National Bank of Arizona
Plan for Phoenix’s future links people, places and businesses
local motion
Crafting an independent and lasting economic story in AZ
FEBRUARY 2015
in this issue FEATURES
8
Local Motion
Crafting an independent and lasting economic story for Arizona entrepreneurs.
6
DEPARTMENTS
2
@ NB | AZ
t railblazers Reclaiming
‘America’s Nile’ Community bands together to beautify Yuma wetlands.
PUBLISHER National Bank of Arizona EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Mark Vance, mark.vance@nbarizona.com MANAGING EDITOR Amy Schnell, amy.schnell@nbarizona.com CREATIVE DIRECTOR, NB | AZ Nick Bradshaw, nick.bradshaw@nbarizona.com
We Stand Corrected
In the “Sweet Julia” article that appeared in the November 2014 issue, Julia Baker's business was identified as Julia Baker Creations. The name of her business is Julia Baker Confections.
6 The Path Forward
5
Food & Drink
Modern Wheat
Initiative aims to restore and regrow Arizona’s forests.
7
Arts & Culture
To the Nines
Robert Black dresses up modern times with vintage couture.
16
Experience AZ
A moment with Ballet Arizona.
Arizona food pioneers sow the seeds for quality heritage grains.
EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Michelle Jacoby, michelle@pb-jcreative.com CREATIVE DIRECTOR, PB+J CREATIVE Pamela Norman, pnormandesigns@me.com PRODUCTION MANAGER Chris Adams, cwadams@me.com CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Sally J. Clasen, Bruce Farr, Rebecca Rhoades PHOTOGRAPHER Mark Lipczynski, mark@marklipczynski.com
Elevate AZ magazine may contain trademarks or trade names owned by parties who are not affiliated with National Bank of Arizona, Zions Bancorporation, or its affiliates. Use of such marks does not imply any sponsorship by or affiliation with third parties, and National Bank of Arizona does not claim any ownership of or make representations about products and services offered under or associated with such marks. Articles are offered for informational purposes only and should not be construed as tax, legal, financial or business advice. Please contact a professional about your specific needs and advice. © 2015 National Bank of Arizona.® All rights reserved. Elevate AZ magazine is printed on 100% postconsumer waste fiber and is manufactured with windpower.
State Forty Eight pays homage to Arizona and its spirit of local entrepreneurism with a brand of graphic T-shirts. Page 8
Gabriel Contreras
5
Plan for Phoenix’s future links people, places and businesses
A Z Works
What's happening here and now at National Bank of Arizona.
4
12
Connected Oasis
NATIONAL BANK OF ARIZONA Corporate Center 6001 N. 24th St. Phoenix, AZ 85016 602-235-6000
ON THE COVER
PB+J CREATIVE content + photography + design 2040 S. Alma School Road, Suite 1-312 Chandler, AZ 85286 602-821-9164
One of Phoenix's most recognizable landmarks, “Her Secret is Patience” by artist Janet Echelman gives downtown a sense of place, one of the core values of PlanPHX, the new city plan. To read more about PlanPHX, go to page 12.
Photo by Mark Lipczynski.
WELCOME
“ Her Secret is Patience” DEDICATED IN APRIL 2009, artist Janet Echelman’s
and bold planning for our future. Whether it is a culmination of a two-and-a-half-year planning effort to update the Phoenix General Plan or the ongoing efforts to celebrate and support our rich and diverse local economy, Arizonans know the value of patience. Transforming land formerly occupied by an automobile dealership and electrical equipment company required a bold vision and a fair amount of courage, particularly at a time when such investments in public planning were under attack across the country. This issue of ElevateAZ is dedicated to the bold thinkers, the transformers of our state who are leading with passion and patience.
