33 minute read
Zone
The Mesa Tribune is published every Sunday and distributed free of charge to homes and in single-copy locations throughout the East Valley. Times Media Group:
1620 W. Fountainhead Parkway, Suite 219 Tempe, Arizona, 85282
CONTACT INFORMATION Main number: 480-898-6500 | Advertising: 480-898-5624 Circulation service: 480-898-5641 Publisher: Steve T. Strickbine Vice President: Michael Hiatt
ADVERTISING DEPARTMENT
Senior Account Sales: Ryan Brown | 480-898-6482 | rbrown@timespublications.com Local Advertising Sales: Chris Ross | 480-898-5649 | cross@timespublications.com Classifieds/Inside Sales: Elaine Cota | 480-898-7926 | ecota@evtrib.com TJ Higgins | 480-898-5902 | tjhiggins@evtrib.com Director of National Advertising: Zac Reynolds | 480-898-5603 | zac@evtrib.com NEWS DEPARTMENT Executive Editor: Paul Maryniak | 480-898-5647 pmaryniak@timespublications.com Reporter: Dana Hawman-Trumbull | 480-898-6466 dhawman@timespublications.com Reporter: Kevin Sain | 480-898-6825 | ksain@timespublications.com Sports Editor: Zach Alvira | 480-898-5630 | zalvira@timespublications.com Get Out Editor: Christina Fuoco-Karasinski | 480-641-4518 christina@timespublications.com Photographer: David Minton | dminton@timespublications.com Designer: Ruth Carlton | rcarlton@timespublications.com Production Coordinator: Courtney Oldham | 480-898-5617 production@timespublications.com Circulation Director: Aaron Kolodny | 480-898-5641 | customercare@evtrib.com
The Mesa Tribune is distributed by AZ Integrated Media, a circulation service company owned by Times Media Group. The public is permitted one copy per reader. For further information regarding the circulation of this publication or others in the Times Media Group family of publications, please contact AZ Integrated Media at circ@azintegratedmedia.com or 480-898-5641. For circulation services please contact Aaron Kolodny at aaron@azintegatedmedia.com.
The content of any advertisements are the sole responsibility of the advertiser. The Tribune assumes no responsibility for the claims of any advertisement. © 2020 Strickbine Publishing, Inc. where they were greeted by the others whose ranks they were joining.
But there was a breathless surprise that might be expected from two people who have devoted years to a wide variety of public service activities out of the public limelight.
“It was a crazy, humbling experience to open the door and see the people you most admire in the world standing there at 6:30 in the morning – while you’re in your pajamas,” said Dawn Giles, who lets her husband, Mesa’s mayor, stay more in the public eye.
Meanwhile, she’s been working for years with several organizations focused on children’s health and nutrition issues – like the Mesa Public Schools Health Advisory Board – volunteers for the Mesa Public Schools’ Art Masterpiece program and its advisory council and participates in broader public health advocacy groups like the American Heart Association and Building a Healthier Mesa. Recalling her surprise when she opened her door to the three past recipients of Woman of the Year awards, Giles said she was somewhat perplexed.
“When they said, ‘Happy Woman of the Year,’ I looked at them all and went, ‘Well, no, you guys are the women of the year that you know, not me. It’s like not something I would ever consider myself worthy of or be a part of.”
“It brought a little tear to my eye actually,” Giles continued, “because, you know, I just admire them. And I know what all they have done over the years and to put myself in that same category was incredibly humbling.” Mathern’s reaction initially reflected the kind of caution one might expect from a former military and civilian helicopter pilot. He had been sitting in his pajamas with his partner, Janice Parker, drinking coffee in the kitchen, he recalled, when he heard “a pretty loud knock.”
“It was still dark outside and she said, ‘Be careful.’ And so I snuck over and opened the shutter near the door a little and looked out and said, ‘what the heck.’”
DAWN GILES
Mathern saw three guys he knew well from his own involvement in a long list of community organizations, from the Mesa Ho Ho Kams, the city Economic Development Advisory Board, the Mesa Arts Foundation Board, the Mesa Sister City Association and the Mesa Chamber of Commerce – to name just a few.
“They did mention something about Man of the Year,” Mathern recalled, “and I just didn’t register this. So, I said, ‘OK, come on in. What are you guys up to?’”
Still not knowing the reason for their mysterious visit, Mathern recalled:
“I had no idea that I had anything to do with Man of the Year,” he said. “It took me a long time after we invited them in and started talking in the kitchen and finally, they told me and I said, ‘Holy Smoke!’” “It just floored me.”
