Verrado held a Volunteer Appreciation Luncheon on Friday, April 24. The community has been credited with 23,000 volunteer hours in 2008. It's estimated that such donated time would be worth approximately $460,000.00 if the volunteers were being paid.
The award for Outstanding Individual Volunteerism for total hours went to: Rick and Betty Jo Sargent, with more than 1,600 hours.
The award for Outstanding Group Volunteerism for total hours: Summit Community Church, with more than 14,000 hours.
And, the award for Outstanding Volunteer Group: The Bender Family, Mark, Kristine, Picabo and Olivia Bender. For their involvment in raising money and awareness for the Water is Life project.
Cheers to you Verrado and to all of the volunteers!!
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Armed Security Guard's at School...An Opinion Piece
As I'm reading the Southwest Valley section of the Arizona Republic today, I noticed the article about armed security guard, Ray Granillo, accidentally shooting himself in the finger while on duty at a school in Tolleson. Apparently, the gun discharged while in it's holster, untouched, a "freak accident".
Of course, my first thoughts were, "Wow. I'm so glad no one was hurt!" My second thought was, "It's a shame we need to have armed security guards with loaded weapons at our high schools." However, as I continued to read the article, I was shocked to discover that this incident did not occur at a high school, or even middle school, this was at Arizona Desert Elementary School!
Elementary school! Kindergarten through sixth grade, reading, writing and arithmetic. In a facility where songs about the alphabet and holding hands while crossing the street can still be heard, there is armed security ready to fire.
Now, I don't really want to get into a debate about whether or not guns should be allowed on school grounds, by security guards or teachers. I understand the threat and fear of school violence, of school shootings like Columbine and Virginia Tech. And I understand the threat of an outsider coming in, like the suspect running from police and hiding out on school grounds, I get that. But this is an elementary school. I'm not saying that means they are exempt from tragedy, but should they be exempt from the innocence of what being in elementary school is all about?
In elementary school, you should expect to see dodge ball, and hop-scotch and what-have-you, and as far as law enforcement, I can remember all to well, the oldest, meanest-looking teacher with a whistle around their neck and a stack of tickets that would send you straight to the Principal's office. When did that stop being enough? When did we go straight from a whistle and the threat of parents being called, to law enforcement officials and loaded guns?
I welcome any one's opinion. I am shocked and confused and honestly, a little sad at this thought.
Of course, my first thoughts were, "Wow. I'm so glad no one was hurt!" My second thought was, "It's a shame we need to have armed security guards with loaded weapons at our high schools." However, as I continued to read the article, I was shocked to discover that this incident did not occur at a high school, or even middle school, this was at Arizona Desert Elementary School!
Elementary school! Kindergarten through sixth grade, reading, writing and arithmetic. In a facility where songs about the alphabet and holding hands while crossing the street can still be heard, there is armed security ready to fire.
Now, I don't really want to get into a debate about whether or not guns should be allowed on school grounds, by security guards or teachers. I understand the threat and fear of school violence, of school shootings like Columbine and Virginia Tech. And I understand the threat of an outsider coming in, like the suspect running from police and hiding out on school grounds, I get that. But this is an elementary school. I'm not saying that means they are exempt from tragedy, but should they be exempt from the innocence of what being in elementary school is all about?
In elementary school, you should expect to see dodge ball, and hop-scotch and what-have-you, and as far as law enforcement, I can remember all to well, the oldest, meanest-looking teacher with a whistle around their neck and a stack of tickets that would send you straight to the Principal's office. When did that stop being enough? When did we go straight from a whistle and the threat of parents being called, to law enforcement officials and loaded guns?
I welcome any one's opinion. I am shocked and confused and honestly, a little sad at this thought.
Monday, April 27, 2009
Dissention in the Ranks
It's no secret that Buckeye's City Council has had some...differences of opinion in the past with its members. It would seem that that is coming around again to face councilman, David Hardesty. Sundance resident, Mark Landvit filed a recall-packet accusing Hardesty of using his seat for personal gain.
The accusations focus on the construction of the new Town Hall building in downtown, Buckeye. Core Construction won the Council vote for the building contract. The issue comes from Hardesty's business, AAA Insulation LLC, now also being involved in the build, having won the bid from Core Construction after the vote.
According to a claim within the recall packet itself, "His [Hardesty] voting record confirms he has routinely voted on projects that involved developers and companies he has personally done business with. He is using his council seat, and therefore the residents of District 4, for personal gain."
