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Transcripts

March 2, 2004

Host: Michael Grant
Topics:
· East Valley mayoral races
· KAET'-TV production, Monumental Arizona [Visit the Web site.]
In-Studio Guests:
· Paul Giblin, "East Valley Ttribune;"
· Dan Nowicki, "Arizona Republic;"
· Joanna Scruggs, Arizona Public Lands Information Center

>> Michael Grant:
Tonight on Horizon, the direction of several east valley cities is at stake as voters head to the polls next week. we'll have an election preview. plus, monumental arizona, a high definition channel 8 production debuts next week. we'll put the significance of arizona's national monuments in perspective. good evening, i'm michael grant. welcome to "Horizon." first, a story we have been following closely here on horizon. there appears to be a major finding from the mars rover project. nasa scientists announced this afternoon the rover opportunity has found evidence that the red planet was once wet enough for life to exist there. the robot has not found any direct traces of living organisms, however. the race to become tempe's next mayor has turned into what one candidate calls the "dirtiest campaign in tempe's history." it's one of three east valley mayoral races we'll look at tonight. a field of four candidates seek the mayor's job in scottsdale and mesa's mayor squares off with a long-time community leader. here to talk about the races is paul giblin, a columnist with the "East Valley Tribune" and "Arizona Republic" editorial writer Dan Nowicki. before we get their analysis, we hear from the candidates. we offered each candidate 90 seconds to introduce themselves and make a pitch to voters on why they should be elected. we start with the race for tempe mayor.

Dennis Cahill:
Fellow tempe citizens, my name is dennis cahill and i want to be your next mayor. we're blessed to have lived in one of best communities in america. and i want us to get even better. we have become an all american city by working together. it's -- intellectual planning, responsible management and budgeting is what has made tempe what it is today. my campaign is supported by former mayor rudy campbell, dale, harry mitchell and present mayor neil giuliano. they support me because they know i'm a uniter, not a divider. my door and my mind are always open. anyone who wants to make tempe a better place, want to have conversations with. there isn't a republican or democrat way to run city government. that's why i'm supported by leaders from both parties. no closed door deals. no government by the elite. no testing the winds before the vote. with dennis cahill you get what you see. i have the experience, temperament and
ability and integrity to be the mayor you will be proud of. i ask for your vote either early on march 9. we thank you for your support.

>> Hugh Hallman:
I'm hugh hallman running for mayor of tempe. it's tempe's people not politicians that make our community great. we need to harness your commitment to quality of life. we can create tempe's brightest future. here is what i'll emphasize as mayor and how i'll conduct myself if given the privilege. we must rebuild our economy so we can rebuild our neighbors. we need a mayor to match the passion and energy of asu's new president. so tempe and asu can realize their new potential together. with its bold partnership we'll complete the asu development around town lake and stabilize mill avenue with new projects bringing life to downtown. we can work with the university toward the construction of appropriate, attractive and adequate housing on and around the university campus so we can reclaim for ownership many of the rental properties. we can reclaim the older strip shopping centers as new young families add for the demand for grocery stores, and other supported goods and services. to achieve the goals and have the resources with you me stop the tax subsidies to wealthy developers. my priorities are first with the residents of tempe and not with special interests. it is this type of active and independent leadership working with you and for you that we can protect the facets of tempe making our community special. together we can improve the quality of life for you and all other tempe residents. 

>> Michael Grant:
Paul, why has this been such a nasty race? 

>> Paul Giblin:
It's a nasty race because you have a contrast in style. you have dennis cahill he is from the mold of current mayor. not sharp on the details but a big concept you'll guy and then you have hugh. he will admit he is a prickly sort of guy. very detail oriented. he is willing and will say the nasty things the things that makes developers bristle that sort of thing. he will point out there's something stuck in your teeth whereas another politician might not doing something like that. 

>> Michael Grant:
Who has won the endorsement battle,  Dan?

>> Dan Nowicki: 
Hugh has won the recommendation of  Arizona  Republic and i believe the chamber of the commerce also. overall cahill has won most of the rank and file, the typical endorsements, certainly the incumbent mayor is a big cahill backer. part of the problem is, number one, it's such a serious business picking a mayor in tempe they only do it once every generation or so. it's the third mayor in 25 years. it's something people get passionate about. hullman can represent the challenge of 25 years of status quo that started with mitchell and giuliano continued. 

>> Michael Grant:
any issues looping large or is it basically a personality fight? >>

>> Dan Nowicki:
you are probably right it's more of a personality fight. the city is land locked. there's no new development going on. there's only redevelopment which means you have to be involved with developers. they take a different tax regarding that. as you alluded to it's status quo with cahill and hugh is more detail oriented. you have seen it in the past with a lot of projects that popped up on screen when he was in office. he is counting the dollars. 

