Hot air balloon company starts work on new Glendale HQ; Jet's Pizza opens in Tempe

Rainbow Ryders Hot Air Balloon Ride Co. recently broke ground on a new 14,000-square-foot facility for its new headquarters in the West Valley

Its new headquarters, at 7934 N. Glen Harbor Blvd. in Glendale, will feature a steel entry element designed after a balloon burner and include gazebo space that will be available for hosting events and special occasions such as weddings. It also includes a check-in and merchandise area for guests.

Rainbow Ryders is celebrating its 40-year anniversary this fall.

"Forty years is a milestone that few companies ever achieve," said founder and CEO Scott Appelman, in a statement. "I’m happy and proud to say that Rainbow Ryders has enjoyed four decades of growth and serves as the leader in the hot air balloon industry."

The company relocated its headquarters to Glendale after hot air balloon operations were pushed out of the north Phoenix area, where major projects like the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. are going up.

Last year, Rainbow Ryders and other balloon operators started a petition against the Arizona State Land Department for not renewing permits in north Phoenix, but they had already acquired a site in Glendale knowing operations were going to be relocated to the West Valley.

The Rainbow Ryders first started offering balloon rides in the Rio Grande Valley in 1983 and has grown substantially since then. It offers flights in the Phoenix metro, Colorado Springs and Albuquerque with a 40-balloon fleet. Its pilots have flown more than 100,000 hours combined and served about 40,000 passengers annually.

Ganem Construction is the general contractor for the new facility.

After paying $700,000 for a building in Chandler in 2018, Spectrum Dermatology has sold it for $6.5 million, according to Tempe-based Vizzda LLC real estate database.

Spectrum Dermatology had been using that building at 2394 N. Alma School Road for a practice and surgery center after it previously served as a restaurant.

Vizzda records show Pinnacle Dermatology/Spectrum Dermatology sold the 10,223-square-foot structure to The Kristine Robson Trust.

Built in 1991 north of the northwest corner of Alma School and Warner roads, the property sits on 0.75 acres.

Drs. Nancy Kim and Rajan Bhatt had redeveloped the property in 2019 for a dermatology practice and surgery center.

Cushman & Wakefield's (NYSE: CWK) national Healthcare Capital Markets Team comprising Travis Ives, Gino Lollio, and Sushil Puria represented the seller in the transaction working in collaboration with the firm's local health care leasing experts Tom Weinhold and Sheila Bale. Weinhold and Bale were also involved with the leasing of the property securing a long-term lease prior to the sale with the surgery center.

• Jet's Pizza has opened its newest location in Tempe, at 1835 Guadalupe Road, Unit D111.

"Living in Michigan most of our lives, we had the luxury of being surrounded by Jet's Pizza. When we decided to open a pizza store, there was never a question of what brand it would be. We wanted to sell a great pizza that we could deliver to customers with the utmost confidence that they are getting a great product," Gail and Jim Frenak, franchise owners of Jet's Pizza in Tempe, said in a statement.

The Tempe Chamber of Commerce is set to hold a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the location at noon on Friday, May 12. The location will offer specials to customers the following day.

Jet's Pizza has four locations in the Valley, with another coming soon to 1458 N Higley Road, Suite 101 in Gilbert.

• Tile Liquidators Floor & Design – Scottsdale, an independently owned and operated Arizona franchise, is celebrating the grand opening of its full-service showroom and design center on May 12.

Located at 14575 N. Greenway Hayden Loop, Suite B1, near the Kierland Shopping District, the showroom offers ceramic, porcelain, glass, and natural stone tile and mosaics; natural stone and quartz slab for countertops and other surfaces; and LVP, laminate, hardwood and carpet.

"TL Floor & Design – Scottsdale combines expertise, value and customer service with top quality name brands for a best-in-class buying experience," owner and president Joani Woelfel said in a statement.

• Discover Strength has opened its first Arizona franchise location at 9220 East Via De Ventura, Suite 124 in Scottsdale. The space is 2,200 square feet.

The gym offers 30-minute strength workouts, twice per week with an expert trainer.

Luke Carlson, CEO of Discover Strength, said he decided to open a location in Scottsdale after visiting the Valley several times over the last five years to speak at business events.

"I was continually inspired by the entrepreneurs and business leaders during each visit," he said via email. "This, combined with the fact that Phoenix has long been the preferred warm weather get-away for Minnesotans, it was a natural next step for a brand based in Minnesota. Lastly, I have an emotional and sentimental connection to Arizona having spent so many trips with family, friends, and our own leadership and management teams hiking, running, and camping in the Grand Canyon —truly one of my favorite places on earth."

A second location of the gym is in the works in the Chandler/Gilbert area, according to its website.

Editor's note: The real estate deal wrap is published regularly by the Phoenix Business Journal. Send new real estate transactions and retail/restaurant leases to managing editor Erin Edgemon, [email protected].

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