Local
Tempe Kicks Off Restoration of Hayden Flour Mill, Closed Since 1998
Tempe announced at its State of the City address that it will begin a structural assessment of the long-shuttered Hayden Flour Mill, the first step toward restoring the landmark that gave Mill Avenue its name. The city is seeking bids to inspect the mill's machinery and equipment, but no completion date has been set.
Tempe officials used Friday's State of the City address to announce that the city is moving forward with efforts to restore the Hayden Flour Mill, a landmark that has sat closed for nearly three decades and lent its name to the avenue it anchors.
The mill has been shut down since 1998. Under the plan outlined Friday, the city has begun soliciting bids from companies to examine the machinery and equipment inside the structure, and it will launch a structural assessment of the building â the first step in determining what restoration will actually require.
That assessment is expected to answer three central questions: which parts of the mill can be salvaged, what needs repair, and what uses the building can safely accommodate. Only after those findings are in will the city be able to assemble a realistic plan, including cost estimates and a strategy for paying for the work.
Officials did not announce a completion date, acknowledging that the project will take considerable time.
The mill is closely tied to the identity of Mill Avenue, the commercial spine of downtown Tempe, and its restoration has long been a subject of community interest. For residents and preservation advocates, the announcement marks a concrete step after years of the building sitting idle.
The immediate work is technical rather than cosmetic: inspecting aging equipment and assessing the structure's condition before any decisions are made about its future. City officials framed the assessment as a necessary foundation for a credible restoration plan rather than a final blueprint.
With the bidding process now open, the city's next milestone will be selecting firms to carry out the inspection and structural review. The timeline for that work, and for any subsequent restoration, remains undetermined.