08/22/2015 > Everything for Everybody Morning > Afternoon + Night

Readers can go to previous posts for information and links for events and activities being planned by Valley Metro starting at 8:00 a.m. for official ceremonies at City Hall Plaza and the Main/Center Street Light Rail Station.
From 9-12 commemorative passes for light rail transit will be handed out at each station where different themes are planned with fun activities for all ages. Go to valletmetro.org for more details, with lists of nearly everything that downtown offers for shopping, eats, and services including free admission to museums and discounts.

The City of Mesa Arts & Culture establishment has a full schedule planned in/around Mesa Arts Center, at all the city-owned museums [with free admission], and On/Off Main Street Keep your eyes footprints on the sidewalks leading the way to the museums and eyes open on Dinosaur sculptures

Other "City of Mesa entities" like the Downtown Merchants Association, VisitMesa, and the Chamber of Commerce are all working together to highlight attractions.

The Neighborhood Economic Development Corporation NEDCO, RAIL, and many more community partners and individual business owners will be promoting and showing all that downtown Mesa offers along the path of light rail transit: from Country Club/Main to Mesa Drive/Main all afternoon - there will be "cool zones" to chill out and water available under the shade. Check out the new decorative asphalt stamping in all the crosswalks and intersections where you'll also see many bronze sculptures all over the place on the sidewalks that residents and visitors have enjoyed for many years.
Bronze plaques in many locations - especially the Heritage Wall at City Hall Plaza - give you brief glimpses of Mesa history throughout the years of its history and you can envision the New Urban Downtown Mesa transforming and regenerating right before your eyes!

From 6-10 p.m. - after seeing the sights and sounds, shopping, eating/drinking, walking around and enjoying yourself with friends and/or family, get ready for more community-organized events in the spirit of 2nd Friday Nights Out celebrating our desert nights, Mesa's creative spirits and businesses open late On/Off Main Street

 

Art Shows.  Live Music  Street Vendors & More

[If you are interested in participating as a vendor or a performer for the Main Street Night Market Celebrations, please hit this link for an application  or contact David Crummy

dcrummey@nedco-mesa.org

RAIL: Getting On-Track in Downtown Mesa for Retail, The Arts, Innovation & LiveAbility

 

The future of lightrail transit for the Valley Metro Central Mesa Extension will soon be  NOW starting on Saturday, August 22, 2015 @ 09:00 a.m. 

The opening of lightrail in Phoenix three years ago brought in about 30,000 people. 

Stats like that probably are not going to racked up here on opening day, but the city Arts & Culture Department, NEDCO [Neighborhood Economic Development Corporation], The Mesa Chamber of Commerce and Tourism Office, individual business owners, and a group called RAIL are all on-board and on-track to encourage and bring more people into downtown Mesa with a no-emission quiet technology people mover: Light Rail

Don't want to panic anyone, but just wondering if there will be more riders arriving at the four downtown stations on Main Street or more riders leaving Mesa to head into Phoenix? 

The tracks run in two directions, right?

What Does Transit Mean to You?

Press Release from Valley Metro
Tuesday 21 July 2015

Discover Businesses Along Light Rail

MESA, AZ – Support local businesses that will soon be just a train ride away. On Thursday, July 30, more than sixty businesses along the Central Mesa and Northwest Phoenix light rail extensions will be under one roof. The public will have an opportunity to meet with local business owners and find out about the shops, restaurants and museums they’ll soon be able to visit via light rail.The Central Mesa extension opens Saturday, August 22 and the Northwest Phoenix extension is anticipated to open spring 2016.

Valley Metro Press Release

This event is brought to you by Valley Metro and Friends of Transit and presented by Goodman Schwartz Public Affairs
Click for company website: http://goodmanschwartz.com/

Goodman Schwartz Public Affairs provides services in Arizona in four major areas: 

• state government relations and lobbying, 
• municipal government relations and lobbying, 
• community outreach and 
• issue campaign consulting . . . 

Recognizing the significant impact that public opinion can have in the government decision making process, the firm has established an effective community relations practice designed to operate independently or in conjunction with a traditional lobbyist effort. Specifically, the firm has designed techniques in which communities and other impacted parties can be mobilized, through community outreach, coalition building and grassroots mobilization efforts, 
to shape public policy by managing public opinion.

