Mesa is set to vote on a retail tax incentive deal for The Craftsman on October 26, 2026. The project is a mixed-use apartment and retail development at the northwest corner of South Hawes Road and East Elliott Road. The deal would tie a city road reimbursement to a requirement for sit-down, chef-driven restaurants — no drive-throughs.
If you live near Hawes and Elliot, that corner is about to change
For years, the northwest corner of South Hawes Road and East Elliott Road has sat vacant. If this deal moves forward, it becomes a walkable neighborhood with restaurants, shops, and nearly 400 apartments within the next two years.
The restaurant covenant is the part that matters most to residents. The city would not simply hand a developer a tax break. It would require that at least 10,000 square feet of the retail space go to modern, upscale, chef-driven sit-down restaurants. Drive-throughs are explicitly excluded. That is not typical. It means the Hawes Crossing corridor gets something closer to a neighborhood dining district than another fast-food strip.
Road improvements on Elliot Road near Hawes are part of the package too. The city builds them. The developer helps pay for them over time through a sales-tax reimbursement. For drivers on that stretch, the improvements come sooner than they would otherwise.
For homeowners nearby — in Hawes Crossing, Eastmark, and communities along the Gilbert border — this signals continued growth along the Elliot Road corridor. More rooftops and more retail means more traffic. It also means more commercial options closer to home.
What Mesa is actually voting on October 26
The October 26 agenda item is a notice of intent, not the final agreement. Under A.R.S. § 9-500.11(K), a city must adopt a notice of intent at least fourteen days before it can approve the agreement itself. That means the earliest Mesa could vote on the binding deal is November 9, 2026.
When the final vote happens, it will need a two-thirds majority of the full council. A.R.S. § 9-500.11(D) requires that supermajority for any city in a metro area over two million people. The item cannot be placed on a consent calendar — it must be voted on individually.
Staff previewed the deal terms at an October 22, 2026 study session. Staff described the project as apartments and roughly 40,000 square feet of retail and office space. The site covers about 19 acres along Elliot Road.
How the sales-tax reimbursement works
The structure is straightforward. Martens Development Company contributes about $775,000 toward city-built Elliot Road improvements. In return, the city can reimburse the developer from sales taxes that The Craftsman’s retail tenants generate over a ten-year period.
The city builds the road improvements upfront. The developer does not get reimbursed unless the project actually generates sales-tax revenue. And it only gets the full reimbursement if at least 10,000 square feet is leased to qualifying chef-driven restaurants. That covenant is the mechanism that keeps fast food out.
The chef-driven restaurant requirement: what qualifies and what does not
The reimbursement agreement requires at least 10,000 square feet of modern, upscale, chef-driven restaurants. Drive-throughs are excluded by the terms of the deal.
No specific restaurant names have been announced in any public record reviewed for this article. The covenant sets a floor for quality — it does not name tenants. That detail will come later, likely as the project gets closer to its retail leasing phase.
What gets built: the full breakdown
A pedestrian promenade lined with two-story retail and commercial space is planned as part of The Craftsman on Elliot. (Martens Development Company)
The 2024 site plan approval laid out the full scope. The Craftsman includes 386 apartments and a two-story mixed-use building. That building puts 12 apartments above six retail spaces. There is also a four-unit live/work building with 18 dwelling units above, two urban plazas, five single-story garages, and one drive-through restaurant. The overall mix is 65 percent residential and 35 percent commercial.
Martens Development Company describes the project as 387 elevator-served apartments with roughly 40,000 square feet of integrated retail and dining. Amenities include a clubhouse with co-working space, a pool, a pickleball court, and a dog park.
A commercial leasing flyer advertises about 7,619 square feet of medical office condo space. That portion targets a Q3 2027 delivery. The overall project completion is Q4 2028, so the medical office space could open while the rest of the site is still under construction.
The northwest quadrant of South Hawes Road and East Elliott Road — marked here — is where The Craftsman will occupy roughly 19 acres. (Esri World Imagery)
Who is building it: Martens Development Company
Martens Development Company, based in Scottsdale, is the developer. The firm was founded in 1994, formerly operating as Marwest. The Arizona LLC entity was incorporated on October 25, 2021. David R. Martens and Peter W. Martens are listed as Members per Arizona Corporation Commission records.
The Craftsman’s site plan was approved by Mesa City Council on May 6, 2024. That approval made it the first vertically integrated mixed-use development in Mesa’s District 6. The project is listed on the company’s portfolio page as an active development within Hawes Crossing.
Where The Craftsman fits inside Hawes Crossing
The Craftsman sits within the Hawes Crossing Planned Development Area. Hawes Crossing is a roughly 1,131.5-acre master-planned community divided into eight villages. It sits northwest of the SR-202 and SR-24 system interchange in Mesa. The master plan requires non-residential uses to include commercial and employment activity.
Hawes Crossing is still taking shape. Villages 6 and 7 are among those currently under city review in 2026, with state-owned portions of the community still being planned. The Craftsman anchors the commercial core of the master plan’s southern edge.
The Elliot Road corridor is filling in quickly. A Sprouts Farmers Market opened at Eastmark on Ellsworth Road in September 2026. A Circle K at Elliot and Signal Butte recently received a building permit. Both show how fast this stretch is developing.
The November 9 vote and what follows
The October 26 notice-of-intent vote starts the statutory clock. If council approves the notice, the binding agreement cannot be adopted until at least November 9, 2026. That vote will require a two-thirds supermajority and must be taken as a standalone item — not buried in a consent agenda.
If the agreement passes, construction is already projected to be underway. Martens Development Company lists a Q3 2026 start for The Craftsman. First units are projected for Q1 2028. Full completion is projected for Q4 2028. Whether the tax incentive agreement clears the council will determine whether the chef-driven restaurant covenant becomes a binding condition of that timeline.