Mark Lipczynski
iconic public art sculpture located in Civic Space Park is arguably the most aptly-named example of urban place-making and downtown revitalization. With nicknames that range from “The Giant Dreamcatcher” to “The Tornado,” the landmark artwork has drawn attention to a unique parcel of land that now plays host to concerts, art shows and outdoor movies. Perhaps Echelman knew something we didn’t back at the start of the Great Recession. The secret to the success of Phoenix and the state of Arizona is to eschew the desire for immediate gratification and consider the value of patient, determined
A Show of Spirit
AWARDS
Midas Touch
committed to supporting efforts across the state to bring our communities together. That’s why we were so proud to support the National Bank of Arizona Fiesta Bowl Parade, which was held on Dec. 27, 2014. The 2-mile parade, which traveled through central Phoenix, celebrated the “Spirit of the Southwest” with magnificent floats, local celebrities, equestrian units, specialty groups and charitable organizations. The Fiesta Bowl has awarded a total of $400,000 to 24 charities across the state of Arizona for the fall grant cycle. In the past four years, Fiesta Bowl Charities has awarded more than $4 million to organizations across Arizona.
She’s Got Game EVERYONE AT NB|AZ is cheering for their favorite team this time of year—especially residential real estate team member and Arizona Cardinals cheerleader captain Amanda Vicha. Amanda was recently chosen as the Cardinals cheer representative to the 2015 Pro Bowl, which took place on Sunday, Jan. 25 at the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, site of Super Bowl XLIX. Amanda spent the week leading up to the Pro Bowl making numerous public appearances in Arizona and rehearsing with Pro Bowl cheerleaders from across the NFL for their featured performances. Congratulations, Amanda!
WRAP-UP
Amanda: Arizona Cardinals; Parade: NB|AZ
new heights BLOCK 23—it’s what the City of Phoenix Planning and Zoning Department calls that curious parcel—was the center of the sports universe the week of Jan. 26. That’s when the Arizona Super Bowl Host Committee transformed the current parking lot into Verizon Super Bowl Central. More than 1 million people visited the free, family-friendly, footballthemed outdoor fan campus, which was the hub of fan, sponsor, media and NFL activities for the week leading up to Super Bowl XLIX. By linking several key downtown streets and venues, the campus created a unique and centralized experience for fans and guests. NB|AZ was proud to sponsor a major attraction within Verizon Super Bowl Central. Measuring 30 feet high and 100 feet long, the Grand Canyon Experience (GCE)was an authentic
rock climbing wall constructed by the world-famous climbing environment manufacturer Rockwerx. With 20 climbing stations, a 9-by-20-foot LED screen with Super Bowl Central announcements, concert schedules and NB|AZ messaging, GCE was a major focal point at Verizon Super Bowl Central. “The positive attention that Arizona gained by virtue of hosting Super Bowl XLIX is immeasurable,” says NB|AZ president and CEO Keith Maio. “Working with the Super Bowl Host Committee to shine a light on all ‘that is right’ with Arizona was our goal. On behalf of our more than 800 employees, the thousands of Arizonans and Arizona businesses we are privileged to serve, and the communities across the state we call home, we were proud to welcome the world to Arizona.”
super stat s :
500
50
CEOs invited to learn about the state’s robust business climate from local business and policy leaders.
million dollars generated in economic impact to the state.
5,000+ media professionals from 30 countries participated in media events.
100,000 visitors experienced what a fantastic place Arizona is.
Elevate AZ | February 2015
NB|AZ was honored to have been awarded a Silver Midas Award for the inaugural issue of ElevateAZ. The Midas Awards are the only competition to recognize excellence in financial advertising and marketing on a global scale.
AS ARIZONA’S largest community bank, NB|AZ is
3 Elevate AZ, an NB|AZ Publication
4 TRAILBL
ERS
Reclaiming ‘America’s Nile’ Community bands together to beautify Yuma wetlands
The Yuma Crossing project, led by executive director Charles Flynn (inset), aims to restore a 2,000acre area bordering the Colorado River.
