Oldest murals in Phoenix in danger with demolition plans

If one developer gets its way, some of the oldest works in Phoenix may be long gone come February.

Arizona artist Ted DeGrazia painted a series of murals inside 222 E. Roosevelt St. in 1950. GreenHAUS is currently housed in the building, but the business will be relocating in Feb. 2015.

Developer Baron Properties/North Roosevelt Apartments LLC hasn’t publicly released all their design details yet, but the general plan would include demolition of the 222 E. Roosevelt building and the adjacent office complex at the northwest corner of 3rd and Roosevelt Streets.

A Change.org petition calls upon Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton to halt these plans and preserve the historic building and murals. Community organization This Could Be Phoenix also has proposed an alternative plan, according to the petition authors.

This alternate plan encourages walkability of the area, complements existing nearby businesses, best engages a growing student population, and can benefit residents of the planned corner-property housing by more fully integrating the project with its surrounding community from the start.

Visit Change.org to sign the petition or a see a photo of the imagined new site.