in the East Ballroom of Chaparral Suites Resort,
5001 North Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale, Arizona.

Contact: Becky Fenger (602) 955-1930

Okay, what is it with some of this crap folks?

Who is paying for the power lines to be put underground here, all of the taxpayers?

Why is it the city just not to long ago told the South Scottsdale folks if we wanted them buried here, we had to pay for it ourselves?

What is it again with these stupid (#&%) roundabout’s and how does that work with the master transportation plan?

If we want roundabouts in this city we should go and look in Jan Dolan’s old stomping grounds where they have now been removed.

I tell ya, if one hand had any clue what the other hand in this city was doing it would be amazing!

How much is this all costing us for these stupid (#&%) roundabouts?

And some of you wonder why it is time for a change in this city, first you tell one side of the city if you want the power lines gone, pay for it yourself while on the other side of the city all of the tax payers pay for this service.

How stupid and thoughtless!

Like I have said before, the only rift between North and South that exist is the one that the council and staff creates by design.

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Along the same lines, try going into Ironwood Village (in north Scottsdale) now via "Downing Olson" which was one light north of the 101 exit 36 on Pima. That is now closed so that the city can move Pima closer to Ironwood Village to "Straighten out the dangerous curves on that section".

So now in order to get into Ironwood Village, you must go East on Bell Road past the ALLTEL Ice Den, turn left onto 94th St. and then proceed through a "round-a-bout" to get into Ironwood Village.  They say this is only temporary and that Downing Olson will be reopened for North-bound Pima traffic at the end of November.  So for 2 months we have to negotiate this "round-about" which no large truck can even get past without running straight over the middle of it.  I hope no one has to move and needs a moving tractor-trailer as it will not be able to get in.  Or if you need any other type of service like a delivery of something....forget it.

The city Dept. of Transportation told the Ironwood Village HOA that Downing Olson would only be closed for 4 days.  Now we know the truth!

No signage to direct anyone at Downing Olson on Pima; .....just "Use 94th St".....as if everyone even knows what that means or where 94th ST even is!

You are right....the City Of Scottsdale Transportation Department is inept at the least, and incompetent at the most.  Oh well......they work for Mary....what do you expect?

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Well folks here we go with the Photo Radar issue again and I have to say the staff presentation so far is pretty slick if not already looming proof that the program has not solved one thing about speeds on the 101 and conveniently asks the council to extend the program for another period of time to collect further data with the cameras off (but sensors on).

What kind of data would you really expect to catch other than the inevitable increase in speeds again when everyone knows the cameras are off?

I am interested to see how the city will add that data in as the need to keep the cameras or else mayhem would resume on the freeway, it is an "old" city trick actually.

I love that they are presenting some of these polls that even the papers reported one being from people older than the speed limit and the numbers of who took the polls are so stupid it is about as funny as the Scottsdale Poll they used for this fiasco which never even asked a question of freeway photo radar, and those numbers are just as bad in regards to the amount of people contacted in proportion to the cities population.

If any of you download the file to this, you can easily note that the numbers of the "daily speed detection summary" in the attachments section shows absolutely no indication that the system has done anything. (Click on the link below)

I remember that during the city council meeting on this issue the city manager said that it would take possibly up to 300,000 tickets to recover the city funds used for this, but the city now says the money is being recovered with only 182,833 citations of which only 110,962 got notices (Ooops, you don't pay for a notice just a citation) or citations and of that, only 69,000 have been filed with the court, of which 12,437 have been dismissed and only 40,511 cases have been closed with only 18,369 paying a fine and 9,381 opting for driving school. (Those paying a fine or taking driving school equal a paltry 15.2% conviction rate.)

Let’s not forget that the State is taking a chunk (Approx 47%) of the money collected and doing nothing to earn it.

It is no wonder the city budget is so complicated under the current math we seem to use in this city but don't you worry because the city says we are up by ^$600,000 and then tells us that some of the other costs are not in this report.

Anyone smell a rat in the mix knowing the numbers already are being jumbled and rosy pictures are being reported by staff?

Redflex still has a nearly 40% failure rate for the cameras as noted yet again in the city’s own documentation.

In my opinion, and one that will be strongly expressed at this council meeting is that the city council needs to stop jerking around with a State problem regarding transportation.

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In an article written by Lesley Wright in the September 25^th 2006 Scottsdale Republic, the headline says "Littlefield wants challenger to Manross". 

We at the Scottsdale Activist want to thank Councilman Bob Littlefield for bringing into full public view what has been suggested more than once in prior editions of the Scottsdale Activist and by many citizens; This city really needs a serious change In city government and government direction. 

The statement that "Manross just laughed when told about Littlefield’s plan" shows how out of touch Manross really is and we pray she stays that way which won’t be very hard for her to do because of her inflated ego. 

Littlefield’s comments "Mary has no vision for the city," "In the past five years, she has been reactive to everything. That’s why we have all these screw-ups." This tells a story that any citizen whom has been paying any attention at all knows very well and is in full agreement with Littlefield’s comments. 

Wright asked Manross if she was scared, to which Manross replied "Absolutely not" laughing some more. 

Well madam mayor, keep laughing. We feel there are quite a few well qualified possible candidates and some with excellent plans, impeccable credentials, honesty to a fault, and Ethics we haven’t seen in this city for over 8 years who could easily fill the position of mayor and send you quickly packing into full retirement. 

