Inside Mesa

I attended a forum Tuesday night and came away with this thought: Mesa has an identity crisis.Others have told me this over the years but I never really listened because I never thought that it was important. Why is haveing an identity important? I can only give you my opinion and that is this: Without something to draw and keep people in Mesa, Mesa will continue to have both financial and social problems. In the past Mesa was known as a small town bedroom community - a place where you can have a family, feel safe, and send your kids to good schools, and find good shopping. You can avoid the hustle and bustle of larger cities. Now, Mesa is that big city, but we still think of ourselves and operate the same way we did decades ago. Now other cities have nicer shopping centers, nicer and cleaner streets, better rated schools, and convey a better sense of security to its residents. Mesa on the other hand is having trouble funding its basic essentials. Yes, we still have lower prices, but our standard of living is also lower. High tech companies looking to relocate are looking for communities that can offer their employees more than just the basic essentials, but good amenities and a reasonably high standard of living. Without giving Mesa something to boast, an identity, this city tends to just fall below the radar to most people and companies. We can’t attract people here so our sales tax dollars go elsewhere. We can’t attract businesses so they go elsewhere, even those that are here now go elsewhere, more tax dollars gone. There’s more I can add but I’ll leave that for later.