N
OWHERE IN Arizona is there a better example of how successful a community’s vision for restoring and beautifying its land areas can be than that of Yuma. The city’s Yuma Crossing National Heritage Area might yet be a work in progress, but the impressive results of its first 15 years of painstaking development speak volumes for what can be accomplished with a little consensus and a lot of good, old-fashioned elbow grease. The Yuma Crossing project was designed to restore a 2,000-acre area bordering the river that had become overgrown and trash-ridden, and restore it to the vital, symbiotic connection between Yuma and the Colorado River, which had once been the city’s lifeblood and livelihood. According to Charles Flynn, executive director for the project, Yuma Crossing is under the umbrella of the National Heritage Area program, of which there are 49 throughout the U.S. “The National Heritage Area program's goals are to conserve and enhance natural cultural historic resources through partnerships and consulting opportunities,” Flynn explains. “And then support engaging projects and programs that drive the redevelopment or reclamation of those areas.” Historically, Yuma’s location at the only practical crossing point on the lower Colorado River—a waterway so important to early U.S. transportation and commerce that it was once referred to as “America’s Nile”—helped to leverage its value to the state. As the city grew and flourished, however, some of its outlying areas along the river began to suffer and deteriorate. River silt buildup, deforestation, a steady invasion of non-native plant species and other causes combined to turn the Yuma Crossing area into a thicket of uninhabitable, unattractive riverfront land, an area ripe for crime and other undesirable elements. What’s more, from 1910 to 1970, part of the area was home to the Yuma city dump. The first phase of the project targeted a 110-acre site just west of town called the West Wetlands, where the city’s
landfill had been located for the better part of a century. After layering eight feet of fill on top of the site, the commission constructed an attractive park. Another 1,400 acres in what’s called the Yuma East Wetlands is the setting for a more recent and ongoing project. The area fell under the jurisdiction of more than a dozen landowners, the largest of which was the Quechan tribe of American Indians. Relations between the tribe and the city weren’t particularly good, but with some consensus-building on the part of Flynn and others, an agreement was reached that helped pave the way. In fact, Flynn cites the coming together of several disparate community factions as the main reason for the project’s overall success. He says that the residents of Yuma, its local farmers, members of the local Native American tribe and the federal government were “odd bedfellows” by any measure, but they eventually all understood that the benefits of the project were in everyone’s best interest. With these early phases largely completed, the project has now restored some 400 acres of land along the river, with hundreds of thousands of trees, vegetation and grasses having been planted. The multi-use area has become a major attraction for local residents and visitors alike. “We have a three-and-a-half-mile hiking trail on the south side of the river, maintenance trails, a nice overlook about a half mile from downtown, along the river,” Flynn notes. “And, on the tribal side, there’s a nice park.” The challenge now is maintaining all the fruits of the project’s labor, Flynn says. “What we eventually saw as being vital to the project’s continuation was to build in adequate maintenance for all the work that was accomplished,” he says, adding that a 50-year agreement negotiated with the federal Bureau of Reclamation— which manages the project—will ensure that. “The beauty of it,” Flynn continues, “is that we now have a mechanism to ensure that what we’ve already accomplished will continue.” Bruce Farr
FIVEPOINT PLAN Started in 2011, the Yuma Crossing project works to accomplish five goals: To identify and conserve Yuma’s cultural, historical and geologic resources. To develop several diversified heritage sites adjoining the Colorado River. To bring attention to how the community’s history continues to impact Yuma. To attract visitors and economic investment to the city. To create an impressive “gateway” to Yuma that offers a palpable key to its significance.
&DRINK
FOOD
T
HE SUSTAINABLE food movement has filled our plates
