Sedona, AZ — Sedona Mayor Scott Jablow announced today that he will resign his position effective end of day, September 30, 2025, bringing to a close more than three and a half years of mayoral service and over 15 years of public leadership in Northern Arizona.
According to this press release, Jablow has dedicated more than 15 years to public service in Sedona and beyond. His leadership has spanned law enforcement, fire protection, zoning, city governance, and civic engagement. Known for his straightforward approach and commitment to residents, he has consistently prioritized community interests in his work.
Jablow, first elected as Sedona’s Mayor in 2022, said serving the community has been the honor of his life.
“When I came into office,” he said. “I felt a deep obligation to be proactive and to give voice to the concerns of our residents. I am proud of what we have accomplished together, and I leave this office confident in Sedona’s future.”
From the beginning of his tenure, Jablow pushed to ensure the role of Mayor was more than ceremonial. He spoke out forcefully to represent all Sedona residents on a State level on issues that shaped the city’s character and livability, including:
- The rapid proliferation of short-term rentals has transformed hundreds of houses into de facto hotels, causing loss of neighborhoods, disruption in workforce housing opportunities, and impacting the cost of housing, both rental and ownership.
- The explosive growth of the off-road vehicle industry in Sedona has raised safety concerns and disrupted the quality of life in neighborhoods. Jablow has always believed that residents should be able to enjoy the peace and tranquility of their own home and neighborhood.
- Broader public safety issues that require attention and solutions.
“Sedona has always deserved strong advocacy,” Jablow noted. “Sometimes my direct approach tested the boundaries of our City Manager form of government, but it always came from a place of putting residents first.”
Jablow’s public service record spans 31 years in law enforcement, 8 years on the Sedona City Council, 3 years as Mayor, 3 years on the Planning and Zoning Commission, and 4 years on the Sedona Oak Creek Fire District board. Colleagues have described him as a decisive, outspoken leader whose candor sparked conversations about Sedona’s most pressing challenges.
Reflecting on his time in office, Jablow acknowledged the unique dynamic of Sedona’s governance model.
“Since Sedona shifted to an elected Mayor in 2006, the position has naturally encouraged candidates to campaign with strong visions and act as though the office carries executive power,” he said “But in reality, our professional City Manager oversees the city’s daily operations.”
Jablow emphasized that his decision was not made lightly, but with the city’s best interests at heart.
“It’s time for new voices to step forward,” he said. “Sedona is in good hands, and I’ll continue to be a strong advocate as a citizen. This community is my home, and my love for it hasn’t changed.”
Jablow will appear today, September 30, on Channel 5 Arizona Family, between 4 and 5 p.m.
9 Comments
Scott tried to be mayor. He talked to city employees, one of the city management employees didn’t like the MAYOR, talking to the city employees that worked for that manager. The manager filed a complaint. The city council agreed, Scott was not FOLLOWING THE RULES !!! How DARE Scott talk to anyone but the City Manager.
Ya see, Scott was supposed to only talk to the City Manager, talking to city employees was forbidden !!!
Scott resigned. I would have resigned also.
This illustrates the problem, city employees work for themselves, not for the Mayor, or for citizens. They make rules to insulate themselves from investigation even by the Mayor.
I saw this when I was running for mayor. A citizen can do more than the mayor or a council member according to the rules. Staff makes it as hard as possible within the law to get information. You see a lot of puff information, the budget is scrambled to make it almost impossible to follow. I had to ask for accounts payable to see what was actually being spent.
Overstaffing is rampant. Most staff works a 4 day week with every holiday Monday off. One month vacation and sick leave the first year. They “claim” to be working 10 hour days, If you removed meetings and team building exercises, I doubt they work 10 hours a week.
End the City of Sedona, Disincorporate.
Sedona / red rocks are famous for its corruption – not surprised to see how everything has been handle gangster style once again.
The only sin Scott committed was caring too much for his community. History will look back and note he tried his best to make Sedona more beautiful and greater. The community should give him some slack and thank him for his years of service.
Thank you Mr. Mayor for your years of service to the community.There are people out there who want to put you down but trust that most of us appreciate you. We hope you stay in politics and bring your knowledge to the table.We can expect you to get bad press and poeple will criticize you but believe in yourself and don’t listen to what they have to say,
You should have played by the rules. It’s obvious the office got to your head and made you think you were the boss.It was only matter of time before the walls came tumbling down and you would have been forced out of office.
What amazes me is how your fellow council members turned on you like a pack of cowardly dogs. How terrible they treated you, one of their own. Their animosity for you became so apparent. And then you were ravished by the other newspaper, week after week, attacking you and demanding. you resign. It’s like they had a personal vendetta against you and made it their mission to destroy you. Just know that their are a lot of people in Sedona who care about you and would have supported you if you had decided to ride out the storm.
I can’t wait to hear what you have to say on Channel 5 tonight .I figure you had to pull your punches because the sedona.biz editor forced you to but I hope you really let them have it in your interview. What they did to you ids disgusting.
Keep a stiff upper lip Scott and don’t bow down to those who want you out. I wish you could have told them all to f*** off and not resigned. What could they do? Throw you in jail? You should sue the city.
The final straw was FLOCK proved vastly unpopular.
It is epic over reach .