It’s time we became serious about our quest to clean up our city government by looking at those who could step into the shoes of those whom we feel are not doing their jobs in a manner commensurate with a city of the stature of Scottsdale at our next  council election. 

According to the August City Political Action Committee List, current council members Betty Drake, Ron McCullagh, Jim Lane and Mayor Mary Manross are up for re-election and their PAC’s are in place. In addition, Nan Nesvig, Ned O’Hearn, Bill Crawford, and Joe Bramoweth all have PAC’s in place for the election. We expect more qualified citizens to come forward to run for the three council seats. Among those whom have been suggested as "could be’s" by our readers include Christine Schild, Nancy Cantor, Mike Kelly, Susan Wood, Rita Saunders-Hawranek, Mike Merrill, Michelle Aubert, Suzanne Klapp, and this editor who declined immediately. 

For the position of mayor, there aren’t any PAC’s listed unless one of the above switches from council candidate to mayoral candidate which we hope they don't. We know of a select few qualified citizens who would do and excellent job turning this city around with their vast knowledge of ethics, honesty, legal issues, government operations, and the internal workings of the city of Scottsdale. It has been suggested that Betty Drake, Wayne Ecton, and former councilman Jim Burke have mentioned they might like to be mayor.

Others mentioned by our readers epitomize the ultimate mayoral candidate in the minds of many because of their non political connection to the council or city government and their unselfish and welcomed highly ethical, honest, and esteemed services to the city of Scottsdale over the years: Dr. Art DeCabooter, Attorney Jim Derouin, and Ross Dean. 

The Scottsdale Republic in their Editorial of 28, September 2006 states "The council's bowl runs over. This is where its attention belongs, not on a distant election. Give speculation about the mayor and her potential opponents a rest. There is real work to be done."

Lot's of luck on that happening. The majority on the council is in lock-step with the mayor and what she says, goes. I think that maybe those "3 Monkey" ads should be revived and adjusted to fit the "Manross Four" (Manross, Ecton, Drake, and McCullagh) which would be real easy about now.

The Scottsdale Republic Editorial Staff needs to wake up! The mayor started her run for re-election when she denied that she opposed or supported prop 401 and similar comments on SkySong and the Light Rail situation trying to move herself back to the political center to be a neutral centrist.

This woman is an extremely shrewd and cagy politician which is her one and only long suit that is well known by those who have been around to watch her underhanded, wily ways over the last 12 + years. It’s truly sad that she can’t compete and produce in the areas where the Republic Editorial staff correctly pointed out help is desperately needed. If the Republic's editorial staff had been closely watching the mayor over those 12 years, they would have an entirely different take on the situation.

If any readers have more suggestions on potential candidates, please drop us a note at:

editor@scottsdaleactivist.com

We’re open to all suggestions and we need to start our preliminary investigations and selections now for the 2008 election. Manross and company have already quietly started their run and fund raising activities.

Ethics were not a concern during Scottsdale’s early history. City government was extremely open and accessible especially prior to and during the Drinkwater years, because everything was up front and public. Were there some things done that shouldn’t have been? Possibly, but no one ever really complained.

When Mayor Drinkwater retired, "Sam" Campana was elected and things started going south. First, there was the reported "gentlemen’s agreements" to over spend on city art projects. We also begin to hear of meetings where the public hadn’t been invited, and the infamous 911 faux paus by Mayor Sam.

When Mary Manross was elected mayor, we began to see more Executive Session (secret) meetings where deals are not suppose to be cut, but because there aren’t any records available, nobody had any proof of any secret dealings one way or the other.

By state law, Executive Sessions are meetings in which no decisions can be made on any issue and the proceedings of the meeting are not recorded and cannot be disclosed or the disclosing person will lose their elected or appointed position. It is suppose to be a time where sensitive personnel issues are discussed so an educated decision can be made at a public meeting.

Because of the number of questionable decisions made by the Manross administration, it appeared to more and more people that city hall was out of touch with the public. In addition, it seemed like there were more times when every council vote became more of a "done deal" even when 100% of the public attending the city council meeting did not want what the council approved.

From these votes against the wishes of general public and other issues came the need for a strong, enforceable City Ethics Code to rein in a runaway administration and city government.

As a result of a Citizen’s Petition to the council by resident James Derouin, a panel of citizens was chosen to determine the need, then the composition of a new ethics code which would be for all members of the city government from the mayor to the part time employee. They did exactly as requested and a strong, enforceable ethics code is now in force—one for employees and one for elected and appointed officials.

To make sure there were no infractions, council members, board and commission members, etc. are required to declare when there could be a conflict of interest with something on which they are to vote. To eliminate the possibility of favoritism, that person recuses themselves from participating and/or voting on the issue or be in violation of the Ethics Code; the person must also refrain from participating in any way in the issue meaning that the person cannot talk to or lobby his or her colleagues (or any city employee) on the issue.

Here’s the rub.

We elect our city council and they select our Board, Commission, and Committee members to represent us on each issue before the council or other entities. If one of those representatives recuses himself for any reason, he is not doing what he was elected to do—i.e., represent the voters, large and small, in the public interest.