with organic produce, grass-fed meats and artisan cheese. But what about grains? “There’s been this big push over at least the last 10 years to get back to farm-to-table and locally-sourced produce and meat, but somehow we kind of left grains behind,” says Erich Schultz, owner-farmer of Steadfast Farm at Agritopia, a self-sustaining certified organic farm in Gilbert that’s dedicated to preserving urban agriculture. “The chefs for whom this movement is important are buying this beautiful produce and meat and cheese, but for some reason, they’re still sourcing your basic all-purpose, nothing-special, nonutritional-value types of flour.” In late December, for the fourth year in a row, Schultz finished planting three varieties of heritage grains: Khorasan, a Durham wheat commonly known as Kamut; Red Fife, a popular bread flour; and White Sonora, the oldest wheat variety in North America, introduced to Southern Arizona in the early 1700s by a Jesuit missionary. Right now, Schultz’s field is nothing but dirt—but soon, the six acres will be covered with the fresh green sprouts of the developing grain. Once a leading crop in Arizona, most wheat is now farmed industrially in the Great Plains. And like all corporatized products, it has changed dramatically from its original form. Today’s massmarket wheat is produced not for its nutritional value, but for its high yield, and it's been hybridized to make it more shelf stable and disease resistant. The end product may be an easy-to-work-with, forgiving and cheap flour, but it’s also been stripped of its nutritional value and flavor. Southeast of Gilbert, in nearby Queen Creek, the father-daughter team of Jeff and Emma Zimmerman grow about a dozen varieties of heritage grains, which are then stone milled at their small downtown Phoenix mill, Hayden Flour Mills. “Grain is kind of the last frontier in sustainable food,” says Emma Zimmerman. “When we started [the business] four years ago, we uncovered this whole story of how flour has been industrialized and was milled to strip out all of the nutrients. Dad said we needed to go back to doing things traditionally. “I always say that bread should be four ingredients: flour, water, salt and yeast. But that’s hard to come by in the grocery store,” she adds. The Zimmermans and Schultz are just a few of a A fresh, growing number of Arizona farmers, bakers and chefs green sprout who are working to bring back locally-grown, highof developing heritage wheat quality heritage grains. In fact, thanks to a number grains. of local food pioneers—including farmer Steve Sossaman, on whose land the Zimmermans grow their grains; restaurateurs Chris and Marco Bianco, owners of the renowned Pizzeria Bianco and Pane Bianco; baker Don Guerra, owner of Barrio Bread; and chef Charleen Badman of Scottsdale’s FnB restaurant—the state is at the forefront of the grain revolution. And with the 2015 release of “The Grain Divide,” a documentary that sheds light on this modern food crisis, these food activists hope to spread their message that the white flour we value today is nothing compared to quality whole grains. Zimmerman sums it up perfectly. “If you’ve ever tasted Marco Bianco’s breads at Pane Bianco, it’s a revelation. You just get it. You ask yourself, ‘What have I been eating before? If this is bread, then that other stuff, I don’t know what it was.’ ” Rebecca Rhoades
Elevate AZ, an NB|AZ Publication
Elevate AZ | February 2015
Arizona food pioneers sow the seeds for quality heritage grains
5
WORKS
6
the path forward
Initiative aims to restore and regrow Arizona’s forests
U
P IN ARIZONA’S northern
reaches, an ambitious natural resource project is underway. The Four Forest Restoration Initiative (4FRI) is a 20-year plan aimed at restoring damaged ecosystems in sections of four national forests—Coconino, Kaibab, Apache-Sitgreaves and Tonto—that skirt the Mogollon Rim and stretch southeastward, to the New Mexico border. Blanketed by Ponderosa pines, the striking forest regions along the rim have, over the past century, fallen victim to a variety of ills, causing the trees to grow thin and unhealthy. The net result is an unbalancing of the delicate ecosystem, with diminishing plant and wildlife habitats and a greatly increased number of forest fires. 4FRI’s vision is to restore the forest to support healthy, diverse stands of trees, along with abundant repopulation of native plants and wildlife. In the process, the initiative will work to lessen the threat of wildfires, and create sustainable forest industries to aid in strengthening the local economy. The project will involve a variety of restoration efforts, and rely on a coalition of forest service personnel, partners and volunteers, and contractors to see them through. “The Path Forward,” as the plan details have been dubbed, might read like a straightforward
blueprint for progress, but the project’s scope is beyond massive. Eventually, nearly two and a half million acres of Arizona forest could be addressed by a painstaking process of selectively weaning out the thin, unhealthy tree specimens through “cutting orders” that typically involve 5,000 to 10,000 acres at a time. Such an enormous undertaking requires precision planning and substantial support. The 4FRI project was born from a distinct need. With wildfires throughout the state’s forested regions increasing at an alarming rate over the past few decades, Arizona forest managers have been working overtime to try and find an answer to reducing them. At the same time, many other agencies and individuals, along with the general public, have become much more educated about the importance of healthy forests, and the need to better manage them. In 2010, a group of 4FRI stakeholders came together to fine tune and launch the initiative. The stakeholders comprise 30 entities that represent state and federal agencies, ecological organizations, private businesses, conservation commissions and academic organizations. Among their other goals, the stakeholders recognize the need to establish a commercial economic component to the forest restoration effort.
