28 February 2019

Grady Gammage Jr,/ Arizona Water Rights & The 19-Year-Old Water Drought Contingency Plan

Now that The Feds are wading into water rights here in Arizona after politicos in the Arizona State House failed to meet a mandated deadline, the Game is On again for Grady Gammage Jr., who said he never wanted to be appointed "Water Czar. Murky questions remain about water rights as this historic pact faces choppy waters - where politics and real estate intersect with land-use planning and millions of taxpayer-dollars poured into water and wastewater treatment plants to spur more suburban sprawl over once were vast agricultural lands that are now more lucrative for other uses and ripe for new fortunes of the Real Estate Industrial Complex where Gammage is plugged in real good..
'Water Czar' or not, Arizona native Gammage knows that water is the most precious commodity here in The Valley.  His law practice has focused on the political aspects of real estate, development and public policy. As a zoning lawyer, he has represented dozens of major commercial real estate and urban development  projects in Maricopa County, including deals with such public-private projects as the Tempe Town Lake and - let's just put a spin on it - "Arizona’s unique approach to redevelopment incentives."
He has also represented cities and towns in revising their development and land use ordinances, and has litigated land use and election issues related to development.
Given the current flood of so much hanging in the precarious balance of public understanding of all the issues, it's interesting to note that Gammage was chosen as the speaker for an event next week to address a closely-connected commercial real estate industry group CCIM, the Central Arizona chapter of Certified Commercial Investment Member.
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Arizona H20. Is Arizona really an at-risk state?
Join the Central AZ CCIM Chapter and Grady Gammage Jr., to talk about AZ Water Rights.  
Date:  Wednesday, March 6, 2019
Time: 7:15 AM - 7:45 AM - Check-in/Breakfast
          7:45 AM - 9:00 AM - Program 
Details:  Arizona H20.  Is Arizona really an at-risk state with a questionable future due to climate, water supply and politics? Arizona native Grady Gammage, Jr. will explore the history of water in the state and discuss the challenges we face: distributing water for growth, managing groundwater uncertainty, keeping track of river supplies and asking ourselves how we should choose to live.
Food:  Breakfast catered by Scramble.  
Gringo Burritos, Meat Lover Scramble options.  Bacon and Sausage, Hashbrowns, Fresh Fruit, Cinnamon Rolls and coffee.
Vegan and vegetarian Burrito options will be available as well
Please indicate when you register if you need a Vegan or Vegetarian option.
Tickets:
$40.00 2019 Chapter Membership
$50.00 Non-Member/Guest
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[At the 12th Annual IREM-CCIM Economic Forecast Conference on January 24, 2019, the recipient of this year’s Impact Award is Grady Gammage Jr., a real estate and zoning attorney and founder of Gammage & Burnham P.L.C. Long-time Valley businessman Jerry Colangelo of JDM Partners presented the award.]
The watershed moments helps to create an effective outreach and communications strategy as part of a successful entitlement process
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At the start of 2019 that strategy became public in another one of those notorious and noteworthy Arizona Republic Op-Ed Opinion pieces:
2018 was a turning point for Arizona.
Here's how we make the most of it
From how we vote to how we talk about water, 2018 may have been the year that determines Arizona's future.
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Story image for water rights arizona from Phoenix New Times
Phoenix New Times-Feb 28, 2019
Over the course of two decades, Vidler Water Company, where she is CEO, had spent nearly $100 million in Arizona on water, land, permits, ...
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Here's an Op-Ed Opinion piece published back in August 2014 in Arizona Republic
Who appointed me 'water czar?' Sure wasn't me
________________________________________________________________________Issues & Answers Forum: Water in Arizona - IntroductionGrady Gammage Jr. at Sandra Day O'Connor InstitutePublished on Dec 17, 2018Views: 26 
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Who is Grady Gammage Jr.??
Speaker:  Founding Member of Gammage & Burnham Attorneys at Law
Grady is one of the founders of Gammage and Burnham and has had a varied and diverse 40-year career in law and public policy in Arizona. 
His practice has focused on the political aspects of real estate, development and public policy.
As a zoning lawyer, he has represented dozens of major commercial projects including
  • high rise offices
  • major industrial and office parks
  • retail shopping centers of all sizes
  • tens of thousands of acres of residential projects, including some of Arizona’s most iconic master planned communities.
In the early 1980s, he was the primary private sector representative in working on the innovative Urban Lands Act, which made state trust land available for commercial and residential development. As a result, he had represented more transactions with the State Land Department than any other lawyer in Arizona.
He has also been at the forefront of urban development in Maricopa County, including deals with such public private projects as the Tempe Town Lake and Arizona’s unique approach to redevelopment incentives.
He has also represented cities and towns in revising their development and land use ordinances and has litigated land use and election issues related to development.
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Some background:
Mesa Water Management Policy
Sustainability in Public Policy:
Working with City of Mesa on Water Management
February 3, 2012
water-policy

In the fall of 2011, Dr. Rob Melnick, Director of Arizona State University’s Global Institute of Sustainability26, and Grady Gammage Jr. brought graduate students from a variety of ASU’s schools and city officials from the City of Mesa, AZ, together to address key sustainability issues within an interdisciplinary workshop class in the School of Sustainability (SOS).

