Such Styles to Paint Murals at New Proxy 333 Development in Downtown Phoenix

If you’ve made your way through Roosevelt Row recently, you’ve no doubt noticed that its urban landscape has undergone significant changes in recent months – due in large part to multi-story residential complexes. Soon one more, an apartment building called Proxy 333, will join the mix.

It’s a 118-unit, six-story urban infill project being co-developed by Scottsdale-based Tilton Development Company and Seattle's Goodman Real Estate on the former site of a single-story, multi-tenant office building constructed in the 1960s, once home to several artist studios and a florist. It's scheduled to open this summer.

Proxy 333 is located at 333 East McKinley, just south of the Roosevelt Point development where new ground-floor tenants include Public Image and Oliver's Sophisticated Bean. Proxy includes four levels of residential units and two levels of parking in the shadow of the iconic signal tower atop the Westward Ho. 

Its neighbors also include a pair of Baron Properties — iluminate and Linear — currently going up at opposite corners of Third and Roosevelt streets, where the most notable standing landmark is a work of public art called Shadow Play commissioned by the City of Phoenix.

“We’re excited about being located in a more historic area and arts district,” says Dan Tilton, founder of Tilton Development. “It’s important to us that we incorporate the Roosevelt art district feel.” The developers say they're planning to achieve it in a couple of different ways: First, they commissioned Tempe artist Such Styles to create five site-specific murals for locations including the leasing lobby, fitness center, and recreational deck. Next, they plan to work with local gallery owners to show works by local artists in the building's common areas. 

He’ll do paintings for the public restrooms, too – which seems to be a popular way to go these days. Both Cobra Arcade Bar in Roosevelt Row and the soon-to-open Barrio Café in the Grand Avenue arts district have bathrooms sporting works by local street artists.

The developer and property manager Pinnacle Living are pitching Proxy 333 a new iteration on urban living in metro Phoenix. “This is a product type never built in Phoenix before,” says Bryan Fasulo, regional property manager for Pinnacle Living. “We imported it from Seattle.” It’s a reference to the development’s 10 two-story work/live units with frontage windows, designed for artists or others who want a combined studio or office and living space. These 700 square-foot live/work loft units have one bedroom and one bathroom, and run $1,750 per month.

But Proxy 333 also includes more traditional units – including studios, and several types of one- and two-bedroom spaces. The most basic studio, with a single bathroom, has 422 square feet and runs $1,025 per month. The largest unit, a two-bedroom and two-bathroom space measuring 878 square feet, runs $2,100 per month. 

Interior design firm Creative License International is working with Styles on finalizing designs for his Proxy 333 murals, which the artist expects to incorporate bold sunset-inspired colors people see on the Proxy 333 website – which could have just as easily been inspired by the Phoenix Suns’ team colors.

Styles expects to start painting in mid- to late-May, with son Champ Styles “dropping mural lines” to get the ball rolling. Such figures it will take a good seven to 10 full days to get the job done. At least one of his designs will include a woman’s face, Such says, and parts of his work may have a collage-type feel.

He’s been a part of the local graffiti scene since 1983, so the graffiti vibe will infuse his work for Proxy 333. Still, he says, the work will appeal to a broader audience. “I want it to be inviting to peers, and even people who aren’t into art.”

Eventually, Fasulo says, Proxy 333 will incorporate art in other ways. They’d like to hang works by local artists rather than buying generic pieces for common area walls, and plan to connect with local gallery owners about exhibiting works by area artists.

Art and music are important ways to foster connections in communities, says Fasulo. “Art is one of those things that brings everyone together.”