Mesa Tribune 01/22/2023

INSIDE Costco warehouse gets Mesa board’s ‘grumbling approval’

BY SCOTT SHUMAKER Tribune Staff Writer

Retail giant Costco is planning a 75,000-square-foot warehouse with 25 loading docks on vacant land on the northeast corner of Elliot and Ellsworth roads.

It’s not a retail Costco store but a “merchandise delivery operation,” or MDO, where big and bulky products are staged before delivery to customers’ homes.

When customers purchase Items like re-

frigerators or furniture in a store or online, the company ships the product from a distribution center to a local MDO, where it is unboxed and inspected for final delivery.

An attorney for the project told the Mesa Planning and Zoning Board that the Mesa facility will serve about half of the Phoenix metro area.

It would be the first building that Costco has designed and built in Arizona to serve specifically as an MDO, she said.

P&Z Chair Jeffrey Crockett and board

Lehi, city at war over apartment project

BY SCOTT SHUMAKER Tribune Staff Writer

Many residents of the Lehi community in northwest Mesa cherish an agriculture-based lifestyle within an easy drive from more urban areas.

“It’s a place where you can still work in the city, but you can come back and then you can enjoy a country lifestyle,”

Lehi Community Improvement Association President Marilyn Crosby said.

“In Lehi, we actually embrace not having sidewalks and not having more streetlights. We like beautiful night skies,” she continued. “Kids have chores, and they’re out feeding the animals first thing in the morning before they have breakfast.

“It’s a beautiful, wonderful community.”

member Jeff Pitcher praised the retailer’s business, but they said they had issues with the warehouse’s proposed location in the heart of the Elliot Road Tech Corridor.

The city has invested millions in infrastructure to lure high-tech and manufacturing companies to the area north and south of Elliot Road between roughly Sossaman and Signal Butte roads.

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Child Crisis Arizona breaks ground for big Mesa center

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Child Crisis Arizona has broken ground in west Mesa for a sprawling 2.4-acre campus with a 38,000-square-foot building that will house a variety of services for low-income families and children.

Child Crisis’ mission is to provide children and youth in Arizona a safe environment, free from abuse and neglect, by creating strong and successful families.

It said the two-story building at 424 W. Rio Salado Pkwy. will be “net zero,” meaning it will balance the amount of greenhouse gas produced against the amount removed from the atmosphere and produce as much energy as it consumes.

“The campus will be one of the first for any nonprofit in Arizona to put sustainability at the forefront and build for future generations,” the nonprofit said.

“Child Crisis Arizona has experienced unprecedented program growth especially in its early education programs. This growth meant our staff members and programs

were sprinkled throughout the Valley as we didn’t have adequate space,” said Child Crisis Arizona CEO Torrie Taj.

She said the nonprofit last year served over 7,500 unduplicated people and that the campus “will offer additional program space for both Child Crisis Arizona and partner organizations to provide transformational programs focused on impact for underserved children, youth, and families.

“Establishing this new campus will centralize Child Crisis Arizona operations and leverage synergies with partner organizations.”

The new campus will offer: foster care and adoption services, family education, children’s counseling, health and wellness such as medical screenings and basic needs, a centralized kitchen and food distribution center, centralized administration and philanthropy, foster teen programs, therapies using art, dance, and music, training and partnerships.

Child Crisis Arizona’s new west Mesa campus will be home to a broad range of services for lowincome families and kids. (Courtesy Child Crisis Arizona) see CRISIS page 4

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Four Mesa students are Flinn semifinalists

BY JOSH ORTEGA Tribune Staff Writer

Four Mesa students are among the 82 high school seniors across Arizona chosen as semifinalists for the prestigious Flinn Scholarship.

Selected from over 1,000 applicants were Mesa residents Marina Abdelmalak, a Chandler Preparatory Academy senior; Jakob Dueck of Dobson High, Elizabeth Ghartey of BASIS Mesa and Quinlan Harris of Red Mountain High School.

CRISIS

from page 3

According to Jodi Stoken, chief development officer, Child Crisis Arizona will have strategic collaborations planned with such organizations as Ballet Arizona, United Food Bank, Big Brothers Big Sisters, and Free Arts for Abused Children of Arizona.

“Partnerships like this with other organizations whose mission is to strengthen families means together we can assure that

They and the other semifinalists will interview this week and the overall group will be winnowed down to about 40 finalists before 20 seniors are selected in April for the scholarship. Since 1986, the Flinn Foundation has awarded 20 seniors from across the state with a scholarship worth more than $130,000 to pay for tuition, housing, meals at the state’s three public universities.

The semifinalists represent 59 traditional public, charter, and private high schools, and include one home-schooled student from Maricopa, Coconino, Gila, Pima, Pinal,

children, youth, and families receive highquality wraparound services in one location,” she said/

“Though the Child Crisis Arizona campus will have a deep, everlasting impact on the community, it will have a very small impact on the environment,” says Barry Chasse, founder of CHASSE Building Team.

“We are using a biophilic design throughout, meaning deliberate incorporation of things like natural lighting and

Yavapai, and Yuma counties

One benefit of the full-ride scholarship is the ability to explore different areas of study without the worry of debt, and Mesa native Nathaniel Ross is a perfect example of that.

In November, the American Rhodes Scholar Class of 2023 announced 32 students had won the prestigious scholarship/ This October, Ross will begin his studies at England’s University of Oxford, where he plans to pursue a Master of Philosophy in comparative social policy and participate with the Oxford Disability Law and Policy Project.

ventilation, natural landscape features and other elements for creating a more productive and healthier built environment for people,” said Doug McCord, principal at Architectural Resource Team. “It will meet the highest level of standards for Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) and attain a Living Futures Petal Project Certification upon its completion.”

The project is slated for completion in mid-2024.

Crosby and others feel that a 222-unit apartment complex proposed for the Crismon Farm Homestead site at McDowell Road and the Loop 202 represents an unjust intrusion of urban life on their quiet community.

They’ve been fighting plans for the Homestead at Lehi project for two years, and even notched a success in 2021 when the Planning and Zoning Board denied the project.

But this summer a modified version of the project returned to city planners, and at a study session last week, Homestead at Lehi Crossing appeared to have council’s support.

The ordinance approving the Homestead at Lehi rezoning will be introduced this week and is scheduled for a public hearing Feb. 13.

City staff are in support, as well as the Planning and Zoning Board.

But the strongest sign the developers would finally prevail and get the threestory apartment built in Mesa’s historic heartland was the support of Council-

While Lehi residents say a 222-unit apartment complex proposed for the Crismon Farm Homestead site at McDowell Road and the Loop 202 represents an intrusion, city planners said the development would enhance a now barren eyesore.. (City of Mesa)

man Mark Freeman, who represents Lehi.

He told his colleagues he had reservations about the project earlier, but design changes and conditions placed on the developer won his support for now.

“Overall, this development can be an

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asset to the area,” Freeman said. “We’ve got a really good development agreement.”

Freeman noted that he gets complaints about ATV traffic and graffiti in the area now.

While 1-acre residential lots would be “ideal,” he doesn’t think private developers would elect to put in country-style horse properties on the site any time

see LEHI page 7

Besides, the alternatives to the apartment would likely be less-than-inspiring, like an RV storage, Freeman said, and wouldn’t come with some of the community benefits of the apartments.

The benefits include adding another housing option in the area, improvements to the canal trail system promised by the developer and public trailhead parking on land donated by the owner.

Lehi has a long history of defending its rural character.

The community successfully waged a successful campaign to prevent a Lindsey Road exit off the 202, and the Lehi Community Association closely monitors new development applications to the city.

Crosby said that Lehi residents opposed to the project don’t have a problem with developing the Crismon Homestead; she just thinks it should match the surrounding neighborhoods.

“I still remain hopeful that there could be something other than this proposal

that has been put forward,” she said. “I mean, we would very much embrace the opportunity to work for something that is less density.”

In comments after the study session, Crosby rejected the idea that the landowner can’t find anything else to do with the property. She believes single-family homes could be built if the landowner had the will.

While over 150 people have signed a petition against Homestead at Lehi, some Lehi residents have offered support for the project.

A handful of residents who commented during the planning and zoning hearing this summer echoed Freeman’s concerns about the land remaining a dirt lot, saying it attracts illegal camping and other nuisances.

One resident described the site as an “eyesore” and thought a landscaped apartment building would be preferable to the vacant lot.

Freeman, who said he is related to the Crismons who once lived on the site, also defended his support of Homestead at Lehi by noting that the construction

NOW ENROLLING

of the 202 drastically altered the character of the place.

He said it has “morphed into an island” surrounded by the highway to the north and canals to the south.

A fire in 2007 destroyed the historic structures on the site.

Freeman also signaled that the Homestead was heading for approval when he said, “I personally like roundabouts.”

Construction of a roundabout on McDowell Road at the 202 ramp to handle the additional traffic from the project is a major point of contention for residents.

The roundabout was the issue that derailed the project in 2021, and it continues to be a sore point for residents.

Residents then argued that the roundabout would be a safety hazard for the many users of horse trailers in the area. If a trailer hit a curb, it would injure the horses, or the mixture of trailers and smaller cars could lead to accidents.

In response, developers have planned a “Wickenburg roundabout,” or a roundabout with rounded curbs that can be driven over and are more horse-trailer

friendly.

ADOT and Mesa traffic engineers support the installation of a roundabout, and the change to a more trailer-friendly design won over the planning and zoning board this summer.

Crosby and other residents aren’t convinced the new roundabout will be safe.

She says members of the Lehi Community Association reached out to people in Wickenburg, and horse owners there said they don’t like the roundabouts.

“Trailers and roundabouts don’t mix,” she said.

While winds in city hall are favoring approval of Homestead at Lehi, the project will likely find plenty of opposition at the hearing, but protecting the lifestyle is in the community’s DNA.

