Chairman's Corner

Scottsdale Forward

We had a wonderful turnout from the community and the membership for Scottsdale Forward. On March 21 at Scottsdale Community College’s Performing Arts Center, 200 business and civic leaders gathered to learn from a diverse group of speakers about some of the exciting and encouraging economic development initiatives in our city, region and state.

Following welcoming remarks from SCC President Dr. Jan Gehler and Scottsdale Mayor Jim Lane, Dr. Michael Crow, President of ASU, delivered an entertaining and power-packed keynote address about all the things that are right about Arizona and why this state is positioned to take a leadership position in several key areas of the new economy. Dr. Crow included biotech and biomed, engineering, software development, research and business start-ups as notable sectors that will lead the way. He pointed with pride to many of ASU’s accomplishments to aid in this explosion of new economy business, citing ASU’s #1 ranked Honors College, #1 ranking in number of Fulbright Scholars and many other significant benchmarks.

Economic Development Update

The Economic Development Advisory Council held its first meeting in the new training room at DMB Associates at 7600 E. Doubletree Ranch Road. Thank you DMB for letting us use your wonderful facility.

Scottsdale General Plan

Erin Perrault, Long Range Planning Manager for the City of Scottsdale, updated the group on the status of the new General Plan that is being developed for a voter ballot in November 2014. She shared the report of the Visioning Scottsdale Town Hall, a public outreach effort in which 100 community leaders were engaged to help guide the future of Scottsdale. The report represents the general consensus of the Town Hall participants. The report provides input in the broad areas of Scottsdale’s Best Features, Capitalizing on Scottsdale’s Best Features, Community Values and A Vision for the Future.

You can download a copy of the report at:
http://www.scottsdaleaz.gov/Assets/Public+Website/generalplan/Visioning+Scottsdale+Report.pdf

Partner Council Update

Steve Chucri, newly elected Maricopa County Supervisor for District 2, joined Partner Council members for a Leader’s Dialogue lunch on March 13. Partner Council member CCS Presentation Systems kindly provided the venue for the event.

Supervisor Steve Chucri shared his vision for enhancements at the county government level ranging from on-line licensing applications to a more streamlined approval process. He discussed the process now underway to appoint a new supervisor to fill the vacancy which resulted from the resignation of Supervisor Max Wilson on March 11. The informal gathering provided an opportunity for Partner Council attendees to receive candid answers to questions that ranged from the County Supervisors’ relationship with the Sheriff’s department to the problem of a limited workforce for the restaurant industry.

Public Policy Update

City of Scottsdale’s Public Policy Department

Scottsdale Bond 2013
There is never a dull moment in Scottsdale, and the City Council almost put a new Scottsdale Bond proposal on the November 2013 ballot. Made up of necessary infrastructure improvements that help keep our city safe and up to date, the 2013 bond program will ask voters to approve roughly $212 million in projects, assuming final ratification by the Council on April 9.

The Chamber ran the last major bond campaign, Bond 2000, which provided $360 million toward significant improvements to Scottsdale’s infrastructure, parks and public safety. Now the City is ready to come to the voters again, this time with a more modest approach, vetted by a citizen committee who devoted 900 hours to the winnowing of projects down to the essential needs.

Partner Council Update

The Partner Council Steering Committee, chaired by Kevin Sellers, has been hard at work to bring you meaningful, enjoyable events that provide opportunities to interact with your fellow Partner Council members, as well as content that is relevant to you and your businesses.
Our recent Partner Council lunch at The Charro Lodge at Scottsdale Stadium was well attended by nearly 80 members, and is now planned as an annual event.

Events planned in the near future include:

What:  Partner Council Leaders Dialogue Series
When: Wednesday, March 13, 2013
Time:  11:30 am to 1:00 pm
Where:      CCS Presentations Systems
                17350 N. Hartford Dr.
                Scottsdale, AZ  85255
                (Just off Princess Drive, between Hayden and the 101)
Don’t miss the opportunity to hear Supervisor Steve Chucri share his vision for the Maricopa County Supervisors.

Economic Development Update

City of Scottsdale’s Economic Development Department

Scottsdale’s business attraction manager Bob Tunis reports that there continues to be robust interest in Scottsdale from a number of companies looking to relocate to Scottsdale.
While the vacancy rate in the Airpark continues to hover around 24%, Scottsdale has begun to see some positive absorption of space in Class A and B real estate and commercial real estate brokers report that business has begun to improve. Improvement does not imply a return to the glory days for property owners and a great deal of new development, but the market has seen some redevelopment of existing properties.

Scottsdale General Plan
Rick Kidder, representing the Chamber, was chosen to participate in the City sponsored town hall to work on the community values and vision statement for the General Plan. The previous version failed at the ballot for a number of reasons, among them charges from some members of the community that the General Plan had not received the appropriate level of community input and scrutiny prior to being placed on the ballot.
Roughly 100 members of the community from remarkably diverse backgrounds and perspectives under the leadership of the Arizona Town Hall gathered for three half-day sessions designed to come to consensus on the community values and vision statement, the basis for the General Plan document.
The consensus approach is challenging but is designed to filter out personal agendas and fringe concepts to arrive at place where essentially the group agrees. The Arizona Town Hall has no vested interest in the outcome and the process produced a widespread support from the attendees.
Documents and events related to the vision and values and other news and information related to the General Plan can be accessed through the city’s web site at www.scottsdalegp.com.

Public Policy Update

City of Scottsdale’s Public Policy Department


The Chamber’s commitment to advocating for policies that support the business community and the residents of Scottsdale, the region and the state is very strong. We are members of the East Valley Chamber of Commerce Alliance, a group of seven chambers in the east valley that allocate resources to work with our lobbyists from the Dorn Policy Group to support worthy bills or defeat challenging bills at the State legislature. The East Valley Chamber of Commerce Alliance is the largest business lobbying group in the state.
Chamber CEO Rick Kidder regularly testifies at City Hall on issues of importance before the City Council, Boards and Commissions on behalf of the business community. The Public Policy Advisory Council of the Chamber, chaired by Steve Helm, is the body through which most policy issues flow and serves as a recommending body to the Board of Directors on issues of significance.