Inside Tucson Business 05/18/12

CHARITABLE CHOCOLATIER Barbara Fox and Rick Johnson donate all their shop’s profits to charity PAGE 15

Your Weekly Business Journal for the Tucson Metro Area WWW.INSIDETUCSONBUSINESS.COM • MAY 18, 2012 • VOL. 21, NO. 51 • $1

Nogales. To go or not to go?

Tourism study seeks answer’s to city’s likes and dislikes Page 3

Comeback corner Vacant for 4 years, prime Mervyn’s parcel to be redeveloped Page 4

NAVIGATING THE MAZE Mayor Jonathan Rothschild hopes to lead the way to a streamlined development services process PAGE 5

Getting up off the floor More signs that housing market has hit bottom Page 19

Builders hail change in county sewer hook-up fees

By Patrick McNamara Inside Tucson Business

Builders welcomed a change in the way Pima County charges to hook-up to the regional wastewater system approved Tuesday (May 15) by the county Board of Supervisors.

The new system calculates the connection cost based on the size of potable-water meters feeding into a building. For new-home construction that could mean a decrease in sewer-connection fees of as much as 35 percent.

The cost to hook-up a singlefamily home under the new structure is estimated at $4,066, down from $6,350 under the previous structure.

The unanimous vote changes a long-standing fee structure based on what was called “fixture unit equivalent.” Under that system, the county had a lengthy list of numbers theoretically tied to the amount of water going into the sewer system depending on the type of fixture. A drinking fountain, for instance, was a “1,” a bathtub was a “2” and a toilet was a “5.”

The connection fee was then calculated by multiplying the total number of fixtures and their values with a set price per-fixture unit equivalent.

The system produced some extremely high connection fees for commercial buildings.

Amber Smith, executive director of the Metropolitan Pima Alliance, said the new fee structure will make a notable difference in the local economy.

“This is one of the most significant, positive changes the local land use industry has seen in

many years,” Smith said in a statement.

The Metropolitan Pima Alliance worked with the county to develop the new structure.

The change also brings the county in line with how most other sewer-service providers in Arizona and the U.S. assess connection fees.

Pima County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry estimated the changes will mean a decrease of 1.7 percent in revenues, or about $290,000 in the first year, from sewer connection fees.

2 MAY 18, 2012

INSIDE TUCSON BUSINESS

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3

MAY 18, 2012

NEWS

Study seeks to find reasons why people do and don’t go to Nogales, Sonora

Debt collectors helped by new state law Gov. Jan Brewer on Monday (May 14) signed legislation making it easier for debt collectors to go after defaulting consumers and small businesses.

The measure (HB 2664) allows collection agencies to use final billing statements for amounts owed in seeking court judgements on wage garnishments.

Debt collection agencies that buy delinquent accounts from credit card companies and banks sought the legislation saying they often get little other information. Consumer attorneys and Democratic lawmakers opposed the bill.

By Curt Prendergast Inside Tucson Business

CONTACT US

Phone: (520) 295-4201 Fax: (520) 295-4071 3280 E. Hemisphere Loop, #180 Tucson, AZ 85706-5027 insidetucsonbusiness.com

Gov. Brewer signs business tax cut, exemption package Gov. Jan Brewer on May 11 signed into law a package of tax cuts and tax exemptions intended to help small businesses and start-ups as well as to spur investments from corporations and individuals in Arizona.

The package passed in the waning hours of this year’s legislative session May 3 were outlined in a report in the May 11 issue, prior to Brewer’s signature.

Nominations open for Women of Influence Tourists browse the curios shops on Obregon Avenue in the tourism district just south of the border in Nogales, Sonora.

they were there to see the dentist.

Peter Burggraff, a native of Montana native who lives in Green Valley seven months of the year, was one of the people interviewed for the study. He was in Nogales, Sonora, on Tuesday to get some dental work done. While there, he also bought tequila and leather goods, but the dental work is what drew him. “I get better quality work and cheaper down here,” said Burggraff. “It’s a big part of my trip.”

Shopping for curios is the second-big-

Curt Pendergast photo

It wasn’t all that long ago when crossing the border into Nogales, Sonora, was just a day-trip to visit a restaurant or bar and, while you’re there, maybe make a quick purchase of some tortillas or Mexican lemons.

Now, such trips are more apt to be geared toward beating the high costs of healthcare north of the border, according to a new study of border tourism in Nogales, Sonora.

The study, released last week by the local government, was the result of more than 750 interviews, split between tourists in Nogales, Sonora, and residents in Green Valley and Tubac. Nearly all of the people interviewed were over the age of 50 and 41 percent of the people interviewed in Sonora were from Tucson.

The goal of the study was to understand why tourists go to Nogales, why some choose not to go, and what can be done to attract more of them.

The reasons tourists cross the border into Nogales, Sonora, have changed during the past few decades. “We went across all the time,” said Daniel Ashford, 62, a retired schoolteacher who grew up on the Arizona side of Nogales and now lives in Tucson.

“My first recollection was crossing with my dad to get a haircut.”

Ashford still makes monthly trips to Nogales to take care of his relatives graves on the Arizona side while his wife and children cross the border to go shopping.

“Any trip we go, we’ll stock up on things like coffee, lemons and medicine,” he said.

“More so medicine now than before.”

His experience is typical of border tourists, according to the study. Medical tourism is now the most popular reason to cross the border, with 37 percent of people interviewed in Nogales, Sonora, saying

gest tourist attraction, with 34 percent of the people in Green Valley who cross the border saying that was the reason for their visit.

Curiosity itself also draws tourists. Angela Storey is a graduate student in anthropology at the University of Arizona who has taken people to Nogales. “We went just to see the border wall. There were people visiting who were interested in seeing the border itself from both sides,” said Storey.

see STUDY on page 5

PUBLISHER THOMAS P. LEE tlee@azbiz.com

STAFF WRITER PATRICK MCNAMARA pmcnamara@azbiz.com

LIST COORDINATOR JEANNE BENNETT list@azbiz.com

INSIDE SALES MANAGER MONICA AKYOL makyol@azbiz.com

EDITORIAL DESIGNER DUANE HOLLIS dhollis@azbiz.com

EDITOR DAVID HATFIELD dhatfield@azbiz.com

STAFF RESEARCHER CELINDA ARGUE cargue@azbiz.com

ART DIRECTOR ANDREW ARTHUR aarthur@azbiz.com

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Inside Tucson Business (ISSN: 1069-5184) is published weekly, 53 times a year, every Monday, for $1 per copy, $50 one year, $85 two years in Pima County; $6 per copy, $52.50 one year, $87.50 two years outside Pima County, by Territorial Newspapers, located at 3280 E. Hemisphere Loop, Suite 180, Tucson, Arizona 85706-5027. (Mailing address: P.O. Box 27087, Tucson, Arizona 85726-7087, telephone: (520) 294-1200.) ©2009 Territorial Newspapers Reproduction or use, without written permission of publisher or editor, for editorial or graphic content prohibited. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: Inside Tucson Business, P.O. Box 27087, Tucson, AZ 85726-7087.

Nominations open today (May 18) to find 10 women in Southern Arizona to honor as this year’s Women of Influence.

This is the ninth year of the program that seeks out women who are making a difference whether it’s in their career, the community or in some other fashion. Or a combination of factors.

The nomination form is at www.InsideTucsonBusiness.com — click on the Women of Influence icon — and submit the completed form online. It’s not necessary to have form completed entirely but it is important to include enough information so judges can adequately evaluate the nominee.

Nominations can be submitted by anyone.

The nominating period is open through July 4. Honorees will be profiled in a special section in the Oct. 26 issue of Inside Tucson Business and honored at a breakfast in November. (Read more in editor David Hatfield’s Biz Buzz column on page 20.)

EDITION INDEX Public Notices 6 Lists 8,9 Inside Media 11 Meals and Entertainment 12 Arts and Culture 12 Profile 15 Briefs 16,17

People in Action Finance Real Estate & Construction Biz Buzz Editorial Classifieds

17 18 19 20 20 23

4 MAY 18, 2012

INSIDE TUCSON BUSINESS

NEWS 2 Tucson startups among Innovation challenge winners A pair of Tucson firms were among six start-up companies winning prizes of between $100,000 and $250,000 in the Arizona Commerce Authority’s first Arizona Innovation Challenge.

More than 300 firms applied to the competition, which awarded the largest financial prize of its kind in the U.S., according to the Arizona Commerce Authority.

The two Tucson firms awarded prizes are: • Cancer Prevention Pharmaceuticals Inc., 1760 E. River Road, Suite 250, which is developing cancer prevention therapies to reduce the risk of cancer for people with elevated risk. Jeffrey Jacob is CEO of Cancer Prevention Pharmaceuticals.

• HJ3 Composite Technologies, 2440 W. Majestic Park Way, for producing carbon fiber reinforced polymer products used to repair the failing infrastructure worldwide. HJ3’s CEO is James Butler.

Other firms in the state receiving awards are Agave Semiconductor, Phoenix, which is developing a technology to optimize energy efficiency of electric motors; Kutta Radios, Phoenix, which provides enhanced communication technology radio products to first responders and mines; MaxQ Technologies, Chandler, manufacturer of advanced liquid cooled coldplates used to cool energy power converter systems; and Wholesalefund, which is relocating to Phoenix from San Francisco and developing a proprietary technology to help consumer packaged goods manufacturers get products on store shelves more quickly.

The six winning firms will be required to use their winning to commercialize their technology and generate revenue with one year.

The ACA says it will begin accepting applications Aug. 15 for a second Innovation Challenge award this year.

Postal Service plan B: shorten rural office hours The U.S. Postal Service has come up with a plan that instead of closing 3,700 post offices, mostly in rural areas, it will reduce the operating hours at rural post offices to keep them open. About 600 post offices in urban and suburban areas would still be closed under the latest plan.

The new proposal, which is subject to further review, would keep 14 rural post offices in Southern Arizona open.

Southern Arizona post offices that would see their daily operating hours reduced from eight to six are Arivaca, Elfrida, McNeal, Naco and Pirtleville. Post offices that would see their hours cut in half, from eight to four are at Red Rock, Bowie, Cochise, Dragoon, Mount Lemmon, Pomerene and Rillito. Post offices at Sasabe and Topawa would see their hours cut to two daily. Currently, Sasabe post office is open six hours a day and the Topawa post office is open eight hours daily.

The Postal Service’s proposal to close the Tucson mail sorting facility is separate from the decision to keep the rural post offices open.

Hobby Lobby, Stein Mart to anchor prime Mervyn’s site

By Roger Yohem Inside Tucson Business Four retailers, anchored by Tucson’s first 50,000-square-foot Hobby Lobby, will move onto the 7.4-acre former Mervyn’s department store site at the northeast corner of East Broadway and Craycroft Road. The building, at 5545 E. Broadway, has been vacant since the Mervyn’s chain liquidated and closed at the end of 2008.

The store’s empty 81,000-square-foot shell will be subdivided and redeveloped.

Hobby Lobby, a national arts and crafts retailer, will share the building with Stein Mart, which has leased the remaining space of about 30,000 square feet.

Also on the site, a former tire store that has been vacant for about 20 years will be razed and replaced with a new 14,500-square-foot, multi-tenant retail pad that will house a 3,250 square-foot Mattress Firm store and a 3,200 squarefoot Vitamin Shoppe. Additional limited space is still available for lease on the new pad.

Property owner Benenson Capital Partners, New York, announced the leases May 15.

Hobby Lobby expects to occupy its space by the end of the year. This is the company’s first store in the Tucson market.

Stein Mart is a national retailer known for selling off-price, high-end merchandise. It has one store already in the Tucson market, at 4881 N. Stone Ave. Nancy McClure, vice president with CBRE, said she anticipates the second store will be open in time for the holiday shopping season.

On the multi-tenant corner pad, Mattress Firm plans to open in early 2013 and the Vitamin Shoppe’s opening has yet to be determined. Houston-based Mattress

Firm entered the Tucson market in 2010 and is up to five locations. This will be Vitamin Shoppe’s first store in the market. The New Jersey-based chain has 528 stores nationwide including one each in Mesa and Chandler.

Benenson Capital is one of the nation’s oldest privately held real estate in-

The site on the high-traffic intersection drew attention from interested retailers and developers almost from the time the Mervyn’s store closed.

Strategically located between Park Place and El Con malls, more than 90,000 cars pass through the intersection each day.

The vacant Mervyns shell will be split and redeveloped as a Hobby Lobby and Stein Mart, illustrated above and below by Hershman Architects’ renderings.

vestment and development companies.

CBRE’s McClure represented the firm’s East Broadway Tucson Co. LLC in negotiating the four lease agreements.

W.E. O’Neil Construction Company, 710 S. Campbell Ave., is the general contractor. Hershman Architects, 2210 E. Fort Lowell Road, is the architect. Mc-

Clure said all the architectural drawings have been completed and the contractor hopes to begin pulling building permits from the city this week.

“Benenson Capital is thrilled to welcome these prominent national retailers to the property,” said chief operating officer Richard Kessler. “All the tenants are best-in-class retailers in their respective markets, and will offer a diverse range of products to the community. We are proud to continue our commitment to the city of Tucson through the transformation of this vacant site into a new, vibrant shopping center.”

The site on the high-traffic intersection drew attention from interested retailers and developers almost from the time the Mervyn’s store closed. Strategically located between Park Place and El Con malls, more than 90,000 cars pass through the intersection each day.

