Sports: P-15
Longhorns regroup, but face another tough team
Elections: P-5
Payson People: P-6 They’re rolling through life on a bicycle built for two
Dark money groups spend heavily on Legislature
PAYSON ROUNDUP
ARIZONA NEWSPAPERS AND NATIONAL LOCAL MEDIA ASSOCIATIONS’ NEWSPAPER OF THE YEAR
FRIDAY | AUGUST 26, 2016 | PAYSON, ARIZONA
payson.com
75 CENTS
Road work underway for university plan Backers insist construction will start in December
by
Alexis Bechman
roundup staff reporter
Work is underway to widen State Route 260 for several turn lanes leading into the site for a proposed university. While no university partner has been named, those working on the project say signing a partner is imminent. They say construction on an academic building and two dorms should start in December for the anticipated arrival of students after May of 2018. Gary Cordell, Rim Country Educational Foundation president, said crews are right now working on access to the campus site, which sits on 253 acres of land acquired
jointly by the Rim Country Educational Alliance and Foundation from the U.S. Forest Service last year. On the south side of State Route 260, crews have bulldozed several trees to make way for a deceleration lane for eastbound traffic turning into the site. In the center of the highway, they will add a left turn lane for westbound traffic turning into the campus. Most of the work is being done in the Arizona Department of Transportation’s right-of-way. Cordell said the highway is being widened to the south to make way for the additional lanes. The Foundation is paying for the work from the $40 million it
received from the sale of the local hospital to Banner. Cordell would not say how much the highway work will cost, but said the bill is sizable. The Foundation is using JNL Contracting, a local company, to complete the highway work. He said the Foundation hopes to recoup its costs for the work either through the university partner or retailers, since the site calls for commercial development along with education use. In an update on the campus in May, Cordell said while local project planners initially dreamed the academic facility
• See University, page 7
Alexis Bechman/Roundup
Crews are creating a highway entry to the university property.
He’s a rodeo clown for life Sticker shock for Pine water by
Michele Nelson
roundup staff reporter
Two customers came to express their outrage, confusion and shock about the water bills they received from the Pine-Strawberry Water Improvement District at the Aug. 18 board meeting. Bob and Pamela Hougary decried their $1,800 bill. The local couple had purchased a large piece of property, put in an orchard and populated it with livestock, then received the bill after the rate changes went into affect. “The water rates are discriminatory to families and people with large pieces of land,” said Pam. The second complaint about bills came from Ray Pugel, real estate agent and developer. He expressed his anger over a $5,190 bill he said stemmed from an incorrect meter reading for his RV resort. “My wife found out you have been mis-billing us for quite a few months,” he said. “I think all of you would have been surprised by this bill.” Pugel was not protesting the amount of the bill so much as he was angry that PSWID did not call him to alert him about the large adjustment. Nor did PSWID give him the option of a payment plan to pay off the bill. The Hougarys, in comparison, fall under the category of the higher end users of water. Mahir Hazine, treasurer of the board, said PSWID had repeated meetings over a period of months before agreeing on the new rate system that caused the Hougarys’ high bill. “We analyzed the months of July and January,” said Hazine.
Heavy water users face staggering rise in bills
Story and Photo by Keith Morris roundup sports editor
Red of nose, baggy of pants, Donnie Landis struck a pose in the midst of the Saturday performance of the World’s Oldest Continuous Rodeo. “My wife told me we were getting old and we need to start writing things down,” he tells the crowd. “The other night we were sitting there watching TV and she said, ‘I would like a bowl of ice cream.’” He pauses for effect. The families in the stands, the cowboys waiting their turn to rope, the announcer in the booth all pause to listen. “I told her I would get it for her. “She said, ‘You better write it down, because I don’t only want a bowl of ice cream, I also want whip cream on it.’” He pauses again, looking quizzically comical, in face paint, a straw hat and suspendered pants loose enough to harbor a family of ferrets. “I said, ‘I can remember you want ice cream with whip cream on it.’ “She said, ‘You better write it down, because I want ice cream with whipped cream on it and a cherry on top.’ “I looked at her and said, ‘I can remember you want ice cream with whipped cream with a cherry on top.’” Everybody’s listening now, except maybe the bull riders, checking their gear, looking through the bars at the killer eyes of the 1,200-pound bulls. Landis continues, looking perfectly serious over the curve of his tennis ball of a scarlet honker. “I was in the kitchen for a while, then I finally brought out the bacon and eggs and set
• See Pine water, page 3
Council race: Polite & cheap
• See The life of a rodeo clown, page 2
by
Alexis Bechman
roundup staff reporter
Man dies after chain reaction crash by
Alexis Bechman
roundup staff reporter
Teresa McQuerrey/Roundup
Daniel Roles’ truck wound up in a ditch after he lost control as a result of a “medical condition.” The crash involved three other cars and Roles died in the hospital. THE WEATHER
volume 26, no. 71
Weekend: Mostly sunny with highs in the low to mid 80s, lows in the upper 50s; 20% chance for rain through Sunday. Temps rising at beginning of the week. Details on page 7
See our ad and upcoming events on page 18
A Christopher Creek man died Monday after crashing several vehicles in a Payson intersection. Daniel James Roles, 58, was driving a silver Toyota Tacoma westbound on State Route 260 when he suffered an undetermined medical issue and crashed into three vehicles at the intersection of Manzanita Street and East State Route 260, according to the Payson Police Department. Three of the vehicles were just beginning to leave the Manzanita intersection after the light changed green when Roles sideswiped one vehicle and rear ended another vehicle, which caused it to strike a third vehicle. All four vehicles were westbound on State Route 260. Paramedics treated Roles on scene for a medical condition that happened before the accident. Roles later died due to this medical condition at Banner Payson Medical Center. Two other people were transported to the Banner Payson Medical Center for treatment of non-life threatening injuries. Initial medical assessment by the Gila County Medical Examiner indicates Roles’ medical condition was the contributing factor to the accident. Police Chief Don Engler said what that medical condition was is still being determined. At least one lane of westbound 260 was blocked for hours Monday as crews investigated.
As the last day to turn in ballots for the primary election looms, many candidates are making a last-minute push to secure votes. Campaign finance reports, which all candidates are required to file, show some local candidates have a lot more money than their competition, with some spending thousands and others just a few hundred. In an election that has been mostly peaceful and courteous with none of the mud slinging that sometimes occurs in local elections, the candidates appear to be relying on free public forums to get their voice out and not a lot on outside media. For Payson Town Council, Kim Chittick has the most money to spend. She has received the most donations and is the only candidate who held a fundraiser, according to the June 30 report, which covers donations received from Jan. 1 through May 31. Candidates have until Aug. 26 to turn in their pre-primary finance reports covering the June 1 though Aug. 18 period, which the Roundup will publish once they are available. Chittick’s fundraiser netted her $500, bringing her total to $960. Chittick’s most notable contributor is Craig Swartwood, who is running for Payson mayor. He donated $100. He has not donated to any of the other candidates. Of the money collected, Chittick had spent $630, most on a fundraiser and advertising at the Sawmill Theatres. Council candidate Barbara Underwood collected $600 for her campaign. The only contribution she received was from Jack Klausner for $500. She had not spent any of that money at the time of the filing. Payson council candidate Janell Sterner had collected $373, including $100 she donated to herself. She spent a small amount of money on campaign buttons.
Swartwood donates to Kim Chittick
• See Spending, page 3