This downtown Phoenix radio landmark has been marked for death

Developers of the Atari Hotel have taken their first steps to demolish a landmark downtown Phoenix building that housed some of the Valley’s most iconic radio stations.

Last month, Valley developer Intersection Development applied for a permit with the city of Phoenix to tear down the two-story structure at 840 N. Central Ave.

The building, located at Roosevelt Street and Central Avenue, dates back to the 1950s and was the home to the original KOY-AM.

It served as studios for multiple Valley stations for decades, including KOOL (now Big 94.5) and KMLE.

The property where the building stands will soon trade radio broadcasts for pixel-powered thrills.

The 1.06-acre parcel is set to become home to the Atari Hotel, an 11-story gaming, hospitality and entertainment destination inspired by the iconic ‘70s and ‘80s video game brand.

The $124 million project is slated to begin construction later this year and will include a retro-futuristic design, an esports arena, interactive gaming spaces and other attractions.

‘So much history in that building’

For many longtime Valley residents, the structure is known as the KOY Building because of its decades-long association with the pioneering Phoenix AM station.

KOY began broadcasting in the 1920s from a series of downtown Phoenix studios. By the early 1950s, the station was located 840 N. Central Ave.

The current structure was built in 1957 and replaced a older studio on the property.

Other Phoenix stations operated at the building over the decades.

KOOL 94.5 launched in 1971 as Arizona’s first oldies station. KMLE became a Valley country music staple from 1988 onward. Y95 blanketed local airwaves with Top 40 from the late ‘80s to early ‘90s. And Power 92.3, now Power 98.3, became one of Phoenix’s go-to hip-hop station from the ‘90s onward.

Former Y95 and KOOL 94.5 deejay Steve Goddard, now with Oldies 92.7, was one of numerous on-air talents to broadcast from the building over the years.

In 2025, he summed up its legacy in comment to a Y95 Facebook group.

“So much history in that building,” Goddard wrote.

From radio waves to video games

In 2023, the building’s future became as bleak as a losing game of “Missile Command.”

Broadcasting company Audacy, which acquired the property in 2017, sold the building for $10.5 million during bankruptcy proceedings to Main & Main RoRo LLC, an entity affiliated with Intersection Development.

The deal included adjacent buildings and properties.

Intersection Development announced plans to build the Atari Hotel on the site in April 2025 with construction starting sometime this year. The project aims to open in 2028.

The developer, a partner on the “Mario Kart”-inspired Roosevelt Row apartment project Rainbow Road, licensed the Atari branding and concept from the video game company.

Intersection Development is in the midst of public investment campaign to raise $35 to $40 million for the hotel’s construction. Last year, it announced a crowdfunding-like Regulation A Tier Two equity offer, allowing everyday investors to buy into the ambitious project.

The developer promoted the Atari Hotel and sought investors at March’s Game On Expo via a booth at the convention.

Intersection Development cofounder Zac Cohen told the Phoenix Business Journal recently the company is more than halfway to hitting its funding.

The company filed its demolition permit application with Phoenix’s’s planning and development department on May 7, according to the Phoenix Business Journal.

Phoenix’s Historic Preservation Office will review the application prior to demolishing the former KOY building.

The clock is ticking on the project, though.

The Phoenix Business Journal reported that Interstate Development’s licensing agreement with Atari mandates that the hotel’s groundbreaking or construction must begin by June 30. The developer could extend that deadline to Dec. 31 but would have to pay a $50,000 fee.

The project could also be granted nine months of extra time due to permitting delays under the agreement, preventing the hotel from getting pwnd.