I think we can all agree that you don't run for City Council with the hopes of creating a solid financial future for yourself. If there is in fact a proven history of voting with ulterior motives, then certainly, these questions need to be addressed and Councilman Hardesty should answer them. We trust our elected officials to act in the best interest of of their citizens, not merely of themselves. Love of one's neighborhood and consideration of the best direction of the town, should always be the main focus.
The recall election, if it comes to that, would happen within 6 months of the regular election cycle for the District 4 seat. So why would one even bother? Why not just let it ride itself out? The answer is simple, no matter how long or how short the time, we need to send a message to our trusted, elected officials that we are watching to make sure that we made the right choice by putting someone in office. And if we didn't, we are still willing to act to correct our mistakes, even if it seems futile.
However, the question remains: Does Buckeye need a recall election for Hardesty to answer for these allegations? He should be given the opportunity to offer a thoughtful response describing his reasoning on why he should be able to vote on issues which may lead to personal gain. In other cities, councilmembers routinely sit out (or declare a conflict) on an issue that may impact their personal business.
Buckeye's mayor, Jackie Meck has been urging the City Council to back off of the recall attempts citing that this is a crucial development time for the City, however, so far, these attempts have gone unheard.
The accusations focus on the construction of the new Town Hall building in downtown, Buckeye. Core Construction won the Council vote for the building contract. The issue comes from Hardesty's business, AAA Insulation LLC, now also being involved in the build, having won the bid from Core Construction after the vote.
According to a claim within the recall packet itself, "His [Hardesty] voting record confirms he has routinely voted on projects that involved developers and companies he has personally done business with. He is using his council seat, and therefore the residents of District 4, for personal gain."
I think we can all agree that you don't run for City Council with the hopes of creating a solid financial future for yourself. If there is in fact a proven history of voting with ulterior motives, then certainly, these questions need to be addressed and Councilman Hardesty should answer them. We trust our elected officials to act in the best interest of of their citizens, not merely of themselves. Love of one's neighborhood and consideration of the best direction of the town, should always be the main focus.
The recall election, if it comes to that, would happen within 6 months of the regular election cycle for the District 4 seat. So why would one even bother? Why not just let it ride itself out? The answer is simple, no matter how long or how short the time, we need to send a message to our trusted, elected officials that we are watching to make sure that we made the right choice by putting someone in office. And if we didn't, we are still willing to act to correct our mistakes, even if it seems futile.
However, the question remains: Does Buckeye need a recall election for Hardesty to answer for these allegations? He should be given the opportunity to offer a thoughtful response describing his reasoning on why he should be able to vote on issues which may lead to personal gain. In other cities, councilmembers routinely sit out (or declare a conflict) on an issue that may impact their personal business.
Buckeye's mayor, Jackie Meck has been urging the City Council to back off of the recall attempts citing that this is a crucial development time for the City, however, so far, these attempts have gone unheard.
Friday, April 24, 2009
Oh, Ca-a-nada!
The Phoenix Coyotes are in financial crisis. A lot of rumors have been flying around about the team being moved to Canada or sold somewhere else. However, the current owner of the Coyotes, Jerry Moyes, would pay a penalty of $750 million if the team were to break its 30-year lease with the city of Glendale for the Jobing.com arena. Moyes, the owner of the Swift trucking company has been under financial duress with his primary company.
However, it seems that for now, a move is not in the current future. The current ownership group and their investors are looking for other private avenues to cover the costs. In the meantime, the Jobing.com arena ,where the Coyotes play has it's own questions up in the air. For a period of approximately seven months, the lease on the arena was not being paid. A bail-out from the City of Glendale to the Coyotes to keep them afloat was set in place and could have been worth up to $4 million over the course of a year.
Glendale Mayor Elaine Scruggs assured that tax payers would not be responsible for the bill but declined to comment on who was actually making the payments.
I think it's safe to say that losing the Coyotes would be devastating to the already struggling City of Glendale, even if the team hasn't gone to the playoffs for the past 6 years. The City has been discussing it's options for gaining more revenue and we wish them the best of luck.
However, it seems that for now, a move is not in the current future. The current ownership group and their investors are looking for other private avenues to cover the costs. In the meantime, the Jobing.com arena ,where the Coyotes play has it's own questions up in the air. For a period of approximately seven months, the lease on the arena was not being paid. A bail-out from the City of Glendale to the Coyotes to keep them afloat was set in place and could have been worth up to $4 million over the course of a year.
Glendale Mayor Elaine Scruggs assured that tax payers would not be responsible for the bill but declined to comment on who was actually making the payments.
