PHOENIX—USAA Real Estate Company of San Antonio, in association with Tempe-based Metro Commercial Properties, has broken ground on a speculative office development in the I-17 / Deer Valley submarket in Phoenix. The development, named Norterra West, will include two, three-story, class A office buildings approaching 300,000 square feet, and will capitalize on the pent-up demand for large blocks of quality, contiguous space from users looking to enter or expand into the economically attractive Phoenix labor market.

Norterra West—the first speculative office development to break ground within the city of Phoenix in the last five years—is situated on a 23.3-acre land site prominently situated along the northbound I-17 Freeway in north Phoenix, at 25700 and 25800 N. Norterra Parkway.

Construction began in July 2015 on the first of the two planned office buildings at Norterra West. The site master plan and the architectural design of the first building were led by Tempe-based design firm Davis; Wespac Construction is the general contractor. That first building is a three-story, 144,350-square-foot, class A office building that will be ready for tenant occupancy in June 2016. The building is LEED targeted and will have a surface parking ratio of six spaces per 1,000 square feet, with the ability to serve a parking ratio as high as 8 per 1000 with the construction of garage structures.