Todd Sanders (Host):
Well, welcome back to the podcast. We are thrilled today to have a very special guest, the CEO and chairman of the Plaza Companies, Sharon Harper. Sharon, such a pleasure to have you here today.
Sharon Harper (Guest):
It's an honor to be here. Thanks to the Phoenix Chamber of Commerce for bringing business people together like you do, Todd. It's just great and it's great to be here today.
Todd Sanders (Host):
Thank you, my friend. I have such respect for you and we're going to learn a lot about you, but maybe we'll start with, I think probably everyone watching and listening knows you and has seen your bio, but maybe tell us a little something about yourself that maybe people wouldn't know.
Sharon Harper (Guest):
Well, I always thought I'd be a journalist. That was my goal. That was my degree in college. I love the industry. I respect people in the industry. But my husband and I, we got to Phoenix. He had just graduated from medical school and got an offer from Good Samaritan at the time, now Banner Health, the university medical campus, and that brought us here to Arizona. And we arrived and I really loved Phoenix. It was so different from the Midwest where I came from.
Todd Sanders (Host):
Okay. You came from the Midwest, all right.
Sharon Harper (Guest):
Yes. Grew up in a little town called Mankato, Minnesota, and then went to Creighton University, which is a Jesuit school in Omaha. And now many of us know that Creighton has a major presence and is helping us solve the shortage of healthcare workers here in our...
Todd Sanders (Host):
Full circle.
Sharon Harper (Guest):
We'll come back to that.
Todd Sanders (Host):
We will come back to that.
Sharon Harper (Guest):
At the time, I didn't think I would ever be building a major medical campus. So we met there, my husband from New York. I got to Omaha and thought I was in Paris. He got to Omaha from New York and thought he was in Siberia, but it's all a perspective. But what a treasure it was that we came to Arizona. Thought we'd be here for a year or two, but fell in love with the culture, the community, the environment, and the opportunity.
Todd Sanders (Host):
Well, and obviously an incredible journey. Maybe tell us a little bit about your professional journey. You started out looking at journalism. How did that change and how did that lead to the role you're in today?
Sharon Harper (Guest):
Well, I think the profession of journalism is a great one, and I so admire people that are in the industry and the chances they take in the work that they do. When we got to Phoenix, we really didn't have very much money, so I took a job as a sixth grade teacher at St. Francis Xavier. One of my friends was retiring and said, "There's a job opening." And so I spent a year in the classroom as a teacher. That was exciting.
And then because I'm very entrepreneurial, I started to see opportunities about growth and business. But let me just say that the whole background of journalism and what I had studied and a little bit how I'd practiced both when I worked at the Omaha World-Herald and doing little things here in Phoenix really positioned me well. And I think it positions anyone well for all kinds of different businesses, but particularly the industry of real estate. And I started with an idea, which is how things start, and naive enough to not be afraid to try to do it.
Todd Sanders (Host):
An important component.
Sharon Harper (Guest):
A very important component. And with that took a big step, founded a small company with a partner, and the whole premise was to build a medical office building for then a group of physicians that my husband was practicing with out in the West Valley. I thought it would be the biggest and best thing I'd ever do, a 30,000 square foot, one-story medical office building. By the way, we are still involved in ownership and all the services with that building so many years ago. But that was exciting. We designed it. We came up with a creative way to finance it because we didn't have the money ourselves. Kind of invented a way that the physicians, the tenants could be investors as well.
Well, it became a program nationally, this kind of physician investment program. We learned very early on that an investor's an investor, they don't get a special deal because they're a tenant. They don't get a special deal because we see them at a cocktail party. Everything was equal, everything was fair, and that was the best way to do that.
Todd Sanders (Host):
Journalism, education, to inventing a new model for developing properties.
Sharon Harper (Guest):
Well, it really was, but it all ties together with some very basic, very foundational things that haven't changed to this day. Great idea. How do we solve the problem? How do we put it together? How do we collaborate to make different parts of it work together? How do we see it through to the end? Those values on that little building or really in anything I've ever done haven't changed today. The projects just have a lot more zeros associated with them. But the ethics, the foundational values, the mission if you will, the vision, all of that hasn't changed.
