Drive up Oracle Road to Tangerine and you pass a shopping center that never quite worked. Oro Valley Marketplace opened in 2008 as the largest retail development in metro Tucson — more than 800,000 square feet of stores anchored by a Walmart Supercenter — and then spent much of the next decade shedding tenants. Now it is being rebuilt into something else entirely: a mixed-use village center of apartments, hotels, a park, and walkable retail on the same 115-acre site at Oracle and Tangerine roads. Ground broke on the first phase in October 2025. Here is the July 14, 2026 New Development read on what is replacing the mall. 2008 — Year the 800,000-plus-sq-ft Marketplace opened at Oracle and Tangerine. 115 acres — Size of the site being reworked into a mixed-use village center. Oct 2025 — Phase 1 groundbreaking, led by HSL Properties and Town West. 560 — Apartments the plan is entitled to build, plus two hotels From Big-Box Mall to Village Center When Vestar Development opened Oro Valley Marketplace in late 2008, it was pitched as the largest retail development in the metro area — more than 800,000 square feet at the southwest corner of Oracle and Tangerine, anchored by a Walmart Supercenter and a Cinemark theater, and notable as the first Arizona retail project to earn LEED Silver certification. The timing was rough: it opened into the housing crash, and over the following years a string of anchors and inline tenants left, leaving a large center running below capacity. Phoenix-based Vestar sold the roughly 115-acre property to locally based Town West Realty for $45.15 million in September 2019, and Town West has since moved to reposition it — rebranding it from Oro Valley Marketplace to the Oro Valley Village Center and drawing up a plan to add housing and hospitality to a retail-only site. What the Town Approved The redevelopment took several years to entitle. After a February 2022 continuance over building height and setback questions, the Oro Valley Town Council approved the zoning amendments and a revised master development plan on November 10, 2022. Those approvals let Town West build as many as 560 apartments, two hotels, and up to 200,000 square feet of additional retail alongside the existing stores. The agreement also sets an order of operations: Town West must first build and open a tax-generating hotel on the Oracle Road side before the rest proceeds. A four-story Hampton Inn & Suites near Oracle Road has been reported as the first hotel slated to rise. Encantada Apartments — Under Construction (320 units, Class A, Due mid-to-late 2027): The centerpiece of Phase 1: Encantada at Oro Valley Marketplace, a 320-unit Class A apartment community south of Tangerine Road, developed by HSL Properties. Grading and foundation work began in October 2025, with completion expected by mid-to-late 2027. The First Hotel — Oracle Road Side (Hotel-first requirement, Hampton Inn & Suites, Four stories): By agreement with the town, a tax-generating hotel on the Oracle Road side must open before later phases proceed. A four-story Hampton Inn & Suites near Oracle Road has been reported as the first hotel planned for the site. Park & Pedestrian Links — Phase 1 (Neighborhood park, Under-road tunnel, Water Harvest Way): Phase 1 adds a neighborhood park between the existing Walmart and Tuk Tuk Thai, a pedestrian tunnel under Water Harvest Way to connect the housing to the retail core, and intersection upgrades along Water Harvest Way toward Oracle Road. Entertainment District — Later Phases (Beer garden, Mini golf, Splash pad): Beyond Phase 1, the plan calls for a second apartment community, a second hotel, and an entertainment district with amenities that have included a beer garden, miniature golf, a splash pad, and bike and pedestrian paths. What's Being Built Right Now Phase 1 broke ground on October 6, 2025, led by HSL Properties in partnership with Town West, with Borderlands Construction contracting. The early work has come in a clear sequence: crews relocated a water line along Water Harvest Way in October 2025, built a pedestrian tunnel under Water Harvest Way in November and December 2025 so future residents can reach the shops without crossing traffic, and moved into intersection upgrades along Water Harvest Way in January 2026. Running alongside all of it is Encantada — the 320-unit apartment community that is the reason the tunnel, park, and road work exist — with construction running into 2027 and units expected to deliver by mid-to-late 2027. The existing stores, including the Walmart, stay open throughout; the redevelopment is reworking the site around them rather than clearing it. Why It Matters for the Northwest Side Oro Valley is one of the metro's higher-priced submarkets. Redfin put the town's median sale price near $480,000 over the three months ending April 2026, down about 7.4 percent year over year, at roughly $254 per square foot, while Zillow pegged the average Oro Valley home value near $493,700, up about 1.9 percent year over year — both well above the citywide Tucson figure Zillow put around $325,520 in mid-2026. Against that backdrop, a project that adds hundreds of rental units, hotel rooms, and walkable retail on an already-built commercial site is a meaningful supply and amenity change for the northwest side: it puts new housing within walking distance of stores, a park, and (eventually) an entertainment district, and reworks a large underused parcel rather than pushing development into open desert. For anyone weighing a move to or a sale in Oro Valley, the Village Center is the largest thing changing at Oracle and Tangerine. Quick reference (July 14, 2026): The former Oro Valley Marketplace at Oracle and