To cleanse our city government, we need to elect and appoint representatives who are not connected by their profession to those who do business in or for the city of Scottsdale. Neither the City Council nor its appointed boards should be used for business development purposes any more than they should be used to advance the personal interests of any individual member. Members are elected (to the Council) and appointed (to a board or commission) to impartially serve in the public interested, not their own. If any members in any of the above entities cannot now meet those qualifications, they should resign immediately before a formal complaint is filed against them.

Let the Ethics training, and full  and unabridged compliance, begin.

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Scottsdale now has two (2) excellent and Valley envied Ethics Codes for elected, appointed, contracted, and for employed city people. These simple but direct and very understandable ethics codes, although possibly a pain in some people’s minds, are the only way to clean up this city politically and ethically by making sure that those paid by the city give an hours work for an hours pay without collusion in any manner, and volunteers don’t use the appointment as a position from which to solicit business for the enhancement of themselves or their private firms. 

We have been advised by numerous city employees that there are other city employees working for the city as regular employees, contract employees, or city contractors who have jobs outside the city but are using their personal or city phones to conduct business for the outside job while doing city work on city time. Many have the proper forms filled out approved by their supervisors to work outside the city, but are still doing their secondary outside work on city time which is unethical. There are others who are working a second job on city time who have not been approved to do so which is a violation of city policy and unethical.

We have also been advised that items that are considered private property which have been confiscated for being illegally placed, improperly used, or set out as trash have been given by supervisors, at no charge, to city employees which, in our mind, is out right theft of private property and shouldn’t be allowed to happen. No city supervisor or employee should be allowed to either give or take any item owned by a private party even though it has been confiscated for being in violation of any law or ordinance without the owners expressed and written permission. If the items are not to be returned to the rightful owner, they should be destroyed or auctioned at a city auction with the money going to one of the city citizen "Help" funds. 

Some will call this an unnecessary witch hunt and an invasion of privacy. We see it as protecting our city from fraud and theft. From what we have seen and heard, only those violating the law or the ethics code would participate in such salacious accusations or legal dodge ball.

We think we've had enough back room deals, smoke and mirrors presentations, and other apparently secret dealings within the city in the last 8+ years and it's time for everything to be brought to the surface and cleaned up.

How that is done is up to those participating in those things which are known to be less than ethical. If they can't clean it up themselves, the public will have no choice but to do that cleaning for them.

On September 23, 2006, the Scottsdale Republic correctly quoted me concerning my statements to the Scottsdale City Council on Villa Monterey as follows;

"But that acquisition needs to be fair to all parties involved and that means paying a fair price, an acceptable mediated price that is good for both the owner and the city" "Anything other than that smacks of a city with deep pockets… publicly bullying a property owner with a ridiculous offer for a valuable piece of property"

They went on to say "Wow. And this comes from people who usually complain that the city is paying too much."

Let’s set the record straight:

Those of us who "Complain that the city is paying too much" are actually complaining because the city spends taxpayer’s money in places where it doesn’t need to be spent. We don’t need to spend millions of dollars on unneeded and unwanted traffic circles, round-about’s and traffic calming "street furniture" when we have traffic gridlock in the downtown area that needed immediate attention 5 years ago. The problem will escalate on a grand scale when the new downtown condos become occupied if something isn't done soon. We didn’t need to spend 7 million dollars on freeway photo radar and many other "mayoral feel good" things for the same absurd reasons.

The problem is simple:

The Manross administration thrives on spending taxpayer dollars on things that make the administration, not the city, stand out from the other cities in the valley and by getting their names in the media rather than solving those mundane, everyday situations such as gridlock which can bury any city in severe deferred maintenance and many other issues if not handled on a daily basis.

Solving everyday problems of a city doesn’t bring the glitz and adulation from the fickle press but allows the city to prosper and grow on a steady and positive course rather than becoming an overspent, over bonded, over extended, and transportation gridlocked "has been" instead of the world class city it should be.

Now that Scottsdale is close to build-out and at the current spending rate of this administration, the tax revenues will dry up unless the administration can manufacture a way to con the citizens into approving more and higher high rise buildings in the southern portion of the city in the name of "progress" to increase tax revenues which none of us want. Keeping the current laws and ordinances which are currently on the books will allow for a well financed city  with super services without added property or sales taxes being needed.

If the wishes of those in the south are followed as closely to those in the north, this city will prosper because it hasn't gone high rise. We will be one of the very few highly desirable cities in the United States that hasn't fallen for the need to increase taxes by building "up" to satisfy the politicians.

-- George Knowlton

~ Home of the Week

From a sow's ear to a silk purse! Another of those highly desirable, single level brick Hallcraft homes that is nestled among other 45+ year old, well kept homes. This property was a regular stop for both the Scottsdale Police Dept., the Drug Enforcement Authority, and Code Enforcement for many years. It was finally sold and the change the neighbors saw was amazing, welcomed and truly appreciated by everyone who knows the history.

The entire landscape and home are kept neat, painted, well trimmed and just plain lovely to look at and appreciate. Out went the grass and in came xeriscape landscaping to reduce costs and help make the property more environmentally sensitive according to those making the change.

There are many wonderful and beautiful neighborhoods within the city of Scottsdale. Do yourself a favor and take the long way home sometime and see what other home owners are doing to improve their neighborhoods. How does your home compare?

If you know of an outstanding home which you feel should to be honored by having the picture displayed in the Scottsdale Activist, send the address to editor@scottsdaleactivist.com .

