Thursday, December 27, 2018

3 Workshops For Potential "Angel Investors"

PRESS RELEASE from Mesa Now, The City of Mesa's Newsroom
City of Mesa and PHX East Valley Partnership offer a free workshop series for potential Angel Investors
December 13, 2018 at 2:55 pm
Are you looking for a new way to diversify your portfolio but not sure how to become an Angel Investor?
The City of Mesa Office of Economic Development has partnered with East Valley Partnership to offer a three-workshop series for budding Angel Investors.
The series of workshops, beginning Jan. 9, at LaunchPoint in downtown Mesa, is designed to help you learn tools and skills to evaluate investment opportunities. Most people are aware of common investments such as real estate, stocks, and bonds but there are many companies in startup and growth phases that are also looking for investment to help them reach their next stage. These workshops are aimed at teaching individuals the basics of angel investing.
The PHX East Valley Angel Investor Initiative started as a response to the common hurdle for startups and early stage companies, which is limited access to equity investors in the East Valley. The goal is to help boost economic growth by providing education and raise awareness of the important role angel investors play in helping to fund startups. Angels can provide critical access to early-stage funding for PHX East Valley tech startups and the workshops are aimed at connecting with potential angels. Mike Hutchinson, Executive Vice President of the PHX East Valley Partnership said, "We are pleased with the results we've achieved thus far and continue to look for ways to raise awareness of the program, while sparking investment in our communities."
An "angel" is an individual who invests his or her own money in startup companies in exchange for an equity share of the business.
In 2016, Angel Investors helped create nearly 264,000 jobs in the United States. Moreover, startups receiving angel funding are more likely to remain in business after four years, grow to 75 employees or more, and receive venture capital funding in the future. According to a Sept. 2018 Angel Capital Association news article, Angels invest in a variety of industries with more than two-thirds of deals funding companies in the Tech and Life Science fields. Jim Goulka, the managing director of Arizona Tech Investors said, "the absence of a concentrated tech community - such as Silicon Valley - makes it difficult for startups to compare notes and develop synergy and Angels have positive, measurable impacts on startup success." There are many potential investors in the local communities and these workshops have been designed to encourage them to learn how to invest.
Nascent Angel Investors are encouraged to attend all three workshops and to share the information with others who may be looking for new ways to diversify their investments.
The series of events will be hosted at LaunchPoint, in the Mesa Center for Higher Education located at 245 W. Second St. in Mesa. All workshops are 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. and light refreshments will be provided.
Please join us for:
Jan. 9 - Successful Startups
How to Evaluate a Startup with No Revenue

Jan. 23 - Is This Company Worth It?
Setting the Terms of a Deal

Feb. 6 - Trends in Investing with a Nod to Venture Capital
Angel Investing - Doing It
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For further information
Call:    480-834-8335.

Contact:
Kelley Keffer, Project Manager
City of Mesa Office of Economic Development
Tel: 480-644-6958
Kelley.keffer@mesaaz.gov

Wednesday, December 26, 2018

Mesa Opportunity Zone Prospectus Now Available

PRESS RELEASE from City of Mesa Newsroom MesaNow 
Mesa launches Opportunity Zone Prospectus to spotlight notable investment opportunities across the City
December 12, 2018 at 3:12 pm
Today the City of Mesa announced the launch of the Mesa Opportunity Zone Investment Prospectus located at www.MesaAzOpportunityZones.com.
 
The Prospectus provides important information for potential investors regarding Mesa's Opportunity Zones, namely the Gateway Area
Falcon District
Main Street Corridor
Fiesta District
and the key geographic, demographic, infrastructure, and market advantages of Mesa's OZones.
 
