It's swimsuit season!

Before you suit up though keep in mind that Arizona has a pool barrier law. The statute covers all types of pools as well whether they are inground or above ground or even jacuzzi style pools. Before you buy or sell it is important for everyone to know what is required. Even if the home a prospective buyer is looking at doesn't have a pool now there may be room for one in the future and knowing the law at the time of purchase might make all the difference in the world.

Arizona Association of Realtors provides general information on their website at

www.aaronline.com/documents/pool_info.aspx

Vacation photos

Here's a few photos from Vallecito Lake.

I already want to go back, such tranquil waters.

Unfortunately there was a fire there about three years ago and some of the views were of scorched earth. It will be beautiful again though.

Here is me after losing another fish after getting the line snapped, yes I was not happy about it. Fooled me once, twice, let's face it a number of times. Next time I'll have higher pound test line.

Here is the granddaughter out-fishing Grampa with a Barbie pole. She used the pink colored 'PowerBait' and said I should do the same.

Photo from the fireworks display. Hard to keep the camera still on a boat but I got a few of these to come out okay.

Lastly, here is Zoe taking in the celebration.

It was an excellent time and our hosts at camp were incredible. There was no shortage of food and fun. The hope is that I'll be invited back again next time. And yes, Mr. Fish that snapped the line... I'll be ready next time for you, you magnificent bastard.

June Listings Report (2007)

Sorry about the delay in producing this report for June. In recent months I've run into quite a few folks that have told me they look forward to these reports. So without further ado...

The disclaimer...

Disclaimer... all data compiled for this report comes from the WARDEX Data Exchange and does not include any sales activity from outside that resource. All research is done only on single family homes and there is no inclusion of modular homes, commercial properties, or vacant land. The geographical area researched includes; all areas within the boundaries of the city of Kingman, north Kingman, the Hualapai Mountain area, and the Valle Vista subdivisions. Click here to see maps of the included area's.

Listings:

Today total listings available for single family residence equals 729 (down some from 751 on May 1). The rate of new listings taken per day in June was 4.4.

There were 132 new listings taken in June (down some from 152 in May). The average asking price for the new listings is $247,731 (while last month is was $256,385). The median asking price is $199,000 (down from $219,900 previously).

The average newly listed home has 3.17 bedrooms, 2.2 baths, a 2.038 car garage, with 1659 square feet of living space and was built in 1995. The average asking price per square foot of living space is $149. Lastly, 27 of the new listings were actually re-listed either by the same or different broker.

Of the new listings in June, 4 already have taken a contract.

Units under contract:

49 homes entered into contracts in the month of June (YIKES... down from 58 the previous month). The average asking price for homes that received contracts was $204,496 (down from $217,709 last month) and the median asking price for June was $182,500 (down from last months $194,900 figure).

The average home that went under contract in June has 3.08 bedrooms, 2 baths, a 1.69 car garage, with 1518 square feet of living space, and was built in 1996. The average asking price per square foot of living space for listings that entered contract this month is $135. It was also priced $24,418 higher when it first was listed as compared to its current asking price (the average price concession was $12,129 last month). It took an average of 151 days of marketing to get a contract.

Conclusions:

The data for the last three months shows that sellers price reduced a little over $9,000, then a little over $12,000, and most recently $24,000 on average to attract a buyer. This is something I'll keep track of over the next many months. I am noticing that the average asking price of new listings is steadily coming down over this time as well (you'll see that reflected in the charts on the sales report next week some time). It does seem that sellers are finally feeling the heat and are willing to play ball in order to attract buyers.

It has now been 18 months since the numbers of sales have begun to drop off and I suspect it may take another 18 months before the numbers begin to gain back towards better levels. Now I'm not going to give you the NAR spiel that this is the best time to buy or sell. I'll maintain that if you are a seller and really need to sell your home that you heed the market conditions and price accordingly. Forget 2005 and some of 2006.

For buyers, yes there are some excellent deals to be made if you are careful. It seems that interest rates are climbing and if you wait too long looking for that great deal, it may not be that great of a deal in terms of afford-ability. Seek out the homes in the price range you are comfortable with first and negotiate with those sellers.

The sales report will be done probably next week. A quick look at the numbers show that once again the numbers softened slightly from the previous couple of months.

