Lyn's note: Please feel free to send us any pictures you'd like included. If your photos are for sale, let us know and we will put them under that category. We have a special section for that purpose. If anyone would like to buy a print of any of Herbert's photos, all profits will be donated to one of the local non-profit organizations. Here are the links to this week's Pictures of the Week. Enjoy!
http://carefreeazbusinesses.com/pictures-of-the-week-10917.html
http://carefreeazbusinesses.com/pictures-of-the-week-10917.html
Photo by Linda Stewart
Here is your bonus round from Herbert.
http://aneyeonyouproduction.com/10517-fireworks.html
Here is your bonus round from Herbert.
http://aneyeonyouproduction.com/10517-fireworks.html
Town of Carefree Marketing newsletter
http://www.carefree.org/336/IN-THE-NEWS
City Sun Times link:
http://news.citysuntimes.com/
For more information on the Enchanted Garden Pumpkin Festival please visit the website at: www.CarefreePumpkinGarden.com for a comprehensive list of the activities. Sign up here to volunteer to be part of the Pumpkin Magic!
http://www.signupgenius.com/go/5080d4da8a823aafc1-enchanted
Can you let your readers know that we are in desperate need of volunteers for Pumpkin Festival?
Cheryl Kroyer
(Lyn's note: Click on the link above to sign up to volunteer.)
Last month the Carefree Town Council increased the height of what had been a 2015 condo Development Agreement by 4 ft from an average curb height of 48 ft to 52 ft. The proposed structure, much like the condo project, within the context of the layout of the Town, is in the least obstructive location possible, up against a rising hill side in front of the of the Spirit in the Desert Lutheran Retreat Center and up against the backside of the post office and the backside of the Carefree Marketplace and Basha's. And what will the Town gain for this 4 ft concession?
* Luxury residential apartment rental units with accompanying apartment residents in the Town Center.
* Apartment residents who will bring vibrancy to the Town Center through much, if not all, of the year.
* Vibrancy which will bring more and better restaurants into the Town Center. We will have more and a wider selection of fine restaurants from which to choose.
* More restaurants which will bring a livelier Town Center and more merchants.
* More merchants which will fill existing commercial vacancies.
* Filled commercial vacancies which will enable and motivate landlords to improve the appearance of their properties.
* Rental apartment units, restaurants and merchants which will produce more Town tax revenue.
* More Town tax revenue which will help preclude the implementation of a property tax and allow the Town to continue to provide the services to which we have become accustomed.
As the project moves forward, the Carefree Development Review Board (DRB) will publicly vet the submitted proposal. The DRB consists of 7 dedicated Carefree citizens, selected for their wide variety of backgrounds and are well suited to tackle the review of this proposed luxury apartment project. The DRB has a track record of successful projects including the Carefree Firehouse, the Pima Norte Office Building, and Lowes and CVS buildings.
The development team of Larry Gabriele, of Gabriele Developments, and Robert Stehlik of Starworks Global Capital, bring an impressive resume of successful projects. We all know resumes are made to look good. While in the Chicago area two weeks ago, I visited three of their projects including One O'Hare Center in Rosemont. Yes, this is an office building and not an apartment, but their use of granite and marble and beautiful appointments speak to their attention to detail, quality and taste and earned them an award from the London, England Architectural Society. This is the attention to detail, quality and taste that I expect this development team to bring to Carefree.
Luxury apartments will bring value to Carefree, improving quality of life without compromising the character of the Town.
John Crane
Carefree Town Council
Vice Mayor
LIFE IS GOOD IN CAREFREE...AND IT IS ABOUT TO GET EVEN BETTER
There is a lot happening in our little town. I am happy to be living here and I am honored to serve on the Carefree Town Council.
During the past year we have seen a number of projects come to fruition. As recommended by input from The Urban Land Institute, The Greater Phoenix Economic Council and the Downtown Carefree Revitalization Plan developed by The Baker Study, we have embarked on a path of building our Town Center, adding residents and building profitable businesses. As a result of these community wide efforts to seek solutions and cultivate a common direction, the Town is beginning to see some meaningful private investment:
Earlier this year Historic Spanish Village was bought by a new owner and has attracted a number of new businesses and a new restaurant (opening in the fall).