I think it's safe to say that losing the Coyotes would be devastating to the already struggling City of Glendale, even if the team hasn't gone to the playoffs for the past 6 years. The City has been discussing it's options for gaining more revenue and we wish them the best of luck.
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Crazy Game of Poker
Gaming has been in the news a lot as of late. From a tribe's efforts to bring a Casino to Glendale to the Legislature's recent thoughts about expanding gaming outside the reservations into other parts of the state.Ah....*sigh*.... Arizona gaming. Always a hot topic in our political community, it would seem. The latest from the legislature is a dream of Arizona opening it's own casino-type facilities generating revenue directly for the state. They seem to be of the mind, if it's working out so well economically for the Indian community, why don't we do the same thing? After all, expanded gaming would be better than raising taxes, right?
Well, this is where my mind went into a "good idea, bad idea" kind of mode. The theory itself sure sounds like a positive.
Good idea - why not open up our own casino? We could generate lots of money for the local economy, keeping our own profits, and we could probably bring in some big name hotels and restaurants which would also bring more shopping. Why not?
Here's why not:
Bad idea - the existing Indian casinos actually already pay a percentage of their profits to the state. The Indian community has their own resources to build hotels and meeting centers while negotiating the builds on their land, not infringing on state land that could be developed into other projects. Also, and this is a biggie, you can smoke in an Indian casino. Now I understand that to all of the non-smokers, this may not be a big deal, but trust me, if you're talking to the majority of the gambling population out there, the ability to smoke at one's table while playing and not having to get up, leave your seat and go outside is a deal breaker.
Now, some of you may be asking, "Well, we could keep the state-wide smoking ban and just allow smoking in the casinos we want to build." Sorry folks, but we already blew that chance a couple of years ago when the majority of voters passed Prop 201 - banning smoking in most public places including bars, racetracks, and off-track betting sites.
While the idea of our own state-wide money maker is certainly appealing. I believe we are better leaving things the way they are in this situation. In the event that Arizona opened up its own facilities, the Indian casinos would then have no limitations on the number of gambling machines, game tables and other attractions they could have. We would start small, they would just get bigger, we wouldn't make a lot of money, they would make even more and we would lose out on our current arrangement of having anything from them coming back to the state.
In short, it's a nice idea when you don't think of the other consequences, but we should look at other options and leave this one alone. Expanded gaming is a slippery slope that may have many unintended consequences. The West Valley doesn't need to become East Las Vegas.
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Goodyear Cuts Back on Mobile Obligation
Reading the Southwest Valley section of the Republic today, I noticed quite a bit about Goodyear's financial woes. Goodyear's current budget shortfall stands at $13.9 million. One interesting line from the print article says, "Goodyear depends heavily on growth and construction."
One area where you can see the pitfalls of this strategy is the failed venture in Mobile. Also featured today is an article regarding the cut backs to police and fire in Mobile, AZ. A drop from $2.1 million to $250,000, no doubt saving the city of Goodyear quite a lot of money, but what is going on with Mobile?
So the story goes, a couple of years ago, a large development was in the works to be built south of the Estrella Mountain community in Mobile, AZ. Large to the scale of like Verrado in Buckeye or Goodyear's existing Estrella Mountain. The developer, Scottsdale-based Montage Holdings promised this large 10,000+ acre project in exchange for Goodyear's agreement to annex a large portion of the Sonoran Valley. As part of the agreement, Montage agreed to reimburse Goodyear for the added police and fire services in Mobile. When the developer had financial troubles, Goodyear picked up the costs. Then, the project was foreclosed upon. Now, Goodyear has been paying this huge amount of money and hasn't had much to show for it. This is the danger of a budget strategy that demands high rate of growth.
What were they to do? The answer has been to cut back on the commitment for these services by about 88%. While I feel for the town of Mobile and I'm sure some of it's inhabitants are disappointed with the staff of now only one deputy working only 40 hours a week and fire shifts down to only 2 people per shift, I feel that Goodyear is only partially to blame for letting this town down.
Developers should be wary in the future to make sure that if they are willing to commit one city to deliver to another, they need to be able to keep up their end of the bargain. As the economy recovers, cities like Goodyear would be smart to rethink the long-term effects of any of the deals that they cut.
One area where you can see the pitfalls of this strategy is the failed venture in Mobile. Also featured today is an article regarding the cut backs to police and fire in Mobile, AZ. A drop from $2.1 million to $250,000, no doubt saving the city of Goodyear quite a lot of money, but what is going on with Mobile?
