Thank you for the email that was just sent to us showing this Axon hired gun, trying to block Scottsdale voters from having a say on the largest apartment complex in city history, taking a break to smoke some weed. Perhaps Axon should take a cue from this guy: smoke one, chill the heck out, and leave Scottsdale alone.
Guest Editorial: An Open Letter to Axon CEO Rick Smith from Former Scottsdale City Councilman and Chairman of Taxpayers Against Awful Apartment Zoning Exemptions (TAAAZE), Bob Littlefield
Dear Mr. Smith: As you are no doubt aware thousands of Scottsdale residents from conservatives to liberals have come together to put the recent Scottsdale City Council approval, awarding Axon the largest apartment complex in Scottsdale history, to a public vote. What you may not be aware is that as of today, the halfway point of the 30 day period the … Read More
You Can’t Make This Stuff Up
Axon’s own renderings for its apartment city
Outgoing Mayor and City Councilmembers Add an Unfortunate End to Their Legacy with Axon
By Alexander Lomax A lame duck session in politics is the period after the election but before the inauguration of new members. It’s when leaders who either did not run for re-election or lost their re-election raves are unencumbered by future expectations and criticisms, where they can defy the expectations of their constituency with few repercussions. It’s also a time … Read More
What Now for the Soon-to-be-Former Mayor? Mayor Dave Ortega’s Next Potential Steps
For winners of political campaigns, the to-do list is a fairly clear one: prepare themselves for the office, consider the staff they’ll need, and be ready to hit the ground running. What is next for elected officials who lose their re-election campaigns is far less frequently talked about. What about Scottsdale Mayor Dave Ortega? After what was presumed to be … Read More
Scottsdale’s Least Favorite Bully Returns
By Ronald Sampson Just when I had hoped that it would be the end of it, that the city of Scottsdale would get a reprieve from the constant harassment, it persists. Like a woman at a club who keeps getting hit on by a guy that won’t take no for an answer, regardless of her friends and her beefy boyfriend … Read More
ASM versus Optima: Where Economic Growth Battles Quality of Life
We all want economic growth, and Arizona (and Scottsdale, more specifically) has been on fire in that regard recently. This has been optimized by the massive recent announcement by semiconductor-adjacent giant ASM, which recently announced an absolutely mammoth expansion in Scottsdale (you can learn more about it here). But as with anything mammoth, there will be winners and there will … Read More
Issues Collide: Do STRs Hold the Key to High Housing Costs?
Short-term rentals (STRs) have been a hot political talking point in Scottsdale for years now, as Mayor David Ortega and various city councilmembers have battled onerous restrictions at the state level to better regulate “party houses” and their related nuisances with mixed results. Additionally, the cost of housing has been a massive issue across the entire Valley, as renters have … Read More
Greenlight Communities Closes on Cabana Kyrene: New Affordable Rental Community Underway in Tempe
Construction Set to Begin on 229-Unit Multi-Family Housing Community at Guadalupe & Kyrene Roads Greenlight Communities, the Scottsdale-based developer dedicated exclusively to building attainable and affordable rental housing without relying on government subsidies, is proud to announce the closing of its first community in South Tempe. Situated at the southwest corner of Guadalupe and Kyrene Roads, at 515 West Guadalupe Road … Read More
Rebirth From Death: The Resurrection of the Paradise Valley Mall
It has been a frequent sign of the times: the dominance of e-commerce, led by Amazon, has led to the decline of other methods of shopping. Main Street shops have shuttered, and perhaps worst of all, shopping malls have borne the brunt of this shift. For many brick-and-mortar stores, the pandemic delivered the death blow that Amazon started, as malls … Read More