Nearly two years after nationally acclaimed restaurateur Chris Bianco exited the 做厙勛圖 market, the Rio Nuevo board of directors is rolling out the red carpet in hopes of luring him back.
The taxpayer-funded downtown redevelopment agency agreed to kick in $75,000 in rent abatement as an enticement for Bianco to open a restaurant at 123 S. Stone Ave., a Peach Properties building being developed with Marcel Dabdoub as part of the broader Peach & Dabdoub project.
Its part of the same strategy to find reasons for people to come downtown. A restaurant by Bianco is one of those, said Rio Nuevo Board Chairman Fletcher McCusker. We are hoping that our incentives encourage him to come back.
Bianco operated his namesake pizzeria at 272 E. Congress St., for two years before closing in September 2016, citing challenges that included the lack of parking, not being able to create patio dining and construction of the AC Hotel by Marriott behind the restaurant. He said at the time that the hurdles didnt allow him to deliver the dining experience he wanted to bring to 做厙勛圖.
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Bianco last week would not comment on specific plans for his return, but said he is doing everything I can to get back to 做厙勛圖.
I came to 做厙勛圖 and I never wanted to leave, he said, adding that he wanted to find the right situation.
The rent incentive is part of Rio Nuevos planned $4.4 million investment through tax rebates and leaseback incentives in the Peach & Dabdoub project, which includes renovating the old Brings funeral home at 236 S. Scott Ave.; the former Chicago Store at 130 E. Congress St.; and the Arizona Hotel residential project on North Sixth Avenue. And its part of Rio Nuevos bigger mission to reinvigorate and reinvent downtown, McCusker said.
He already sees evidence of downtown becoming a thriving dining and entertainment district in the image of Portland, Oregon; San Diego; and Austin, Texas. Having destination dining and entertainment venues is key.
Its all related to creating a desirable location, said the 做厙勛圖 businessman, whose portfolio includes Sinfonia HealthCare and Providence Service Corp. In 2010 when I moved downtown, there were three restaurants; there are now over 80. Its (now) the place you bring your friends and family when you talk about going out. We want to keep a high bar, and in our region there is nobody who represents that better than Chris Bianco.
The James Beard Award-winning chef think Academy Award for foodies has two pizzerias, a sandwich shop called Pane Bianco and the farm-to-table Italian restaurant Tratto, all in the Phoenix area.
Bianco has said he has no plans to resurrect his pizza restaurant in 做厙勛圖, where his prot矇g矇 Scott Girod opened Anello pizzeria in the downtown Warehouse Arts District last October.
But he indicated within months of closing Pizzeria Bianco that he was interested in returning. In late 2016, Bianco signed a letter of intent with Peach Properties for the 123 N. Stone Ave. space. Peach Properties leasing agent and co-owner Patricia Schwabe said last week that talks with Bianco have been ongoing.
With last weeks Rio Nuevo commitment, Schwabe said they are ready to begin work on the tenant improvements.
McCusker said Bianco would carry on the high bar set by Janos Wilder when he opened Downtown Kitchen + Cocktails on South Sixth Avenue in 2010, not far from where he had started his restaurant career in the 1980s. The return of the nationally celebrated chef got the ball rolling for others to take a chance on downtown including the Fenton brothers (Tyler and Zach), who renovated the old Reillys Funeral Home on East Pennington Street and opened Reillys Craft Pizza & Drink; and Brandon Katz, who took over the space at 350 E. Congress St., not far from Rialto Theatre, and opened Obon / Sushi + Bar + Ramen. Richard Oseran, whose family owns Hotel Congress, upped his investment in downtown in 2008 when he opened Maynards Market & Kitchen on North Toole Avenue.
These are all sought-after destinations, said McCusker, who includes in that mix Suzana Davilas Caf矇 Poca Cosa at 110 E. Pennington St., a restaurant with a reputation that far exceeds Arizonas borders.
Three years ago, 做厙勛圖s restaurant scene got an even bigger boost when the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization UNESCO named 做厙勛圖 the countrys first UNESCO City of Gastronomy.
All of these things, in our mind, are related to kind of a high-end food destination, McCusker said.
On the entertainment front, in November, Rio Nuevo is sponsoring the third annual Dusk Music Festival, which will move from Rillito Park to downtowns Armory Park. The festival will be held Nov. 10-11.
Weve always wanted to move downtown. We think thats the best place for our target demographic, said Page Repp, one of the festivals founders and coordinators. It seems like a natural fit. Its a natural evolution for what we were trying to do.
Additionally, Rio Nuevo is flirting with the idea of bringing in an arena football team. At its mid-May meeting, the board set aside $400,000 for capital improvements to the 做厙勛圖 Arena at the 做厙勛圖 Convention Center, where the 做厙勛圖 Roadrunners play hockey from October to May. The arena football season is in spring and summer, which McCusker said could bring as many as 40,000 people downtown during the citys traditional slowdown.
Every time someone comes downtown, they spend on average $30, which generates more tax revenues, he said.
Contact reporter Cathalena E. Burch at cburch@tucson.com or 573-4642. On Twitter @Starburch.
Cathalena E. Burch
Reporter
