Progress made in Downtown Phoenix's restaurant, retail development project

It was a story FOX 10 Phoenix first reported on in November 2017, when plans to build a new, edgy marketplace with re-purposed shipping containers became public.

A couple of months later, the development, named The Churchill is making big progress, and the owners are excited for what it's going to bring to Downtown Phoenix.

"We are finally at the exciting part where they dropped the containers last week, and we are kind of seeing result that everybody can kind of walk by and say 'oh, that happened today,'" said Hartley Rodie.

The interesting concept of building a complex using shipping containers is what made sense for Rodie and his team.

"It stands out in a quickly densifying area," said Rodie. "It's really cool to preserve that open space with some interesting, building materials that just feel urban."

The 22 shipping containers will accommodate 10 local businesses.

"Right now, we are in a great position. We are fully leased up which is great, but we are really excited who we are working with, and think they really align with our vision," said Rodie.

The layout is in the form of a rectangle, containing four restaurants, four retail stores, and two bars. In the middle will be space for a canopy with benches, tables, and chairs underneath it.

"We do think that the soul and the purpose of the project is really what's going to drive traffic for years to come," said Rodie, who went on to say he will be charging what's called "social rent", meaning each tenant will pay below-market rent, in exchange for completing four hours of community service each month.

The Churchill is expected to open this summer.