In Lehi, “it’s normal for people to have owls flying overhead and coyotes that walk through the neighborhood and javelina, and it’s very much a country feel, which seems a bit odd because Mesa is a large city,” Crosby said.

“It’s that way because we’ve cared about it, and we have preserved our culture.”

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Chef’s project is 'feeding the future'

BY JOSH ORTEGA Tribune Staff Writer

An event that aims to feed the future is being sponsored by a nonprofit with a name that’s hard to forget.

Blue Watermelon Project’s annual Feeding the Future culinary contest challenges students to create healthy, great-tasting meals that meet the requirements of the National School Lunch Program, National School Breakfast Program and Afterschool Snack Program.

The contest gives both students and the surrounding community a better understanding of the challenges that school food professionals face and the everchanging conditions that impact access to good food in schools.

While the contest teaches students to develop tasty, nutritious, and affordable school meals that can be served to Arizona school children, the public can join in the fun by tasting the creative dishes

that the top 10 student teams are presenting to guest judges at the Farm at South Mountain with live music, yard games and children’s activities.

There’s an extra green in those dishes –or so the teams hope: first place receives $5,000, second place receives $3,000, and third place receives $2,000.

This year, finalists include Concordia Charter School in Mesa, Perry High, Chandler High, Casteel High and Queen Creek High.

Charleen Badman, chef and co-owner of FnB Restaurant in Scottsdale, said the idea began 13 years ago.

“I was asked to come to visit a school that had a really beautiful garden, and still does to this day and make a connection with all the beautiful things that were growing in this garden and be able to have students be able to enjoy it in a culinary way,” Badman recalled.

Since officially starting in 2016, Blue Watermelon Project has grown from its first

24

The nonprofit comprises chefs, restauranteurs, farmers and community food advocates who want children to have access to wholesome food in school. It does so by working with K-12 students, parents and the community to integrate taste education and interactive programming into their curriculum and everyday life.

With funding a growing issue for many schools, the program also gives the students an idea of what their school food professionals endure daily.

The guidelines set forth by the NSLP act as the contest rules and require students to get creative in the kitchen and have pride in the dish they whip up.

“It’s a lot of moving stuff around, because, you know, they may be like three cents over, but they have all the nutritional parts, and they bring the cost down, and then the next thing they know, maybe they don’t have enough calories, because they have to make sure they stay within those guidelines,” Badman said.

For Blue Watermelon, much of their funding comes from the support of The Steele Foundation and Sprouts Healthy Communities Foundation, but for schools the answer isn’t so easy peasy lemon squeezy.

For approximately 1 million schools in the country, the federal government pro -

vides around $3.23 for each lunch served to a student who qualifies for a free meal. After labor and other costs, schools have about one dollar per meal to spend on food, according to a press release.

Iris Tirado, food and nutrition manager at Concordia Charter School, said it gets kids excited, not just to participate in the competition when they get to fifth grade, but even for Tirado when she was featured on Blue Watermelon’s YouTube channel “Chef in the Garden.”

“They get really excited because they identify themselves with it,” Tirado said.

Tirado retired from the Madison Metropolitan School District after 22 years and said while the school works with local farmers on the availability of fresh produce, Blue Watermelon helps with the recent inflation and price increases.

“When they provide these new recipes and are successful already, then we can try it on our schools and they already analyze to be in compliance with the cost of food cost and the nutrient analysis,” Tirado said. “So, it’s nice to have all these new ideas to be able to incorporate it in our program.”

Chad Faria, culinary teacher at Casteel High School, has helped his students participate in the program for the past four years, but Covid-19 pandemic nixed one of those years.

location at Echo Canyon School in Scottsdale to

other schools across the state.

Ten teams of high school seniors will compete for cash and taste buds next Saturday in Blue Watermelon Project's "Feed the Future" contest. (Courtesy of Blue Watermelon Project)

Faria spent 12 years in the restaurant industry before he became a teacher 15 years ago and said the most important aspect of this event remains the financial aspect because cooking shows show you how to bake and baste, but they don’t show the bottom line.

“This program teaches kids about money and that’s a whole different component that’s actually necessary,” Faria said. “So, the financial component of it is really key, not only the nutritional side, or the creativity, but the financial component.”

As a teacher, Faria said he enjoys the real-world applications this program gives his students that helps to get that life lesson across to them.

“Well, the fact that they can do something, and use the skills they learn in a classroom immediately,” Faria said.

This event also gives his students perspective on the work that goes into the educational ecosystem beyond just teachers, especially the school food professionals that work hard to feed them every day.

“So, it really allows them to see how hard they work and it gives them a little more respect of what other people do in the school structure that is outside of the realm of just teachers,” Faria said.

That respect comes well-deserved especially the work school food professionals went through with Covid-19 pandemic and the recent economic downturn that’s now hit the food industry rather hard.

“Even with all these cuts and everything, they’re making do with what they have, and the kids don’t notice it,” Faria said. “I find that really impressive, that they’re still making it happen.”

Angela Stutz has spent 15 years as the culinary arts instructor at Perry High School and said this program helps students understand the food, work and money that goes into their school lunch, it gets them involved in the process and gives them feedback from adults outside of school.

“So I think just all around, them being able to, not only work with these amazing Blue Watermelon chefs,” Stutz said. “Getting out and showing the community what they created, gives them empowerment.”

Even as they’ve navigated the Covid-19 pandemic, the recent issues with inflation

and supply shortages haven’t made it a cake walk for Stutz.

“As a culinary teacher, my biggest struggle, which is the same struggle that a regular person in their home has, just trying to get ingredients,” Stutz said.

Despite the struggles, Stutz said programs like Blue Watermelon have shown her students build their confidence and gives them opportunities that impact their lives.

“Not everyone goes to college,” Stutz said. “And by having Career and Technical Education classes in our schools, it is making a pathway for students to do other things.”

Before she became a teacher, Chef Priscilla Ortiz spent 10 years at the Flying Fish restaurant at Disney’s Boardwalk Resort in Orlando, Florida.

Now, Ortiz teaches at Chandler High School and said in a school cafeteria flavor can sometimes go on the backburner to the nutritional rules that schools have to follow, but programs like Blue Watermelon can help reinvigorate a school’s flavor palette.

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“Having a chef paired with it, their possibilities can be immense with the same ingredients that they have just used differently,” Ortiz said.

Besides understanding the different positions in the culinary industry, Ortiz said she wants her students to walk away knowing something as simple as flavor can make a huge difference in their lunch experience and that of others too.

“I feel like that’s going to be even more rewarding to our students to understand how great that is,” Ortiz said. “That not only are they making a meal for someone, they’re making them happy.”

If You Go...

Feeding The Future 2023

When: January 28, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Where: The Farm at South Mountain 6106 South 32nd Street, Phoenix, AZ 85042

Tickets: Students and school food professionals: $25

School administrators: $50

Public: $100

All proceeds benefit Blue Watermelon Project.

Info: www.bluewatermelonproject.org

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offer businesses access to fast internet and high-voltage power lines can deliver massive power loads suitable for automation and data centers.

For those requiring access to large volumes of water, there are 30-inch water and 24-inch sewer lines along Elliot Road.

The robust utilities and road improvements in this area represent a multimillion dollar bet by the city that manufacturers or tech companies will want access to these utilities and bring highwage jobs to Mesa.

Warehouses provide employment, but they don’t match the city’s “tech corridor” vision.

“While I love Costco and I love having them in Mesa, I am not loving the idea of having them use this space on what is the highly desirable Elliott Tech Corridor,” Crockett said.

The Costco warehouse will include office space for a local headquarters and will employ about 75 full-time employees, the attorney said.

“It’s going to be more employees than what’s usually in our typical … MDO,” Costco’s director of real estate added.

While Crockett and Pitcher had qualms about the location, warehouses are allowed in the property’s Light Industrial zoning, making the case a site plan review rather than a rezoning case.

The attorney for the applicant acknowledged that the warehouse wasn’t what the city was looking for at this location, but she said the building met all the requirements for the current zoning.

In site plan reviews, board members are not supposed to take land use in consideration, as they might in a zone change case.

“In law school, they tell us that there’s what’s called a ‘grumbling approval,’ and I’m afraid that that’s where we are because they have this by right,” Pitcher said before voting to approve the plan.

Crockett did more than grumble, though, and cast the lone “no” vote in the 5-1 approval of the site plan.

In other business, the board approved two other large projects in southeast Mesa.

Costco’s 75,000-square-foot “merchandise delivery operation” warehouse with 25 loading docks will sit on vacant land on the northeast corner of Elliot and Ellsworth roads in an area that’s supposed to be for high-tech firms. (City of Mesa)

In these other cases, the items passed on the consent agenda without discussion.

The board signed off on site plans for the 419-unit “Hawes Crossing MX Village 2” apartment complex on the south side of Elliott Road between Sossaman and Hawes Roads.

The complex will include a mix of “luxury” apartment styles spread across 14 three-story buildings on about 20 acres.

Three buildings fronting Elliot Road will consist of “live/work” units, which the applicant said in the projected narrative “help promote a more urban pattern along Elliott.”

The project could be the start of a significant concentration of apartments at this location, as the developer has conceptual plans for an apartment complex of roughly the same size to the east, bringing the total units to nearly 1,000.

The applicant’s narrative says that the project fills “the strong demand for luxury housing opportunities in this rapidly growing area.”

Out of all the projects Planning and Zoning signed off on earlier this month, Mesa planners may have been most excited about the Legacy Gateway Hotels, a campus of three hotels at the northwest corner of State Route 24 and Williams Field.

The 10-acre project, just north of the 320-acre Bell Bank Park sports complex, is slated to add a total of 365 hotel rooms and 7,000 square feet of retail. All three hotels are four stories, and the brands slated for the campus are Residence in by Marriott, Home 2 Suites by Hilton and Element by Marriott. Las Vegas-based developer Tharaldson Hospitality stated in its project the narrative that the new hotels would serve lodging demand connected with Bell Bank Park and Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport.

