Guest Editorial: Prop 490 No Longer in Limbo

By Councilwoman Betty Janik Prop 490, the sales tax measure to protect and preserve open space, will be on the November Ballot. It has been a tortuous path.  The Goldwater Institute filed suit late in the game on behalf of Mayor Lane, Yvonne Cahill, and Susan Wood to block it from the November ballot alleging misleading information.  The lower court … Read More

Despite Attempt of Lobbyist Lawyers to Thwart the Will of the People, Popular Parks Initiative Will Be On Scottsdale Ballots in November

By Alexander Lomax It’s been a rollercoaster past week or so for Proposition 490, the Protect and Preserve initiative that is designed to replace the 0.2% sales tax used for the McDowell Sonoran Preserve with a lower 0.15% sales tax with expanded park maintenance and upkeep services. The very popular initiative brought the ire of the Goldwater Institute, the lobbyist … Read More

Mayors back Adam Kwasman for Scottsdale City Council

Repost from Adam Kwasman On Thursday, August 22nd, six prominent Arizona mayors officially announced their bipartisan support for former state legislator and Scottsdale City Council candidate, Adam Kwasman. The impressive lineup includes endorsements from former Scottsdale Mayor Jim Lane, former Phoenix Mayor Paul Johnson, former Fountain Hills Mayor Linda Kavanagh, former Maricopa Mayors Anthony Smith and Christian Price, and former … Read More

Handicapping the November Elections: Legislative District 4

Now that the primaries are behind us, it’s time for us to take a look at how the November general elections may shake out, and we’re going to start with Legislative District 4, which covers most of Scottsdale from Camelback Road to the 101 as well as Paradise Valley. This is one of the more interesting battles in Arizona because … Read More

Legislative District 4 Has a New Representative: New Boss is Same As the Old Boss

Legislative District 4 in Arizona is a massively important one, not just because many of our readers are within it (as it covers much of Scottsdale and Paradise Valley), but because it is one of the few legitimate swing districts, with one Republican Representative and one Democrat (as well as a Democratic State Senator). Representative Laura Terech announced that she … Read More

Scottsdale Police Using Drones: Effective Crime-Fighting or Intrusion on Privacy?

Arizona has always had a bit of a social libertarian streak; one focused on self-reliance, of personal freedoms, and a disdain for “big government”. Sometimes that desire for personal freedom and a lack of government intrusion can clash with another aspect of much of the state, and specifically Scottsdale: a respect for the work of law enforcement. So what happens … Read More

Looking Forward to November: The Scottsdale City Council Race

The recent primary in Scottsdale offered some clarity on how the next iteration of the City Council will look, as well as one surprise: instead of fundraising favorite Tammy Caputi avoiding a run-off and winning outright, it was Jan Dubauskas who finished in first with enough of a margin to avoid a run-off, and as such will be the first … Read More

Guest Editorial: Listen to Our Firefighters, Not the Loud Activists

By Ronald Sampson Most cities of a certain size have some kind of a loud activist minority (minority referring to their size, not any immutable traits). You know the types; they don’t have too much to hang their hat on when it comes to their personal or professional lives, so they throw everything into some political causes, consistently raise the … Read More