Mike Hutchinson, executive vice president of the PHX East Valley Partnership and a member of the Citizen of the Year Association, said picking and visiting each year’s honorees make for “a good process.”
Also part of the process are a banquet in February honoring the latest additions to this exclusive club of community leaders and the awarding of four scholarships – neither of which had occurred last year because of the pandemic.
Hutchinson also said that the total surprise recipients show in those early Saturday morning visits is one of the big joys of being part of the association. Often the gorup spends hours stuck in a room dis-
VERN MATHERN
cussing nominations, so getting the winners in their pajams is just, well, kind of sweet revenge.
“They’re not expecting it, so it’s really fun to be able to tell them,” he said. Mesa’s first Man of the Year, named in 1935, was Harvey Taylor, the first Mesa Public Schools superintendent. The first Woman of the Year was named in 1939.
But it wasn’t until 1967 that a woman and a man were named at the same time. The award went back in 1968 to just Man of the Year, but in 1969, the tradition of naming a man and a woman each year became permanent.
Giles last week said she still can’t quite get her arms around her admission to the ranks of 134 illustrious people who represent nine decades of volunteerism.
“I’ve heard their stories,” she said. “I know what they do. And, plus, I see them in action every day. So it’s an incredible, incredible group of people. I feel really honored that they would consider me worthy of even being nominated.” A mother of five who holds a degree in public health education, she helped with the group that made Mesa in the 1990s one of the state’s first cities to adopt a comprehensive no-smoking ordinance. She also has been active in the foundation that promotes the city-owned i.d.e.a Museum and its expansion.
“Dawn has been a tireless fundraiser for I.d.e.a. Museum programs and was in-
seeCITIZEN page 8
GOT NEWS?
never admitted defeat and instead cocooned himself in fantasies of widespread election fraud – theories without evidence that were repeatedly found without merit in courtrooms across the land.
Trump and his loyalists persisted in their false assertions as the final popular votes were counted, as the Electoral College delivered the confirming votes for Biden and as Congress prepared to certify the results on Jan. 6.
That day, a mob assaulted the seat of American government in an attempt to thwart the certification. The mob eventually was turned back, but at the cost of five lives – including a Capitol Police officer. Rep. Andy Biggs, a Republican who represents a large swath of the East Valley, was among those who voted in Congress to reject the 2020 presidential election results. Biggs denied allegations that he helped plan the attempted coup, but he also opposed efforts to investigate the insurrection and advocated the expulsion from the House Republican Conference of those who did support the investigation.
Later, the effort to delegitimize the 2020 election became more localized when the Republican-controlled Arizona Senate conducted a highly unusual “audit” of ballots cast in Maricopa County, which had swung to Biden in the election.
The procedure was conducted by a Florida company with no previous experience in election audits; its CEO had espoused support for Trump’s conspiracy claims.
Jack Sellers, a former Chandler city councilman and serves as chairman of the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors, slammed the procedure as “a grift disguised as an audit.”
In September, the auditors concluded that Biden won Maricopa County by more votes than previously thought, deeply disappointing die-hard Trump fans. But that didn’t end the controversy, with Biggs and others still refusing to admit that Biden is president. In October, Sellers – a life-long Republican – testified before the Oversight and Reform Committee of the U.S. House, which held a special hearing to examine the audit. He told the committee it was clear that some of the state’s Republican leaders “do not care what the facts are.” “They just want to gain political power and gain money by fostering mistrust of the greatest power an individual can exerKids like Brooklyn Avery and Savannah Springer of Mesa, along with their adult counterparts throughout Arizona, rejoiced as community and professional thespians saw a return of live audiences after a year of only virtual shows. (Tribune file photo)
Valley rock icon Alice Cooper christened his new youth center in Mesa – his second in the Valley – to provide a place where kids can not only hang out but learn how to play music.
cise in the United States — their vote,” he continued.
In any event, the audit will wind up costing taxpayers millions of dollars because voting equipment that was corrupted by the procedure must be replaced.
On behalf of the county supervisors, Sellers last week issued another condemnation of state Senate President Karen Fann for continuing in interviews with local TV stations the “fiction that something went wrong in the 2020 General Election because it supports her outrageous expenditures on the poorly planned and executed ‘audit.’”