>> Michael Grant:
Scottsdale voters will select their mayor from a field of four candidates, the current mayor, a former legislative leader, a council member and former council member who resigned to run for mayor. here are the candidates in that race.

>> Bob Usdane:
good evening. i'm running for the mayor of scottsdale, arizona. you remember me, i represented you in the arizona state legislature from 1977 to 1990, first as majority leader for six years and then as the president of state senate. i'm asking you to put your trust in me once again hopefully to vote for my as your mayor on march 9th. remember, march 9th, vote for me for the mayor of scottsdale.
thank you very much.

>> Mary Manross:
hi, my name is mary manross i'm running for mayor the scottsdale. i have completed my first term as mayor. previously spent eight years on the city council. my husband and i are 322 year residents of scottsdale. having raised our four children there they received a terrific education. i have a pretty comprehensive background in local, regional and state issues, having participated in a lot of problem solving or programs in the state of arizona over the last 30 years. before council i was very involved in local and civic government on the planning commission and the park commission and working on bond elections. our community in the last four years has made a terrific turnaround. we have resolved a lot of long standing issues. we have brought well over 10,000 new high paying jobs to our community with well over a billion dollars. commercial investment currently taking place in scottsdale. we have retained our triple a bond ratings which a handful of cities in the nation have done. our crime rate continues to go down instead of up and we are paying attention to quality of life issues providing for a wonderful community far into the future. we're working on our preserve open space plan and have wonderful success with that. our economic development strategy will continue to be really to look for cutting edge jobs to concentrate on the bio sciences, and finances and insurance and real estate and those things that have brought us to where we are today. we completed our agreement with the mayo clinic. that's a sample of the direction we're going. our community is doing well and i ask for your vote and want to remind you also that i have received every major endorsement that is offered in the city of scottsdale. i think that bodes well and shows faith in the community. thank you very much. 

>> David Ortega:
hello i'm david ortega, candidate for mayor of scottsdale. for 25 years, scottsdale has been the center of my family life and business practice. rosemary and i paid a premium to live in scottsdale with higher expectations, better schools, libraries, parks and a higher quality of life. as a downtown architect i have seen a role reversal where scottsdale is paying for development at our expense. it started when the city changed scottsdale road to suit the galleria. this mistake crippled downtown businesses. i worked hard to fix that mistake. a year ago my opponent the mayor of scottsdale and a councilwoman rushed head over heels to pay $40 million over 40 years that's over $200 million to a developer for of all things a wal-mart this. mistake made scottsdale the subject of national ridicule. i tarnished our statewide reputation. as a successful businessman, architect and experienced councilman i will lead scottsdale on a better course. we can chart a better course. i need your help. i need your vote on march 9th. thank you very much.

>> Cynthia Lukas:
hello my name is cynthia lukas. i'm a two term council woman with a master's degree and experience as a small business owner, manager in a fortune 500 company and teacher for 20 years. as i did in my two previous city council campaigns, i am pledging not to take money from developers or their attorneys. i resigned my city council seat to run for mayor because i believe so strongly scottsdale needs a change in direction and leadership in order to break the gridlock and get things done. i have been troubled by the divisiveness, lack of trust in scottsdale, and missed opportunities such as the hockey arena going to glendale because of lack of leadership in scottsdale. the theme of my campaign is unity. on our city council and community. now is the time to heal the rift by choosing positive leadership with four new city council members and any new mayor. it's at perfect time to move scottsdale forward. the area south of thomas road has plummeted in sales tax revenues 25% in five years. that is why the revitalization in the southern part of the city is my top priority. having been at the forefront of mcdowell movement, i support the completion of our preserve with access. i support more police officers on our streets and i am proud to have received the endorsement of the police officers of scottsdale association. please vote for me cynthia lukas as your mayor. 

>> Michael Grant:
dan, how do you handicap this one. it's a vigorous race?

>> Dan Nowicki:
it's an interesting field. four candidates, the incumbent mayor, the former city council woman, city council man and the old legislative war horse, former arizona senate president if anyone remembers the mika era, he was a figure in that era of arizona politics. if you ask me to handicap, i think the mayor is tough to beat. she is seeking the second term. her first term was a little bit shaky, particularly early on. there's the big fiasco over the coyotes arena at los arcos. it rode in glendale. but over the past year he she has kind of her backbone has stiffened up a bit. she has taken tough stands. she has come out in favor of rural metro against the initiatives that would have gotten rid of rural metro last year. 

>> Michael Grant:
normally a multiple candidate field will help an incumbent. 

