Phoenix-Mesa Metro Area Rises To #5 For Dangerous DeGraded Clean Air Violations Year-After-Year-After-Year

 
 
 
 
 
 
 

The last official results were published a few days ago during HIGH POLLUTION Alerts and Advisories from the Arizona Department of Air Quality.
ADEQ is a regulatory agency whose goal is to ensure federal clean air standards are achieved and maintained for the residents and visitors of Maricopa County. 

While the department states it "follows air quality standards set forth by the federal Clean Air Act", the facts and evidence do not support that claim: Maricopa County has a long record of non-compliance with the Clean Air Act ... they're blaming high pollution on the weather when the sources are on the ground with emissions from automobiles and industrial processes and dust in the air from construction.

From April-October it's gonna be a longer-than-normal ozone season 

29 May 2015

HIGH POLLUTION ADVISORY FOR OZONE TODAY + A "Longer-Than-Normal" Ozone Season

Press Release:

ADEQ is issuing a High Pollution Advisory (HPA) for ozone for the Phoenix metropolitan area for Friday, May 29, 2015 PHOENIX (May 28, 2015) – The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) is issuing a High Pollution Advisory (HPA) for ozone for the Phoenix metropolitan area for Friday, May 29, 2015 . . . and a longer-than-normal ozone season.

Longer-than-normal? Ya mean the new normal when we accept extended periods of air contamination and don't do enough to reduce the sources of breathing unhealthy are?

NOTE: High Pollution Advisory (HPA): Notifies the public that the level of an air pollutant is expected to exceed the federal health standard.Ground-level ozone pollution is harmful to lungs and can trigger asthma. Children are at the greatest risk from ozone because their lungs are still developing, they are most likely to be active outdoors and they are more likely than adults to have asthma. Adults with asthma or other lung diseases and older adults are also sensitive to ozone.Although there are higher-risk groups, all county residents can be affected by ground-level ozone. 
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13 June 2016

Scorching Excessive Heat, Wildfires & Monsoon Season + Another Ozone High Pollution Alert

Once again the air we breathe is unhealthy. Maricopa County has been in violation for years exceeding federal clean air standards - instead of reducing the causes, we the public are forced to deal with symptoms, asked to do things that are minimal compared to what the major sources of air contamination . . .  but let's build more suburban sprawl, let's build more highways and infrastructure that's car-dominated, let's build, finance and buy more cars with internal-combustion engines

 20 October 2017

Pollution: Deadlier Than War, Disaster and Hunger

Here in Arizona yet another alert/ADVISORY for HIGH POLLUTION:  [adding a Blogger's Note] when the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality creates a haze around the issue while the patterns of housing, job locations and commuter-driven car culture create more endless suburbia on top of commercial transportation relying in toxic emissions from fossil fuels . . .  We need to SPEAK UP, folks!

"Pollution kills at least nine million people and costs trillions of dollars every year, according to the most comprehensive global analysis to date, which warns the crisis 'threatens the continuing survival of human societies,'" The Guardian writes of the study, released by The Lancet medical journal:

• "Toxic air, water, soils and workplaces are responsible for the diseases that kill one in every six people around the world."
• "The deaths attributed to pollution are triple those from AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis combined."
• "The vast majority of the pollution deaths occur in poorer nations and in some, such as India, Chad and Madagascar, pollution causes a quarter of all deaths. The international researchers said this burden is a hugely expensive drag on developing economies."

24 June 2018

Say What? CLEAN AIR MAKE MORE: Here's A Gesture

Let the Desert speak if people here in Maricopa County and people here in Mesa don't raise their raise their voices to hold the ADEQ accountable for contaminated, dirty, unhealthy air that is A RISK TO PUBLIC HEALTH.
Where we live is in chronic recurring violations of EPA federal clean air standards.
Who's protecting the environment? 
Just like local government - YOU NEED TO GET ACTIVE
Other locales and other cities can do it, while here in Arizona exposure to unhealthy air appears to be "the cost-of-doing business". . .More emails in the inbox- another two this morning - one about today and another about tomorrow . . .

