This is a place where free speech and public debate are welcomed and encouraged. The Speakers’ Corner originated in the mid-19th century at London’s Hyde Park. The concept spread worldwide both physically and now virtually. Here at the Arizona Progress & Gazette, we are presenting this platform in the form of question-and-answer style interviews with people who have had a meaningful impact on the community.
Scottsdale City Councilwoman Tammy Caputi began her first term on the Scottsdale City Council in January 2021 and is currently seeking a second term. Caputi has lived and worked in Scottsdale for almost 25 years and is the president and owner of Yale Electric West, Inc, a Scottsdale company. She’s been married for over 21 years and has 3 daughters who attend our local schools. Councilwoman Caputi holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from Wellesley College in Wellesley, MA and a Masters degree in Business Administration from Simmons University in Boston, MA. She says she is passionate about keeping Scottsdale the Gold Standard of the Valley.
What prompted you run for Scottsdale City Council?
I’m seeking re-election to The Scottsdale City Council to continue the great work that’s being done by this council. I’ve increased job creation by 10%, kept our budget in the black, fully funded public safety, and brought our Tourism back to pre-pandemic levels. I helped pass a new voter-approved 10-year General Plan and protected our neighborhoods from Short-Term Rentals. I’ve protected our most vulnerable seniors and children, improved downtown parking, improved traffic safety and bulked up our streets with 80 new lane miles of roadway. I have stood up from Day 1 for our kids’ education. All of our residents, including our kids and working parents, deserve the best possible Scottsdale. The City will be facing many new challenges in the next few years. I’m running for re-election to keep moving Scottsdale forward in a balanced, positive direction, and to maintain our reputation as the gold standard of the Valley. Successful cities do not stagnate; we can neither stand by nor sit still if we want to maintain our excellence.
What is your definition of smart growth? 
Balance, thoughtfulness, and careful planning. More intensity only where it makes sense. Protection of our residential neighborhoods and open space. Exceptional projects with measurable community benefits like workforce housing and water recycling. Making sure all stakeholders are included in decision making- we’ve doubled our outreach and rolled out several new digital platforms to gather more resident input. Decisions based on facts and data, not fear and misinformation. I hear from people who say, “I’m not anti-growth, I want smart/quality growth”, but there’s never a project they can support. We’ve approved only a handful of projects in the last 4 years and decreased our pipeline over 50% and some folks are still mad. No to everything is not a solution or a recipe for long term success. Scottsdale has always been forward thinking. We grow smart to stay on top.
What do you think are some short term and long term solutions to solving Scottsdale’s housing shortage?
We’ve been moving carefully towards buildout for decades, following our general plan. We’re not converting areas zoned for single family homes to multifamily. Our plans have always located multifamily housing in growth and activity areas, near freeways, employment, and retail, which is where we’ve approved it.
Our population growth has slowed to less than 1% per year and there are no large empty parcels left. During my first term on council, we’ve cut our housing pipeline in half, and many of those units will likely never get built. We’ve approved only a handful of projects with demonstrable public benefits. Truly affordable housing in Scottsdale isn’t economically feasible. Land is extremely expensive and scarce, our standards are the highest, our approval processes are purposely slow and rigorous, and neighbors are deeply engaged. It’s illegal to fix rents in Arizona and low rents and housing prices do not pencil out here. We can and have negotiated some dedicated “workforce” units from new developments with discounted rent for teachers and first responders.
Do you consider traffic to be a problem in Scottsdale and if so, what solutions would you propose?
Phoenix Metro has seen significant growth in population over the last several years, but in contrast Scottsdale has not; we have grown less than 1% per year over the last decade. Scottsdale has only 5% of the population of Maricopa County. In addition, Maricopa County is starting to experience a domestic migration decline, with negative numbers for the first time in decades, where Pinal County is seeing an increase. Continued years of future significant growth may not be happening.
Scottsdale’s surface streets traffic volume has been mostly flat since the 101 was built. When temporary freeway closures occur as part of the Loop 101 widening project, the surface street traffic illustrates how much traffic was removed from our streets after the freeway was built.
The biggest cause of our traffic is the 150,000 commuters driving in and out of our city every day. We have 18,000 businesses, but a lack of affordable housing and starter homes for young families in Scottsdale. Importing almost 80% of our workforce is the traffic problem we need to solve. Our city streets still receive some of the highest traffic ratings in the Valley.
Per our Transportation Action Plan, we will continue to make sure our transportation network maximizes travel route choices, travel mode choices, and access and mobility for all ages and abilities. The overwhelming amount of transportation projects planned and in progress are adding capacity to the network in various ways. Here are some examples:
- Pima Road will be expanded to a four lanes cross-section from Indian Bend to McDowell Road.
- Dual left turn lanes are being constructed at Indian Bend and Hayden for additional turning capacity.
- A pedestrian/bicycle underpass will be constructed at Hayden/Chaparral that will provide safety for all users and additional green time for the traffic traveling to Loop 101.
What is your vision for the future of Downtown Scottsdale?
My vision is a thriving, vibrant, year-round Downtown with enough residents and tourists to support businesses, shopping, and activities. Downtown is a huge economic engine for our city- one of our 3 growth areas- and part of our winning formula. We need to continue working with our partners (Experience Scottsdale, Scottsdale Arts, Chamber of Commerce, and more) to deliver excellent, unique programming that encourages everyone to enjoy our downtown. We need to continue to work on connectivity and ways to travel from one section to another without continually moving a car to find a new parking spot. We need to make sure we provide parking where it’s most needed so people can park once and enjoy Downtown. Each part of our downtown has a different flavor and focus, and the parts make up a greater whole. Everyone needs to work together to maintain our brand as a world class city with a western flavor.
What is the best way to preserve Scottsdale’s quality of life?
KEEP MOVING FORWARD- we cannot give in to the calls to stop everything and look backward. It’s about balance. We need to continually reinvest and refresh. We can’t shut down the economy. Our economic engine is how we pay for the things we love about our city and how we maintain our high quality of life. It’s what allows us to have healthy revenue streams that keep our services and amenities world class, our property values strong, and our property taxes low. Scottsdale has 18,000 businesses, 200,000 employees, is ranked #1 for startups, and #2 for corporate headquarters. Our winning formula requires economic vitality- without sales tax growth to offset future revenue losses, we’ll have to make cuts to services or further defer maintenance of our assets. We don’t need to grow physically bigger, but we need to be continually reinvesting and growing our economy to remain the gold standard of the Valley.
Do you support or oppose the To Protect and To Preserve ballot measure?
Our residents must decide this important issue, which is why I voted to refer this question to the ballot this November. We have 44 parks and a $1B dollar investment (30,000 acres) in our preserve that need to be maintained, preferably with a dedicated, dependable funding source. Bonds cannot be issued for maintenance. Residents voted to tax themselves to acquire the land, and they deserve a voice in deciding how to pay for its maintenance. The recent Wildcat fire started a mile from the Preserve and highlights the need for ongoing maintenance. Our open spaces are what set us apart from other cities and help make us the gold standard of the Valley. This is the residents’ decision- I represent their voices.
Do you support or oppose the Permanent Base Adjustment ballot measure?
Our residents must decide this important issue, which is why I voted to refer this question to the ballot this November. The “Permanent Base Adjustment” measure allows Scottsdale to spend the money it collects for programs and services that our residents want and deserve. It isn’t a tax increase or an override. Scottsdale hasn’t had an adjustment for 18 years. Without its passage significant service cuts will have to be made. The City Council unanimously supported this measure, but this is the residents’ decision- I represent their voices.