The site is also close to the 37-acre Cannon Beach surf park and entertainment district currently under construction at Power and Warner Roads and estimated for completion later this year.

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Shuffleboard Bob saves the day for Mesa seniors

BY JOSH ORTEGA Tribune Staff Writer

Thanks to one man the residents of The Citadel Senior Living Community have a new way to stay active.

Thanks to the efforts of Robert “Shuffleboard Bob” Zaletel, the community now has two beautifully refurbished shuffleboard courts for other residents to enjoy that will also play home to The Citadel Vikings, the community’s shuffleboard team and part of the Arizona Shuffleboard Association.

But of all Zaletel’s accomplishments, refurbishing the courts was one he never thought he’d accomplish.

“I mean this with all my heart: I never thought we could even do that,” Zaletel said. “And then once people started coming out, I thought maybe we put a little team together, and some of these some of these people, they never miss [a game].”

Before Zaletel picked up a shuffleboard cue, the star baseball player at Lorain High School in Lorain, Ohio, helped his team to the 1957 state championship, as well as playing Division 1 basketball at Kent State University, where he graduated with a bachelor’s of science in education in 1963.

Zaletel started playing shuffleboard 35 years ago when he was living in Las Vegas and working as a special education teacher for fourth and fifth graders.

The natural athlete has continued to earn

countless tournament wins and was inducted into Arizona Shuffleboard Association Hall of Fame and USA National Shuffleboard Association Player Hall of Fame in 2007.

The humble Zaletel said the only other person to accomplish this feat: his shuffleboard mentor Bud Walrath.

“I say that with pride, and now I’m not trying to brag, but I’m kind of proud of that fact,” Zaletel said.

Zaletel was president of the Arizona Shuffleboard Association in 2000 and suggested to the international association that they bring their biggest tournament back to Mesa for the first time since 1991.

In March 2003, about 250 American, Canadian, Australian, Japanese and Brazilian players converged on Mesa’s Las Palmas Grand for the World Championship Tournament.

Zaletel said his most memorable tournament happened in 1999 in Hemet, California, where he and his good friend Ed played in a doubles tournament comprising 192 teams.

Seven straight wins in a row and the pair found themselves playing against a hometown team from Hemet.

When the dust settled, Zaletel and his Canadian friend walked out of that tournament with $1,300 in prize money, but to this day he’d rather have the trophy.

“I’d rather have a trophy that I can put on my trophy case,” Zaletel said. “I’m what you call old fashioned.”

his reputation in the

Terry Speth, executive director of The Citadel, said Zaletel approached him with an idea about four months ago to fix the old shuffleboard courts, which had fallen into disarray.

With unkept hedges and overgrowth that made the courts unserviceable, Speth started to research the cost to resurface the courts and landscape the area as well as see if other residents had an interest in playing on them.

Normally good at knowing his resident’s needs, Speth said this is the first time a resident has taken an active role in providing something for the facility.

“This the first time we’ve actually had a resident come with a plan,” Speth said. “He’s the one that did the research on how much it would cost to redo the courts.”

Speth said the location gives the residents a perfect spot to play year-round.

“It’s shaded pretty well the way it’s located in here and they can actually play in the afternoons easily even during the hotter times because it’s in the shade,” Speth said. With physical activity so crucial to an aging population’s health, Speth said it’s awesome to have Zaletel motivating other residents to stay active.

“So, it’s just a huge asset to our facility to have a resident like him that wants to improve other people’s lives, keep them active, keep them you know moving,” Speth said. “That’s a big thing at their age, they need to keep active if they want to keep going.”

On Jan. 13, Mary Alice McKim led the visiting shuffleboard team from Orangewood Shadows RV Park.

McKim started playing in 2011 and once played in a tournament with Zaletel, so she knew his reputation.

“So, you can imagine how nervous I was knowing the reputation of Bob,” McKim said. “But he was wonderful and I enjoyed it.” McKim said Zaletel was instrumental in getting her and their league started as well and though The Citadel’s court doesn’t compare to her home courts, she’s happy for the residents and what Zaletel has done for them.

“Bob is very passionate about shuffleboard and I think it’s great that he’s come here and got this set up for the people in the residence here and I look forward to them to continuing,” McKim said.

Agency OKs $70M for Eastmark, other QC schools

BY MARK MORAN

Tribune Staff Writer

The state agency that oversees funding for land and construction of new school buildings in Arizona has approved over $70 million to Queen Creek Unified School District for land purchases and new school buildings.

The School Facilities Oversight Board authorized $59.1-million dollars be allocated for new school buildings, expansions and additions, including the biggest ticket item – $27.8 million to build a new elementary school. Another $11.2 was approved to buy 11.4 acres for it.

The 90,000-square-foot school, thought to be the largest elementary in Arizona, will be built “somewhere in the Eastmark area, not specifically certain yet,” Queen Creek school board member James Knox said, adding it will be accommodate 1,000 students.

“In Eastmark,” he said, “this is the last opportunity to do anything in that area.”

The board also allocated $10.1-million to the district for a combined 33,000 additional square feet at Gateway Polytechnic Academy, a K-6 school, and Schnepf Elementary, which together will accommodate an additional 365 students in all.

More than $21-million is targeted for 65,000 square feet of new space at the East-

mark and Crismon high school buildings. That space will be developed for junior high students who take classes in those buildings. The expansion will accommodate an additional 650 students.

The board’s allocation is especially significant for Queen Creek Unified because voters have rejected bond measures in the last two years to fund additional facilities to accommodate soaring student enrollment. The most bond proposal had sought $198 million.

State officials say that given Queen Creek’s demonstrated lack of support for tax increases of any kind, the QCUSD Governing Board is facing a challenging task.

“I have experience building schools in

a time of hyper-growth prior to the Great Recession. I thought it was difficult then but what Queen Creek is faced with this even more difficult,” said Scott Thompson, a Facilities Oversight Board member and Mesa Public Schools assistant superintendent.

“What they have accomplished with limited dollars has been amazing.”

Thompson added, “Great work has been done by both the SFOB and the Legislature to address existing building needs as well as new construction. Unfortunately, with the recent increase in inflation costs and supply chain issues, I fear our efforts are still falling short of providing schools with what they need.”

Robert “Shuffleboard Bob” Zaletel worked to restore shuffleboard courts at a Mesa senior living community, furthering

sport. (David Minton/Tribune Staff Photographer)

BUYING OLD TOYS

Magee

Sunday - Jan 22nd

Towne Place Suites Marriott: 7271 North Zanjero Blvd, Glendale,

Monday - Jan 23rd

Holiday Inn Express: 3131 North Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale, AZ

Tuesday - Jan 24th

Wednesday - Jan 25th

4 Points Sheraton: 6850 East Williams Field Road, Mesa, AZ 561-628-1990 • Hours Each Day 9:30 am to 4:30 pm

Courtyard Marriott: 2621 South 47th St., Phoenix, AZ (Close to the Airport)

Mesa music teacher studied with guitar greats

As a teacher at Music Makers Workshop in Ahwatukee, Dr. Steve Kinigstein helps his students master the strings of guitars and ukeles.

As a composer and professional musician, Kinigstein by his own account is an explorer traversing an endless universe of sounds and melodies.

“My favorite thing about being a musician is the joy of discovery,” he said.

“Whether I am playing or composing there is always something new that pops up. When I’m teaching, I love that moment of epiphany when the expression on the face of a student tells me something new has just clicked.”

And as a musician, he said, “Whatever I might be playing, there is always something popping up that arouses my desire to explore.”

He recalled that when he started learning the guitar at age 8, “music had a compound and somewhat complex role in the early years of my life” as he discovered that music “was transporting to me” and in turn “I brought my own curiosity to the table.”

At age 14, tragedy struck when his father passed away and because he had no siblings he could share his grief with, he found comfort in music, practicing for hours after school and throughout the weekend so much so that he came “a musical recluse” for about a year.

Kinigstein’s desire to play in a band ended his grieving period and soon he was off on a musical odyssey that deepened his passion for music and expanded his reportoire.

His formal education included a bachelor’s degree from the Manhattan School of Music and a master’s degree and doctorate from Columbia Univer-

sity in New York City.

His “informal” education, though, included studying under some of the great guitarists and composers of several generations.

He studied guitar with masters of the instrument such as Jim Hall, George Benson, Ike Isaacs, and Harry Leahy. Recommended for the doctoral program at Columbia by the late composer Milton Babbitt, who earned a reputation for his work in electronic music, Kinigstein studied composition under some of the giants in composing, including Ursula Mamlok, David Rakowski, Mario Davidovsky, Giampaolo Bracali and George Edwards. While living in New York and going to school there, he earned his living performing as a substitute guitarist in the orchestras of several Broadway shows, including “Grease,” “They’re Playing our Song” and “Shenandoah,” and as a studio guitarist for recordings and commercials as well as teach-

ing guitar privately.

In 2009, he began writing for Just Jazz Guitar magazine, leading him to a friendship with his idol, Mundell Lowe, the late American jazz guitarist who worked often in radio, television and film, and as a session musician.

Kinigstein wrote and delivered Lowe’s eulogy at his funeral.

Lowe had chosen Kinigstein to produce his final CD, “Poor Butterfly,” which rose to #58 on the national jazz “Top 100” chart and still gets air-play in the USA and abroad.

Kinigstein’s teaching career began in the Los Angeles Unified School District in 1998, where, despite a two-year battle with cancer, he was a band and orchestra director and served as chairman of instrumental music. He also created and designed the guitar course for the district. He also was a clinician on a national level, giving seminars to improve the effectiveness of guitar teachers who were working in the secondary level classroom.

A Mesa resident since 2020, Kinigstein recently completed a biography on Lowe.