 

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CONTACTS: 
The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) provides a daily forecast for air quality and issues HPAs or health watches when these conditions exist. Please visit azdeq.gov/environ/air/ozone/ensemble.pdf or call (602) 771-2367 for tomorrow’s forecast or https://public.govdelivery.com/accounts/AZDEQ/subscriber/new to receive air quality forecasts via email and/or text message.

CONTACT: Caroline Oppleman – (602) 540-8072 cell 

Here's all the double-talk

The Maricopa County Air Quality Department (MCAQD) is a regulatory agency whose goal is to ensure federal clean air standards are achieved and maintained for the residents and visitors of Maricopa County. How are they doin'???The department is governed by the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors and follows air quality standards set forth by the federal Clean Air Act. The department offers air quality information and resources on its Clean Air Make More website: cleanairmakemore.com.
CONTACT: Bob Huhn – (602) 506-6713 desk/ (602) 526-7307 cell
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Pollution places sufferers at risk for premature death and other serious conditions including lung cancer, asthma attacks, cardiovascular damage and developmental and reproductive risks.









 

Sun Devil-Style MakeOver for Downtown Mesa . . . Nah Nix That

Hey Andi Blodgett, This isn't cool! You may be a "columnist" but this blog has written-off the phony mess of a shiny new ASU Campus in downtown for more than a couple of years. And, yes I noticed you are part of the spoon-fed news stream
gaming voters here in Mesa . . . another Opinion piece, with a disclaimer, put out by the ASU State Press: 

Opinion: ASU will breathe new life into downtown Mesa

Downtown Mesa will benefit from a Sun Devil-style makeover

By Andi Blodgett | 5 hours ago
Reads like some kind of wish-fulfilment fantasy: Game on!

This is in NO WAY NEWS - here in The Ozone where fresh air is a rare thing in this distressed community that's qualified as an "Opportunity Zone" in Trump's Tax Credit Job Act. That's a hard act to follow after the political stunt two years by Mayor John Giles to sell taxpayers going into more debt to radically transform downtown into an ASU campus. Taxpayers rejected it. 
Blodgett's tricky attempt to tweak it all again just plain smells like too much Sparky-shit:

"You might have already written off the news of a shiny new campus in downtown Mesa, if you even noticed. I mean, why wouldn’t you? ASU is always looking for ways to expand its empire in the Valley, so it’s not surprising. But stop right there . . . " Yes, please just stop

" ASU's empire in the Valley?

Andi Blodgett goes on : "this addition is actually pretty cool, and I’ll tell you why. . . "
Here's WHY IT'S NOT COOL ...because someone like you has a conflict-of-interest, using a guy named Pinholster who is employed by ASU's Herberger Institute, to initiate another bogus scheme to re-package the hit on taxpayers - it's just one more NOTHING BURGER. Let ASU pay for its empire. 
Here's how the ASU State Press Columnist frames the story shifting to using economic development with no cost/benefit analysis from any independent third party:  

"According to Jacob Pinholster, dean of policy and initiatives at the Herberger Institute, the original plan on the 2016 ballot was focused on the performing arts and cultural amenity. This time around, the focus has shifted to economic development, part of that being the new building will be included in downtown Mesa’s Innovation District.
“The programs we’re putting into this building and the facilities that we’re building we expect to be a draw to technology companies in particular,” Pinholster said. “We see a lot of opportunities for collaboration for workforce development and for providing the types of engagement and amenity for folks interested in technology. And the programs that will find a home there really will be the perfect draw for tech companies. We should expect to see programs for subjects such as gaming, virtual reality, animation and film and media production, the last especially with high prospects to thrive.  

"This is going to be one of the best academic film and media production facilities in the country, if not the best,”

Pinholster said.
“I know that it’s going to be an attractive place for people who are interested in doing research with virtual reality, augmented reality, who are interested in visualization technologies.”
WHAT'S THE REALITY HERE? ASU's campus in Tempe devoured downtown there. Students are transients. This is a scheme to drive speculation for a real estate boom.