“Soon the Board of Supervisors will receive a technical response from our Elections Department that addresses the many other falsehoods in the Cyber Ninjas’ reports. We look forward to receiving this information and sharing it with the public,” he added.
COVID rampage
The arrival of COVID vaccines early in the year seemed to offer promise that a pandemic that had shredded the fabric of normal life in 2020 might be tamed in short order.
That did not happen.
Widespread resistance to the vaccine and to mask-wearing ensured that the disease would continue its deadly march.
The politization of the pandemic was marked by statements such as those by State Sen. Kelly Townsend, R-Mesa. At one point she compared highway signs in support of vaccinations to the sort of state coercion one might find in Communist China, and later said vaccine mandates were comparable to the Nazi philosophy that led to millions of murders during World War II.
The COVID situation in Arizona as the year began was grim. In January the state was averaging 175 COVID deaths per day, with hospitals full of suffocating patients.
In the face of this suffering, the Arizona Legislature passed laws designed to make it harder for local governments and businesses to impose COVID-related health regulations. Mask mandates drove deep fissures in East Valley school districts no matter whether they required masks or made them optional.
Mesa Public Schools Superintendent Andi Fourlis started the current school year with a mask mandate but eventually made them optional. Some districts, including Chandler Unified and Gilbert Public Schools – which, like Mesa, are among the state’s five largest districts – also went the optional route while others, notably Kyrene and Tempe Union, made them mandatory.
And as school opened in late summer, Gov. Doug Ducey, sought to block funding from schools that required masks, citing a state law Republicans in the Legislature stuffed into the state budget with countless other measures in the waning hours of the session without any hearings.
A Maricopa County Superior Court judge found the move violated the Arizona Constitution – and the Arizona Supreme Court agreed, killing the mask mandate ban. By mid-December more than 23,000 Arizonans had died of the disease – by far the largest mass-casualty event in state history.
Drought deepens
In another mega-story with local implications, Arizona joined much of the American West in enduring a worsening longterm drought amid record heat.
The National Weather Service, which has been keeping records in Phoenix since
1895, recorded the hottest June here ever, with an average round-the-clock temperature of 95.3 degrees. This followed on the heels of the hottest July and hottest August ever in 2020. But the script flipped in July and August 2021, with vigorous monsoon storms repeatedly hammering the region and keeping temperatures below normal. July 25 saw a high of 81 degrees at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. It was the Valley’s coolest July day since 1955 and the fourth-coolest July day since recordkeeping began in 1895.
The monsoon, however, did not alter the long-term Western drought pattern, which brought water levels at Lake Mead to their lowest levels since Hoover Dam was completed in the 1930s. As the Colorado River dwindled, Arizona’s allocations from the beleaguered stream were reduced for the first time. The initial cutbacks of Colorado River water affected agricultural users; East Valley cities said their supplies remain robust for the near future.
Here is a look at some of the East Valley’s other headlines from 2021:
Regional
■ An incredibly tight housing market led to soaring prices not only for homebuyers but also for renters. ■ There also was a shortage of cars; by late summer East Valley dealers’ lots were almost bare because of international supply-chain problems. ■ A massive years-long project to improve Interstate 10 between the San Tan Freeway and the Broadway Curve began in the summer. Drivers will see delays along that stretch until completion in 2024. ■ Banner Health announced $400 million in new projects at Banner Desert and Banner Gateway medical centers, in Mesa and Gilbert, respectively. Both projects include increased services and space for women and infant care. ■ Tragedy struck the Chandler and Gilbert police departments on April 29 when 50-year-old Chandler Officer Christopher Farrar was struck and killed by a suspect driving a stolen vehicle near the SanTan MotorPlex at Loop 202 and Val Vista Drive.Gilbert officer Rico Aranda was seriously injured in the incident. ■ The East Valley, as defined by incorporated municipalities, grew considerably Unlike their predecessors last year, Mesa Public Schools seniors graduated in person. (Tribune
file photo)
when the Apache Junction City Council voted in October to annex more than 6,000 acres of the so-called Superstition Vistas area, expecting the land to eventually accommodate more than 10,000 homes. In December D.R. Horton Homes and Brookfield Residential Properties began construction. It is the opening phase of development in the Vistas, 275 square miles of state trust land stretching from Apache Junction to Florence. ■ Area basketball fans got a rare treat when the Phoenix Suns appeared in the NBA Finals for only the third time in history, and the first in 27 years. But the season ended in a 4-2 series loss to the Milwaukee Bucks. ■ Intel announced a $20 billion expansion of its Chandler campus in an effort to reclaim global dominance in the microchip industry. As evidence of the fierce international fight to achieve that dominance, Intel’s biggest global competitor – Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. began construction of a 1,28-acre chip-manufacturing in north Phoenix. Intel’s estimated its expansion will generate 3,000 construction jobs, 3,000 high-tech
Cole Cannon, a Gilbert resident, promised at a March 30 groundbreaking that surfers and families will be enjoying Cannon Beach in southeast Mesa in the summer of 2022. Councilman Kevin Thompson and others witnessed last week’s launch of his $25 million project. (Tribune
THE MESA TRIBUNE | DECEMBER 26, 2021 permanent jobs and at least 15,000 jobs from companies starting up or relocating to the region.
