Real estate developer opens Valley office, plans dozen of hotels

By Brandon Brown 

West77 Partners, a real estate investment and development firm based in Bellevue, Washington and Salt Lake City, has opened an office in Scottsdale as it plans on building several hotels in the Phoenix market in the next several years.

The office will be home to West77’s development team as well as its affiliated general contracting company, Wasatch DC Builders.

West77’s move is connected to the company’s plans to build up to 12 LivAway Suites extended stay hotels in the Valley.

West77 is developing LivAway Suites extended stay hotels across the U.S. and recently opened one in the Salt Lake City metro area. West77’s pipeline of LivAway Suites includes more than 50 properties that will start construction by 2026.

The Business Journal reported in July that West77’s proposal to build a four-story, $15 million hotel with 126 rooms across 60,884 square feet in Tolleson, at the southeast corner of Interstate 10 and 91st Avenue, was approved by Tolleson City Council.

Dan Barrett, the president of West77 Partners and Wasatch DC Builders, told the Business Journal that it plans on breaking ground on that location, as well as on sites in Surprise and Glendale before the end of the year.

“Whether it's up north, whether it's out east or in Tucson, our acquisitions team continues to look for other sites so we can maintain the momentum of having multiple ground breaks each year,” Barrett said.

The LivAway Suites brand is an extended stay hotel that Barrett said is used by people not always on vacation, but who are traveling or out of their homes for a long period of time, from a week to months. He said a lot of the customers are people in the middle of a housing transition and those who travel for work, such as traveling nurses or those in the construction trade.

“The Phoenix locations that we have, at least these first three or four locations, they're near spring training sites,” Barrett said. “I imagine we’ll see an influx in the spring from the snowbirds that will be coming down.”

Since West77 will be building a prototype hotel and then building similar ones throughout the Valley for the next several years, Barrett said he is open to finding some good subcontractors he could use on all the projects.

Final Thoughts:

West77 Partners’ expansion into the Valley signals a strong future for Phoenix’s hospitality sector. For those moving to Arizona or in the midst of a housing transition, the planned LivAway Suites extended stay hotels will offer a practical solution, catering to long-term stays with comfort and convenience. Positioned near popular spring training sites, these hotels are set to attract snowbirds, traveling professionals, and those needing temporary housing. As West77 rolls out its developments across Phoenix, expect these new hotels to become a key resource for both short and extended stays in the region.