We have been asked why we don't include homes in HOA controlled subdivisions. We are looking for exceptional homes in areas where the homeowner has to be the driving force behind the beautiful home, not the HOA rules and regulations. We would definitely look at any home in a HOA controlled area that is exceptional and owner maintained rather than by a lawn or landscape service, but so far, we haven't been advised of any that meet that criteria.

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 ~ View Past City Council Meetings

We can now access the city council meetings by clicking on the following link

http://scottsdale.granicus.com/ViewPublisher.php?view_id=3

If you have any problems, check your firewall and other safety features which could block access to the city site.

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For the past four years, it has been an article of faith that the most pressing issue facing Scottsdale city government is traffic.

In the past two municipal elections, every candidate has agreed with this statement. Scottsdale's two major newspapers have editorialized that this is true. Most important, in every survey conducted, residents tell us that traffic is their biggest concern.

With that in mind, we on the City Council voted last November to hire a consultant to update the city's Transportation Master Plan. My hope was that we would receive some unbiased, technical advice from transportation professionals about how best to solve our most pressing traffic problems.

I should have known better. Ten months into this contract, what we have received is a series of "educational" meetings - thinly disguised commercials for light rail. If you don't believe that, go to the city's Web site www.ci.scottsdale.az.us/ and read the minutes of the July meeting of the Scottsdale Transportation Commission, where the consultants gave an update on their efforts so far. Every word was about mass transit.

This is a classic case of misplaced priorities. When I hear from residents who are concerned about traffic problems in our city, they're not clamoring for mass transit. They want answers to questions, such as what we on the council plan to do about traffic congestion on Chaparral and roads and on Loop 101. The question of what type of mass transit (if any) to use on Scottsdale Road is important, but it's nowhere near being the most pressing transportation issue in Scottsdale.

We do need some form of mass transit - some residents cannot or don't want to drive. We need to accommodate them. But no matter what form of mass transit we select, the reality is that the vast majority of residents will continue to travel by automobile. Therefore, our highest priority has to be making automobile traffic flow freely and safely. Making that happen should have city government's undivided attention.

The other problem with the consultant's fixation on light rail is money. Light rail is ridiculously expensive - costs are currently $70 million per mile and rising. For a fraction of the cost of light rail, we could provide enhanced bus and/or trolley service in areas of Scottsdale where some form of mass transit might be appropriate. If we adopt light rail, it will be a raid upon the city's treasury that will make the generous subsidies that we've dispensed in the past seem like chump change.

Light rail also is disruptive - some businesses in the path of light rail in Phoenix will be closed for more than two years to accommodate construction. Furthermore, light rail is out of touch with the character of Scottsdale and with preferences of residents.

If residents aren't clamoring for light rail, then who's leading the charge for it? The answer is that it's the same groups that have been pushing the council for years to make Scottsdale more urban, with taller buildings, greater density, and (now) more urban modes of transportation.

That "vision" might be highly profitable for certain special interests, but it's at odds with what we, the voters of Scottsdale, decided that we wanted for our city when we approved our General Plan. That plan describes a Scottsdale with open vistas and a suburban or, in some parts of the city, a rural environment.

While the advocates of a more urban Scottsdale are entitled to their vision of our city, they're not entitled to subvert the desires of residents by conducting end-runs around the voter-approved General Plan.

We on the council have a duty to not let that happen.

Councilman Bob Littlefield, bob@boblittlefield.com.

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I have to respond to your commentary pertaining to the perceived negativity of the Scottsdale Activist. It seems to this 16 year resident that working to defeat a bad idea is, unambiguously, an affirmative act.  

Indeed, simple arithmetic tells us that "two negatives equal a positive." And while the spin machine of the vested interests are paid a lot of money to attack and demean individuals such as yourself for your efforts, the citizens whose interests you are trying to protect are grateful for your "naysaying."

Chuck Peters
Scottsdale

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I  do  not  believe  that setting up a mayoral  contest by the council for the  election  two  years from  now  is the  most  critical decision  by this  sitting Council. What it does do however is to make the Mayor and her advocates realize  there  is a real  difference  of opinion in the community about this Council's  priorities  and that perhaps the Mayor should start to listen to ALL of the community instead of just the special interest  groups   that  support  her.

Bob Littlefield has done this city a great service, a wakeup call, by making the  community aware  of the  long  simmering debate about how  this city  is  being run and  for  whom. One  of  the  most  important challenges  for this Council is to reconsider is this push  for light rail. It is NOT an  effective solution  for Scottsdale's traffic  concerns.

Another concern for this council is to actually get the SkySong/ASU project built  and 100% occupied ...NOW.

I think that Mayor Manross has continued  to make tranquility on the Council her priority  when her real  priority should be leadership for the future  of this  city. A mayor cannot nor should not try to placate everyone. This is an impossible task.

Leadership always brings dissension, however it is dynamic leadership this growing city needs and  sadly, it is not happening.

Paul F. Reich
Scottsdale,Arizona

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That’s funny, the Mayor of Scottsdale did the same thing as described (in the article) below during the vote to increase the Spending Cap in Scottsdale but our great and all knowing City Attorney made a quick decision to shield the Mayor from the fact that she violated state laws.

From an article by Betty Reid in The Arizona Republic Sept. 27, 2006 12:00 AM

"Bill Wiess, a candidate for the Roosevelt Elementary School District board, is in a bit of hot water after using a public e-mail list server to hype a city councilman's endorsement."