And I think that was the case with journalism as well. Doing things right, trying to understand the truth, laying something out where somebody could better understand it. Those are principles that apply in everyday life. I had to apply a few as I was raising my children over the years.
Todd Sanders (Host):
Yeah, that's definitely an interesting job, isn't it? Well, and I love that you're still involved with that original building. So at that point, that became the start of something pretty significant here. And then from that time to date significant growth of the company, but also of the Valley.
Sharon Harper (Guest):
Well, both for sure. But I will say at that time, I'd say in the 80s, being in the West Valley, being involved in healthcare and then moving into seniors housing, older adults, none of my friends or broker friends were very interested in any of it. But then as recessions came, as the community grew, as needs for services in these fields grew, we became interesting. Brokers became interested in the industry. And now as you know, the healthcare industry, the bioscience industry, great living environments for seniors, all of these are the very top opportunities in real estate. And of course the company has grown beyond that, but that's what we were where we started. And that location, we are still in that same headquarter building. We've remodeled it many times. We've taken more space. We have more offices, headquarter offices around town, but we still have that headquarter office in Peoria. And that's exciting for us because the whole West Valley has grown up around us, and we have a number of very awesome West Valley projects that we're a part of.
Todd Sanders (Host):
So much opportunity, correct?
Sharon Harper (Guest):
Yes. The opportunities are great here in Phoenix, but I think they are the greatest for people that can appreciate the past, appreciate who's involved, bring them together in different ways to make something really special. It's not just bricks and mortar, what our company is about. It's about more than that.
Todd Sanders (Host):
So thinking about when you got in the car and drove here and what you saw when you get here to today, what are some of the biggest changes that you think you've seen?
Sharon Harper (Guest):
I think the biggest change from my perspective is that there weren't any women in the industry when I started.
Todd Sanders (Host):
That must have been interesting for you.
Sharon Harper (Guest):
It was just I didn't think about it myself. I was just focused on what I was going to do and it was going to happen. And I think it just kind of worked with everybody who was around me. But there really weren't, and there weren't that many opportunities for women. A door wasn't open, you just made it happen. Well, that's changed a lot. And there's so many superstars, men and women in this industry now. So I've loved seeing that.
The sophistication of projects has changed dramatically as well. Things are harder to do, they're more complex. They involve a lot more scrutiny and involvement and financing and legal apparatus. That's changed, and I think that's changed for the good.
Todd Sanders (Host):
So obviously you came into the Valley, you saw a need, you essentially formed a company around it, which has turned into one of the most successful companies in the Valley, and a lot of people would have been satisfied with that. But I think one of the things that I know you for and that you're known for is that you're also someone who is very involved in the community, but you're also not afraid to lead big efforts. Where did that come from?
Sharon Harper (Guest):
Well, that stepping out on the edge of the diving board when something's important, it just happens to be me. But I think it did come from the way I was brought up, my great family, great parents. My father was somewhat involved in the political side of things in our little community. It made me appreciate people who step up that way. But it's even more than that. It's the initiatives. It's the thinking about being successful and if we're going to be successful as a company. That happened because of a community and environment, other people, how do we raise that up?
And so we've always had this focus on being engaged in those communities in which we've served and in which we've seen success. How do we help bring them along or provide opportunity? So that started with volunteering for different things. When GPEC started as an example, Peoria was way out in the middle of nowhere at the time. There were six companies, excuse me, there were six cities that stepped up for that organization. And there was some talk about Peoria. And I said to the mayor at the time, Mayor Ron Travers, "Peoria should be part of this big movement." I mean, this was the West Valley. Nobody was really connecting at the time. I said, "We should be the seventh and that starter of that organization." Here we are celebrating 25 years. I think I'm the only remaining original board member because every subsequent mayor has asked me to serve and I've been honored to do that.
But helping that community see the value of being a part of something bigger, well, it certainly has paid off and so important. That's just one example. But I've also encouraged my children, people in our company to step up, serve on boards, be volunteers, step up, make something happen, because they've all made it happen for us.