So the story goes, a couple of years ago, a large development was in the works to be built south of the Estrella Mountain community in Mobile, AZ. Large to the scale of like Verrado in Buckeye or Goodyear's existing Estrella Mountain. The developer, Scottsdale-based Montage Holdings promised this large 10,000+ acre project in exchange for Goodyear's agreement to annex a large portion of the Sonoran Valley. As part of the agreement, Montage agreed to reimburse Goodyear for the added police and fire services in Mobile. When the developer had financial troubles, Goodyear picked up the costs. Then, the project was foreclosed upon. Now, Goodyear has been paying this huge amount of money and hasn't had much to show for it. This is the danger of a budget strategy that demands high rate of growth.
What were they to do? The answer has been to cut back on the commitment for these services by about 88%. While I feel for the town of Mobile and I'm sure some of it's inhabitants are disappointed with the staff of now only one deputy working only 40 hours a week and fire shifts down to only 2 people per shift, I feel that Goodyear is only partially to blame for letting this town down.
Developers should be wary in the future to make sure that if they are willing to commit one city to deliver to another, they need to be able to keep up their end of the bargain. As the economy recovers, cities like Goodyear would be smart to rethink the long-term effects of any of the deals that they cut.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Wigwam Resort in foreclosure
In the past several months, the citizens of the West Valley have been enjoying a bounty of promising economic growth projects. The new Cardinals stadium and Westgate plaza in Glendale, and the new Indians spring training facility in Goodyear to name a couple. Despite the unfortunate housing market, we were still feeling pretty good about ourselves. So imagine my dismay at finding out that Litchfield Park's beloved Wigwam Resort is currently in foreclosure and will be up for public auction on July 9.
The management company, Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide Inc., which has been managing the Wigwam since 2001, let employees know that they would not be renewing upcoming contracts and that layoffs would begin in May. The problem came about when the property owner, Kabuto Arizona Properties LLC, began defaulting on a $65 million dollar loan it had received from Citigroup Global Markets Realty in June 2007.
I can't imagine anyone who has spent any time at the Wigwam isn't shocked by this unfortunate turn of events. The Wigwam Resort is one of Arizona's original luxury resorts. The grounds are immaculate, the rooms are beyond comfortable and the staff exudes the kind of extraordinary hospitality that can only be found in the West Valley. The Wigwam rivals anything that one could find in Scottsdale or Paradise Valley.
So what does this mean for the city of Litchfield Park? Darryl Crossman, Litchfield Park’s city manager said, “It’s a surprise. I knew there were financial problems, but when I heard that Starwood had a meeting yesterday with their employees, I knew it was something big." Litchfield Park is home to about 4,500 residents and at the center of their economic heart is the Wigwam Resort.
The West Valley is more than jails, swap marts, farm-land and Air Force bases. We have a stake in Arizona's luxury industry and the rest of the Valley knows it. The Cardinals stadium and the new spring training facility could have gone anywhere else but they came here. We should all be watching these events regarding the Wigwam as they unfold. Litchfield Park is one of our own and they need our support. Until any decisions can be made about this five-star resort, know that our thoughts are with you Litchfield Park!
The management company, Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide Inc., which has been managing the Wigwam since 2001, let employees know that they would not be renewing upcoming contracts and that layoffs would begin in May. The problem came about when the property owner, Kabuto Arizona Properties LLC, began defaulting on a $65 million dollar loan it had received from Citigroup Global Markets Realty in June 2007.
I can't imagine anyone who has spent any time at the Wigwam isn't shocked by this unfortunate turn of events. The Wigwam Resort is one of Arizona's original luxury resorts. The grounds are immaculate, the rooms are beyond comfortable and the staff exudes the kind of extraordinary hospitality that can only be found in the West Valley. The Wigwam rivals anything that one could find in Scottsdale or Paradise Valley.
So what does this mean for the city of Litchfield Park? Darryl Crossman, Litchfield Park’s city manager said, “It’s a surprise. I knew there were financial problems, but when I heard that Starwood had a meeting yesterday with their employees, I knew it was something big." Litchfield Park is home to about 4,500 residents and at the center of their economic heart is the Wigwam Resort.
The West Valley is more than jails, swap marts, farm-land and Air Force bases. We have a stake in Arizona's luxury industry and the rest of the Valley knows it. The Cardinals stadium and the new spring training facility could have gone anywhere else but they came here. We should all be watching these events regarding the Wigwam as they unfold. Litchfield Park is one of our own and they need our support. Until any decisions can be made about this five-star resort, know that our thoughts are with you Litchfield Park!
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