Ace Asphalt of Arizona has purchased a 32-acre tract for $1.9 million for the project. The land is located at the southeast corner of 7th Street and the Salt River. The road materials manufacturer, which also does road repair services, plans to begin construction in the next few weeks on a 30,000-sf headquarters. The company currently is located at 895 W. Elwood St., which is about a mile west of the new site.

The new headquarters will be adjacent to the Salt River, which is getting a $80 million facelift from 32nd Street to 19th Avenue. Using federal and city funds, the city is under way on the Rio Salado Habitat Restoration Project, a three-year project aimed at restoring at least a portion of the Salt River back to its original form.

For years, the Salt River has been abused by the residents of the Valley, used as a dumping ground and torn up from years of gravel mining. Until now the area has been considered one of the least desirable location and as a result has missed out on any significant redevelopment.

The city has already begun clearing the riverbed of trash and debris and started planting the first of 76,000 pieces of vegetation, about 60% of which will be trees. The 200-foot wide, 10-foot deep channel will eventually have water running through it. Other wetland ponds will be constructed. A 10-mile loop of trails will be built for walkers, runners, bikers and equestrians along the outer banks. The project also will feature an education center and decorative columns to shade walkways leading to the river. The project is carrying a 2003 delivery timeframe.

The ACE Asphalt headquarters is the second major redevelopment project to be announced since the restoration began. Tempe-based Chamberlain Development LLC has purchased a 33.8-acre parcel along the waterway's edge at 16h Street and University Drive for $3.2 million. The company plans to build the University Center Business Park, ticketed to up to 400,000 sf of industrial flex space. Construction recently began on a 31,000-sf speculative building and an 18,400-sf built-to-suit building for Canteen, a Phoenix vending machine company.

CalMat Properties Co. of Phoenix has sold both parcels. The Phoenix office of CB Richard Ellis, with broker John Werstler, has represented CalMat, while the Phoenix office of Core Jackson, Inc. represented Ace Asphalt.