>> Dan Nowicki:
i don't see them gaining on her too much. it's interesting david ortega, who is generally viewed as the number two candidate is who a lot of people are targeting and i think the idea is that if manross doesn't win outright on tuesday that you know the fight is for who is going to be number two in the runoff. the county republicans in an unprecedented step came out in favor of usdain and they targeted ortega to the liberals. 

>>  Michael  Grant:
in the race? 

>> Paul Giblin:
they are playing in the race. you recall cynthia is the architect of big subsidy for los arcos. they are opponents are happy to remind her of that. 

>>  Michael  Grant:
everybody else, too. 

> Paul Giblin:
and she tries to say she is willing to do whatever to make amends to that. everyone else is against the subsidy. as far as districting mary manross is against it. she likes the at large system where city councilmen represent the city while the other three like districts like mesa, tempe and tucson. 

>>  Michael  Grant:
the city council came some what reluctantly to that issue if i recall. 

>> Paul Giblin:
they came extremely reluctantly to that issue. the city council asked their blue ribbon panel of citizen activists to figure this out and come up with a recommendation. which they did. they figured a good period of time and said we need to go to districts. the city council said rethink that. 

>>  Michael  Grant:
it was like a game show wrong answer?

>> Paul Giblin:
exactly. dan made a good point with manross and ortega they are the most similar candidates among the four. that will be interesting.

>>  Michael  Grant:
a long time mesa community leader is running against that city's incumbent mayor. again, we offered each the chance to make an on-camera appeal to voters. here are the two candidates in that race.

>> Keno Hawker:
my name is keno hawker and i'm running for re-election of the mayor of the city of mesa. i have two primary issues that i would like to work on and continue if reelected. first one is public safety. we need to make sure that our fire and police force is adequately staffed and equipped with the proper equipment, especially in these days of -- after 9/11. the other issue is economic development. the city of mesa created a master plan for build out that shows that we can transfer from being a bedroom community to a board room community by attracting additional jobs to the city of mesa. with that vision in place it's time for us to figure out how do we finance this vision? how do we have a financing program for the city of mesa to build out. we need to think beyond a one and two year budget program. i'm committed to going that for the city of mesa, i want to make sure we grow that vision at a restricted growth of government. instead of higher taxes i would like to have the parameter be population and inflation. as our population increases so should the budget. as inflation erodes our purchasing power the budget needs to increase. with those two parameters in reelected i would like to have the vision for mesa of being a bedroom to boardroom community become a reality and have a well financed plan to make sure it is something that is feasible for the citizens of mesa. i would appreciate your vote on march 9th my name is keno hawker. 

>> Teresa Brice Heams:
my name is teresa brice-heames and i'm running for mayor of mesa because i believe mesa is ready for a change. i was born in mesa end grew up there. i spent over 20 years in my career working to improve the lives of mesa residents. my work in creating sustainable work housing has providing the opportunity for tax paying families to own their own home and to have a stable environment to raise their children. bringing private investments into the older neighborhoods of mesa and generating economic benefits to the community. my volunteer service in mesa has including support for historic preservation, working to raise funds for art and cultural activities in mesa and helping mesa understand and embrace the changing demographics that have given rise to a wonderful diversity in our community. mesa is a wonderful place to live but you can be so much more. we need manage our growth carefully and balance it by creating and supporting strong neighborhoods. we need be proactive and going out to recruit the businesses and jobs that we need to make mesa a wonderful community and we need to work on a public transportation system. we need to do all of this in the context of a responsible, responsive and adequately funded city government. on march 9th i need your vote to help mesa become the city it is destined to be. thank you. 

>>  Michael  Grant:
paul, an incumbent is tough to knock off. can she did do it or not?

>> Paul Giblin:
i think she has zero chance whatsoever. if there's a mayor who represents the city or embodies the city it's keno hawker and mesa. he came into office promising nothing and he was going to do nothing with a vengeance. he has done that and he is promising to that in the future that appeals to people in mesa. i think he is going to win in a landslide. he said his top priority is police and fire. if that is not first the throw away issue. yeah, police and fire who is not pro-police and fire support? it's a non-issue and he will do real well that w- that. 

>> michael grant:
i will admit i sometimes have sympathy for candidates in city elections from the standpoint of coming up with issues. police and fire and garbage collection, you know. >>

>> Dan Nowicki:
in this race there's a lot of agreement on some of big issues. unlike tempe, both candidates are conducting very civil courteous campaign. you get the impression that both candidates actually like each other. both come cross as capable. would be capable administrators. mesa -- this is a ritual mesa goes through at least for the past decade. they kind of feel a center right candidate in this case hawker and a center left candidate in this case theresa brice-heames, a long-time housing advocate in mesad a former mesa woman of the year in 199. they go through the motions and generally the more conservative. even if it's nominally conservative candidate wins. part of the ritual is the nominally conservative candidate does something to alienate the far right in mesa. they'll disavow him before or shortly after. 