See what happens...

when you leave for a week and the temperature goes up a notch??

I knew I was leaving at a most interesting time, but family matters came first... followed by some needed rest and relaxations (landing a few nice fish will help in that way). I'm back safe and sound from the wilderness of Vallecita Lake in Colorado. It was hot there too but luckily an afternoon rain storm moved in on Wednesday to cool us off a bit before an excellent fireworks display was witnessed over two different shores of the lake.

I hope you had a great holiday as well.

I promise, first thing in the morning is the listings report.

I knew about the letter that appeared in the Miner from Mr. Hollingsworth before I left. I want to know some reactions to it. I'm certainly glad that he delivered that message and I hope that others can see why I'm supporting the interchange at Kingman Crossing with such vigor. It could have been a reality by now with some real nice shopping options to boot.

And how about those quotes from Mr. Campana in the Miner and the Standard?? That has to be great water cooler stuff and I can't believe I've missed all that.

“There were multiple bidders but they all backed off because of the referendum,” Campana said. “The referendum changed the dynamics and the viability of the project tremendously because if they (voters) overturn that thing in November what’s going to happen to the Kingman Crossing and the city piece and the interchange?”

Campana said the uncertainty lowers the value of the state land and makes its purchase all the more risky. He said he and other likely bidders are also concerned about the current state of political chaos in the city, including public pressure to terminate the employment of City Manager Paul Beecher.

“The constant turmoil in the city over politics, I mean it’s like World War Three over there,” Campana said. “I just don’t think that’s conducive to an investment climate…Kingman’s got to get its act together, otherwise people aren’t going to invest over there.”

The above taken from the Dave Hawkins piece from The Standard. Lets make sure we have all the info here before we begin to play the blame game. Again though a traffic interchange might already exist at the Kingman Crossing area at this very moment in time, and if it did I bet the amount of bidders for the State Trust lands would have been much higher than zero.

Oh it is going to be fun catching up with all the action. Just too much for now after a long drive home in the hot sun with the still fresh memories of reeling in some nice fat Rainbow Trout and even a few decent Smallmouthed Bass (of course there are stories of the many that got away as well).

See you in the morning.

The Dog Days of Summer

Today marks the beginning of the dog days of summer. These days are typically the hottest and in some areas the most humid of the year. They get their name due to the fact these days occur when the 'dog star' sirius raises before the sun.

Most of us try to keep our homes cool and keep those utility bills down. One of the ways we do this is by keeping blinds and curtains closed and keeping the lights off. When your trying to sell your home it is important to let prospective buyers see your home and that means opening those blinds and turning those lights on.

If you know you're going to have a showing make an exception to the rule during the 'dog days of summer' and open those blinds. Show everyone how great your home is. Show off your homes great insulation! Nothing says Arizona like our bright blue skies! Let the buyers see it.

A great trip so far

Other than for the fine gentleman traveling westbound on one of the east bound lanes of I-40, just west of the Ashfork turnoff, it has been a great trip.

Oh I did manage to move out of the way with enough time to quote a line from the movie Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, you know the "you're going the wrong way" line.

Anyway, situation averted. Every day is a lovely day to be thankful for after a sorta near miss.

Well here I am in Clovis New Mexico and I managed to shop at a mall today along with taking in a new movie in a nice theater.

We're off on Sunday morning for Vallecito Lake in Colorado to enjoy the holiday and to hopefully catch some fish.

Hope to share some photos when I get back.

Travel day...

I'm headed out to see the granddaughter in New Mexico today. My wife and I will then head to Colorado near Durango for outdoor activities at Vallecito Lake. The plan is to come back home on the 5th.

I'm going to try and blog today, Friday, and Saturday.

Normally the listings report is available on the first day of the month but I likely won't get to it until the 6th, please look for it then.

See you next time from New Mexico.

Biting the Bullet...

My bad.

The frenzy article from yesterday was done in slight haste and I focused on some things that were out of context. I jumped to conclusions, and I OVER REACTED in a different manner that I felt others were going to do based on what I focused on in the article.

I will leave that post from yesterday in tact, however here I'm going to retract my statements that the Miner (and its journalist) was trying to lead readers astray and that there was an implied smoking gun 'gotcha' moment in that article.

What's fair is fair. I jumped to conclusions and for that I'd like to make amends with anyone who read that particular posting.

