Eric Jay Toll

Against the black night, the darker-than-night silhouettes of Monument Valley buttes graced the horizon. Overhead, stars were scattered across the sky—a prank by Coyote, according to Navajo legend—and the stripe of Milky Way stars arced brilliantly across the sky from the southwest to the northeast horizon.
It was a cold night in northeastern Arizona on the Colorado Plateau, and our group of photographers huddled deeper in our jackets with cameras ready. I kept checking the time on my phone. ...

By Eric Jay Toll
Photos by Ralph Freso
“When I first started this journey in 2016, it was in entrepreneurial studies,” said 68-year-old Leona Lowe as she was relaxing after walking for her master's degree in Christian Leadership, awarded April 29 at Grand Canyon University. “I was doing it to help my daughter open a dance studio – my husband and I were going to handle the business side – that’s why I started.
After a while, Lowe, who's based in the...

By Eric Jay Toll/Special to GCU News

Photos by Rick D'Elia

When Dennis Owusu won the Green Card Lottery to come to America, he knew it would change his life, but he didn’t know all the ways his life would change. What he experienced is a testament to faith and fortitude.

“(I’d say) to anyone in a dark season: Hold on,” he said. “Even when you’re sleeping in your car, even when the world seems silent, your story is still unfolding. A...

It’s entering another world of language, history and amazement. It’s a lifetime experience for the first-time visitor. Come along and explore the best way to spend 7 days in Paris.
Here are some travel tips for planning your Paris one-week itinerary. There are some essential tips, ideas and common French phrases at the end of the article.
Paris Itinerary Day 1: We’re Here, Now What?
When arriving in Paris for the first time, it’s exhilarating. I was tingling with excitement. It’s so new and y...

Story by Eric Jay Toll/Special to GCU News

(Photos by GCU and interviewee)

Selina Ravae Cardenas-Toledo went back to work bartending right after having her daughter. She was making great money. But “I still felt like there was something missing and that I knew I wasn't going to be doing this for the rest of my life,” she said.

That realization set the young, single mother from California on a mission toward a bachelor's in sociology, a master's in mental health and wellness, and, as of...

It was a group of six friends wanting to get away.
Why rent a luxury beachfront home for a trip
“We rented a six-bedroom house on the beach in Florida,” said John Peele, Mariposa, California. “We lived for 10 days in swim trunks and sandals. We walked out to the beach at night, stood in the water, and watched the moon.”
A friend getaway is one reason people rent luxury beachfront destinations in North America or anywhere in the world. Special events like graduation, milestone anniversaries or...

Grand Canyon University is promoting its unique online students. This article feattures
Morgan Lomas, 45, a central Pennsylvanian, who has overcome many challenges in her life, has started a new chapter as an online student at Grand Canyon University, where she began her journey this spring as an early childhood education major.

My bucket list trip to experience winter in Québec was made even more memorable by the excursion to Saguenay.

A winter visit to Québec has long been on my bucket list. It seems pretty offbeat to leave Arizona in February and land not far from the Arctic Circle. The trip to Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean was an unexpected detour from Carnaval in Québec Citie. Bundling up meant I was never cold despite an air temperature that never cleared 12F (-11C). The Québecoise are exceptionally welcoming hosts. ...

Users crave custom products that are catered to them. No matter if it is custom cars, tailored clothing, or custom jewelry, end users like custom products. Commercial real estate is no exception. Tenants appreciate spaces that are customized to their needs and preferences, and that is called build-to-suit. When buying commercial property as a location for your business, it may also be time to consider the build-to-suit process and create a new building that meets specific business needs.
Buil...

A Sedona girls weekend can be a lot of things — active, relaxing, insightful — or just a way to take a step back and reconnect.
What did Hayley Ringle and her friend choose?
“Relaxing,” Hayley says. Laughing, her friend Alicja Wierzchowska agrees. The pair saw Sedona, Arizona, as a perfect girls’ getaway idea.
Gathering friends and heading to Sedona is the way to experience Arizona red rock country at the tip of the Verde Valley and the toe of the Colorado Plateau. It’s a land of food, crysta...

What Are Impact Fees?
“(Developer) impact fees are a charge or tax on construction to pay for associated capital development,” said Julian. “The money has to be used for public facilities.” Impact fees are used primarily to fund new streets, parks, utilities, and emergency and government services.
“It’s a matter of meeting a community halfway,” said Nicholas Julian, senior program manager for land use at the National Association of Home Builders. “We believe in paying our share of capital cos...

It was a well-trekked sandy trail leading us into the thick brush. A gentle breeze rustled the shrubs and straggling mesquite and ironwood trees. In an instant on the short track, we seemed to leave the Sonoran Desert behind and move into a stunted but lush preserve.
Two of us were camping for a long weekend at Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, along the Arizona-Sonora, Mexico border at Lukeville, ...

Every development plan begins somewhere, and that is usually with a feasibility study and an abundance of due diligence to conclude the project is worth pursuing. Once confirmed, there is what seems like an endless list of planning to accomplish, and in new development that includes OAC meetings – Owner, Architect, Contractor.
“(Owner-Architect-Contractor) meetings are the most important component of any project,” Chris Bokstael, AIA, emphasized. “That means communicating with your consultant...

Looking for an adventure in the less-traveled part of Baja California? Read on for an adventure in Bahía de Loreto, Mexico.
“This is an Adam tree,” said Rafa, our guide. “It’s called the Adam tree because, without rain, it always looks naked, except for the red flower.”
Rafael Murillo, a certified guide, tour leader, and scuba diver from Sea and Land Tours, led the line of hikers across the top of a coral dune towards the foot of the Coronados volcano.

The answer to the unasked question is that commercial real estate development is not the right name. Lynn McKee, director of the Masters of Science in Commercial Real Estate program at Georgia State University, makes that observation.
“Commercial real estate is mislabeled,” he said. “It always has been because when people hear (CRE), they think of office buildings and shopping centers; it really should be called ‘income-producing real estate.’”
McKee says that virtually all real estate develo...