Blogger Notes:
1. What is covered in the city's press release are four of 11 pre-designated areas that qualified for being low-income neglected, distressed neighbors or were contiguous to those census tracts here in Mesa. The Gateway Area and The Falcon District qualified for being contiguous to distressed census tracts.
2. Here in the image above right and a week after the monthly Economic Development Advisory Board meeting on 04 Oct 2018 are Mesa's EconDev Director Bill Jabjiniak flanked by other city officials and a consultant making a pitch for RDAs. At the same study session there were questions and discussions about OZones. Mark Valenzuela, hired-on last year from ASU was not present at that time.
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 The Opportunity Zone program is a federal program meant to spur investment in low-income areas by providing tax benefits to investors who reinvest capital gains into Opportunity Zones.
The tax on the realized gain is deferred and reduced if the investment is held in an Opportunity Fund for five to seven years.
Moreover, gains on the Opportunity Fund investment will not be taxed if the investment is held for ten years.
Opportunity Funds in turn must have at least 90% of their assets in qualified Opportunity Zone property.
The City of Mesa has 11 census tracts that have been designated Opportunity Zones by the U.S. Department of Treasury.
"Our Opportunity Zones provide a boost in returns for private, tax-free investment in low-income areas with economic need," Mayor John Giles said.
"Investment in these areas will bring great benefit to our residents and private investors alike."
Mesa's various opportunity zones are well-suited for industrial, office, retail, and residential development projects.
The Gateway Area Opportunity Zone includes industrial and commercial development opportunities proximate to Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport, along the burgeoning Ray Road Business Corridor, and in the Pecos Advanced Manufacturing Zone, which also has the unique advantage of a streamlined entitlement process.
Furthermore, investors can maximize the property tax incentives for qualified projects locating in Mesa's Foreign Trade Zone and the Military Reuse Zone, also located in the Gateway Area Opportunity Zone.
Anchored by Falcon Field Airport and already home to major operations for Boeing, Northrop Grumman, MD Helicopters, and Nammo Talley, Mesa's Falcon District Opportunity Zone has many additional opportunities for manufacturing, office, retail, and hotel development. The District's targeted industry segments included aerospace, defense, medical technologies, and advanced business services.
Located along the Red Mountain Loop 202, the Falcon District is ripe for development and is already seeing tremendous new activity.
The Main Street Corridor Opportunity Zone is Mesa's heart for arts, culture, entertainment, government, and education, and will soon be the home of a new Arizona State University facility and innovation studio.
The Main Street Corridor hosts a variety of mixed-use, office, restaurant, hotel, and multi-family housing development opportunities.
Already a blossoming employment area, the Fiesta District Opportunity Zone is prime for additional development in mixed-use, restaurant, office, advanced business services, medical technology, and healthcare services.
Nearby are campuses for Cardon Children's Medical Center, Banner Desert Medical Center, and Mesa Community College, as well as Santandar, National General Lender Services, and Esurance.
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To download or share the City of Mesa's Opportunity Zone Investment Prospectus, visit
www.MesaAzOpportunityZones.com.
If you would like to invest in one of Mesa's Opportunity Zones, please contact
City of Mesa Economic Development Director Bill Jabjiniak at William.Jabjiniak@MesaAz.gov
or

Contact:
Kim Lofgreen
Tel. 480-644-3962
kim.lofgreen@mesaaz.gov

Post-Note: John Wesley, Planning Director For City of Mesa is Retiring

Nothing from the City of Mesa Newsroom about this or who is getting hired to fill this important position.
It was noted briefly at the end of a City Council Meeting on December 10, 2018 effective at the end of this year.



QUESTION: Did John Wesley succeed in leading the charge to introduce urbanism into the MEGA-SUBURB of Mesa??



There was a Retirement Celebration for the long-time Planning Director from 2-5 pm on December 6, 2018.

If readers of this blog have taken the time to watch Mesa City Council meetings, John Wesley's usual place is bottom center right who's head is lowered looking at a screen on his tablet.




USE THE SEARCHBOX ON THIS BLOG SITE TO FIND MORE INFORMATION ABOUT JOHN WESLEY AND MESA SUBURBAN SPRAWL

Why Did US Army Perform Secret Drug Mind Experiments?

Mind-Fuks by the C.I.A.
Published on Dec 26, 2018
Views: 26,542+
What were the Drug Mind Experiments performed by the United States government? The 1950s was a time of the Korean War and the Cold War. Stopping the spread of communism was a top priority for the United States, so the U.S. government became concerned that many soldiers returning home from the Korean War “were found mindlessly parroting the communist propaganda they had been sent to Korea to fight” according to one source. Investigations led to two discoveries.

First, the communist countries of China, Russia, and North Korea were using “mental torture and brainwashing” techniques.
Hmmm...sounds exactly like same tactics used in "black sites" today

Fueled by Cold War paranoia, U.S. government officials were compelled to take countermeasures to prevent what one article calls a “larger scale drug attack.” They began two testing programs to find out if r drugs could be used to subdue and control the enemy mentally. One of these pro


SUBSCRIBE TO US -► http://bit.ly/TheInfographicsShow
 
 

READY FOR INVASION, RUSSIA DEPLOYS SUKHOI JETS TO CRIMEA AMID TENSIONS W...


Published on Dec 26, 2018
Views: 2,526
This video is made under fair use policy, also this material is made from public published domain for people with hearing and seeing disability
More than a dozen SU-27 and SU-30 fighter jets which Russia is deploying to boost its air force, amid heightened tensions with Ukraine, arrived in Crimea on Saturday.

