What to know about First Fridays in downtown Phoenix
First Fridays on Roosevelt Row in downtown Phoenix have been a favorite way for locals and visitors alike to experience the work of Arizona artists.
The Republic
- A developer has applied for a permit to demolish a historic Phoenix radio station building.
- The demolition would make way for the world’s first Atari Hotel in the Roosevelt Row Arts District.
- The $125 million hotel will feature 91 rooms, restaurants, and a multipurpose gaming venue.
To make room for the Atari Hotel, it could be game over for a landmark radio station building.
The developer behind the world’s first Atari Hotel has applied for a permit with Phoenix city officials to demolish the building at 840 North Central Avenue.
First built in 1957, the building served as a studio for local radio stations over the years, including KOY-AM, country station KMLE, and classic-hits station KOOL-FM (now Big 94.5), which is credited with pioneering the oldies radio format in the 1970s.
The $125 million Atari Hotel will be located along 46,000 square feet of land in the Roosevelt Row Arts District that the developer acquired in December 2023.
Construction could begin as soon as late 2026 for a possible late 2028 opening, according to Jordan Taylor, co-founder of Atari Hotels and Intersection Development.
Where is the Atari hotel going to be built?
Atari Hotel will be at 840 North Central Avenue in downtown Phoenix’s Roosevelt Row Arts District. The hotel will occupy 46,000 square feet of land that Taylor’s group purchased in December 2023.
The land includes a building first built in 1957 that’s targeted for demolition to make way for the hotel. The application for the demolition permit remains active; the developer has not yet received the permit.
Before a permit can be granted, the developer must pay fees associated with the permit, post a sign on the property and provide additional documentation to the city. After that, the city’s Historic Preservation Office would begin its research and analysis process, including a demolition hold, said Saneeya Mir, a spokesperson for Phoenix’s planning and development department.
The group behind the Atari Hotel purchased the building from Audacy, one of the nation’s largest radio broadcasting companies. The building was used as a studio for its Phoenix stations, which include Big 94.5, KMLE and top 40 station Live 101.5. Audacy sold the building for $10.5 million, according to a report it filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The sale was part of Audacy’s effort to reduce what it described as “redundant assets” following the company’s 2017 merger with CBS Radio, when it was known as Entercom.
The permit application showed that the registered contractor for the demolition is Gilbane Building Company. The Arizona Republic reached out to a media contact for Gilbane but did not immediately receive a response.
Atari Hotels anticipates demolition will start “later this summer” once approved.
What’s in the Atari Hotel in Phoenix?
Atari Hotel’s offering statement to investors, filed in December 2025 with the Securities and Exchange Commission, included details about the hotel and photo renderings showing what it will look like when completed.
The hotel will have 91 rooms, including 19 suites. The breakdown of the types of rooms — 19 suites and 72 rooms — was an intentional nod to 1972, the year Atari was founded, Taylor said.
The Phoenix Atari Hotel will include two floors of restaurants, with documents suggesting casual dining, fine dining, pool bars and “immersive” drinking and dining options based on Atari’s games. Taylor said one of the hotel’s restaurants would be like “a steakhouse in ‘The Matrix’,” and there would be an adults-only speakeasy called Rated M, whose name is inspired by the video game rating equivalent to the R rating for movies.
There will also be a sports and gaming viewing lounge, plus gift shops and merchandise stalls selling souvenirs, clothing, collectibles and games.
One of Atari Hotel’s key features is a multipurpose venue that will host gaming events, esports competitions, meet and greets with gaming streamers and concerts from electronic dance music artists. Taylor suggested Vegas-style residencies with streamers would be possible.
The goal of having events at the hotel is to draw locals who want to experience the hotel without booking a stay, he said.
What happened to the Atari hotel?
Construction hasn’t started on the Atari Hotel in Phoenix, but it’s scheduled to begin near the end of 2026, Taylor said.
Photo renderings of the hotel show windows shaped like Tetris blocks and a red three-pronged ornament along the main tower designed to resemble the Atari logo.
Other renderings show a row of arcade games and displays of characters from games like Missile Command in the lobby and a gaming setup with multiple TV screens in a guest room.
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Michael Salerno is an award-winning journalist who’s covered travel and tourism since 2014. His work as The Arizona Republic’s consumer travel reporter aims to help readers navigate the stresses of traveling and get the best value for their money on their vacations. He can be reached at Michael.Salerno@usatodayco.com.
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