He also teaches students at all levels at Music Makers Workshop and composes..

“Being a trained composer, I, of course, write my own music,” he said. “I don’t really have what I would call a definitive creative process. I do have some of my own rules to which I strictly stick. If I’m composing for

guitar, I never have my instrument in my hands.

“This comes from a studious avoidance – even a fear – of composing to my own technique rather than the pure musical idea. I always let that which I’ve written sit overnight before I revise or develop it further. I never show it to anyone until it is absolutely finished.”

As he looks at his career as a performer, a highlight for him was his appearance at age 18 in the Atlanta Pop Festival in Georgia at the stadium that hosted Braves games.

“Waiting in the dugout and watching the other performers until it was time to go on, I was sitting among stars such as Frank Zappa, Steve Winwood, and Duane Allman. Albert King, my favorite blues guitar player was sitting next to me, holding his guitar. Summoning up my courage, I asked him if he was going to play my absolute, number one favorite Albert King tune, ‘As the Years Go Passing By.’ “I was shocked when he handed me his guitar and said, ‘Why don’t you?’ I had copied and learned the solo from the song note for note. By some miracle my nerves – which were already in fifth gear – didn’t force me to choke. When I finished playing it, I handed him back his guitar. He just looked at me and said, ‘That’s right boy. You’re doing it right.’ I couldn’t believe what had just happened – right in front of Zappa, Winwood, and Allman.”

He said he likes to tell his students to “get a clear idea of their musical goals.”

“These will evolve through time.” he tells them. “If you stick with it, you will achieve them.”

To learn about his lessons and those of other Music Makers Workshop teachers, call 480-706-1224, email lessons@mmwaz. com or check out mmwaz.com.

TRIBUNE NEWS STAFF

Dr. Steve Kinigstein teaches guitar to all levels of students at Music Makers Workshop in Ahwatukee. (Courtesy of Music Makers Workshop)

Popular cigar shop expands into Mesa

BY JOSH ORTEGA Tribune Staff Writer

It only took one puff from a premium cigar in a Beverly Hills restaurant in the ‘90s and Ron Hardin became a connoisseur.

Now, as the majority owner of Maduro’s Fine Cigars East, Hardin said premium cigars sit in a completely different class from other smokers.

And that’s why lounges like his newest one at 1907 W. Main St. in Mesa exist: they offer an environment and a vibe all their own that makes cigar smoking an opportunity to create a small, quaint fraternity.

“The conversation is right there with the cigar that you’re smoking, by the person asking the question ‘what are you smoking?’” Hardin said. “And it goes from there.”

Born in Kansas City, Kansas, Hardin spent a large part of his career traveling as a management consultant. After that first puff in Beverly Hills, he made it a point to stop at a cigar lounge in every city he visited.

At every stop, Hardin said he had the most interesting conversations with the most interesting people from all walks of life, with titles that ranged from plumbers and janitors to CEOs of Fortune 500 companies.

“When you walk through the door of a cigar lounge, typically, you’re going to see titles drop; people don’t even get into that,” Hardin said. “It’s really about the cigars and around the cigar smoking experience.”

This month, Hardin celebrates 13 years in business for his original location at 4991 S. Alma School Road, Chandler, but he said the reinvigoration of Mesa’s business scene seemed like a natural fit for expansion.

“I just heard so many good things about the evolution and being right in the reinvention,” Hardin said. “I just think it’s a huge opportunity, so I’m looking

one of approximately 100 brands in the Mesa store.

forward to it.”

Mesa’s business-friendly atmosphere has kept the city on his radar for the past several years and Hardin said it’s opened itself to businesses that historically might not have seemed welcomed in the city otherwise.

“With it being more accepting and more of a business opportunity that draws people in, I think the city has realized that places like this are really good for the vibe in the city,” Hardin said.

With that in mind, Hardin set out to create a venue in line with what Maduro’s has become known for but still have the location that gels with the neighborhood.

“So, the goal was to create kind of a similar atmosphere, understanding that the demographic is completely different,” Hardin said.

Maduro – which is Spanish for “mature” or “ripe” – is one of two broad categories of wrapper leaves derived from places like Honduras, Nicaragua, and the Dominican Republic.

It’s also one of Hardin’s favorites and

Though many aficionados say the best cigars come from Cuba, Hardin said the best tobacco comes from Nicaragua –where Hardin sources much of his product – along with the Dominican Republic and Honduras.

Some of that comes from the fact that many Cuban immigrants have taken their growing skills to other countries.

“Quiet as it’s kept, a lot of those immigrants have done far better than Cuban,” Hardin said. “As matter of fact, there’s a lot of tobacco that goes back to Cuba because of the worldwide demand.”

Hardin also noted that premium cigars don’t appeal to kids.

“We don’t have the cool camels and stuff like that,” Hardin said. “It’s not what we do.”

Along with the higher quality of product as opposed to places like smoke shops, Hardin and his staff bring quality – such as humidification of the cigars and education about the products, soon to include the pairing of particular cigars with craft beers at an on-site bar.

“We pride ourselves on the knowledge that the folks working here have of our pipes and whatnot,” Hardin said. “Folks come to us first when they want to get edu-

cated, basically Cigar 101.”

With both a member and VIP lounge, Hardin’s Mesa location also has become a place that cigar amateurs and aficionados can socialize over a premium “stick.”

Memberships run $275 a month with members receiving $200 back in store credit and access to the member lounge with TVs, lounge chairs and a quiet area to kick back and puff your time away.

“You still have your TV’s if you want to look up for a little distraction, but it’s really meant to be more of a place within the spot that’s quiet,” Hardin said.

For $500 a month, Hardin offers the more exclusive VIP lounge with the same $200 store credit but limited to 25 people with a private entrance.

Since taking over the location last July, Hardin has revamped the store’s look and feel to appeal to a demographic that wouldn’t have necessarily come to Mesa before, especially considering Maduro’s central location can help the city draw tourist dollars from events such as Spring Training.

“I hope it becomes a hub for folks that are inside these companies, you know cigar aficionados, that want to sit and have the best selection and, you know, just enjoy the environment, the people, the music, and have a good time,” Hardin said.

Maduro’s Fine Cigars & Tobacco East provides a bar and lounge and soon will offer suggested pairings of food and cigars. (David Minton/Tribune Staff Photographer)

Ron Hardin believes Maduro’s Fine Cigars & Tobacco East will draw people to downtown Mesa because of its emphasis on quality and an appropriate environment for enjoying a fine cigar. (David Minton/Tribune Staff Photographer)

Heartbreaking tragedy, heartwarming response

BY DAVID LEIBOWITZ Tribune Columnist

Sometimes buried in the most heartbreaking tales we discover a glimmer of hope. It is one good reason to read the news, even now, when so much that makes headlines involves the worst of us doing the worst things.

The goodness of people still exists. It surfaces at unexpected moments, especially when the unimaginable happens. Like the deaths of three Chandler residents, 49-year-old Narayana Muddana; his wife Haritha, age 36; and family friend, husband and father of one, 47-year-old Gokul Mediseti.

The trio died Dec. 26, according to police, when they fell through the ice at Woods Canyon Lake outside Payson. The story of their winter picnic gone wrong has resided in the pit of my stomach for three weeks –especially the knowledge that among the witnesses were the Muddanas’ two daughters, ages 11 and 7, as well as Gokul’s wife

and child.

I’ve been to that lake. It’s idyllic, a perfect place to spend a cold holiday afternoon, a spot for pictures, laughter and making memories. But imagining the sound of cracking ice and the screams –it’s something I can’t shake.

Moments after the three plunged in, a woman and two children on shore waded in to attempt a rescue. They failed, but made it out of the 30-degree water alive.

The Coconino County Sheriff’s Office and fire fighters responded. They pulled out Haritha, but she was pronounced dead at the scene. Rescue divers located the two fathers the next day.

“You never get used to it. Especially when you’re dealing with the children,” John Paxton with the Sheriff’s Office told ABC15. “We wanted to make sure they felt as safe as possible. Tried to keep them warm and away from the scene as best we could.”

The Arizona Department of Child Safety came to the lake that night and took cus-

tody of the Muddanna girls, suddenly orphaned. The children have traveled back to India to live with their grandparents.

The story would be a tragedy start to finish, save for the astonishing generosity that has followed. It comes courtesy of the 12,700 donors who chipped in to a GoFundMe campaign started the day after the deaths by a family friend named Parvathi Mettu.

Mettu stopped accepting donations a few days in, when the GoFundMe’s balance stood at $611,996.

“We offer our deepest heartfelt gratitude to all donors with folded hands and heads,” Mettu wrote on the donation page. “With the same sincere gratitude, we bring this initiative to a close.”

The last update, Jan. 1, indicates an attorney and an accountant have been engaged to secure the donations for the surviving children, to pay for “kids education and future expenses.”

The largest donation was $2,000. A dozen people donated $1,000 or more. But the

giving that heartened me the most came from the hundreds of charitable souls who gave 10 bucks or 20 bucks anonymously.

Such small acts of kindness appear to have fallen out of fashion nowadays, when we are more riveted by celebrity and cultural influencers, political food fights and the latest Netflix serial killer documentary. I don’t say that as a scold, because I am no less desensitized than any other member of the masses.

Some days I pore over the news mindlessly, half-reading, the words disconnected from meaning. The murders blend together, the mayhem feels like one long horror film. It’s all I can do to flip to the comics, to Blondie, where at least Dagwood Bumstead never ages.

Every once in a while, though, people still have the capacity to surprise and to care. My heart aches for Narayana, Haritha, Gokul and kin.

But epic giving in the face of epic loss? Out of such things, we make meaning from the senseless.

Classified doc scandal may show Biden the door

BY JD HAYWORTH Tribune Columnist

History recalls the brutal reign of a father and son in the impoverished island nation of Haiti. Francois Duvalier (“Papa Doc”), a physician educated in the United States, was initially elected president in 1957, but soon proved to be more of a despot than a doctor.