>> Paul Giblin:
theresa says, wake up mesa. we have hispanics running around why we don't recognize this and provide services. 

>> Dan Nowicki:
she is raising awareness for her signature issues which is housing. she has been working in mesa in the housing field for years. the hispanic population is a sleeping giant in mesa. it's been that way for a few
years. they never seem to co-a less behind candidates. it's possible and mesa is changing in this sense. 

>>  M ichael  Grant:
any ballot issues of note in mesa?

>> Dan Nowicki:
there's a few. there's anti-imminent dough maybe main proposition. there's a -- 

>>  Michael  Grant:
is that a brake shop? 

>> Dan Nowicki:
it's related to that. i think mostly the establishment is against it but it's preempted by state law any way. there's another proposition that comes up from time to time that has to deal with forcing a public vote on any city expenditure over a million dollars. 

>>  Michael  Grant:
similar to the one in phoenix but more restrictive. 

>> Dan Nowicki:
it's a reaction to the city project that the council has recently done. 

>>  Michael  Grant:
dan nowicki, thanks for being here. paul giblin, thanks again. these are higher profile local elections. it's a good crop of races. 

>> Paul Giblin:
it is. it will be interesting what happens tuesday.

>>  Michael  Grant:
if you'd like more information on next tuesday's election, please visit the channel 8 website at www.kaet.asu.edu. click on "horizon." you'll find links to election websites for east valley cities. next tuesday, channel 8 debuts the latest edition to the arizona collection. monumental arizona, a breathtaking look at the state's 18 national monuments. the film was shot in high definition and takes viewers to some hard to reach places. 

>> Jeff Guetes:
the nice thing about helicopter photography is you can go to places quickly and you can go to places people can never get to within 20 minutes or a half hour. you see the world in a way most people never get to see it. frequently you see the world at times of day. if you are up shooting before sunrise you may think everyone is back. they are asleep. they have no idea how beautiful this is. they have no idea, not a clue how beautiful this landscape is.

>>  Michael  Grant:
joining me now to talk about the state's national monuments is joanna scruggs, manager of the arizona public lands information center it's good to see you. we know what national parks are. i'm not sure we know what national monuments are. 

>> Joanna Scruggs:
they are slightly different. they are intended to preserve at least one nationally significant resource. it's usually smaller than a national park. 

>>  Michael Grant:
is there a status that will -- i mean, you know find dividing lines between the two?

>> Joanna Scruggs:
it becomes splitting hairs. you start having national seashores, national historic sites, national historic battlefields. at least for the national park service when it becomes the difference between a monument and a national park. again a national park would be like containing a variety of resources. i would encompass a much larger area. 

>>  Michael Grant:
give me a national monument that awful us will say i didn't know that. 

>> Joanna Scruggs:
canyon deshay. it's an unusual example because it is located in the middle of tribal land. we have 21 national parks and monuments under the jurisdiction of the national park services and five newly created monuments created by former president clinton in 2000 and 2001. we have seven wildlife refuges, six national forests. we're nature's theme park. 

>>  Michael Grant:
why do you think that is?

>> Joanna Scruggs:
because we're nature's theme park. because of scenic grand your and probably a very aggressive political background all these years of preserving these beautiful places for generations to come. 

>>  Michael  Grant:
most of the places accessible or not?

>> Joanna Scruggs:
accessible in terms of like driving a car? , yeah, they are. now the five new monuments recently completed by clinton under bureau of land management those are not yet open in terms of visitor centers and tours and signs. those are areas undergoing management plans right now in terms of how do they deal with the number of people and what kind of visitor services will be established there. 

>>  Michael  Grant:
joanna scruggs thank you very much for the service. 

>> Joanna Scruggs:
you are welcome thank you for having me.

>>  Michael  Grant:
okay. tomorrow attorney general terry goddard will join me to talk about his efforts to curb price gouging. here's what else is on horizon tomorrow.

>> Merry Lucero:
the salt river is known as a dry river bed filled with rocks and debris. but now a five mile stretch of river in phoenix is being restored as natural wildlife habitat. it's the phoenix rio salado habitat. wednesday on "horizon." 

>>  Michael  Grant:
thursday, governor janet napolitano joins me for her monthly appearance first thursday will she sign a bill requiring a 24-hour waiting period for abortions? you can also ask the governor a question by emailing it to horizon at asu.edu. that's horizon at asu.edu.

>> I'm Michael Grant. thanks for joining us. good night.

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