Mesa

The Mesa City Council met on November 4, 2024, with seven members present and three absent; Vice Mayor Francisco Heredia was excused from the entire meeting. Mayor John Giles proclaimed November as both Alzheimer's Awareness & National Family Caregivers Month and Be Kind America Month, presenting recognitions to Kathy Norris-Wilhelm of the Alzheimer's Association and Marcia Meyer of The Be Kind People Project. Norris-Wilhelm reported that between 2000 and 2021, Alzheimer's-related deaths exceeded breast and prostate cancer deaths combined and increased by 141 percent. The Council proceeded to consider consent agenda items, which are grouped for single-motion voting unless a Councilmember or citizen requests separate discussion.

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The Mesa City Council held a study session on April 15, 2024, to review agenda items and receive a presentation on the Energy Resources Department budget. The Electric System Superintendent reported that the City's electric utility maintained System Average Interruption Duration Index (SAIDI) performance below target, with fewer and shorter customer outages, though summer months experience higher outage numbers. The Energy Resources Program Manager compared power supply costs between Salt River Project and the City of Mesa, noting that the City is stabilizing customer rates through diverse, longer-term contracts while SRP increases rates gradually. The Natural Gas Superintendent indicated emergency response times increased from 2022 to 2023 but predicted decreases due to additional trained staff. The Senior Fiscal Analyst noted that Energy Resources Department budget estimates are higher due to inflation and temporary labor staffing costs for the fiber project.

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The Mesa City Council held a Study Session on September 7, 2023, to review agenda items for the September 11, 2023, Regular Council meeting. Mayor Giles declared a potential conflict of interest on Item 3-a regarding the Signal Butte Water Treatment Plant Expansion, which was removed from the consent agenda; the plant, commissioned in 2018, currently has a 24 million gallons per day capacity and is intended to double capacity to meet area demand using General Fund revenue bonds for financing. The Council also reviewed Item 4-c, a proposed Fiber License Agreement with Zayo Group, LLC for placement of a fiber optic cable network within the public right-of-way citywide, and Item 5-a, concerning Personnel Rules to become effective October 18, 2023. The next Regular Council meeting was scheduled for Monday, September 11, 2023, at 5:45 p.m., preceded by a Study Session at 5:15 p.m.

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The City of Mesa City Council held a Study Session on July 3, 2023, at 5:15 p.m. to review agenda items for the July 3 and July 10, 2023 Regular Council meetings, with Mayor John Giles presiding and six Council members present (Francisco Heredia and Julie Spilsbury participating by video conference), while Alicia Goforth was excused. Items 7a through 7c were removed from the July 10 consent agenda, and discussion included details on The Studios @ Mesa City Center Phase 2 in District 2, which will incorporate music recording audio-visual equipment into a podcast room, and the Gateway Interchange Phase III zoning request for a 9-acre industrial development in District 6 along South 80th Street, where the City acknowledged potential cost-sharing issues with private property owners for water and wastewater infrastructure. The Council also heard a presentation on fireworks enforcement, with Fire Prevention reporting 23 permitted fireworks tents issued in 2023.

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The Mesa City Council held a study session on April 6, 2023, to hear a presentation on utility projects in the Capital Improvement Program. The Office of Management & Budget Director Brian Ritschel reviewed funding sources and CIP challenges, highlighting completed projects in FY 22/23 and projects under construction for Wastewater and Energy departments. The Council discussed the LG Energy Solution battery plant opening in Queen Creek within Mesa's gas service area, with Energy Resources Program Manager Anthony Cadorin providing details on energy demand and location specifics at the northeast corner of Ironwood and Germann Road. Ritschel presented future funded projects for Water, Wastewater, Energy, and Solid Waste, noting the Central Reuse Pipeline is estimated for completion in 2025 with water credits available in 2027 pending a full year of flow verification by the Gila River Indian Community. The Signal Butte Water Treatment Plant expansion will proceed in phases pending Bureau of Reclamation guidance on CAP cuts.

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On February 9, 2023, the Mesa City Council held a Study Session to review items for the February 13, 2023 Regular Council meeting, with all seven council members present. Library Director Polly Bonnett presented an Intergovernmental Agreement with Mesa Unified School District to establish an opt-in library card signup process for students through school enrollment, removing three items (3-a, 8-a, and 8-b) from the consent agenda. The presentation referenced 2015 data showing kindergarteners with public library access achieved higher math, science, and reading scores by third grade, and detailed a new automated year-round library card registration process serving 82 Mesa Public Schools locations and 57 elementary schools across three service districts. Ms. Bonnett noted a kindergarten pilot program is underway in a charter school with planned adjustments following evaluation.

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On July 8, 2021, the Mesa City Council held a Regular Council Meeting where they approved consent agenda items including minutes from the previous meeting and three new Series 10 Beer and Wine Store Licenses for convenience stores (One Stop Food Mart & Deli, QuikTrip #1433, and Mango Mini Mart). The Council also recognized Randy Carter for 21 years of service on City boards and committees, during which he reviewed over 14,000 land use cases. The meeting included action on contracts, though the specific contract details were not fully documented in the provided excerpt.