With the aid of an undercover death squad, he eliminated opponents and consolidated power, naming himself “President for Life” in 1964.

Upon “Papa Doc’s” death in 1971, son Jean-Claude Duvalier, nicknamed “Baby Doc, “became President, and

ruled in the same repressive fashion until he was overthrown in 1986.

Current events in this country have prompted some observers to apply those historical Haitian nicknames to America’s first family. “Papa Doc” Joe and “Baby Doc” Hunter

They have acquired them for their suspected illegal mishandling of classified documents.

Sadly, but predictably, Ol’ Joe and his legal team are writing a narrative on-the-fly, counting on the continued indulgence of the left and the press to help both “Papa and Baby” Biden skate.

But what worked so well two years ago in the presidential campaign may

not yield the same results in the wake of the midterm elections.

Now, it appears that key elements of the Democrat base have decided to pursue a new pre-2024 policy and personnel imperative. Simply stated, they want to prove to the cognitively impaired octogenarian they labored to install at the 46th President that “this is no country for old men.”

What prompted this progressive “call to action?”

Joe Biden’s loud and repeated outbursts that he would be more than happy to continue wandering off, eating ice cream, and mumbling incoherently as the “Leader of the Free World” for a second term.

Make no mistake, this decision has nothing to do with principle…and everything to do with politics.

The left is no longer confident that it can muster more votes than registered voters, as was done by the Dems in 2020.

They no longer feel comfortable “mailing it in,” and their reasons are both sound and several, as the policy performance of the Biden Bunch has proven pathetic.

Misfits, malcontents, and miscreants do not a majority make – nor a winning margin that can be easily rigged – through further “reform.”

Mesa, AZ – When it comes to chronic pain and/ or neuropathy, the most common doctor-prescribed treatment is drugs like Gabapentin, Lyrica, Cymbalta, and Neurontin. The problem with antidepressants or anti-seizure medications like these is that they offer purely symptomatic relief, as opposed to targeting and treating the root of the problem. Worse, these drugs often trigger an onset of uncomfortable, painful, and sometimes harmful side effects.

The only way to effectively treat chronic pain and/or peripheral neuropathy is by targeting the source, which is the result of nerve damage owing to inadequate blood flow to the nerves in the hands and feet. This often causes weakness, numbness, balance problems. A lack of nutrients causes the nerves degenerate – an insidious

As displayed in figure 1 above, the nerves are surrounded by diseased, withered blood vessels. A lack of sufficient nutrients means the nerves

cannot survive, and thus, slowly die. This leads to those painful and frustrating consequences we were talking about earlier, like weakness, numbness, tingling, balance issues, and perhaps even a burning sensation.

The drugs your doctor might prescribe will temporarily conceal the problems, putting a “Band-Aid” over a situation that will only continue to deteriorate without further action.

Thankfully, Mesa is the birthplace of a brandnew facility that sheds new light on this pressing problem of peripheral neuropathy and chronic pain. The company is trailblazing the medical industry by replacing outdated drugs and symptomatic reprieves with an advanced machine that targets the root of the problem at hand.

Effective neuropathy treatment relies on the following three factors:

1. Finding the underlying cause

2. Determining the extent of the nerve damage (above 95% nerve loss is rarely treatable)

3. The amount of treatment required for the patient’s unique condition

Aspen Medical in Mesa, AZ uses a state-of-the-art electric cell signaling systems worth $100,000.00. Th is ground-breaking treatment is engineered to achieve the following, accompanied by advanced diagnostics and a basic skin biopsy to accurately analyze results:

1. Increases blood flow

2. Stimulates and strengthens small fiber nerves

3. Improves brain-based pain

The treatment works by delivering energy to the affected area(s) at varying wavelengths, from low- to middle-frequency signals, while also using Amplitude Modulated (AM) and Frequency Modulated (FM) signaling.

It’s completely painless!

THE GREAT NEWS IS THAT THIS TREATMENT IS COVERED BY MEDICARE, MEDICAID, AND MOST INSURANCES!!

Depending on your coverage, your peripheral neuropathy treatment could cost almost nothing – or be absolutely free.

The number of treatments required varies from patient to patient, and can only be determined following an in-depth neurological and vascular examination. As long as you have less than 95% nerve damage, there is hope!

Aspen Medical begins by analyzing the extent of the nerve damage –a complimentary service for your friends and family. Each exam comprises a detailed sensory evaluation, extensive peripheral vascular testing, and comprehensive analysis of neuropathy findings.

Aspen Medical will be offering this free chronic pain and neuropathy severity evaluation will be available until January 31st, 2023 Call (480) 274-3157 to make an appointment

Due to our very busy office schedule, we are limiting this offer to the first 10 c allers Y OU DO NOT HAVE TO SUFFER ANOTHER MINUTE, CALL (480) 274-3157 NOW!!

We are extremely busy, so we are unavailable, please leave a voice message and we will get back to you as soon as possible. Aspen Medical 4540

When We Waste Food, We Waste Arizona’s Precious Water

BY HILLARY BRYANT Tribune Guest Writer

(Mesa, AZ)— As water cuts take effect in Arizona and Valley residents aim to conserve water, one crucial point is being overlooked: food waste. Simply put, when we waste food, we waste water. And Arizona is the worst offender when it comes to tossing out meals.

Whether directly or indirectly, water is used to produce every item of food. According to data from the Water Footprint Calculator, a 4 oz serving of chicken uses 130 gallons of water, and 4 oz of almonds uses a shocking 483 gallons.

If these numbers seem extreme, take a moment to think about how water is necessary in multiple aspects of the processes that get our food from farm to table. Plants need watered. Animals need hydration. Products need to be

cleaned. Then there are packaging and distribution protocols that require even more H2O.

As of January 1, 2023, Arizona has entered into a Tier 2a water shortage condition. This means Arizona will face a 21% cut of the state’s yearly water allotment from the Colorado River, according to the Bureau of Reclamation.

Meanwhile, with minimal legislative direction, Arizona is the state wasting the item that requires the most water to make: food.

LawnStarter.com analyzed data from Food Rescue US, ReFED, US Environmental Protection Agency, and US Composting Council. The analysis revealed our state has the highest share of food wasted and the lowest share recycled. It also ranked third for the lowest share of food donated to people in need. Regarding policy, Arizona has robust protections for food donors, but no laws mandating food donation.

Waste Not knows how to correct course and mitigate water waste via food rescue. In 2022, the nonprofit conserved over 220 million gallons of water.

The Arizona Department of Water Resources promotes water conservation in ways like reduced shower times, running a dishwasher or washing machine only when you have a full load, or shutting off automatic watering systems. While all of these steps are critical, we would all benefit from food waste reduction being top of mind, too.

There are two simple ways residents can be a part of eliminating food waste. One of the easiest ways is to plan out your meals and only buy what you know you will use. Another is to use the FIFO method of ‘first in, first out’ when organizing your food, using expiration dates as guideposts. If you find yourself with excess food, we encourage individuals to find a

food bank that will accept the donation. The Arizona Food Bank Network is a great resource to find your nearest local food bank. For businesses, we encourage becoming a food donor with Waste Not.

Every month, Waste Not picks up tens of thousands of pounds of excess food that would otherwise have been wasted. The food is rescued from restaurants, grocery stores, catering companies, and other businesses which we deliver to nonprofit agencies valleywide. Seven days a week, Waste Not is rescuing food, conserving water, and feeding hungry Arizonans. For every pound of food rescued, 99 gallons of water are saved.

Arizona is at a crossroads when it comes to where we stand on issues like food waste and water conservation. We have the opportunity to be at the forefront of policy change to better our

21

HAYWORTH from page 18

So for the Dems, the decision is simple: help Ol’ Joe reach the conclusion that he can have even more ice cream—and enjoy longer naps—as a former president.

Most assuredly, that decision is not unanimous. Nor can its implementation thus far be described as deft.

But through the collective lens of the left, it has been handled with the proper “chronological considerations.”

According to the timeline, CBS News confirmed on Jan. 10 that the U.S. Attorney in Chicago was directed by Attorney General Merrick Garland to review documents marked classified and discovered in the office of the Penn Biden Center in Washington, “according to two sources with knowledge of the inquiry.”

White House attorney Richard Sauber then went on-the-record, confirming that the classified materials were “identified by attorneys for Mr. Biden on Nov. 2,” no doubt prompting a giant sigh of collective relief in from the

Dems – who quickly noted t the news had been suppressed for two months and the six crucial days before the midterm elections, no doubt limiting Democrat losses in the House and Senate.

More classified documents were found at Joe Biden’s Delaware home, in the garage behind Joe’s prized 1967 Corvette.

Hunter Biden paid almost $50,000 in monthly rent to his pop while living at that same Delaware residence from March,2017 to February 2018 and Chinese Communists were paying big money to Hunter while donating the same big bucks to the Penn Biden Center.

How bad is it for the Bidens? Bad enough to have Dem “pitbull” attorney Andrew Weissmann accuse Ol’ Joe of a coverup and Rep. Adam Schiff, DCalifornia, suggest that our national security was jeopardized—echoing his accusation against President Trump. Bad enough for “Papa Doc” and “Baby Doc” Biden to yearn for a Haitian vacation.

BRYANT

from page 20

state and secure our future. Individuals and businesses alike can do their part to reduce their own environmental impact, but lasting change will only be achieved by advocating for new legislation. The time for talk is over. It is now time to take action.

Hillary Bryant is the Executive Director of Waste Not.

ANSWERS TO PUZZLES AND SUDOKU from Page 25

Valid only at Rudy’s Chandler, Gilbert, Goodyear, and Tucson locations only. Not valid with any other promotion. Coupon must

Kota Benson leaving his mark on Mesa basketball program

BY AARON HEALY Tribune Contributing Writer

Basketball has always been a big part of Kota Benson’s life.

