Looking a Gift Horse in the Mouth
Sedona, AZ (July 7, 2011) – Flash back to 1986, before Sedona incorporated. The community was bifurcated by two counties: Coconino on one end, Yavapai on the other. It was the wild west. The only law enforcement was the county sheriff. Typically there was one, maybe two patrol cars in town at any given time. The crime rate was low. Responses were sometimes 45 minutes. Disputes between residents were resolved among themselves. If you needed assistance a phone call was made. The days of patrol cars throughout the community was not yet happening. The county seat of Coconino County was, and still is, Flagstaff. Separated by the Mogollon Rim, 25 miles of National Forest and beautiful Oak Creek Canyon, Sedona was an inconvenient drive for county officials to visit. Yavapai County was similar. The county seat was in Prescott, with small law enforcement stations in Camp Verde and the Middle Verde and uptown Sedona. Being in an unincorporated area, county building codes were followed…sort of. Cowboy construction built Sedona. Look around Sedona and one can still find cowboy construction.
Wastewater systems consisted of septic tanks, cesspools and open trenches. Anywhere the ground could absorb wastewater and other solids became fair game for disposal. Whether the disposal was close to Oak Creek made no difference. There was also a dump located where Yavapai College and The Summit are now located in West Sedona.
That same year, as the world began to discover Sedona, the federal government appeared on the Sedona Sanitary District’s radar. They proposed to put up $7 million if the unincorporated community would put up $1 million for sewering the town. There was no city and no local governing body to put up the funds. Funding could have worked through the county, however. The Sanitary District board voted to turn down the funds, saying it would encourage additional development of the area. The project died. The wave of development was already cresting, but It was too late. In 1988 Sedona became a city and with incorporation came a court order from the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ): Sedona must install a wastewater system, at its own expense, since the federal grant money was no longer available. Also, no new septic systems could be installed within one quarter mile of Oak Creek.
The very thing the Sanitary District wanted to stop as a result of their denial happened and growth exploded in Sedona. And who ended up paying for the installation of a wastewater system? Sedona did, and paid for it by bonding to the tune of $62 million. This debt will be retired 2027, payable at $6.2 million per year.
An opportunity was blocked by a small but vocal minority. Today, in the midst of a referendum action initiated by a small but vocal minority, $10.6 million sits on the table, as the fate of ownership of State Route 89a hangs in the balance. Remember this offer when State Route 89a is transferred to the city with not one dime. Remember we turned down $10.6 million in cash up front so a small, vocal minority could have their street lights.
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5 Comments
I am saddened when I see solutions to our challenges presented and then thoughtlessly tossed aside. I call these events Gifts. 89a is a prime example: We will end up owning the roadway no matter what and here comes ADOT with a package to help us on our way to highway independence. We have a gift on the table, let us accept what has been offered and get on with life.
Sedona was supposed to be a Mecca of Enlightenment. We are the enlightened ones?
This is indeed very sad. It looks to Me like Sedona will end up owning the stretch of 89A through West Sedona, one way or another. At the present time a small minority has cost the City $10.6 million, that could have been used for both day and night safety on the highway. I’m not even sure that these people live in West Sedona, where almost 70% of the people live, so why would they do such a thing. Perhaps We should follow the money. Not the $10.6 million, but the Big Money, the Real Estate Money. The residents of West Sedona should take a quick look around at their community, because changes are coming if they get their lights, and the local and out of town Realtors and Developers are already waiting in the wings.
Who of You remember 2005, when a proposal was made to change the code in the Harmony area in West Sedona, from ‘single-residence’ to ‘multi-residence’. Who remembers sitting in the meetings (mostly led by a large contractor’s wife) with residents of the area, realtors and developers. How could You tell who the residents were? Answer: they were the ones that weren’t drooling. Who remembers at that same time the talk about renovating the highway through West Sedona? Getting rid of the old buildings and businesses, and bringing in Galleries, Hotels, Restaurants, and Night Life that would enhance the look of Sedona, and make it equal to Scottsdale. They never mentioned a good shoe store.
False fear tactics were used to gain signatures for the 89A referendum, by, but not exclusively, from Sedona’s past-mayors, past-councilors and realtors. They yell Taxes! Deaths! Liability! When they mean Money! Money! Money!
What can Sedona do now? Easy, move on. I feel a Vote is a good thing. Sedona has a highly educated populous, so let’s educate ourselves and others, vote for 24 hour safety, instead of lining the pockets of a few. Then Sedona can go back to ADOT and negotiate a new contract, and we can all relax and enjoy the beauty that we moved here for.
Laurie K.
As usual in Sedona when any controversial issue is introduced, misinformation flows freely and, for some, becomes truth. There was never a proposal to change Harmony zoning into multi-family. There was a proposal to allow multi-family housing which would include some affordable housing units along 89A. Facts never seem to be enough in this town. And if the facts don’t agree with your argument, just change them and present them as truth. It always seems to work. That tactic is used by both sides of the 89A issue — it’s not exclusive to the anti-takeback faction. Not everyone who is against the takeback is standing in the wings drooling for money, money, money. And the impetus for the takeback for many people was purely to prevent the lights from being installed. Sadly, we’re likely to get the worst of both possible options.
We should accept the funds and make 89a the safe and beautiful road we all know it should be; and set aside funds each year for future maintenance. Those who want to rely on the state to solve our problems are the very ones, I suspect, who greatly value independence and personal responsibility. It seems contradictory to me.
Anyone making accusations needs to support them with documentation. Where are the facts about these “lies” told by “both” sides of this issue and why is the accusation not properly documented?
The main reason Sedona residents cannot read the truth is because the local newspaper is owned and operated by someone who fears the truth may impact the publisher’s agenda.