Notes from MesaZona: PUBLIC OPINION COUNTS
For instance in getting funding for public transit and infrastructure approved by helping to shape public policy

Goodman Schwartz Public Affairs provides services in Arizona four major 

As many public policy isstely .

Goodman Schwartz Public Affairs provides services in Arizona in four major areas:  state government relations and lobbying, municipal government relations and lobbying, community outreach and issue campaign consulting.Goodman Schwartz Public Affairs provides services in Arizona in four major areas:  state government relations and lobbying, municipal government relations and lobbying, community outreach and issue campaign consulting.

MAC > Central Mesa Light Rail Extension Opening Celebrations: Thanks to Casey Blake, PR @ Mesa Arts Center

Media Contact:
Casey Blake
Director of Public Relations
480-644-6620
casey.blake@mesaartscenter.com

With Valley Metro as the lead, many entities immediately sprang into action to plan events, activities and festivities for August 22. The City of Mesa’s Arts and Culture Department – which includes Mesa Arts Center, Arizona Museum of Natural History and i.d.e.a. Museum – is planning quite a few activities for the community celebration around the arrival of Light Rail, which will supplement the activities of Valley Metro, other City of Mesa entities, and numerous community partners creating festive events at each of the four new stations in Mesa. Everything listed below is subject to change and more activities will likely be added leading up to the event date. 

At Mesa Arts Center on the morning of August 22: 

·         Community Art Project:
Mesa Arts Center’s 10^th year logo will be made into a colorful work of art by the community throughout the morning’s festivities. A metal instructor at Mesa Arts Center is creating a giant metal framework. Everyone will be invited to add colorful pieces in a pattern on the metal sculpture. The materials are waterproof and washable so that the community-made art piece can stay through Mesa Arts Center’s annual Season Kickoff Festival scheduled for Friday, September 11. 

·         Outdoor Entertainment:
Mesa Arts Center will provide performances for the duration of the festivities on August 22, within view of the Center St. Light Rail station on the campus. The lineup of performers is still being finalized but will likely include a variety of performing arts genres, several founding resident companies from Mesa Arts Center, and other performing artists. 

·         Studio Art Demonstrations:
Mesa Arts Center’s studio art teachers will be at the north end of the MAC campus demonstrating ceramics, throwing a pot on a wheel and glass flame working. 

·         The Gift Store, Mesa Arts Center’s Artists Cooperative Gallery:

The Store itself will be closed but artists from the Co-op will set up a pop-up gallery on the north end of campus. Items will be available for viewing and for purchase. 

·         Mesa Contemporary Arts Museum (closed August 17 – September 10):
Mesa Contemporary Arts Museum must close from August 17 through the second week in September in order to deinstall the current exhibitions, perform maintenance and repairs, and install five new exhibitions for public opening on September 11. Museum admission is always free, as is the Season Kickoff Festival event on Friday, September 11. 

Arizona Museum of Natural History (AZMNH) plans for August 22:

·         AZMNH will be open for free on August 22 from 9 a.m. to noon.
·         Before August 22, dinosaur footprints will be painted from the Center street station leading to the entrance of AZMNH.
·         AZMNH will place two large dinosaur models on the streets for the festivities. One near Main and Center and one near Main and Macdonald.
·         Near the dinosaur models, AZMNH staffers will have tables with a demonstration or activity for passersby to try.

i.d.e.a. Museum

·         The Museum will be open for free on August 22 from 9 a.m. to noon.
·         Before August 22, parent and child footprints will be painted from the Country Club station leading to the entrance of i.d.e.a. Museum.
·         Costumed storybook characters inspired by the current “Once Upon a Time” exhibition at the Museum will be engaging visitors at the Country Club Station and on Main Street.
·         The Museum will have a sit-on Wooden Elephant for photo opportunities, and a hands-on art activity for visitors.

Please Keep In Mind: Both Arizona Museum of Natural History and i.d.e.a. Museum will promote special Light Rail rider offers during the first month of Light Rail into downtown Mesa. 

More information will be made available as we get closer to the date.