“There is a tremendous amount of pent-up demand in our marketplace and this site was on the shortlist of a number of major national retailers and restaurant chains,” McClure said. “When Mervyn’s was here, this was one of its top-performing stores which speaks volumes to the power of the site’s potential for new retailers entering this trade area.”

Plans call for redevelopment of the entire property. The building’s exterior façade has been redesigned and a demising wall added to split the space.

San Francisco-based Mervyns LLC had sought to save itself through a Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization in 2008 but was unable to put together a financial recovery plan. The chain was liquidated and all 175 stores in seven states were closed by the end of the year.

Contact reporter Roger Yohem at ryohem@azbiz.com or (520) 295-4254.

InsideTucsonBusiness.com

MAY 18, 2012

5

NEWS

Businesses remain optimistic city, mayor can make meaningful reforms

By Patrick McNamara Inside Tucson Business A recurring concern over Tucson being unfriendly to the business sector has been the city’s development review and approval process. Now, some relief may be on the way.

Tucson Mayor Jonathan Rothschild has made the issue of reform one of the key points in his 180-day plan, singling out planreview times and the city’s land-use code for significant modifications.

“Obviously, this is a core city function,” Rothschild said at a news conference May 10.

The mayor went on to describe city efforts to streamline the development review process through allowing businesses to selfcertify signs, cross-train city inspectors and allow new tenants to use existing certificates of occupancy.

“We’ve listened to the business community,” said Tucson Planning and Development Services Department Director Ernie Duarte. “Since I’ve been director of the department we’ve been committed to process improvements.”

An area that Duarte said the city has worked to improve is the certificate of occupancy process. A certificate of occupancy is used to certify a building is in compliance with codes.

Prior to changes that have been made

over the last few years, including some very recently, new occupants of an existing building had to go through a process of acquiring a new certificate before moving in.

“It was a rather rigorous process,” Duarte said.

Adding to that, many times with older buildings there was a difficulty in finding records to confirm the new use conformed to the original one.

The city also has made changes in recent years to its parking code by allowing businesses to develop their own parking plans if done with the aid of professional analysis.

This has prevented many business owners from having to undergo a lengthy process of applying for a code variance.

Duarte also said the city has reduced the time it takes for applicants to navigate the development review process, cutting back from as long as eight months to as few as four.

“More importantly, we’re improving consistency in the review process,” Duarte said.

Business representatives seemed generally supportive of the ongoing changes and hopeful the mayor and council can carry through with the process.

David Godlewski, president of the Southern Arizona Homebuilders Association (SAHBA), said the moves by the city to eliminate trouble areas of the development process and land-use code were encouraging.

“First and foremost, it’s a positive step to see the city start to talk the talk,” Godlewski said. “We’ve seen some good signals.”

From the perspective of SAHBA, Godlewski said the reforms to the land-use code were the most welcome changes. In particular, he’d like to see overlay districts used to a greater extent.

“We saw the council take an initial positive step with the adoption of the Main Gate Urban Overlay District,” Godlewski said.

That district, in part, allows for greater density of construction in the area west of the University of Arizona campus bounded

by Speedway, Sixth Street, Euclid Avenue and Park Avenue. The overlay also would make it possible for construction of a 14-story student-housing apartment block and numerous other tall structures.

Amber Smith, executive director of the Metropolitan Pima Alliance, also was optimistic the mayor would continue with the reform process.

“He’s been extremely proactive,” Smith said. “We’re starting to see a change in priorities.”

She agreed that overlay districts would aid in the city’s efforts to streamline development by allowing greater flexibility.

Robert Medler, government relations director for the Tucson Metro Chamber, said the land-use code changes were a step in right direction.

and Border Protection’s SENTRI — Secure Electronic Network for Travelers Rapid Inspection — lanes for expedited border crossings but the wait time for others can often exceed an hour. Crossing in vehicles can take even longer.

“I live in Tucson, but if you were ask me to go down and wait three hours, I would think about it,” said Ashford. On his trips to the Gulf of California near Hermosillo, he crosses through Lukeville instead of Nogales because it takes less time. “It’s such a breeze. It’s like crossing the border like I used to in Nogales,” he said. “There’s no hassle coming and going.”

Those who had not crossed in a year cited bad traffic, lack of security, being sold fake jewelry, people asking for money and aggressive people as inconveniences they encountered. Still, 84 percent of that group reported no inconveniences.

One reason given for not coming back to the border was beyond the control of the tourism industry in Nogales. Since June 1, 2009, U.S. citizens are required to bring a passport in order to get back into the country. This was cited by 18 percent of

the people who had not crossed the border recently as a reason not to visit Nogales.

For Les Laheart, a Tucson resident who used to regularly visit a dentist and buy contact lenses in Nogales, the passport requirement nearly ended his days of medical tourism across the border. “That postponed it for a long time. I ended up actually losing teeth because I couldn’t go back down to take care of certain things,” said Laheart.

The study was part of an effort to understand why tourists are not crossing the border into Nogales, Sonora. City officials could not comment on the study because of a law that prohibits them from discussing public affairs with the media during an election season. However, in the past year they have rebuilt Obregon Avenue, one of the main thoroughfares in the tourism district, and added more police to patrol the area. They are also formulating a publicity campaign to improve the city’s image north of the border.

“They’re working their hearts out to try to attract Americanos,” said Burggraff.

“They need help down here.”

see BUSINESSES on page 7

STUDY continued from Page 3 Since 2006, a wave of violence related to drug-trafficking has claimed nearly 50,000 lives throughout Mexico but the study found that fear of violence wasn’t as much of a deterrent for people who cross the border regularly.

Only 7 percent of the people surveyed in Nogales, Sonora, said a lack of security would be a reason not to visit again. The figure was 52 percent among people who had not crossed the border recently.

Nobody who was interviewed reported being assaulted while in Sonora and the majority of tourists did not report any type of inconvenience during their visit.

“If you come down and stay on the main streets and do what you ought to be doing, I don’t think you’re going to have any problem,” said Ed Albert, 67, a resident of North Carolina who was in Nogales, Sonora, on Tuesday with his wife Ann to have lunch and look around the curios shops.

For people who cross the border frequently, the wait times to get back into the U.S. are more troublesome than a perceived lack of security. Pedestrians over the age of 65 can use the U.S. Customs

This Week’s

Good News Advancing Tucson technology Nice showing by Tucson firms Cancer Preventional Pharmaceuticals Inc. and HJ3 Composite Technologies for being two of the six firms to win between $100,000 and $250,000 from the Arizona Commerce Authority’s Innovation Challenge to commercialize their technology.

Considering the Tucson region represents less than 20 percent of the state’s nearly 6.5 million population, the fact that the two firms accounted one-third of the awards shows the Tucson region is very much in the hunt when it comes to advancing technology.

The commerce authority is going to do a second Innovation Challenge this year and will begin accepting applications Aug. 15.

The Tucson

INSIDER Insights and trends on developing and ongoing Tucson regional business news

Schools get permit break In the hustle and bustle of a legislative session, there’s usually only enough time to track bills that directly pertain to you or your business. So after a session, it’s always interesting to see what kind of legislation other interests managed to get passed. One that Insider noticed is one that no longer requires public school districts in Pima County to get building permits provided they meet building code requirements.

The bill (HB 2561), introduced by state Rep. Ted Vogt, R-Tucson, specifically applies only to school districts in Pima County. It seems that other counties either already exempted school districts or had other mechanisms to help school districts but in Pima County that was not the case as some jurisdictions such as Tucson and Pima County required them while Marana did not.

Further, the University of Arizona and Pima Community College were also exempt.

Are you who you say you are?

Last week’s Inside Tucson Business had a report about a development plan submitted to the city using the name Lindy’s on 4th when, in fact, it was someone other than Lindy’s.

That begs the question: Does the city verify if someone is who they say they are when they submit paperwork for a development plan?

The answer, according to city officials, is no. There is not a process to check if someone actually represents the business they claim on city paperwork.

While this could be problematic, another City Hall insider tells us the facts would emerge as part of the process.

6 MAY 18, 2012

INSIDE TUCSON BUSINESS

NEWS PUBLIC NOTICES Selected public records of Southern Arizona bankruptcies and liens.

BANKRUPTCIES Chapter 11 Business reorganization Christoper J. Bell Sr. and Sonia M. Bell, 100 S. London Station Road. Principal: Christopher J. Bell Sr. and Sonia M. Bell, joint debtors. Assets: $626,204.80. Liabilities: $779,349.00. Largest creditor(s): GMAC Mortgage, Phoenix, $313,272.00; Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, Des Moines, Iowa, $167,264.00; and Chase Manhattan Mortgage, Phoenix, $155,579.00. Case No. 12-09944 filed May 7. Law firm: Eric Slocum Sparks Manuel H. Vega and Anel G. Vega doing business as Vega Properties LLC, 6907 S. Copper Run Ave. Principal: Manuel H. Vega and Anel G. Vega, joint debtors. Estimated assets: Less than $50,001. Estimated liabilities: More than $1 million to $10 million. Largest creditor(s): Form filed, none listed. Case No. 12-10422 filed May 11. Law firm: Pro se.

(Notice sent case is subject to dismissal due incomplete filing.)

Florence Hospital LLC doing business as Florence Community Healthcare, 450 W. Adamsville Road, Florence.

Principal: Edward McEachern, authorized agent of debtor.

Assets: $3,746,562.81. Liabilities: $8,086,028.54. Largest creditor(s): Internal Revenue Service, Philadelphia, $1,381,540.82; and iTech Convergys Corp., Fort Worth, Texas, $390,000.00. Case No. 12-10437 filed May 11. Law firm: James F. Kahn, Phoenix Timothy M. Steiniger and Andreli Steiniger doing business as Grupocomp AGP and formerly doing business as Grupocomp LLC and $199 Computer Stores LLC, 9891 E. Harmony Lane. Principal: Timothy M. Steiniger and Andreli Steiniger, joint debtors. Assets: $1,941,850.50.

Liabilities: $3,377,639.94. Largest creditor(s): Bank of Arizona, Oklahoma City, $453,000.00; and Chase Manhattan Mortgage, Columbus, Ohio, $331,133.00. Case No. 12-10464 filed May 11. Law firm: Eric Slocum Sparks Gregory H. Marantz doing business as Grupocomp AGP and formerly doing business as Grupocomp LLC and $199 Computer Stores LLC, 9851 E. Sabrena Lane.

Principal: Gregory H. Marantz, debtor. Assets: $1,722,266.50.

Liabilities: $2,903,651.05. Largest creditor(s): Bank of Arizona, Oklahoma City, $453,000.00; and Chase Manhattan Mortgage, Columbus, Ohio, $341,000.00. Case No. 12-10473 filed May 11. Law firm: Eric Slocum Sparks Australian Equity Investors, 2455 E. Speedway #101.

Principal: Gregory Moore, president of Gregory Moore Real Estate Company Inc. Assets: $9,410,237.47. Liabilities: $4,453,160.00. Largest creditor(s): William S. and Daniel J. Lackey Revocable Living Trust, $2,296,150.00. Case No. 12-10590 filed May 14. Law firm: Thompson Krone Gibson The 258 Nest, 2455 E. Speedway #101. Principal: Gregory Moore, president of Gregory Moore Real Estate Company Inc. Assets: $5,845,340.12. Liabilities: $4,890,973.76. Largest creditor(s): Australian Equity Investors, $3,382.898.00. Case No. 12-10610 filed May 14. Law firm: Thompson Krone Gibson

LIENS Federal tax liens Jade Garden LLC and Che Sam Gen, 3720 W. Ina Road, Marana.

Amount owed: $15,927.42.

Settle Enterprises Inc., 5725 W. Bopp Road.

Amount owed: $56,298.38.

Triple A Fertilizer Co. Inc., PO Box 25478, 85726.

Amount owed: $6,597.58.

Arizona Sight & Sound Video Production Inc., 7426 W. Shining Amber Lane, Marana.

Amount owed: $15,495.43.

All Seasons Desert Landscaping and ONC Contractor Service LLC, 2977 E. Manzanita Ave. Amount owed: $5,800.06.

State liens (Liens of $1,000 or more filed by the Arizona Department of Revenue or Arizona Department of Economic Security.)

Gunsite Pass, 8060 E. 22nd St., Suite 112.

Amount owed: $3,487.69.

AZBizCon

Tucson-Mexico expo will bring together technology, business, construction

By Alan M. Petrillo Inside Tucson Business The first of its kind gathering in Tucson — AZBizCon — will bring together businesses, commercial leaders, construction companies and suppliers, technology firms and the general public in a single exposition aimed at the public and business owners.

The expo, which is open to the public, will be held from 10 a.m. - 7 p.m. June 8 and 9 at Casino del Sol Hotel, 5655 W. Valencia Road. It is sponsored by the Tucson Metro Chamber and the Alliance of Construction Trades (ACT). The inaugural event has been endorsed by the Metropolitan Tucson Convention and Visitors Bureau (MTCVB) and the Arizona Mexico Trade Coalition.

ACT president and chief executive officer Jim Kuliesh said AZBizCon was developed to function as three shows in one.