After transferring to Mesa High School prior to his junior year, Benson helped his team become a top ten contender in the state for the 6A Conference

Basketball is more than just a game to Benson, it’s about the personal relationships he has built. Some of these relationships will continue to shape his basketball career.

“I’m proud of the relationships I have built, the people that I have gotten to know over the years,” Benson said. “The game has taken me a lot of places, and I have been fortunate enough to know and meet new people.”

Benson averages 15.4 points per game and has made the most 3-point shots in the 6A East Valley with 54.

Producing that many points and three pointers does not come out of nowhere. Benson has put in the work on and off

the court to improve his game.

“It’s been a long journey, I started playing when I was really young and it’s just been a constant buildup of practicing with teams as well as getting in the gym and working on my skill work,” Benson said.

“I try to figure out what I need to get better at and maximize what I can be best at.”

Benson puts up hundreds of shots a day whether it be free throws, 3-pointers or even layups to become the player that he wants to be.

His effort has been seen by head coach Scott Stansberry, who believes Benson makes his job effortless.

“I love coaching Kota, he makes my job easier, he is very coachable, I mean he’s such a talent, he is so humble, and he works hard for everything that he’s earned,” Stansberry said.

Stansberry believes that Benson’s drive to be great comes from the work that he puts in on the court.

“He’s the first one to show up and the last one to leave every day, after games he even goes out onto the court and gets extra shots up,” Stansberry said. “He’s a gym rat, he’s always in the gym.”

Benson’s efforts throughout high school basketball have led him to surpass 1,200 points this past year.

He achieved this milestone last December against Salpointe Catholic High School in Tucson.

It’s an amazing achievement for any high school athlete, and something Benson is very proud of.

“It felt really good, it was a surreal moment because I’m from Tucson and we played in Tucson,” Benson said. “It was a cool feeling to do it in my hometown against Salpointe, and it was a good accomplishment that I worked hard for.”

Throughout his high school career, Benson has remained humble and always put the team first.

The Jackrabbits are truly proud to call

Benson a great teammate. His teammate, junior forward Anthony Seumanu, believes he is a treasure to play with.

“Playing with Kota is actually a blessing because he’s a really good playmaker and he gets a lot of his teammates open,” Seumanu said. “He’s a facilitator, he can create off the ball for himself and it’s really great to have him as our teammate.

“His mindset is always winning every day, just win the day and get through every drill that’s hard.”

Benson’s scoring accolade is one of the greatest accomplishments during his high school career.

Currently, he has received an offer from Northwest Indian College. It’s something he is very thankful for.

“It was cool, it’s something that every athlete works towards, to have the opportunity to play in college,” Benson said. “It was a great thing that happened to me that I’m grateful for.”

Benson’s commitment to being a

team player and a consistent scorer has led Mesa to a 14-5 record heading into Thursday’s matchup against Westwood. He and the Jackrabbits are currently ranked No. 8 in the 6A Conference rankings and No. 18 in the Open Division.

The Jackrabbits look to continue their winning ways while contending for the state playoffs and eventual state championship.

Stansberry believes Benson has what it takes to help lead the Jackrabbits on a deep playoff run this season. Part of that is due to his calm nature, much of which he gets from advice provide by Stansberry.

“No matter what, let the game come to you, play your game. When you play your game there’s really no one that can really guard you, do your thing,” Stansberry said.

“He knows his basketball IQ is so high, he just needs to be reminded to play his game.”

Mesa senior guard Kota Benson has quickly become one of the top players for the Jackrabbits this season. His high basketball IQ and natural leadership skills makes him a favorite among his teammates. (Dave Minton/Tribune Staff)

Mesa coach Scott Stansberry takes pride in being able to coach Benson. He recognizes his willingness to work hard to be great on the court.

(Dave Minton/Tribune Staff)

Western Week galloping back to Scottsdale

BY ALEX GALLAGHER

GetOut Staff Writer

Western Week returns to Scottsdale beginning Saturday, Jan. 28, bringing a broad range of classic events that pay homage to the history of the “West’s Most Western Town.”

This year brings plenty of promise as two keystone events will be celebrating big anniversaries.

The Hash Knife Pony Express will make its 65th annual pilgrimage from Holbrook to Scottsdale to deliver the mail via pony express and the Parada Del Sol will march for the 69th consecutive year.

The parade follows a route from Drinkwater Boulevard along Scottsdale Road, finishing at Brown Avenue and Indian School Road.

Immediately following the parade, Old Town transforms into a massive Western-style block party with a kids’ zone, food trucks, merchandise vendors and multiple stages with live entertainment from today’s popular bands to traditional performers.

This year’s theme – Cowboy Kickoff –recognizes Super Bowl LVII the following weekend. Guests can expect a fun melding for both modern-day cowpokes and football fans.

All the events will be restriction-free for the first time in three years.

“Last year, I was pleasantly surprised with the number of people we attracted for both Hash Knife Pony Express and the Parada Del Sol,” said city Tourism and Events Director Karen Churchard.

“You could tell that even last year, people were excited to be out again. I think this year we’re anticipating record attendance at a lot of our upcoming events.”

Western Week kicks off on Saturday, Jan. 28, with casual events like the Old-

Town Farmers Market and specialized Puzzle Rides.

However, the events pick up steam as February unfolds.

One event Churchard expects staggering attendance at is the Arizona Indian Festival Feb. 4-5.

“One of the biggest things that we’re excited about is having the Arizona Indian Festival back in the Civic Center where it debuted as an annual event seven years ago and will be one of the first free events in the newly opened Civic Center,” Churchard said.

However, the cornerstones of Western Week are still the arrival of the Hash Knife Pony Express and the Parada Del Sol that follows a day later.

Because of this, Western Spirit: Scottsdale’s Museum of the West offers a

unique conversation with Hash Knife Pony Express Captain Mark Reynolds –which Scholefield says has been a popular attraction during Western Week.

“Last year, we formally scheduled Mark to formally speak at the museum and despite the suggested guidelines we had in place to keep everyone six feet apart, we had a standing-room-only crowd in our theater,” said museum spokesman David Scholefield. “Although we advised people to be concerned about COVID, they persisted because they thought ‘this is so interesting.’”

This year, Reynolds will speak at the Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust Theater/Auditorium at Western Spirit: Scottsdale’s Museum of the West at 9:45 a.m. and 10:45 a.m. on Feb. 3 and Feb 4. The free talks are part of the museum’s free

admission days Feb. 3 and Feb. 4.

Reynolds will not be the only voice delivering an informative talk at the Museum of the West. Scottsdale historian Joan Fudala will discuss the past six decades of the Parada Del Sol Feb. 2. Scholefield said Western Week also helps focus more attention on Scottsdale’s Arts District.

“I applaud the city for taking four or five events and rolling them up into a bigger one that can be marketed as Western Week,” he said. “I also think it’s an excellent way for the Arts District to come together.”

Western Week will also benefit from the coming uptick of tourism brought on by the Super Bowl at State Farm Sta-

Western Week returns beginning Saturday, January 28 bringing western flare back to the west’s most western town. (Facebook)

WESTERN

from page 23

dium Feb. 12.

Because of this, Churchard teased that there could be some cross-partnership between the Super Bowl and Western Week.

“We’re working with the Arizona Super Bowl host committee about having some components to recognize and celebrate when the Super Bowl comes into town the following weekend,” Churchard said.

However, one thing remains certain. This year’s Western Week is set to draw a crowd, which is ultimately good news for the city and Old Town establishments.

“I’m anticipating further growth this year both at the events during the whole week and especially here at the museum,” Scholefield said.

Western Week highlights

Old Town Scottsdale Farmers Market

Saturday, Jan. 29, and Feb. 4 8 a.m.-1 p.m.

Brown Avenue & 1st Street

Offers indigenous specialties of the West, flowers, free-range beef, eggs, local cheeses, freshly baked artisan breads, jams and more from local purveyors.

Western Spirit Gold Palette ArtWalk Feb. 2 | 6:30-9 p.m.

Scottsdale Arts District

Guests can stroll the streets of the Scottsdale Arts District and take in authentic Western entertainment as well as exclusive Western-themed exhibitions at participating galleries.

Marching through Six Decades of Parada Del Sol

Feb. 2 | 6-7 p.m.

Western Spirit: Scottsdale’s Museum of the West

3830 N Marshall Way

Scottsdale’s Community Historian Joan Fudala leads this special photorich presentation on the Parada from its origins to date. Held in the Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust Theater, the

event does not require registration but attendance is limited.

65th Annual Hashknife Pony Express Arrival

Feb. 3 | 11 a.m.-1 p.m.

Western Spirit: Scottsdale’s Museum of the West

Attendees are invited to “saddle up” for this one-of-a-kind experience in celebration of the arrival of the Hashknife Pony Express, the oldest officially sanctioned Pony Express in the world, which delivers more than 20,000 pieces of U.S. Mail to the steps of Scottsdale’s Museum of the West.

The event begins with live music, bands, line dancers, Native American hoop dancers and royalty, kids’ activities and food trucks. Riders arrive at noon. Event is free, as is admission to the museum all day.

History and Stories of the Hashknife Pony Express

Feb. 3 | 9:45 and 10:45 a.m. and Feb. 4 9:45 and 10:45 a.m.

Western Spirit: Scottsdale’s Museum of the West

In addition to free admission to the

museum, Western Spirit hosts multiple History and “Stories of the Hashknife Pony Express” educational seminars in the Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust Theater/Auditorium.

