Optima Charges Ahead with 1,300-Unit Project Article originally posted on HERE on February 12, 2024 A billion-dollar beauty – or beast, depending on one’s perspective – is on the way. After successful “luxury condo and apartment” projects in Kierland and across the Valley, Optima is charging ahead with Optima McDowell Mountain Village in North Scottsdale. Construction has begun on 1,300 units on 22-acres at Scottsdale Road and Mayo Boulevard, just south of the Loop 101. The company said it broke ground this month on the first of six eight-story buildings. There is much more to come in the neighborhood, according to the project website: “With views of the majestic McDowell Mountain range as a background, the location could not be more convenient. “Just a five-minute drive to Scottsdale Quarter and Kierland Commons, and with future retail and commercial planned directly adjacent to the east, Optima McDowell Mountain will provide high-quality homes to this prime location.” But many who commented to a Progress post on the development groaned. “Blocking out the mountains on the east side,” one complained. “Sad.” “What an awful location,” Daniel Cohen added. “An atrocity.” “Shortsightedness and a lack of any concern for future generations,” Joseph Bradley complained. Many griped over the traffic Optima will bring to an already busy area. Nine months ago, the Development Review Board unanimously approved Optima McDowell Mountain Village. City Council narrowly approved the development in November 2022. The mammoth Optima project, projected to cost $1 billion to build, was opposed by council members Kathy Littlefield, Betty Janik and Solange Whitehead. “Residents told us loud and clear to anyone who was listening in the last election that they wanted to slow down the development in Scottsdale,” Littlefield said before voting against. But Mayor David Ortega and council members Tammy Caputi, Tom Durham and Linda Milhaven approved the high-end complex. Designed by David Hovey Sr. and David Hovey Jr., the six buildings each will feature a rooftop sky deck with a 50-meter Olympic-length swimming pool; a sauna, spa, and cold plunge; a running track that will follow the perimeter of the roof; and outdoor fire pits. The ground-floor level of each building will have a fitness center and yoga studio; a sauna and steam room; a residents’ club with game room and theater; an indoor basketball and pickleball court; an outdoor pickleball arena; a golf simulator; and an outdoor putting/chipping area. A dog park and “pet spa” will pamper four-legged residents. Optima boasts it will “provide an unprecedented 75% open space area,” connecting to 36,000 square feet of retail as well as bicycle and multi-use paths. And it will be as green as grass, Optima promises. “The community will be the first project in Arizona to be built under both the new International Energy Conservation Code and International Green Construction Code,” a press release noted. Green features include a combination of artificial turf, xeriscape landscaping and native plants; high-performance mechanical systems, and solar panels; and underground parking “to mitigate the heat-island effect.” Optima also vows to create “the largest private rainwater harvesting system in the United States.”