To that end, several businesses will play a key role in the project by being set up to harvest the designated “thin” trees, and then process and sell wood products made from them. The project scope being so large, the 4FRI team is quick to point out that—even five years after it was launched—their work has just begun. “Through collaboration, we are laying the groundwork to restore the landscape at the scale of the problem,” notes Diane Vosick, the current co-chair of the 4FRI stakeholder group and director of Policy and Partnerships for the Ecological Restoration Institute at Northern Arizona University. “These accomplishments are just the beginning for a groundbreaking project like 4FRI.” Despite its scale, the initiative is already showing some impressive results. According to 4FRI team leader Annette Fredette, “Since the start of 4FRI…wildlife habitat, as well as watershed function and resilience, has been improved on approximately 300,000 acres.”
Bruce Farr
In the fall, the ApacheSitgreaves National Forest, one of the areas in the Four Forest Restoration Initiative’s plan, is awash in vibrant autumnal hues.
FAST TRACK Across the 4FRI national forests, efforts are being made to accelerate restoration well into the future. Accomplishments since 2010 include:
Harvesting
more than 32,000 acres of timber equaling enough lumber to build more than 65,000 homes.
Maintaining
or improving approximately 800 miles of trails.
Reducing
the risk of catastrophic fire on approximately 300,000 acres through hazardous fuel treatments.
Treating
invasive plants on more than 14,000 acres.
Producing
more than 1.1 billion kilowatt hours of bio-energy with green biomass. This is enough energy to power 100,000 homes for a year.
R Robert Black backstage at the 2014 Holiday Prelude Fashion Show benefiting the Phoenix Art Museum League.
&CULTURE
ARTS
Robert Black dresses up modern times with vintage couture
OBERT BLACK HAS spent his life hunting for treasures. As the founder of FORD/ Robert Black Agency, he canvassed the fashion capitals of the world scouting for top models and talent. Now, as the co-owner of Fashion by Robert Black, he’s unearthing a different sort of artistic commodity: vintage couture. By design, the 2,500-square-foot boutique he runs with business partner Doreen Picerne is located in Old Town Scottsdale. “We wanted to be in the arts district where affluent travelers shop and who view fashion as art,” he says of the space, which is housed in the historic White Hogan Shop building. The vintage boutique, which opened in 2009, sells women’s designs, select men’s items, jewelry and accessories that date from the 1920s to 1990s. Among the racks are familiar names like Oscar de la Renta, Bob Mackie and Geoffrey Beene, as well as couture created by TV, theater and film industry designers—a favorite of Black’s— such as William Travilla, who dressed Marilyn Monroe for the silver screen. “I’m attracted to film designers because there’s an extra something, an element of punch in their creations,” he says. The transition from discovering supermodels to securing one-of-a-kind designer frocks for resale was a natural leap for Black, who spent the ’80s building his Valley-based Robert Black Agency into an internationally-recognized model and talent agency, and then formed a groundbreaking partnership with FORD Models Inc. in 1994. Black sold the agency in 2005, but didn’t abandon his love for discovering unusual but beautiful things. “I’ve always worked with designers and have been surrounded by Auntie Mames who dressed to the nines,” he says, referring to Mame Dennis, the eccentric fashionista portrayed by Rosalind Russell in the 1958 film “Auntie Mame.” “And I’ve always been interested in fashion and art. It feeds my artistic side.” Fashion by Robert Black specializes in rare clothing, yet the stylish Black doesn’t think it’s necessary to be draped in head-to-toe designer clothes to be fashion forward. He points out his Yves Saint Laurent jacket that’s paired with a denim button-down shirt from Target, Gap jeans and Gucci shoes. “It’s not economics. You can look spectacular if you put a little effort into it,” he says, adding that he encourages his clients to mix up their vintage style. “We’re not in the costuming business. We want customers to put a contemporary twist on their couture outfit, add modern makeup and accessories and make it their own.” Though Black views fashion as a form of creative expression, dressing well, he says, is a matter of pride and self-respect. “We live in a disposable society and I think the eras of clothing we represent in the boutique celebrate a time when people cared about the way they looked. The clothing also represents quality. That’s why it’s still here.” Black and Picerne have traveled the world searching for haute clothing with a past, and select items with price points that range from mall to museum budgets. “We’re not a thrift shop, but we do offer bargains on used, out-of the-ordinary clothing in perfect condition with a history,” Black says. “People want to know that story and feel special. It’s about the find and then letting it go to our customer to have a wonderful new life.” Sally J. Clasen
7 Elevate AZ, an NB|AZ Publication
l a c o l
story Sally J. Clasen photography mark lipczynski
With approximately 45,000 independent companies, Arizona is a thriving and vibrant environment for locally-owned business. community, and the economic and cultural benefits they provide to the state. One organization, Local First Arizona (LFA), is committed to advancing that bottom-line narrative. According to Kimber Lanning, executive director of LFA, the mission of the nonprofit she founded in 2003 is to support, promote and advocate for a strong local business community, and raise public awareness about how it enriches communities and contributes to a sustainable economy for Arizona. When Lanning launched LFA, she was a onewoman, grassroots crusade knocking on doors and meeting tremendous resistance rather than openarms support for her ideas on local endeavors. Today, LFA is the largest local business coalition in North America with 2,600 members, 13 full-time employees and several volunteer Ambassadors to Local First Arizona (ALFAs). And it has had a major influence in cultivating a collaborative, diverse and proud local mindset in the state.