69th Annual Scottsdale Parada del Sol Historic Parade and Trail’s End Festival

Feb. 4 | 10 a.m.-noon (parade), noon-4 p.m. (festival)

Old Town Scottsdale – Scottsdale Road

Presented by Oliver Smith Jeweler, the 69th Annual Scottsdale Parada Del Sol Parade and Trail’s End Festival celebrates the city’s Wild West roots beginning with a family-friendly parade featuring more than 125 entries such as vibrant floats, mounted horse-riders, horse-drawn carriages, school marching bands, wagons and stagecoaches representing multiple cultures from Mexican and Native American to Arabian and Western.

Arizona Indian Festival Feb. 4 | 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Feb. 5 | 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Scottsdale Civic Center

The Arizona American Indian Tourism Association (AAITA), in partnership with Arizona’s Native American tribes, hosts this annual event that offers guests the unique opportunity to learn more about the state’s Native American Indian tribes by exploring examples of traditional Indian villages and dwellings, experiencing traditional arts and crafts demonstrations and enjoying native food vendors and native mainstage entertainment such as dancing and singing.

The Tribal Travel and Tourism offices will showcase native destinations.

The city of Scottsdale’s rich history dates back more than 130 years to the original farming and ranching operations that earned it the title of “The West’s Most Western Town.” Today, Old Town is a bustling and sophisticated area with dozens of local boutiques, art galleries, fine dining establishments, wineries and craft breweries.

However, the city works hard to maintain its “Wild West” charm and keep its heritage alive through events such as Western Week.

More information: scottsdalewesternweek.com.

One of the top attractions of Western Week remains the Parada Del Sol. (Facebook)

Foster Home Providers Wanted

Foster Home Providers Wanted

Foster Home Providers Wanted

We are looking for caring people to welcome developmentally disabled people into their homes similar to a foster home. Homes funded by the State of Arizona, Division of Developmental Disabilities are administered by provider agencies such as ours, Consumer Advocacy Projects, Inc. (CAP). CAP was founded in 1997 and has provided services to hundreds of disabled members primarily in their group home system.

We are looking for caring people to welcome developmentally disabled people into their homes similar to a foster home. Homes funded by the State of Arizona, Division of Developmental Disabilities are administered by provider agencies such as ours, Consumer Advocacy Projects, Inc. (CAP). CAP was founded in 1997 and has provided services to hundreds of disabled members primarily in their group home system.

We are looking for caring people to welcome developmentally disabled people into their homes similar to a foster home. Homes funded by the State of Arizona, Division of Developmental Disabilities are administered by provider agencies such as ours, Consumer Advocacy Projects, Inc. (CAP). CAP was founded in 1997 and has provided services to hundreds of disabled members primarily in their group home system.

Becoming a Foster Care Provider requires several steps to become licensed as a State of Arizona approved provider. Steps include background checks, physical environment inspections and training to ensure a safe environment for the member(s). Our agency provides guidance to work through these steps with you and / or your family. Individuals or families wanting to welcome our adults into your home, should be caring, compassionate and attentive to the needs of the members.

Becoming a Foster Care Provider requires several steps to become licensed as a State of Arizona approved provider. Steps include background checks, physical environment inspections and training to ensure a safe environment for the member(s). Our agency provides guidance to work through these steps with you and / or your family. Individuals or families wanting to welcome our adults into your home, should be caring, compassionate and attentive to the needs of the members.

Becoming a Foster Care Provider requires several steps to become licensed as a State of Arizona approved provider. Steps include background checks, physical environment inspections and training to ensure a safe environment for the member(s). Our agency provides guidance to work through these steps with you and / or your family. Individuals or families wanting to welcome our adults into your home, should be caring, compassionate and attentive to the needs of the members.

If interested, please email ddfosterhomes@az-cap.com to learn more, or if you have questions or would like to initiate this exciting process.

If interested, please email ddfosterhomes@az-cap.com to learn more, or if you have questions or would like to initiate this exciting process.

If interested, please email ddfosterhomes@az-cap.com to learn more, or if you have questions or would like to initiate this exciting process.

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DENTAL Insurance

CITY OF MESA, ARIZONA

ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS (RFQ)

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the City of Mesa is seeking up to 3 qualified Consultants for the following:

FIRE STATION 205 REBUILD AND FIRE STATIONS 223 AND 224

VARIOUS LOCATIONS

PROJECT NO. C10120

The City of Mesa is seeking up to 3 qualified Consultants to provide design services for the Fire Station 205 Rebuild and Fire Stations 223 and 224 Project. All qualified firms that are interested in providing these services are invited to submit their Statements of Qualifications (SOQ) in accordance with the requirements detailed in the Request for Qualifications (RFQ). The fire station projects consist of providing programming documents, layout alternatives, schematic drawings, construction documents, and potential construction services for two new fire stations and one rebuilt fire station at the southwest corner of the intersection of Greenfield Road and Diamond Avenue.

For consistency, the City expects that the two new proposed fire stations to be designed and constructed similar to that of the recently constructed Fire Station 221, located at Eastmark just east of Ellsworth Road on Point Twenty-Two Boulevard.

A Pre-Submittal Conference will be held on February 1, 2023 at 8 am through Microsoft Teams. At this meeting, City staff will discuss the scope of work and general contract issues and respond to questions from the attendees. Attendance at the pre-submittal conference is not mandatory and all interested firms may submit a Statement of Qualifications whether or not they attend the conference. All interested firms are encouraged to attend the Pre-Submittal Conference since City staff will not be available for meetings or to respond to individual inquiries regarding the project scope outside of this conference. In addition, there will not be meeting minutes or any other information published from the Pre-Submittal Conference. Anyone interested in attending the Conference can request an invitation from Donna Horn (donna.horn@ mesaaz.gov).

Contact with City Employees. All firms interested in this project (including the firm’s employees, representatives, agents, lobbyists, attorneys, and subconsultants) will refrain, under penalty of disqualification, from direct or indirect contact for the purpose of influencing the selection or creating bias in the selection process with any person who may play a part in the selection process. This policy is intended to create a level playing field for all potential firms, to assure that contract decisions are made in public, and to protect the integrity of the selection process. All contact on this selection process should be addressed to the authorized representative identified below.

RFQ Lists. This RFQ is available on the City’s website at http://mesaaz.gov/business/engineering/architectural-engineering-design-opportunities.

Elementary School Boundary Changes at Mesa Public Schools

Mesa Public Schools Planning and Boundary Design Advisory Committee (PABDAC) is reviewing options for attendance-area changes affecting Crismon, Pomeroy and Sirrine elementary schools, and will make a recommendation to the Governing Board for a decision.

Under the district’s process, PABDAC will hold two public hearings. During these meetings, the 10 members will review data on enrollment and capacity for the elementary schools and listen to public comments. Learn more about the proposed changes on the district website at mpsaz.org/future.

Community members in the Crismon, Pomeroy and Sirrine attendance areas are invited to attend a public hearing. The meetings are scheduled as follows:

Public Hearings

Thursday, January 19, 2023 beginning at 5 p.m.

Pomeroy Elementary School

Multipurpose Room

1507 W. Shawnee Drive, Chandler, AZ 85224

Thursday, January 26, 2023 beginning at 5 p.m.

Sirrine Elementary School

Multipurpose Room

591 W. Mesquite St., Chandler, AZ 85225

Published in East Valley Tribune Jan 22, 2023

JAMES MADISON PREPARATORY SCHOOL, INC

5815 S MCCLINTOCK DR. TEMPE, AZ 85283

480-345-2306

480-345-0059 (FAX) www.madisonpr ep.org

Announces open enrollment for grades 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, & 12 for the 2023-2024 school year. The open enrollment period is January 30-February 17, 2023. Published in East Valley Tribune Jan 22, 29, 2023

The Statement of Qualifications shall include a one-page cover letter, plus a maximum of 10 pages to address the SOQ evaluation criteria (excluding PPVF’s and resumes but including an organization chart with key personnel and their affiliation). Resumes for each team member shall be limited to a maximum length of two pages and should be attached as an appendix to the SOQ. Minimum font size shall be 10pt. Please provide one (1) electronic copy of the Statement of Qualifications in an unencrypted PDF format to Engineering-RFQ@mesaaz.gov by February 16, 2023, by 2 pm. The City reserves the right to accept or reject any and all Statements of Qualifications. The City is an equal opportunity employer.

Firms who wish to do business with the City of Mesa must be registered and activated in the City of Mesa Vendor Self Service (VSS) System (http://mesaaz.gov/business/purchasing/vendor-self-service).

Questions pertaining to the Consultant selection process or contract issues should be directed to Donna Horn of the Engineering Department at donna.horn@mesaaz.gov

Beth Huning City Engineer

MV Transportation, Inc. (MV) is proposing as a prime contractor in response to the East Valley Fixed Route Bus Service, RFP NO. RW-22004 project located in the Eastern and Southeastern areas of the Phoenix Metropolitan Area. The proposal due date is 03/02/2023. We would appreciate letters of interest from Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE), Small Business Enterprise (SBE) and Small Business Concern (SBC) firms who are currently certified, active and without restrictions with the Arizona Unified Certification Program (AZUCP) or City of Phoenix for the following services: Uniforms, Tires, Oils and Lubricants, Automotive Parts, Towing Services, Offsite Autobody Repair, Daily Bus Cleaning and Servicing, Bus Detailing, Mystery Rider Services. There will be a virtual pre-bid conference for DBE, SBE and SBC firms on Monday January 23, 2023 at 10:30AM MST. For a link to the pre-bid, more information on this project, copy of the RFP or assistance with bonding, lines of credit or insurance, please contact Aleena Beaty at MVDBE2@mvtransit.com. All DBE, SBE and SBC bids are due on February 6, 2023 at 5pm MST.

