Keeping-On-Track with RAIL > Mesa's Hopping this Month!

Got this in the INBOX 20 hours ago - passing it along ...
Have no idea who writes the copy for RAIL's information pieces send out via MailChimp but here we go!
April is a-bloom! Tons of things are happening along Mesa's light rail corridor including Learning in the Park to prep your kids for Kindergarten, Pop Up Brass Band performances, an Easter Egg Hunt, free concerts, an International Jazz Festival, and more! The City is working on next year's budget, and Mesa's made the news a couple of times -- check it all out
Join RAIL at a number of events in April!
https://www.facebook.com/RAILdistrict

RAILmesa is a registered neighborhood group and 501c3 non-profit organization that advocates for a stronger, healthier, more resilient community and economy with access to quality jobs, transit, housing, and world-class education for all, especially along Mesa’s Light Rail Corridor. 
You are receiving this e-mail because you asked to be informed of activities of the RAIL / I Believe in Mesa's Downtown neighborhood group.    
Our mailing address is:    
RAIL - Retail Arts Innovation and Livability

12 N Center St, Mesa, AZ

c/o NEDCO

Mesa, AZ 85201

Here's what's coming up:

April Meeting April 26 6pm - Our Monthly meeting. Map your Neighborhood!. Gilbert Light Rail Update. What's going on in downtown Mesa.   More Info Here April Events Tons of Events in April! Plenty of things to do in April, including an International Jazz Festival, ZapCon, and more! More Info Here Federal Building Renovation In the News: More than four years after Mesa voters approved a new downtown historical museum, and after $600,000-plus . . .  More Info Here Pioneer Park Remodel April - Starting at the end of the month, Pioneer Park will be closed for a complete remodel of the playground and site. More Info Here City Budget Process Annual Budgeting Starts now! Potential $17.5 million shortfall, $8.6 million in cuts -- what are your priorities?  More Info Here Mesa to Use Private Jails? In the News: Mesa police officials are negotiating a contract with CoreCivic — the company previously known as CCA... More Info Here

Why Aren’t We Building Middle Income Housing? This article covers a lot of the underlying issues around building non-luxury housing. Worth the read. Read the Whole Article Here We also track development projects, community events, and more. If you have tips or event updates for anything along the Mesa Light Rail Corridor, send it to us at together@railmesa.org!

Here In Mesa: Not Just One but 2 TOWN HALL MEETINGS THIS WEEK: Biggs & Flake

Two vulnerable Republicans elected to Congress by voters in Arizona have recently and quickly scheduled town hall meetings here in Mesa after a firestorm of public protests and a petition posted to Change.org back in February that they are trying to avoid scenes of contention in recently broadcast town hall meetings all over the country.
Both, however, limit their time exposed or interacting with the public concerns.
This was posted on Twitter @ 4:08 pm yesterday 10 April 2017
Join me on Thursday, April 13 for a #TownHall at the Mesa Convention Center.
More info at: https://www.flake.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?p=town-hall …
Sen. Flake will be holding a town hall on Thursday, April 13 from 7:00 - 8:30 p.m. PT at the Mesa Convention Center - Building C. Seating is first-come, first-served. View the parking map here. 

WHERE: Mesa Convention Center
             Building C
             201 N. Center St.
             Mesa, AZ 85201

TIMELINE: Thursday, April 13
                 6:00 p.m. PT: Doors open for the public
                 7:00 p.m. PT: Town hall begins
                 8:30 p.m. PT: Town hall concludes

TOWN HALL CODE OF CONDUCT

• Constituents may begin to park or line up on the property one hour before the program begins. Doors will open an hour before the program begins.
• Attendees with signs, banners, or objects that create a disturbance will not be admitted. 
• To ensure a safe, enjoyable, and productive town hall, all attendees must comply with posted and audible instructions and failure to comply will result in immediate removal.

Special Board of Adjustment Meeting for District 5 820-acre PAD @ Red Mountain Ranch

In what's listed on the calendar as a public meeting, but members of the board have scheduled an executive session to discuss or consult the Board's legal counsel about a challenge and appeal to the Zoning Administrator's interpretion of a zoning case.

