Mesa event committee need to put all their resources together and create 6 different events every other month in all 6 villages of mesa as the mayor calls it. That way you elevate all parts of mesa and not just one and everything gets abandoned and loses visibility. From culinary festival, Art festival, Cultural Diversity festival, Mexican festival, Motorcycle festival to Whatever it maybe .. it needs to a banner festival.. Bring all the people of arizona and other states and countries to Mesa. Make money off the spending and hotel stays.. we need funding to make things happen.. this is one good way to do it.

Mesa should be the Center of the East Valley and draw people to us; not just send people through us and on to Phoenix. Mesa is the 37th largest city in the country and yet small cities have much better transit systems than we do.

Mesa needs to rethink and redesign their mass transit systems to become more Mesa, and East Valley, focused. In doing so, we not only save the city money but we will strengthen the economic and social ties that will change us from a bedroom community to a destination city.

Below are suggestions for two areas of transit, bus and commuter rail. I have prepared proposal to implement these plans and am eager to discuss them with City Officials.

Bus
The City’s bus system runs north and south or east and west on the major streets but goes nowhere. To travel anywhere using a bus, a passenger must make transfers, sometimes multiple, to get to an actual destination. Our bus system needs to go somewhere!

The City needs to break the bus service away Valley Metro and establish their own service run by a non-profit entity; such a service to transport citizens of Mesa and the East Valley to destinations in Mesa, and not in Phoenix. For those travelers needing to get from Mesa to other cities, buses will deliver passengers to the Commuter or Light Rails. And while this won’t eliminate transfers, it will simplify our system and encourage bus transit as the easiest way to get to your destination.

This system needs to be a bus rapid transit. This is very easy and very inexpensive to implement, can be done using existing equipment, and can be completely self-supporting (no city funds subsidizing after set up). Bus rapid transit runs on existing streets with its own dedicated lane. Buses will no longer be stuck in the same traffic as everyone else but will be a faster, and cheaper, alternative to driving.

Commuter Rail
If we want to increase passenger traffic at Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport, we need to increase the ease of getting passengers to and from the airport from Phoenix and the West Valley. The easiest way, and most inexpensive way, to bring people to the airport is through commuter rail.

Despite the Maricopa Association of Governments beliefs, commuter rail could be brought to Mesa very quickly and cost effetely and would be a completely self-supporting (no city funds subsidizing after set up) if run by a non-profit entity. A commuter rail system would make a trip from Downtown Phoenix to Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport in less than 30 minutes and would make Gateway Airport a Valley of the Sun Airport and not just an East Valley Airport.

Additionally, commuter rail would serve the developing economic center currently being planned at the former GM Proving Grounds.

Downtown Mesa can be revitalized. It needs a 'draw'. Something to bring people out, spend their money and KEEP them there past 9pm.
1. Use the Arts Center and one of the theaters as a movie theater (current movies). This brings them out and introduces them to the Arts center and downtown (for those who have not been to the center.
2. Regardless of what some may think of the activity, there needs to be 'adult' entertainment. A club similar to "Eli's" in Scottsdale. (no ****...just adult drinking and dancing). No teens. You would get people from the fringes of Tempe, Gilbert, Chandler in addition. Mesa people want to go out and have fun too, why send them over to Scottsdale or Tempe to do it? Keep them here to spend their money.

The proposed park at this location is unacceptable for several reasons. 1. It duplicates services available within 1 to 4 miles; it violates the City of Mesa planning guidelines for the community of Desert Uplands and 3. it creates a source of light pollution and trespass which will disrupt animal behavior and potentially increase invasion of predatory animals in our residential areas. .

The City of Mesa has recognized that there are several neighborhoods which are characterized by their proximity to the natural desert. The proposed park at Ellsworth and McKellips is located within one of these areas - the Desert Uplands.

Several years ago, the City of Mesa created specific design guidelines to integrate new development with the desert by mandating preservation of the natural environment. Natural pattern of rocks, washes, hillsides, and native wash corridors are mandated. Open areas on the site should reflect the character of the undisturbed desert. …Landscaping must blend in harmoniously with the surrounding desert. .

This proposal takes a 58 acre plot of natural desert and replaces it (by my read of the plans) with 20 acres of rolling turf, 24 acres of ball fields and 3 acres of parking lots. Only 11 acres of desert is left (that's less than 20% of the original desert) which is no more than a corridor that weaves through and around the unnatural savannahs created by the ball fields. What is created is a tax burden for an unethical and massive duplication of services which are currently available within a mile of the proposed site (Maricopa County Park -Usery Park ~ 3648 acre park which includes an outstanding interpretive and educational facility ) and within 3 miles Red Mountain Regional Park with picnic/ramada facilities, ball fields and more.

