By Larry Kush On February 10th Councilwoman Whitehead submitted a guest editorial to this paper citing her outrage over a proposed state senate bill known as SB1117. This proposed bill is in response to the likes of councilwoman Whitehead who, along with other council members throughout the valley, have done everything in their power to deny the rights of private … Read More
How Big is the Multifamily Housing Issue in Scottsdale? Now We Know
If you read this blog regularly, we don’t have to tell you: the rental crisis is real, it is truly rearing its ugly head in Arizona, and while multifaceted, one of the biggest drivers of it is a shortage in supply. This is why we’ve been shouting from the rooftops about the need for additional housing supply, and there are … Read More
Guest Editorial: Kudos to Larry Kush on Hat Trick – If Only Our Leaders Listened to Him More Often
By Ronald Sampson I am unapologetically a fan of pro-growth policies. I believe that our communities are better off with elected officials who believe that building is typically preferred to not building, that housing prices are best when they are suppressed by solid supply, and that NIMBYism hurts nearly all of us. In that spirit, I was very pleased to … Read More
Guest Editorial: Solange Whitehead is Part of the Problem
By Larry Kush Three years ago on February 28th 2019, I had coffee with newly elected Scottsdale councilwoman Solange Whitehead to discuss her position on housing. Solange told me of her commitment to help alleviate the homeless problem and how she was an strong advocate for affordable housing. Over the next 3 years, Solange then proceeded to oppose nearly every … Read More
Featured Editorial: Mayor Ortega is Setting Scottsdale Up for a Major Loss
By Larry Kush Yet another battle is taking shape between property rights advocates and our cities mayor over the mayor’s goal of gutting the Old Town Scottsdale Character Area Plan (OTSCAP) which was adopted in 2018. In case you have not heard of it, OTSCAP serves as the regulatory long-range plan that guides growth and development in downtown Scottsdale, and … Read More
Guest Editorial: I Cannot Support the General Plan
By Larry Kush During my many years of service on the Scottsdale Planning Commission, there were several meetings where city staff updated us on the progress of the revised general plan and asked us for our comments. City Planning Staff put in untold hours of work on this plan, holding several meetings with stake holders (citizens) to explain the plan … Read More