The emails for instance. Is there something definitive there or not?? My issue with the email shared in the Miner article is that I didn't think it implicated the developer in anything. It looks like they simply answered a question. If I had read the article more closely, I would have seen the obvious potential conflict of interest. Councilman Deering is right the city should not be hiring a consulting firm that is a client of the developer.

The 'working together' comment. I still maintain that the consultant ultimately chosen to do the report at some point has to get information from the developer to produce the report. I don't feel as this is 'working together', but if in the context that the consultant is a client of the developer then yes they have a working relationship and this particular consultant should not be considered for this project.

The 'giveaways' comment (alluded to by the article from the activist groups that oppose tax incentive programs) still seems like an accounting error issue. I don't think the program is fairly represented here, it is not 'giveaways' it is 'give backs' -- as in the city will be parting with a negotiated rate of collected sales tax in order to pay back the developer over a period of time. To me it is just a poor choice of words to attack the program... a poor choice of words from the activist groups that are against this kind of program.

Yep, I still have questions... I still see value in exploring this particular avenue. But this doesn't mean that this is the only solution that I'd support or be against.

And actually the best solution is probably that the developer has lined up all kinds of great tenants to move on into the Kingman Crossing development. So good that the developer can't wait to get started and says -- screw it, we are tired of messing around with what appears to be a less than competent city complex from the leaders on down. We are doing this ourselves. We are getting bids for construction of the traffic interchange and we'll see you at the grand opening.

No Bidders Today

No bidders showed up today for the public auction of nearly a section of State Trust lands. Many did attend to sit in a shady spot to view the festivities.

More later.

Here is a photo of all the bidders that showed up to bid on the State Trust Lands

And here is just some of the many people who showed up to witness nobody bidding on the State Trust lands.

I am getting some heat..

From the post about the retail tax incentive. I'm looking at what I wrote and the reactions I'm getting through email and phone calls but don't have the time to address it right now.

I'll update this later today as time permits.

Rattlesnake Wash TI

Last night I checked out a public meeting on the traffic interchange to be built further east on Interstate 40, otherwise known as Rattlesnake Wash.

The meeting was held by folks from the Arizona Department of Transportation and there were also city and county staff on hand.

Here are the basics. The new TI would allow Interstate 40 to pass over Mohave Drive (which doesn't exist yet). On the long range plan for the Interstate, it appears that it will be widened at some point to three lanes each way, and the improvements that come with this TI project will allow for the eventual widening.

Phase 1 of the project includes the I-40 overpass with arterial street connections south to Louise Avenue and to Industrial Boulevard north. Estimated cost is $36.4 million. ADOT will pay 70% of the cost and that leaves the City of Kingman to come up with nearly $11 million for their share. Still a few hoops to jump through but if everything goes as planned, construction to begin in 2013. That is five to six years away from completion.

Phase 2 of the project would include building a road from Louise Avenue south and southwest to connect to Haulapai Mountain Road. Estimated cost is $11.7 million. The City of Kingman is expected to pick up the tab. Construction should be finished no later than July of 2015.

So here is the situation, the City of Kingman will be on the hook for about $22.5 million dollars for the RW project. I wonder where they will get the money needed for it. Another bond issue perhaps?? Maybe the voters will implement a property tax?? Cigarette tax or other variations of 'sin' taxes??

I see a scenario or two here. (1) would be that a private developer with interest in the area approaches the city to do a retail tax incentive proposal and (2) the city sells an asset it has in it's possession and hopefully gets enough money from that sale to pay for the costs for phase 1 and phase 2 of the RW project.

Any other ideas??

More frenzy...

Listen for it... listen close... you should be starting to hear the rumblings of over reaction.

You see in this little town there is a nice big Interstate that runs east and west through it. There are a couple of ideal locations to add a traffic interchange. Let's just take one as an example, we'll call it the Kingman Crossing area (you may have heard of it).

On the north side of the Interstate there is a private property owner (from out of the area with deep pockets) who has grand plans to build a shopping and entertainment center for all of the fine citizens of the area to use. However the locations current state makes it extremely difficult for the population of all Kingman to easily access the area... especially with a giant Interstate in its backyard (or maybe its front yard, whatever) going underutilized. The following is my understanding, I might be off and I reserve the right to be called out on what I'm about to share. When the deep pocketed private property owner acquired the property (some 200 acres) it came with the condition that if a traffic interchange was built that they'd be on the hook for half the costs. I'd appreciate comments if what I just said is in error. I don't mean to mislead anyone.

