Few people have more conscientiously served Scottsdale over the many years than Virginia Korte.  Southern Scottsdale businesswoman.  Scottsdale Chamber of Commerce President.  Non-profit leader.  Stalwart supporter of Scottsdale public schools.  Early voice to preserve the McDowell Mountains.  She’s a Scottsdale Hall of Famer in every sense of the word.  She wants to be Mayor of Scottsdale, badly.  She’s considered it at various times in the past and was … Read More

Ding dong the Desert Discovery Center (DDC) is dead.  According to this new article at azcentral.com, that is.   What good news. But is that where the resonance of this chapter of citizen rights and achievement ends? Well, let’s look at some fascinating voter data. Proposition 420, the citizen’s initiative brought by Desert Discovery Center opponents to effectively kill it, passed … Read More

*2018 definitely proved to be a “Year of the Woman” when it came to state and national politics. Somewhat lost among the results was Kate Gallego’s dismantling of the field in the Phoenix Mayor’s race. She topped former Councilman Danny Valenzuela, the overwhelming favorite of developers, by a whopping 19 point margin. They both now head to a March run-off … Read More

Once upon a time Scottsdale power brokers used to sit around a place called Mag’s Ham Bun and largely decide who was going to rule the city’s roost. How times have changed. Last night a grassroots movement spawned with laptops and shoe leather reinvented Scottsdale’s political landscape.  It was an earthquake. Proposition 420, a determined drumbeat of citizens to defeat … Read More

It might seem odd for us to opine about the leader of opposition to a Scottsdale measure we enthusiastically support.  But not all opponents are or should be considered untoward, especially if their heritage outflanks most everyone involved in the debate. We speak of Proposition 420, as we have many times.  It deserves support for all the reasons we, and  … Read More

By Scottsdale Pinetop As the Scottsdale city election draws near, it is now more important than ever to get to know the candidates looking to lead the city. Scottsdale long had a reputation of being a tourist destination and entertainment hub, but it’s also a city beloved by its residents. To ensure that Scottsdale stays that way, it needs a dedicated … Read More

While Scottsdale’s Proposition 420 is heavily favored to prevail at the polls in November despite a notably dishonest campaign by opponents, it’s fair to ask what happens if it fails? A reminder that Proposition 420 is the noble initiative brought forth by some 37,000 citizens to require public votes on projects like the Desert Discovery Center (DDC) that seek to … Read More

Without a good catcher in baseball too many wild pitches can find their way to the backstop, helping the other team win and wreaking havoc on your own. That’s a lot like the job of a City Manager, including Jim Thompson’s in Scottsdale. Thank goodness the city had its own version of Johnny Bench for a recent, near fiasco. Scottsdale … Read More

Near the end of The Last Crusade,  Indiana Jones stood on the side of an abyss, not knowing how he was going to get to the other side.  He necessarily relied on the higher power above and Jones’ leap of faith was rewarded. The other side, the “No” side, in Scottsdale’s Proposition 420 debate, that being the one to rightfully … Read More