Lanning, however, believes there’s much more to do and say about how the importance of developing a prosperous local economy in Arizona. “We need to get better at telling our story,” she explains. “We’re not paying attention to ourselves.” Driving a Localist Culture
While quaint coffee shops, artisan restaurants and trendy boutiques started by enterprising individuals tend to be the darlings of the localist scene, the reality, according to Lanning, is that local business describes a range of small, medium and large-sized companies that are privately held in Arizona. They include manufacturing, construction, agricultural, business services, retail and restaurants—and many with deep economic and cultural ties to the state. Lanning passionately supports an Arizonabased business model because she knows of what she speaks. She’s not only an economic specialist, she’s an entrepreneur. At age 19, she established Stinkweeds, a successful independent used and
Elevate AZ | February 2015
But not everyone is aware of the vital role ➺ that local companies play in shaping a resilient
9
10
new music store in Phoenix that’s been operating for 28 years. In 1999, Lanning opened Modified Arts, a contemporary art gallery and music venue in downtown Phoenix, which also is home base for LFA. She believes that a strong local economy not only strengthens Arizona’s sustainability, it also leads to a less homogeneous community. “Entrepreneurism is a great opportunity to preserve the health and culture of the community, as well as earn a living,” says Lanning of the positive chain reaction that results from starting a local business venture. “When independent businesses take their profits and source products and services from other local establishments, they generate more tax revenue needed for the community to thrive and create jobs.” Plus, local businesses are more likely to hire local employees like accountants, graphic designers, web developers, printers and lawyers, creating a secondary job market, she notes. Building Hometown Pride
LFA isn’t in the business of demonizing large corporations and national retail chains that operate in Arizona, according to Lanning. Rather, its No. 1 priority is to educate consumers about the impact of shopping locally and the significant return on investment the transaction provides to the state. “Studies have shown that for every $100 spent in a locally-owned business, roughly $45 remains right here in Arizona. When $100 is spent in a national
chain store here, only $13 is reinvested,” she says. “That loss gets passed on the public as deferred billing. It’s an artificial sense of savings.” A localist mentality encourages new job creation and revenues that stay put, but it instills a sense of hometown pride of place, as well, according to Lanning. In Arizona, that’s an ongoing challenge given the state has the third largest number of transplants in the country. “Research conducted by the Knight Foundation revealed that connection to place is the single most important indicator of places with prosperity,” she says. “It’s about promoting economic development that gives back in ways that non-local businesses don’t in the community. As an organization, we help people understand their rightful place in driving that type of an economy.” Creating Connections
One local company that has seen a tremendous boost in revenues and brand exposure due to its LFA affiliation is Chandler-based State Forty Eight. Partners Michael Spangenberg, Stephen Polando and Nicholas Polando joined LFA shortly after launching the casual street wear line in 2013 that celebrates the 20-somethings' passion for Arizona on T-shirts and other fashion accessories. “The biggest benefit of belonging to LFA is it has driven business to our company. Several of our wholesale accounts found us through LFA and
The Local First Arizona team (top left), led by executive director Kimber Lanning (center), works to support, promote and advocate for local businesses, such as clothing manufacturers (State Forty Eight, above), salons and boutiques (Mercantile, top right) and chefowned restaurants (Short Leash Hotdogs, above right).
