New Jobs Coming to Phoenix

Charles Schwab Corp. is buying a nine-acre parcel of land from the city of Phoenix that could help create 400 new jobs. The new land will be used to facilitate job growth at Schwab’s main location near 24th Street and Lincoln Drive, dubbed the Peak Campus. The financial services company is paying $2.06 million for the land, according to Phoenix economic development program manager Bruce MacTurk. The deal is expected to close in the spring and Schwab will use the land for surface parking. The new parking should be ready by third quarter 2011. “We are at our capacity for parking. We’re running shuttles from temporary locations,” said Schwab Chief Financial Office Joe Martinetto. Schwab has about 3,200 employees locally, making it one of the largest private employees in the Valley. The company intends to hire 200 employees by the end of the year and 400 more jobs in the next several years. About one-third of Schwab’s employees are located at a South Mountain campus near 48th Street and Baseline Road. The rest are at the 24th Street location. Schwab’s operations in Phoenix are its largest in the country. “We’ve found that Phoenix is a great place to fill jobs. It’s an educated, diverse work force. We’ve had great success there,” Martinetto said. Currently a Phoenix police precinct is located on the land Schwab will acquire. The city is building a new precinct nearby, which should be ready in February. After the police move, the old precinct building will be razed and the sale will be consummated. The price of the land was based upon an independent appraisal, MacTurk said. He said it’s a good deal for everyone, and should create new jobs in Phoenix. “We’ve had a longstanding relationship with Schwab for some 18, 19 years,” MacTurk said. The company opened a service center in Phoenix in 1992. It purchased the Peak Campus in 1995. Article courtesy of PBJ