Reference > https://sustainability.asu.edu/news/archive/mesa-water-management-policy/ 
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Where the Water Goes
". . . My journey along the Colorado took me to farms, government offices, campgrounds, power plants, ghost towns, fracking sites, aqueducts, reservoirs, and pumping stations, and it gave me opportunities to lose myself in some truly jaw-dropping topography. My journey ended in Mexico, in a truck belonging to someone else. In that truck, a Mexican environmentalist drove Jennifer Pitt and me across an expanse of sand to a point where the river ceased to exist. Where had the water gone? By then, I had a pretty good idea. . ."

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November 27, 2012
Thinking about water
by Jon Talton
> The bottom line is that sprawled, single-family house subdivision urban Arizona is not sustainable, much less one adding a million people or doubling in size or whatever the latest boosterish nonsense is peddled. The business model of population growth won't work. Even before the consequences of climate change came roaring at us, the United Nations warned of the destabilizing effects of water shortages in the 21st century. . . " 
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OTHER RESOURCES OF INTEREST: 
Real estate law trends to watch this year
Real Estate | 16 May, 2018 |
AZRE spoke with some of the great legal minds in commercial real estate to find out what trends and issues they say we should look at before making that next deal. 
Gammage & Burnham 
Real estate leader: Grady Gammage, Jr., founding member 
History of success: Gammage & Burnham has the unique combination of a large land use group and a large real estate and financial transactions group that work together as one team of highly talented lawyers. While Gammage & Burnham is very efficient at routine matters, the firm is  also known for being the firm to hire when a project has unique challenges or requires special skills. 
Trend to watch: 
1 “One big issue we see facing commercial development is the disconnect between the price a user can pay and the rising costs of land and development.
2 Another issue we see is the rise in opposition to entitlements, particularly through the use of social media, which requires an experienced team to help create an effective outreach and communications strategy as part of a successful entitlement process.” 
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Trump Kim Summit > No Deal

View from CGTN: Image
Published on Feb 28, 2019
The summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and DPRK leader Kim Jong Un collapsed without a deal. The two leaders cut short their talks in Hanoi – a sharp turn from high expectations they could reach a concrete agreement. CGTN’s senior anchor Tian Wei, correspondent Tony Cheng, and Vietnamese economist Dr. Le Dang Doanh comment on the high-profile summit.
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Fed: 'We are on an unsustainable fiscal path'

Deficits, safety nets . . .
Published on Feb 26, 2019
Views: 20,716+
Fed Chair Jerome Powell is questioned by Senator Mike Rounds (R) of South Dakota, during testimony before the Senate Banking Committee, about the impact of the Federal government and monetary policy

Letter To The Editor: How Are Mesa & Phoenix Different From New York City?