Mesa
■ More than 20 years after clearing the land for a failed resort project, Mesa in January approved a deal with Mira Vista Holdings to develop the so-called Site 17 at Mesa Drive and University Avenue. ■ Mesa Public Schools began work o n two multimillion-dollar upgrades of two high schools. Funded by a $300-million bond issue approved by voters in 2018, the $35-million renovation of Mountain View High promises to result in a virtually new campus, school officials said, while the pretty much the same can be expected at Mesa High for its $35 million upgrade. ■ The Mesa Arizona Temple was rededicated after a two-year renovation restored the interior of the 94-year-old edifice and reimagined its grounds. As part of the project, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ development arm also built a new building to house its popular Family History Discovery Center and a visitors center for the temple as well as 250 apartments, 12 townhouses, a huge underground parking garage with 450 stalls, 7,500 square feet of retail space at Main and Udall streets and 5,000 square feet at Main Street and Mesa Drive. ■ Ground was broken for another major downtown project – a block-long, 335-unit residential complex with 13,000 square feet of retail space that will replace the former Brown and Brown Chevrolet showroom on the east end of Main Street. ■ Early in the year, the city passed a non-discrimination ordinance that had been discussed for most of the past decade. An effort to put the ordinance on a referendum ballot quickly fizzled. ■ Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport announced a 400-acre development on the east side of its property and reiterated plans for an east-side terminal that eventually would serve airlines other than Allegiant. ■ SunCountry Airlines announced in April that it will begin operations at Gateway. ■ Arizona State University announced it will operate The Sidney Poitier New American Film School with programs in Mesa, Tempe, and Los Angeles starting in fall 2022.
■ Work began on the first extension of the State Route 24 freeway from Ellsworth Road eastward in southeast Mesa. ■ ElectraMeccanica Vehicles Corp., which produces a three-wheeled, one-person vehicle, announced in March it will establish its assembly facility in southeast Mesa. ■ Redevelopment plans were announced for the historic Buckhorn Baths property at Main Street and Recker Road. ■ Amid concerns that the facilities use too much water, Mesa continued approving large data centers in its southeastern sector, including one that will be operated by Facebook. ■ Gulfstream, the world’s largest manufacturer of business jets, announced in November it is building a $70 million, 225,000-square-foot repair facility at Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport. ■
As the nation commemorated the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in America, local officials also remembered Balbir Singh Sodhi, the Mesa gas station owner who was shot to death in the nation’s first hate crime stemming from deranged individuals seeking to retaliate against Muslims for the attacks. Sodhi was a Sikh, which has no relationship to Muslim faith or culture whatsoever. (Tribune file photo)
GOT NEWS?
COMPLETE
ESTATE PLAN PACKAGE
$795 This is the TOTAL ONE TIME PRICE Single or Married
Includes : • Living Trust • Pour Over Will • General POA • Healthcare POA • Living Will • Cmty Property Memo • HIPAA Forms • AZ Quit Claim
Deed
Attorney Prepared - Valid in all 50 states Mature Asset Advisors Providing You Peace of Mind for 29 Years
Mature Asset Advisors, LLC is a wealth preservation and distribution firm providing expertise and personalized financial services to help you reach your retirement goals.
Call 480-535-9655
To Schedule Your Free Consultation
428 S Gilbert Road Suite 113, Gilbert AZ 85296 www.matureassetadvisorsllc.com
Best Dentist at Affordable Prices!
Missing Teeth? Embarrassed to Smile? Tooth Pain? Loose Dentures? We Can Help, Call Us NOW!
