Tempe's urban transformation has attracted its share of naysayers.

And it's not like they had no reason to complain.

There have been plenty of bumps and setbacks. Town Lake was supposed to be self-sustaining by now. Early developments, including a swank, lakeside hotel, fell through. There were lawsuits over city-led development deals.

And then there was the recession, which imploded plans on multiple mixed-use projects. The city came up with contests to rent out empty retail space. Downtown's tallest landmark -- what was then called Centerpoint -- sat fallow until a new developer morphed the high-end condo project into an apartment complex.

Many wondered if the urban-living bubble had burst.

But Tempe leaders never took their eyes off the vision. I asked former Mayor Hugh Hallman during the depths of the recession if he was worried about all the empty space downtown. Had the city built too much too fast to cater to a trend?

No, he said. They were the right kind of buildings for the market long-term, and even if the uses change over time, the overall vision of an urban, pedestrian-friendly downtown would succeed.

Guess he was right.

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