On the south side of the Interstate the City of Kingman, and all the residents, own some 168 acres of land. Some citizens insist this area is reserved for a park that the city should provide and maintain (and carry liability for). The park should include lush grass and jungle gym equipment for the kids, maybe even a ballpark, or a skate park, or an ATV/motocross track (face it I've heard many uses implied). Without a traffic interchange located near or through the park, most of the citizens of Kingman would have to travel longer distances and possibly use the sacred street of Seneca to arrive for the fun and frivolity that only a large community park can offer. Luckily in recent weeks a community group with a strong media presence has publicly said that they would support a traffic interchange in that particular area.

So now we've identified two interested parties that would like to see a traffic interchange constructed to improve access to both sides of the Interstate for various reasons. One supposedly has to pay for half of the construction and the other side... well just how is the city to pay for their half of the construction?? I didn't see this item included on the bond issue that voters will decide on later this year. If you've been at meetings with Council Members or the Mayor you probably have heard that the City of Kingman is tapped out of funds needed for an infrastructure improvement such as a traffic interchange. Solutions anyone??

Well, the State of Arizona passed a measure called ARS 9-500-11 which if adopted by a city or municipality could offer a possible solution the current situation that Kingman faces. It basically allows the City of Kingman (if adopted) the chance to allow the developer on the north side to provide all of the funding for the construction project with one obvious catch. The developer would prolly like to get reimbursed for picking up the entire tab when Kingman is able to repay.

Let's take a closer look at this Arizona Revised Statute.

D. Before entering into a retail development tax incentive agreement, a city or town shall make a finding by a simple majority vote of the governing body without the use of consent calendar that includes both of the following:

1. That the proposed tax incentive is anticipated to raise more revenue than the amount of the incentive within the duration of the agreement.

2. That in the absence of a tax incentive, the retail business facility or similar retail business facility would not locate in the city or town in the same time, place or manner.

Yep, my emphasis. You know that sounds pretty good. A net add to the city coffers has to be guaranteed during the duration of the agreement, and I get to use the traffic interchange at the same time. Win/win. So far.

Here is an article in the Miner that is leading us astray in my opinion...

But the mayor and many on City Council have said several times throughout the past four months that the city could not afford to give sales taxes to a developer.

Without a primary property tax carrying some of the burden of providing basic city services, such as road repairs and public safety, sales taxes are often called the lifeblood of Kingman.

Who is giving sales tax away?? The state statute calls for there to be a net add not a net negative. And there would be nothing to 'give away' if Kingman had the money for the project in the first place.

More statute...

J. A person or business entity receiving the retail development tax incentive agreement shall not finance the independent third party verification of the findings or have input into the selection of the independent third party verifying the findings.

This is where the frenzy will no doubt begin. Again in the Miner article many will likely be led to believe that the City of Kingman and the developer have already overstepped their bounds and are dealing dirty. But keep in mind that nowhere in the article does it say that the developer financed or plans to finance the independent third party verification of the findings or has had or will have input into the selection of the independent third party verifying the findings.

The other agenda item was a proposal from staff to hire an outside consulting firm to conduct an independent, third party impact study to see if sharing sales taxes with Vestar would be beneficial to the city.

Arizona Revised Statutes require this outside consultation, and to avoid skewed results, the laws prohibit the developer from paying for the third party firm to investigate the effects an agreement would have on the city budget and the community.

Vestar helped influence process

But according to several e-mails turned over by the city last week, Vestar did have some influence in the process, both with recommending firms to conduct the studies and with providing information to be used in the studies.

Vestar Project Manager Ryan Desmond wrote an e-mail April 2 to Kingman Economic Development Director Jeff Weir, stating, "To follow up on your question about who has provided the independent 3rd party reviews for our agreements with other municipalities, Pat Flynn (Queen Creek, Gilbert) and Elliott Pollack (Coolidge, Maricopa) have provided that service recently."

Wow, I wish more was shared in these blasted emails that shows me exactly where the big bad developer did anything other than let the City of Kingman know who the third party was that did the reports were for past projects. Is there anything definitive that shows anyone other than the municipalities hired Pat Flynn and/or Elliot Pollack?? If there is, please call me on it.