SUPREME DENTURES
starting at EXPIRES 12-31-2021 $999
IMPLANTS
from
$799
each
EXPIRES 12-31-2021
PORCELAIN CROWNS
from $699
EXPIRES 12-31-2021 Before
After
SNAP ON LOWER DENTURE
With Two Implants
from EXPIRES 12-31-2021 $3,999
FREE
Exam & X-Rays EXTRACTIONS
$150from
EXPIRES 12-31-2021
*All offers for New patients without insurance only. We Accept Most Major Insurances • Interest FREE Financing with Low Monthly Payments Emergencies Welcome & Same Day Appointments Available
1722 E University, Mesa
THE MESA TRIBUNE | DECEMBER 26, 2021
144 rental homes coming to historic EV farm
TRIBUNE NEWS STAFF
Apiece of the East Valley’s most famous farm is being set aside for homes.
The Empire Group of Compani es of Scottsdale announced last week that it is developing 13 acres of Schnepf Farm in Queen Creek for a gated community of 144 rental homes that will be ready for leasing by late next year.
The community, called The Village at Schnepf Farms, will be located on the northwest corner of Rittenhouse and Cloud roads.
Owners of the farm since the 1960s, Mark and Carrie Schnepf were early pioneers in the “agro-tainment” sector, hosting the celebrated Pumpkin and Chili Park in October, a Peach Festival in May as well as weddings.
Empire said it worked with the Schnepfs “to develop the vision for a build-for-rent community that incorporates the farm’s attributes and history.”
The Scottsdale-based developer is a leader in mixed-use high-rise and build-forrent projects in Arizona and a leader in a growing trend in new-home construction.
As of 2021, build-to-rent properties make up only 5% of properties, but they are currently on the rise, according to Real Estate Magazine. It reported that 50,000 build-to-rent homes were constructed from September 2019 to September 2020 in contrast to a 40-year average of 31,000 annually.
The website PropertyShark called buildto-rent a “turbocharged” trend, noting large institutional investors in the next 18 months are lining up to shell out $40 billion on constructing such homes.
Empire itself has invested $1.9 billion in the build-to-rent market, according to published reports.
“Build-to-rent homes are created specifically to be professionally managed communities, often providing a residen-
tial experience with upscale amenities, much like a typical apartment complex that’s targeted at young professionals in urban areas,” PropertyShark said. Since the market crash of 2008, when the government provided big incentives for investors to buy up thousands of foreclosed properties, the return on rental homes has become an increasingly attractive investment that the pandemic has fueled because of its “speed and scale,” Property Shark said. “Since the onset of COVID, working from home has become normalized,” The Village at Schnepf Farms, a build-to-rent community of it noted. “As a result, mil144 homes, will be located at Rittenhouse and Cloud roads in Queen Creek. (Special to the Tribune) lions of city-dwellers have relocated to suburban areas, and coupled with record price growth, demand for single family rentals is skyrocketing.” Empire said the Village at Schnepf Farms will comprise one-, two- and threestory homes with smart technology and private landscaped backyards. “Interior design and architecture will incorporate modern farmhouse elements to honor the history of the farm and its surrounding area,” it said. “For more than 50 years, Schnepf Farms has been hosting visitors almost daily for produce picking and its famous annual peach harvest. Residents of the Village at Schnepf farms will enjoy picking their own fresh produce, living within walking distance from the garden and the farm’s many other amenities and entertainment,” stated Shelby Duplessis, president of land development for Empire Group.
In addition to walking paths and a neighborhood dog park, the community will feature a resort-style pool and clubhouse with a fully equipped fitness center. Other amenities include covered parking, electric car charging stations, a dog wash salon and barbecue and lawn game area.
“Queen Creek is a rapidly growing area with limited options for renters. We expect the Village at Schnepf farms to appeal to employees of Schnepf Farms and people looking to move to the area. It’s situated in a beautiful setting and includes incredible community amenities,” added Richard Felker, founding partner of Empire Group.
Village at Schnepf Farms marks the developer's seventh build-for-rent community in Maricopa County in the past 18 months.
Felker founded the Scottsdale-based company in the early 1970s. Under his direction, the company has built its reputation as a leading developer of Class A mixed-use high-rise projects and luxury build-for-rent communities throughout Arizona. ■
CITIZEN from page 3
volved in a successful effort to obtain additional capital funding for the facility in a recent City of Mesa bond election,” the Ciizen of the Year Association said, adding that she “is often called upon for advice on community advocacy efforts and is always willing to share her expertise with new leaders in the community.” Mathern also is an active Rotary Club member and retired Boeing employee who has been known to take on leadership positions in almost every organization he volunteers with.