"Wiess, also a member of the advisory council, dispatched the communication Sunday. Using his personal e-mail, the south Phoenix school board candidate attached a copy of Johnson's endorsement letter and urged his colleagues to, "Feel free to forward this endorsement to any interested parties and voters.""

Of Course the Republic criticizes me in the issue when they printed it and they also know that what the Mayor did was illegal.

The city attorney never checked the list the Mayor claims to have used to see how much of it matched the city web server list which I would bet was over 50% which should have landed the Mayor in hot water.

That is also reminiscent of the fact the city told me I had to file my photo radar petitions on Thanksgiving Day instead of after the legal holiday in which all city offices were posted publicly as closed and even State laws clearly defined that holidays and weekends they do not perform petition work.

If the Scottsdale Republic ever wants to be a real paper in the city, they should start looking at when the city is breaking the laws and when un-ethical practices and abuses of power are trumping the citizen’s rights in this city.

The Mayor should not even still be in her seat since she has said publicly that she will seek another term and the Scottsdale Republic printed it. According to State laws, the Mayor should have to resign her position but don't ask the Scottsdale Republic for an opinion on anything the powers that be in this city get away with.

Regards,

Michael Merrill
Scottsdale

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Contrary to baseless claims that Skysong is the key to the revitalization of South Scottsdale, the exact opposite is now true.

As private money pours into the area;  as homeowners renovate on a massive scale;  as the Granite Reef Senior Center proves to be a huge success; as the Granite Reef Senior Apartments attract new residents;  as Lowe's prepares to open; as the McDowell and  Scottsdale Road streetscape programs commence; Skysong remains a dirt lot and an embarrassing eyesore.

Had the City of Scottsdale issued a Request for Development (RFD) at the time it acquired the property over two years ago, this prime site would now be improved, most likely with a mixed use development.  What we are likely to get eventually is the same thing - a mixed residential/commercial development (apartments have already been approved), but much later, at an unacceptably heavily publicly subsidized price, and under the control of the ASU Foundation rather than the City of Scottsdale.

What we will never see at Skysong is the promised technology center.  Technology companies, particularly biotechnology, will continue to locate at the Mayo Hospital Research Center, the underutilized ASU Research Park in Tempe, and near T-Gen in Phoenix.  The Foundation would love for us to forget the original promises:  "the first project of its kind";  "research campus";  "center for technology and innovation";  and would like us to be excited about the rather ho-hum standard commercial tenants, including Quest, who have allegedly signed on at Skysong.  As for the Foundation's and City's claim in July 2004 that "ASU has an immediate need for space" (at Skysong); do you see any ASU presence at Skysong yet?

Skysong is a tremendous disappointment and waste of public money which is in no way whatsoever contributing to the revitalization of South Scottsdale.

Michelle Aubert
Scottsdale

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 ~The Blind Eye’s of Code Enforcement

I have reported a large pond of water at 6th Street & Supia (SE Corner). About 3 months ago a house was torn down and the lot leveled leaving a wallow in the land. Due to the last rain or overrun from irrigation the lot has become a pond. Great for West Nile breeders.

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~ Just for Giggles 
 

 ~ "Tickle Me Elmo" Assembly

A new employee is hired at the "Tickle Me Elmo" factory, to report to work promptly at 8:00 AM. The next day at 8:45 AM, there's a knock at the personnel manager's door. The assembly line foreman comes in and starts ranting about this new employee.

He says she's incredibly slow, and the whole line is backing up. The foreman takes the personnel manager down to the factory floor to show him the problem. Sure enough, Elmos are backed up all over the place.

At the end of the line is the new employee busily working.

She has a roll of the material used for the Elmos and a big bag of marbles. They both watch as she cuts a little piece of fabric, wraps it around two marbles, and starts sewing the little package between Elmo's legs. The personnel manager starts laughing hysterically. After several minutes, he pulls himself together, walks over to the woman and says,

"I'm sorry, I guess you misunderstood me yesterday. Your job is to give Elmo two test TICKLES."

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~ Here & There

~TRAFFIC RESTRICTIONS IN SCOTTSDALE

Sept. 28, 2006

The following is a partial list of road construction projects and traffic restrictions taking place in Scottsdale Sept. 29 through Oct. 8. For more information, contact mphillips@ScottsdaleAz.gov



CAMELBACK ROAD, 64TH TO 68TH STREETS

Traffic will be reduced to one lane in each direction on Camelback Road from 64th to 68th streets starting Tuesday, Oct. 3, through Nov. 11 to permit street improvements.
More information on this project is available at:
http://www.scottsdaleaz.gov/capitalprojects/proj_report.asp?proj=S0301&status=S0301

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MILLER ROAD, NORTH OF BONNIE ROSE AVENUE TO 77TH STREET

The bike lanes in both directions of Miller Road from north of Bonnie Rose Avenue to 77th Street will be closed from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. daily starting Wednesday, Oct. 4, through Oct. 6, for work on utility lines.

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DOWNING OLSEN DRIVE, EAST OF PIMA ROAD TO 89TH PLACE

Downing Olsen Drive will be completely closed to traffic from east of Pima to west of 89th Place through Nov. 22 for work on water lines. The recommended alternative route is 94th Street south to Bell Road.
More information on this project is available at:
http://www.scottsdaleaz.gov/capitalprojects/proj_report.asp?proj=S2104&status=S2104

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THOMAS ROAD, 56TH TO 68TH STREETS

Eastbound lane closures will take place at times on Thomas Road from 56th to 68th streets from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. nightly starting Sunday, Oct. 1, through Tuesday, Oct. 3 to permit work on utility lines.