In a city of 600,000 people a
10%
SHIFT in spending from national to LOCAL businesses annually would create:
$130
MILLION invested in the local economy
Spreading the Message
To help spread the local message and inspire a better quality of life throughout Arizona, LFA holds signature events, campaigns and special promotions such as Buy Local Month and Shift Arizona, which encourages citizens, business owners, government agencies and nonprofits to shift 10 percent of their spending from national to local businesses. “In a city with 600,000 people, a 10 percent shift in spending from national to local businesses results in $130 million circulating in the community, 1,000 jobs and $50 million in new local wages in one year,” says Lanning.
LFAs efforts to connect businesses to each other and the marketplace aren’t confined to urban boundary lines. LFA’s nonprofit sister organization, the Local First Arizona Foundation (LFAF), merged with the Arizona Rural Development Council in 2013 and, as part of that partnership, developed technology workshops for local businesses in rural areas to help strengthen regional tourism and marketing strategies to attract visitors to their communities. In addition, LFAF organizes the annual Rural Policy Forum that connects rural economic development professionals, nonprofits, community leaders, business owners and other rural stakeholders who are interested in sustaining rural communities.
1,600 NEW Jobs
$50 MILLION in local wages
Promoting a Local Effort
The localist community is actually a large network of like-minded individuals working toward establishing a new economy approach in the United States. In 2015, LFA will take the national stage for inspiring that change when it hosts the Balle (Business Alliance for Local Living Economies) Conference in Phoenix. The annual event is a forum for visionary local economy experts, entrepreneurs, funders and policy makers around the country to identify and connect pioneering leaders, spread solutions and attract investment toward local economies. “This is not a trendy pastime,” says Lanning of the momentum sweeping the nation to go local. “Localism is an idea whose time has come.”
Elevate AZ | February 2015
recommendations from other members,” says Spangenberg. Plus, its involvement with LFA has created an economic domino effect in the community since the three-man enterprise has stuck deals with other small businesses based in Arizona, according to Spangenberg. “LFA does the leg work. It’s a one-stop shop for promoting the local movement. The calendar of events, the connections and the low membership fee make it a no-brainer,” he says. “As members, we’re exposed to so many companies to collaborate with and who have first-hand experience in the local market. We sell our products wholesale to local small businesses in bulk and they, in turn, are able to generate a profit. It’s a win-win.”
11
Plan for Phoenix’s future links people, places and businesses story Bruce Farr photography Mark Lipczynski
Downtown Phoenix glows in the late afternoon sunlight as seen from the top of the Lincoln Family Downtown YMCA.
Elevate AZ | February 2015
PlanPHX is more than just a plan. Admittedly, looking at it on paper, it has many of the earmarks of a conventional planning project: It represents a collaborative effort initiated by the Phoenix City Council to help revamp the Phoenix General Plan, the document that articulates the future of the city. Also, like most plans, it contains a vision based on a set of values and a strategy designed to execute that vision. But all similarities to a city plan end there.
13
PlanPHX is organized around and founded in five core values:
1 building the sustainable desert city
3 promoting innovation and entrepreneurship
2 celebrating our diverse communities and neighborhoods
What PlanPHX really is is a sweeping, all-encompassing blueprint for creating a dynamic, organically “connected” 21st-century city, one that draws upon and leverages Phoenix’s remarkable past and present to craft its promising future. In fact, so novel and innovative is the PlanPHX approach to crafting the Phoenix General Plan and improving the city that municipalities around the country have gotten wind of it and are knocking on the city council’s door asking, “Hey, how did you do this?” B es t L ai d P l an s
As its executive summary plainly states, PlanPHX is a “blueprint for a connected oasis,” a monumental design to lift Phoenix up so that it will “be like no other place in the world.” It focuses on making the city greater by building on its existing wealth of assets and enhancing residents’ opportunities to connect with these assets and with one another. “The plan touches on everything that makes a city great: land use, open space, the environment, water, neighborhood preservation, recreation, public buildings, housing, parks and much more. And those elements are cross-checked against five core values that PlanPHX is founded in: 1) connecting people and places; 2) building a sustainable desert city; 3) creating a vibrant downtown; 4) celebrating diverse communities and neighborhoods; and 5) promoting innovation and entrepreneurship. This entirely fresh approach to updating the General Plan will accomplish many things, perhaps most importantly a strategy to help Phoenix achieve its vision for the future.