Stop trying to push through a primary property tax every few years without an accompanying decrease in sales taxes. Raising taxes is, for the most part, a non-starter in this city.

However, there are still huge benefits to adopting a property tax in place of a sales tax, even if it does not increase revenue.

Benefits for the city:

1) A more predictable revenue base.
2) Lowers the cost of buying goods in the city, which can only encourage more economic activity (I think we can all agree lowering the sales tax won't cause anyone to stop shopping in Mesa or to buy less in Mesa).

Benefits for residents:

1) Real estate investors with no ties to the city will have to do their part to contribute to the city they are making money off of. Currently these investors do not pay primary sales tax to the City of Mesa, but they continue to bring in large sums of money from their activity in Mesa.

2) Local property taxes are deductible on federal income taxes. You cannot deduct sales taxes for 2010 according to the IRS. Even in years where deducting sales taxes was allowed, you had to choose between deducting your sales taxes paid or deducting your state income tax paid. For most of us, income tax was higher. If you were audited, you had better hope you have enough receipts to justify the sales tax deduction you took. What a mess! Property taxes are tracked on a single form which is easy to access and doesn't need to be manually added up.

3) More stable city services as the revenue base from property taxes is less volatile than revenue from sales taxes. This means less worrying about damaging cuts to schools and libraries every few years when another down cycle hits.

It is incredible that the city has failed to pass a primary property tax all of these years. There is a reason Mesa is alone as the largest city in the United States without a primary property tax: conservative and liberal districts across the country both agree that the property tax is a better alternative to straight sales tax. It is time for this city to get real with a proposal for a property tax. Stop trying to secure a property tax without offering us a break somewhere else. The trade-off that makes the most sense is to tie a property tax to a binding decrease the sales tax. Let's get it done...

A partnership between the Mesa Chamber of Commerce, Mesa Public Schools, and the Mesa Public Library, iMesaLINCS is a place where residents of all ages could go to Learn, Innovate, Network, Connect, and Succeed (LINCS). The business community could use iMesaLINCS for business education, to receive assistance on doing business with the City, network, and enjoy a collaborative workspace. Students could visit iMesaLINCS after the school day is done to continue learning singly or in groups, using the same resources and technology available in the classroom. All residents would have free access to information and recreational print and digital resources as well as technology in a convenient and comfortable gathering place.

Build "BYU Mesa" campus on city owned land at Univ & Mesa Dr. This would bring foot trafic and jobs to downtown, creating an economic center to support the revitalization efforts on Main St. A campus at this location would also leverage the LDS Temple on Main Street, Mesa and other East Valley cities large LDS population, the Downtown library, and an opportunity to revitalize or redevelop city owned housing on the north side of University between Mesa Dr & Center.

A campus at this location would bring an economic center that could support the previous revitalization efforts along main street, new proposed zoning changes for downtown Mesa, as well as the coming light rail to the area.

My suggestion is to coordinate a land swap of some of the Mobile Home/RV Park owners in east Mesa and the city of Mesa. The amount of Mobile home Parks in the east part of Mesa (roughly between Gilbert Road and Power Road and between US 60 and McKellips Road) is mind boggling.

Most of these residents are part time residents and lower income residents who generally don't have a lot to contribute to the local economy. A lot of businesses will not open in some of these areas, because there is not enough disposable income, nor are there enough full time residents around to justify a business opening up in this area. So my suggestion is, let's not concentrate them all in one area of the city, let’s spread them out.

I suggest we relocate and these residents out by doing a land swap with some of the larger Mobile Home or RV Parks. I know Mesa has undeveloped land on the southern and eastern edge of the city boarders, so let's coordinate a land swap between the Mobile Home land owners and the city, and then have the city sell this land to home developers who would build homes for permanent residents.

This would accomplish a couple of things; it would spread out our senior, part time and some of our lower income residents. It would replace those residents with full time residents who generally have more disposable income, and if nothing more bring money to the local economy year around, which will will in turn attract new business. While I have nothing against these people, too much of one demographic in a concentrated area is not good for the overall economy of the area.

I currently live in this area, and right now if I want to go out to eat, find entertainment, or go shopping, I generally leave Mesa and spend my dollars in Gilbert, Chandler or Scottsdale. I do this because this area generally does not offer a broad variety of choices found in other parts of the valley.

Please do not consider this as a rant against the old or the lower income, I hold no prejudice. I simply would like to have more choices that other areas of the valley has for products and services, and have found that businesses will not locate to this area because of the concentrated demographics. I find that far too often I am spending my money outside of Mesa due to some of these dynamics, and would rather support my local economy, city and businesses.

Thank you for listening and keeping an open mind.