“It’s designed for the general public, especially residential and commercial property owners who want to find the best specialty trade contractors and business services,” Kuliesh said. “It’s also for business and technology companies who want to connect with firms offering telecommunication equipment, computers, software, hardware, office machines and professional business consulting,” he said. “Third, it’s designed to showcase construction industry manufacturers, material suppliers, heavy equipment and rental companies, and bidding technology businesses,” he added.

The expo has filled many of the 180 booth spaces available inside the resort, Kuliesh noted, but some are still available. Besides the indoor displays, an outdoor venue is planned to showcase heavy equipment.

In addition to the expo, AZBizCon will offer four seminars each day: • How to Do Business in Mexico, presented by the U.S. and Arizona Departments of Commerce

• The Latest in Communication Equipment for Your Company • How to Find the Right Specialty Contractor • The Pluses in Becoming a Small Business Enterprise with the City of Tucson and Pima County Admission to the event is $7 and a portion of each admission will be donated to

“It’s designed for the general public, especially residential and commercial property owners who want to find the best specialty trade contractors and business services,”says Jim Kuliesh. “It’s also for business and technology companies who want to connect with firms offering telecommunication equipment, computers, software, hardware, office machines and professional business consulting. the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona and the Diaper Bank of Southern Arizona, said Bill Holmes, chief operating officer for the Tucson Metro Chamber.

“Our goal is to promote a strong local economy and I’ve not seen anything that does a better job of bringing business and

industry together for a common cause,” Holmes said.

Casino del Sol Resort is helping promote the event by doing a mailing to its database of 35,000 people. Holmes said more than 3,000 people are expected to attend AZBizCon. “This isn’t only a business event,” he added. “The nonprofit community will benefit from it as well, and the Mexico component is adding to the event.”

Tom Fisher, co-director of the TucsonMexico Trade Coalition, said his group is helping promote AZBizCon in the states of Sonora and Sinaloa in Mexico.

“We work with a wide variety of people who have a common interest in doing business with companies and groups in Mexico,” Fisher said, “and expect many of our Mexican partners to attend the event.”

Tucson-Mexico Trade Coalition is a public-private business networking group of representatives with a common interest in promoting trade and cultural relations with Mexico. The coalition, which meets monthly, gets some staff support from the Tucson City Manager’s office, where Fisher is employed part-time.

Felipe Garcia, vice president of community affairs and Mexico Marketing for the MTCVB, said Mexico representatives have come to the U.S. in recent years to learn about new technologies, and buy equipment and machinery for their businesses.

“This is a great opportunity for them to do so under one roof,” Garcia noted.

Garcia pointed out that the MTCVB and the coalition, which he co-chairs, are looking to develop a strong relationship with the construction industry in Mexico.

“The construction chamber from the state of Sonora will attend AZBizCon,” he said, “And we are looking to partner with them on a similar event they have in the late fall in Mexico. They already have invited some Tucson business and construction people to go there as speakers.”

Correction • Money from sales and bed taxes generated by the Hotel Arizona would go toward paying debt service for up to 20 years on a proposed $25 million renovation, under a proposal from hotel owner Humberto Lopez. An editorial in the May 4 issue incorrectly said Lopez would receive the money at the end of two years. In either case, the city would have no financial or operational risk nor would it be required to backstop of guaranty the renovation loan.

• An airport operation is defined as either an aircraft landing or taking off, not a combination of the two as was reported in the May 11 issue about the Tucson Airport Authority getting out of the aircraft fueling business at Tucson International Airport. Also TAA CEO Bonnie Allin was referring to general aviation aircraft only when she said operations had fallen to less than 76,000 from 164,000 five years ago.

InsideTucsonBusiness.com

MAY 18, 2012

7

NEWS

Gov. Brewer signs law exempting religious businesses from providing contraceptives

By Hank Stephenson Inside Tucson Business PHOENIX — Religiously affiliated Arizona businesses will no longer have to offer contraceptive coverage in the health insurance packages provided to employees under a new law signed May 11 by Gov. Jan Brewer.

The law expands exemptions to the requirement that employers who offer prescription drugs in their employee health insurance packages must include contraceptives. It also augments the definition of religiously affiliated employer to include businesses that have articles of incorporation stating it is a religiously motivated organization whose religious beliefs are central to their operating principles.

In a statement, Brewer said she expected the law to apply to only a small number of businesses with religious ties that would have a moral or ethical objection to providing contraceptives.

“In its final form, this bill is about nothing more than preserving the religious freedom to which we are all Constitutionally-entitled,” Brewer said in the statement.

“With this common sense bill, we can ensure that Arizona women have access to the health services they need and religious institutions have their faith and freedom protected.”

The legislation passed through the House and Senate with Democrats in firm opposition, saying that the definition of a religiously affiliated business is too broad and could include any employer who was willing to change their articles of incorpo-

ration to game the system.

The original version of the law only required employers to claim a religious belief or moral objection to contraception to be exempt from providing it. State law already allows exemptions for churches and some church run charities.

Democrats called the measure part of the larger “war on women.”

“The plain and simple fact is in the state of Arizona women are not protected,” said Sen. Paula Aboud, D-Tucson. “The freedom of women to manage and control their own bodies is being denied once again.”

Sen. Olivia Cajero Bedford, D-Tucson, called the bill insulting and asked her colleagues why they didn’t choose to focus on issues affecting men’s reproductive health.

“Nobody seems to be concerned about the prescription coverage for Viagra,” she said. “I think women are being discriminated against, and I think we really aught to concentrate more on what’s happening with men’s reproductive rights.”

However, Republicans said fears were unfounded and that birth control would still be readily available to those who want it.

The new law still requires companies to pay for contraception if it is used for reasons besides birth control, though a woman would have to purchase the prescription and then be reimbursed after providing the insurance company with proof of a medical reason.

Catholic bishops, who pushed the legislation, issued a statement thanking the governor for approving the measure and calling it “very helpful in protecting religious liberty.”

BUSINESSES continued from Page 5 “It’s nice to see some leadership come in on the mayor and council side,” Medler said.

He was cautious about the plan to reform the city’s land-use code, however, because of the size of the document.

At more than 1,500 pages of regulations and requirements, the code has become increasingly unwieldy.

Medler said the city might have better results if it started from a new base code instead of attempting to revamp the existing one.

“The level of local rules in it is what’s burdensome,” he said.

The city’s land-use code has long been a sore spot for developers and businesses in

the region, a complaint which city leaders have recognized.

Dating back to 2006, the city engaged the services of a Denver-based consulting firm, Clarion Associates, to help identify needed areas of reform within the code.

What Clarion found confirmed some of the worst cases people in the business community had long pointed to.

In a 2008 analysis, Clarion wrote the city’s code had grown overly complex and laden with rules added over 20 years.

“Overall, however, the result is one of the most Byzantine systems of development regulations in the United States, one that spans over 1,500 pages — triple the length of most modern codes in other cities of

comparable size,” according to the Clarion analysis.

The city also established a committee of stakeholders to study ways to simplify the land-use code.

Among Clarion’s recommendations were proposals to integrate the various components of the land-use code into a unified code, improve quick-reference tools and eliminating what Clarion called the “shadow code,” referring to the varying code interpretations that had been applied.

Medler said eliminating such inconsistencies and disparate interpretations of the code has been a major goal in the business community.

“A code that’s understandable to busi-

nesses, clear, precise, has a predictable outcome and is applied consistently is the desired outcome,” he said.

Smith said the city’s efforts at reforms to date and the mayor’s efforts to push more reforms ahead were a direct result of the work Clarion had done.

For now, the mood among business and industry leaders appears to cautiously optimistic. Whether Rothschild can affect the discussed changes by the end of his first 180 days remains to be seen.

Contact reporter Patrick McNamara at pmcnamara@azbiz.com or (520) 295-4259.

8 MAY 18, 2012

INSIDE TUCSON BUSINESS

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MAY 18, 2012

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9

10 MAY 18, 2012

INSIDE TUCSON BUSINESS

SALES SALES JUDO

A new way to train revenue producers with tablets, smartphones and Internet An essential element in attracting, retaining and motivating your revenue producers involves their training. No matter their experience, there are always significant gains to be made providing meaningful training to producers.

The most frequent kind of training involves product knowledge — mastering the features and benefits of both yours and your competitors’ offerings.

If training were to end here, revenue producers would deluge their prospects with features and benefits pitches, otherwise known as “show up and throw up.” But this reduces your producers to the status of pushers of commodities instead of providers of solutions. It reduces their closing rates, your profit margins and their commissions.

That’s why businesses usually turn to sales skills training that builds behaviors that work best in consultative, relationship, solutionbased and complex selling situations. Both product and skills training are usually delivered by instructors in classroom settings.

On top of that, when producers get into the field, additional training can come from having experienced producers or managers go along on sales calls. These “ride alongs” help producers with the answers to the perennial questions, “What should I say?” and “How should I say it?”

And, then there are also daily, weekly and monthly management of producers’ activity levels.

When all of these elements are used together, the results can be impressive. When my company added good field training to relevant classroom training, our producers’ revenues doubled, during a recession!

But these processes take time and cost money. As sales managers are called upon to do more with less, their ability to do these things has been reduced or eliminated. Worse is training that feels like a waste of time to producers.

Enter a platform called iDeal Response —

http://idealresponse.com/ .

Revenue producers among 11 of the top 100 Fortune 500 firms use it.

Here’s how it can work: On Fridays an email SAM WILLIAMS goes out to producers with a common but tough statement, objection or question, called SOQs, that could be posed by a prospect or client. Such as, “Yes, your Athena product line looks OK. But KneeBreaker Inc., your competitor, is offering their Gonga line.

Why should we go with you instead of Gonga?”

Producers then can ponder the SOQ and compose their individual concise and articulate responses.

On Monday afternoons, producers call a toll-free number, input a personal identification number and a mock prospect presents the SOQ and the producer delivers a response.

Producers can re-record their responses if they’re not satisfied but the system keeps track of the number of attempts.

On Tuesdays, producers log onto iDealResponse’s website, identify themselves and listen to the responses of their peers. They anonymously grade each on a scale of 1 (terrible) to 5 (outstanding) for clarity, accuracy, brevity and whatever other attributes their sales manager/trainer selects.

They can also input helpful tips.

On Wednesday mornings, the sales manager/trainer reviews the scores and tips, keeping those that are appropriate and constructive and removing those that aren’t.

That afternoon, all producers log onto the site to see their own scores and tips and to listen to the top scoring iDeal responses.

By the way, occasionally the top scoring iDealResponse may be either completely or

partially wrong, providing the sales manager/ trainer with the opportunity to straighten things out. Sometimes one team of producers may produce a response that trumps those of other teams. And sometimes there may be a couple of ideal responses that can be chosen to fit specific circumstances or personalities.

The iDeal Response system has recently been upgraded to allow producers to do this SOQ exercise on tablets and smartphones and record and review their responses on the devices’ cameras.

“OK,” you say, “IDealResponse is fine in theory, but how do you get your more experienced producers to participate? Aren’t they the ones who usually hate training of any kind and especially dislike having to wipe the noses of new producers?”

Good question. Sometimes they resist actively, and sometimes, passively. They can actively resist by refusing to participate.

Passive resistance takes the form of either poorly considered or sabotaged ideal responses.

In either case, their managers and team mates can encourage these holdouts with a stick, that is a few well chosen words of encouragement. Sadly, though, coercion usually doesn’t work out particularly well, because the really strong producers often have high levels of dominance and tend to meet force with force. A “carrot” works far better.

The best carrot is to offer the holdouts empirical proof and testimonials of the improvements achieved by other high producers who have embraced the system.

Here’s a remarkable fact: 50 percent or more of the team’s overall improvement comes from the top 10 percent of producers who participate.

And this brings me to another observation.

The iDealResponse system can also be used over time to produce a ranking of team members by their peers. A certain subset of the team, perhaps as many as 20 percent, may consistently produce poor responses. In

certain circumstances this may identify them as candidates for remedial training. However, if a hiring mistake has been made, no amount of continuous chest compression from a manager will achieve the desired results, and those producers may need to be reassigned.

Remember the old adage: “Hire slow. Fire fast.”

You’ll need at least six producers for the iDealResponse to work properly. Any less, and the number and scoring of the responses won’t produce clear winners and losers. So, this system will generally be purchased by companies with 50 or more employees.

IDealResponse can be used with multiple teams of producers within a single organization. For example, banks often push a particular SOQ to five branches, each of which may contain one to three producers. This means the maximum size of each peer group shouldn’t exceed around 10 producers. If the organization has a total of 50 producers, then five peer groups would be set up.

There is quantitative evidence that iDealResponse actually improves the performance of producers. According to the company, one client improved the number of new prospects by 195 percent. Much of those gains came from coaching that resulted in higher rates of referrals from existing clients.

Another company improved its closing rates by about 61 percent. Another increased its revenues per client through improved cross selling and up selling activities by 47 percent.

All of this happened while holding down training costs.

Contact Sam Williams, president of the business-to-business sales consultancy firm New View Group, at swilliams@ newviewgroup.net or (520) 390-0568.

Williams is also an adjunct lecture of sales at the University of Arizona’s Eller School of Management. Sales Judo appears the first and third weeks of each month in Inside Tucson Business.

InsideTucsonBusiness.com

MAY 18, 2012

11

MEDIA Clear Channel puts Tucson under regional manager headquartered here

By David Hatfield Inside Tucson Business As some had suspected, Clear Channel Media and Entertainment is consolidating its Tucson radio stations with other markets under one regional manager but in this case the twist is that Glynn Alan, who will oversee 16 stations in Las Vegas, Tucson and El Paso, will do so from a home-base in Tucson.

