By LaTricia Woods, Public Information Officer, Maricopa

“No matter how big and powerful government gets, and the many services it provides, it can never take the place of volunteers.” ~ Ronald Reagan

This quote best conveys the need for volunteers in our society, especially for municipalities. Each year, cities are asked to do more – provide more services, add more programs – with the same or even diminished budgets. As populations continue to grow, the number of requests for services and programs becomes greater and the demand more urgent.

Cities look to volunteers to assist the municipality in numerous ways. From serving on citizen advisory boards, commissions and committees to staffing booths at special events and everything thing in between, volunteers share their time, expertise and resources to the benefit of the community at large.
In the city of Maricopa, volunteers have been vital to the organization meeting the needs of our fast-growing community. Between 2000 and 2010, Maricopa experienced an astounding 4,081 percent population increase. With that increase came an immediate ramp up of services and programs that not only made the community safer, but enhanced the quality of life for residents.

One of the city’s most successful volunteer programs is Volunteers in Police Service (VIPs). Since its inception in 2007, the program has grown from 12 volunteers to more than 100 and that number continues to rise. Volunteers assist in a variety of areas including victims’ assistance, administration and recruitment. They serve as members of the Citizens Emergency Response Team (CERT), Citizens on Patrol and Park Rangers. As the largest VIPs organization in small cities throughout southern Arizona, Maricopa’s police volunteers have provided more than 19,500 hours of service in 2012 alone. While their service in 2012 saved the organization more than $400,000, the value of their contributions is priceless.

Although this is just one example of a successful city volunteer program, there are more throughout the organization. Each program and volunteer is greatly appreciated. Volunteers truly make Maricopa a great place to live, work and play.

By Steve Johnson, Bullhead City Public Information Officer

April in Bullhead City, hundreds of volunteers in dozens of organizations will greet and cater to thousands of motorcycle enthusiasts for the annual Bike Fest. The Laughlin River Run has been a Tri-State tradition for 31 years. For the past two years, southern California Harley Davidson dealers have hosted Bike Fest in Bullhead City’s Community Park. The tens of thousands of visitors who come to the area for this exciting event are welcomed by our Kiwanians, Rotarians, Soroptimists, Boys and Girls Club members, girls and boys scouts.

Recently, the city of Bullhead City created a central, online, interactive calendar where all local service groups and non-profit organizations can post events. BullheadCityEvents.com provides a “Suggest Event” button on the front page of the calendar that users click on to open the submission program. Users fill in the blanks, describe the event in their own words and submit the request. A notification is sent to several city staff, anyone of whom can approve and post the submission from their office, tablet or smartphone. BullheadCityEvents.com receives about 5,000 pageviews per month from some 1,500 Web visits. And, the popularity is growing! For April, nearly 30 events are posted. The events calendar also provides local businesses an opportunity to advertise, thus offsetting the annual hosting cost and making the calendar community funded. Bullhead City regularly promotes the events calendar with a link the front page of the city’s website and a billboard on its government channel TV4. The TV4 Billboard is another way Bullhead City promotes community events and bringing awareness to the many volunteer opportunities in our area.

By Surprise Staff

In the latest effort to engage young people in community affairs, Surprise youth are being asked to comment online about issues from city programs for youth to their transportation woes.

In the Web survey on the site of District 3 City Councilmember John Williams, young people are asked a series of five open ended questions from how their ability to get involved is affected by personal transportation issues to what the city should do to increase services for young people.

“The Council has been very active in youth engagement,” said City Manager Chris Hillman. “Recently, we have seen a renegotiated service agreement with the Dysart Unified School District, a stepped up presence for youth at the Arizona League of Cities and Towns Conference, and the formation of not only a Surprise Youth Leadership Commission but a West Valley Youth Council, among other initiatives.”

Councilman Williams is deeply focused on youth issues, organizing youth commissions and leading programs such as the recent Surprise Youth Leadership Conference, Hillman said. “John is even inviting Leadership Commission members to join him at the Council table during meetings,” he added.

Williams says the survey, which can be found on his section of the Council website at www.surpriseaz.gov, will provide information, which can help him work with staff and his fellow councilmembers to craft more inclusive policies and programs for young people.