The Carefree Resort was sold and is currently being transformed into a world class wellness resort being re-branded as Civana Carefree. The owner is investing $40 million into this one-of-a-kind transformation!
The latest good news is the development of luxury apartment homes representing an investment of $44 million on the south parcel of the old Ed Lewis project. As a point of reference this is located on the dirt lot downhill from the Spirit in the Desert Retreat center and behind Basha’s. Included in this building will be 135 residences with concierge services, resort style swimming pool, spa and outdoor gardens. As typical of residential rentals, many of these residents will be full time residents and will help to insulate the seasonal declines in traffic for many of our businesses in the hotter summer months. As a result, this will assist the Town in attracting additional businesses and restaurants within our beautiful town core. This is a win win for our residents and businesses.
Please be assured that in conjunction with the changes, we are taking special care to ensure that development is being done with special attention to maintaining the Town's character while at the same time ensuring a robust future for all of us.
If you would like to hear more, please contact me, the Mayor or any of the other Town Council Members. Better yet come to our Town Council Meetings held on the first Tuesday of every month. Another option, the Mayor and I would be happy to schedule a public HOA meeting to discuss face-to-face.
These are exciting times in the history of our town and we would love to share the excitement with each of you.
Cheryl Kroyer
Town Councilwoman
Town of Carefree
A Carefree council member perspective
As a full-time resident of Carefree for nearly ten years and five years prior as a seasonal resident, I know and appreciate the beauty of our town and surrounding area. We are blessed with some of the most magnificent topography in the world.
As a former member of the Planning and Zoning Commission, I and my fellow Commissioners, wrestled constantly with zoning matters where we needed to balance the desire to develop land with the desire to maintain our unique town and community. Carefree town staff were always most helpful in supplying us with information around requests. But at the end of the day, the Commissioners made the call on what we would approve or not approve. It is no easy job.
Today I sit as a Town Council member. My job did not get easier. Now I am part of a group that represents the citizens of Carefree. Our job is to listen, learn, question, consider and make decisions that are in the best short and long term interests of Carefree citizens. Obviously, when any decision is made there will be some number of citizens who disagree with that decision. Our job is to make decisions that reflect the opinion of the citizen majority.
I have been involved in town government, in one fashion or another, for the last five or six years. I watched the impact of the market downturn and the concurrent decline in local merchants. Sales tax revenue, our major funding source, went south. In addition, construction sales tax revenue, another substantial funding source for the town, was devastated by changes made at the State level.
In my opinion, and looking at the facts, our town has turned the corner towards a strong vibrant future. Our town financial reserves grow stronger. We need to become a destination for local, state, national, and international visitors. Through our marketing and business development efforts we are becoming just that. Our strategic marketing plan has created significant awareness through digital marketing and the execution of world class events such as the revered Enchanted Pumpkin Festival and now a three week Christmas in Carefree season. The solid, well-known brand of the Thunderbird Artist shows has also brought thousands of visitors to our town, creating indelible memories for many.
As a result of significant public input, workshops, town council public meetings, publication of activities on COINS, work committees involving citizen participants, never ending work by all town staff, and the work of the Mayor and Council, we have a revitalization plan that is well on the way to generating more sales tax revenue. The plan is available on Carefree.org.
I am both honored and proud to be of service to so many wonderful citizens of Carefree. I encourage everyone to come to town council meetings and hear what we are doing and share your thoughts. I am always available to discuss our town initiatives and/or meet with anyone. My cell phone is 814-881-7020. I can be emailed at mjkrahephd@mac.com
Here are some of those sales tax revenue generators:
1. The renovation of the Carefree Resort to CIVANA Wellness Resort.
2. The addition of new restaurants and businesses in our town core.
3. The construction of luxury apartment homes. (Bringing people to live and shop in our town center)
4. An extended Christmas Festival schedule. (Attracting visitors to our shops and restaurants for several weeks versus a three-day event)
5. Our third-year pumpkin festival expected to surpass the 50,000 visitors we had last year.
I am both honored and proud to be of service to so many wonderful citizens of Carefree. I encourage everyone to come to town council meetings and hear what we are doing and share your thoughts. I am always available to discuss our town initiatives and/or meet with anyone. My cell phone is 814-881-7020. I can be emailed at mjkrahephd@mac.com
Sincerely,
Michael J. Krahe, Ph.D.
