The Daily Agenda: County tackles abortion ban, steakhouse zoning, and more
The Pima County supervisors are appointing a new treasurer ... They got way more money for asylum seekers than they thought ... Meteors incoming, but in a fun way.
In today’s batch of news nuggets, we’re looking at what’s happening at today’s meeting of the Pima County Board of Supervisors. (Don’t worry, we’re taking a break from reporting on budget stuff today)
The Pima County supervisors are set to weigh in on the 1864 abortion ban at their meeting today. Supervisor Matt Heinz wants the board to approve a resolution that condemns the “archaic” ban and affirms that access to abortion is “critical to protecting and supporting the public’s health.” The resolution also would back up County Attorney Laura Conover’s promise not to prosecute anyone on abortion-related charges. The board would recognize that Gov. Katie Hobbs declared those prosecutions will go through the office of Attorney General Kris Mayes. Like Conover, Mayes said she has no intention whatsoever of prosecuting anyone under the 1864 ban.
The political mini-drama over who will be the next county treasurer comes to a close today, or at least the first chapter of it. The supervisors will appoint a replacement for Treasurer Beth Ford, who is retiring this week. There’s been a lot of political wrangling over this one for weeks now. Ford wants her deputy, Chris Ackerley, to replace her. But Ackerley also is running for the full four-year term and getting appointed could give him an advantage over other candidates. So the supervisors set up an appointment process, which is down to Ackerley and Patti Davidson, a former deputy in the treasurer’s office. Ford said Davidson wouldn’t be the best fit, mainly because she hasn’t worked there since 2016. County Assessor Suzanne Droubie echoed that reasoning in a letter to the board, while Brian Johnson, who is running against Ackerley, took issue with Droubie “interjecting herself in the process.”
The county got more money to support asylum seekers than they anticipated, but it was still less than New York City. After local officials worried for months about federal dollars running out, federal officials said Pima County would get at least $12.7 million. The county ended up getting $21.8 million last week, which officials said should last until the end of the year. All told, $300 million went to more than 50 government bodies, charities, and nonprofits across the country. Pima County was second only to New York City, which got $38.9 million to support asylum seekers living in the city, some of whom were bused from states like Arizona, Texas, and Florida. In a sign of how much funding patterns have shifted away from the U.S.- Mexico border over the past year or so, about $100 million went to places like New York, Chicago, Atlanta, and Minnesota.
In zoning news, the owners of a property on Old Spanish Trail want to restore a longtime restaurant that closed seven years ago. They want to open a steakhouse, but first they need to get the county to rezone six acres of land, and that means overcoming complaints from neighbors. The property is at 5400 S. Old Spanish Trail, near the corner of East Saguaro Crest Place and right across the street from the Rincon Mountain District of Saguaro National Park. Neighbors complained about noise from the previous restaurant, along with headlights from the parking lot and trash that attracted coyotes and javelina. They also said the property owners pump water from a well they share with neighbors, even though it has access to Tucson Water, while others said they bought property nearby because of the peace and quiet, which would be ruined by the restaurant.
Somebody is challenging petitions filed by some candidate and somebody needed a waiver from the county to hire a lawyer to deal with those challenges in some way. That’s about all we could glean from the description of an April 2 executive session, which read: “Mesch, Clark & Rothschild, P.C.'s request for a Conflict of Interest Waiver to represent candidates in petition challenges for 2024.”
The County Attorney’s Office put the item on the agenda, so we asked them what the deal was. We know they can’t describe what was said during executive sessions, but agendas routinely include specific details that at least let the public know what they’re talking about. Heck, the other executive session that day dealt with “county sewer line damage near Kalalau Drive,” not “changes to county infrastructure.” Here’s what they told us:
The law firm “requested a waiver of conflict of interest because they may be representing candidates in petition challenges and the Board of Supervisors and the Recorder are statutorily necessary parties under A.R.S. § 16-351(D). Under Ethical Rule 1.7, a lawyer can represent a client against another client if the client agrees. Any questions about cases that MCR might be contemplating should be directed to them.”
We’re not lawyers, so that may all be above-board. Maybe it’s just election season and everybody’s hiring lawyers from the same firms. But wow, that didn’t clear up anything at all. And they might be doing it again. Today’s agenda includes this item for an executive session: “The Pima County Attorney's Office requests that the Board of Supervisors consider DeConcini McDonald Yetwin & Lacy, P.C.'s request for a Conflict of lnterest Waiver.”
You can watch the Pima County Board of Supervisors meeting on the county’s YouTube channel. The meeting starts at 9:00 a.m. this morning.
VP visit: Vice President Kamala Harris blamed Donald Trump for Arizona’s Civil-War era abortion ban, telling Tucsonans Friday that it “turned the clock back more than a century on women’s rights and freedom,” the Arizona Luminaria’s Carolina Cuellar reports. Harris spoke to a crowd of about 100 attendees at the west side El Rio Neighborhood Center and also blasted local Republicans for backpedaling on restrictions to reproductive healthcare.
“The overturning of Roe was a seismic event. And this ban in Arizona is one of the biggest aftershocks yet,” she said.
His two cents: The Arizona Daily Star’s Tim Steller says that the Arizona Supreme Court’s ruling on the abortion ban was defensible, with compelling reasoning on both sides, but the 1864 law at the center of the issue must be repealed. That won’t be so easy, Steller writes, since the ruling has become a high-stakes national political issue with the outcome of the presidential election potentially depending on how the issue plays out here. If the Legislature doesn’t take action, the only way to stop the ban from taking effect will be continued legal action. From there, it’s a matter of waiting until November, when voters will likely be considering at least one ballot issue related to reproductive rights.
Left holding the bag: Cochise County Supervisor Peggy Judd says she feels abandoned by prominent Republican figures like pillow magnate Mike Lindell who said they would cover her legal bills if she pushed to hand-count ballots and delay certifying the results of the 2022 elections, VoteBeat Arizona’s Jen Fifield reports. She and fellow Supervisor Tom Crosby were indicted last year, but little funding for her legal costs has materialized, leaving her feeling “pissed.”
Sky candy: The Lyrids meteor shower kicked off yesterday and Southern Arizona has some prime viewing locations, including Tucson’s Saguaro National Park and Ajo’s Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, the Arizona Republic’s Tiffany Acosta writes. The Lyrids, which will be visible through April 29 and peaking April 21 and 22, are known for producing bright, fast-moving meteors and occasional fireballs, but they aren’t the only meteor shower this month. The Eta Aquariids meteor shower is also now visible through May 27.
Open seat: The Catalina Foothills governing board is looking to fill the seat of Amy Bhola, a longtime board member and teacher who died last month, the Star’s Jessica Votipka reports. The term for Bhola’s immediate successor will last through the end of the year, with the seat also on the November ballot as a two-year term. Candidates who would like to be considered for the position must submit an affidavit of qualification and candidate appointment questionnaire by May 10.
Bisbee is booming: Money magazine named Bisbee one of the 50 best places to live in the United States, the Republic’s Abigail Beck writes. It was the only Arizona city to make this year’s list. The magazine analyzes the state of the job market, average housing costs, poverty rates, public school quality, and reader opinion to decide if a city or town deserves a spot on the list. Money appreciated Bisbee’s culture of color, art and slow living and also its housing costs and low unemployment rate of 3.6%. In Bisbee, the median home price is $290,000.
73: The high temperature in Tucson on Monday. The National Weather Service says “it may be a while until we see afternoon highs this cool again!” Summer is coming.
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