“I have never seen Vern on any board where he did not assume some sort of leadership role. He is tireless advocate for community betterments,” one volunteer colleague told the association.
All the winners of the award have demonstrated a long-standing commitment to volunteer activities. The Citizen of the Year Association also works to cultivate future potential awardees with the scholarships it awards to graduating seniors who have provided exemplary volunteer service in their school and the community.
Money for those scholarships comes from banquet ticket proceeds and association members’ own pockets.
Mathern and Giles will be honored at a banquet Feb. 15 at the Double Tree Hilton Phoenix/Mesa. To purchase: visit mesacitizenoftheyear.org or contact Debby Elliot at 480-969-2731. ■
The latest breaking news and top local stories in Mesa! www.TheMesaTribune.com .com
JUST A CLICK AWAY
“Tees” The Season to Be Jolly
Model for 2022 E-Z-GO Liberty
E-Z-GO Express L6
E-Z-GO RXV
OAC
480.895.2000
• TRADE-IN’S WELCOME • HIGHLY RATED SERVICE DEPARTMENT • VISIT OUR PARTS DEPARTMENT
www.A1GolfCarts.com
25820 S. Arizona Ave. Sun Lakes, AZ 85248
We Service What We Sell
PERIPHERAL NEUROPATHY AND CHRONIC PAIN WARNING!
Our clinic is taking every precaution and we follow strict CDC guidelines to ensure that our patients, clinic and staff are SAFE!
Mesa, AZ — The most common method your doctor will recommend to treat your chronic pain and/or neuropathy is with prescription drugs that may temporarily reduce your symptoms. These drugs have names such as Gabapentin, Lyrica, Cymbalta, and Neurontin, and are primarily antidepressant or anti-seizure drugs. These drugs may cause you to feel uncomfortable and have a variety of harmful side effects. Chronic pain and/or peripheral neuropathy is a result of damage to the nerves often causing weakness, pain, numbness, tingling, and the most debilitating balance problems. This damage is commonly caused by a lack of blood flow to the nerves in the hands and feet which causes the nerves to begin to degenerate due to lack of nutrient flow.
As you can see in Figure 2, as the blood vessels that surround the nerves become diseased they shrivel up which causes the nerves to not get the nutrients to continue to survive. When these nerves begin to “die” they cause you to have balance problems, pain, numbness, tingling, burning, and many additional symptoms. The main problem is that your doctor has told you to just live with the problem or try the drugs which you don’t like taking because they make you feel uncomfortable. There is now a facility right here in Mesa that offers you hope without taking those endless drugs with serious side effects. (See the special neuropathy severity examination at the end of this article) In order to effectively treat your neuropathy three factors must be determined. 1) What is the underlying cause? 2) How much nerve damage has been sustained. NOTE: Once you have sustained 95% nerve loss, there is likely nothing that we can do for you. 3) How much treatment will your condition require? The treatment that is provided at Aspen Medical has three main goals. 1) Increase blood flow 2) Stimulate and increase small fiber nerves 3) Decrease brain-based pain The treatment to increase blood flow, stimulate small nerve fibers and get you back to health is our new $50,000.00 SANEXAS UNIT! In addition, we use a state-of-the-art diagnostics like the TM Flow diagnostic unit to accurately determine the increase in blood flow and a small skin biopsy to accurately determine the increase in small nerve fibers! The Sanexas electric cell signaling system delivers energy to the affected area of your body at varying wavelengths, including both low-frequency and middle-frequency signals. It also uses amplitude modulated (AM) and frequency modulated (FM) signaling. During a treatment session, the Sanexas system automatically changes to simultaneously deliver AM and FM electric cell signal energy. THE GREAT NEWS IS THAT SANEXAS IS COVERED BY MEDICARE AND MOST INSURANCE! Depending on your coverage, your treatment could be little to no cost to you! The amount of treatment needed to allow the nerves to fully recover varies from person to person and can only be determined after a detailed neurological and vascular evaluation. As long as you have not sustained at least 95% nerve damage there is hope! Aspen Medical will do a chronic pain and neuropathy severity examination to determine the extent of the nerve damage as a public service to you and/or your family and friends. This neuropathy/ pain severity examination will consist of a detailed sensory evaluation, extensive peripheral vascular testing, and a detailed analysis of the findings of your neuropathy.