Council Member
The Carefree Town Council recently approved a development agreement with Starworks Global Development to build luxury rental residences in the downtown area.
This very important project represents an intrinsic change in the Town’s core. Over the past few years the Town council have undertaken outside, independent studies and recommendations from economic and planning consultants to determine the direction we need to take to make our town stronger and better, such as: Urban Land Institute’s Technical Assistance Panel, Michael Baker International’s Carefree Town Center Revitalization Plan (Winner of the Best Master Plan Project in AZ), Greater Phoenix Economic Council, Marty DeRito (CEO of DeRito Partners), Christine Mackay (City of Phoenix Economic Development Director), Steve Betts (Carefree Development Advisor & ex-SunCor Development CompanyPresident), and many other respected commercial real estate brokers/developers. All have recommended that multi-family residences in our town corenot only adds population mass which is necessary to our existing business owners, but also attracts new businesses into our community. A denser, permanent housing option in our town core will be an economic driver and in turn, add value to our restaurants and merchants, and continue to drive new opportunities for our community as well as reduce the seasonality swings we experience each summer.
While there has been a lot of discussion about the building’s height, here are the facts:
In urban neighborhoods such as the Town Center, it is typical to measure building height from the average vertical curb elevation fronting the development site. In 2006 when this parcel’s original development was proposed, the average curb height was defined at the northeast corner of the site along Easy Street. At this time, the building was proposed and approved at 43 feet which included a 6 foot parapet to screen mechanical equipment on the roof. In 2015, upon conclusion of the community driven Town Center Revitalization plan, the project evolved from a mixed use project with retail on street level to a high end condominium development. In order to support the higher end condominiums the original building height was increased and fully entitled by an additional 5 feet to a total of 48 feet. Due to lending red tape from the previous developer, this project did not move forward and the property was foreclosed upon. The present owner and new development team have evaluated the Revitalization Plan, the market and the site to propose a high end luxury rental community with a resort lifestyle; however, in order to ensure the project can be built they requested to revisit the height and proposed an additional 4 feet bringing the building to a total of 52 feet, once again measured from the northeast corner of the site. It is true that due to the grade slope of the land, one side of the property will be lower than the other, thereby exposing more of the building height on one end than the other.
Height increases are always a concern for the Council and our residents, but in this instance it is a minor consideration since what we gain in totality overrides any small height increase differential.
From a structure design standpoint, the Starworks project has been awarded to Whitney Bell, one of the leading architecture firms in the country.
The Starworks project’s architectural design proposal will progress through the members of Carefree’s Design Review Board (DRB) for approval. The DRB is made up of 7 members appointed by the Town Council. The goal of the design review board is to maintain and enhance the character of the Town; enhance the natural and aesthetic qualities of the Town, preserve the value of land and buildings; and protect and preserve the cultural aspects and heritage of Carefree. The DRB assists the Town Council and Planning Commission in reviewing and evaluating proposed site design, architecture, signs, and landscaping. The scope of the DRB’s review and approval authority is established by the Town Council. The members of the Planning & Zoning Commission also serve on the DRB. Thus, I have every confidence in our Design Review Board and their ability to work with this developer to bring an aesthetically pleasing building design to our community.
In short, how often have you heard an ample supply of housing stock options mentioned as an asset? Instead, conversations about housing usually focus on the cost to taxpayers and rarely take into account the fiscal and economic benefits that accrue when communities encourage the development of varying types of residential units. When homes or apartments are built or rehabbed, the funds flowing to cities and states can be considerable. Revenues can take the form of fees for rental tax, and utilities, or they can reflect sales, or income generated by construction-related economic activities.
As cities and counties across the country try to bring their revenues and expenditures in-line and prioritize how to spend scarce resources, policymakers and planners understand the benefits of well-designed housing projects.