I'm not familiar with Pat Flynn, but I do know something about Mr. Pollack's firm. He is a well known economist in the state of Arizona. He has been hired by the Arizona Association of REALTORS in the past for various housing market studies. I sat through a presentation he made last year that I felt was very fair and it could hardly represent cheer-leading for the end of the housing market struggles (like I'm sure all the REALTORS in attendance wanted to hear). This is a link to some of the economic and fiscal impact studies that his firm has worked on in Arizona. It's a pretty good list. Kingman would be lucky if his firm took our money to do the report, again in my opinion.

Since when does a recommendation equal answering a question of fact on who the third party was that did the independent reports??

Frenzy, frenzy.

Deering wants to have a choice

Councilman Kerry Deering will be making sure of that. Upon hearing the news indicating that (Jeff) Weir had asked Vestar for references, about the city picking the reference, and that Vestar and the selection, Pollock & Company, had worked together in the past, Deering responded: "If I'd found that out I would have been raising hell, you know that."

Deering preferred having more than one choice, and actually having a choice. He said that having a company without any ties to Vestar is a "no-brainer."

"I don't think the city staff needs to direct us on who to use," he said.

Sorry but I don't think that the developer and the independent third party work 'together'. Based what the Miner used for the smoking gun in the article, I'd hardly call it a 'reference' as it sounded more like a finding of fact. If I'm wrong, I'll gladly take the heat... just show me the entire context. The municipality chooses the third party and pays the bill. If the City Council doesn't want to hire Elliot Pollack (which Kingman hasn't according to the article) there is still time to find another. While Pollack is probably one of the best, because of the coming frenzy, Kingman will likely have to settle for another third party that may not be as good or not even from the state of Arizona.

Maybe I'm way off. Luckily anyone that can correct me can do so in the comments. Otherwise all this apprehension is a waste of time (like waiting in Stockton Hill traffic).

The state statute doesn't look to be that hard to follow. If the leaders are listening to the people, remember that the people have stated at City Council meetings that they are not against a traffic interchange at Kingman Crossing and here is one possible solution to follow up on. So don't hire Flynn and Pollack, but do something to find out if the project is feasible. Does it (1) meet the requirement that more money comes into Kingman than it costs for the project and (2) can the developer meet the standards put on them during negotiations with the city?? If the answers are yes to both, then we have the makings of a solution.

Otherwise there will be a very different frenzy in the not too distant future.

A few AZ State bills to note...

The State of Arizona legislature session ended last week and here are a few of the highlights.

HOA For Sale Sign SB 1062 - SUCCESS!

This legislation provides for a pivotal change in state statute responding to a growing pattern of over regulation by HOA boards against property sellers attempting to market and sell their properties. Arizona property owners living in these association communities will now be permitted to display an industry-standard for sale sign and sign rider to market their property.

Yep, this means on September 19th if you live in a HOA that does not allow 'For Sale' signs to be displayed, that you will be able to post your own for sale by owner sign or your REALTOR of choice will be able to post. I know of only one subdivision that doesn't allow signs to be posted in Kingman (or at least enforces the written CC&R's) and that is Walleck Ranch.

Appraisal Exemption for Real Estate Licensees SB 1291 - SUCCESS!

This statutory change was crafted by AAR very late this session in direct response to an attempt by the real estate appraisal board to impact the customary broker opinions of values/broker’s price opinion (BOV/BPO) that are a component in client discussions and listing decisions. New language removes the potential for ambiguity and industry conflict. This measure contains an emergency clause and will be effective upon the Governor’s signature.

This one is directly related to Zillow.com that I've posted about before.

County Transfer Tax for Affordable Housing HB 2762 – DEFEATED!

This session brought a live bill proposing the establishment of a real estate transfer tax with much of the justification for the new revenue stream ironically being linked to the shortage of affordable housing in Arizona. Like other real estate transfer tax proposals put forth each year, this bill was defeated.

Once again the local and state REALTORS Association stepped up for all to defeat this transfer tax that would have meant that sellers would have to pay a tax out of their proceeds of sale to transfer property. This surely would have added another negative affect on the already slowing sales market.

Escrow Interest for Lawyers HB 2733 – DEFEATED!

