AIA Phoenix Metro, in collaboration with the City of Phoenix Community and Economic Development (CED), invites architects, landscape architects, urban planners, students, and creative thinkers to enter a design ideas competition focused on West Downtown Phoenix. Phoenix Downtown Block of the Future is more than a competition—it’s an opportunity to shape the next chapter of the city’s urban core.
All entries must be submitted online at this link. View the design brief PDF at this link, which you can download for your reference. The final deadline to enter is Monday, January 12, 2026.
Timeline
- Friday, January 9, 2026 – Q&A Period Closes
- Monday, January 12, 2026 – Entries Due Online
- Thursday, January 29, 2026 – Awards Ceremony at the Ark at The Pemberton
Participants are asked to propose visionary, conceptual designs for one of three prominent parcels located at the southwest (SW), northeast (NE), and northwest (NW) corners of 7th Avenue and Washington Street.
These sites have the potential to become transformative civic anchors, strengthening the connection between Downtown Phoenix and the Arizona State Capitol.
The goal: Create a new urban block typology that elevates civic identity, drives sustainable growth, and fosters an inclusive, 24-hour urban environment.
Design Challenge
Rather than respond to a fixed program, participants are invited to use key urban design themes, to generate a new lens to redefine downtown Phoenix, and could include:
- Green Transit Corridors.
- Provide solutions to enhance sustainable transportation modes and their positive impact on public spaces, reducing the reliance on cars, lower emissions and catalyzing equitable, accessible urban living.
- Mixed-Use Hubs
- Design flexible, vertically integrated developments that blend affordable housing, co-working spaces, micro-retail, cultural venues, and community services, with the goal to foster density, diversity, and day-to-night activation.
- Digital Infrastructure Zones
- Incorporate innovative ways of using new technologies to increase efficiency and interactivity.
- Water-Responsive Design
- Adapt your design to minimize water usage and promote water conservation.
- Civic-Centered Placemaking
- Demonstrate how your design provides human centered public spaces that connect community and cultural identity through public art, green, shaded areas and native Sonoran landscapes.
- Parking Reimagined
- Rethink the way access and mobility is integrated in the design with the introduction of self-driving vehicles, EV, drone delivery, etc.
- 24-Hour Downtown Ecosystem
- Promote a live-work-play district with nightlife, family-friendly features, and housing for all generations and income levels.
Eligibility
- Licensed professionals (architecture, landscape, planning)
- Students in design disciplines
- Interdisciplinary teams and individual entrants
- Multidisciplinary collaboration is encouraged.
Submission Details
Submissions should reflect:
- Design Innovation and Creativity
- Responsiveness to Urban Context
- Sustainability and Resilience
- Functionality and Feasibility
- Graphic Clarity and Communication
Fee: All entry fees are paid online as the final step when you submit your entry.
- $25 per entry for students
- $100 per entry for members of AIA or ASLA.
- $150 per entry for professionals who are not members of either association.
Questions on the competition submittal process? Contact AIA Arizona Director of Local Chapters Diana Smith at diana@aia-arizona.org.