Alan comes to Tucson from Colorado Springs where he has been Clear Channel’s market manager since February 2011. Seven months ago, he was given added responsibilities as regional manager overseeing stations in Pueblo and Fort Collins. Alan’s 25-year career has included stops in Denver, working for both Clear Channel and a competitor, and Tampa, Fla. Alan’s regional title supersedes the title of Tucson market manager that was held by Shanna McCoy, who was let go April 19.

As part of the regionalization that took effect immediately when it was announced May 10, Clear Channel sent Chris Pickett from Tucson to Las Vegas where he will be program director for the regional group.

Pickett had come to Tucson 14 months ago from Colorado Springs and Pueblo. Replacing him as operations manager in Tucson is Chris Kelly, who comes from Fort Collins, Col., where he had been Clear Channel’s operations manager.

There had been speculation in trade publications that Clear Channel would reduce its management ranks in markets outside the top 50 largest markets by consolidating them under regional managers.

Tucson ranks as the nation’s No. 62 largest radio market, according to Arbitron. Las Vegas is No. 32 and El Paso is No. 74. Unlike Tucson, though, Clear Channel has long-

time managers in both Las Vegas and El Paso. The general manager in Las Vegas has been in her position since 2000 and the general manager in El Paso has been in his position since 2006.

Clear Channel’s seven radio signals in the Tucson market are top 40 KRQ 93.7-FM, rhythmic Top 40 Hot KOHT 98.3-FM, news-talk KNST 97.1-FM/790-AM, adult contemporary My 929 KMIY 92.9-FM, Spanish oldies La Preciosa KTZR 1450-AM and Tejano KXEW 1600-AM. In Las Vegas, Clear Channel has three FM stations, including the market’s usually No. 1-rated station playing adult contemporary music, as well as a country music station and a top 40 station (that carries the formerly Tucsonbased “Johnjay and Rich” morning show). In El Paso, Clear Channel has six stations, a rhythmic top 40 station, an adult contemporary music station, a country music station, a conservative news-talk station, a sports-talk station and, through a local marketing agreement, a Spanish station that broadcasts from the state of Chihuahua, Mexico.

KGUN taps Hautala Corinne Hautala, who has been filling in as co-anchor with Steve Nuñez on KGUN 9’s “Good Morning Tucson” since the departure of Kimberly Romo in March, has been tapped to do the job permanently.

Hautala has been with KGUN as a reporter since last August. She’s a native of Phoenix and a graduate of Arizona State University’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication. That later point was included in news director Forrest Carr’s memo announcing her co-anchor assignment saying she “will never hear the end of it until she gets right” as a fan of the University of Arizona Wildcats. After graduation Hautala started her career at

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a station in Hastings, Neb., and worked in Jacksonville, Fla., before coming to Tucson.

NPR ratings They arrived three weeks later than promised but Arbitron has released the latest ratings for noncommercial radio stations and, if they were ranked alongside commercial stations, Arizona Public Media’s NPR affiliate KUAZ 89.1-FM/1550-AM would tie with rock station KLPX 96.1-FM as the No. 7 most popular station in the Tucson market with an average 5.2 percent share of the audience, ages 12 and older. Classical music KUAT-FM 90.5-FM/89.7-FM averages a 2.2 percent share of the audience, which would put it at No. 15 in the market.

Apparently part of the holdup in releasing the data had to do with some miscommunication within the University of Arizona over signing a contract renewal with Arbitron.

The rating service has cracked down on releasing data to non-subscribing stations.

Final verdicts As Tucson TV stations continue to battle it out for May news ratings, brass at their respective networks are looking ahead to this fall and prime time. It’s the launch of the annual “up front” buying season when advertisers commit money to commercial schedules for the fourth quarter and beyond.

Advertising executives’ reactions to the fall presentations will play a role in how much money each network is able to bring in.

In the meantime, though, the announcements include the final verdicts on the futures of some existing shows that had been in question. Among them: • ABC (KGUN 9) has ended “Desperate Housewives,” “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition,” “GCB” and “Pan Am.” It also didn’t

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renew Courtney Cox’s series “Cougar Town,” but TBS is picking it up. Tim Allen’s series “Last Man Standing” will return but won’t start until November when it will be on at 7 p.m. Fridays.

• CBS (KOLD 13) decided not to continue with “CSI: Miami,” “NYC 22,” “Rob” and “Unforgettable.” “The Mentalist” will be moved into the “CSI: Miami” 9 p.m. (Tucson time) Sunday slot. Otherwise, the most talked-about announcement is a decision to move the blockbuster comedy “Two and a Half Men” to 7:30 p.m. Thursdays following “Big Bang Theory” and giving the 8 p.m.

Monday slot to “2 Broke Girls.” That will allow the network to try out another new show this season in the 7:30 p.m. Monday timeslot.

• Fox (KMSB 11) made news with the announcement that it is moving “Glee” to 8 p.m. Thursdays and in turn moving Kiefer Sutherland’s “Touch” to 7 p.m. Fridays leading into the final season of “Fringe.” The network also said it had cancelled “Alcatraz,” “Breaking In,” “I Hate My Teenaged Daughter” and “The Finder.”

• NBC (KVOA 4) is shuffling some of its sitcoms, including moving “Community” to 7:30 p.m. Fridays followinig “Whitney.” No surprise that “Smash” will be back but the network will wait until midseason to launch its second season. NBC’s biggest news is that it will have seven new sitcoms in the fall.

Final verdicts included the cancellations of “Are You There, Chelsea?” and “Best Friends Forever.”

• CW (KWBA 58) renewed “Gossip Girl,” “Nikita” and “Hart of Dixie” but cancelled “The Secret Circle” and “Ringer.”

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12 MAY 18, 2012

INSIDE TUCSON BUSINESS

OUT OF THE OFFICE MEALS & ENTERTAINMENT

ARTS & CULTURE

It may be hot, but it’s time for spring restaurant week

Southern Arizona Symphony has season finales this weekend

The Arizona Restaurant Association’s to buy at Park Place Mall later this summer.

Spring Restaurant Week starts Saturday Total Wine & More is opening a 27,000 (May 19) and runs through May 27. square foot store in the old Border’s store.

Participating restaurants are offering a This is Total Wine & More’s second three-course dinner for either Tucson location. The other store $20 or $30, not including tax or is at 4370 N, Oracle Road across gratuity.

Wetmore Road from Tucson In Tucson, 18 restaurants are Mall. Total Wine & More carries participating with specials.

8,000 wines, 3,000 spirits and Molina’s Midway, Saffron 2,500 types of beer.

Indian Bistro and both locations of Zona 78 are offering $20 specials. Tucson restaurants with $30 specials are Acacia Comfort and value are two Real Food & Cocktails, Bluefin aspirational experiences most of Seafood Bistro, Dakota Cafe & us cherish in a pleasurable MICHAEL LURIA Catering Co., Feast, Kingfisher, restaurant dining experience.

Lodge on the Desert, Pastiche Wildflower has taken those two Modern Eatery & Wine Shop, Sullivan’s concepts to heart with the introduction of Steakhouse, Tavolino Ristorante, The Flying new dinner features on Sunday and V at Loews Ventana Canyon, the Grill at Monday nights, Hacienda del Sol and The Melting Pot. Two The Sunday dinner features a simple other Southern Arizona restaurants salad, baked meat lasagna and a glass of offering $30 specials are the Keg Steakhouse wine for $18. The Monday feature is house and Bar in Oro Valley and The a simple salad, prime rib dinner and a glass Preserve in SaddleBrooke. of house wine for $22. Both features are Statewide, there are more than 200 offered in addition to the restaurant’s full participating restaurants with three-course menu. meal specials. Some of the pricier restau• Wildflower American Cuisine, 7037 rants in the Phoenix area are offering $40 N. Oracle Road in Casas Adobes Plaza — specials. A complete list of participating http://foxrc.com/wildflower.html — (520) restaurants is online at http://arizonares219-4230 taurantweek.com.

Contact Michael Luria at mjluria@ gmail.com. Meals & Entertainment appears weekly in Inside Tucson Business.

The Southern Arizona Symphony Orchestra presents its season finale conAt the Tucson Botanical Gardens, 2150 certs that begins with a patriotic overture and includes Giovanni Bottesini’s Concerto N. Alvernon Way, an exhibit by a husbandand-wife explores the night sky through for Two Bases and Dmitri Shostakovich’s photographs by Adam Block Symphony No. 5. The Shostakand paintings by Miwa Block. ovich symphony, composed in Their works will be up through 1937, is considered a turning May 28 in the Porter Hall Gallery. point in the composer’s career The Botanical Gardens are open in the communist Soviet Union. daily from 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.

The Southern Arizona Wrapping up its run June 1, is Symphony Orchestra, founded an exhibit titled “Red,” an invitain 1979, is known for performtional exhibit by artists based on the ing works that either aren’t often theme of the color red. The exhibit heard or are new. This weekend’s is a companion piece of sorts, to the concerts are 7:30 p.m. Saturday HERB STRATFORD Arizona Theatre Company’s season at DesertView Performing Arts finale production last month of Center, 39900 S. Clubhouse “Red.” The art exhibit features works Drive, SaddleBrooke, and 3 p.m. by 38 artists working in photography, paint Sunday at St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church, and mixed media. The gallery showing them 7575 N. Paseo del Norte. Ticket informais in the Temple of Music and Art, 330 S. Scott tion is online at www.sasomusic.org.

Ave., which is open 10 a.m.-5 p.m. weekdays.

Wildflower specials

Spirits at Park Place

You can put libations on your list of things

Art

Audition

Aspiring classical vocalists are invited to audition for the Tucson Symphony Orchestra Chorus Saturday (May 19) to perform next season on productions including Giuseppe Verdi’s Requiem, Gabriel Fauré’s Exquisite Requiem and holiday concerts.

Applicants should have a pleasant singing voice and be able to read music and adapt to various repertoire. They should be prepared to sing a solo, chosen from the opera, oratorio or art song literature. Rehearsals begin in the fall.

For more information about the auditions, contact the symphony at (520) 668-3516.

Film Films of note opening this weekend include the board game-turned-movie “Battleship,” the how-to book turned-movie “What To Expect When You’re Expecting,” and a lost dog flick “Darling Companion” with Diane Keaton and Kevin Klein. My money’s with the a Cuban zombie flick “Juan of the Dead” which is at the Loft Cinema, 3233 E. Speedway.

Contact Herb Stratford at herb@ ArtsandCultureGuy.com. Stratford teaches Arts Management at the University of Arizona.

He appears weekly in Inside Tucson Business.

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InsideTucsonBusiness.com

MAY 18, 2012

13

TECHNICALLY SPEAKING TECHNICALLY SPEAKING

Did you want SEO, analytics and Facebook ROI with that website?

The owner of a brand-new, custom-built Tucson home was upset. In the first few days after they’d moved in, he had spotted seven scorpions scampering around.

“That’s nothing,” a client of mine from years ago said.

“In one new home, I killed 12 in one evening.”

He explained that homebuilders leave new homes open to insects and DAVE TEDLOCK rodents right up until the last few weeks before finishing construction and insects often get trapped inside.

Worse, brand-new homes are also routinely left with gaping routes for pests to enter, key entry points including a gap between the frame and stucco wall and the foundation, door thresholds, can lights over porches and rain weep holes on windows.

The launch of brand-new websites may leave similar “holes” and unfortunate surprises.

A while back we had a client, who oversaw the launch of a gorgeous, brandnew website and then immediately demanded to know why certain services had not been included. True, even the cheap Web hosting the client insisted on using did provide visitor reports, but why wasn’t Google Analytics automatically included?

And why wasn’t great Search Engine Optimization (SEO) included, SEO so powerful the new site showed up on page one of any key word search?

The key to getting what you expect out of a new website, a remodel of an existing site, an email campaign, an SEO project or social media campaign is to get educated and then make sure the proposal you sign-off on specifies exactly what you’re going to get and why.

If the developer’s proposal doesn’t include SEO, and you want SEO, then have a

discussion and decide on what level of SEO offers you the best return on investment (ROI). It’s actually possible to spend more on SEO than on the website mere mortals – human beings, that is – are looking at.

The same approach should be taken if you’re expecting a Facebook campaign to produce results for you. Identify the results you want, the metrics you’re going to use to measure those results, and the project work that’s going to produce that outcome.

Email campaigns – which can be highly effective by the way – should also have detailed specifications. Key email campaign considerations include list acquisition and development, campaign management and growth; and opens, unsubscribes, forwards and click-throughs. Your plan should detail who is handling your strategy, managing the ongoing campaign, producing content, reporting results and more.

When in doubt, ask questions. If you don’t understand the answers you’re getting, talk to other vendors and keep asking until you get a clear picture. Educate yourself through online research. Of course the process can be time consuming, but consider how much time it takes to make all the decisions involved in buying and moving into a new home.

That client of mine who was in the pest control business was carving out a unique niche back then in “exclusion work.” The benefit of exclusion work is simple: seal up a home properly and you drastically cut the number of times an exterminator must treat the interior.

Back then, we saw homebuilders as possible buyers of exclusion work. The benefit to the homebuilder, we thought, would be that new home owners would not be shocked by scorpions scampering around or other kinds of pest problems arising immediately.

