By Councilwoman Solange Whitehead
Scottsdale City Council Swearing-In Remarks: What We Learned
The Scottsdale City Council held its inauguration and swearing-in event last week, with two members (Kathy Littlefield and Solange Whitehead) being re-elected to a second term and one (Barry Graham) being new to the council dais. Each of the members was given an opportunity to speak, and as such gave an opportunity to peer in and speculate as to how … Read More
Laws Only Matter with Enforcement: STRs are Skirting the Rules in Scottsdale
The fight for reasonable regulation of short-term rentals (STRs) has seemed to ebb and flow. First the state squashed local control, and then after serious backlash they relented some. While cities and towns started to implement regulations, the Arizona League of Cities and Towns seemed to side with the STR industry (you can follow the entire back and forth here). … Read More
Thank You 2022!
We wanted to take a moment to give our thanks to you, our readers, and let you know just how productive of a year it was for our growth. Last year nearly 82,000 people visited arizonaprogressgazette.com with views topping 269,000. Over 1,526 hours were cumulatively spent reading our content and unlike some sites that puff up their numbers with cheap … Read More
The Winds of Change: Regulation is Now in Fashion in Scottsdale
My ohhh my, what a change only a handful of years can make. It wasn’t too long ago that a Jim Lane-led Scottsdale embraced development and growth. It would seem that the pendulum has swung and swung hard in the other direction. In a 6-1 vote, the Scottsdale city council recently voted to adopt a series of international green building … Read More
Guest Editorial: New Beginnings 2023
By Councilwoman Betty Janik The new year brings with it a sense of renewal and a belief that we will continue to improve as individuals and as members of a community. The City of Scottsdale is no exception. Building on regulations passed in 2022, we will strive to implement these new rules in 2023. Near the end of last year, … Read More
The Countdown is Over in the Rio Verde Foothills: Cooler Heads Didn’t Prevail
The potential consequences of water security in a high growth area that also happens to be in a desert have been looming over the valley for quite some time, and Ground Zero for that looming crisis has been the Rio Verde Foothills on the outskirts of Scottsdale. We have written about this crisis previously, and while the question was up … Read More
Guest Editorial: Year in Review
By Councilwoman Tammy Caputi Councilwoman Caputi here, wishing everyone a Happy New Year. Here’s a look back at 2022 accomplishments: Most importantly, we’ve managed our finances exceptionally well in the midst of an historically high level of economic uncertainty. Despite record high inflation, a crisis in the supply chain, and labor shortages, Scottsdale has improved our balance sheet by increasing … Read More
Unfortunate Requests for More Unnecessary Density in Scottsdale
By Ronald Sampson There has been a concerted shift away from the development hey-days of the past in Scottsdale, when it felt as though any interesting and well-financed idea conceived by developers would make its way through the city council with relative ease. More recently traffic, crowds (i.e. population density) and construction have made activists out of everyday people, and … Read More
Demand Pull: Jobs are Bringing More Housing to Phoenix, What Can Scottsdale Learn?
We’re not shy about the need for more housing options in the valley; in the words of that oddball New York political candidate a number of years back, “the rent is too damn high”, but one could also lump home prices in that bucket as well. And as we like to remind you, the best way to reduce those is … Read More