Fender Breaks Ground on Phoenix HQ

Fender Musical Instruments Corp. has broken ground on a 77,000-square-foot office project in Phoenix.

Upon its estimated completion, in the fall of 2025, the building will serve as Fender’s new co-headquarters. The guitar manufacturer is currently located at Oaktree Capital Management’s 17600 N. Perimeter Drive in Scottsdale, Ariz.

Designed by SmithGroup, the office building will rise three stories. Upon delivery, the property will comprise a shop for guitar and amplifier designers, a sound room, a cafe and meeting rooms, as well as flexible workspaces.

Taking shape near Cactus Road and Tatum Boulevard, Fender’s upcoming office building will be part of RED Development’s PV, the $2 billion reimagining of the former Paradise Valley Mall. Downtown Phoenix is roughly 15 miles northeast.

A Whole Foods facility will open this month within the 100-acre redevelopment. In addition, 400 multifamily units are slated to come online at the property in November.

Phoenix incentivizes office relocations

The Phoenix City Council signed the development agreement with Fender last year. Under the agreement, Fender will receive incentives to relocate its Scottsdale co-headquarters to the Paradise Valley Mall redevelopment.

The guitar manufacturer will benefit from performance-based job creation reimbursement through Phoenix’s strategic economic development fund. According to a report by the City of Phoenix, Fender’s facility is expected to provide an estimated economic output of $456.9 million over a decade.

Phoenix’s office pipeline remained tepid, in line with national office building trends. The Valley of the Sun had just 514,990 square feet under construction as of August, according to a CommercialEdge report.

Ryan Cos.’ One Scottsdale Medical, a 101,136-square-foot medical office development in Scottsdale, is part of the metro’s underway inventory. The project will come online at DMB Associates’ One Scottsdale, a 120-acre, 2.9 million-square-foot mixed-use campus.