After spending 20+ years in commercial and residential real estate, I can honestly say from my experience this will be a major addition to the Town both economically and aesthetically.
Even more importantly, long after the apartments are occupied, the ripple effect from residents of these new units can support new customers for the shops and restaurants, business expansion, activity for the streets, and nighttime surveillance for the neighborhood. They also represent one of the most economical ways to provide economic stimulus, since the land, building and infrastructure costs are covered by the developer; the potential net economic impact and synergy to our commercial town core and surrounding community is tremendous.
Mike Farrar
Carefree Town Councilman
Saddening news of a wonderful friend and dedicated councilman who truly loved Carefree. He was deeply respected by many and never wavered in his passion to help make our community better regardless of the harsh criticism he received at times. My sincere condolences to his wife, Marsha and family. He will be missed.
Thank you,
Mike Farrar
I am saddened to hear of Jim Van Allen passing. Jim was a good deputy serving Carefree while on the Posse. My condolences to Jim's family.
Ed Morgan
My comment will probably not be published in your “Truth Newsletter” which I have been following since its inception. My comment is this- In today’s environment “Truth” and Facts have become a casualty of selective perception, partisan politics and personal agendas. Your vision of Carefree’s future or that of the town council may differ substantially from others. That is and probably will continue. However, name calling is and should not be part of any discourse no matter how strenuously the disagreement. I have already voiced my opinion about the downtown “luxury apartment development” to the Council and Mayor by email. I find it interesting that the Mayor will now make the rounds with HOA’s after the development has been approved. More appropriate would have been to have those discussions prior to approval.
John D Nimsky
Founder/President
Carefree Business Solutions,LLC
Jdn@johnnimsky.com
602.625.0026
(Lyn's note: Thanks. I appreciate your longtime readership. By the way, here's what John Traynor has to say about me. I am an annoyingly vindictive termagant member of the P&Z
A termagant is a vile and disgusting woman, a shrew. It was used by Virginia Wolfe in "The Taming of the Shrew". John Traynor has also physically threatened both Herbert and me.)
Herb is magnificent. Carefree’s town council and citizens have worked long and hard to create a very special town. Clearly Messr. Traynor is being a manipulated by outside forces intent upon causing a rift amongst the citizenry. They need to move to Cave Creek where they can practice their brand of inflammatory rhetoric to a more willing and complacent audience. This “man” is nothing short of toxic.
Laurie Palace
ATTA BOY HERBIE---PROUD OF YOU-RIGHT ON--JOE INTENZO
http://www.carefree.org/336/IN-THE-NEWS
City Sun Times link:
http://news.citysuntimes.com/
For more information on the Enchanted Garden Pumpkin Festival please visit the website at: www.CarefreePumpkinGarden.com for a comprehensive list of the activities. Sign up here to volunteer to be part of the Pumpkin Magic!
http://www.signupgenius.com/go/5080d4da8a823aafc1-enchanted
Can you let your readers know that we are in desperate need of volunteers for Pumpkin Festival?
Cheryl Kroyer
(Lyn's note: Click on the link above to sign up to volunteer.)
Last month the Carefree Town Council increased the height of what had been a 2015 condo Development Agreement by 4 ft from an average curb height of 48 ft to 52 ft. The proposed structure, much like the condo project, within the context of the layout of the Town, is in the least obstructive location possible, up against a rising hill side in front of the of the Spirit in the Desert Lutheran Retreat Center and up against the backside of the post office and the backside of the Carefree Marketplace and Basha's. And what will the Town gain for this 4 ft concession?
* Luxury residential apartment rental units with accompanying apartment residents in the Town Center.
* Apartment residents who will bring vibrancy to the Town Center through much, if not all, of the year.
* Vibrancy which will bring more and better restaurants into the Town Center. We will have more and a wider selection of fine restaurants from which to choose.
* More restaurants which will bring a livelier Town Center and more merchants.
* More merchants which will fill existing commercial vacancies.
* Filled commercial vacancies which will enable and motivate landlords to improve the appearance of their properties.
* Rental apartment units, restaurants and merchants which will produce more Town tax revenue.
* More Town tax revenue which will help preclude the implementation of a property tax and allow the Town to continue to provide the services to which we have become accustomed.
