Inside Mesa

Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas, very pleased with the Mesa Police Department bringing an exceptionally violent crime spree to an end, was quick to commend the City of Mesa Police Department in bringing justice to our community and others around the Valley, from a group of terrorizing individuals.

Police Chief George Gascon, Mesa - put together a team of eight detectives and a sergeant to bring to an end, crimes by five men that occurred between May 25 - October 13, arresting them on October 28: 96 counts of armed robbery, kidnapping, misconduct with weapons, and aggravated assault.

Four out of the five believed in the U.S. illegally, perhaps previously deported; Thomas making the distinction, that illegal immigration problems are our crime problems.

I believe supporting our state, county, and city law enforcement agencies are critical to our communities - business, schools, and family.  Learning how they function, I found brings understanding and a willingness to help be an eye for safety in one’s own neighborhoods. 

Sunday headlines in the East Valley Tribune showcased a special report on Waveyard.  After reading through the material, financial backing, unrelated history, and the interactive map provided - I think the whole idea is remarkable having all the earmarks of success.

The developers see the project as a great attraction, including all elements of the area, with several factors indicating that Waveyard, according to Co-Founders Richard Mladick & Jerry Hug - the Big Kahunas. 

A licensed working technology developed by Murphy’s Waves, Scotland - who designed Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon, new technology simpler than that used by Surfparks recently that did not produce the desired effect - and a reliable financial backer, an Australian investment bank now on the London Stock Exchange, raised funds with the goal of deploying asset-based ownership of real estate in the United States.   

Babcock & Brown, BNB - fit the description - on the Australian stock Exchange, offices and investments worldwide, $8.5 billion market capitalization, profits for 2007’s first half - $163 million.  Waveyard Development for two years and Mesa officials in the past month, have met with the firm.

November 6, I think you might want to vote Yes - I did, I voted early!

The article in the Tribune recording the 4 council candidate interviews; the questions, answers, and feedback was an interesting read. 

From what I can tell, 2 would possibly be an interim - Truitt and Perkinson, as they are not seeking the council seat.  Could be a safe choice for the moment, one is the treasurer for a current Mayoral candidate.

The other 2, Benelli and Austin; report did not record an interest by Benelli; Austin indicated he might be running for election.  An article earlier in the week stated both would run for election.

I liked the question on immigration and police involvement; both Mayor Hawker and Councilmember Whalen pressed for answers that were more defined - and got them. 

One could find favor with either that responded on this topic; Benelli came back later with something specific, showing she is a team player - Austin focused on educating the district to enlighten on the topic; respectful if those views differed.

What must be weighing in this decision, is choosing someone with the city in mind - although assigned to a specific district; afterall, anyone candidate could choose to continue a run for election.

I am confident that Mayor Hawker, Vice Mayor Walters, Councilmember Whalen and remaining Councilmembers will make the right choice.  I imagine being on the city council is more than anyone of us could fathom!

A Venter in today’s Tribune - A14 - suggested Rex Griswold has a phony grin.

I wonder -  does the venter really know past Councilmember Rex Griswold, now running for Mayor of Mesa?

Personally, I have seen nothing phony about Mr. Griswold.  I find him genuine, caring, a peacemaker, and has done a lot to bring about resolution in difficult situations. 

Serving on the City of Mesa Council, he showed that quality over and over!

The city council meeting on Monday had its usual agenda of items and all went pretty smoothly. That is, until the meeting was adjourned. Then Mr. Ready spoke up.Ready, disappointed at not being allowed to speak during the council meeting, yelled out his displeasure and called the city council unjust. Apparently, Ready failed to fill out a blue comment card in time and was not allowed to speak at the podium.Later, outside the council chambers, he spoke to news reporters about how the city and police department are calling him a terrorist and of taking his car away.Ready, who ran for a city council seat last year, has been very vocal about immigration and is also suspected of being associated with neo-nazi groups.

