“The Arizona Corporation Commission approved EPCOR’s application to construct a standpipe for water service to the Rio Verde Foothills community today. This is the long-term solution that I worked towards since becoming a member of the Board of Supervisors and serving District 2. I am happy that the good folks in Rio Verde Foothills will have a long-term, reliable water … Read More
Guest Editorial: Defending Scottsdale water is no vice
By Scottsdale Mayor David Ortega This week, two significant water-related issues made the headlines. First, Governor Hobbs acted to stop Fondomonte, the Saudi Arabia-owned alfalfa farm, to halt it from draining billions of gallons of Arizona groundwater. Secondly, the Rio Verde Standpipe District met state statutes and City of Scottsdale’s stringent requirements to operate, serving Rio Verde Foothills (RVF). Supervisor … Read More
Guest Editorial: Statement from County Supervisor Thomas Galvin on Return of Reliable Water to Rio Verde Foothills
By Supervisor Thomas Galvin “I am grateful that water is once again flowing to Rio Verde Foothills (RVF), but I am still baffled why it took this long. After all, my solution to this unnecessary crisis has been on the table for the past year. Instead, there was ten months of unnecessary pain to the Rio Verde Foothills. And City of Scottsdale residents were not … Read More
The First Big Shoe to Drop in Arizona’s Water Crisis: Farming
As regular readers know, water is a subject that we frequently write about; we don’t think we need to explain the importance of it to us. While the Rio Verde Foothills seems to be mostly behind us at this point, water levels at Lake Mead and Lake Powell are ever-present concerns in our … Read More
The Consequences of Drought are Here: No More Front Lawns for New Scottsdale Homes
Water (or a potential lack thereof) is the one topic that all Arizonans can agree is of utmost importance both in the near and long-term futures. It is a subject that we have written about extensively and which you can read about here. The drought supercycle that we have endured has largely occurred without much in the way of true … Read More
No Spiking the Football Just Yet: Rio Verde Foothills Demonstrates How Legislation Isn’t the End-All Be-All
The Rio Verde Foothills got some good news recently in their fight for secured water; Senate Bill 1432 was signed by Governor Katie Hobbs last week, thus ending a tumultuous time for the embattled community. But there was a reason why we had some degree of hesitation when it came to declaring victory, and this article exemplifies that concern very … Read More
Guest Editorial: SB1432 – A Win for Scottsdale, Rio Verde Foothills Residents, and Arizona
By Councilmember Solange Whitehead This past week, Governor Katie Hobbs signed SB1432 into law with an emergency clause. The bipartisan bill creates a path to water security for Rio Verde Foothills residents. I discussed the new law with Mark Brodie on KJZZ’s The Show this week. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7A8w7hlBdFg In passing the law, the State ends a water crisis created in part by … Read More
A Landmark Water Deal Hits Home to Arizona: Have We Solved the Water Crisis?
The 800 pound elephant that is constantly in the gigantic room that is Arizona is water: the specter of dwindling water from our most prominent water sources, of long term drought, and potentially the end of the Arizona (and more overarchingly, the American Southwest) that we have learned to love. We have covered the topic frequently, and you can get … Read More
The Rio Verde Foothills Crisis Gets the Governor’s Attention…and a Veto
One of the most explosive local issues in recent memory, the Rio Verde Foothills water crisis, has been moving forward in this year’s legislative session (get up to date on our coverage here). Unfortunately for its residents, it’s not going too well…yet. Indeed, the one bill to help alleviate the crisis has been vetoed by Governor Katie Hobbs, Arizona’s new … Read More
Freshman Rep. Kolodin Grabs Spotlight as Major Water Cuts Expected in Scottsdale: Is He Using His Pulpit Effectively?
Regular readers know just how seriously we take the water issue here at the Arizona Progress & Gazette: you can get up to date here. A recent bombshell report by the Scottsdale Water Director shines a new light on Scottsdale’s potential future water deficit, and freshman Representative Alexander Kolodin has used the opportunity to gain the spotlight regarding this issue. … Read More
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