"From the looks of it, this plan has serious potential to benefit our University and downtown Mesa. Just as ASU moving into downtown Phoenix brought new life to the area, we can expect to see a similar result. All the while, these programs will be getting quite the upgrade.“The benefits to the University are having an incredibly cutting-edge facility for our students to work in,” Pinholster said. “That is a place where we can all come together from all these different disciplines, if all goes well, to solve real-world problems and to really expand on ASU’s charter of taking responsibility for being an active participant of the communities that we serve.”

AND WHAT ABOUT PUBLIC BENEFITS?

And as aforementioned, Mesa should see positive economic growth and development from this expansion.
It’s a win-win.
As exciting as the plan is, it’ll be a little while before anyone sees the benefits. The building is slated to be ready for students at the beginning of the fall semester in 2021, and even then, it won’t technically be a campus.
The Arizona Board of Regents has specific requirements of what is considered a campus. Since students in programs there will have to complete their general credits elsewhere, like the Tempe Campus, for now, it’s called the downtown Mesa location. Plus, we shouldn’t expect to see any residential halls right away.

However, Pinholster said the intergovernmental agreement that was signed by the University and the city of Mesa does lay out options for additional buildings later on. With that being said, this could really just be a starting point for a bigger and brighter Sun Devil future in downtown Mesa, and it should be worth the wait."

- END OF BLODGETT'S COLUMN -

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IMHO: Bad Press + Bad Idea



---

Reach the columnist at amblodge@asu.edu
or follow @AndiBlodgett on Twitter.
Editor’s note: The opinions presented in this column are the author’s and do not imply any endorsement from The State Press or its editors.

http://www.statepress.com/article/2018/06/spopinion-asu-will-breathe-new-life-into-downtown-mesa

Jonathan Pie Having A Royal Potty-Mouth Rant On The Roof > LISTEN UP

Published on Jun 29, 2018

Views: 45,2224

The Trouble with Identity Politics

HPA: DANGER & PUBLIC HEALTH RISK In The Air > That's Right 110+ Days Here In Maricopa County Violate Federal Clean Air Standards

Here's an image of ADEQ administrator getting a $5 Million Dollar grant ....what's he gonna do with it ?
Does this sound familiar to every reader of this blog? Here's just one post out of many published here. Who ya gonna call? Call Mesa City Hall to start - there's someone who earns a good salary, and then call ADEQ ....
Where's the Leadership for Clean Air here in The Valley of The Sun? 
The current head of the Environmental Protection Agency, Scott Pruitt, says He'll look into it . . .

23 April 2018

HIGH POLLUTION ADVISORY: Ozone, Ozone + More Ozone!

OK, Who's getting really outraged ??
Phoenix and Maricopa County are REPEAT OFFENDERS Year after year after year
> among the most Polluted in the U.S.
> #8. Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ 
Where's the Leadership for Clean Air here in The Valley of The Sun? 

Pollution places sufferers at risk for premature death and other serious conditions including lung cancer, asthma attacks, cardiovascular damage and developmental and reproductive risks.
About 133 million Americans — just more than four out of 10 — live with unhealthy levels of air pollution, according to the group of lung health advocates that finds itself lobbying Congress and the Trump administration’s EPA to maintain the Clean Air Act.
Lung Association president and CEO Harold Wimmer placed blame on rising long-run temperatures due to climate change. Smog forms on warm, sunny days and is made worse by the chemicals from vehicle exhaust and from power plant and industrial smokestacks. Warmer temperatures make ozone more likely to form.Pollution places sufferers at risk for premature death and other serious conditions including lung cancer, asthma attacks, cardiovascular damage and developmental and reproductive risks.

New Report Has Bad News For Phoenix-Area Air Quality

KJZZ-2 hours ago

That's among the findings in a report released today from Environment Arizona called “Trouble in the Air.” With The Show to talk about it is ...

 

Trouble in the Air: Americans' health at risk

Environment America-9 hours ago

For the report, Trouble in the Air: Millions of Americans Breathe Polluted Air, the authors reviewed Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ...

Award For Excellence > Good Will Goes Online

Like they say "No Gain Without The Pain" - but this feels O so good and O so great.

Your MesaZona blogger once had a friend who used to swear up-and-down she would never get caught shopping in one of the many neighborhood Goodwill Industries 'Thrift Shops' here in Arizona.

