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Temple Visitors Center Dedicated by Elder Ulisses Soares of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

It's been about three years since residents knew about a massive makeover and a mixed-use 4.8-acre commercial and luxury residential development on the SEC of Mesa Drive and Main Street that was a small-scale version of the 23-acre Civic Creek in Temple Square in Salt Lake City. . .“This landmark in the shadow of our magnificent temple right on Main Street enriches what is the diverse and dynamic downtown Mesa. This beautiful new building will be a point of pride to the city and our church for years to come and serve as a gathering space for those who want to learn more about Jesus Christ and discover their family history,” said Julie Spilsbury, a member of the Mesa City Council and a Latter-day Saint.

Look inside the new Mesa Temple Visitors’ Center designed for youth and young adults

By Trent Toone Aug 13, 2021, 11:36am MDT

Deseret News

Elder Ulisses Soares of the church’s Quorum of the Twelve Apostles dedicated the new visitors’ center on Aug. 12

When does the Mesa Temple Visitors’ Center open?

The visitors’ center will open to the public on Saturday, Aug. 14, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Admission is free. For more information, visit MesaTemple.org.

Visitors’ Center Features

Individuals and families will be able to immerse themselves in the story of Mesa’s history, engage through interactive experiences to learn about the temple, and discover their families at the new visitors’ center.

Guests of all faiths are invited to select one of several Mesa Friends from Mesa’s early days to learn about the city’s diverse history and spiritual heritage built by Native Americans, Hispanic migrants and Mormon pioneers. After learning about Mesa’s history, visitors may want to learn more about their own family heritage. Kiosks, computers and trained volunteers are available to help community members see if they are connected to some of Mesa’s early residents, discover their family tree and record their own stories.

The original visitors’ center was dedicated in 1951 and replaced by a larger building north of the temple in 1958. That building was later expanded, but it was torn down to make room for the new facility.

The new location provides a clear view of the temple from Main Street. The building is part of the church’s effort to redevelop 4.5 acres of land along the Main Street light rail corridor in Mesa.

The new Mesa Temple Visitors’ Center, located on the southwest corner of LeSueur and Main Street, across the street from the Mesa Arizona Temple grounds in Mesa, Ariz., is pictured on Wednesday, Aug. 11, 2021. Image: The Church if Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints          

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has designed a new visitors’ center experience with youth and young adults in mind as part of the Mesa Arizona Temple renovation.

The new Mesa Arizona Temple Visitors’ Center, located across the street from the temple grounds, was dedicated Friday by Elder Ulisses Soares, of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, according to a news release.

“The objective for this new temple visitors’ center is to provide for our guests a new experience, through interactive multimedia, that immerses them in Mesa’s rich spiritual heritage and focuses on learning more about Jesus Christ,” Elder Soares said in the news release. “The visitors’ center was designed to help young adults feel a spirit of belonging. A variety of comfortable spaces have been developed to provide opportunities for them to gather or have a private moment to meditate.”

The addition of a new visitors’ center is part of an extensive renovation to the Mesa Arizona Temple. The 94-year-old temple has been closed since May 2018. . .

Families and individuals of all faiths can learn about Mesa’s history, the temple and discover their own family history at the new visitors’ center. Experiences are available in both English and Spanish.

“The displays in this visitors’ center teach us that there is hope and an individual plan for everybody,” Elder Soares said. “We hope that every person who comes and sees will understand that our life has a purpose and come away hoping to fulfill his or her purpose.”

• Mesa’s history: Guests can select one of several “Mesa Friends” from Mesa’s early days to learn about the city’s diverse history and spiritual heritage built by Native Americans, Hispanic immigrants and Mormon pioneers.
• Mesa Temple: Guests can examine a scale model of the temple with cutout views of each room.
• Family history: Visitors can learn more about their own family history using kiosks and computers. Trained volunteers are also on hand to assist if needed.
• Play areas: The visitors’ center has play areas for children. One part features a desert art wall for coloring. There is also a chalk wall that invites guests to share their thoughts in response to different questions.

A public open house for the Mesa temple is scheduled to start Saturday, Oct. 16, and run through Saturday, Nov. 20, except for Sundays.

President Dallin H. Oaks, of the church’s First Presidency, will preside at the rededication of the temple in several sessions on Sunday, Dec. 12.

 

The United States Department of Justice is Getting Very Local Here in Maricopa County and Phoenix

Phoenix is getting more heat from the U.S. Department of Justice, so is a wider investigation into Maricopa County.

