Downtown Mesa, with its ample breweries, award-winning restaurants and artsy vibe, is one of the trendiest gathering places in the Valley.

Reality check: You don't have to look far into the past to know it hasn't always been that way.

The big picture: Mesa is the Valley's largest suburb. With more than 512,000 people, it's larger than Atlanta and Kansas City.

• Yes, but: For decades, its downtown faded into oblivion as residents moved into newer neighborhoods and shops and restaurants followed.

Flashback: When I moved to downtown Mesa eight years ago, one of my friends called it "the armpit of the Valley," and I could hardly blame her.

• It had been almost 30 years since a residential building permit had been issued downtown.
• The handful of restaurants rarely stayed open past 8pm and were mostly closed on weekends.
• The light rail had just been extended down Main Street, but the vibrancy it was supposed to bring hadn't arrived.

What they're saying: The word "potential" was probably the nicest way people used to describe downtown Mesa in the '90s and early 2000s, Mesa Mayor John Giles told Axios.

• "'Potential' is the saddest word in the English language. Because it describes something that doesn't happen," Giles said.

Still, he and other leaders decided to keep investing in downtown, with the hope it could have a comeback akin to Phoenix's.

Flash-forward: What resulted was what we see today: An "overnight sensation that took decades to come to pass," Giles said.

• First came breweries, restaurants, vintage boutiques and record stores. Then came the housing.
• Since 2021, more than 500 apartment units have sprung up along or near Main Street and hundreds more are under construction.

The bottom line: "The word 'potential' doesn't come up anymore," Giles said.

What we're watching

The much-anticipated Mekong Plaza expansion is expected to open by the end of the year, its developer tells Axios Phoenix.

Why it matters: The plaza was the catalyst for what has become Mesa's Asian District, the state's largest collection of Asian restaurants, grocery stores and shops.

The big picture: The 32,000-square-foot addition to Mekong Plaza will bring even more options, including Haidilao, China's largest hot pot chain.

Zoom in: Drew Burtoni, Mekong Real Estate Investment Group development manager, tells Axios that Haidilao typically seeks high-end areas and malls for its chain, showing how far Mesa's Asian District has come.

Flashback: Mekong Plaza opened in a shuttered Target in 2008.

• Burtoni said his father-in-law has operated grocery stores in California for decades and heard there was a demand for Asian goods in the Valley. He chose Mesa because of its easy freeway access.

Spread the food news

Mesa's future will be in new hands come next year.

The big picture: Mayor John Giles is termed out and five candidates are gunning for the open seat.

• Here's who's running:

Carey Davis is a retired CPA and corporate controller and the former mayor of San Bernardino, California. He moved to Mesa in 2019 to be close to his children and grandchildren.

Mark Freeman has served on the city council since 2017. He's a corn farmer and retired paramedic with the Mesa Fire Department.

Scott Neely is a small business owner who unsuccessfully sought the Republican gubernatorial nomination in 2022.

Scott Smith served as Mesa mayor from 2008 to 2014 before resigning to run for governor. He lost the race and then served as Valley Metro CEO from 2016 to 2022.

Ryan Winkle runs a nonprofit that works with businesses and neighborhoods in low- to moderate-income census tracts to enable upward mobility. He previously served on the city council but was removed from office for violating the city's code of ethics following a 2017 DUI arrest.

Tell a Mesa voter

🛹 Mesa-born Olympic skateboarder Jagger Eaton (who is competing in Paris this morning) is holding a $2,000 scholarship contest with Mathnasium Learning Center, which he attended as a child. (Daily Independent)

🧑‍⚖️ A judge last week dismissed a lawsuit against Mesa Public Schools alleging the district's guidelines for supporting transgender students violated Arizona's parents' bill of rights law. (AZcentral)

✈️ Southern Cross Aviation will open a distribution hub near Mesa-Gateway Airport to support the growing aerospace and aviation industries in the East Valley. (AZ Big Media)

Quality journalism is essential for a thriving community.

Support local journalism by joining Axios Phoenix as a member.

• For $50+ a year, you'll gain access to exclusive insider notes and help us expand our coverage of the issues that matter most to you.

Together, we can make a difference in keeping our community informed and engaged.

Thank you for your consideration.

I recently moved away from Mesa, and I'm already missing the delightfully quirky buzz of downtown and the inviting restaurants in the Asian District.

The big picture: Here's how I'd spend the perfect day in my former city:

☕ Coffee: Stop by Jarrod's Coffee, Tea & Gallery, which just moved off Main Street to a darling bungalow at University Drive and Macdonald. It has plenty of cozy corners for enjoying your drink of choice.

📚 Morning activity: Browse the 5,000 square feet of treasures at Book Gallery, an overflowing bookstore with rare finds.

🥪 Lunch: Grab a bite at my favorite sandwich shop, Worth Takeaway. I almost always choose the Buffalo Chicken, which is delicious on a roll or as a salad.

🖼️ Afternoon activity: Wander the halls of the Mesa Contemporary Arts Museum, an underrated (and free!) gallery.

🍛 Dinner: Head to H Mart in the Asian District, where you'll find more than a half-dozen food stalls like Maisen Katsu (Japanese) and Da Pan Danny's Kitchen (Korean).

🍻 Late-night fun: Chart a pub crawl through downtown Mesa's burgeoning bar scene. Try a unique sipper at Cider Corps, a locally brewed ale at Phantom Fox Beer Co. and a fancy cocktail at Espiritu.

Tell a pal