Growing Pains As Goodwill Arizona Moves Online

KJZZ-10 hours ago

They often call themselves “Goodwill Fanatics,” and there are hundreds of online groups for these fans to share treasure hunting tips

GPLETS: Tools in The-Urban-Tool-Box Get Scrutiny In Tempe. . . Here In Mesa, Not-So-Much

The acronym GPLET was unknown in your MesaZona blogger's urban vocabulary until September 2017 at an early morning monthly meeting of the City of Mesa's Economic Development Advisory when a new employee was introduced to make a presentation for the Southwest RDA study area that involved the Zion Public Finance Group from Salt Lake City, Utah. There are some links to posts published at that time on this blog provided farther on.

Image from CBRE Town Center Sale

GPLETS are complicated incentives and programs that give tax breaks for developers. If you are interested in what information is provided by the City of Mesa, go here . At first glance looking into the subject, there were only two properties here in Mesa receiving those 'tax breaks', one of which is the old Valley National Bank Buidling @ the NEC of Macdonald/Main Streets, with the old clock tower Town Center on the corner and now named One North Macdonald Center, shown in an old image before a $6 Million-Dollar redo renovation that transformed the modern steel-and-glass box into this post-modern make-over. It recently sold for $50,000,000.
Available at that time was the 99-Year Lease Agreement with the city.
What the city re-couped from the recent deal is unknown.
Blogger Note: The number of GPLET Properties
So what, some people might ask. Why does it matter? . . . it just might matter to keep city officials - and the dealmakers - honest, because of this story about Tempe today on KJZZ:
If you don't have the time, listen to it > CLICK here

Tempe Business Incentive Land Deals Ended By Settlement

By Lauren Gilger    Published: Wednesday, June 27, 2018 - 12:39pm 

"Back in January, State Representative Vince Leach asked Attorney General Mark Brnovich to look into the City of Tempe’s GPLET deals, incentive programs run by city governments to lease land to developers and businesses in exchange for lower property taxes.

MORE: Tempe Tax Incentives Bring New Development, Legal Questions

In a Petition for Special Action, Brnovich agreed, saying the deals “unfairly shift the tax burden to other hardworking taxpayers.”
The City of Tempe always maintained these real estate offerings were not sweetheart deals or loopholes, but “development incentive tools ... allowed by Arizona state law.”
The two parties announced a settlement Tuesday. Mike Sunnucks of the Phoenix Business Journal joins The Show to tell us about it. . . "
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Government Property Lease Excise Tax (GPLET) GPLET is a redevelopment tool used to initiate development by reducing a project's operating costs by replacing the real property tax with an excise tax.
Government Property Lease Excise Tax (GPLET)
The Government Property Lease Excise Tax (GPLET), established by the State of Arizona, is a redevelopment tool used to initiate development by reducing a project's operating costs by replacing the real property tax with an excise tax. Under the state statute an excise tax is established for the building type of use and is calculated on the gross square footage of building. The use of the excise tax cannot continue for more than twenty five years and requires that the land and improvements are conveyed to a government entity (such as the City of Mesa) and then leased back for private use. The excise tax rate can be abated for the first eight years after a certificate of occupancy on the building is issued if the property is located within a Central Business District and a Redevelopment Area.
Source: http://www.mesaaz.gov/business/economic-development/incentives-programs/government-property-lease-excise-tax-gplet 
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LEARN MORE about other City of Mesa Incentives and Programs
http://www.mesaaz.gov/business/economic-development/incentives-programs/mesa-incentives-and-programs 

Please note this:
PHX East Valley Angel Investor Initiative The City of Mesa is working with a number of PHX East Valley partners to catalyze economic growth by raising awareness of the importance of angel investing and enhancing access to early-stage funding for area tech startups. We are seeking individuals interested in becoming PHX East Valley angel investors.
Learn how you can generate return on investment while helping to grow businesses in our region at www.investphxev.org. Download the fact sheet [PDF].
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Tempe settles with state over improper developer tax breaks

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ENTIRE LIST OF CURRENT GPLET PROPERTIES LISTED
Government Property Lease Excise Tax

LINK >> http://apps.mesaaz.gov/propertyleaseexcisetax/

The City of Mesa Leases Reported to Arizona Department of Revenue under A.R.S. § 42-6202 (D), (E).

