave., will
Stops Included Newly Renovated Spots
include housing and retail, and is expected to draw 350-500 people to live Downtown. Construction began in 2018.
• The Julian Drew Block includes
By Tiffany Kjos On a near-perfect Tucson day a strolled along the streets April 5, visitgroup of people met atop the Pening the Pima Association of Governnington Garage to set out on a walkment’s office on Broadway, the Rialto ing tour that would take them to Theatre on Congress Street and the places that exemplify the concept of Pioneer building on Stone Avenue. Downtown being where people can From there they were free to visit “live, work and play.” several other sites. The event, in its 15th year of being Audra Winters, who has been presented by the Metropolitan Pima president and CEO of the Marana Alliance, showcased completed and Chamber of Commerce for just a upcoming projects. few months, came here from New “A prospering downtown is essenMexico. tial to a strong com“I had been to munity,” said LeighTucson before and, Anne Harrison, like many big cities, director of client serDowntown has been vices for CHASSE a place to go to work, Building Team, the then leave,” she said. tour’s major sponsor. “It’s great to see how Although the tour everything is changhas been on foot for ing and they’re redethe last couple of veloping and listenyears, it’s still called ing to what people want.” the Wild Ride. “We used to load What people up members on don’t want, she said buses and take them is to have to travel – Leigh-Anne Harrison to an area of town to work. They want Director of Client Services that was seeing ecowell-paying jobs in CHASSE Building Team nomic development the vicinity of living and development in spaces, restaurants general,” said MPA Executive Direcand entertainment. tor Allyson Solomon. “That provided “Take, for example, the Chicago them an idea of what was happening Store. They’re gutting it and trying in that specific area.” to save as much as they can, but it’s The tour gives a behind-the-scenes going to be broken up into multiple look at where economic development spaces,” Winters said. “It’s nice to see is occurring and how it’s impacting they’re trying to preserve the origin of a certain business, but also bring Tucson and Southern Arizona. About 150 people in groups of 50 in that concept of mixed use.”
“
It was a fantastic event and was a great conduit to update the public on all of the exciting things happening Downtown.
”
the Julian Drew Lofts, a mixed-use commercial and residential development at 140 E. Broadway that started construction in 2019. The historic Julian Drew building is being remodeled and a new fivestory residential project is in the design phase.
• RendezVous Urban Flats, 20 S. Stone Ave., is a residential and commercial project, including 100 apartments and two retail spaces on the ground floor. It’s expected to be complete in May 2020.
• 75 E. Broadway will be 12 stories and have office and retail space along with parking. Construction began this year and is expected to be completed in 2020.
• Chicago Store/Gus Taylor Project
at 130 E. Congress St. is undergoing rehab work that began in 2018.
• The Rialto Theatre Foundation at
318. E. Congress St. has completed renovations of its restrooms and concession areas; more renovations planned for the auditorium and concession areas are coming up over the next three years.
• TCC Hotel – DoubleTree by Hil-
ton at 260 S. Church Ave. is a six-floor hotel under construction. It’s expected to be completed in 2020.
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BizAWARDS
25th Annual Cornerstone Awards Toni Carroll Receives Jerry Wyatt Community Service Award By Mary Minor Davis
1. The Jerry Wyatt Community Service Award
This was created and awarded to Wyatt posthumously in 2010. It was presented to Toni Carroll from Southwest Gas in recognition of her efforts to improve the Southern Arizona commercial construction industry and the Tucson community. In announcing her retirement, Carroll said to the group, “You all have been the reason, the inspiration that has inspired my passion for this job – thank you.” 2. Subcontractor of the Year
RG & Sons Plumbing took home this award for the second time. The 30-yearold multi-generational family business provides professional residential and commercial plumbing services throughout Southern Arizona. 3. Design Consultant of the Year
Schneider Structural Engineers was recognized for the third time. Schneider provides the AEC industry with a service that “always considers the constructability and cost, while maintaining the integrity and aesthetic character of any project.” Accepting for the company was Dave Gibbons, who said, “Our little lines don’t mean anything without the people to put the pieces in place. Thank you to all who help us do that.”