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EXETER BOULEVARD, WEST OF 66TH STREET TO EAST OF 64TH STREET

Exeter Boulevard will have restrictions, including a complete closure at times, from west of 66th Street to east of 64th Street through Oct. 13 to permit utility trenching.

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SHEA BOULEVARD AT 75TH PLACE

The following lane closures will take place on Shea Boulevard at 75th Place through Oct. 10 to permit work on water lines:
** The east- and westbound median lanes will be closed from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily.
** Two of three westbound lanes will be closed from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. nightly.

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BELL ROAD, THOMPSON PEAK PARKWAY TO 100TH STREET

Westbound lane closures will take place on Bell Road from Thompson Peak Parkway to 100th Street from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. daily through Friday, Sept. 29, to permit work on utility lines.

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GAS LINE PROJECT ON SCOTTSDALE ROAD

These road sections will be closed during the following time periods through Oct. 15 to permit installation of a gas line:
** Northbound curb lane on Scottsdale Road from McDonald Drive to Indian Bend Road from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. daily
** Two northbound lanes on Scottsdale Road from McDonald Drive to Indian Bend from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. nightly.
** The westbound curb and left-turn only lane on McDonald Drive from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. nightly.
** No right turns for westbound traffic and no left turns for eastbound traffic from Rose Lane on to Scottsdale Road from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. nightly.
** Lane closures in both directions at times on Lincoln Drive at Scottsdale Road from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. nightly.

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OTHER SCOTTSDALE ROAD RESTRICTIONS

** The median and middle lanes of Scottsdale Road south of Cactus Road will be closed from 1 a.m. to 4 p.m. nightly Tuesday and Wednesday, Oct. 3-4, to permit work on utility lines.
** Lane restrictions will take place at times in both directions of Scottsdale Road at Dale Lane from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily through Oct. 7 to permit utility line work.

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MILLER ROAD/McDONALD DRIVE AREA

These lane closures will take place in the Miller Road/McDonald Drive area to accommodate a water line project:
** Flaggers will direct traffic on Miller Road north of McDonald through Oct. 6.
** Traffic will be reduced at times in both directions on McDonald Drive at Miller Road through Oct. 6.  

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PINNACLE PEAK ROAD, 81ST TO 83RD STREETS

Traffic restrictions, including lane closures, will take place at times on Pinnacle Peak Road between 81st to 83rd streets through October to permit work on a sewer line project.

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CHAPARRAL ROAD, WEST OF PIMA ROAD

Westbound Chaparral Road will be reduced to one lane west of Pima Road from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. daily through Saturday, Sept. 30, for work on utility lines.
 
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PIMA ROAD RESTRICTIONS

** The southbound curb lane on Pima Road, from Via de Ventura to Inner Circle Drive, will be closed through Oct. 16 to permit road work.
**Northbound Pima from Thompson Peak Parkway to north of Haulapai Drive will be reduced to one lane from 5:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. daily through October to permit road widening.
All work is scheduled for completion in November. For more information on the project visit:
http://www.scottsdaleaz.gov/capitalprojects/proj_report.asp?proj=S2104&status=S2104

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CACTUS ROAD RESTRICTIONS

**The westbound curb and left-turn lanes on Cactus Road at 108th Street will be closed from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday, Sept. 29, to permit work on utility lines.
**Traffic will be reduced to one lane in each direction on Cactus Road at Hayden Road through October to permit road widening and other improvements. Restrictions are part of the Hayden Road widening project. For more information on the project, visit:
http://www.scottsdaleaz.gov/capitalprojects/proj_report.asp?proj=S2103&status=S2103

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HAYDEN ROAD RESTRICTIONS

** Northbound Hayden Road will be reduced to one through lane at Indian School Road from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. nightly through Friday, Sept. 29, to permit pothole repair work.
** The intersection of Hayden and Camelback roads is reduced to two lanes in each direction through September for work on the Giants spring training fields.
** The Hayden Road/Cactus Road intersection is reduced to one lane in all directions through September to permit road improvement work. Redfield at Hayden will be restricted to one lane in each direction through September. For more information on the Cactus Road widening project, visit:
http://www.scottsdaleaz.gov/capitalprojects/proj_report.asp?proj=S2103&status=S2103
** The Hayden Road/McDonald Drive intersection will be restricted through early October. North-south traffic will be reduced to two lanes in each direction; east-west traffic will be reduced to one lane in each direction. Left turns are now permitted in all directions.
The restrictions are necessary to permit road improvements.

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The Scottsdale Activist is very pleased to announce an effort on the behalf of the residents and taxpayers of the city of Scottsdale to promote open, honest and accountable city government. The Scottsdale Legal Defense Fund (SLDF) has been created to take legal action to hold the City accountable when its actions are contrary to state law, the City Charter, City ordinances or the public interest.

The most necessary ingredient to make the SLDF work will be confidential contributions from concerned Scottsdale citizens who are willing to help their community.  By contributing, we can change the way City Hall does business and insure that our tax dollars will be spent wisely.

No funds from the SLDF will or can be used for any political purpose.