This database may include parcels not subject to the tax, specifically exempt parcels. 

 The lease agreement for each lease listed below is available by submitting a GPLET Public Records Request Form. 

 Any confidential information will be redacted from the record.

County City Leased Address Lessee Name View (PDF format) Maricopa Mesa 100 N. Center Downtown Mesa Association Maricopa Mesa 120 N. Center Mesa Convention and Visitors Bureau Maricopa Mesa 1240 E. Main Valley Metro Rail, Inc. Maricopa Mesa 1340 W. University CycleHop Maricopa Mesa 1630 W. Broadway Crescent Crown Distributing Maricopa Mesa 170 W. University Child Crisis Center, Inc. Maricopa Mesa 217 W. University A New Leaf, Inc. Maricopa Mesa 225 E. Main Benedictine University Maricopa Mesa 245 W. 2nd Street Wilkes University Maricopa Mesa 247 N. Macdonald East Valley Adult Resources Maricopa Mesa 247 N. Macdonald Oakwood Creative Care Maricopa Mesa 424 W. Pepper Place, Apt. C Name withheld to protect privacy of tenant Maricopa Mesa 424 W. Pepper Place, Apt. D Name withheld to protect privacy of tenant Maricopa Mesa 432 W. Pepper Place, Apt. E Name withheld to protect privacy of tenant Maricopa Mesa 432 W. Pepper Place, Apt. G Name withheld to protect privacy of tenant Maricopa Mesa 453 N. Pima Mesa Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration, Inc. Maricopa Mesa 45 W. University East Valley Adult Resources Maricopa Mesa 4616 E. Fighter Aces Drive Empire Southwest LLC Maricopa Mesa 4702 E. Fighter Aces Drive Precision Heli-Support Maricopa Mesa 4702 E. Fighter Aces Drive, #104 Wings of Flight Foundation Maricopa Mesa 4730 E. Falcon Drive Civil Air Patrol Maricopa Mesa 4800 E. Falcon Drive Steve Adams Maricopa Mesa 4800 E. Falcon Drive John Lewis Maricopa Mesa 4800 E. Falcon Drive Boeing Company Maricopa Mesa 4930 E. Falcon Drive Heliponents Maricopa Mesa 6030 S. Kent St. Confidential Maricopa Mesa 6030 S. Kent St. Confidential Maricopa Mesa 6030 S. Kent St. Confidential Maricopa Mesa 6030 S. Kent St. Confidential Maricopa Mesa 6030 S. Kent St. Confidential Maricopa Mesa 6030 S. Kent St. Confidential Maricopa Mesa 6030 S. Kent St. Confidential Maricopa Mesa 6030 S. Kent St. Confidential Maricopa Mesa 6030 S. Kent St. Confidential Maricopa Mesa 6030 S. Kent St. Confidential Maricopa Mesa 6030 S. Kent St. Confidential Maricopa Mesa 6030 S. Kent St. Confidential Maricopa Mesa 6030 S. Kent St. Confidential Maricopa Mesa 6030 S. Kent St. Confidential Maricopa Mesa 6030 S. Kent St. Confidential Maricopa Mesa 6030 S. Kent St. Confidential Maricopa Mesa 6030 S. Kent St. Confidential Maricopa Mesa 6030 S. Kent St. Confidential Maricopa Mesa 6030 S. Kent St. Confidential Maricopa Mesa 6030 S. Kent St. Confidential Maricopa Mesa 6030 S. Kent St. Confidential Maricopa Mesa 6030 S. Kent St. Confidential Maricopa Mesa 6030 S. Kent St. Confidential Maricopa Mesa 6030 S. Kent St. Confidential Maricopa Mesa 6030 S. Kent St. Confidential Maricopa Mesa 6030 S. Kent St. Confidential Maricopa  Mesa Address Confidential Save the Family Foundation Maricopa Mesa Address Confidential A New Leaf, Inc. Maricopa Mesa Address Confidential A New Leaf, Inc. Maricopa Mesa Address Confidential A New Leaf, Inc.