As the project moves forward, the Carefree Development Review Board (DRB) will publicly vet the submitted proposal. The DRB consists of 7 dedicated Carefree citizens, selected for their wide variety of backgrounds and are well suited to tackle the review of this proposed luxury apartment project. The DRB has a track record of successful projects including the Carefree Firehouse, the Pima Norte Office Building, and Lowes and CVS buildings.
The development team of Larry Gabriele, of Gabriele Developments, and Robert Stehlik of Starworks Global Capital, bring an impressive resume of successful projects. We all know resumes are made to look good. While in the Chicago area two weeks ago, I visited three of their projects including One O'Hare Center in Rosemont. Yes, this is an office building and not an apartment, but their use of granite and marble and beautiful appointments speak to their attention to detail, quality and taste and earned them an award from the London, England Architectural Society. This is the attention to detail, quality and taste that I expect this development team to bring to Carefree.
Luxury apartments will bring value to Carefree, improving quality of life without compromising the character of the Town.
John Crane
Carefree Town Council
Vice Mayor
LIFE IS GOOD IN CAREFREE...AND IT IS ABOUT TO GET EVEN BETTER
There is a lot happening in our little town. I am happy to be living here and I am honored to serve on the Carefree Town Council.
During the past year we have seen a number of projects come to fruition. As recommended by input from The Urban Land Institute, The Greater Phoenix Economic Council and the Downtown Carefree Revitalization Plan developed by The Baker Study, we have embarked on a path of building our Town Center, adding residents and building profitable businesses. As a result of these community wide efforts to seek solutions and cultivate a common direction, the Town is beginning to see some meaningful private investment:
Earlier this year Historic Spanish Village was bought by a new owner and has attracted a number of new businesses and a new restaurant (opening in the fall).
The Carefree Resort was sold and is currently being transformed into a world class wellness resort being re-branded as Civana Carefree. The owner is investing $40 million into this one-of-a-kind transformation!
The latest good news is the development of luxury apartment homes representing an investment of $44 million on the south parcel of the old Ed Lewis project. As a point of reference this is located on the dirt lot downhill from the Spirit in the Desert Retreat center and behind Basha’s. Included in this building will be 135 residences with concierge services, resort style swimming pool, spa and outdoor gardens. As typical of residential rentals, many of these residents will be full time residents and will help to insulate the seasonal declines in traffic for many of our businesses in the hotter summer months. As a result, this will assist the Town in attracting additional businesses and restaurants within our beautiful town core. This is a win win for our residents and businesses.
Please be assured that in conjunction with the changes, we are taking special care to ensure that development is being done with special attention to maintaining the Town's character while at the same time ensuring a robust future for all of us.
If you would like to hear more, please contact me, the Mayor or any of the other Town Council Members. Better yet come to our Town Council Meetings held on the first Tuesday of every month. Another option, the Mayor and I would be happy to schedule a public HOA meeting to discuss face-to-face.
These are exciting times in the history of our town and we would love to share the excitement with each of you.
Cheryl Kroyer
Town Councilwoman
Town of Carefree
A Carefree council member perspective
As a full-time resident of Carefree for nearly ten years and five years prior as a seasonal resident, I know and appreciate the beauty of our town and surrounding area. We are blessed with some of the most magnificent topography in the world.
As a former member of the Planning and Zoning Commission, I and my fellow Commissioners, wrestled constantly with zoning matters where we needed to balance the desire to develop land with the desire to maintain our unique town and community. Carefree town staff were always most helpful in supplying us with information around requests. But at the end of the day, the Commissioners made the call on what we would approve or not approve. It is no easy job.
Today I sit as a Town Council member. My job did not get easier. Now I am part of a group that represents the citizens of Carefree. Our job is to listen, learn, question, consider and make decisions that are in the best short and long term interests of Carefree citizens. Obviously, when any decision is made there will be some number of citizens who disagree with that decision. Our job is to make decisions that reflect the opinion of the citizen majority.
I have been involved in town government, in one fashion or another, for the last five or six years. I watched the impact of the market downturn and the concurrent decline in local merchants. Sales tax revenue, our major funding source, went south. In addition, construction sales tax revenue, another substantial funding source for the town, was devastated by changes made at the State level.