In t he Driver’s Seat
Thirteen years ago, when he first was tapped to chair the committee to update the massive 2002 Phoenix General Plan, Morris “Mo” Stein approached the task in a conventional manner. He and his fellow committee members took an orthodox, tried-and-true approach to generating the 500-plus-page document, which, he says, could easily have doubled as a giant doorstop. Not only was it unwieldy to handle, it was ponderous to read. Stein, a Phoenix native who is a principal and senior vice president for international architectural firm HKS Architects, has long played a leading role in helping shape and improve the city of his birth. As a student at Arizona State University, Stein got involved with Urban Forum, a coalition that ultimately mapped Phoenix into a “city of villages.” He then served on Phoenix’s village committees for many years before being invited by Phoenix Mayor Skip Rimsza to be a member of the city planning commission, of which he later was elected chairman. As Stein readily admits, updating the Phoenix General Plan is a massive undertaking. He successfully chaired that herculean effort in 2002 and 10 years later, when the update loomed again per the city’s bylaws, the committee decided to rethink how the update might be better—and less painfully—accomplished. Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton had just taken the city’s reins and had worked with Stein on the plan’s updating the decade before. “The day after the election, we met and started talking about the plan and putting a process together. In early 2012, we decided we were ready to go,” Stein says.
5 creating an even more vibrant downtown
4 connecting people and places
One might think of PlanPHX as a vehicle for updating the Phoenix General Plan. As Stein describes it, “It’s a ‘name’ that we put together for what is really creating the update of the General Plan, and we use it as a brand, if you will. We made a decision that we weren’t going to do it in a traditional manner—which is to say in a staff-driven, department-oriented process. We wanted something that felt more special, more unique, more rooted in the community.” To root it in the community, Stein says that the updated plan isn’t being crafted, as city plans often are, in “planner-ese” by nameless city bureaucrats, over countless weeknight meetings behind closed doors. PlanPHX, by design, reached out to local residents of all ages for their input. “We talked to thousands of people,” Stein relates, “via the Internet or our website, or in meetings and workshops, and we asked them just two questions: ‘What is it that you love about Phoenix?’ and ‘What’s your big idea?’ The whole idea of connectivity was delivered by them extremely loud and clear.”
... answers to the questionnaire turned into a process to illuminate what Phoenicians believe about their city, what they love about it and where it is that they see it going. — Community was key.
Their answers to the questionnaire turned into a process to illuminate what Phoenicians believe about their city, what they love about it and where it is that they see it going. Community was key. “What we created had to be something that would apply to our entire community,” Stein says. “It didn’t matter what part of it you lived in, or your background or economic status or anything that was about what you are. The fact that you live and believe in a growing, major American city—well, this had something for everybody in it.” He adds about the plan: “We wanted to present it in such a way that when people looked at it they wanted to connect with it—they felt a real connection with it and to it.” Healt h, Envir onm ent and Prosperity
The timeline for PlanPHX to move the new General Plan through the approval process is aggressive. In early January, the Phoenix Planning Commission unanimously approved the General Plan. The Phoenix City Council is scheduled to review and take action on the plan on Feb. 17 at the Neighborhood Housing and Development Subcommittee, and on March 4 at the City Council Formal Meeting. The plan will then go to a citywide vote in August. Stein says he sees the General Plan as ultimately helping Arizona become “a city of hope and opportunity.” “I see our city as a leading example of that,” he says. “That really is a way to describe our strategy. What we have to work on to develop next are the tactics that will move that strategy into the action phase.”
Elevate AZ | February 2015
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Phoenix
BALLET ARIZONA
As part of its ongoing community outreach, Ballet Arizona in Phoenix hosts an annual open house, which welcomes people from all over the community to learn more about the ballet and its place as one of the city's most cherished cultural organizations. Photo by Mark Lipczynski
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Elevate AZ | February 2015
Experience
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