Fig. 2
Aspen Medical will be offering this chronic pain and neuropathy severity examination from now until December 31, 2021. Call 480-
274-3157 to make an appointment to determine if your chronic pain and peripheral neuropathy can be successfully treated. Due to our very busy office schedule, we are limiting this FREE consultation offer to the first 15 callers. YOU DO NOT HAVE TO SUFFER ANOTHER MINUTE, CALL Call 480-274-3157 … NOW!
We are extremely busy and if your call goes to our voicemail, please leave a message and we will get back to you asap.
480-274-3157
4540 E Baseline Rd., Suite 119 Mesa Az 85206
THE MESA TRIBUNE | DECEMBER 26, 2021
State will help parents’ challenges to quarantines
BY HOWARD FISCHER Capitol Media Services
If your child is sent home to quarantine when school resumes because of possible exposure to COVID, you have the right to challenge that in court.
And the state even will pay for your lawyer. That bit of information comes because state Sen. Kelly Townsend, R-Mesa, decided to ask Attorney General Mark Brnovich about a section of the state Health Code that gives state and county health officials various powers during a state of emergency. And one of them specifically allows those agencies to “require isolation or quarantine of any person.’’
Townsend has never been a fan of those powers.
What got Townsend’s attention is that county health departments were delegating the power to quarantine to individual school districts. And she said that has been happening with schools sending children home to quarantine if they believe the youngsters had been exposed to the COVID virus.
Most East Valley school districts, including Kyrene and Tempe Union, have had those same quarantine rules since students returned for in-person learning. “There’s a lot of angry parents out there,’’ Townsend told Capitol Media Services.
She said a kid would go home for 10 days as ordered. “And they’d immediate get turned around and go home again for another 10 days because a different kid was in the classroom,’’ Townsend continued. “And they wouldn’t tell them which child they had been exposed to, just ‘Your child’s been exposed.’ ‘’
In some cases, she said, schools would allow for online learning. But not always. “They had kids missing large swaths of school from an arbitrary, random, unknown exposure that they didn’t establish,’’ Townsend said. “And now the child is missing a large amount of education.’’ Hence, her request to Brnovich to find out what parents can do about it. As it turns out, they can fight it, with the state picking up the legal tab.
Brnovich, a new formal legal opinion, said there is a provision in the law that does allow for immediate quarantine or isolation without a court order when “any delay... would pose an immediate and serious threat to the public health.’’
What is at issue is that local health departments are authorizing schools to issue isolation orders.
In Maricopa County, for example, Brnovich said the health officials told schools that students who come into “close contact’’ with an individual who tests positive for the virus are required to quarantine at home for 10 days. That phrase is defined as being within six feet of someone with COVID-19 for more than 15 minutes over a 24-hour period.
There are exceptions if both students were using fitted masks or if the exposed student is vaccinated or has previously tested positive within the prior 90 days.
Brnovich said Arizona law requires health officials to seek a court order within 10 days after imposing the quarantine, with the agency required to prove that the isolation or quarantine is “reasonably necessary to protect the public health.’’
But the attorney general’s opinion said those affected don’t have to wait that long.
He pointed out that anyone who is ordered isolated or quarantined can go to court to demand to be released from the restrictions. And Brnovich said the court must hold a hearing within 24 hours and issue a decision within 48 hours.
There also are provisions in law for those ordered quarantined to seek a court order protesting the conditions imposed.
Brnovich said anyone who seeks judicial relief is entitled to have a lawyer appointed, with the state picking up the tab. And that legal representation “continues throughout the duration of the isolation or quarantine of the person.’’
Townsend said she believes Ducey overreacted with the restrictions he put in place due to the pandemic, like closing down all bars and restaurants simply because some establishment had acted recklessly and allowed unmasked customers to pack the facilities. ■
THE MESA TRIBUNE | DECEMBER 26, 2021
Tax cut can go on ballot, judge rules
BY HOWARD FISCHER Capitol Media Services
Arizona voters have the legal right to review and override the $1.9 billion tax cut plan that mainly benefits the wealthy approved earlier this year by the Republican-controlled legislature, a judge ruled Wednesday.
In a 12-page ruling, Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Katherine Cooper rejected arguments by the Arizona Free Enterprise Club that the constitutional right of voters to second-guess legislative decisions does not extend to matters involving funds.
The judge acknowledged that there is no right to refer tax hikes to the ballot. That is because such a petition drive would deny government the ability to operate.