Questions about the appeal to the Zoning Administrator interpretation regarding Red Mountain Ranch Golf Course, BA16-049 contact:
Lisa Davis, Planner II, 480-644-3594 lisa.davis@mesaaz.gov

Board of Adjustment Public Hearing
City of Mesa
Meeting Agenda - Tentative
Wed 12 April @ 5:00 pm

City Council Chambers 57 E. First Street
Chair Tony Siebers
Vice Chair Trent Montague
Board member Wade Swanson
Board member Ken Rembold
Board member Steve Curran 
Board member Kathy Tolman
Board member Terry Worcester


Special Board of Adjustment Meeting

1 Call meeting to order
.
2 Review and discuss items listed on the Public Hearing agenda for April 12, 2017.

3 Recess the Special meeting and Convene an Executive Session pursuant to A.R.S. § 38-431.03(A)(3) for discussion or consultation for legal advice with the Board’s Attorney regarding BA16-049 appeal from the Zoning Administrator’s interpretation for processing a request to develop a single residence subdivision in the location of the driving range for the Red Mountain Ranch Golf Course subject to an approved development master plan adopted as part of a Planned Area Development  (PAD) overlay district.
4 Take action on the following cases: None

5 Items not on the Consent Agenda

6 Take action on the following case: 6a
What is this all about?
Link to ADJ 17046 > http://mesa.legistar.com/gateway.aspx?m=l&id=/matter.aspx?key=10586 

Here's the detail with 8 different documents
http://mesa.legistar.com/LegislationDetail.aspx?ID=3014983&GUID=1582DA09-5DEE-4CFE-A149-F42E69297053 

There is a 16-page Staff Report - this goes back to Mesa City Council actions taken in 1990 with an Administrative review asked for

There is a 77-page appeal filed by Pew & Lake, served by email and hand-delivery to John Wesley and Gordon Sheffield dated 26 July 2016
BA16-049  4400 blocks of North Power Road - west side; the 5600 through 6800 blocks of East Thomas Road - north side; the 6000 through 6200 blocks of East Thomas Road - south side; the 3600 through 4400 blocks of North Recker Road - both sides, and the 5900 through 6700 blocks of East Viewmont Drive, both sides;
820 plus or minus acres [also known as the Red Mountain Ranch Development Master Plan (DMP), which is now referred to as a Planned Area Development (PAD)] (District 5)
Consider an appeal of a Zoning Administrator interpretation regarding the method of processing a request to develop a single residence subdivision in the location of the driving range for the Red Mountain Ranch Golf Course.
The Zoning Administrator’s interpretation is that the request must be processed as a major modification to the Red Mountain Ranch Development Master Plan’s ‘-PAD’ overlay zoning district, as it is considered a significant change that requires the modification or removal of a condition of the zoning.
The applicant is appealing this interpretation. 
Staff Planner: Lisa Davis
Staff Recommendation: Uphold Decision of Zoning Administrator 

7 Other business
.
8 Items from citizens present.

9 Adjournment.

Council Study Session - 4/6/2017

Kevin Thompson gets active for a change .... what's up with that?
City Manager Chris Brady chimes in about city-owned facilities Mesa Convention Center
Published on Apr 10, 2017
No Views
Duration: 1:15:30


This is the agenda taken from an earlier post on this site 05 April 2017

Meeting Agenda - Final
Mesa Council Chambers 57 East First Street07:30 am Lower Level Council Chambers Any citizen wishing to speak on an agenda item should complete and turn in a blue card to the City Clerk before that item is presented.
Capital Improvement Program FY2018/22
1 Parks/Recreation/Community Facilities
2 Public Safety
3 Transportation
+ Executive Session [Closed to Public]

Source: Research Center for Council, Board and Committee Meetings
The Council may vote to hold an executive session for the purposes of obtaining legal advice from the City Attorney (A.R.S. §38-431.03A(3)) or to discuss and instruct the City Attorney regarding the City’s position regarding contracts that are the subject of negotiations, in pending or contemplated litigation or in settlement discussions conducted in order to avoid or resolve litigation. (A.R.S. §38-431.03A(4)).

How much time did the Council have for this?
ACTION ITEM 3
3 Acknowledge receipt of minutes of various boards and committees.
17-0434 Audit, Finance and Enterprise Committee meeting held on March 6, 2017.

THIS IS AN 82-PAGE REPORT > Council, Board and Committee Research Center
3-a
AUDIT, FINANCE & ENTERPRISE COMMITTEE  March 6, 2017  
The Audit, Finance & Enterprise Committee of the City of Mesa met in the lower level meeting room of the Council Chambers, 57 East 1st Street, on March 6, 2017, at 2:33 p.m.  
COMMITTEE ABSENT  Christopher Brady, Ex Officio
COMMITTEE PRESENT  Mark Freeman, Christopher Glover, David Luna  
STAFF PRESENT  Jim Smith, DeeAnn Mickelson, Michael Kennington

Why Back In The Public Eye? Newsmaker Sunday: Matt Salmon

Sporting a beard now and raving about 'people making change'? That old "Spending-time-with-family" excuse to leave office is getting real tired real fast. 
His hand-selected successor to Congress Andy Biggs barely squawked by with 27 votes in a first forced recount in the November 2016 election.
Salmon can't seem to get over - like many Mesa politicians - that he lost out to Janet Napolitano for the governor's 5 years ago.