ATTEST:

Holly Moseley City Clerk

Published in the Mesa Tribune, Jan 22, 29, 2023

Published in East Valley Tribune Jan 22, 2023

CITY OF MESA, ARIZONA ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS (RFQ)

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the City of Mesa is seeking a qualified Consultant for the following: CENTER STREET COMPLETE STREET – MCKELLIPS ROAD TO BROADWAY ROAD

PROJECT NO. CP1018

The City of Mesa is seeking a qualified Consultant to provide design services for the Center Street Complete Street –McKellips Road to Broadway Road Project. All qualified firms that are interested in providing these services are invited to submit their Statements of Qualifications (SOQ) in accordance with the requirements detailed in the Request for Qualifications (RFQ).

This project will include a Design Concept Report (DCR) for Center Street from McKellips Road to Broadway Road. This project was identified in the City of Mesa 2040 Transportation Plan as a complete streets priority to help bicyclists and pedestrians to connect between downtown and pathways to the north and south. The report should use Complete Streets concepts to develop the improvements along the corridor. The City of Mesa Complete Streets Policy can be found in the appendix of the 2040 Transportation Plan, and this can provide some basic guidance. However, it is expected that the team submitting for this project has knowledge of Complete Streets design principles and they should include examples as part of the submittal package.

A Complete Streets streetscape enables safe use and supports mobility for all users and modes within the public right-ofway. This specific corridor is unique and challenging because within the project limits, Center Street is a typical 5-lane collector with bicycle lanes at the north end, but then narrows to two lanes with on-street parking as it passes through the downtown core. Additionally, land use transitions from residential, to City Center, to industrial as it travels from north to south. The City of Mesa is seeking a firm with expertise in developing innovative bicycle/pedestrian design in an urban environment to develop a cohesive Complete Street concept for Center Street within the project limits.

A key challenge of this project is evaluating and prioritizing mobility options between the downtown core and existing adjacent multimodal infrastructure. Major considerations include the downtown sidewalk network, separated bike lanes on First Avenue, nearby shared-use paths, on-street parking, light rail and other transit services, ASU, and City administration buildings. The requested DCR should provide vision and guidance to maximize the Complete Streets and urban design potential of the corridor.

The successful proposal should demonstrate leadership experience developing and presenting concepts, soliciting input, and building consensus among project stakeholders and the community. A Pre-Submittal Conference will be held on February 2, at 9 am through Microsoft Teams. At this meeting, City staff will discuss the scope of work and general contract issues and respond to questions from the attendees. Attendance at the pre-submittal conference is not mandatory and all interested firms may submit a Statement of Qualifications whether or not they attend the conference. All interested firms are encouraged to attend the Pre-Submittal Conference since City staff will not be available for meetings or to respond to individual inquiries regarding the project scope outside of this conference. In addition, there will not be meeting minutes or any other information published from the Pre-Submittal Conference. To attend the Conference, please send an invitation request to Donna Horn (donna.horn@mesaaz.gov).

Contact with City Employees. All firms interested in this project (including the firm’s employees, representatives, agents, lobbyists, attorneys, and subconsultants) will refrain, under penalty of disqualification, from direct or indirect contact for the purpose of influencing the selection or creating bias in the selection process with any person who may play a part in the selection process. This policy is intended to create a level playing field for all potential firms, to assure that contract decisions are made in public, and to protect the integrity of the selection process. All contact on this selection process should be addressed to the authorized representative identified below.

RFQ Lists. This RFQ is available on the City’s website at http://mesaaz.gov/business/engineering/architectural-engineering-design-opportunities.

The Statement of Qualifications shall include a one-page cover letter, plus a maximum of 10 pages to address the SOQ evaluation criteria (excluding PPVF’s and resumes but including an organization chart with key personnel and their affiliation). Resumes for each team member shall be limited to a maximum length of two pages and should be attached as an appendix to the SOQ. Minimum font size shall be 10pt. Please provide one (1) electronic copy of the Statement of Qualifications in an unencrypted PDF format to Engineering-RFQ@mesaaz.gov by February 16, 2023, by 2 pm. The City reserves the right to accept or reject any and all Statements of Qualifications The City is an equal opportunity employer.

Firms who wish to do business with the City of Mesa must be registered and activated in the City of Mesa Vendor Self Service (VSS) System (http://mesaaz.gov/business/purchasing/vendor-self-service).

Questions. Questions pertaining to the Consultant selection process or contract issues should be directed to Donna Horn of the Engineering Department at donna.horn@mesaaz.gov.

BETH HUNNING City Engineer

CITY OF MESA, ARIZONA ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS (RFQ)

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the City of Mesa is seeking a qualified firm or team

to act as the Job Order Contractor for the following: GENERAL LANDSCAPING CONSTRUCTION SERVICES

JOB ORDER CONTRACT

PROJECT NO. JOC-L23

The City of Mesa is seeking a qualified Contractor to provide Job Order General Landscaping Construction Services. All qualified firms that are interested in providing these services are invited to submit their Statements of Qualifications (SOQ) in accordance with the requirements detailed in the Request for Qualifications (RFQ). The following is a summary of the project.

This Job Order Contract is for a broad range of landscaping maintenance, repair, minor and major construction work on real property and facilities in the City.

A Pre-Submittal Conference will be held on February 7, 2023 at 8:00 am through Microsoft Teams Parties interested in attending should request an invitation from Donna Horn at donna.horn@mesaaz.gov. At this meeting, City staff will discuss the scope of work and general contract issues and respond to questions from the attendees. Attendance at the pre-submittal conference is not mandatory and all interested firms may submit a Statement of Qualifications whether or not they attend the conference. All interested firms are encouraged to attend the Pre-Submittal Conference since City staff will not be available for meetings or to respond to individual inquiries regarding the project scope outside of this conference. In addition, there will not be meeting minutes or any other information published from the Pre-Submittal Conference.

Contact with City Employees. All firms interested in this project (including the firm’s employees, representatives, agents, lobbyists, attorneys, and subconsultants) will refrain, under penalty of disqualification, from direct or indirect contact for the purpose of influencing the selection or creating bias in the selection process with any person who may play a part in the selection process. This policy is intended to create a level playing field for all potential firms, assure that contract decisions are made in public and to protect the integrity of the selection process. All contact on this selection process should be addressed to the authorized representative identified below.

RFQ Lists. The RFQ is available on the City’s website at https:// www.mesaaz.gov/business/engineering/construction-manager-at-risk-and-job-order-contracting-opportunities

The Statement of Qualifications shall include a one-page cover letter, plus a maximum of 10 pages to address the SOQ evaluation criteria (excluding PPVF’s and resumes but including an organization chart with key personnel and their affiliation). Resumes for each team member shall be limited to a maximum length of two pages and should be attached as an appendix to the SOQ. Minimum font size shall be 10pt. Please provide one (1) electronic copy of the Statement of Qualifications in an unencrypted PDF format to Engineering-RFQ@mesaaz.gov by no later than 2 pm on February 23, 2023. The City reserves the right to accept or reject any and all Statements of Qualifications The City is an equal opportunity employer.

Firms who wish to do business with the City of Mesa must be registered in the City of Mesa Vendor Self Service (VSS) System (http://mesaaz. gov/business/purchasing/vendor-self-service).

Questions. Questions pertaining to the Job Order selection process or contract issues should be directed to Donna Horn of the Engineering Department at donna.horn@mesaaz.gov.

ATTEST:

Holly Moseley City Clerk

Published in the Mesa Tribune, Jan 15, 22, 2023

Beth Huning City Engineer

ATTEST:

Holly Moseley City Clerk

110, Scottsdale, AZ 85260

9927

Chef Korean Food, FT, 2 yr exp. Email: kimskitchen1209@gmail com

Kims Kitchen Concept Hodori 1116 S. Dobson Rd Mesa, AZ 85202

Renesas Design North America Inc has opening for Sr Analog Design Engineer in Chandler, AZ Design, verify & optimize behavioral models of analog blocks to drive a top-down methodology for mixed-signal design, analysis & verification May telecommute anywhere in US Int’l travel required Email resume to nina pham uj@renesas com Must reference job #179

Deloitte Consulting LLP seeks a Consulting, Solution Specialist in Gilbert, AZ & various unanticipated Deloitte office locations & client sites nationally to develop Cloud-based software and technology solutions, including data cleansing and conversions, interface design and development, and systems development life cycle 15% travel required nationally Telecommuting permitted To apply visit apply deloitte com Enter XBAL23FC0123LMA653 in “Search jobs” field EOE, including disability/veterans.

Chef Japanese Food, FT Email: yogisgrillhappyvalley@gmail com

YCC Capital Yogis Grill 2450 W. Happy Valley Rd Phoenix, AZ 85085

Kitchen Helper, FT Email: sileanyin@yahoo com

Bosa Donuts Wholesales 3701 N Central Ave Phoenix, AZ 85012

Chef Japanese & Korean Food, FT, 2 yr exp Email: himiako@gmail com

Woori Inc Yen Sush 17037 N. 43rd Ave Glendale, AZ 85308

Deloitte Consulting LLP seeks a Consulting, Senior Solution Specialist in Gilbert, Arizona and various unanticipated Deloitte office locations and client sites nationally to drive software design and development services to help companies address Supply Chain business processes and other business needs, ranging from requirements to architecture, design to development, and testing to deployment, as discrete services or comprehensive solutions 15% travel required nationally Telecommuting permitted To apply visit apply deloitte com Enter XBAL23FC0123GIL8177 in “Search jobs” field EOE, including disability/veterans.

Ramen Restaurant Manager, FT BS degree in Tourism Dev. & Mgmt or related Email: az mugen@yahoo com

Mugen Hachi Ramen 655 W Warner Tempe, AZ 85284

New Product Development Manager needed for Tempe, AZ Italian specialty food importer and distributor Req: 4 yrs exp in job off or as Business Development Manager, Brand Manager, or rel Rel exp must incl familiarity wi/ Italian specialty food market & trends & private labeling operations Resumes: P Brembilla, Sogno Toscano Tuscan Dream, Inc 1445 W 12th Pl , Ste 101, Tempe, AZ 85281

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