By Recker McDowell — Scottsdale hosted 1.7 million international tourists last year, according to a new tourism impact study released by the city earlier this month. Those international travelers account for 15.7 percent of the 10.8 million of Scottsdale’s visitors in 2018. This is the first study where Scottsdale tracked international visitors and their $443.9 million spending here. That spending … Read More
Arizona Department of Environmental Quality Grants Air Quality Permit to Alliance Metals USA; La Paz County Already Home to Seven Operations With Same Permits
(LA PAZ COUNTY, Ariz.) — The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) has approved Alliance Metals USA’s application for an air quality permit for a proposed $30 million economic development, jobs producing investment in La Paz County. The permit award is a major milestone and victory for Alliance Metals USA and its commitment to operate an environmentally safe and secure … Read More
Guest Editorial: How Tempe Charts Its Growth & Future Will Reverberate in Scottsdale, Phoenix, East Valley
By Recker McDowell — The city of Tempe is looking at its long-term growth plans for its downtown area including Mill Avenue and Arizona State University’s main campus. Tempe leaders are examining how to bring more residential development and workforce housing options as well as the height of buildings. The rest of the region should pay close attention to Tempe’s … Read More
Kyrsten Sinema and the Big Question for Democrats in 2020 Versus Trump
By Recker McDowell — U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Arizona) is very much indicative of Democrats prospects in 2020 and the fork in the road they face in their bid to beat President Donald Trump and win control of the U.S. Senate. Sinema’s moderate path helped her win the Senate seat in 2018 in red-state Arizona and has given her solid … Read More
Statement from Councilman Sal DiCiccio: Lyft to Pull Out of Sky Harbor in Response to Massive Airport Tax
By Sal DiCiccio — Phoenix politicians are about to stick it to the public once again. They need to realize this is going to hurt the City of Phoenix at a national level, it will hurt the public, and it will hurt small business owners that rely on rideshare. Last month the council voted to tax every rideshare trip to/from … Read More
Guest Editorial: After The Rush What White Castle & Fry’s Food Stores Show About Scottsdale’s Brand, Salt River & Downtown Phoenix
By Recker McDowell — The initial rush and much covered openings of the new White Castle restaurant in Scottsdale and the new Fry’s Food Stores supermarket in downtown Phoenix are a little bit in the rearview mirror. The new White Castle still says a lot about Scottsdale’s brand and the Salt River Pima Maricopa Indian Community where the restaurant located … Read More
What Are They Smoking?
A variety of factors are now coming to light about the true motivation for a “legal protest” against a plan to replace a tattoo parlor with a medical marijuana dispensary on the east side of the Galleria Corporate Center in downtown Scottsdale. Those motivations according to local media reports include a desire to assemble the city block where the Sunday … Read More
Winners & Losers From The Scottsdale Bond Election Landslide Victory & SUSD Win
Winners: Kathy Littlefield, Guy Phillips & Solange Whitehead. Phillips and Littlefield had opposed previous bond efforts. Not this time. Nor did newcomer Whitehead who frequently votes with either or both. The three stood up for Scottsdale with integrity and independence and the community is the better for it. Winners: Conscientious Activism. There were many reasons for the landslide bond win. … Read More
Secret Developer Group Launching Suspect Campaign to Stop Legal Medical Marijuana Dispensary So It Can Build High-Rise Project in Scottsdale
(SCOTTSDALE) — It really ultimately is Patients vs. Developers. Health Care vs. High-Rises in Scottsdale — and developers are trying to dupe the public and Scottsdale City Council. A new email shows real estate developers, including out-of-state ones, and some downtown property owners are working covertly to undermine and oppose a needed medical marijuana dispensary in downtown Scottsdale. Developers want … Read More
Guest Column: Congratulations Scottsdale Voters
By Virginia Korte — The overwhelming victory on all three bond questions is a time to celebrate. The last time we had this kind of overwhelming success for a bond election was 20 years ago. While there are still more challenges ahead in solving some of our future infrastructure needs, Tuesday’s election results were a significant step toward making our … Read More