Gannett, parent of The Arizona Republic, puts Phoenix printing facility up for sale

Corina Vanek, Arizona Republic
·2 min read
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Gannett, the parent company of The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com, is selling its printing facility in north Phoenix.
Gannett, the parent company of The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com, is selling its printing facility in north Phoenix.

Gannett Co., the parent company of The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com, has put its Phoenix printing facility up for sale.

The property, which totals 300,000 square feet on 20 acres in the Deer Valley area, is listed for $47.7 million, according to the offering memo. The building is located at 19th Avenue and Williams Drive and includes 36 truck docks.

The offering lists the property as a sale and lease-back, meaning The Republic would lease the space for its printing facilities after the sale.

Sale and lease-back arrangements are a way for businesses to sell a property to unlock capital while continuing to occupy the facility post-sale.

Related: Gannett, parent of The Republic, continues cost-cutting measures

In addition to The Republic’s print edition, the plant also prints USA Today, The Desert Sun from Palm Springs, The New York Times, Arizona Daily Star from Tucson, Arizona Daily Sun from Flagstaff, and many other publications that are distributed throughout Arizona and into New Mexico and California.

Phoenix Newspapers Inc., which was purchased by Gannett in 2000, has owned the site since 1987.

A Gannett spokesperson said the company does not comment on real estate transactions before they close.

Phoenix Newspapers Inc. broke ground at its new Republic & Gazette printing plant in Deer Valley on March 12, 1990. Pictured from left to right are Bill Hogan, Frank Russell, John Zanotti and Eugene Pulliam.
Phoenix Newspapers Inc. broke ground at its new Republic & Gazette printing plant in Deer Valley on March 12, 1990. Pictured from left to right are Bill Hogan, Frank Russell, John Zanotti and Eugene Pulliam.

Gannett leases space around the country

The Phoenix printing facility move is similar to Gannett's handling of The Republic and azcentral.com office in downtown Phoenix, which was sold in 2018 for $37.65 million.

Phoenix-based ViaWest Group bought the 10-story office building and parking garage located at 200 E. Van Buren Street. The Republic and azcentral.com offices have remained in that building.

Gannett, based in McLean, Virginia, leases and owns property throughout the country. According to documents filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the company occupies about 9 million square feet of space in the U.S., about 5.3 million is leased.

In recent years, Gannett has consolidated printing operations. Since the start of 2020, the company ceased more than 60 printing operations as part of “ongoing cost reduction programs,” according to SEC filings.

According to a news release from early October, Gannett expects its real estate and other asset sales in 2022 to range from $65 million to $75 million. At the time, the company had about $80 million in real estate sales in the pipeline.

Reach the reporter at cvanek@arizonarepublic.com. Follow her on Twitter @CorinaVanek. 

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Gannett, parent of The Arizona Republic, selling Phoenix printing site