THE TRICK-OR-TREAT City Council 'Study Session' 31 Oct 2019 > Mesa City Center Project [Including ASU, The Plaza + the Studios]

“Our goal is to blur the lines between ASU and the community’’ by linking them with the plaza, the City's Director of Downtown Transformation Jeff McVay said. 
REALITY CHECK: McVay has been more than fuzzy on details to finance that scheme to bring an ASU campus here to downtown next to the 8-story seat of government.

It all started more than five years ago when Hizzoner Mayor John Giles tried to pull-off a major stunt with the costumed ASU mascot 'Sparky' when they both appeared together on the stage at the Mesa Arts Center making under-handed gestures to each other. Amusing? No. . . it was a major goof.  - a goof backed-up by a privately-funded $500,000+ public relations campaign to trick Mesa taxpayers to go-into-debt obligations to finance a $200M 'satellite ASU campus' here in Downtown Mesa. They didn't give up when taxpayers got smart and REJECTED that proposition in 2016.

Fast-forward to 2018, little did we know what was going on behind-the-scenes, except after-the-fact, to find out that in anticipation of the public-financing, one [or more] closely-connected cohorts of "friends-and-family" and one then-AZ State Senator had snatched up title to 10 commercial properties to gamble making millions on real estate speculation here in downtown Mesa for their own private wealth-creation.

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HERE'S JAKE PINHOLTZER from the chosen 'screen-grab' uploaded to YouTube. . . The 2-hour study session featured a debate over the unusual ASU@Mesa City Center building’s appearance, with the big screen display and a height equivalent to a five-story building even though it has only three stories. East Valley Tribune staff writer Jim Walsh was somewhat understated when he wrote three days later,  

". . . there is great hope that the project will awaken slumbering downtown Mesa and turn it into a more dynamic location, the ASU collaboration has been controversial from the start. . . "  The overall cost of Mesa’s innovative Arizona State University project is now estimated at more than $103 million – with ASU paying an additional $10 million.

"You will see this is a spectacular building.’’  ^ NOT

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That is EXACTLY what District 2 Mesa City Council member Jeremy Whittaker stated right at the start where he and everyone else kept hearing conflicting numbers about ASU.

Here's a link to the source > https://jeremywhittaker.com

How much will this building cost?"

"Everyone is entitled to their opinion on this issue but not to their own facts"

Why is there so much confusion on the price?

The people have been misinformed and lied to constantly. As a councilmember, I personally was mocked by the city manager citing, “fake news”.

The video below was posted by a Facebook group pointing out the discrepancies in the costs. I personally find these demeaning comments from the city manager unnecessary and appalling. https://www.facebook.com/752993211756142/videos/762107290844734/

 

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So what more did we get for TRICK-OR-TREAT on October 31st?

That just happens to have fallen on a day we call "Halloween") . . . and Hizzoner the mayor presiding on the opening of the study session properly called it "The Halloween Edition"

District 2 Councilmember Mark Freeman was away at a water meeting of some kind, but the other five elected councilmembers were all present - some more informed than others ahead of time on the details in the presentation up for consideration in a hearing and discussion for an early morning study session.

Two new members in the supporting cast of characters:

1 Ray Naimark [not so new]
2 Jake Pinholtzer  

What did the public find out? To put it bluntly, it became apparent that city officials didn't due their homework or due diligence in the desperate rush to get something - anything at all whether on the drawing boards or in pretty-pictures or conceptual or schematic drawings - million$$$$$$ more are now needed due to either omissions or errors for the costs of the supporting infrastructure in the constricted site and its physical boundaries.

People showed up in droves at a Design Review workshop in front of the City's Planning & Zoning Board where all the designated contracts said "trust us" and the City's Director of Downtown Transformation said "trust me,"  - that was back at the end of September.

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You are getting tricked all over again! Everything will cost more due to all the major blunders and planning errors by city officials and their cohorts and the ASU lobbyists hired on to push this proposition . . . Now really kids, what else could you have expected from these tricksters? A Grab-Bag-of-Goodies perhaps or just more schemes to fill the already deep-pockets of some friends of the mayor?

At this stage in the game of playing Mesa taxpayers for fools, when city officials have exposed and over-played their hands, Hizzoner has called in a new cast of characters - all chosen by ASU President Michael Crow - to try to save their scheme.

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 + a new rendering of what's called (get this)
< The ASU Creative Futures Lab . . .

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File #:

19-1182

Type:

Presentation

Status:

Agenda Ready

In control:

City Council Study Session

On agenda:

10/31/2019

Title:

Hear a presentation and discuss an update on the Mesa City Center project including ASU, the Plaza, and the Studios.

Attachments:

1. Presentation

 

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31 views
Item 2-a Director of Downtown Transformation Jeff McVay brings in new reinforcements in a new supporting cast
A WHOLE CREW > more to catch-and-see on November 4
Rick Naimark
Jake Pinholtzer  
Who are they?

Fortunately Item 2-a comes up first on the study session that runs on for close to two-and-a-hours [02:27:53]
"Mission
To create a world-class center at the leading edge of media technologies and practices that brings students, faculty, community and industry together to design, visualize and explore transformative, imaginative futures."
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GMP NO. 1 CITY CENTER INFRASTRUCTURE
Additional Infrastructure Improvements 
$1.7M: System and reliability upgrades 
$1.5M: Electric 
$190K: Communications (fiber) 
$30K: Future development 
$25K: Street resurfacing 
$210K: Public Safety (approved bonds) 
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$1.95M: Total Additional Infrastructure
ASU @ MESA CITY CENTER UPDATE
Timeline Update 
Mid-November: ASU building final design complete 
February 2020: ASU construction start 
October 2021: ASU building construction complete 
January 2022: ASU classes begin

Budget Update 
   $73.5M: ASU building budget 
   $63.5M: City commitment 
> $10M: ASU commitment 
> ASU FF&E commitment: min. $10M 
> $2.4M: Supporting infrastructure budget

 

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FULL AGENDA

Meeting Name:

City Council Study Session

Agenda status:

Final

Meeting date/time:

10/31/2019 7:30 AM

Minutes status:

Draft

Meeting location:

Council Chambers - Lower Level

Published agenda:	Agenda	Published minutes:	Not available

Meeting video:

Video

Attachments:

• Meeting Items (4)

4 records All agenda items

File # Agenda # Type Title Action Result Action Details 19-1182 2-a Presentation Hear a presentation and discuss an update on the Mesa City Center project including ASU, the Plaza, and the Studios.     Not available 19-1146 2-b Presentation Hear a presentation, discuss, and provide direction on proposed adjustments to solid waste, gas, and electric rates.     Not available 19-1083 2-c Presentation Hear a presentation, discuss, and provide direction on the proposed Streetlight Master Plan.     Not available 19-1192 3-a Minutes Human Relations Advisory Board meeting held on September 25, 2019.

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