Not one homebuilder who was contacted had an interest in offering exclusion work as an upgrade: suggest it and you were admitting, builders explained, that the home wasn’t 100 percent sealed up in the first place. Pay for exclusion work and you added

W FOLLO ADER THE LE

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a cost without getting a benefit that helped sell the home.

Website builders may be guilty of looking at SEO, Google Analytics and other “addons” the same way. Offer a Chinese menu of options as add-ons and prospects may demand that most or all of the upgrades be included for the same price.

In the end, the age-old phrase, “caveat emptor” – let the buyer beware – applies even more to buying a new website than to buying a new home. In homebuilding, the buyer is partly protected by city, county, state and federal codes or laws.

There’s no such protection when buying a new website, so the buyer has to accept responsibility for making sure they know what they’re paying for. For an organization, the consequences of not being vigilant about website development and other Internet marketing efforts can be much more severe than the risk of getting stung by scorpions.

Contact Dave Tedlock, president of the website development and marketing company NetOutcomes, at dave.tedlock@netoutcomes. com or (520) 325-6900, ext. 157. His Technically Speaking column appears the third Friday of each month in Inside Tucson Business.

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14 MAY 18, 2012

INSIDE TUCSON BUSINESS

THE NEXT GENERATION

New care option at UAMC for enlarged prostate patients

By Patrick McNamara Inside Tucson Business

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Patients suffering with enlarged prostates often live in constant pain and discomfort.

“Prostate enlargement for most patients is a bother, not a danger,” said Dr. Joel Funk of the University of Arizona Department of surgery.

Left untreated, however, that bother can cause bladder and kidney infections and even renal failure.

Traditional remedies for benign prostatic hyperplasia or enlarged prostate, which restricts normal urinary functions in men, have included medication, herbal treatment and surgery.

But patients in Southern Arizona suffering with the conditions now have another option.

Funk is one of just two surgeons in the state to offer a recently developed, less-invasive technique that uses a high-powered laser to treat the disorder.

“It’s relatively new but increasing in the United States,” Funk said.

The process, Holmium Laser Enucleation of the Prostate (HoLEP), involves accessing the patient’s prostate through the urethra and using a laser to cut away and cauterize enlarged portions or other obstructions.

This results in decreasing pressure and a return to normal urinary functions.

Funk performs the surgeries with a 100watt holmium laser manufactured by the Israeli company Lumenis.

The benefit to patients comes from quicker recovery times, less bleeding, lower risk of clotting and lower odds of requiring follow up surgeries.

“Especially for patients with massively enlarged prostates, there’s less risk and better long-term outcomes,” Funk said.

Patients also generally spend less time tethered to a catheter post-surgery, with most removed within 24 hours.

Patients receive almost immediate relief following the surgery, as well.

“It’s like the difference in using a fire hose or a straw to put out a fire, I tell my patients,” Funk said.

Originally from Michigan, Funk, 37, has been with the University of Arizona Medical Center since 2009. He holds a medical degree from Northwestern University, did residency training at UA Health Center and additional specialized training at Cambridge University in the United Kingdom.

Despite the popularity of HoLEP surgeries in many parts of the world, prior to Funk’s arrival, patients either had to undergo a painful and higher-risk surgery using conventional cutting implements or

Dr. Joel Funk of the UA Department of Surgery.

different laser technologies to remove obstructions. The other option for patients in southern Arizona was to go to Scottsdale or other locations for treatment.

He said part of the reason is the extensive training involved to master the surgeries.

In addition to the patient benefits, the technology offers hospitals and clinics a cost-effective way to address a common problem.

For example, Funk said the laser can cost about $100,000, a relatively inexpensive tool when compared with other devices like multi-million dollar surgical robots.

And for that comparatively small investment, one surgeon can conduct as many as 100 prostate surgeries in a year.

In addition, the holmium laser can be used to remove bladder and kidney stones.

“It’s a slam dunk, it pays for itself,” Funk said. Plus, it can have a working life of ten years or more.

With an estimated half of all men older than 50 experiencing some form of prostate issue, Funk said it’s likely the holmium laser procedure likely would gain in popularity.

“I think we’re going to see a drastic shift,” he said. “There’s a clear advantage to this technique.”

Next Generation is a monthly feature of Inside Tucson Business profiling Southern Arizonans on the cutting edge of developing their ideas. If you’ve got an idea or someone you think should be profiled, contact reporter Patrick McNamara at pmcnamara@azbiz. com or (520) 295-4259.

InsideTucsonBusiness.com

MAY 18, 2012

15

PROFILE

After Apple and Microsoft, the next mountain to climb was chocolate BIZ FACTS

Chocolate Fox Chocolatier

After helping develop the first laser printer for Apple and working closely with Bill Gates at Microsoft, Barbara Fox retired and began the transition from software engineer to chocolatier.

“I left Microsoft in 2004 and was kicking around looking for stuff to do, and like everyone else I thought ‘I’ll go to culinary school,’” said Fox, who recently opened the new custom-chocolate shop Chocolate Fox in a small space at 270 E. Congress St., adjacent to Hub Restaurant and Ice Creamery.

“I ended up making some chocolates for a private party and thought, ‘This can’t be that hard.’ I was wrong. Completely wrong,” said Fox. “That’s what got me started on the chocolate path, so to speak.”

That path led her to master classes with famed chocolatier David Capy — recipient of the prestigious Meilleurs Ouvriers de France award for his chocolate craftsmanship — and on a whirlwind tour of chocolate-related schools and businesses from Canada to Switzerland.

“I did a lot of homework. I ate a lot of chocolate,” said Fox. Research done, Fox set up shop in a back corner of a place named the Side Door Café in Gleneden Beach, Ore., in 2009 and got down to business. There she slowly tempered her chocolate skills until last year, when she converted the business into a non-profit and opened another location in Tucson.

The Tucson location opened in February.

Fox donated all the money Chocolate Fox made last year to an animal shelter. All the profits made this year will be donated to the Tucson charity Handi-Dogs (www.handi-dogs.org), which helps senior citizens and people with disabilities train their dogs to be service animals.

Fox and her sole partner in the business, Rick Johnson, who also retired from Microsoft, use the best chocolate available, such as grand cru varieties from Valrhona in France and Swiss company Felchlin. They combine the chocolate with ingredients ranging from fruit purees to sea salt to make the beautiful, decadent creations.

“Just like you can be master vintner, you can be a master chocolatier and create all these unique tastes,” said Johnson.

Running a chocolate shop in Tucson poses unique challenges. Shipping chocolate during the summer costs more due to the need for refrigeration, so they purchased it this winter and stored it in a climate-controlled space. Tucsonans also have different

270 E. Congress St. www.chocolatefox.com

I.T. Genius

The

best employees you never had.

Wouldn’t you love to Adam Borowitz

By Adam Borowitz Inside Tucson Business

Barbara Fox and Rick Johnson, partners in the Chocolate Fox.

tastes than customers in Oregon, so they’ve been tailoring what they make to meet local demand.

Johnson says keeping the business going requires smart business sense and tight management, despite its nonprofit status and the fact that he and Fox are the only employees.

“You have to run it like it’s a business, even though it’s a nonprofit and we donate our time,” said Johnson. “The goal is to really make it work so we can make money so we can give it to these great charities, so we have to be relatively successful.”

The chocolates are currently available only at Hub Restaurant and Ice Creamery, 266 E. Congress St., where diners will find an assortment of truffles, barks, lollipops and other items in a small display case next

to the register. Items will also be available through the back window of the shop during the monthly Second Saturdays Downtown events.

Fox also takes custom orders, like the 1,000 fox-shaped chocolates she was crafting on a recent morning for a fundraiser for the Tucson Museum of Art. Johnson and Fox say running the business is a satisfying way to spend retirement.

“What are you going to do? Sit on a beach and read a book for the rest of your life?” said Fox. “There’s no such thing as retirement.

You’ve got to have something to do that’s interesting and maybe even completely different than what you’ve done before, and that has a useful function,” said Johnson. “You might as well keep working.”

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16 MAY 18, 2012

INSIDE TUCSON BUSINESS

BRIEFS GET ON THE LIST

MANUFACTURING

Next up: Law firms

Raytheon lands $314M Navy missile contract

Inside Tucson Business is gathering data for the 2013 edition of the Book of Lists. Categories that will be published in upcoming weekly issues of Inside Tucson Business are: • May 25: Electrical contractors, Mechanical contractors, Plumbing contractors • June 1: Law firms • June 8: Internet service providers, Website designers, Computer hardware retailers, Software companies • June 15: Retirement communities, Active adult retirement apartments, Assisted living facilities • June 22: Office machine retailers, Office furniture retailers, Office supply retailers If your business fits one of these categories, now is the time to update your profile.

Go to www.InsideTucsonBusiness.com and click the Book of Lists tab at the top of the page. New and unlisted businesses can create a profile by following the directions.

The Book of Lists is a year-round reference for thousands of businesses and individuals.

To advertise your business, call (520) 2941200.

Raytheon Missile Systems has received a $314 million contract from the U.S. Navy for production of the Standard Missile-6.

About half the work on the contract will be done at the division’s plants in Tucson.

The missile is an extended-range, anti-aircraft missile used aboard ships. The contract calls for an upgraded version of the missile that features improved Raytheon guidance.

SMALL BUSINESS

Tucson among five least business friendly cities Tucson is one of the nation’s five leastfriendly cities for small business, according to a new nationwide survey. The city failed in five of 10 factors measured, receiving a grade of “F” for its zoning ordinances, license requirements, tax code, ease of start-up and overall friendliness toward business.

The survey was done in partnership between the Kauffman Foundation and Thumbtack.com, an online marketplace that matches consumers with professional services. The results were based on input from more than 6,000 small business owners across the U.S.

The least business-friendly city in the survey is Sacramento, Calif., and going up the ladder it’s San Diego, Los Angeles, Tucson and Detroit.

Along with the five “F” grades, Tucson received a “C-” in training programs and environmental factors and a “D” in regulations, employment, labor and hiring.

The brightest spot for Tucson was in hiring costs where the region earned an “A+” as the No. 4 least-costly city. In the remaining categories, Tucson received a “B” in health and safety and a “B-” in networking.

Survey officials emphasized the information is intended to help aspiring entrepreneurs decide where to start their companies and for local governments to see where they excel and where they can improve. The survey was released May 8.

The five most friendly cities for small business, according to the survey, are Oklahoma City, Dallas-Fort Worth, San Antonio, Austin and Atlanta.

FINANCIAL

6 Arizona companies make Fortune 500 list Six Arizona-based companies — all in the Phoenix area — made this year’s Fortune 500 list of public companies ranked by revenue.

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• 108 — Avnet Inc., $669.1 million profit on $26.5 billion revenue.

• 135 — Freeport McMoRan Copper & Gold, $4.56 billion profit on $20.88 billion revenue.

• 208 — US Airways, $71 million profit on $13.06 billion revenue.

• 314 — Republic Services (parent of Saguaro Environmental Services), $589.2 million profit on $8.19 billion revenue.

• 400 — PetSmart, $290.2 million profit on $6.11 billion revenue.

• 460 — Insight Enterprises Inc., $100.2 million profit on $5.29 billion revenue.

One Arizona company that fell out of the 500 this year was Apollo Group Inc., parent of University of Phoenix.

Overall, Exxon Mobil topped the list at No. 1 with $41.06 billion in profits on $452.93 billion in revenue. That beat out Wal-Mart Stores, which fell to No. 2 this year.

Top companies operating in the Tucson region that made the list included: • 7 — Berkshire Hathaway, parent of Long Companies and Geico insurance, $143.69 billion in revenue.

• 13 — Bank of America, $115.07 billion.

• 18 — CVS Caremark, $107.75 billion.

• 19— IBM, $106.92 billion.

• 20 — Citigroup, $102.93 billion.

• 22 — UnitedHealth Group, $101.86 billion • 23 — Kroger, parent of Fry’s Food Stores, $90.37 billion.

• 24 — Costco Wholesale, $88.92 billion.

• 25 — Wells Fargo, $87.6 billion.

• 32 — Walgreen, $72.18 billion.

• 38 — Target, $69.87 billion.

• 77 — Honeywell International, $37.06 billion.

TRANSPORTATION

Tucson gas prices fall, but watch out in Calif.

Tucson area gas prices dropped an average of 1 cent per gallon over the past week to $3.66 per gallon of regular, according to AAA Arizona’s Fuel Gauge report.

The price is down about 5 cents per gallon from a month ago.

AAA reports that prices in most parts of the country have been gradually declining over the past month but there are some exceptions, especially in California where the statewide average is up 15 cents a gallon over the last week to more than $4.36 a gallon. Most of that has to do with issues that have caused the state’s supply of gas to be 21 percent from what they were at this time a year ago. Four of 12 refineries in the state are temporarily shut down due to maintenance issues.

LEGAL

(520) 408-7200 – xceldelivery.com 3770 S. Broadmont at Ajo Way – Tucson, Arizona

Tucsonan indicted for running Ponzi scheme A federal grand jury has indicted Tucsonan Anthony Eugene Linton on 22 counts

InsideTucsonBusiness.com

MAY 18, 2012

17

BRIEFS related to an alleged investment scheme.

Linton, 57, was charge with wire fraud and engaging in illegal monetary transactions.

The indictment alleges Linton devised a scheme to defraud individual investors by convincing them to invest in his “private trading pool.”

