By Terry Babb This week, Attorney General Kris Mayes said Arizona “probably has too many golf courses.” That comment landed hard in Scottsdale, where golf courses support our tourism economy, preserve open space, and protect residents’ quality of life. Golf courses may also be a problem for Councilmember Solange Whitehead and her political apprentice Raoul Zubia. Both push Advanced Water … Read More
Facts Over Fiction on Scottsdale’s Water
By Councilwoman Jan Dubauskas Councilwoman Solange Whitehead’s recent column claims city water professionals and her colleagues misled residents at our latest work-study session. The record says otherwise. For months, Whitehead and her political ally Raoul Zubia have warned that Scottsdale’s water security is in crisis and that Advanced Water Purification (AWP) is the only fix. The city’s own experts presented … Read More
The Truth About Scottsdale’s Water “Surplus”: Debunking Tall Tales
By Councilwoman Solange Whitehead Scottsdale Councilmembers Barry Graham and Jan Dubauskas’ comments at this week’s Council meeting on water made one thing clear: they either do not understand – or they do not want the public to understand – the truth about Scottsdale’s water challenges. After nearly two years of their blocking public meetings on water, we finally held a … Read More
The Farmers Market Moved and Scottsdale Survived
By Vanessa Rogers Remember the warnings? When the city announced it would expand the Brown Avenue parking garage, social media predicted doom for the Old Town Scottsdale Farmers Market. On Saturday, the market opened its season in the City Hall lot, and the doom failed to show up. Councilwoman Solange Whitehead described a packed, relatively glitch-free opening day. Kids, dogs, … Read More
Guest Editorial: Can We Follow the Plan?
By Councilwoman Solange Whitehead Should Scottsdale Residents Pay Double for Water? The current Council majority has gone to great lengths—and at ratepayers’ expense—to work around Scottsdale’s Water Strategic Plan, an adopted plan designed to keep our water flowing, safe, and affordable. The latest proposal would further delay Scottsdale’s Advanced Water Purification facility—the most cost-effective and secure source of new water—and … Read More
What Listening Looks Like — and What It Doesn’t
By Councilwoman Jan Dubauskas Your Council majority listens to you, and as a result Scottsdale is doing more with less. We are lowering tax rates, catching up on deferred maintenance, ending cost overruns, accelerating capital projects, and fully funding public safety. We are getting back to core services. Our majority also stopped asking residents to fund ideological pet programs, stopped … Read More
Guest Editorial: Scottsdale Residents Deserve a City Council That Listens to you!
At our first Council meeting following the primary election, City Hall was filled to standing room only with residents from across Scottsdale and every political affiliation celebrating my outright re-election. The Mayor’s recognition of my victory and the residents’ applause were an incredibly uplifting way to begin the evening. Thank you to everyone who came to City Hall! Unfortunately, the … Read More
Two Proposals: Put Residents First, Fix the Political Sign Mess
By Solange Whitehead Monday, I will propose restoring public comment to the beginning of Council meetings. The Council’s decision to move citizen comments to the end of meetings effectively silenced everyday residents. Listening to the community is free, vital, and helps catch problems early—before they become costly. I will also propose a council meeting item to establish voluntary campaign sign … Read More
Guest Editorial: Steady Water Management, Not Campaign Rhetoric
By Councilwoman Kathy Littlefield Scottsdale residents deserve the real facts about our water future, not cherry-picked claims timed for an election. Councilwoman Solange Whitehead’s recent opinion piece attempts to cast doubt on the city’s water security to promote her preferred council candidate. The facts reveal a different picture. Scottsdale Water has planned for a possible drought for decades, carefully managing … Read More
Voting for Raoul Zubia safeguards Scottsdale’s AAA bond rating
By Councilwoman Solange Whitehead The nation’s credit rating agencies just provided another compelling reason to elect Raoul Zubia to the City Council. In less than two years, the current Council majority has caused lasting damage including their unprecedented politicization of water and defunding of Scottsdale’s Advanced Purified Recycled Water program. These actions have dealt a dual blow to our community, … Read More