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The founders of Cornerstone – Brent Davis, John Kofron, Robert and Dee Hershberger, and Jim and Glenda Merry – were honored at the event. “Communication has changed so much in the past 25 years,” Kofron said. “It’s gone beyond our expectations in how we can communicate on projects.” Jim Merry agreed, saying, “Technology has changed. Bringing vision to fruition in this industry has not.” In all, there were nearly 110 nominees in eight categories. The ceremony narrowed the field to three finalists at the award ceremony before the 2019 recipient was announced. Winners of the 2019 awards event are:
4. General Contractor of the Year (Projects less than $2 million)
Epstein Construction was recognized for the second time for its work in the medical, healthcare, dental, office, retail and industrial markets. 5. Professional Service Company of the Year
Lovitt & Touché accepted its second award. The 108-year-old firm was recently acquired by Marsh & McLennan Agency. Headquartered in Arizona, the company is one of the largest independent insurance brokerages in the United States, with nearly 200 employees and more than $400 million in total annual premiums. 6. Supplier of the Year
Benjamin Plumbing Supply won its first award. The family business was started by Marty and Sid Berman in 1950. The company prides itself on providing “top quality plumbing fixtures, supplies and materials from around the globe” and providing service and advice “from the do-it-yourselfer to the plumbing professional.”
7. Owner of the Year
University of Arizona’s Planning, Design and Construction took home its third win. The PDC staff is responsible for budgeting, scheduling, design and construction integrity of facilities that “inspire and maximize recruitment and success of students, faculty and staff,” according to the nomination. 8. General Contractor of the Year (Projects $2 million or more)
This is the fifth time that Lloyd Construction received this honor as general contractor of the year. Celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2019, the company’s principals – Bill and Brad Lloyd, carry on the tradition their father, William H. Lloyd, of “always working in the best interest of their project owners.” www.lloydconstruction.com. 9. Architect of the Year
BWS Architects was recognized for its third time. Principals Robin Shambach and Frank Slingerland highlighted that the studio-based design practice “never forgets that architecture is an art form with the power to inspire and delight.” In its nomination, the company noted that “with the understanding that every project is unique,” its process enables it to manipulate form, space, light, color and building materials to produce high quality and energy efficient designs. Biz www.BizTucson.com
PHOTOS: CHRIS MOONEY
There was much to be celebrated at the 25th Annual Cornerstone Awards presented by the Cornerstone Building Foundation, a nonprofit that honors excellence in the construction industry. The foundation also provides scholarships for students attending the University of Arizona, Pima Community College, Tucson Unified School District and other educational institutions and programs related to the design and construction industry. In 2019 the foundation will award $25,000, according to architect Ed Marley, president of CBF Charities, the repository for the scholarship program for the foundation.
Winners of 2019 Cornerstone Building Foundation Awards
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BizHONORS
Five Unsung Heroes Honored Going Above and Beyond Daily Duties By Steve Rivera
They come from different law enforcement agencies, but all have one goal – to help people and make Southern Arizona a better place to live. As Tucson police officer Sarah Haught said, “When you see a need you fill it.” And that’s what these five local law enforcement officers did – going above and beyond their daily duties to help the community be a better place. That’s why this year the Southern Arizona Law Enforcement Foundation honored them at its annual dinner and awards gala that celebrates law enforcement personnel who serve and protect. Tucson police officers Haught, Jon Collamore, Angelica Ojeda and Duane Enos and Pima County sheriff’s deputy James Allerton were honored at the 14th annual SALEF Unsung Heroes dinner and awards gala in January. Sarah Haught
When Haught found out she had received an Unsung Heroes Award, she said she was surprised – in part because there are so many officers out there. It was an honor to be one of the ones who was picked. After all, she said, she was just doing her job – one that she chose when she was a little girl reading Nancy Drew books. And not that she wanted to be like Nancy Drew the detective, but, well, she kind of is. “I always had a huge heart to serve,” said Haught. “And law enforcement just was something the Lord called me to do. I want to help people and protect people.” So, she does what she can. She found144 BizTucson
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ed the Beauty From Ashes Ranch. She is responsible for the vision, strategy and facilitation of this nonprofit facility where girls can recover from the physical and mental abuse of sex trafficking. While working in the sex trafficking unit, Haught felt a need to help victims build a long-term holistic care facility to feel safe and recover from a traumatic past. “I consider these young children to be orphans because not a lot of them have a strong home environment,” Haught said. “That’s what we want to provide for them – a home.” Haught has realized it takes years for women who have been victimized to heal, and the justice system is not capable of meeting the needs of the victims. She has developed focus groups, met with experts and created programs to help the victims. “I’m going to play my role and do the best I can do and help support and heal as many girls that I can,” Haught said. She’s also involved in missionary work overseas, coordinated events for fallen soldiers and works with Special Olympics Arizona. Angelica Ojeda & Jon Collamore