The indictment says Linton falsely told potential investors their funds would be invested in the Foreign Currency Exchange Market, told potential investors he had developed software to make “strategically placed” automatic trades in foreign currency, falsely told potential investors they would make 100 percent returns per year on their investments and falsely advised investors their investments would be free of tax consequences because they could “gift” him up to $12,000 per year to invest after which he would “gift” their return on investment back to them.

Between October 2007 and April 2009, Linton persuaded at least 26 people to invest approximately $808,685. But during that time he invested just $43,980 in foreign currency through a foreign currency trading account held in the name of his wife. Over the same time, losses in to the account totaled approximately $61,509.79.

Linton paid investors about $331,127.44 in Ponzi-type repayments with the use of others investors’ funds, according to the indictment.

A conviction for wire fraud carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine or both. A conviction for engaging in illegal monetary transactions greater than $10,000, carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine or both.

COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE

upgrades.

Holualoa Cortesian LLC, an Arizona company of Santa Monica, Calif., was the seller of record. That company is an affiliate of Holualoa Arizona Inc., 3573 E. Sunrise Drive.

POLITICS

Early voting underway Holualoa sells $25 million for Giffords replacement Scottsdale apartment complex Early voting began Thursday (May 17) in An affiliate of Tucson-based Holualoa Arizona has sold The Cortesian, an upscale apartment community in Scottsdale, for $25.85 million. Built in 1971, it features a prime central-Scottsdale location within walking distance of employment, shopping, and entertainment. The complex itself, at 7749 E. Camelback Road, comprises an entire square block near Scottsdale Fashion Square, the Downtown Entertainment District, Scottsdale Waterfront, and Galleria Corporate Center.

The 332-unit apartment complex was purchased by Camelback Cortesian LLC, organized as a group of investors based in Phoenix. According to public records, the investors are a mix of private individuals and family trusts from Arizona, Nevada, Washington, Texas, Oklahoma, Florida, Arkansas and Missouri. In 2004-2005, The Cortesian received more than $4 million in

the special election in Congressional District 8 to fill the seat vacated in January by U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords.

Three candidates names are on the ballot to fill the term that expires Jan. 13. Democrat Ron Barber is Giffords’ former district office chief. The Republican candidate Jesse Kelly, a project manager for his father’s construction company, narrowly lost to Giffords in 2010 and won a four-way primary. Green Party candidate Charlie Manolakis has been an environmental activist.

Ballots were mailed starting Thursday to voters who had requested them. Other registered voters may request ballots through their County Recorder’s office until June 1.

All ballots must be mailed so that they arrive back by June 12, which is Election Day.

EDUCATION/RESEARCH

Record number of students graduate from Pima College The largest graduating class in Pima Community College history will graduate this month.

The number of PCC graduates this year 3,624 eligible students — 60 more than the previous record.

This year’s graduating class includes 2,066 women, 1,522 men (36 people declined to identify their gender) and at least 253 veterans.

PCC to offer behavioral health services certificate Pima Community College plans to launch a new program in behavioral health services to help meet demand for entry-level professionals in the field.

Students completing the 18-credit program will receive a Basic Certificate for Direct Employment.

In Pima County, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects 16 percent growth for social- and behavioral-health technicians through 2018, and 15 percent growth in psychiatric technicians.

The new program will be headquartered at Desert Vista Campus and will be offered in partnership with the Native American Pathways Out of Poverty Network.

PEOPLE IN ACTION

PAM CRIM

JIM GREGORY

CHRIS ROBERTS

NEW HIRES

The Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain has hired Marysell Diaz-Garcia to the position of manager for The Ritz-Carlton Spa. Diaz-Garcia joins the resort following several years managing spa operations for The Ritz-Carlton Spas of San Juan, Puerto Rico; Sarasota, Florida and Coconut Grove/Miami, Florida.

HTG Molecular Diagnostics has hired Chris Roberts as vice president of medical innovation.

Roberts joins HTG from Caris Life Sciences where he served as vice president of the oncology division.

He earned a B.S. in

chemical engineering from Georgia Tech and an MBA from Duke University.

Verizon Wireless has named Andrés Irlando president of its Southwest region. As regional president, Irlando is based in Chandler and is responsible for the company’s sales, operations, financial performance and customer experience in Arizona, New Mexico, Las Vegas, Nevada, El Paso, Texas and the southern Utah markets of St. George and Cedar City.

Pam Crim has been hired as director of Cox business sales for Southern Arizona. Crim will manage the Cox Business sales team for mid-market and enterprise accounts. Prior to joining Cox Business, Crim was the director of technical and customer support for Simply Bits.

Spectra Contract Flooring has hired Jim Gregory as an account executive. Gregory will manage existing accounts and develop new ones in the Southern Arizona region.

He has 34 years in the flooring industry.

ANDRÉS IRLANDO

STEVEN T. BROADBENT

{TELL US ONLINE} Now your business can tell Inside Tucson Business about new hires, promotions and special awards online. Go to www.insidetucsonbusiness.com and click the “People in Action” button. From there you can submit your announcement and we’ll publish it online and in print.

PROMOTIONS Critical Path Institute has hired Steven T. Broadbent as chief operating officer.

Broadbent takes over for Rick Myers, who recently stepped down from C-Path.

Broadbent earned a bachelor of science in electrical engineering from the University of Idaho and a master’s of

business administration from the Eller College of Management at The University of Arizona in 2001.

APPOINTMENTS Jason Miko, director of account service with Russell Public Communications, has been appointed Honorary Consul by the government of the

JASON MIKO

Republic of Macedonia and will serve as a representative of Macedonia to Arizona. The Russell Public Communications office will also serve as the office of the Honorary Consul. Miko has a long-standing relationship with Macedonia where he lived there from 1996 to 2003.

Miko currently serves on four boards in Macedonia and is a member of the Organizing Committee of the World Conference on Dialogue among Religions and Civilizations, a conference held every three years at Lake Ohrid, Macedonia, co-sponsored by the Government of

BERNARD FRENZER

Macedonia and UNESCO. Patricia Kucharski, with Bancroft & John PC, has been appointed past president of the ALA Tucson Old Pueblo Chapter.

The appointment is for a one-year term.

Bernard Frenzer of Quarles & Brady LLP has been appointed president of the ALA Tucson Old Pueblo Chapter. The appointment is for a one-year term.

AWARDS Steve Pender of Family Legacy Video, Inc. has been given an Award of Distinction from the

STEVE PENDER

2012 Communicator Awards. The honor came in the History/Biography category for the video biography, “Charlie Thomas - Deals of a Lifetime.” The legacy video, finished in 2011, featured Charlie Thomas, a successful automobile dealer and car collector, telling his life story. The Communicator Awards are an international awards program honoring creative excellence for communications professionals. The international video competition attracted 7,000 entries this year.

18 MAY 18, 2012

INSIDE TUCSON BUSINESS

FINANCE YOUR MONEY

Grief and obstacles: Who is sitting at your table?

TUCSON STOCK EXCHANGE Stock market quotations of some publicly traded companies doing business in Southern Arizona

Company Name

Symbol

May 16

May 9 Change

52-Week 52-Week Low High

Tucson companies Applied Energetics Inc CDEX Inc Providence Service Corp UniSource Energy Corp (Tucson Electric Power)

AERG.OB CEXI.OB PRSC UNS

0.06 0.01 13.34 36.31

0.05 0.02 13.33 36.03

0.01 -0.01 0.01 0.28

0.04 0.01 8.35 32.96

0.97 0.10 15.94 39.25

8.49 0.51 1.57 7.11 55.11 6.15 80.59 18.92 56.22 3.76 16.19 26.92 28.85 21.69 26.42 13.28 84.91 38.62 45.16 11.39 68.78 56.90 17.06 32.57 23.45 48.77 57.14 199.73 29.90 55.10 4.19 35.46 30.78 7.69 46.84 22.22 1.13 29.27 29.32 39.11 58.84 37.29 38.57 29.30 43.97 59.57 26.75 9.49 51.13 40.76 18.76 34.29 50.87 8.37 8.21 42.36 29.91 55.32 14.66 29.96 35.27 23.66 112.00 31.98 11.13 31.06 59.19 32.78 31.97 8.40 18.81

9.11 0.51 2.17 7.75 55.92 6.41 81.59 20.26 56.90 3.77 17.15 30.34 29.29 23.05 26.82 13.26 82.73 37.94 45.08 10.88 65.36 58.41 16.61 35.30 24.14 50.20 58.61 200.60 31.06 56.22 4.03 40.33 31.90 7.90 51.38 22.82 1.20 27.76 30.31 40.60 60.59 38.28 38.82 27.44 44.93 60.75 33.27 9.50 52.80 42.14 19.13 35.85 54.48 8.47 8.11 42.47 30.09 55.38 14.58 30.44 35.52 23.36 112.40 33.25 10.61 31.42 58.97 33.96 32.69 8.45 19.58

-0.62 0.00 -0.60 -0.64 -0.81 -0.26 -1.00 -1.34 -0.68 -0.01 -0.96 -3.42 -0.44 -1.36 -0.40 0.02 2.18 0.68 0.08 0.51 3.42 -1.51 0.45 -2.73 -0.69 -1.43 -1.47 -0.87 -1.16 -1.12 0.16 -4.87 -1.12 -0.21 -4.54 -0.60 -0.07 1.51 -0.99 -1.49 -1.75 -0.99 -0.25 1.86 -0.96 -1.18 -6.52 -0.01 -1.67 -1.38 -0.37 -1.56 -3.61 -0.10 0.10 -0.11 -0.18 -0.06 0.08 -0.48 -0.25 0.30 -0.40 -1.27 0.52 -0.36 0.22 -1.18 -0.72 -0.05 -0.77

8.45 0.20 1.75 4.92 51.83 6.19 65.35 19.02 43.77 3.30 12.30 21.40 19.19 14.61 22.80 8.49 70.22 31.16 31.30 6.41 38.99 43.64 8.03 28.85 16.92 28.13 41.22 157.13 27.68 39.87 2.69 27.85 25.73 5.02 42.14 21.14 0.49 12.14 18.07 32.90 38.64 22.66 25.49 13.68 33.20 49.20 23.44 3.29 38.35 34.02 15.93 30.98 28.89 8.25 7.15 32.12 20.96 45.28 14.04 24.34 27.62 15.51 77.73 30.93 3.96 20.10 48.31 30.34 22.58 4.44 13.18

16.95 8.89 5.55 11.92 65.79 12.13 83.72 32.85 59.59 7.25 27.22 43.06 30.88 28.99 44.92 14.23 92.10 43.49 46.22 11.60 72.46 70.15 17.91 56.78 30.49 52.88 62.00 210.69 35.79 62.33 5.72 46.49 37.70 13.12 57.39 25.85 1.73 30.08 32.29 42.64 62.83 42.17 40.45 29.54 49.75 70.61 43.18 10.82 54.69 42.30 25.43 40.58 85.90 15.79 12.44 43.64 32.79 58.95 22.39 35.30 39.24 26.84 117.40 58.29 11.73 32.98 62.63 45.34 34.59 9.20 24.71

Southern Arizona presence We all face obstacles that at times seem hard to overcome. Who do you turn to?

Peak Advisor Alliance earlier this year reported on a sermon given by Rabbi Benjamin Scolnic, spiritual leader at Temple Beth Sholom in Hamden, Conn.

Here are some of his words from that report: “I don’t know how grief feels to you. All I know is how it feels to me. Over the years, as I’ve lost more and more people, I find that grief has become very real, actually physical. I feel the grief in my stomach, in my chest. I may not feel it every minute, but there are times in the day when it gets unbearable. And yet we must bear the unbearable, to go on and live and be happy despite these depressing and horrible feelings.

“We all have our ways to cope, and I’d like to tell you about one of mine. I go to the table in my head.

“Picture yourself at a dinner table with all of your most beloved people. They could be cherished family members or very close friends. They could be alive or dead. They are the people, whether they still walk this earth or not, who are the most important in your life, and if you could have an hour or an evening and you could be with all of them, all at once, who would be sitting there?

“When things get truly impossible, I sit at that table in my mind, and it helps at least for a few minutes. This exercise can help clarify who really is important to you.

Someone asked me, ‘How many people can I have at the table?’ and I was tempted to give them an arbitrary number like 10 or 12, but I stopped myself and told them that it’s their table. Still, if you have an unlimited number of seats, you won’t be honest.

And rock-bottom honesty is required here.

“You see, the truth is that we are usually not honest, even with ourselves, about whom we really care about. There are people that we are supposed to care about and care for, and we do, but that doesn’t mean we love them or even like them in our heart of hearts. And it’s our heart of hearts that I’m trying to get us in touch with here.

“The results can be surprising. I found that I have someone at my table that I literally never met, someone who predeceased me and yet who is so dear to me that I need him at the table.

“A friend of mine says, ‘Of my four grandparents, there is only one who gets a seat at the table. He was the one who talked to me one on one, who didn’t treat me like a kid but asked me my opinions on issues

like I was an adult.’

“Think about it: He is saying that the people who make it to his table are the people who paid attention to him.

“I want to know if the relationship is real, if you spend DREW BLEASE time with, and energy on, each of those people, if you pay attention to them.