In my opinion, and looking at the facts, our town has turned the corner towards a strong vibrant future. Our town financial reserves grow stronger. We need to become a destination for local, state, national, and international visitors. Through our marketing and business development efforts we are becoming just that. Our strategic marketing plan has created significant awareness through digital marketing and the execution of world class events such as the revered Enchanted Pumpkin Festival and now a three week Christmas in Carefree season. The solid, well-known brand of the Thunderbird Artist shows has also brought thousands of visitors to our town, creating indelible memories for many.
As a result of significant public input, workshops, town council public meetings, publication of activities on COINS, work committees involving citizen participants, never ending work by all town staff, and the work of the Mayor and Council, we have a revitalization plan that is well on the way to generating more sales tax revenue. The plan is available on Carefree.org.
I am both honored and proud to be of service to so many wonderful citizens of Carefree. I encourage everyone to come to town council meetings and hear what we are doing and share your thoughts. I am always available to discuss our town initiatives and/or meet with anyone. My cell phone is 814-881-7020. I can be emailed at mjkrahephd@mac.com
Here are some of those sales tax revenue generators:
1. The renovation of the Carefree Resort to CIVANA Wellness Resort.
2. The addition of new restaurants and businesses in our town core.
3. The construction of luxury apartment homes. (Bringing people to live and shop in our town center)
4. An extended Christmas Festival schedule. (Attracting visitors to our shops and restaurants for several weeks versus a three-day event)
5. Our third-year pumpkin festival expected to surpass the 50,000 visitors we had last year.
I am both honored and proud to be of service to so many wonderful citizens of Carefree. I encourage everyone to come to town council meetings and hear what we are doing and share your thoughts. I am always available to discuss our town initiatives and/or meet with anyone. My cell phone is 814-881-7020. I can be emailed at mjkrahephd@mac.com
Sincerely,
Michael J. Krahe, Ph.D.
Council Member
The Carefree Town Council recently approved a development agreement with Starworks Global Development to build luxury rental residences in the downtown area.
This very important project represents an intrinsic change in the Town’s core. Over the past few years the Town council have undertaken outside, independent studies and recommendations from economic and planning consultants to determine the direction we need to take to make our town stronger and better, such as: Urban Land Institute’s Technical Assistance Panel, Michael Baker International’s Carefree Town Center Revitalization Plan (Winner of the Best Master Plan Project in AZ), Greater Phoenix Economic Council, Marty DeRito (CEO of DeRito Partners), Christine Mackay (City of Phoenix Economic Development Director), Steve Betts (Carefree Development Advisor & ex-SunCor Development CompanyPresident), and many other respected commercial real estate brokers/developers. All have recommended that multi-family residences in our town corenot only adds population mass which is necessary to our existing business owners, but also attracts new businesses into our community. A denser, permanent housing option in our town core will be an economic driver and in turn, add value to our restaurants and merchants, and continue to drive new opportunities for our community as well as reduce the seasonality swings we experience each summer.
While there has been a lot of discussion about the building’s height, here are the facts:
In urban neighborhoods such as the Town Center, it is typical to measure building height from the average vertical curb elevation fronting the development site. In 2006 when this parcel’s original development was proposed, the average curb height was defined at the northeast corner of the site along Easy Street. At this time, the building was proposed and approved at 43 feet which included a 6 foot parapet to screen mechanical equipment on the roof. In 2015, upon conclusion of the community driven Town Center Revitalization plan, the project evolved from a mixed use project with retail on street level to a high end condominium development. In order to support the higher end condominiums the original building height was increased and fully entitled by an additional 5 feet to a total of 48 feet. Due to lending red tape from the previous developer, this project did not move forward and the property was foreclosed upon. The present owner and new development team have evaluated the Revitalization Plan, the market and the site to propose a high end luxury rental community with a resort lifestyle; however, in order to ensure the project can be built they requested to revisit the height and proposed an additional 4 feet bringing the building to a total of 52 feet, once again measured from the northeast corner of the site. It is true that due to the grade slope of the land, one side of the property will be lower than the other, thereby exposing more of the building height on one end than the other.
