Posts Tagged ‘Feliciano Vera’

August 29, 2012

The Lost Art of Browsing – Why We Need a Good Bookstore in Central Phoenix

by: Feliciano Vera

Tweet Today’s post is by contributing writer Feliciano Vera: I did not notice her when she boarded the bus. She was nondescriptly dressed, as was her friend. Not quite hipster casual, nor professional. I still have no idea what she looked like. Cute, I imagine. In all likelihood she worked at either Pixar or Novartis or one of the myriad number of companies that call Emeryville, California home. Maybe it was my old-fashioned commuter etiquette – wherein one keeps to oneself – but she could easily have been one of a thousand other women that were taking the train or…

June 21, 2012

Hoy, Soy Arizona. SB1070, the DREAM Act, and Competitive Cities

by: Feliciano Vera

Tweet Today’s post is by contributing writer Feliciano Vera: I was going for the Mexican Ming the Merciless look. Sporting a freshly shaved head – a minor protest against an economy in the gutter – as well as a goatee and mustache, I could easily have been mistaken for your friendly neighborhood cholo. Ensconced as I was amid the couches at Postino Arcadia, that was the farthest thought from my mind. Drinking prosecco with a polyglot group of friends during a not-too-distant holiday season, the mood was cheerful and celebratory, despite the dire state of the economy. We had just…

June 05, 2012

Let’s Not Cook Ourselves in the Crock Pot of Our Stupidity

by: Feliciano Vera

Tweet Today’s post is by contributing writer Feliciano Vera: I had never been to Portrero Hill. The view to the east, across the Bay towards Oakland, was nothing short of breathtaking. Framed as it was by the deep inset windows and aromas of Plow, against a foreground of artisanal sausage, almond pancakes, hipsters and software developers, it almost made me cry. And then Kelley interrupted my reverie: “So, when are you moving here?” “Trust me. This isn’t making my decision to stay any easier.” I responded. My son lives across the Bay in Oakland. With no girlfriend or wife, and…

May 23, 2012

Shade. Or, how I gave up and admitted my secret love affair with Arcadia

by: Feliciano Vera

Tweet Today’s post is by contributing writer Feliciano Vera: Her extended finger was proof enough. Dorina Bustamante was pissed at me. Not that I should have been surprised. She and I have had an ongoing argument about Arcadia for the better part of at least a year. Fortunately for me, the only people that could see her gesture were sitting next to me – fellow presenters at one of Rob Izer and Kirby Hoyt’s Funk Series earlier in the year. Walking in one of its aspirant satellites (Arcadia Lite? South Arcadia? We Really Want to Be Arcadia?) on a recent…

May 10, 2012

The Closing of the Urban Grocery and Wine Bar at the Downtown Phoenix Public Market

by: Feliciano Vera

Tweet Today’s post is by Feliciano Vera: “We should hold a wake, y’know. I mean, the body is still warm and everything. May help with closure,” read the text from my friend. Word about the closure of the Urban Grocery and Wine Bar at the Downtown Phoenix Public Market spread like wildfire last Friday. Occupying nearly every casual conversation I had over the weekend, the news nearly derailed work originally scheduled for the week – how do we save the market? What happened? Who was to blame? I never pretended to have the answers, other than to say consistently that…

April 09, 2012

The Crescent Ballroom: A Minor Musical Fairytale set in the PHX

by: Feliciano Vera

Tweet Today’s post is by contributing writer Feliciano Vera: The timbero ferociously punched out a backbeat with an intensity I had not seen since watching Tito Puente at the Regattabar. While Tito was famously expressive, mugging and goofing around just for grins, tonight was pure business, and what little attention was paid to the beat was by the dancers. Competing pairs of hipster girls swayed in front of either end of the stage, while a crowd of academics straight out of a Nineties-era Benetton ad anchored the center with their ballroom moves. Standing a full head above me, just beyond…

March 26, 2012

Phoenix: Growth vs. Efficiency? Or a random contemplation of a single cup of coffee.

by: Feliciano Vera

Tweet Today’s post is by contributing writer Feliciano Vera: As I cross the threshold into the office, Laurie Carmody immediately notices the Starbucks cup in my hand. Shooting imaginary laser beams at me, she asks incredulously “What are you doing with that? Why didn’t you get coffee somewhere else? Someplace local?” “My sister gave me a Starbucks card for Christmas. I had to use it.” I admit, sheepishly. But my decision was also based on the location of this particular Starbucks – a five minute walk to and from Laurie’s office. I didn’t have time to go anywhere else before…

March 12, 2012

Bow Ties and Boutique Business in Phoenix

by: Feliciano Vera

Tweet Today’s post is by a new contributing writer to Blooming Rock, Feliciano Vera, an entrepreneur in real estate and finance. Jim McPherson does not know how to tie a bow tie. Lingering over the antiqued wood display table at Mercantile, he brushes aside that fact and ushers us closer, in an almost conspiratorial manner. “Look,” flipping over one of the many bow ties. “This tie was originally made from another that was sold at the Broadway. And that one over there was a tie from Goldwaters.” Clutching a purple and white checked sample, my eye is drawn to another…

April 13, 2011

Meanwhile at the Lexington Hotel: Cycle and Poolside Gallery

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet There’s something remarkable happening at the Lexington Hotel, a place that has sat rather unremarkably on our landscape for quite some time now. Recently, Habitat Metro got control of it and has big plans to revitalize it into a boutique hotel with a focus on the arts community. The Lexington hotel is located at an important crux point of our city. It is between the Roosevelt neighborhood and the midtown museum area that includes the Phoenix Art Museum, Burton Barr and Margaret Hance Park. If done well, it has the potential to act as a connector, catalyst and activator…

February 14, 2011

Feliciano Vera of Habitat Metro on Downtown Oriented Development in Phoenix

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of interviewing Feliciano Vera, a partner with Tim Sprague and John Hill in the local development firm Habitat Metro. Habitat Metro developed Portland Place and is now redeveloping The Oasis Motel on Grand Avenue. Just recently, they announced that they acquired the Lexington Hotel on Central Avenue and plan to rehabilitate it into a chic, boutique hotel. Can’t wait! Feliciano grew up in South Phoenix then set off to Harvard after high school. Fortunately, he not only came back to Phoenix, he also started giving back to the city. If you…