Contributions shall be kept confidential as permissible by law and can be made in any Washington Mutual Bank to account number 3114165786 for the Scottsdale Legal Defense Fund. Branch locations are listed below. Contributions are not tax deductible.

The SLDF has retained the law firm of Miller LaSota & Peters, PLC, in connection with the patently illegal action taken by the Mayor and Council appointing the most recent Scottsdale City Attorney, while ignoring the residency requirement of the Scottsdale City Charter even though the new City Attorney’s contract (according to Scottsdale Republic reporter Laurie Roberts) requires that she reside in Scottsdale.  The City Council action was based on a legal opinion which was reportedly rendered during a closed door Executive Session of the City Council by a subordinate to the then acting City Attorney, who was subsequently appointed to the City Attorney position by a vote during a public City Council meeting. The opinion has been requested as a public document under state law, but the City has not yet provided it. The SLDF will take other appropriate legal actions based on the conduct of the Mayor and Council.

Washington Mutual Bank Locations at which contributions to the SLDF can be made are:

72^nd & Shea                    7337 E. Shea Blvd #120                480-609-8524
Hayden & Chaparral     7908 E. Chaparral # C-113            480-949-0069
Horizon                            14854 N Frank Lloyd Wright         480-614-6660
Scottsdale Ranch          10155 E. Via Linda Blvd #131       480-767-2060
Kierland Village              6501 E. Greenway Pkwy #133     480-315-2905

There are many other branches throughout the Valley.

Proposition 100; Bail for undocumented immigrants

– Would give Judges the authority to deny bail to illegal aliens when there is convincing evidence that they've committed a serious felony, class 4 or higher or Aggravated DUI.  Recognizing they pose a great flight risk and are already in violation of federal law of entering and remaining in the U.S. Illegally. We have thousands of illegal aliens that have committed serious crimes and fled to Mexico and the Mexican Government has refused to extradite them back to the U.S. (25 people killed each day by illegal aliens; 13 by DUI and 12 by stabbings and shootings). 

Proposition 101; 2006 Taxpayer Protection Act

- Would amend the Arizona Constitution to require, beginning in 2007, that counties, cities, towns and community college districts determine their primary levy limit based on the actual tax levy in 2005. This proposition would be a step forward towards controlling liberal governments by limiting the ability of a municipality to tax its citizens by basing the municipal tax increases on the previous year’s collections.  Even further, some municipalities have a maximum allowable tax levy growth of 21.6%, which is outrageously high.  This proposition would limit that growth to 8.3%. 

Proposition 102; Standing in Civil Actions

- Would amend the Arizona Constitution to prohibit an illegal alien from being awarded punitive damages in the courts of Arizona. This is a proposition that I worked on as part of my larger immigration reforms.  It was my intention to protect the rights of legal U.S. Citizens by not allowing frivolous law suits brought by illegal aliens to result in punitive damage awards.  We have to ensure that our judicial system is not allowing those who break the law profit at the expense of U.S. Citizens. 

Proposition 103; English as the Official Language

- English must be designated the official language of the state of Arizona. Like President Theodore Roosevelt once said, "We have one language here, and that is the English language, and we intend to see that the [assimilation] crucible turns our people out as Americans. Former Colorado Governor Dick Lamm wisely observed that "a nation needs a common language just as it needs a common currency." A common language promotes unity and understanding among the citizens of a nation. By making English the official state language we provide an even greater incentive for all immigrants to learn English, apply for citizenship, and become empowered and productive Americans, (this referendum is Official English not English Only makes appropriate exceptions for trade, tourism, communication purposes, emergencies, etc.) By making English the official language, we also eliminate the wasteful spending used to translate millions of state documents into hundreds of languages.  

Proposition 104; Municipal Debt

- Would amend the Arizona Constitution to allow incorporated cities and towns to exceed their debt limit by up to 20% for: public safety, law enforcement, fire and emergency service facilities, streets and transportation facilities. This proposition plain and simple opens the door for municipalities to potentially increase taxes.  It would allow cities to incur additional debt to pay for certain services.  This debt will have to be passed on and paid for by its citizens through increased tax rates.  

Proposition 105; State Trust Land Reform

- Would amend the Arizona Constitution to allow urban state trust land to be conveyed to a county, city or town for permanent conservation, and up to 400,000 acres of rural state trust land to be conveyed for permanent conservation to the county in which the land is located. All provisions are dependant on Arizona voter approval in November 2006 and the US Congress must amend the Arizona-New Mexico Enabling Act by 12-31-08. This proposition streamlines the process for selling and leasing State Trust Land, without creating any unneeded bureaucracy.  The money created from these transactions exist for the sole purpose of benefiting Arizona’s schools. 

Proposition 106; Conserving Arizona’s Future

- Would amend the Arizona Constitution to permanently conserve and protect 690,000 acres of land and provide a classroom funding stream though improved planning and management of trust land. All provisions are dependant on Arizona voter approval in November 2006 AND the US Congress must amend the Arizona-New Mexico Enabling Act by 12-31-08.  This is a proposition that might as well have been written by the Sierra Club.  The measure creates a new bureaucracy designed to grant environmentalist an enormous amount of trust land as low cost.  The more land that is granted to the environmentalist will directly correlate with a decrease in funds for the education community. 