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WHOA! Better call in Victoria Nuland again to prop up the Ukie-Puppet Government headed by the Chocolate Magnate-Oligarch Pushenko ....
RUSSIAN PARANOIA prevails

Martha Reeves & The Vandellas - Nowhere to run

Sayin' like it is > O Yeah!
Published on Jul 7, 2017
Views: 9,657

Category     Music

Song   Nowhere To Run ("16 Big Hits" Stereo Version)

Artist     Martha & The Vandellas     

Licensed to YouTube by    

  • UMG (on behalf of Motown); SOLAR Music Rights Management, CMRRA, EMI Music Publishing, UBEM, and 5 Music Rights Societies

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IN THE NEWS:
Kass: Nowhere To Run, Nowhere To Hide? | RIA
https://realinvestmentadvice.com/kass-nowhere-to-run-nowhere-to-hide/
Nowhere to run to, nowhere to hide | Mutual Fund Observer
https://www.mutualfundobserver.com/2018/10/nowhere-to-run-to-nowhere-to-hide/
Today's Market Anthem: Nowhere to Run to Baby, Nowhere to Hide ...
https://weissratings.com/.../today-s-market-anthem-nowhere-to-run-to-baby-nowhere-t...
Nowhere to Run To, Nowhere to Hide? The Problem With Media ...
www.barrons.com/articles/internet-media-stocks-is-anyplace-safe-1508255065
Oct 17, 2017 - BMO Capital Markets' Daniel Salmon and his team take a look at media and internet companies ahead of the third-quarter reporting season, ...
Jim Cramer's 'Mad Money' Recap: Nowhere to Run, Nowhere to Hide ...
 
https://www.thestreet.com › Jim Cramer
Cramer: Sing It, Martha -- Nowhere to Run to in This Market, Nowhere ...
https://realmoney.thestreet.com/.../cramer-sing-it-martha-nowhere-run-market-nowhere-...
Oct 11, 2016 - How in heck can the stock of Gilead (GILD) have fallen $28 from $102 .... While there is usually nowhere to run and nowhere to hide on day one ...
Kass: Nowhere To Run, Nowhere To Hide? | Zero Hedge
https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2018-12-21/kass-nowhere-run-nowhere-hide

Update: OPPORTUNITY ZONES: More Sprawl or Smart Growth?

That's THE QUESTION in my inbox in an email blast sent by Smart Growth Action Content on December 13, 2018.
First of all - and it certainly looks like it's a foregone fact-of-life here in Mesa:
Mesa Sprawls!
Here is a 32-year time lapse of urban sprawl in Mesa.
Published on Dec 14, 2016, so far the streaming upload has only received 41 views! HEY!!
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Here in Mesa it's definitely a Tale of Two Zones located in The Outer Loops that don't exactly fit the established criteria to get pre-designated as 'low-income communities' - in affluent Northeast Mesa and affluent Southeast Mesa. 
Hold onto that thought for a moment to see what a new OZone report has to say after meticulously ranking and assessing 7800+ Opportunity Zones by their smart growth potential and current social equity to identify which ones are positioned to bring positive social, environmental, and economic returns 
Sprawl or smart growth: the future of Opportunity Zones
Guiding Equitable Investments
Smart Growth America

Which Opportunity Zones have the most smart growth potential?

The newly created Opportunity Zones program will likely go down as the largest and most significant federal community development initiative in U.S. history, with trillions of dollars in new private investment about to start flowing into pre-designated low-income communities around the country.
The BIGGEST QUESTION TODAY IS THIS: will these investments benefit the people living in these communities now, or will they be displaced as new interest and development brings increased property values and rents? And what kind of development will this incentive bring? Unsustainable, car-dependent sprawl (the dominant growth paradigm in the United States today) or walkable, mixed-use communities with a variety of housing options for everyone?
Smart Growth America is on the front lines of ensuring that question gets answered the right way.
 

New research released today by LOCUS (a program of Smart Growth America) and The Center for Real Estate and Urban Analysis at George Washington University meticulously ranked and assessed 7800+ Opportunity Zones by their smart growth potential and current social equity to identify which ones are positioned to bring positive social, environmental, and economic returns . . .
What did they find?
This research revealed a tale of two zones. The majority of Americans in Opportunity Zones live in communities that force them to pay higher housing and transportation costs while being subjected to higher negative social and health impacts and a lower quality of life. The magnitude and scale of this tragedy is a reality check on the thought that the Opportunity Zone tax incentive will be a silver bullet. But if done right, this tax incentive could address decades of poor land use, institutional inequities, and development decisions to improve the quality of life for many Americans.
Step one is knowing which places could bring the best triple-bottom-line returns.
This new report will help investors identify which Opportunity Zones should be prioritized in order to deliver positive economic, environmental, and social returns. And it provides local policymakers and community groups with a policy framework to manage and ensure equitable, inclusive development in Opportunity Zones.
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Try like the Dickens as yours truly might, one thing that's gone missing in the City of Mesa's 11 Opportunity Zones mainstream media over-kill is wealth-creation for "angel investors" (with $25-100K) and millionaire-investors is the 2017 Opportunity & Jobs Act that was supposed to go hand-in-hand with job-creation. So far it's been mostly all about rampant real estate speculation and long-term deferred capital gains taxes to attract millions in cash standing on-the-sidelines.
Where do these two components meet in Mesa's 11 OZones?
1. Downtown Mesa:
    Along the Valley Metro Light Rail Corridor
2. Northeast Mesa
3. Southeast Mesa
4. Southwest Mesa

OBSERVATION: Most of the job growth is concentrated in NE Mesa and SE Mesa
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