As we have had the first snow on Mt. Lemmon and are finally enjoying sweater weather in the Valley, media types of all forms, armed with their pens, keyboards, and voices are asking their readers and listeners, “What are you thankful for this holiday season?” Well, we’re no different. Our response is that we have so much to be thankful for in our...
It seems we can’t go a day without reading or hearing the term, “affordable housing”. Unfortunately, like so many topics, those words really don’t describe the term in practice. I believe when most of us think of affordable housing, we envision a young person or couple starting out on career and family paths, scrimping, and saving to move out...
We have been drowning in violence. It seems to be everywhere and all the time. I think of the horror of the murders of the Minnesota state legislator and her husband by someone disguised as a police officer, knocking at their door. I think of the young Ukrainian woman sitting alone after work on a railcar in Charlotte, stabbed to death while going...
As you know, we heard your concerns and this year your District 4 office led initiatives to address both the increasing danger of wildfires and the cost and availability of homeowners insurance. We are proud to report that our request to create a Pima County Wildfire Danger Mitigation Plan (WDMP) has “made progress in advancing (the WDMP)...
No slowdown in activity for the Board of Supervisors this summer. Typically, there’s a lull until after Labor Day, but this has been a sizzling season for issues of importance to the Greater Vail area. First, it was Project Blue, the proposed data center complex located just north of the Pima County Fairgrounds. The Board narrowly approved the...
What do the all of the following properties have in common: the former Bank of America Plaza, the green-tiled former Home Federal Savings tower, the recently-former Southern New Hampshire University building, the former Wells Fargo downtown headquarters, the recently-vacated Respite/Welcoming Center, the former Golden Pins Bowling Alley, the...
Hold on to your wallets, it’s that time of year again when the Board of Supervisors unravel, explore, and discern the mysteries of setting the Fiscal Year 2025/2026 Pima County budget. It seems the deeper one mines into the budget, the more cryptic, or should I say, puzzling it becomes. Each Supervisor has a favorite area of taxpayer-funded...
100! We believe that with this month’s column, we have reached our 100th update to the community via the Vail Voice. All the related clichés about time flying, etc. would seem appropriate. Realizing this milestone, I paused and reflected on our team’s more than eight years of service to the Southeast Region, and how much we all appreciate this...
With horror and disbelief, we learned of the tragic death of Redington resident Paul Clifford, who was acting as a Good Samaritan trying to aid what he was told was a stranded motorist. Last Christmas Eve, in the early morning hours, Mr. Clifford responded to a knock on his door in a remote rural area in the San Pedro River Valley. The Clifford’s...
As all things wildfire remain top of mind, here’s a progress report of our efforts to address the challenges of wildfire mitigation, home fire insurance, and rural fire district funding. Last month, we placed an item on the Board of Supervisors meeting agenda asking the County Administrator to develop a Pima County Wildfire Danger Mitigation Plan...