Proposition 107; Protect Marriage Arizona

- Would amend the Arizona Constitution to define marriage as only consisting of the union of one man and one woman, and would prohibit the state and its political subdivisions from creating or recognizing any legal status for unmarried persons that is similar to that of marriage. This proposition protects the sanctity and tradition of marriage the enactment of this proposition would also ensure that independent cities or towns could not infringe on the moral will of the voters by enacting an immoral definition of marriage. 

Proposition 200; Arizona Voter Reward Act

- Would amend state laws to establish a voter reward random drawing every two years with a first prize of $1M or more. Voters who cast ballots in the primary or general elections will be eligible to win and the money will come from the Arizona Lottery and private donations.  This is an absurd measure that equates the civic duty of voting with the media ploys used on television games shows like "Who wants to be a Millionaire."  Voting is a privilege and right granted to each citizen of this country.  We should not patronize nor trivialize our civic duty. 

Proposition 201; Smoke-Free Arizona Act

- Would amend state laws to prohibit smoking in all enclosed public places and places of employment.  Prohibiting smoking in all public and private businesses establishment tramples the private property rights of the business owners.  The founding fathers viewed the right to own private property as one of the most important issues protected by the Constitution.  A government should not have the right to take the legal act of smoking and make it illegal to do on ones private property.  

Proposition 202; AZ Minimum Wage Act

- It would impose a state minimum wage of $6.75, and would create a new politically appointed "Commission" to oversee minimum wage and employment practices in AZ, which would have no term limits and wouldn’t be accountable to the legislative branch or the voting public.  The Commission would have full access to all records of any employer.  It would grant any labor union or special interest group the power to access employment records.  

Proposition 203; First Things First for Arizona’s Children

- Would amend state laws to use an increased sales price (an additional $.80) on tobacco to provide funds for early childhood education for children ages 0-5. This proposition is a further expansion of all day Kindergarten, an issue championed by Governor Napolitano.  This proposition would create a new source of revenue for state subsidized daycare.  The new source of revenue would be in the form of tax increases amounting to more than $188 million per year. 

Proposition 204; Humane Treatment of Farm Animals Act

- Would amend state laws to provide six years for the state to adopt more human practices regarding pigs during pregnancy and calves raised for veal.  This forces the agricultural community to adopt nonsensical standards regarding the way that they raise there privately owned life stock. This is an initiative pushed by out-of-state animal-rights activists, which would ban common practices used by livestock producers to house breeding pigs and veal calves (even though there is no veal production in Arizona), and subject farmers to as much as $20,000 in fines and six months in jail. 

Proposition 205; Your Right to Vote

- Would amend state laws to provide that all registered voters automatically receive a mailed ballot from the election official before every election and that a limited number of county-wide polling places shall remain open on election days for on site voting. This proposition is an attempt to circumvent the voter enacted and protected standards established by Proposition 200.  This is achieved by eliminating almost all polling places thereby negating the need for legal citizens to present identification when voting.  Mail in ballots are currently readily available to any registered voter who requests that they be sent this paper work.  Why would we want to make it more difficult for the already small percentage of people who do vote to do so? 

Proposition 206; AZ Non-Smoker Protection Act

- This smoking ban proposition is less costly for business owners and tobacco consumers than Prop. 201, because it would allow smoking in bars and does not include a tax increase.  It recognizes private property rights.  Signs must notify patrons and employees where smoking is permitted.  Still prohibits minors in smoking areas.  

Proposition 207; Private Property Rights Protection Act

- Would amend state laws to define public use and declare that the public benefits of economic development, including increased tax revenues and employment, shall not constitute a public use. This proposition is an effort to protect Arizona citizens from infringement and regulatory taking of private property like recently happened in Connecticut.  In that case the state government stole private property from its citizens for the purpose of increasing its tax base.  This proposition on the most basic of levels protects the rights of private property owners from the unlawful takings of land by dominating governments and additionally protects these owners from government facilitated attempts to diminish the value of private property.  

Proposition 300; Public Program Eligibility

- Would amend state laws to require recipients of certain state-funded services to be legal residents in the United States and would direct the entities that provide these services to report on the number of people who applied to participate and the number who were not eligible for those programs due to their non-legal status.  After the back door veto of 2004’s Proposition 200, by Governor Napolitano and Attorney General Terry Goddard, this proposition would once again allow the voters to demonstrate there willingness to protect social services by ensuring that only legal U.S. citizens have access to tax payer funded services. By offering these services to illegal aliens, it increases the burden on our state programs and robs our own citizens of services they’ve paid for with their taxes.  Above all, free state services for all takes away the incentive for illegal aliens to become citizens and legitimate members of American society. It is vital that we spend our tax dollars on helping Arizonans and not aid and abet illegal aliens. 

Proposition 301; Probation for Methamphetamine Offenses

- Would amend state laws to prevent a person convicted of drug charges involving methamphetamine from being eligible for probation under the Drug Medicalization, Prevention, and Control Act of 1996.  This proposition recognizes the methamphetamine epidemic that has swept the nation and closes loopholes currently available for those individuals convicted of methamphetamine related drug offences.  

Proposition 302; State Legislators’ Salaries

- Would authorize the Scottsdale Unified School District Governing Board to adopt a capital outlay budget which exceeds the District’s capital outlay revenue limit by not more than ^$11,800,000 per year for seven (7) years.

shoutandspout@scottsdaleactivist.com