Todd Sanders (Host):
Well, I think it's unusual to be at an event where you haven't raised your hand. And I mean that. If there's a big initiative or a need, I can pretty much count that you're going to be there. I saw you just last month when we were talking about the McCain Library and you were front and center there. How do you balance those needs and there are significant needs here and still managing a pretty significant operation?
Sharon Harper (Guest):
Well, these projects that we're involved in are so big each one of them is a standalone, full-time position. But somehow for me, when I say yes, it's a hundred percent yes on that, but somehow I keep everything else going as well.
The McCain Library, that's going to be a transformational world-class institution. We're so honored to bring that forth here in Phoenix to work with the President of the United States, with the governors to get the funding to really make this a presidential library, maybe better than one. He didn't become president, but he did so much more. This library and this museum will articulate that. Or Prop 479, co-chairing that. Nothing could be more important than for us as a community to keep that going. We need to manage our growth, facilitate the kinds of things that this can do. It's not raising taxes. It's just an extension. The community wants it, needs it. We just have to be there. Or when Governor Ducey called me to talk about Prop 123, it was so innovative of him. It was so unusual.
Todd Sanders (Host):
And needed.
Sharon Harper (Guest):
And so needed. It is the most monumental thing that's happened in education funding in this state and all what the forefathers wanted the state land to do. So I was proud to do that. It was proud to do it with Governor Ducey and proud to see that it was successful. And honestly, it was a close vote. It took until Thursday, and now everyone is so thankful for it. And I feel so proud of what's happened. And now Governor Hobbs is working toward that extension and how to best do that. And so these things lay a foundation for the future as well.
Todd Sanders (Host):
And I think it's interesting, and I think gratifying in today's day and age where everyone is so politicized and so divided where you will work with anybody who's going to get things done. And you mentioned Governor Ducey, Governor Hobbs, and I'm sure governors before that, you worked with all of them. What's your philosophy on that? It sounds like if there's a need, you're going to jump in regardless of party affiliation.
Sharon Harper (Guest):
Well, I think it's not just a need, but a style. And we felt Governor Ducey was such a great governor, thought about business, thought about lowering taxes, thought about growing our economy, thought about education, thought about the recruitment of companies. And then as his term expired and we got down to the final two candidates for governor, I really was basing my interest on who would be best for our state, who would continue the brand that you work so hard to establish and protect every day, and that so many other people do as well. That brand of we're open for business, we have great education, we give our kids a shot, we're trying to provide opportunities here. Who would that be?
Well, it happened to be a Democrat who I'd never met. And so we reached out, we, myself and three other people, and said, "Could we have a conversation?" And Governor Hobbs at the time, not governor, said, "I'd love to meet with you and talk about that." And she talked about her honor for Senator McCain, her honor for the history that came before her, which was important to us. We talked about the business recruitment, and we talked about education, not just higher education, but very much higher education along with K through 12, along with the day the child is born, what opportunities to help them along. We talked about the workforce.
She was keen on all of that and committed to see that go forward. That's really all we needed is that continuation of good, smart business leadership, people like you and me and our friends and our colleagues, how hard we're working to do our part for the state. We wanted that to continue in the public sector. That's how it happened.
So when we step up, we step up in a big way.
Todd Sanders (Host):
Do.
Sharon Harper (Guest):
We reached out, we called our friends, our colleagues, this is why we're doing this. This is what is important to us. And we were asked to do a fundraiser and it was amazing. People I hadn't seen in such a long time said, "Thanks for giving us the chance to come out and do this," and to say it doesn't matter if it's a Democrat or a Republican. It matters about the brand, about our state, our big skies, our opportunities, our education. That's what made it happen.
Todd Sanders (Host):
Well, and certainly so much opportunity and having the courage to do that is so important. Let me switch gears a little bit. We mentioned Plaza Companies and Creighton University, which is an amazing institution. You obviously are doing a lot in the community that there's also an economic development component to that, Park Central Mall, another jewel in our crown now. Speak to that a little bit.
Sharon Harper (Guest):
Well, on these really large complex projects, we've come to realize that it's not just one person or one company that can do things. And so whether it was Park Central or SkySong, we thought, "How do we bring different groups together?" And so that's the municipality. It's private development. That's universities and talent. And both of these projects exemplify that.
