Hey Scottsdale: If It’s All About Being Responsive To Citizens, Then Be Responsive To Citizens

Scottsdale’s current City Council majority professes allegiance to citizen input. The merits of a particular project no longer seem to matter much.  Instead, Scottsdale decision-making appears to be an experiment in mass democracy. Most politicians have an eye toward the next election. That’s normal. Every two or four years residents give a thumbs up or thumbs down based on that elected official’s voting record.  But in Scottsdale, these days, nearly every proposal is a de facto election.

This is why the next few weeks are going to be fascinating ones in the city.

The backer of 92 Ironwood, a project we have written about frequently because its merits are so obvious, did something very smart. The project commissioned a poll of 300 residents voting in the November 2020 election as its sample. After all, those are the people that elected Mayor Ortega and three new members of City Council. Who better to determine where the city’s body politic really stands on this project and other related matters?

Before sharing the results we were able to obtain, as well as their import, we remind you that 92 Ironwood, across from Honor Health’s North Scottsdale hospital does not have a single resident within nearly a half-mile opposed to the plan.  It seeks to replace an abandoned office complex with 285 apartment units, a plan that is supported by the adjoining “Chompie’s” shopping center, Honor Health, area small businesses and even the Arizona Nurses’ Association, which has articulated how important new housing is to its constituents.

Notably, 92 Ironwood is providing incentives for those working in proximity as well as the workforce of Scottsdale that is being priced out of the city. In other words those closest to the site overwhelmingly support it. This, in addition to the merits, should end the discussion and it should be approved unanimously, correct? Not so fast. Not in Scottsdale these days. Instead, people from outside the area who want to stop all development everywhere have been encouraging emails into City Council in hopes of stopping 92 Ironwood, and other projects.

While we may agree with their efforts on other fronts, opposition to this project is sheer lunacy as anyone who has been on the site or who attended an Open House there can attest to.  Indeed, the overwhelming number of attendees at the January 12^th Open House SUPPORTED the plan which, by the way, doesn’t even seek to increase the heights allowed under existing zoning.  Despite all of this political common sense still seems to be stuck in a cul-de-sac.

Cue the poll.  In the spirit of transparency, the developer has released the questions and results in their entirety.  He selected one of Arizona’s most accurate pollsters in the 2020 election.

The findings speak for themselves and are included at the conclusion of this post.

Voters support, by a sizable margin, the 92 Ironwood redevelopment. They also, by large margins, believe the housing affordability crisis infecting Scottsdale is a real problem. To our knowledge this is the first poll to test this city issue, and the perceived problems with pricing our workforce out of the city, people that put their lives on the line for residents. But the poll was wise for another reason. It asked perhaps this most important question of all:

*In general would you say that Scottsdale should reject ALL new residential projects to stop more people from moving into the city or that the City Council should approve some projects but not all in order to help ease the housing price crisis and allow some of those who want to live in Scottsdale to do so?   

Twenty-two percent said stop all new residential with 70% saying approve some.  Notably, just over half of the 22% or 12% of the poll respondents said they STRONGLY agree with the notion.  And there you have it.  In a nutshell a majority of this City Council is allowing the noisy 12% of the electorate to control the city.  Wow. Seriously?

Politics is cyclical. Become too pro-development or pro-business – and it is fair to say not too distant councils were such – and voters will recoil, as they have in part, in 2018 and 2020. But pendulums swing other ways too. Become too anti-development and anti-business and Scottsdale voters will recoil in another way. A key question for 2022 is this: Has Scottsdale swung too far in one direction? This poll suggests it has and politicians should heed the warning signs.

Several members of this City Council were actively involved in the 2019 Scottsdale bond campaign that passed with 70% of the vote.  They were privy to polling throughout that showed enduring support that turned out to prophetic for what the people were thinking.

As Yoda might opine, back to the future we may be.

Poll Questions and Responses

Hello, I am calling from a public opinion research firm and I would like to ask you some questions. I am not trying to sell you anything and I won’t be asking for a contribution of any kind. Can I please speak with [READ NAME ON LIST]? [If unavailable, please note name of the person who answers]

Q1) What is your gender? (Observe by voice, do not ask)

Q2) In general, would you say that things in Scottsdale are going in the Right Direction or are they going in the Wrong Direction?

Now, I’d like to read you the names of several elected officials in Scottsdale who you may be familiar with, and please tell me first if you’ve heard of that individual, then if so, whether you have a favorable or unfavorable impression of them using a 5 point scale with 1 being strongly unfavorable and 5 being strongly favorable with 3 being neutral.

Q3) David Ortega

Q8) While the recent increases in housing prices in Scottsdale might be good for some, they are also pricing out police officers, teachers, nurses, firefighters and others who can no longer afford to live in the community in which they work. This is not a good thing for the long-term health of the city. Do you agree or disagree with the statement?

Q9) Adjacent to a shopping center near 92nd and Shea that includes a Chompie’s, Sprouts, and Honor Health’s North Scottsdale hospital is a seven-acre lot with an empty field and empty office buildings. The owner is proposing to replace this with 285 new apartment units. The $95 million complex would include discounts for firefighters, nurses, police officers, and teachers and even include one free unit for a police officer. The heights for the new project would not be increased from what current zoning allows, remaining at 3 and 4 stories. The plan has been endorsed by Honor Health, the shopping center next door and the Arizona Nurse’s Association, among others. No residents living within 2,000 feet of the site oppose the plan. In general, would you say that this plan for the property is a good idea, or bad idea?

Q10) In general would you say that Scottsdale should reject ALL new residential projects to stop more people from moving into the city or that the City Council should approve some projects but not all in order to help ease the housing price crisis and allow some of those who want to live in Scottsdale to do so?

Q11) Which of the following age categories do you fall into?

Q12) How would you classify yourself in terms of race or ethnicity – White, Hispanic, African American, Asian American, Middle Eastern, Native American, or something else?

Q13) Are you registered as a Republican, Democrat, Independent/Unaffiliated, or something else?