When Ojeda got the call that she was to receive the Unsung Heroes Award, she was very surprised. She said, “I had no clue.” Actually, she had no idea about the award itself, until she was presented it earlier this year. “I’m very grateful,” she said. She didn’t grow up thinking she’d go into law enforcement – “but thankfully I did,” she said. Understandably, those she has helped
are thankful, too. She and fellow officer Collamore were both honored for their work in helping new recruits in the AZPOST Basic Training curriculum, which they were asked to implement. It’s part of the Southern Arizona Law Enforcement Training Center. In 2017, retired Tucson police detective Lonnie Bynum was diagnosed with throat cancer. His family experienced financial hardship because of the treatment needed. Ojeda and Collamore decided to create a fundraiser to help Bynum and his family. They raised more than $7,400 for Team Bynum through a Tower Challenge in which donations were received for every tower (one tower is five stories high) their recruits would complete. In two hours, the team totaled 2,388 towers. A second Tower Challenge came about that raised more than $3,500 and a fundraiser concert raised another $4,000. “It was so important and not just about the act itself,” Ojeda said of the fundraising that took place. “It’s about representing (the badge) and showing our recruits that it’s not just a four 10hour days (type of job). It goes beyond that.” Ojeda was not connected to the Bynum family, but Collamore was. “He had a pretty big impact on me,” Collamore said of the late Bynum. “He was one of those detectives who was a living legend. He did phenomenal work.” Collamore said he feels very fortunate to be in a position to help the Bynums and the other families they’ve subsequently assisted. www.BizTucson.com
Sarah Haught
Angelica Ojeda
Through a number of challenges, Collamore and Ojeda have raised close to $30,000 for underprivileged children, high school students with tough situations and families in need. Their recruits have volunteered their time to the Erik Hite Foundation, Boys & Girls Clubs of Tucson, Tucson Unified School District, Tucson Police Officers Association, Toys for Tots, Kent’s Heart and Hope Foundation, Arizona Schools for the Deaf and Blind, the 100 Club of Arizona, SALEF, the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Arizona Chapter and Special Olympics Arizona. “To tell you the truth, I feel a little unworthy of this because we have a number of recruits who have worked hard to help us raise funds to help us out to accomplish our goals,” Collamore said. “The bottom line is we want them to foster some of these fundraising events and outreaches. We want them to have ownership and that feeling you get when you help.” James Allerton
Allerton was all but destined to be a police officer – after all, his father “was a cop and I’ve been very interested in it,” he said. And so he became one – and is now a 13-year veteran of the Pima County Sheriff’s Department. He moved to Tucson in 2004 and he figured that if he was going to be in law enforcement, he’d better start before he got too much older. So is it a dream job? “Some days it’s a dream and other days it’s a different sort of dream,” he said with a smile. Helping the community has been his No. 1 job – after he saw his father, Miwww.BizTucson.com
Jon Collamore
chael, have an impact on the community while in uniform. Allerton is part of the Sheriff’s Community Resources Unit as the public information officer and also serves as the volunteer department chaplain. He’s also a critical member of the Peer Support Team. “I appreciate the recognition, but I don’t do it for the recognition,” he said. “It’s good to be, though, because it brings a little light to some of the people I work with.” Allerton has a wide-ranging background. Before becoming part of the sheriff’s department, he served in the U.S. Air Force. After that, Allerton joined a ministry, graduating from Christ for the Nations in Dallas. He’s been a pastor in Safford and is the founding pastor of Southport Church in West Sacramento, California. He is also an ordained elder in the Church of the Nazarene. He operates a nonprofit named Alentar International Ministries, whose mission is to connect local churches with international Christian leaders. He serves as the director of development and sits on its executive governing board. Allerton is also the VP of Tucson Refugee Ministry and has served on its board of directors for six years. Duane Enos
Once a Boy Scout always a Boy Scout. That typifies Enos and his time serving and protecting the community and volunteering as a longtime official in the Boy Scouts. He’s been an officer in the Tucson Police Department for more than 14 years and he’s been in the Boy Scouts since he was a young boy. “The Boy Scouts provided a structure
James Allerton
Duane Enos
that helped me with my ROTC through high school,” Enos said. “It was a structure of leadership, helping them lead and do stuff outside and be able to do things that they wouldn’t otherwise be involved in.” Enos’ unrelenting commitment to the Boy Scouts of America and the values it seeks to ingrain into the young men within its organization is apparent within Enos’ own values and beliefs. He has volunteered hundreds of hours in the past two years to help guide young men down the path toward successful futures. This is the reason he has been given the award. “I was humbled to get it,” he said. “But I couldn’t be able to do it by myself. There a lot of people who work behind the scenes.” Enos said he didn’t get into the business to win the awards – but to help people. “It’s about meeting a need in the community,” he said. “I’ve always been involved and I’m big on people volunteering a little bit at a time – and that’s for any type of organization.” Enos estimated he’s helped mentor thousands of boys through Boy Scouts over the years. In total, Enos has volunteered for 12 years in various leadership roles with the Boy Scouts – including taking more than 100 young men on a 125-mile hiking trip across Canada and a 75-mile hike in New Mexico. In his 14 years as a police officer he has served as a lead police officer, field training officer and motor officer. He is currently assigned as a school resource officer at Pueblo High School.