“Of my four children, it always was my son Josh who would come into my room and talk about something, and sometimes he’d say, ‘You’re not listening.’ And I would tell him that I was listening, but of course he was right. He knew my mind was on other things. This scene illustrates what a lot of our relationships are like. We talk to each other all the time. We help each other all the time. But we can go on for years without knowing what’s inside the other person.

“I come back to the people at the table in your head, the ones who are alive. If you love them enough to have them at your table, then I want to know if you know about their hopes and dreams and fears.

Do you know who they really are? Do you know what their concerns are? Are you helping?

“There’s a story about an old man who was going through all the boxes in his attic and he found photo albums and diaries. He looked at one of his diaries, and in his own neat handwriting were these words: ‘June 4th. Wasted the whole day fishing with Jimmy. Didn’t catch a thing.’ He then saw his son Jimmy‘s diary from the same year, when Jimmy was only six, and something made him look up the same date. Large scrawling letters pressed deeply in the paper read: ‘June 4th. Went fishing with my dad. Best day of my life.’

“I don’t want you to be that old man, who then could only think how wrong, how stupid he was. I want you to pay attention now.”

So, who is sitting at the table in your head?

Contact Drew Blease, president and founder of Blease Financial Services, 7358 N. La Cholla Blvd., Suite 100, at drewblease@ bleasefinancial.com or (520) 299-7172.

Alcoa Inc (Huck Fasteners) AA AMR Corp (American Airlines) AMR Augusta Resource Corp (Rosemont Mine) AZC Bank Of America Corp BAC Bank of Montreal (M&I Bank) BMO BBVA Compass BBV Berkshire Hathaway (Geico, Long Cos) BRK-B* Best Buy Co Inc BBY BOK Financial Corp (Bank of Arizona) BOKF Bombardier Inc* (Bombardier Aerospace) BBDB CB Richard Ellis Group CBG Citigroup Inc C Comcast Corp CMCSA Community Health Sys (Northwest Med Cntrs) CYH Computer Sciences Corp CSC Convergys Corp CVG Costco Wholesale Corp COST CenturyLink (Qwest Communications) CTL Cvs/Caremark (CVS pharmacy) CVS Delta Air Lines DAL Dillard Department Stores DDS Dover Corp (Sargent Controls & Aerospace) DOV DR Horton Inc DHI Freeport-McMoRan (Phelps Dodge) FCX Granite Construction Inc GVA Home Depot Inc HD Honeywell Intl Inc HON IBM IBM Iron Mountain IRM Intuit Inc INTU Journal Communications (KGUN 9, KMXZ) JRN JP Morgan Chase & Co JPM Kaman Corp (Electro-Optics Develpmnt Cntr) KAMN KB Home KBH Kohls Corp KSS Kroger Co (Fry's Food Stores) KR Lee Enterprises (Arizona Daily Star) LEE Lennar Corporation LEN Lowe's Cos (Lowe's Home Improvement) LOW Loews Corp (Ventana Canyon Resort) L Macerich Co (Westcor, La Encantada) MAC Macy's Inc M Marriott Intl Inc MAR Meritage Homes Corp MTH Northern Trust Corp NTRS Northrop Grumman Corp NOC Penney, J.C. JCP Pulte Homes Inc (Pulte, Del Webb) PHM Raytheon Co (Raytheon Missile Systems) RTN Roche Holdings AG (Ventana Medical Systems) RHHBY Safeway Inc SWY Sanofi-Aventis SA SNY Sears Holdings (Sears, Kmart, Customer Care) SHLD SkyWest Inc SKYW Southwest Airlines Co LUV Southwest Gas Corp SWX Stantec Inc STN Target Corp TGT TeleTech Holdings Inc TTEC Texas Instruments Inc TXN Time Warner Inc (AOL) TWX Ual Corp (United Airlines) UAUA Union Pacific Corp UNP Apollo Group Inc (University of Phoenix) APOL US Airways Group Inc LCC US Bancorp (US Bank) USB Wal-Mart Stores Inc (Wal-Mart, Sam's Club) WMT Walgreen Co WAG Wells Fargo & Co WFC Western Alliance Bancorp (Alliance Bank) WAL Zions Bancorp (National Bank of Arizona) ZION Data Source: Dow Jones Market Watch *Quotes in U.S. dollars, except Bombardier is Canadian dollars.

InsideTucsonBusiness.com

MAY 18, 2012

19

INSIDE REAL ESTATE & CONSTRUCTION

Now it looks like home builders are beginning to see rebound THE PULSE: Median Price Active Listings New Listings Pending Sales Homes Closed

By Roger Yohem Inside Tucson Business

TUCSON REAL ESTATE

5/7/2012

4/30/2012

$125,500 4,806 358 449 201

$140,500 5,011 369 423 306

Source: Long Realty Research Center

Every month, new home building permits data are published from Bright Future Business Consultants, exclusively in Inside Tucson Business.

MONTHLY BUILDING PERMITS: APRIL, 2012 2012

2011

2010

2009

Pima County

45

42

54

57

Marana

39

14

48

10

Sahaurita

23

26

34

61

Tucson

20

23

34

22

So. Pinal

8

20

14

9

Oro Valley

6

4

7

3

141

129

191

162

Total Source: Bright Future Business Consultants

YEARTODATE BUILDING PERMITS: APRIL, 2012 2012

2011

2010

2009

Pima County

190

198

307

182

Marana

136

95

156

22

Sahuarita

94

64

156

174

Tucson

94

80

140

91

So. Pinal

37

62

70

33

Oro Valley

26

13

25

16

577

512

854

518

Total Source: Bright Future Business Consultants

WEEKLY MORTGAGE RATES Program 30 YEAR 15 YEAR 3/1 ARM

Current

Last Week

5/15/2012

One 12 Month 12 Month Year Ago High Low

3.75% 4.00%APR 3.75% 4.00%APR 4.95% 3.13% 3.25%APR 3.25% 3.375% APR 4.22% 2.88% 3.25%APR 2.88% 3.25% APR

4.95% 4.22%

The above rates have a 1% origination fee and 0 discount . FNMA/FHLMC maximum conforming loan amount is $417,000 Conventional Jumbo loans are loans above $417,000 Information provided by Randy Hotchkiss National Certified Mortgage Consultant (CMC), Hotchkiss Financial P.O. Box 43712 Tucson, AZ 85733. (520) 324-0000. MB #0905432. Rates are subject to change without notice based upon market conditions.

3.75% 3.13%

After four years of cutting back production, new home builders are beginning to rebound. The lack of new homes, absorption of foreclosures, and a slowly improving economy appears to have ended the worst of the housing market’s slide.

Knock on wood: new home construction seems to have bottomed out in most categories. Sales of distressed homes seem to be bottoming out. Foreclosure filings appear to be near a bottom. And prices seem to have hit bottom.

The question now becomes how long will the market be in a prolonged bottom?

It’s the “new normal” that housing guru John Strobeck, owner of Bright Future Business Consultants, has been predicting. Through April, new housing permits are slowly coming off the bottom, coming in 13 percent higher than the year-ago mark of 512.

Year-to-date, 577 permits have been issued in the region, an increase of 65 units.

The most were in unincorporated Pima County with 190 permits (see table).

Going forward, there is still uncertainty about future foreclosures, known as shadow inventory. Nationwide, real estate firm CoreLogic has determined that banks owned 450,000 homes at the end of March.

Plus, there were 2 million loans in some stage of foreclosure and another 1.7 million homes with mortgage payments more than 90 days late.

Tucson Realty taps Darcy Commercial real estate broker and former major-league baseball pitcher Pat Darcy has joined Tucson Realty & Trust as a senior associate and will lead the company’s retail division.

Darcy has more than 25 years of experience in local commercial real estate, mostly as a retail sales and leasing expert. He is a member of the International Council of Shopping Centers with a client list that includes Target, Kmart, Safeway, Conoco Phillips, and AT&T Wireless.

Prior to joining Tucson Realty, Darcy was a senior associate at CBRE. He is a member of the Pima County Sports Hall of Fame, Southern Arizona Mental Health Association and served on the City of Tucson Parks and Recreation Commission. He also is a former Tucson mayoral candidate.

Re/Max goes downtown Re/Max Trends real estate, under owners Mindy Sloviter and Lisa Larkin, has set up shop at 131 E. Broadway in hopes of capitalizing on a resurgence of downtown.

Sloviter was formerly with Long Realty Company. Larkin is the company’s designated broker and an attorney.

Sales and leases

• Meritage Homes purchased 53 platted lots in Sky Ranch Block A, southeast of West Tangerine Road and North Camino de Marana, Marana, for $1.59 million from Stellar Gray LLC. The transaction was handled by Will White, Land Advisors Organization.

• Rod and Company LLC doing business as Premier Building Group, purchased a 1.49-acre industrial property at 3191 E. 44th St. for $800,000 from Liberty Investments LLC. The parcel includes a 4,621-squarefoot office building and a 5,100-square-foot shop. The transaction was handled by Tim Healy, CBRE. • Car Wash Partners leased 3,450 square feet at 2341 S. Friebus Ave, Suites 17 and 18, from Oak Properties, represented by Rob Glaser, Picor Commercial Real Estate Services.

• Arizona Polish Club leased 3,300 square feet at 2224 N. Craycroft Road, Suite 109, from C-III Asset Management LLC, represented by Rick Kleiner, Picor • InTegriLogic leased 3,281 square feet at 1931 W. Grant Road from First Family Company, represented by Rob Glaser, Picor Commercial Real Estate Services. The tenant was represented by Chuck Corriere, Keller Williams Southern Arizona.

• K&D Quality Automotive leased 3,265 square feet at 3611 W. Ina Road from North Pima Center LLC, represented by David Dutson, CBRE. • Pro Business Management Services LLC leased 3,056 square feet at 4750 N. Oracle Road from Oracle Office Park Associates LLC, represented by Buzz Isaacson, CBRE. • New Venture Inc. leased 3,000 square feet at 8235 N. Silverbell Road from CJR at Continental Ranch LLC, represented by Dave Carroll, Romano Real Estate. The tenant was represented by Chuck Corriere, Keller Williams Southern Arizona.

• Fairway Independent Mortgage Company leased 1,757 square feet at 4051 E. Sunrise Drive from Sunrise HDS LLC, represented by Andrew Sternberg and Nancy Gansline of Oxford Realty Advisors. David Montijo of CBRE represented the tenant.

• Goodwill Industries of Southern Arizona leased 1,500 square feet at 6383 E. 22nd Street, Suite 141 from LDR-Enterprises LLC, represented by Debbie Heslop, Volk Company Commercial Real Estate. The tenant was represented by Lynn Taylor of Whirlygig Properties.

• Arizona Democratic Party leased 1,320 square feet at 200 W. Magee Road, Suite 150, from WVLC LLC, represented by Douglas Richardson and Michael Gross of Tucson Realty & Trust.

Email news items for this column to ryohem@azbiz.com. Inside Real Estate & Construction appears weekly.

20 MAY 18, 2012

INSIDE TUCSON BUSINESS

EDITORIAL BIZ BUZZ

Tell us about women who should be honored This week as temperatures hovered at triple digits and I went out to the parking lot for our office’s annual marshmallow roast and weenie cook-off in our cars, it hit me: Summer has arrived. Before you leave Tucson or otherwise start dreaming of the cool places you’d rather be, I’d like to ask a favor.

It’s time to launch nominations for Women of Influence.

DAVID HATFIELD I know, I know, we just wrapped up Up & Comers — our other big annual event — earlier this month. You’re asking: aren’t I rushing it to already call for nominations for Women of Influence?

Well, yes but if last year was any indication, there’s a huge chunk of the summer when lots of people’s minds are on other things. Last year we switched the Women of Influence event to later in the year and, quite frankly, we waited too long into July to call for nominations. As it turned out, I worried a little about the slow response but, sure enough, along about mid-August when families were returning home to start new school years, the nominations flowed in.

The catch was that it put a squeeze on the whole process of selecting honorees and then putting together our special section and event.

So this year, we want to try to catch you before all that happens.

Nominations open today (May 18) and will be open through July 4. As we did last year, the nomination form is online at www.InsideTucsonBusiness.com — click on the Women of Influence icon. As I’ve said before, please don’t let the form be intimidating. There are lots of blanks to fill in but don’t worry about making sure something is in each one of them. We just need to know enough so our judges have something to go on if they don’t know enough about your nominee.

Remember, too, these nominations don’t have to be a secret, although nominators often like to submit names as a surprise and that’s fine, too.

This is our ninth year recognizing Women of Influence in Tucson and Southern Arizona. Our past honorees are some of the real movers and shakers who have made a difference in their careers and community. That’s what we seek to honor each year.

People who know me, know that I can be a geek when it comes to research and data. In readership studies done about Inside Tucson Business, we’ve learned that our publication has a higher percentage of women readers than is typically the case among regional business publications.

On one hand I take pride in that sort of thing, but I think it also speaks to the difference that women make in the economy of our region.

It’s also something I have great admiration for. Women are doing these sorts of things and making a difference while oftentimes still having to deal with their roles as mothers and caretakers of other family members.

We all know women who have the drive and stamina to do great things and inspire us all. I hope you’ll share their names with us so we can properly recognize them in our special section Oct. 26 and at a breakfast in November.

Please do it soon. Before the heat gets to you.

Contact David Hatfield at dhatfield@azbiz.com or (520) 295-4237.

