City Manager's Update
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Date: |
June 15, 2007 |
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To: |
Mayor and City Council |
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From: |
Christopher J. Brady,
City Manager |
Council and Advisory Board
meeting calendar
Here is my update on City news. Please let me know
if you need more information about any of these
items.
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
Fiesta Lofts brings urban flair to Fiesta
District
Fiesta Lofts continues plans to develop over 430
luxury condominiums, more than 20,000 square feet of
retail, and up to 24 work/live units in west Mesa.
Located on Grove Avenue, near the southeast corner
of Southern Avenue and Alma School Road, Fiesta
Lofts will create a new destination in Mesa with a
mix of luxurious residences and upscale shopping,
dining and services
Roszak/ADC plans to begin construction on Fiesta
Lofts in February 2008 with completion scheduled for
August 2009.
Other planned developments for the area include
major renovations to Westcor’s Fiesta Mall, a Mesa
Community College campus remodel to accommodate over
10,000 additional students, remodels of Mesa Fiesta
and Poco Fiesta shopping centers and over $6 million
in renovations to the Hilton property. Banner Desert
Medical Center has plans to build a new Children’s
Tower, which will bring over 800 jobs to Mesa.
The Fiesta District is a hub for advanced
business and financial services, health care and
retail. Fiesta Mall, one of two major regional
shopping centers in Mesa, serves as the centerpiece
of this employment center. In addition to being an
excellent location for businesses that require Class
A office space and executive hotel accommodations,
businesses and visitors take advantage of quick
access to US 60 and Loop 101 freeways and numerous
area amenities.
ENGINEERING
2006/2007 Street Improvements: Longmore -
Southern Avenue to Broadway Road, 32nd Street -
McKellips Road to McDowell Road, Broadway Road - Val
Vista Drive to Greenfield Road
This project will remove the existing asphalt
pavement on the effected street sections
(approximately 3 miles total) and replace it with
new rubberized asphalt pavement. The rubberized
asphalt offers a quieter driving surface and
extended pavement life with less required
maintenance. Existing sidewalk ramps within the
project limits will be upgraded to meet ADA
requirements and several new ramps will be added. As
part of the new striping, the bike lane on Longmore
will be extended from Southern Avenue to Broadway
Road. Construction is scheduled to last from
mid-June to early September.
Jefferson Park Lighting
The Jefferson Park Lighting project encompasses
the entire recreational area which includes the
existing ball fields, sports courts, walk ways, play
areas, horse-shoe pits and parking area. It is
anticipated that the renovation of the lighting will
increase the safety of the park as well as boost the
usage of the park in the evening hours. The
playground and baseball fields will have additional
lighting added to ensure overall coverage.
AV Electric, the awarded contractor, began work
on June 6 in the Southeast section of the park. It
is expected that the project will be completed by
early September.
LIBRARY
Dobson Ranch Branch 20-Year Anniversary
Dobson Ranch Branch Library will celebrate its
20th Anniversary on June 18. Please join us for a
trip down memory lane as the community, the City of
Mesa, and the Library mark this special day.
Children may participate in a coloring contest and
older children are invited to design a birthday card
for the library. Movie passes donated by the Dobson
Ranch Homeowners Association will be door prizes.
Balloons, library buttons, cookies and punch will be
available for all. Public presentations begin at
10:00 am.
NEIGHBORHOOD SERVICES
VITA volunteers produce big refunds for Mesa
residents
One hour of time is worth more than $1,000. The
phrase was accurate for many volunteer tax preparers
who provided help during the 2007 tax season to low
income, elderly and disabled families living in Mesa
as part of the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance
Program (VITA).
During 52 days of operation at four different
sites in the City, 53 VITA volunteers served as tax
preparers, greeters, screeners and translators to
help residents prepare the basic 1040 tax returns
and related schedules. As a result, the VITA program
returned more than $1 million in federal tax
refunds, including the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC),
directly to 934 households in Mesa.
The VITA volunteers were recognized at a
reception May 8 at the Arizona Museum for Youth.
They were given certificates of appreciation from
Mesa Mayor Keno Hawker and the Internal Revenue
Service. The volunteers donated a total of 2,043
hours. The value of their volunteer time was
$38,347.
If you want to become a VITA volunteer next year,
contact Mesa Neighborhood Services Volunteer
Coordinator Katie Brown at 480-644-3705 or
Katie.Brown@cityofmesa.org. Training will begin in
November.