But you brought up Park Central, so let's talk about that. Christine Mackay, the head of economic development in the city of Phoenix, referred to it as the hole in the donut. Nobody could get it going.
Todd Sanders (Host):
It was tough.
Sharon Harper (Guest):
And it was complicated.
Todd Sanders (Host):
Yes.
Sharon Harper (Guest):
It was a situation of two different owners who didn't collaborate, who had deed restrictions against one another to do anything. And people like me just couldn't crack the code. But Plaza Companies and our partner, Holualoa took a look at it in a different way and said, "Let's just buy the built environment. Let's just buy one part of this and see if we could bring that together."
So we underwrote it. It was in bankruptcy. There was going to be an auction. At the end of the day, they said, "We don't want to do the auction. We want to work with you." That was a big honor for us. And so we bought that. The old department stores that many people listening to this will remember. And we did that. And it was interesting then that we could underwrite that, that we could redo that 600,000 square feet of those buildings into a new way of thinking. So it's about relationships, about being forthright, about being honest and having a bigger idea than what something alone could do. And I think that big vision was exciting to the land seller as well. And look what's happened.
Todd Sanders (Host):
It's unrecognizable.
Sharon Harper (Guest):
And we didn't know that COVID was going to teach all of us that there's disparities in healthcare, that there's not enough healthcare workers, that there are dangers in healthcare. We need that workforce pipeline.
Well, Creighton had been bringing third and fourth-year students through St. Joe's rotations out of Omaha because their 127-year-old highly acclaimed medical school there. But that got them wanting to come and build here. They bought the land, we built that for them, and then along comes COVID. And we all of a sudden think, "Thank goodness," and all of us have stepped up to say, "How do we provide more workforce to take care of everyone in this community?"
Creighton stepped up. They formed this unbelievable partnership with St. Vincent de Paul. If you go down to see that clinic, it is like Mayo or Banner or Barrow in terms of excellence. And that's a combination of St. Vincent de Paul, St. Joseph Hospital in Creighton serving that niche of people that are working poor. They don't have insurance. They need healthcare. They have great health care.
Todd, it was amazing. Creighton's looking at what they're going to do next. They own additional land there. That Governor Ducey saw both Creighton and ASU as a way to use some of those ARPA dollars to expedite the baccalaureate nursing program. Creighton was wise enough to shell out a sixth floor of their building. Well, six months later, the need became apparent with COVID. The funds came in from the government, and both ASU and Creighton are now putting out baccalaureate nurses every year in this community. That couldn't have happened without forward-thinking, we're on the spot when were needed, and the right kind of public funding.
Todd Sanders (Host):
And the vision that you had.
Sharon Harper (Guest):
Well, the vision and the vision has turned into something even larger than that.
Todd Sanders (Host):
True.
Sharon Harper (Guest):
Because with Creighton, also there are two other nursing schools there, and Barrow all of a sudden talking with the mayor of Phoenix how could this become the third medical healthcare bioscience center? So we have the great center downtown Phoenix, Phoenix Biomedical Core. We have the Discovery Oasis at Mayo, and now we have the Phoenix Medical Quarter, which has hospitals, the Barrow Neurological Institute, WearTech, which is the public and private startup funding, Creighton University three nursing schools, and more to come. It's amazing. That's what a good idea and a good vision and sticking with it can do.
Todd Sanders (Host):
Absolutely. And so much opportunity for Arizonans, right? They get their healthcare, but then there's also these really great jobs that are out there for folks too that didn't exist.
Sharon Harper (Guest):
It's such a big area of job need, high wages. We need more people. Great opportunity for people to go into all these different kinds of jobs that are associated with healthcare, seniors housing, hospital work, all of that. It's a big, big opportunity. Second to the manufacturing and ships is healthcare jobs. We all need to work hard to get the training because it also gives people a shot at some really great jobs.
Todd Sanders (Host):
Absolutely. Well, thinking back a little bit about when you're getting here in the 80s, and we had the I-17 basically, we had Harbor, much smaller, no TSMC, Creighton, such a different community. You've seen so much change. When you think about the next 10 years, what are some of the things you'd like to see here in Phoenix?