10th Year Anniversary + Season Kick-Off Festival: At Mesa Arts Center we are fortunate that the launch of Light Rail in Mesa is happening right before the beginning of our 2015-16 season, during which time we will be celebrating our tenth year at One East Main Street in downtown Mesa! It all begins with our Season Kickoff Festival on Friday, September 11, 6-10 p.m.

World Famous Theater on Main Street > Creative Placemaking

A World Famous Theater here on Main Street in downtown Mesa?

The image to the right shows The Nile Theater days before it's grand opening in 1924. 

The top floors were offices and the side establishments are stores. Theater owners often created other form of use for the venue to continuously generate income.

What was true then is the same now: Lo-Fi Coffee is open in the sidewalk level front on Main Street, now serving more than freshly-brewed coffees and vegan baked goods - it has a liquor license.

Back in the 1940's it attracted crowds of kids standing in line for Saturday afternoon movies in the old image to the right
 . . .  fast fwd to 2015
this was the crowd waiting to get into The Underground today Sunday, July 27 - with people arriving from the parking lot and standing in line on McDonald Street under the shaded portico  wrapped around the corner all the way to Main Street.

It was the only location downtown drawing people to a show. Your MesaZona blogger was stopped by a cyclist, apparently surprised to see so many people, asking "What's goin' on?"

A change in shows taking place, with equipment being wheeled out while the crowd of ticket holders waits patiently in line to get in the door.

Some people might call this "alternative" or "rad" culture or "Millennial", but those labels miss the point that for creating a new urban downtown Mesa it's important to embrace everyone and be all-inclusive.

Contrast this to the Mesa Arts Center today taken about the same time just after noon.

There was no one

Associated Press Via YouTube > Huge 411 Dump

An exciting new level to digitize and democratize information

Forget About "Star Wars" > Solar Power Industry is Heating Up in Arizona & Mesa

Believe it or not, a Lehi Utah-based company has been acquired for $2.2 Billion

SunEdison, Inc. (NYSE: SUNE), the world's largest renewable energy development company, Vivint Solar (NYSE: VSLR), a leading provider of residential solar systems in the United States, and TerraForm Power, Inc. (together with its subsidiaries, TerraForm Power) (Nasdaq: TERP), an owner and operator of clean energy power plants, today announced that SunEdison and Vivint Solar have signed a definitive merger agreement pursuant to which SunEdison will acquire Vivint Solar for approximately $2.2 billion, payable in a combination of cash, shares of SunEdison common stock and SunEdison convertible notes.

See Business Wire News Release from 20 July 2015 Business Wire News

Keep in mind that Solar City, founded in 2006 by Tesla Master-mind Elon Musk, has had a Mesa location for a number of years and might have mixed feelings about this market acquisition.
Apple's new global command center has promised to be reliant on renewable energy so time will tell who wins out as the provider. 
Money Flow Index reports that Shares of SolarCity Corporation appreciated by 5.37% during the last five trading days but lost 4.06% on a 4-week basis. SolarCity Corporation has dropped 6.31% during the last 3-month period . Year-to-Date the stock performance stands at 3.52%.

Chance Allred Vivent VP Sales

Yesterday Zacks Equity Research http://www.zacks.com/stock/news/182796/solar-etfs-in-focus-on-sunedisonvivint-dealhad this to say: As per the terms of the deal, Vivint shareholders will receive $16.50 per share in cash, shares, and convertible debt – a 52% premium to Vivint’s closing price of $10.88 a share on Friday . . . With this transaction, SunEdison will enter the residential solar market, where Vivint is already a top player. Vivint’s solar systems are quite popular among households as it allows homeowners to lease its systems rather than buying them outright . . . "

Some Arizona utility regulation issues are still to be worked out with assessing a new valuation on leased and financed systems..

Vivint Solar opened offices in Mesa in June of last year and operates in eleven other states. Vivint made the decision after the net-metering compromise last year, with the Arizona Corporation Commission deciding to impose an extra $5 fee per month, instead of the $50-$100 Arizona Public Service Co. was proposing.

Computer World http://www.computerworld.com/article/2950587/sustainable-it/sunedison-drops-22b-to-acquire-vivint-solar.html also made the acquisition announcement, noting that Hewlett-Packard had signed a 12-year power purchase with SunEdison .....