Three words are all-too-frequently missing in the public record here in Mesa:
Equitable and Inclusive and Diversity
In a letter to The New York Times responding to an article about dwindling opportunities for low-skilled workers, Sam Marks, LISC NYC executive director, makes the case for baking equity and inclusion into economic development incentives and policies. By doing so, New York and others cities can support affordable housing and businesses that offer middle-skill jobs, and ensure that all residents benefit, regardless of their background.
The letter below was originally published on The New York Times:Jobs, Equity and Inclusion
A Letter to the NYT: Inclusive Incentives Build Inclusive Cities
To the Editor:
Opportunity in Cities Falls to the Educated” (The Upshot, Jan. 12) highlights the threat of dwindling low-skill jobs coupled with rising rents and cost of living.
As manufacturing has diminished, quality jobs (offering a living wage along with training and opportunities for advancement) are increasingly scarce . . .
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Blogger Note: Does everyone feel welcome here in Mesa?
The same goes for Innovation Districts:
Diverse, Equitable and Inclusive 
18 January 2018
Full-House Today @ Elliot/Nesbitt Theater/Mesa Arts Center: Brookings Institution > Innovation Districts
There was a very good buzz rising in the reception area when your MesaZona arrived just before 09:00 seeing quite a few familiar faces in the crowd who were mixing-and-mingling really good arriving beforehand to enjoy a nice spread of a continental breakfast, beverages and juices and hot food in chafing dishes when the doors opened for early birds at 08:00.\Mesa Channel 11 was on-site with a bank of three cameras in the third row front Orchestra. The upper balconies on both sides were filled . . . Everyone hungry to hear
Link > MesaZona
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12 Principles guiding innovation districts
Districts are supercharged by a diversity of institutions, companies, and start-ups. The strength of innovation districts comes, in part, from this eclectic mix. Districts that are largely comprised of large institutions often lack the accelerated innovative growth that small, nimble firms provide. And districts characterized by a density of start-ups have fewer opportunities for well-funded partnerships and alliances. The “magic in the mix” comes from aligning incentives between these and other public, private, academic, and civic institutions.
Embed the values of diversity and inclusion in all visions, goals, and strategies. Innovation districts not only promote new technologies, they grow a range of new firms and new jobs with living wages. At a time of rising social inequality, innovation districts must become an avenue to economic opportunity for city residents—particularly for those in nearby neighborhoods that struggle with poverty and disinvestment. But growth alone is not enough. Only through intentional training, hiring, business development, and placemaking efforts can districts cultivate new local talent, encourage more diverse ownership structures, and help address poverty and disinvestment in surrounding communities.
Get ahead of affordability issues. Successful districts can, over time, drive up market pressures, impacting the ability of start-ups, maturing firms, and neighboring residents to remain in these areas. Smart districts respond early, getting ahead of the curve through a range of policy moves and strategic projects that preserve affordability and the diversity it engenders

CRE: What Caught Jim Kasten's Eye For News That Matters

Just got this 2 minutes ago:
Thanks to Jim Kasten for sending!
[reproduced with edits or comments]
 
Please contact:
Jim Kasten, CCIM
602 445 4113 Office
602 677 0655 Cell
Jim@KLCommGroup.com
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Commercial Real Estate News That Matters
From time to time we come across news articles we feel are important to highlight because of the strong impact it might have on our economy. Here are a few that caught our eye.
Arizona's Apartment Industry is a Major Economic Driver
AZ Big Media (AZRE) reported on an article written by Peter Madrid highlighting a study completed by Elliott D. Pollack & Company for the AZ Multifamily Assoc. (AMA). Of note: “The total annual economic impact of construction and operations within Arizona’s apartment industry is the equivalent to the state playing host to more than 10 Super Bowls each year. The apartment industry generates 22,000 jobs, $699 million in wages, and $3.8 billion in economic output each year as 37 percent of Arizona residents live in rental housing.”
Dreamport Villages: Developer proposes $4B Amusement Park over 1,500 acres in Casa Grande
Goodyear Approves Construction for Microsoft Project
The Goodyear City Council voted unanimously Monday (2.25.19) to approve an accelerated construction schedule for a Microsoft project. The developer agreement will allow the tech company to begin construction on the 279 acres it purchased in September of last year.  Companies like Microsoft may follow – realizing that Goodyear, and possibly other cities in the West Valley, will do what’s necessary to attract quality business.  
At the IREM – CCIM symposium held on 1.24.2019, Elliott Pollack presented a very detailed summary of the Valley’s economy and very positive projection for the future. He also noted possible concerns to be aware of. If you would like a copy of his slide presentation, contact Jim@KLCommercialGroup.com
Arizona H20. Is Arizona really an at-risk state?
When
Date: Wednesday, March 6, 2019
Time: 7:15 AM - 7:45 AM - Check-in/Breakfast
         7:45 AM - 9:00 AM - Program 

Tickets
$40.00 2019 Chapter Membership
$50.00 Non-Member/Guest

Directions
The Esplanade (E-Center)
2501 E. Camelback Road Suite 50
Phoenix, AZ 85016

Arizona Water Rights with
Grady Gammage Jr.
Join the Central AZ CCIM Chapter and Grady Gammage Jr., to talk about AZ Water Rights. 

Details: Arizona H20. Is Arizona really an at-risk state with a questionable future due to climate, water supply and politics? Arizona native Grady Gammage, Jr. will explore the history of water in the state and discuss the challenges we face: distributing water for growth, managing groundwater uncertainty, keeping track of river supplies and asking ourselves how we should choose to live.

Food: Breakfast catered by Scramble.  Gringo Burritos, Meat Lover Scramble options. Bacon and Sausage, Hashbrowns, Fresh Fruit, Cinnamon Rolls and coffee.

Vegan and vegetarian Burrito options will be available as well - Please indicate when you register if you need a Vegan or Vegetarian option.