But this case, Cooper said, is different.
She said the referendum, if successful, actually would leave the state with more revenue than it needs. So, the outcome of the vote, Cooper noted, would not hamper government operations.
Wednesday’s ruling is unlikely to be the last word. Referendum foes are likely to appeal. And even if they lose that legal fight, their attorneys are preparing a backup plan to quash the referendum with arguments that, despite a finding to the contrary by the secretary of state, there are not enough valid signatures on the petitions. At the heart of the legal fight is the tax cut plan approved on a party-line vote and signed by Gov. Doug Ducey.
Under current law, anyone with taxable income up to $26,500 a year pays a tax rate of 2.59%, with those figures doubled for married couples filing jointly. That rate increases in steps, to the point where taxable earnings on individuals above $159,000 are taxed at 4.5%
SB 1828 would impose a single 2.5% tax rate on all incomes beginning in 2025. Legislative budget staffers peg the revenue loss at $1.9 billion a year.
Ducey has repeatedly sought to portray the measure as providing a tax cut of about $300 a year for the “average Arizonan.’’
But an analysis of the package by legislative budget staffers put the savings for someone making between $25,000 and $30,000 a year at $11. That increases to $96 for those in the $50,000 to $75,000 taxable income range. Bigger benefits kick in at higher income levels.
Taxpayers with incomes of $250,000 to $500,000 would see an average $3,071 reduction in what they owe each year according to the staff analysis. That increases to more than $7,300 annually for those earning from $500,000 to $1 million.
Foes gathered more than the 118,823 valid signatures needed to hold up enactment until voters get the last word. That led to the bid by the Free Enterprise Club to quash a vote as illegal.
Cooper disagreed, saying the framers of the Arizona Constitution said voters have “broad authority’’ to prevent adoption of any laws.
“Referendum is a check on the legislative process to ensure that legislators do not simply serve the particular interests of a few people,’’ she wrote. “If a majority vote in favor of a referendum, then the matter referred is nullified and can only become a law if approved by the voters.’’
“It adjusts Arizona’s income tax rates, lowering them over time to a ‘flat tax,’’ the judge said.
“It does not set aside any tax revenue of a certain sum for any specified purpose nor does it dictate how agencies use that revenue,’’ Cooper continued. “SB 1828 does not fall under the well-recognized definition of ‘appropriation.’ ‘’
Attorney Kory Langhofer, who represents tax cut foes, already has prepared a litany of what he contends are legal flaws with the petitions that could reduce the number of valid signatures.
Among the allegations is that some paid circulators had not registered with the state as required or that they collected signatures before registering. These also are claims that some of the registration forms are missing required information like providing a full address.
Any of those would disqualify all the signatures those circulators collected, possibly leaving the petition drive short of the 118,823 valid signatures necessary to force a public vote.
Other claims include issues of handwriting irregularities and missing dates or addresses of those who have signed the petitions. ■
Our Savior’s Lutheran Church
612 S. Ellsworth Rd. Mesa, AZ 85208 480.984.5555 oslcaz.org
December 26 - 31 [New Years Eve] 12pm-9pm New Years Eve Extended Hours til 11pm.
Live, On-Site Worship Saturdays @ 4 pm Sundays @ 7:30, 9:00, & 10:30 am Sunday School at 10:30 am
https://oslcaz.org/worship/
Facebook Live:
https://www.facebook.com/oursaviors.oslclive_video. 1.888.700.9845
Quality Healthcare Begins Quality Healthcare Begins with Us! with Us! PHOENICIAN MEDICAL CENTER
PHOENICIAN MEDICAL CENTERWALK INS WALK INS WELCOMEWELCOME FREE VITALS FREE VITALS
CHECKCHECK
Rapid molecular COVID tests and flu tests with results within 20 min
• Primary Care • Preventive Care • Chronic Care Mgmt • Regular Check Up • Wellness Screening • Diabetic Management • Physical Examinations • Vaccinations/Immunizations • Hospital Follow Ups • Flu Shots for Elderly • Urgent Care Visits
Charles Alan Richardson, MD • Mark Kent, FNP • Cesar M Rodarte, DO (spanish speaking) Stella Bernard, APRN,MSN,FNP-C (spanish speaking) • Mehdy Zazandy, MD
Kathyayini Konuru, MD • Kristal Munez, MD • Ann Reiff, NP • Madison Zieser, PA
Same day new patient appt available
480-963-1853
www.pmchealth.care