Published on Apr 7, 2017

FOX 10's John Hook talks to Matt Salmon, who is retiring after serving 10 years in Congress as Arizona's representative for the 5th District.

Border-Lines of the United States: 200 Years of Change

Published on Dec 14, 2016

Views: 17,886

It didn't take long for the US to begin expanding westward after winning independence from British rule.

By the mid-1800s, the country had pushed its territorial bounds across North America to the Pacific Ocean, and began dividing up territory into its present-day 50 states.

Million$$$ Spent on IT Here in Mesa > Increasing Transparency & Citizen Engagement???

2016 Digital Cities:

Winners Focus on Transparency, Security, Infrastructure

Source: http://www.govtech.com/dc/digital-cities/

Looking Back: Last year’s top digital cities know data demands are only going to grow, and they want to be prepared >

The City of Mesa Fell off the 2016 List.

 

 

Digital Cities Survey 2016 – Winners Announced

Open to all U.S. cities, the survey recognizes leading examples of cities using technology to improve services, boost efficiencies, and increase government transparency and citizen engagement.

by Janet Grenslitt / November 9, 2016

Digital Cities Survey Winners Employ Technology to Improve Citizen Services, Encourage Engagement and Enhance Transparency
Nov. 10, 2016 – The Center for Digital Government (CDG) today announced the winners of the 2016 Digital Cities Survey. Now in its 15th anniversary year, the annual survey recognizes cities using technology to improve citizen services, enhance transparency and encourage citizen engagement.
“This year’s top digital cities are using technology to ensure citizens can meaningfully interact with city government more easily than any other time in history,” said Todd Sander, executive director of the Center for Digital Government. “From open data portals to enhanced connectivity and mobile platforms, this year’s top-ranked cities are actively promoting transparency, encouraging citizen participation and making it easier for people to do business with government. Congratulations to the winners!"
The survey honors cities in five population classifications this year - see the complete list of winners on this website > http://www.govtech.com/dc/digital-cities/Digital-Cities-Survey-2016-Winners-Announced.html 

Readers of this blog might find it interesting go note that NO COUNTY HERE IN ARIZONA is on this list: http://www.govtech.com/dc/digital-counties/Digital-Counties-Survey-2016-Winners-Announced.html

            
 

 

2016: The Year in Data (Infographic)

While the data from the previous year represents a look back at major trends of the year, it also paints a picture of where public-sector IT teams will be focused in the future.

by Editorial Staff / December 2016

For Government Technology, 2016 was the year of data.

The Center for Digital Government, the research arm of e.Republic, conducted nationwide surveys to determine which state and local governments use technology the most efficiently and effectively, and also examined which websites are at the forefront of innovation and user-centric design.

 

While the data represents a look back at major trends of the year, it also paints a picture of where public-sector IT teams will be focused in the future.

Click the infographic on the left to enlarge or go to this link for more details >

http://www.govtech.com/data/2016-The-Year-in-Data-Infographic.html

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2016 DIGITAL CITIES WINNERS

500,000 or more population category:
1st Los Angeles
2nd Philadelphia
3rd Phoenix, Ariz.
4th Charlotte, N.C.
4th Seattle
5th Austin, Texas
6th Albuquerque, N.M.
7th Denver, Colo.
8th San Francisco
9th Louisville, Ky.
10th El Paso, Texas

 

On January 1, 2014 Mesa ranked #10 on 2014 Digital Cities Survey Winners:

Phoenix has moved up to #3

Mesa is not on the list for 2016

2014 DIGITAL CITIES WINNERS

250,000 or more population:
1st City of Los Angeles, CA
2nd City of Kansas City, MO
2nd City of Seattle, WA
3rd City of Jacksonville, FL
3rd Louisville Metro Government, KY
4th City of Philadelphia, PA
5th City of Raleigh, NC
5th City of Riverside, CA
6th City of Long Beach, CA
6th City of Phoenix, AZ
7th City and County of Denver, CO
8th City of Oakland, CA
9th City of Albuquerque, NM
9th City of Sacramento, CA
10th City of Mesa, AZ   

 

2016 DIGITAL CITIES WINNERS

250,000 – 499,999 population category: 1st Virginia Beach, Va.
2nd Kansas City, Mo.
3rd Pittsburgh, Pa.
4th Greensboro, N.C.
5th Riverside, Calif.
6th Long Beach, Calif.
7th Sacramento, Calif.
8th Cincinnati, Ohio
9th Henderson, Nev.
10th Omaha, Neb.