The University of Arizona hosted a ribbon cutting event on Nov. 2 to celebrate the opening of its new Chandler location in the Johnathan Building, at 55 N. Arizona Place. The 12,000-square-foot space includes seven flexible classrooms, four conference and huddle rooms, 13 offices, a lounge, kitchen and break areas, and an outdoor patio area. Tenant improvements were completed during the summer in time for the start of the Fall 2022 semester.

The Chandler location is part of the University of Arizona's Near You Network, offering Chandler residents the opportunity to earn an undergraduate or graduate degree right in their own community. Previously housed in the Chandler Community Center, University of Arizona Chandler has gradually increased its program offerings and enrollment over the past 10 years. The new, larger space will support the university through its next phase of growth in Chandler.

Programs currently available through University of Arizona Chandler include:

Designed with working professionals in mind, programs at University of Arizona Chandler offer a mix of face-to-face, hybrid and fully online courses. Learn more at nearyou.arizona.edu/chandler.

Housed within the City's Economic Development Division, the Visit Chandler tourism office is the designated Destination Marketing Organization for the City of Chandler. Visit Chandler's role is to manage a multi-layered tourism marketing campaign that promotes Chandler as a preferred travel destination for leisure and business travel.

Tourism is an increasingly important part of Chandler's economy. Over the past 20 years, Chandler has gone from having only 15 hotels with 1,600 total guest rooms to 35 hotels with nearly 4,000 guest rooms. Travelers staying in Chandler provide additional customers for local shops and restaurants along with a significant revenue source for our City budget. The City collected $5.8 million in hotel/motel sales tax during the 2021-22 fiscal year, a 57% increase from 2017-18. This amount does not include additional taxes collected on food, retail, and entertainment purchases made by travelers.

The Visit Chandler tourism office is working to bring more visitors to Chandler by:

The official 2022 Chandler Visitor's Guide was just published and is your number one resource for Chandler events, things to do, dining, outdoor recreation, and hotel accommodations. Check out the visitor's guide at VisitChandler.com.

The Arizona Association for Economic Development (AAED) selected VIAVI's project in Chandler for a "Deal of the Year" merit award during its annual Golden Prospector Awards ceremony on Oct. 26. AAED established the Golden Prospector Awards more than 20 years ago to recognize excellence, innovation and creativity in economic development.

VIAVI is a publicly traded, global technology company with more than 3,600 employees in 50 locations throughout North America, Central America, South America, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and Asia Pacific/Japan/China. The City of Chandler began engaging with VIAVI in 2020 after learning the company was evaluating regions across the U.S. for two separate projects: a new manufacturing facility and a corporate headquarters relocation. It was a highly competitive site selection process and Chandler was ultimately selected for both operations.

The City submitted the project for AAED Golden Prospector award consideration due to VIAVI's fit with Chandler's targeted industries and commitment to make a significant investment in our community. VIAVI has relocated its corporate headquarters to Chandler, is building out a 104,000-square-foot manufacturing facility, and plans to create more than 200 high-wage technology jobs.

See the press releases below for the original project announcements: