"Not a Good Fit" ... Tangling With City Manager Chris Brady Could Cost You Your Job

Well, at least one person who's a staff writer for the East Valley Tribune has been hearing some static. Jim Walsh has got to be careful treading into that territory filled with pit-falls by carefully choosing his words to avoid getting into being a target in Chris Brady's cross-hairs. Walsh nonetheless somehow manages to crush his headline story in the guise of respect for history

THE REAL BONES OF CONTENTION UNDER THIS STORY OVER A CITY OFFICIAL QUITTING
Official quits, questions Mesa’s respect for history             

By Jim Walsh, Tribune Staff Writer Aug 18, 2019

http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/news 

Singleton cited the City Creek Reserve project as an example of where Mesa went wrong on historic preservation. 
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"Kate Singleton seemed like the perfect person to rebuild Mesa’s historic preservation program when she started her job with the city in April.

She drew accolades for her work over a 41-year career devoted to preserving history in Dallas, Fort Worth and Austin, Texas.

But less than four months on the job, Singleton resigned — accusing city officials of hindering her attempts to overhaul Mesa’s outdated preservation program and refusing to listen to her ideas.
"I have encountered reluctance to change or strengthen regulations, even when that was the logical approach and required by the city’s status as a certified local government and federal law,’’ Singleton wrote in a stinging letter of resignation to Planning Director Nana Appiah dated July 29 with an effective date of Aug. 4.

“It appears the city administration does not fully understand what a good, well run historic preservation program should be and there is ongoing surveillance from those in the city who are concerned that the program would disrupt the status quo, a factor that has hampered the program.’’ 

Mesa City Manager Chris Brady said Mesa has had a strong commitment toward historic preservation for decades and he can’t understand why anyone would question it.

“There’s no question about it. You can see it in our actions,’’ Brady said.

He said Singleton “wasn’t a good fit’’ and was trying to expand her authority by advocating for historical reviews on city bond projects, which are not required by law.

> Singleton’s resignation has upset other preservations, notably members of the city Historic Preservation Advisory Board.
 

> It also has illustrated a tension between advocates of a more robust historic preservation program and most city officials’ desire to push forward with projects they say will breathe new life into some of Mesa’s deteriorating neighborhoods while delivering much-needed facilities to newer ones.

. . . “I felt like every time I brought something up, I was told, ‘We can’t do that, we don’t do it that way in Mesa,’’’ Singleton said. “I think the city might need to do some soul searching. They really need to decide if they want to do this.’’

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QUESTIONS ALSO HAVE RISEN OVER THE NEWLY-HIRED CITY  PLANNING DIRECTOR WHO ASSUMED OFFICE IN JANUARY 2019, eight months ago. 
In Walsh's writing, Mr. Appiah was defended or at least supported somewhat by statements included that were made on the record by District 4 City Councilmember Jennifer Duff who said she is convinced Appiah is committed to improving the historic preservation program.

“I think Nana has historic preservation as a priority,’’ Duff said, adding that he needs more time as the city seeks a replacement for Singleton.

Duff, a longtime advocate of historic preservation, said the city needs to find the right person who can combine a knowledge of historic preservation with an ability to navigate the nuances of city government.

“We didn’t have a historic preservation officer for 10 years."

A lot of things fell through the cracks,’’ Duff said. “I think it’s been a rough 10-12 years.

. . . David Marek, Chairperson of the Historic Preservation & Development Board,  said he is concerned that the city apparently does not have a standard procedure for running development proposals through the historic preservation officer.

He noted that Hohokam canals were found, documented and protected during the construction of Mesa Riverview a decade ago. 

He said the same procedures should be followed as the city builds a series of major public improvements in the next few years. 

. . . But Brady said there is no need to change city policies. 
 

Chris Cody, assistant director of the Arizona State Historic Preservation Office, said the Mesa program needs an overhaul, and pledged to help in any way possible.  

“You are in desperate need of an update,’’ Cody told the board at a recent meeting.
He described the present Mesa regulation as “a dormant ordinance.’’

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LET'S GET TO THE NITTY-GRITTY:

"Brady strongly disagreed with Cody’s description of Mesa’s ordinance, saying it was used when City Creek Reserve documented the historical significance of 13 homes along Udall Street.

Those homes were demolished to make room for The Residences at Main Street, a redevelopment project west of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints temple.

BLOGGER NOTE:

The money behind the Mormon message - The Salt Lake Tribune

https://archive.sltrib.com › article

Oct 5, 2012 -

Built for about $2 billion, the City Creek Center stands across the street from the ... Hawaii Reserve, for example, owns or manages more than 7,000 acres on ... refer to them as The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Holdings Inc." ... Romney and others at Bain Capital LLC, the private equity firm he ...

The City Creek Center is a mixed-use development with an upscale open-air shopping center, office and residential buildings, fountain, and simulated creek near Temple Square in downtown Salt Lake City, Utah, United States.

It is an undertaking by Property Reserve, Inc. (the commercial real estate .... Management Associates, LLC., a sister company of City Creek Reserve Inc.

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09 July 2018

Mesa City Council Meetings (2) Mon 09 July 2018 

An earlier start today for the Study Session, allowing about an hour.
The regular meeting is scheduled to begin at 5:45 with 29 items.
> Item 3 has 15 Contracts worth millions of dollars
> Item 4 has six Resolutions
> Item 5 has   3 Ordinances

Links have been inserted and provided so you can find out more information and detailsRELATED CONTENT ON THIS BLOG

See Ordinance 5-a

This proposed development has been the subject of robust discussion both in public hearings and in the local media, ranging from demolition of certain properties that have been in the district for years to a retro-fake architectural style that in no way is "Mesa-unique" . . . Note that the proposed development is getting financed by a for-profit branch of the LDS Church . . .

No financial details were ever disclosed to the public.

City Creek Reserve, Inc, applicant
Land Equity Investors LLC and Presiding Bishop of the Church of LDS, owner.  

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31 May 2018

Who/What Rules Mesa: The Intersection of Finance & For-Profit Religion

Was that "Vision Thing" and "Imagine Mesa" all a Hoax? It was amusing to say the very least even when there was a position created to make Jeff McVay The Director of Downtown Transformation. He's got not too much to show for that. Then again, former mayor Scott Smith wanted to create the impression that downtown Mesa - The Old Donut-Hole - was boring . . . with the current mayor John Giles now serving his second year in office, he's yet to deliver on his promise to make Mesa vibrant and exciting.

During the more than 12 years of tenure for Chris Brady, the high-salaried Chief Executive Officer of the City of Mesa, public debt has mushroomed from less than $40M in 2006 to over $170M now in 2018. . . that again is not much to show for the investment of taxpayers dollars downtown starting with a 1% QUALITY OF LIFE sales tax to finance the $100-Million Mesa Arts Center that opened in 2005 to create what was called an Arts-and-Entertainment District. In 2012 taxpayers again got aboard and approved more tax increases to bring Valley Metro Light Rail Service into the Central Business District - The Old Donut-Hole now qualifies as a distressed neighborhood.  Whoops! Make that an Opportunity Zone!

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