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The City Council of Mesa held a regular meeting on June 4, 2018 at 5:45 p.m. in the Council Chambers, with all seven councilmembers present. The council unanimously approved consent agenda items including the reappointment of City Magistrate Elizabeth Arriola to a four-year term from July 1, 2018 to June 30, 2022, and three new liquor license applications: Thai Time Kitchen (Series 12 Restaurant license at 1649 South Stapley Drive, District 3), The Latin Kitchen (Series 12 Restaurant license at 540 West Broadway Road, District 4), and Odyssey Cellars (Series 13 Domestic Farm Winery License). Mayor Giles recognized Dr. Ember Conley as the new Mesa Public Schools Superintendent, and Councilmember Freeman recognized Master Gunnery Sergeant Tyson Henry for earning the Young Marines Distinguished Order of Merit.

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The Economic Development Advisory Board met on April 4, 2023, at 7:30 a.m. in Mesa, Arizona, with Chair Rich Adams presiding and five members excused. The Board unanimously approved the March 7, 2023, meeting minutes by vote of 5–0 (Adams, Campbell, Genereux, Nickerson, Perry). Councilmember Julie Spilsbury addressed the Board regarding economic development in District 2, which spans from Gilbert to Sossaman and Baseline to University in central Mesa. Spilsbury reported that District 2 handled at least seven controversial zoning cases in the previous year and that she has been meeting weekly with the Planning Director. She noted that the city is developing a balanced housing plan with consultant support to establish a housing baseline specific to Mesa and ensure adequate supply and variety of housing types while protecting employment corridors.

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The Historic Preservation Board of Mesa, Arizona held a meeting on June 5, 2018 at 6:00 P.M. in the City Council Chambers to address multiple preservation matters in the Temple Historic District southeast of Main Street and Mesa Drive. The Board considered a demolition request for the noncontributing Visitor Center at 101 S. LeSueur and reviewed a proposed mixed-use redevelopment of approximately 6 acres involving rezoning of 4 acres from T5MS and T4NF to T5MSF and 2 acres from T4NF-HD and T4N-HD to T5MSF-HD across four blocks (0 block of South Mesa Drive, 400 block of East Main Street, 0 block of South Udall, and 0 block of South LeSueur). The Board also discussed preservation plans for seven contributing residential structures and one noncontributing structure on South Udall, South LeSueur, and East 1st Avenue that had received demolition denials, and addressed preservation of the Dairy Queen sign at 629 E. Main Street. Additional agenda items included staffing needs for historic preservation, the 2018-2019 Historic Preservation Student Writing and Video Contests, and the 2018 Historic Preservation Awards Program.

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The Economic Development Advisory Board of Mesa, Arizona met virtually on March 2, 2021 at 7:30 a.m. to discuss economic development initiatives in District 1 and surrounding areas. The board unanimously approved the February 2, 2021 meeting minutes. Councilmember Mark Freeman reported on several projects including Winter League games currently playing on the west side of District 1, the Union building nearing completion with one tenant downsized and additional tenants being sought, and mixed-use commercial and residential development being discussed on land near car dealerships. Freeman also noted neighborhood pushback regarding a fourth office building and parking garage at Waypoint (Alma School and Bass Pro Drive), where disagreements exist over building heights—with the developer entitled to construct a three-story building and three-story parking garage but neighbors preferring two-story construction. Director Jabjiniak reported that Waypoint is over 90% occupied and was sold in late 2019 at one of the highest per-square-foot prices in the region.

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The Employee Benefits Advisory Committee met on September 12, 2019, to review health plan policy updates and procedural improvements. The committee unanimously approved the prior meeting minutes from September 6, 2018, and authorized the Secretary to finalize and post future meeting minutes within a reasonable timeframe rather than waiting up to a year until the next meeting. The primary focus was Jan Ashley's presentation on recommended changes to the City's Health Plan Document Summary Plan Description for calendar year 2020, which included language updates for dependent eligibility verification, retiree medical plan EAP program eligibility clarification, out-of-network balance billing reminders, and updates to preventive services guidelines aligned with USPSTF and CMS requirements.

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The Audit, Finance & Enterprise Committee of the City of Mesa met on October 30, 2014, at 8:01 a.m. to hear a presentation on a Fire Prevention audit conducted by City Auditor Jennifer Ruttman to evaluate whether internal controls reliably applied, managed, and tracked fee-based service revenues. The audit identified four findings regarding inspection scheduling and resource constraints; the Fire Prevention division had been downsized, resulting in reduced inspection frequency for high-risk occupancies from every two years and medium-risk occupancies to every three years. The audit recommended the Fire Department reassess its available resources and establish a realistic service delivery plan, with Committee members discussing potential options including outsourcing to the private sector or utilizing regional and certification teams, though the department expressed a preference to retain fire inspection services in-house.

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