This bill would have attached the interest from monies being held in interest-bearing real estate escrow accounts and diverted it to the Arizona State Bar Association, a division of the state government’s judiciary. The monies would then have been spent on attorney programs and to fund additional lawsuits.

This one just for giggles. Just what this society needs right?? More lawsuits. Yeesh, nice try lawyers.

A Look Back...

Last week was extraordinary in many ways.

On Monday the 18th of June, I was fortunate to be a fly on the wall in a citizens meeting with some real heavyweights in Kingman. Many were concerned about the present and future of the city that I'm sure all in attendance love to call home. That meeting should be held again with roughly the same cast of characters (and probably some others who weren't there) again sometime in the future, maybe even on some regular basis.

Later that evening at the City Council meeting, I thought the members of council did a nice job on the whole in response to earlier meetings that got slightly out of hand. To me it was the kind of performance that should be the standard for such public meetings with elected leaders present.

I also was moved when the founder of the local community group RAID, publicly stated for the first time that they were NOT against the proposed traffic interchange near Kingman Crossing. Of course there will still be differences in opinion as to what the city should do with its lands on the south side of the Interstate near Kingman Crossing, and it is something I can respect. I think a healthy public debate on the subject of the city lands will be just what the doctor would order to help cure some relationships among city and community leaders. When the votes are tallied, all sides should honor the will of the voters.

On Tuesday night there was a new community group formed that goes by the name of CIVIC. This group has some lofty challenges but their timing couldn't be better given all the rhetoric flying through town currently. This group will offer a real chance for anyone to become more informed on many topics that are being debated on in Kingman. The group will also promote community involvement and voter participation. Two items that Kingman sorely needs.

Last Wednesday I turned myself in to the March of Dimes and did my time. I can't thank everyone who helped raise 'bail' money enough. I may not have met my goal entirely but there is always next year.

On Thursday the Government Affairs Committee made some recommendations to KGVAR's Board of Directors on public positions that the Association may take on current local political events. The recommendations were passed on to the Membership for final approval. If everything goes as expected the local REALTORS Association will begin to get active publicly on key political issues for the first time since I've joined the Association. This has been a goal of mine for a few years now (while in leadership) and hopefully it will become a standard of practice for the future leaders of KGVAR.

Last Friday is when I first read the column and on Saturday I responded to a quote attributed to a local City Council member. I admit that when I first read the quote I was very hot under the collar and I'm glad I waited until Saturday to respond. In the back of my mind I wondered if the quote was in full context and wanted to offer some benefit of doubt. However I said what I said and I'll man up to it with one exception.

It was wrong to publicly question the councilman's leadership the way I did. While I didn't vote for him last year, I do see him at meetings asking questions on topics in a manner to make sure he has all the information he needs to make a decision. I may still disagree with his conclusions at times, but I should respect that he is an elected leader and he is making the best assessments he can for what he believes. Two wrongs indeed do not make a right.

I'm sure the 'six monkeys poisoning the city' comment didn't sit well with the Council Members last week and the sensitivity meter is nearly redlining. There has been unfortunate things said publicly over the last month and hopefully we'll all find a more mature way to handle our disagreements going forward.

The good news about last week though was the discussion. More discussion by more informed groups will lead to clear choices that a voter can make.

The new community group CIVIC gives us all a chance to get our feet wet with the important issues that face Kingman, not to guide your decision but to inform you to make your own conclusion.

The public statement offered by RAID means that all the differing groups can have a meaningful dialog on the topics of the day if they choose to (I'm sort of guilty of not seeking out this kind of dialog, other than on this blog -- I'll do better from here on out). We really do have to respect each other enough to at least listen to the others and hopefully form a direction that is actually best for the community.

The city leaders are actively engaged in the discussion from what I've seen. Again at the last meeting the leaders performed well and made reasoned decisions from lengthy discussions amongst themselves, city staff, and the public.

There is still plenty to monitor going forward. The voices are being heard and I see hope that groups like RAID, CIVIC, KGVAR, the 'good old boys', out of town developers, and the city can begin to work together in a public fashion so that the community feels involved and empowered. It isn't a hopeless form of government, though without strong community involvement, it can be.

Thanks to everyone for stepping up in recent times.

Oh Really??