EDITORIAL

Rothschild, Miranda taking right steps We’ve heard from Mayor Jonathan Rothschild and — no longer interim — City Manager Richard Miranda they are determined to make Tucson friendly and to shake the image that it is not. To their credits, both have taken significant steps toward that goal.

Rothschild has appointed Maricela Solis to be his office’s newly created small business advocate. He holds regular weekly press conferences often highlighting businesses and their contributions to the city. Rothschild continues to push to fix the mess that is the city’s land-use code, though it remains to be seen whether he’ll make his self-imposed 180-day deadline the first week of June to “have the next round of revisions to the code” done. Heck, “The Avengers” would have had trouble.

City officials have been working on its since 2005.

As reporter Patrick McNamara reports in this week’s Inside Tucson Business, a 2008 report from Denver-based consulting firm Clarion described the resulting Tucson land use code as “one of the most Byzantine systems of development regulations in the United States, one that spans over 1,500 pages — triple the length of most modern codes in other cities of comparable size.”

Miranda has also taken the cue and is working to streamline processes within City Hall bureaucracy. Of particular note is the hiring of Debbie Chandler as economic development manager, a position the city hasn’t had filled for seven years.

Both Rothschild and Miranda are to be commended for stepping out to take Tucson in a different direction.

We noted, however, the “Insider” column in the May 4 issue of Inside Tucson Business pointed to a situation where perhaps not everyone connected with City Hall quite gets it yet. It had to

do with several events, all of which took place on April 26.

First there was BeachFleischman, Jim Click Automotive Group and Bank of Tucson coordinating a kick-off workshop at the Marriott University Park Hotel focused on getting capital into the Tucson region to help finance and support startup firms, especially those using technology created and developed at the University of Arizona.

Then there was a meeting put on by Tucson Regional Economic Opportunities and industry leaders at the Hilton El Conquistador Resort in Oro Valley to focus on what it will take to keep and grow aerospace, one of Tucson’s two biggest existing sectors in terms of bringing dollars from outside the region.

Meanwhile, the Better Business Bureau of Tucson and Southern Arizona was honoring the best of Tucson business’ with its second annual Torch Awards event at the JW Marriott Starr Pass Resort and Spa. But then on short-notice, at least to us, City Councilwoman Karin Uhlich announced she was having her own businessfriendly event. But she wasn’t looking for participants.

The 80-plus attendee slots were already filled. We didn’t make the event but the Arizona Daily Star did and, judging from its report, those who attended were told how to jump through the hoops at City Hall.

Which of those meetings do you suppose will lead to the most positive impact on Tucson’s economic future?

It’s not about how to help City Hall work. City Hall needs to figure out how to help make the economy work.

Rothschild and Miranda are making the effort.

Hotel Arizona is still a good deal Two weeks ago in an editorial, we misstated that Hotel Arizona owner Humberto Lopez’ firm would have to wait two years to receive money from sales and bed taxes from renovations at the Tucson Convention Center hotel under a proposed deal with the city. That money would go to paying debt service on a renovation loan for up to 20 years.

The point of the editorial — that the agreement would benefit the TCC and downtown — remains unchanged. The City of Tucson faces no financial risk under the deal, especially considering the hotel is currently closed and contributing nothing, either financially or as an incentive to go downtown.

InsideTucsonBusiness.com

MAY 18, 2012

21

OPINION WAKE UP, TUCSON

Why Tucson has made it on another ‘bottom 5’ business list So the Tucson region has made another list of distinction. This week a new poll came out listing the top five cities for small business. No surprise that three of the cities are in Texas. At the other end, the bottom five cities were made up of three cities in California, Detroit and our very own “Detroit of the Desert,” Tucson.

The survey done by the Kauffman Foundation and Thumbtack.com, an online company that matches service professionals with prospective customers, follows up on previous lists, including one issued two months ago by the Brookings Institution that put Tucson among the lowest 40 percent of poor performing cities in the economic recovery and rankings by Forbes putting Tucson at No. 165 out of 200 cities for business. There is also the annual evaluation by Dow Jones MarketWatch that since 2009 has routinely ranked near the bottom of metropolitan cities to do business, though last year the region zoomed all the way up to No. 86, out of 102.

This is evidence of a pattern those of us who try to do business in Tucson have long known: it’s tougher to do business here than it needs to be.

How did we get to this point? Who deserves credit? Who deserves blame?

Lack of private sector leadership The business sector has to take at least some of the blame. We chronicled the demise of the old Tucson Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and the rise of the new Tucson Metro Chamber. Thirty-two years of stagnant leadership under do-nothing boards of directors made the old chamber a non-player in the local arena. As the old chamber’s membership slid its political influence dwindled and as a result it had no ability to put candidates who understand the role of private investment into office.

Meanwhile fragments of the old chamber were spun off into smaller regional and other cause-specific chambers, a business leadership council, a separate tourism bureau and an alphabet soup of government-sponsored economic development agencies. None had enough clout to get anything meaningful accomplished.

One remedy was to change the Tucson charter. There have been five unsuccessful tries but in the end the consensus seems to be, yes, the charter is broken but at least special interests can coalesce when something needs to be stopped. And that, it turns out, is just about everything.

Rather than focusing on job creation and economic development, the Tucson City Council and Pima County Board of

JOE HIGGINS

CHRIS DeSIMONE

Supervisors have made priority issues of buying open space, providing lowincome housing, preserving neighborhood associations and subsidizing public transportation.

While these are good social and green agendas, we have to ask how well they are serving a region where one in four children are living in poverty.

Investigative journalism

The fourth branch of government in the U.S. democracy should be an active and engaged new media that shines the light on government.

Journalists like the late Chris Limberis of the Tucson Weekly and the late Steve Emerine, a columnist with Inside Tucson Business, are an important part of keeping government in check and honest. Simply cutting and pasting press releases from government handouts without research, context or other sources is a disrespect to professional journalism.

Investigative journalism can speak truth to power and, if necessary, take down even the highest officer in the land as it did in Watergate. Our daily newspaper in Tucson is lacking this important element.

Perhaps it has something to do with the revolving door of journalists who’ve taken paid government staff positions. Mark Kimble, former associate editor at the now-gone Tucson Citizen went to work in former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords’ office, as did C.J. Karamargin from the Arizona Daily Star. Karamargin has since become vice chancellor for public information and government relations at Pima Community College. Former Star editorial writer Sam Negri now heads up the $850,000-a-year public information office for Pima County government. The office has a staff of 10 to manage the flow of information to the media and ultimately the voters. (The City of Tucson has a staff of one.) You can add in Cara Rene, a former editor at the Citizen, who is now the director of communications and media relations for the Tucson Unified School District, and her husband C.T. Revere, a former columnist with the Citizen before heading up one-termer Nina Trasoff ’s city council office.

Bottom

5 not again

Maybe this sort of thing happens elsewhere but can you trust what is reported when the access person to government is a former colleague?

There are journalists doing some fine work in the Tucson region. Among them, we’d single out Josh Brodesky and Rob O’Dell at the Star, Patrick McNamara and Roger Yohem at Inside Tucson Business, Mari Herreras at the Tucson Weekly, Bud Foster at KOLD News 13. They all do their part to keep the process honest and transparent but we need more. And putting a reporter who is new to Tucson covering government is like sending a lamb to the wolves. The rumor around City Hall is that the Star is bringing a new reporter from Yuma to take over that beat.

Machine politics What starts out as political ideology can become a political machine without counter balances. Democrats have built and controlled Tucson and Pima County governments for almost two decades.

During that time political machines have blossomed complete with patronage, plum political appointments and donations to campaigns that coincidentally come from firms with government contracts.

Political machines aren’t necessarily bad as long as roads are maintained and weeds kept under control but as we see in the Tucson region the result has been a maze of regulations designed to ensure nothing gets done without paying the price to the proper political special interests of council members and supervisors. These hurdles tell the world that Tucson is closed to business unless you’re connected to a political machine. Can there be any wonder why there is little interest in business investment coming from outside the region?

To illustrate machine politics — and lack of media scrutiny — consider Herreras’ report in the April 19 Tucson Weekly titled “Questionable Hires.” In it Herreras

reports on the political drama at Pima Community College (PCC). It was a story that was originally delivered to the Star, which did a report on one of two consultants that had been hired, a motivational speaker who was an old friend of former PCC Chancellor Roy Flores. The Star passed on the other consultant, former county supervisor and South Tucson Mayor Dan Eckstrom who was being paid $188,222 by PCC to lobby Pima County government to include a $45 million health campus in its next bond package.

The Tucson Weekly story went on to detail how David Longoria, a member of the PCC governing board and an executive assistant to Pima County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry, is in a relationship with Eckstrom’s daughter, Jennifer Eckstrom, who is the current mayor of South Tucson and special staff assistant to County Supervisor Ramón Valadez, who was appointed to his seat after Dan Eckstrom stepped down in mid-term in 2003.

Welcome to machine politics, Tucson style.

As the Tucson region continues to earn low rankings on lists of business support and friendliness, the state of Arizona is moving up the ladder. Arizona ranks in CEO Magazine’s top 10 as a state in which to do business. CNBC ranks Arizona among the top five states for being business friendly and No. 1 in terms of the quality of the available workforce.

So, for as much as our politicians south of the Gila River like to bemoan the evil state Legislature, realize that in the last three years Arizona has gone from having the third highest per capita budget deficit, behind Illinois and California, to a budget with a surplus while at the same time becoming a top 10 state in which to do business.

Imagine what could happen in the Tucson region if voters disregard the usual election-year political pandering about the virtues of a healthy small business sector and vote to change course in this November’s elections.

Maybe some of the best and brightest who graduated this month from the University of Arizona and our high schools would be choosing to stay in Tucson because there is a bright future for them here in business.

But if voters keep electing incumbents, Tucson is destined to remain at the bottom of lists for prosperity while watching the rest of the state and the country pass us by.

Contact Joe Higgins and Chris DeSimone at wakeuptucson@gmail.com.

They host “Wake Up Tucson,” 6-8 a.m. weekdays on The Voice KVOI 1030-AM. Their blog is at www.TucsonChoices.com.

22 MAY 18, 2012

INSIDE TUCSON BUSINESS

OPINION GUEST OPINION

$20 million is a good start to fixing city’s roads Very early on in the current City of Tucson budget cycle I made the claim that my No. 1 priority would be public safety.

More specifically, fixing our roads.

According to analyses done by city’s Department of Transportation, the vast majority of our roadways in the city are in fair, poor or failed condition. From the standpoint of economic development, that’s a reflection on our region that drives prospective businesses away. It shows that for far too long we have lacked the political will to make a priority of preventative maintenance of our infrastructure. Now that has come home to roost in the form of a huge fiscal liability.

I was looking down two paths. One was where to find an immediate cash influx so we can get started on the repairs as soon as staffing, materials, and equipment are available. The other was to look for a longer term solution in the form of a dedicated funding source earmarked to road repairs.

For the immediate term, I proposed to city staff that we refinance our current Highway User Revenue Fund (HURF) debt.

That will yield nearly $12 million this fiscal

year. Combined with our current HURF allocation from the state, we will have in excess of $15 million to work with. From the standpoint of using all of our physical resources, our capacity is STEVE KOZACHIK about $20 million per year. To that end, staff has been directed to comb through the budget to find that remaining $4 million-plus and max out this fiscal year what we are able to do productively.

Putting $20 million into road repair in one lump sum, and targeting the immediate fiscal year is the most significant effort toward infrastructure this city has ever done. I’m happy we’re moving down that first path.

The second path, the longer term solution began with my proposal to repur pose 20 percent of the existing Regional Transportation Authority half-cent sales tax

money and target it to road repair. The tax is already being paid, and so no new net tax increase would have been involved. I put that in the past tense because the idea would require the Pima County Board of Supervisors to place the question on the ballot and I sense no support for doing so at this time. So, how do we move towards the dedicated funding source on a long term basis, and preferably do so in a way that does not simply involve a tax increase?

Annually, the city retires debt that is paid for by our secondary property taxes. This year because of reduced tort liability, we are reducing our primary property taxes as well.

The combined result is that we have an opportunity to present the idea of bonding in a manner that would have negligible or nearly zero impact on the property tax rate, and earmark the bond money to fixing our roads. I have asked staff to look at what specific net impacts a 5-year, $20 million per year bond package would have on property taxes — that is, net of the reductions we are already achieving through the reductions from tort liability and debt retirements. The question of bonding would still go to the

InsideTucsonBusiness.com

100 90

Do you think cutting capital gains taxes will give the Arizona economy a boast?

80 70 60 50

Yes, 78% No, 28%

40 30

Next week’s poll: Do you think the City of Tucson’s efforts to become more business friendly will succeed?

0

voters, but it would be a vote of the city council, not the county supervisors that would get it onto the ballot. I believe if the data comes back as I expect it to, this council will agree to ask the voters their opinion of the bonding option.

Other than the fact that it would have a negligible impact on taxes, why might voters approve of the bonding? The money would be specifically targeted to road repairs. In the process we also will be creating jobs. From the material suppliers to the workers actually out in the community doing the repair work, we will be producing jobs, paychecks, spending and tax revenue.

I am proud that we have put an immediate $20 million into our streets. I look forward to coming to quick resolution about a longer term solution. In both instances, this is an example of the priority that should have been placed on this issue all along.

Contact Tucson City Councilman Steve Kozachik, who represents mid-town Ward 6, at ward6@tucsonaz.gov or (520) 791-4601.

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