Guest Editorial: Preserve Voting Records

By Betty Janik One can tell that it’s election time in Scottsdale because suddenly everyone’s a McDowell Sonoran Preserve supporter! Unfortunately, the truth isn’t always being told. City Council Candidate Bob Littlefield touts that he: “fought commercial development in the Preserve by opposing the Desert Discovery Center and working to pass Proposition 420”. As Treasurer of the “Protect Our Preserve” … Read More

Lake Powell and the Dam That May Not Hold: A Crisis Decades in the Making

The Colorado River has been in trouble for a long time. But a new wave of reporting suggests the situation may be moving from chronic to acute, with Lake Powell potentially reaching “deadpool” status before the end of 2026. For the 40 million people across seven states who depend on the river, this is no longer a distant warning…it is … Read More

Zoox Picks Scottsdale: A Win for the Valley’s Tech Ambitions… With Eyes Wide Open

The Greater Phoenix area has another reason to feel good about its tech credentials. Zoox, an autonomous vehicle company owned by Amazon, has announced it is opening a Fusion Center in Scottsdale to support its expanding robotaxi operations. It’s welcome news and, with a dose of healthy realism, worth putting in proper context. What Zoox Is Actually Bringing to Scottsdale … Read More

Guest Editorial: Help Me Protect Scottsdale

By Michelle Ugenti-Rita We must hold the line and protect Scottsdale. Leftist California-style policies are one council election away if we don’t hold our majority. There are candidates in this race who are pushing the same failed agenda that has turned once great cities into cautionary tales: skyrocketing homelessness, high-density apartment towers, low-income housing projects, gridlocked traffic, rising crime, and declining quality … Read More

Scottsdale Is Setting the Table: The Newest Culinary Must-Eats in the City

There has always been something quietly confident about Scottsdale’s dining scene; the sense that the desert knows how to throw a party. But 2026 is different. This year, the city isn’t just keeping pace with the country’s best food cities…it’s making a genuine argument for the top of the list. The most talked-about arrival so far is Cielito, the new … Read More

Lisa Sette: A Valley Arts Institution Gets Her Due

There are people who work in the arts, and then there are people for whom the arts are simply how they exist in the world. Lisa Sette is the latter, and the recognition she is receiving right now, through the spotlight cast on her current exhibition and the broader acknowledgment of her four-decade legacy, is long overdue. A Career Built … Read More

Travel Spotlight of the Week: the Relaxed Perfection of Malta and Sicily

By Bedouin Bourdain There are destinations you visit, and then there are destinations that visit you, that take up permanent residence somewhere behind the eyes. Malta and Sicily are the latter. Malta arrives like a movie set no one told you was real. Baroque gold drips from the ceiling of St. John’s Co-Cathedral in Valletta, a vault of painted heavens so … Read More

The Axon Question That Still Needs an Answer

By Alexander Lomax An Unfinished Investigation By now, most Scottsdale watchers are familiar with the broad strokes of the Lamar Whitmer matter. Whitmer, who served as Mayor Lisa Borowsky’s Chief of Staff, was let go in March following a 65-day city investigation that examined seven categories of alleged misconduct. Five of the seven allegations were substantiated. Two were not. It … Read More