The thing about Scottsdale is that it is ever changing and evolving, like most cities however it has a little more Cest La Vie a little more panache.It's own unique charm and although Scottsdale is known to cater to the young and hip crowd in Old Town and the more exclusive set up North, one thing remains the same, it serves as a playground for beautiful people with plenty of resorts, restaurants and nightlife to suit whatever your fancy may be. In particular there is the intersection of Scottsdale Road and Camelback which has changed a lot over the years and is now holding title of most expensive commercial real estate compared to other intersections in the state. The Safari hotel below was the It place for tourists and locals alike. The guests arrived to live animals and were greeted by a 6 foot 7 tall door man. The French Quarter was the resorts home for live entertainment, floor shows and dancing nightly. Fashion square, Scottsdale's first outdoor mall was bordering the second fashion square full of shops like Glodwaters, Rexall Drugs, Switzers and Sabas and with all this retail you could still see the beautiful Camelback Mountain in high view. Along the largely, mostly deserted canal on the Southwest corner you found the 2 story Polynesian Paradise featuring Hawaiian dancers and a nightly show in the basement. I can still remember the girls bringing my grandfather up on stage and the colorful glasses the drinks were served up in..I loved going to that restaurant. Largely a huge vacant lot you parked in the dirt around the restaurant and the closest building was in a small white wooden 2 story building to the West which housed a record store I believe. Fashion Square evolved and with it the retail in the area and the redevelopment of the mall came a huge renovation and revitalization to the area. Fashions square was built up and it was built out to include parking garages, Bridges, the finest stores and restaurants. Then a few years ago water front towers were built along with the canal shops and the canal suddenly became beautiful and mysterious. The places that popped up had style and originality and spice. The lofts and condos built in the high rises surrounding became the it address and with good reason, you could walk to anything and everything and that is a beautiful thing. If it is one thing Old Town Scottsdale has is the sense of community down in that you do not need to hop in a car to go out to eat, see a movie, or shop if you live close. Of course there are taxis, trolleys and carriages aplenty.
And then there is Soleri..Paolo Soleri..For those of you who are not familiar with his work
Arcosanti is amazing .. and he lent his beautiful hand to Scottsdale rd. & Camelback designing the most magnificent bridge over the canal. This is Scottsdale...... and somehow the bridge made everything a little more beautiful, and I for one no longer noticed the lack of Camelback Mountain rising up in the distance ...and didn't miss The Safari Hotel and Polynesian Paradise that were torn down long ago as much... the little zen shop that I used to buy my bamboo before the rent became to expensive... I started looking to the old mid century modern Valley National Bank which was lovingly restored and now houses my salon
Sachi. I look farther out to the wonderful and historical
Hotel Valley Ho and I really like what I see. I was fortunate enough to attend the dedication of the Soleri bridge with my boys. I will be going to
SMOCA to see his work in bridges before it ends on the 25th. Soleri pulled it all together and everything made sense.
Vintage postcards circa 50's & 60's
Dedication of Soleri Bridge December 2010
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