Goodyear breaks ground on new civic square, set for completion next year

PHOENIX — Hundreds of people participated both in person and virtually as ground was broken for the new Goodyear Civic Square at GSQ on Friday, a major milestone for the city project.

The $87 million project on the corner of McDowell Road and 150th Drive, scheduled to be complete by the summer of 2022, includes a new state-of-the-art city hall, a two-story library that is twice the size of the current one and a 2-acre community park for food trucks, parades, fairs, concerts and more.

Several citizen committees were created to provide input on what residents wanted to see in a city hall project, according to a press release, something the city has wanted to do for nearly four decades.

“The features of this project were truly created by our community and I am very proud that the voices of our residents really drove this project,” Goodyear Mayor Georgia Lord said in the release. “This is the fulfillment of a long-held dream and I couldn’t be more excited to see it finally become a reality.

“As I look back on the charrette process that was held many years ago in developing our civic center and the droves of citizens — families with toddlers in strollers and teens who eagerly offered their ideas — I am thankful for the high level of engagement from our residents in this effort. We had seniors who shared their life experiences, as well as many business owners, and those ideas will be part of our future.”

An upscale Class A office space measuring 100,000 square feet in size, spots for new restaurants, retail and entertainment as well as an art sculpture is also part of the project.

Globe Corporation owns 47 acres where the new civic square will be located, according to the release, and the corporation will build the new city hall, library, park and office space.

“We are beyond excited to begin construction of phase one of GSQ,” Globe Corporation President George Getz said in the release. “Globe has owned the property since 1971, and with the explosive growth in Goodyear, time has come to create a new downtown for the city.

“GSQ will be the envy of every city in Arizona with the private-public partnership created by Globe and the city of Goodyear.”

Globe Corporation is also donating six acres to the city as part of the public-private partnership, according to the release.

Once completed, Goodyear Civic Square at GSQ is expected to bring hundreds of workers to the area.

The Goodyear City Council approved the development agreement on the project in August 2019.

The city’s current city hall was only meant to be a temporary location and it requires future funding for reinvestment and expansion, according to the release.

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