Height increases are always a concern for the Council and our residents, but in this instance it is a minor consideration since what we gain in totality overrides any small height increase differential.
From a structure design standpoint, the Starworks project has been awarded to Whitney Bell, one of the leading architecture firms in the country.
The Starworks project’s architectural design proposal will progress through the members of Carefree’s Design Review Board (DRB) for approval. The DRB is made up of 7 members appointed by the Town Council. The goal of the design review board is to maintain and enhance the character of the Town; enhance the natural and aesthetic qualities of the Town, preserve the value of land and buildings; and protect and preserve the cultural aspects and heritage of Carefree. The DRB assists the Town Council and Planning Commission in reviewing and evaluating proposed site design, architecture, signs, and landscaping. The scope of the DRB’s review and approval authority is established by the Town Council. The members of the Planning & Zoning Commission also serve on the DRB. Thus, I have every confidence in our Design Review Board and their ability to work with this developer to bring an aesthetically pleasing building design to our community.
In short, how often have you heard an ample supply of housing stock options mentioned as an asset? Instead, conversations about housing usually focus on the cost to taxpayers and rarely take into account the fiscal and economic benefits that accrue when communities encourage the development of varying types of residential units. When homes or apartments are built or rehabbed, the funds flowing to cities and states can be considerable. Revenues can take the form of fees for rental tax, and utilities, or they can reflect sales, or income generated by construction-related economic activities.
As cities and counties across the country try to bring their revenues and expenditures in-line and prioritize how to spend scarce resources, policymakers and planners understand the benefits of well-designed housing projects.
After spending 20+ years in commercial and residential real estate, I can honestly say from my experience this will be a major addition to the Town both economically and aesthetically.
Even more importantly, long after the apartments are occupied, the ripple effect from residents of these new units can support new customers for the shops and restaurants, business expansion, activity for the streets, and nighttime surveillance for the neighborhood. They also represent one of the most economical ways to provide economic stimulus, since the land, building and infrastructure costs are covered by the developer; the potential net economic impact and synergy to our commercial town core and surrounding community is tremendous.
Mike Farrar
Carefree Town Councilman
Saddening news of a wonderful friend and dedicated councilman who truly loved Carefree. He was deeply respected by many and never wavered in his passion to help make our community better regardless of the harsh criticism he received at times. My sincere condolences to his wife, Marsha and family. He will be missed.
Thank you,
Mike Farrar
I am saddened to hear of Jim Van Allen passing. Jim was a good deputy serving Carefree while on the Posse. My condolences to Jim's family.
Ed Morgan
My comment will probably not be published in your “Truth Newsletter” which I have been following since its inception. My comment is this- In today’s environment “Truth” and Facts have become a casualty of selective perception, partisan politics and personal agendas. Your vision of Carefree’s future or that of the town council may differ substantially from others. That is and probably will continue. However, name calling is and should not be part of any discourse no matter how strenuously the disagreement. I have already voiced my opinion about the downtown “luxury apartment development” to the Council and Mayor by email. I find it interesting that the Mayor will now make the rounds with HOA’s after the development has been approved. More appropriate would have been to have those discussions prior to approval.
John D Nimsky
Founder/President
Carefree Business Solutions,LLC
Jdn@johnnimsky.com
602.625.0026
(Lyn's note: Thanks. I appreciate your longtime readership. By the way, here's what John Traynor has to say about me. I am an annoyingly vindictive termagant member of the P&Z
A termagant is a vile and disgusting woman, a shrew. It was used by Virginia Wolfe in "The Taming of the Shrew". John Traynor has also physically threatened both Herbert and me.)
Herb is magnificent. Carefree’s town council and citizens have worked long and hard to create a very special town. Clearly Messr. Traynor is being a manipulated by outside forces intent upon causing a rift amongst the citizenry. They need to move to Cave Creek where they can practice their brand of inflammatory rhetoric to a more willing and complacent audience. This “man” is nothing short of toxic.
Laurie Palace
ATTA BOY HERBIE---PROUD OF YOU-RIGHT ON--JOE INTENZO