By Patrick Brenner, Apache Junction Public Information Officer (PIO)

The spirit of volunteering is alive and well in Apache Junction well known as the “Home of the Superstitions.” In calendar year 2012 volunteers from the community assisted with many city departments and many served as members of city boards and commissions. Last year saw 1,407 community members volunteer a total of 38,073 hours with a contributed monetary value of $ 813,239.

Services utilizing volunteers include the Library, Parks and Recreation, Human Resources, Public Works and Public Safety. These included helping hands at Paws and Claws Animal Care Center, Investigations and Victim’s Assistance. Adopt-A-Highway folks helped keep public roads neat and tidy.

Perhaps most noteworthy, currently 34  Citizen Leadership Institute graduates now volunteer their time on city boards and commissions with 67 percent of all board members who volunteer, having graduated from the CLI.

By Erik Strunk
Glendale Parks, Recreation and Library Services, Executive Director

A healthy society is measured on how well it provides for its next generation of leaders and residents. It should, therefore, come as no surprise that neighborhood after-school and youth programs are critical to ensuring this success in each of our respective communities.

After school programs provide a safe place for children to go following the end of the school day.  Many times these programs provide much needed mentorship, study help and social opportunities not available at home or during school.  Parents may also sign up their children to participate in these programs to have peace of mind, knowing their children are having fun and meeting friends in a safe environment.

Youth programs offered through recreation programs and libraries provide a variety of opportunities for children to learn many skills and help with childhood development.  Libraries offer many different early literacy programs for all ages.  Story times and other special programs specifically developed to introduce stories and nurture a love of books are provided to engage children and their parents and start a habit of reading during their early years.  Recreational programs such as art, sports, music and dance provide opportunities to develop small and large motor skills, provide fitness opportunities, teach sportsmanship, foster social skills and build creative minds all through the form of fun.  Some youth programs are even offered for fun with safety in mind.  Learning to swim and water safety is one of the most important skills a child can learn. 

Check your local library and parks and recreation department to see all the opportunities and benefits your city or town provides to you.  These programs are provided to give you and your children a lifetime of learning and pleasure.

By Maricopa Youth Coordinator Rocky Brown

The city of Maricopa expanded its youth programming activities this year by adding a new program called Maricopa in Motion. Maricopa in Motion is a mobile recreation center on wheels that visits each of the local elementary schools. Our trained staff, which includes local high school students that serve as mentors, provide fun games, sports, arts & crafts and also educate kids about the dangers of drugs & alcohol. This opportunity is made possible by a unique partnership between the city, the Pinal County Attorney’s Office and the M.A.S.H. Coalition (a drug-free communities grantee). Each partnership entity provides different support to establish the program.

The Maricopa in Motion program has also developed a Functional Fitness component to help enhance physical activity for the participants. This includes the creation of simple exercises that are fun and can be completed on the school playground. To date, we’ve had 214 children complete the six-week training program. Overall, Maricopa in Motion has hosted 2,187 participants in more than 45 different school visits for an average of over 48 kids per day.

The city of Maricopa plans to continue offering the Maricopa in Motion program next year. This program will join other safe, fun recreational youth activities sponsored by the city including our Summer Fun & Fitness Camps, Open Gym Basketball, Super Teens and the Maricopa Youth Council.

By Wickenburg Police Chief Pete Wingert

Animal control is one of those government services we don’t often talk about, but that every city must choose how to provide for its residents, including those of the four-legged variety.

After losing its animal control officer position in the recent recession, Wickenburg struggled to find a new model. Partnering with a local nonprofit proved successful until demand exceeded available kennel space. And without an animal control officer, uniformed police officers had to be taken off the street to handle animal control duties.

After a thorough review process, the Town Council in January chose Maricopa County Animal Care & Control as its new partner agency. Working together, the County and the Town developed an innovative system that relies on social media to give lost or stray dogs the best opportunity for a second chance.

Maricopa County animal control officers dispatched by the Wickenburg Police Department carry mobile phone cameras that are used to take pictures of corralled dogs. Within hours, the picture is received by WPD, posted on its Facebook page with the case number, and broadcast throughout the community.

