The Arizona OIC, which stands for Opportunities Industrialization Center, opened in 1967 and is part of a network of other chapters that were built out of the civil rights movement in the 1960s. In Phoenix, the OIC operates out of 39 E. Jackson St. in a building that has historic preservation status. As part of the proposed development, Wood’s client, Thunderbird Legacy Group, is seeking to remove the historic preservation designation so the roof and one of the walls of the building can be removed. The other walls will be preserved and the new building will be built inside them.

Thunderbird Legacy Group is proposing a 26-story building, named the Blue, that will reach 270 feet in height. The building will include ground floor retail and office space, and the OIC will continue to operate out of the building. The OIC is a development partner for Thunderbird Legacy Group. Other firms involved include Polaris Pacific, Gensler, Project Management Advisors, RCLCO and CCBG Architecture Inc.

Six floors of the building will be a 210-key, luxury hotel, totaling 211,000 square feet. The upper floors will be condominium units, with a total of 200 units totaling 320,000 square feet. The project plan includes two levels of underground parking and four levels of above-ground parking.

Some of the proceeds from retail sales, hotel stays and sales of the condo units will be donated back to the OIC, Wood said. The hotel and retail operations will also be used by the OIC for its vocational training programs.

“So many members of our society are challenged economically,” Wood, a partner at Snell & Wilmer, said. “People who are underrepresented, underserved, trying to find their way. The OIC brings hope to those who have none.”

Wood said that since the OIC opened more than 65,000 people have completed its programs and more than 48,000 people have been placed in jobs.

“The service they provide and their contributions are immeasurable,” Wood said.

Gene Blue is the organization’s president and CEO, and Wood said the project, named the Blue, will pay homage to him and the other leaders who have worked with the OIC to better the community.

Wood has been working with the development team for two years on the project, which he said is unprecedented in Phoenix.

“We are doing something that has never been done before,” he said. “We are asking the city council to remove the historic preservation overlay, which has been done before, but it has never been removed while a building is still standing on the property.”

Other cities, such as Philadelphia, have seen projects like the Blue, where portions of historic buildings are kept and preserved while a new building is built inside them, Wood said. Plans for the building call for removing the stucco on the walls and restoring the brick to its original condition.

So far, the project has been approved by the village planning committee and the city’s planning commission, and still needs to go to the city council for final approval. The city’s historic preservation commission recommended approving a portion of the change, called the façade easement, but did not recommend approval of the historic preservation removal.

Wood said continuing the work and expanding the scope of the OIC will help honor the organization’s history and further the legacy.

“History isn’t just about buildings; history is typically about the people or businesses that occupy those buildings,” he said. “The OIC is living history. They’re still with us.”

Community organizations, including the Maricopa County chapter of the NAACP and the African American Christian Clergy Coalition, wrote to the city council in support of the OIC and the changes that will benefit the organization’s mission.