DOJ Announces Investigation Of Phoenix PD's Use Of Excessive Force And Abuse Of Homeless People

Legal Issues

from the information-and-belief-on-top-of-patterns-and-practices dept

Thu, Aug 12th 2021 7:46pm — Tim Cushing

"With a new Attorney General in charge and a new President in the White House, the Department of Justice is getting back to taking care of the uncomfortable business of investigating local law enforcement agencies. This part of the DOJ's responsibilities was largely abandoned under Trump, who opened up his presidency by declaring he would "end" the "dangerous anti-police atmosphere."

Trump actually made it worse. His enthusiastic support for police and police violence did nothing to discourage the sorts of actions that create "anti-police atmosphere." Concurrently, the DOJ -- under AGs Sessions and Barr -- looked the other way as law enforcement agencies engaged in activities that violated the rights of the public.

The latest law enforcement agency to under the DOJ's scope is the Phoenix, Arizona police department.

> The Phoenix PD last made news here at Techdirt after its union offered cops access to paid service that would "scrub" social media services of their posts. This was deployed in reaction to multiple investigations opened all around the nation after transparency activist group Plainview Project was able to link bigoted and violent social media posts to current law employment officers.

There are some specifics to this investigation that indicate some parts of the Phoenix PD's enforcement efforts are more problematic than others.

This investigation will assess all types of use of force by PhxPD officers, including deadly force.  

> The investigation will also seek to determine (1) whether PhxPD engages in retaliatory activity against people for conduct protected by the First Amendment; (2) whether PhxPD engages in discriminatory policing; and (3) whether PhxPD unlawfully seizes or disposes of the belongings of individuals experiencing homelessness.  

> In addition, the investigation will assess the City and PhxPD’s systems and practices for responding to people with disabilities.  

> The investigation will include a comprehensive review of PhxPD policies, training, supervision, and force investigations, as well as PhxPD’s systems of accountability, including misconduct complaint intake, investigation, review, disposition, and discipline.

> The city is also being investigated to see what culpability it carries for the PD's anti-homeless actions. It appears the city (and the PD it employs) has been unwilling to obey court precedent finding certain policies unlawful.

A 2018 ruling by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals banned cities from arresting or imposing fines on people sleeping in public places in the absence of meaningful housing alternatives.

As a result, local governments in western states have begun to reassess their urban camping ordinances. Among them are cities in Arizona like Glendale and Tempe, which have stopped enforcing urban camping laws.

But little has changed in Phoenix, said Elizabeth Venable, treasurer for the Fund for Empowerment.

Despite the court decision, the Phoenix Police Department is “doing the same thing they’ve always done,” said Venable.

The state appears to believe the proper solution to being on the wrong end of court decisions is to change the law. A new proposal would create sanctioned "camps" for homeless people while still allowing the state to punish homeless people for sleeping in public areas without permission.

The bill would authorize the state to create designated camping areas on state land with access to water, electricity and bathrooms where people experiencing homelessness could stay. Residents of the designated camping area may be required to attend substance abuse treatment or mental health services.

He said the camps would be similar to the temporary parking-lot shelters opened by Maricopa County last year to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Security would be provided at all camping areas.

The bill would prohibit homeless encampments anywhere else on state property.

Yes, this would create other options for temporary housing of homeless people. But it won't do much to prevent police officers from harassing and arresting homeless people for simply existing in the wrong place at the wrong time. And it's this leeway that appears to have led to this investigation -- the encouragement of heavy-handed enforcement by city reps, which has manifested as the abuses the DOJ is now digging into.

Unfortunately for the DOJ, it may soon discover it doesn't have a whole lot of information to work with.

As was discovered by Justin Price of AZCentral last year, the city's contract with the police union allows misconduct records to be destroyed almost at will.

Over 500 of the city's 3,000 officers have had their pasts memory-holed by the union contract, covering over 600 misconduct incidents ranging from failure to complete reports to deployments of excessive force.

The purging prevents even internal investigators from discovering patterns of misconduct that should result in harsher discipline or termination. It also prevents plaintiffs suing officers over violated rights from obtaining key background info that could indicate an officer is a longtime abuser of citizens. In one case cited in Price's report, the PD began purging an officer's records as soon as the officer had been served.

Beyond the impediments posed by a lack of documentation, there's the question of how much the DOJ can actually change by performing an investigation. At best, it prevents law enforcement agencies from claiming any abuses uncovered are just a matter of perception. At worst, it just forces agencies to keep their heads low for a while and wait for the DOJ (and the public's interest) to head elsewhere.

It should be noted, however, that every closed DOJ investigation finds evidence of wrongdoing, usually of the "substantial" and "pervasive" varieties. By the time the DOJ decides to step in, the problem is generally too big to ignore.

This means the agency being investigated is already aware of the problem but has done nothing to correct it.

That mindset -- one that views bad cops as victims of public perception -- tends to stick around long after the DOJ has dropped off a consent decree and blown town.

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