Although only three months old, the program’s results to date have been outstanding: nearly all animals have either been returned to their owners or adopted by a loving family.

Visit WPD’s Facebook page at www.facebook.com/wickenburgpd

Town of Queen Creek Geographic Information Systems Coordinator Shawny Ekadis knows where 90 percent of the streets in Queen Creek are. After 15 years with the town she says its second nature. “I look at them on a daily basis while addressing for the town and verifying locations from calls our office receives,” Ekadis said. But thoroughly knowing the town layout is just a fraction of the expertise Ekadis brings to her job with the town.

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) are designed to incorporate hardware, software and data in order to capture, manage, analyze and display data and trends in the form of maps, reports and charts. The information is used by the town in a wide variety of functions, including utilities, public safety, trash and recycling services as well as planning, zoning and other development resources.

Starting out as an intern with the town while working towards a bachelor’s in planning from Arizona State University, Ekadis worked on everything from an exotic animal ordinance to creating one of Queen Creek’s first zoning maps. Back then, she remembers the town as a much more rural community.

“It’s interesting looking back, there were not very many people and they had different concerns about the community’s growth then they do today,” Ekadis said. “Working in a small community you are able to do a number of different things and with the town’s growth you get a lot of opportunities to learn and work on projects you might not get to in a big city.”

Ekadis received her master’s degree in GIS from ASU in 2005 and began her current position as GIS coordinator in which she currently heads up addressing for the town, creates map products, conducts analysis of data and information for various departments and works with staff who collect GPS data for internal systems. She assisted in the creation of the town’s first Fire Department five years ago, and is now working closely with the department as they work to develop Queen Creek’s fire district.

“Shawny’s accurate mapping is absolutely vital to the town’s public safety efforts,” Queen Creek Mayor Gail Barney said. “Her work with the Fire Department is critical and gives the department the resources they need to accurately and quickly respond to emergencies. We look forward to seeing the outcome of the projects she is currently working on and know that they will be invaluable both internally for staff and for the public.”

Ekadis is currently working on developing a series of interactive maps for the town’s new website, which will debut later this spring, that highlight school districts, Shop Queen Creek member information and an application for parks and recreation facilities, making it easier for the public to find and make reservations. She is also working on a website feature that will be used internally to easily locate town-owned property and existing records for each one.

“Hopefully I’ve done a good job in taking information and painting a picture that gives people a better understanding of that information,” Ekadis said. “That artistic element and the opportunity to work with different people on different projects is what I love about my job.”

By Goodyear Mayor Georgia Lord

 
The Goodyear City Council is set to begin budget talks in April, an important time of year when we look at how to the city is going to spend taxpayer money and make the most of the funds we have available.

As we discuss how to spend those dollars and city departments submit their goals and needs for Council consideration, we plan to continue to follow the philosophy that has worked well for us in the past: Stay conservative and hold the line on spending.

The last five years have presented challenging financial times for families and businesses as well as the city and the state. But, as the country begins to emerge and recover from the economic downturn, we will continue to look for innovative ways to better position ourselves for continued growth and economic prosperity.

Our fiscal outlook is “cautiously optimistic” as reported to the City Council at the mid-year financial update in February. Revenue estimates are up for the third straight year.

We will have the opportunity to address some needs that have been on the radar for a while as well as a few amenities for the community using one-time funds – specifically construction sales tax and fund balance from this year that will help us maintain services and improve our roads such as Loma Linda and Goodyear Boulevard. We also will invest in our infrastructure when necessary.

Those forthcoming projects have been made possible in part by the city reorganizing and streamlining some of its internal operations. Some of these cost-cutting measures have included installing a new city-wide phone system and recycling wastewater to reduce watering costs for the grounds at the spring training facilities. These methods will help the city to save thousands of dollars and allow us to invest in other projects for the city.

Goodyear is continuing to grow, and we have seen more houses and commercial industry coming in over the past year, which is great news. The growth also comes with added responsibility to provide services.

We encourage residents to attend any of our Council meetings, especially throughout the budgeting process and visit www.goodyearaz.gov  so you know when those meetings are so you can come see how we wisely decide to spend your hard-earned taxpayer dollars.