Pinal planning is a model for Yavapai County
I have never run for office before and I am not a politician, but I have been an involved citizen since moving to Prescott in 1994 and what one might call a “citizen activist” for 10 years.
Now, I realize the County Supervisor election is almost a year away; the primary in 2008 isn’t until September 2. But here’s what I figured: since I’m traveling all over attending scores of meetings, conferences and events most citizens don’t have the time for, why not serve as your “roving reporter” and take you with me?
Two events I attended recently are the Governor’s Housing Conference in Phoenix and the Energy Conservation Committee’s Sustainable Planning Group meeting here in Prescott.
First, housing. Lora Lopas (candidate for Prescott City Council and an open space maven) and I drove down on Tuesday, September 11, to attend the 2007 Governor’s Housing Forum. As far as I know we were the only candidates there and many of the people we met were surprised to find that we had come on our own and paid our own way. If you saw the cost of the hotel rooms you’d understand. I was totally impressed by Lora’s cool as we went to workshops on Community Development Block Grants and Rural Development Programs while she awaited the Prescott City election results. Now, that takes concentration and resolve! If you’re wondering who’ll be working hardest for you on the city council, you might want to remember that.
The most useful workshop to me was “Raising Arizona,” which concentrated on the Pinal County Comprehensive Plan. Pinal County is experiencing hypergrowth, fueled by expansion from two directions, Tucson in the north and Phoenix in the south. They were concerned about losing their quality of life and decided their General Plan just wasn’t enough, so they set about creating a new comprehensive plan that addressed the regional implications of fast growth without adequate planning. What they're doing could be a model for us; the contacts I made there are going to be invaluable.
If you think Yavapai County could use some more comprehensive planning and that the citizens should be more involved in the process, take a look at what’s happening in Pinal County and give me your feedback. Go to www.pinalcountyplan.com and check it out. I’ll be examining this model in much greater detail.
On Friday, September 14, I attended the Yavapai County Energy Conservation Committee’s Sustainable Planning Group meeting. There are two groups involved in creating new zoning regulations for Conservation Subdivisions; this is part of the governor’s Smart Growth Initiative and will be included in the Yavapai County code. The effort is divided into a Sustainable Planning component and a Green Building component, each with a separate group. I will be following this closely and will devote future columns to the what, why and how of this process. I wasn’t a reporter in a former life for nothing.
Not only do I want to share my experiences on the campaign trail with you; I’m hoping this will become a twoway street. Tell me what you want to know and I’ll do my best to find out. Probably the single most important reason I decided to run for office is to become a voice for the average citizen. I hope to create an atmosphere in government where citizen participation is at the top of the list. Are you with me?
 (Georgene is a candidate for County Supervisor, District 1, which is most of Prescott, Chino Valley, Paulden, Ash Fork, Skull Valley, Williamson Valley, a smidgen of Prescott Valley and a sliver of Dewey-Humboldt. Contact her directly at
This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it
)
Comments () |
|
|
|
|
 |