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BizTRIBUTE
Karl Eller
‘Consummate Team Player & Tremendous Leader’ By April Bourie “Integrity Is All You’ve Got” is the title of the book Karl Eller wrote about his life as a businessman. Eller, who passed away March 10, is remembered as a man with integrity – and so much more. “Karl was a great partner and team player,” said UA President Robert Robbins. “There was no ‘I’ in Karl Eller. He was the ultimate consummate team player and a tremendous leader – and people followed him.” Eller’s love affair with the University of Arizona began at the age of 9 when he moved with his mother and older sister to a house across from Arizona Stadium. After serving in the Army, he attended the UA, majoring in business and playing on the football team. On campus he met his wife, Stevie, and made lifelong friends. His time at the university made a big impression on him. “Karl saw the U of A as his portal to the world,” said John-Paul “JP” Roczniak, president and CEO of the UA Foundation. “It was the place that gave him the opportunity to achieve success – and he never forgot that.” Eller graduated in 1952. In 1961, Eller was living in Chicago and working for an advertising agency when he got a call from a former boss at a national billboard company. He offered to sell Eller a portion of the company’s business for $5 million – which Eller didn’t have and which was due in 90 days. He called every friend, relative and business contact he had to find investors. After getting the funds he needed, he moved his family to Phoenix and opened Eller Outdoor Advertising. Adding television and radio stations to the company, he changed its name to Combined Media before selling it to Gannett in 1979. “When Karl had the chance to start 146 BizTucson
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the business, he had a hard time writing a business plan,” said Roczniak. “He decided, when he had a chance to do something, he would start an entrepreneurship program, so students would know what to do when they start their own businesses.”
Karl Eller
Eller then took the position as CEO of Circle K and grew the company to nearly five times the number of stores as when he started. This growth could not be sustained, however, and Circle K filed for bankruptcy protection in 1990. Eller was nearly bankrupt himself, but instead of filing for bankruptcy, he contacted each entity he was indebted to and negotiated more time to pay. “He kept honest on his gift commitment even during his downturn at Circle K,” said Roczniak. “That was inspiring to others.” Two years after leaving Circle K, he was able to find enough investors for a new venture – Eller Media – which became the largest outdoor billboard business in the nation. He sold it to Clear
Channel Communications in 1997 for $1.15 billion. His professional life included many highs and lows, but he always remembered the UA. He and Stevie donated millions of dollars to university programs, and his dream of starting an entrepreneurship program came to fruition in 1984 when he was able to fund the McGuire Center for Entrepreneurship. The business school changed its name to the Eller College of Management, but that wasn’t the point, according to Roczniak. “It wasn’t about having his name on anything. He was always about the students and making sure that every kid had the same opportunities he had.” He also gave of his time to the college and was able to get other business professionals involved. “He was a key to getting successful business people from all over the country to interact with students,” said former president and CEO of the UA Foundation Richard “Dick” Imwalle. “If a university can get the trifecta in a donor – time, treasure and talent – that’s the best,” said Robbins. “With most people, that would be 1+1+1 = 3. However, with Karl it was 1+1+1 = 6. It was amplified because of the sheer man that he was due to the intangibles of his character, his personality and his incredible loyalty.” Among his many awards and honors, Eller was named a Father of the Year by the Father’s Day Council Tucson in 2001. Roczniak added, “What made Karl special was that he always made people around him better. Everything he did at the UA was always about making students, professors and programs better. The U of A without Karl and Karl without the U of A is hard to imagine.”
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