Tangerine roads — an 800,000-plus-square-foot big-box center that opened in 2008 — is being rebuilt into the mixed-use Oro Valley Village Center. Town West Realty bought the roughly 115-acre site from Vestar for $45.15 million in September 2019; the Town Council approved the redevelopment on November 10, 2022, entitling up to 560 apartments, two hotels, and 200,000 square feet of additional retail. Phase 1 broke ground October 6, 2025, led by HSL Properties and Town West; its centerpiece is the 320-unit Encantada apartments, due mid-to-late 2027. Schedules and tenant plans on projects this size change, so confirm current status with the Town of Oro Valley or the developer before relying on any single date. The Takeaway It is easy to write off a struggling mall, but Oro Valley is doing the harder thing — reworking one into a place to live, stay, and walk around rather than just shop. The near-term milestone is the 320-unit Encantada apartments and the park, tunnel, and road work around them, all underway now and due by mid-to-late 2027; the longer story is a full mixed-use village center with hotels and an entertainment district taking shape over later phases. For anyone tracking where the northwest side is headed, the corner of Oracle and Tangerine is one of the metro's most concrete examples of retail-to-residential redevelopment actually breaking ground. Sources Arizona Daily Star / Tucson.com — "Apartments, hotels slated for 're-imagined' former Oro Valley Marketplace" — tucson.com/news/local/apartments-hotels-slated-for-re-imagined-former-oro-valley-marketplace — accessed July 14, 2026 (for the entitlement of up to 560 apartments, two hotels, and up to 200,000 square feet of additional retail; the requirement that Town West first build and open a tax-generating hotel on the Oracle Road side; and the four-story Hampton Inn & Suites identified as the first hotel). Real Estate Daily News — "Phase 1 Construction Underway at Oro Valley Marketplace Redevelopment" — realestatedaily-news.com/phase-1-construction-underway-at-oro-valley-marketplace-redevelopment — accessed July 14, 2026 (for the Phase 1 start, the 320-unit Class A Encantada at Oro Valley Marketplace apartment community south of Tangerine Road expected complete by mid-to-late 2027, the water-line relocation in October 2025, the pedestrian tunnel under Water Harvest Way built November–December 2025, the neighborhood park between Walmart and Tuk Tuk Thai, and the January 2026 Water Harvest Way intersection upgrades). KOLD News 13 — "Oro Valley Marketplace breaks ground on new construction" — kold.com/2025/10/07/oro-valley-marketplace-breaks-ground-new-construction — accessed July 14, 2026 (for the October 6, 2025 Phase 1 groundbreaking led by HSL Properties in partnership with Town West, with Borderlands Construction contracting). Town of Oro Valley — "Agreement reached for Oro Valley Marketplace revitalization" and "Exciting development happening at the Oro Valley Marketplace" — orovalleyaz.gov/Government/News — accessed July 14, 2026 (for the November 10, 2022 Town Council approval of the zoning amendments and revised master development plan and the rebranding to the Oro Valley Village Center). KOLD News 13 — "Oro Valley Marketplace redevelopment project granted a continuance" — kold.com/2022/02/17/oro-valley-marketplace-redevelopment-project-granted-continuance-design-must-meet-height-setback-requirements — accessed July 14, 2026 (for the February 2022 continuance over building height and setback requirements). Real Estate Daily News — "Oro Valley Marketplace Sells to Town West Realty for $45.15 Million" — realestatedaily-news.com/oro-valley-marketplace-sells-to-town-west-realty-for-45-15-million — accessed July 14, 2026 (for Town West Realty's September 2019 purchase of the roughly 115-acre property from Vestar Development for $45.15 million). Arizona Daily Star / Tucson.com — "Major retail plans reflect towns' evolution" — tucson.com/news/local/northwest/major-retail-plans-reflect-towns-evolution — accessed July 14, 2026 (for Oro Valley Marketplace opening in late 2008 as the largest retail development in metro Tucson at more than 800,000 square feet, anchored by a Walmart Supercenter and Cinemark theater on the roughly 115-acre site, and its LEED Silver certification). KGUN 9 — "Splash pad, beer garden, planned for Oro Valley retail center" — kgun9.com/news/local-news/splash-pad-beer-garden-hotels-planned-for-former-oro-valley-marketplace — accessed July 14, 2026 (for the planned entertainment amenities including a beer garden, miniature golf, splash pad, playground, and bike and pedestrian paths, and additional hotels). Redfin — "Oro Valley, AZ Housing Market" — redfin.com/city/13300/AZ/Oro-Valley/housing-market — accessed July 14, 2026 (for the Oro Valley median sale price near $480,000 over the three months ending April 2026, down about 7.4 percent year over year, at roughly $254 per square foot). Zillow — "Oro Valley, AZ Housing Market" and "Tucson, AZ Housing Market" — zillow.com/home-values/26329/oro-valley-az and zillow.com/home-values/7481/tucson-az — accessed July 14, 2026 (for the average Oro Valley home value near $493,700, up about 1.9 percent year over year, and the citywide Tucson average near $325,520 in mid-2026). All figures are current as of July 14, 2026; construction schedules, tenant plans, and home values change, so confirm current numbers before relying on any single figure. This post is for informational purposes only and is not an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to purchase real estate. Kyle Berglund and Tierra Antigua Realty fully support and comply with the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act.