Community Revitalization
Ground Breaking for New Vocational Training
Facility
The MARC Center initiated construction of a
34,400 square foot state-of-the art vocational
training facility on June 11, 2007 with a formal
groundbreaking ceremony. The MARC Center serves
children and adults with physical, developmental and
behavioral disabilities. In FY 05/06, City of Mesa
Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds were
allocated to the non-profit in the amount of
$200,000. These funds were used for
architectural/engineering fees. For FY 07/08 the
MARC Center will receive $150,000 in CDBG funds to
purchase and install materials management storage
units and a new forklift. This will enable the
Center to enhance vocational needs and promote
safety issues. The MARC Center website is: http://www.marccenter.com/index.htm.
Neighborhood Outreach
District 6 Kicks-off Building Strong
Neighborhoods Initiative
The City of Mesa’s
sixth Building Strong Neighborhoods Initiative
kicked off June 7 at the Light of the Desert Church
in East Mesa. Councilmember Scott Somers welcomed
approximately 50 residents from the Casa Mia
neighborhood, located North of Baseline Road and
East of Sossaman. During the orientation meeting,
residents heard results of the door-to-door survey
conducted by city staff and formed four teams
including a Beautification and Leadership Team. The
neighborhood recently received the Margie Frost
Advocacy and Organization Award as part of the 2006
Spirit of Mesa Awards.
PARKS AND RECREATION
Mesa Pools make list of affordable "Cool Pools"
Two Mesa pools were included in a list of ten
'cool pools' located in the Valley. In the June 3
issue of the Arizona Republic, City pools were
featured as affordable entertainment opportunities.
Carson Junior High Pool and Shepherd Aquatic Complex
garnered a mention due to their unique attributes.
Both Mesa pools include water slides and children's
play areas. Parks pool hours of operations and fees
can be found on the City of Mesa Web site at http://www.cityofmesa.org/parksrec/parks/
or by calling 480-644-2352.
POLICE
PD Elder Abuse Expert Promotes New Program
Karen Stegenga, Crime Prevention Officer is
representing the Mesa Police Department in a new
statewide program called "Break the Silence" about
elder abuse awareness. She has worked with the
Arizona Elder Abuse Coalition, whose members include
Attorney General Terry Goddard, American Association
of Retired Persons (AARP) and the Area Agency on
Aging. The purpose of the program is to educate the
public on elder abuses including physical abuse,
sexual and emotional abuse, neglect and financial
exploitation. The program launch on June 15
coincides with World Elder Abuse Awareness Day. The
program is expected to evolve into a year-round
curriculum of events and awareness activities.
Additionally, Stegenga serves on numerous state
boards relating to the prevention of elder abuse,
including the Maricopa
Elder Abuse Prevention Alliance.
MPD VIPS Coordinator Quoted on International VIPS
Web site
The Mesa Police
Department is pleased to announce Volunteers in
Police Service (VIPS) Coordinator Linda Bailey being
prominently quoted on the international VIPS Web
site policevolunteers.org. Bailey, the VIPS
Coordinator since 1997, was quoted as saying,
"Incorporating volunteers into a law enforcement
environment allows the department to achieve the
best possible public safety product, beyond what a
department’s budget can purchase." May 30 marked the
national VIPS Programs fifth anniversary. Today,
there are more than 1550 VIPS programs and 101,000
volunteers in the United States and other countries.
MPD’s VIPS was organized in 1990. Last year 106 VIPS
provided 20,896.75 volunteer hours, saving the City
$392,231.99.
TRANSPORTATION
Park and Ride No. 1
This transit project is being constructed to
relocate the existing vehicle parking area at
Superstition Springs Mall. Access to this new
facility will be from the Power Road westbound US 60
on-ramp or the mall's south perimeter road. This
200+ designated parking facility consists of new
pavement, curb and gutter, sidewalk, storm drain,
retaining walls, pedestrian platform, lighting,
traffic signals, signing, and landscaping.
Construction of the new facility on the north
side of US 60 between Power Rd. and Superstition
Springs Blvd. is 70 percent complete. The new
roadway across the ADOT channel tying into the mall
perimeter road is under construction. Preparation of
sub-grade for next week's paving is ongoing as is
site lighting and landscaping. Concrete installation
of curb and gutter, sidewalk and decorative
pedestrian platform continues. T his
project is expected to be complete by the end of
July.
UTILITIES
Call to action: Skip the overseeding this year
Nearly 400 homeowner’s associations (HOAs) and
250 apartment communities will receive a letter in
June encouraging them to forgo overseeding in the
fall. This is the sixth year the Utilities
Department has made this request. Two letters will
be sent; the first in June to alert people before
they have made an official decision to overseed,
and a follow-up in September for those who have not
responded to the request. Recipients are asked to
fax or mail back the letter, indicating whether they
will or will not overseed. This information is used
to measure the estimated water savings from this
outreach effort. Data collected previously has shown
that many communities are overwatering by as much
as 400 percent, especially when overseeding.
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