16 Aug 22nd-Aug 28th, 2024 phoenixnewtimes.com PHOENIX NEW TIMES | NEWS | FEATURE | FOOD & DRINK | ARTS & CULTURE | MUSIC | CONCERTS | CANNABIS | live above an organic grocery market and restaurant?” The first two floors will include a seasonally inspired restaurant and bar, lobby cafe and a boutique grocery with local produce. All three concepts will source “from not only my family’s farm but any other small family farm that we can pull from,” Duncan says. Duncan hopes the market also will serve local chefs by hosting first-pick hours, where the market opens for cooks before the general public has access. The restaurant and bar also will showcase prime ingredients. “I really want the restaurant to function as an educational thing of why produce is seasonal,” Duncan says. Though no timeline for groundbreaking has been set, Duncan says he and Warren are targeting an opening in 2027. The new development will help increase density in an area chopped up by vacant buildings and lots. “I love that we’re continuing to fill that in and have it be very walkable,” he says. Expanding to Grand Avenue While Duncan is disappointed that the former U-Haul building on Central Avenue will be demolished, he plans to preserve another building for his third downtown project. He, in partnership with McKinley Club owners Celine and Kevin Rille, plans to restore the historic Paper Heart building located on Grand Avenue and Polk Street. Designed by architect Victor Gruen with Ralph Haver and built in 1954, the building has lived several lives, as a car dealership, venue and exhibition space, before it caught fire in 2021. The trio took on the property in 2022. The 8,800-square-foot space will include a studio, gallery and store to sell artworks, as well as a restaurant and bar. The aim, Duncan says, is to preserve the Paper Heart to create and celebrate art in an area where it’s become more chal- lenging for artists to live and work. “We loved the old, historic building,” Duncan says. “We both had the interest in, long-term, we want to save the building.” While these projects are still in their early stages, Duncan points out all the cranes circling the downtown area as harbingers of more change to come. “What I’ve seen in five years, from when we started to where we’re at now, is pretty crazy,” Duncan says. ”And I think five years from now, it could be even crazier.” He knows patience is key. “That kind of gets me back into the long-term style of thinking and why I don’t try to get too hung up on the highs and lows now, but I really believe in where we’re going in 10, 20 years,” he says. As a number of neighboring restaurants, bars and businesses have grown around The Churchill and some of its tenants have graduated to their own brick-and-mortar spaces, Duncan is energized. “There’s just a lot of really talented people doing really cool and fun projects,” he says. “I’m more of a Phoenix-first approach, where it’s us against everybody else. I don’t view anyone else down here as competition other than friendly and healthy.” And, he sees the potential for that energy to grow, not just across downtown, but across the Valley. “I love community building, is what I think I’ve discovered through this process,” Duncan says. “I just love the opportunity to have my fingerprints and have an impact on a young city. That’s what I want to do even more.” Duncan’s plans include a downtown high-rise, restoration of an iconic Grand Avenue building and a bigger version of The Churchill in Peoria. (Photo by Jacob Tyler Dunn) On the Rise from p 15