VA, food, spa settle in plaza

Houghton Crossings, on the southeast corner of South Houghton and East Valencia roads, is 58 percent leased in the three buildings that are complete so far, said Barry Kitay, designated broker for Whirlygig Properties. He is also one of the Tucson-based company's founders.

"We always thought that there would be demand for medical office space out here and we felt that would be the majority of the occupancy," he said.

Kitay said the current market situation hasn't changed Whirlygig's plans for the development, saying, "No, we still feel that the demand is here for the services."

The Southern Arizona VA Health Care System saw a similar demand for services and opened its Southeast Tucson Veterans Administration Community Clinic there in September. A dedication ceremony for the clinic, at 7395 S. Houghton Road, Ste. 129, was earlier this month.

"We thought this would be a good place to get something started," said Sally Petty, chief of community clinics care line.

"Vail's going to grow. The whole southeast of town is going to grow. We wanted to be proactive and make sure we had care available to our folks," she said.

The clinic has about 3,200 patients, more than half of its maximum capacity of 5,600 patients, Petty said.

The new clinic offers eligibility and enrollment services and primary health care, including regular check-ups, lab work, nutritional counseling with a dietitian, social work and mental health care. There is an on-staff pharmacist and the VA is working on hiring a physical therapist.

The Southeast clinic is one of seven Southern Arizona VA community-based outpatient clinics. There's one on Tucson's Northwest Side at 2945 W. Ina Road, as well as in Sierra Vista, Green Valley, Safford, Casa Grande and Yuma.

The Southern Arizona VA Health Care System decides where to put community clinics based on zip code.

"We look at the zip codes where our veterans are living and determine where would be a central place that would be convenient for them to come to receive care," Petty said.

In addition to the VA clinic, Buddy's Grill and Planet Beach Contempo Spa are already open in Houghton Crossings. Gas City was part of the overall development plan, but Whirlygig sold it the lot and it built its own facility, Kitay said.

A DaVita dialysis center is under construction and plans to open in March. Two dentists, a chiropractor, frozen yogurt shop, real estate company and fast food restaurant may also go into the development, he said.

Like Kitay and Petty, Buddy's Grill owner Art Owens said he sees the growth potential on the Southeast Side, where he has lived for a couple of years.

The restaurant, which is the second Buddy's Grill in Tucson, is drawing most of its customers from a 10-mile radius, though it is also attracting people from Green Valley and Benson, Owens said.

Al Wiruth, who is president of the Rita Ranch Neighborhood Association, said he notices cars at Houghton Crossings when he drives by and that he has been to Buddy's. Before, there weren't many sit-down restaurants in the area, he said.

"People have been asking for a lot of the larger sit-down restaurants for some time," he said.