Sharon Harper (Guest):
I'm excited for us to see how we merge with Mexico. So some of us have been on many of the trade missions to Mexico. We see the opportunity for such great collaboration on both sides of the border in education, in healthcare, and in jobs. And so we're very excited to work on both sides of the border. Very excited to have the workforce from Mexico, and from Canada for that matter. And you're very involved in this as well. This hemisphere working together is I think the future of the globe. And we can do so many things. So that is a big idea.
Let's make those connections, let's make it secure. Let's solve immigration as a part of it. But also the connectivity and the job creation. And I know that with the chips manufacturing and with the supply companies, there's always been the vision of a lot of that being in Mexico. And so we're looking forward to seeing that near-shoring really take place. That's one thing.
Todd Sanders (Host):
So good.
Sharon Harper (Guest):
I think the second thing is we are center of excellence in the healthcare, but we can even be more. We can be that next generation of transformation. And that's really what is happening at the Barrow Neurological Institute. I think you know that the NeuraLink, Elon Musk took place there, transformational. It is the next generation of taking care of people. That's what's happening. The CAMI with the University of Arizona, the new medical school, and what ASU is doing in healthcare. We have an opportunity on this globe to be number one. And we're in the middle of that.
Todd Sanders (Host):
It feels good, doesn't it?
Sharon Harper (Guest):
Oh, just getting started.
Todd Sanders (Host):
It really feels like it's our moment. Any predictions for the real estate or development in Phoenix? What we might see next?
Sharon Harper (Guest):
Well, we're at a bit of a lull in a lot of complexity in the industry right now with the cost of the construction, some of the financial markets drawing up, some of the overbuilding. But that being said, it's always been like that in different sectors. We have a big focus on the industrial market right now. That's new for our company somewhat, although the last few years we've been involved in it. Healthcare is a blossoming area for sure. Seniors housing, if you look at the demographics at all different economic levels, that will be important.
But I think what's really exciting is to take something much bigger and bring it together in kind of a consortium or mixed use fashion where collectively there's shared parking and shared kinds of things to make everyone better, smarter, quicker, faster. But we're not all doing our little fence around our projects.
And then I would want to say that incorporating arts and culture from the very foundation is something that is indicative of who we are as a place, a sense of place, a brand, if you will, whether it goes back to the indigenous people, to our arts and culture community. But I think science and arts and culture go hand in hand. We're trying to do that in everything we do.
Todd Sanders (Host):
Well, and I bet you'll be in the middle of that. So congratulations and thank you for spending the time with us and for everything that you do. I wasn't kidding. When there's a job to be done in Phoenix, I know your hand's going to be raised and you're probably going to lead it. So I really want to tell you that we admire what you've done. We're going to finish with a quick lightning round. Why don't we start with your first job? Doesn't have to be a professional job, maybe in high school.
Sharon Harper (Guest):
Well, my father opened up the first car wash in Minnesota, so of course it was only open for about two months a year.
Todd Sanders (Host):
I was thinking about that.
Sharon Harper (Guest):
But I was the cashier for that, and I was probably only 14 at the time. So that was fun.
Todd Sanders (Host):
What did you learn from that job?
Sharon Harper (Guest):
Just be there. Yes, smile, solve a problem, make it happen, thank people for what they do.
Todd Sanders (Host):
So favorite movie. What's your favorite movie?
Sharon Harper (Guest):
Well, I love Out of Africa. My husband and I spent a year in Africa. He was a volunteer physician at a bush hospital there, and he taught me how to do immunizations. We fell in love with Africa, the sky, the culture, everything. We were in East Africa and Kenya. So I love that movie. I've probably seen it 30 or 40 times.
Todd Sanders (Host):
Well, that's a good one to pick. Any book you're reading right now?
Sharon Harper (Guest):
Well, I just got the book from Julie Patrick that she signed for me yesterday because she came to the Piper Trust to do a class on helping younger people become good board members of nonprofits. And so it's really fun for me to read that and always remember to create opportunities for others because that's where things can really be great.
Todd Sanders (Host):
Well, I can't think of a better way to end this interview than with that statement. So thank you again, and we'll look forward to having you again soon.
Sharon Harper (Guest):
What an honor. Thank you.
Todd Sanders (Host):
You bet.