With the tradition to set new goals and make life a bit better each year, how about volunteering time to a service club or community position?The Chamber of Commerce sponsors a program for citizens to take part in unique opportunities to develop themselves as community leaders. This program is called Mesa Leadership Training and Development. The board is currently taking applications. For more information: www.mltd.org.There are various community groups from Mesa Association of Hispanic Citizens to Mesa Republican Women, Neighborhood HOA organizations, City of Mesa Advisory Boards, and District party groups. As you set your New Year Resolutions this year make one to give back to the community and volunteer.

The Mesa Police Department has released an important message stressing the dangers of discharging firearms in the air on New Year

Even councilman Tom Rawls agreed that Mesa should continue negotiations with Waveyard.The councilman said that he realizes that in his idealistic world that cities should not give incentative packages to developers, but in today’s real world thats exactly what’s being done."Its not a slam dunk that I’ll be for it all the way to the end, but for now I think its a great project for the city and that we should move forward on it" said concilman Rawls. He also mentioned that the alternative would be to have one one of the richest gravel pits around!We’ll be hearing alot more from Waveyard in the future!Additional comments welcome

Although an agreement was reached to allow some housing near Williams Gateway Airport, I still believe Boeing has it right. Sometimes we have to listen to the experts - I would say Boeing is the expert when it comes to airports, surrounding land developments, housing negatives near flight paths and noise, and the risk of business potential being lost. It’s a "no brain-er" in my opinion - don’t put residents where they are sure to complain soon after moving in and even more so later as Williams Gateway Airport continues to grow, now with it’s 4th carrier, Sky Value - it will happen. Boeing knows!I grew up in Tucson, a good ways from Davis Monthan Air Force Base, maybe 7 miles - but we lived in the flight path. My mom would "hit the floor" every time a B52 flew over. My parents were forever patching a crack that went across the ceiling because the sound was so loud the house shook. Then it was the jets - we’d hear them after they were gone! I actually lived on Williams A.F.B. as a kid, I don’t know if there was anyone around to complain then! Later, living in Glendale there was always residents near Luke A.F.B. complaining - then there was more housing built much later and closer to the base - it got pretty bad, people said they had a right to complain. Knowing the base was there when they moved in didn’t seem to register at the time. More recently the Mayor of Surprise backed down from housing proposed in her town - seeing the logic in the request to protect the base from further unnecessary negative circumstances. None of these areas where houses were built were owned by the Air Force - it just makes good since not to put a problem under the nose of an airplane. People and homes don’t mix with runways, noise, and low flying aircraft. It’s best for all concerned to keep an appropriate distance. Right?I thought the land was going to be occupied by business, small warehouses and industrial sites. That makes more sense.Listen to Boeing - they’ve been in the business for decades - why not trust their judgement?

The Toursim departments in some other Valley cities have decided to label themselves as "gay-friendly". This strikes me as the definition of "selling your soul for the dollar".The gay community is known for having a lot of discretionary funds available for vacations, etc. while minorities & traditional families often do not. As such, rolling out the red carpet for the gay community can result in a better bottom line for a city. To some, it may be a no-brainer from a financial standpoint.It is my hope that the Mesa government does not fall into this trap of seeking a gay-friendly label when there are in fact so many people who do not approve of that lifestyle. Now for those of you who are bristling already, I am not suggesting calling ourselves "gay-hostile". Frankly, Mesa should continue to work on its reputation as being rather… hostile… to non-whites. Unfair or not, the MLK holiday fiasco made a deep impression and still rings clearly in the memories of people nation-wide. Many people still consider this city to be a strong-hold of racism that rivals the Deep South. A venue like the Mesa Arts Center actually helps by selling out shows like Seal, Sinbad, and the San Jose Taiko that demonstrate an appreciation for diversity and bring non-Mesans to town. I am writing what most Mesans are saying. We don’t want to be labeled as "gay-friendly" destination. Such a label simply does not fit with the religious or traditional family sensibilities of the majority residents here. We can find other ways to bring visitors and their money to Mesa (an NFL stadium would have been nice, but I won’t go there!) Gay-hostile…absolutely not! People have a right to make their own choices, but I don’t want a small committee to decide what my city does and/or does not invite here. "Family-friendly", "Outdoorsmen friendly" - there are so many options. Let’s go with something like, "Mesa: Something for everyone", and live it!