Robert Flaxman

Robert Flaxman, a California-based developer with several large projects in the Phoenix Valley including a massive mixed-use development planned near Desert Ridge Marketplace, was sentenced to one month in prison Friday October 18 2019 in connection with a college bribery scheme that implicated dozens of high-net-worth individuals. Flaxman, CEO of Crown Realty and Development, pleaded guilty in May to one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and honest services mail fraud after being accused of paying $75,000 to help his daughter cheat on the ACT test, according to documents released from the U.S. Department of Justice. Flaxman originally was accused of admissions bribery for both his daughter and son, but only charges involving the daughter moved forward. In Arizona, Crown led the demolition of what would be redeveloped as the Mountain Shadows Resort in Paradise Valley, which Crown sold in 2015. It also developed what is now the Omni Scottsdale Resort & Spa at Montelucia. Six weeks before federal officials filed charges against Flaxman, Crown closed on 96.5 acres of land near Desert Ridge Marketplace and acquired master developer rights to 5,700 acres in north Phoenix, The project has been called City North. The property is zoned to allow about 2,500 residential units, 2 million square feet of office space, 500 hotel rooms and 100,000 square feet of retail.