In yesterday's Kingman Daily Miner, Nick Wilbur wrote a very interesting column.

Read that here.

I'm a little put off by a comment made by one of the current City Council members and wish to retort in my own little way...

Deering made another valid point in our conversation.

"There's a big difference between the general public and the group that met" Monday to rail against local officials, Deering said. The critics, besides members of RAID, Deering said, mostly make up members of the real estate and development industries who've seen a major hit since the economy slowed. They have pocketbook interests, and that leads one to believe they might not be as sincere as they appear to be in their claims of simply wanting the best for Kingman.

"The problem is our economy. We were in a boom, and now we're in a bust. I'd be the same way if my business was ... if I didn't know if I would be able to go on," Deering said.

Not sincere?? Oh really?? My emphasis btw.

I'm not a developer and can't speak on their behalf and won't attempt to.

I've been very interested in recent years with City of Kingman business. Partly due to my duties as a leader in the REALTOR Association, but the interest has spread beyond what is good for the Membership I represented as president last year. I applied to be considered for the Kingman Planning & Zoning Commission. I helped lead a charge to protect private property rights at the county level. I supported a major amendment to the already outdated Kingman General Plan. My interest has always been for a better Kingman to call home. It is no secret I support growth... in a region of the country that will undoubtedly grow for the rest of my life. I feel compelled to be a part of the present and the future of this community.

My Kingman Crossing interest started in earnest here. June of 2006. If you read it you will still see the very same themes I tout to this day; traffic improvement, jobs, additional city sales tax collection. What you won't find is me saying I support this because it will keep me in business. I'll determine that outcome on my own, boom or bust.

It is no secret that this councilman has been against this kind of project from the beginning. Meanwhile, jobs are leaving the area and other businesses are closing shop, on his watch.

But thanks Mr. Deering for questioning my sincerity. I hope I get the opportunity to prove my sincerity to you. Maybe I'll be fortunate enough to sit on the same panel as you if the good voters of this town allow me. I know what it takes to be a leader, you haven't shown me anything that says you do.

Mr. Deering how sincere are you about not only keeping jobs in Kingman but attracting new and better jobs??

I'm one who is led to believe that you may not appear to be as sincere in your claims that you want what is best for Kingman.

At The Car Wash...

Today the KGVAR is having a car wash event to raise funds for one of our beloved Members that suffered a stroke last month.

Simply put Sofia White is one of my favorite fellow Members. She has only been in our Association for just a couple of years now. She had quickly built up a nice business for herself, she was very involved in improving the Association with a hands on approach, and generally just one of the sweetest people that you will ever meet.

Sofia was KGVAR's recipient of the 'Rising Star' award in 2006, and was also given the 'Affiliate' award as voted on by the Association affiliate Members, not to mention her own production award.

She was actively involved in her community as well... nobody has a bad word for her.

Readers and Members if your vehicle is need of washing, today please head to our Association office located on Kino (just east off Stockton Hill Road). I will be there just a little after 1:00pm to wash cars myself.

Please give what you can to help offset some costs incurred from Sofia's month long stay in the hospital and 'Life-Flight' transport.

Thanks.

Sofia receiving one of her many awards at our annual banquet earlier this year

Ugh... Not Good

This next bit of local information is not good.

Article was emailed to me and it comes from local media source The Standard (no links to the actual article can be found at that site).

FRONTIER CLOSING KINGMAN CALL CENTER

DAVE HAWKINS

THE STANDARD

Frontier Communications is closing its Kingman Call Center on August 24. It's the latest in a series of Kingman area job losses with shutdowns that include the Mohave Generating Station, the Ford Proving Ground and, more recently, Foxworth-Galbraith.

Frontier, however, explained its decision has nothing to do with the local economy. Instead, the company is expanding some operations while closing a number of others.

``The decision to close this call center and a number of other call centers throughout the company is that we're looking to go from 14 call centers to three or four of what I'm calling super-centers, meaning they'll have 400 or more employees," said company spokeswoman Stephanie Beasley. The company announced last year it would be restructuring to ensure delivery of quality customer service with a focus of 24/7 customer service operations and one-call resolution.

``Those call centers identified for continued operations were selected because of their rich labor market and the ability to attract and retain a base of 400 or more employees," state a company memorandum to the City of Kingman. ``While we employ knowledgeable, service-oriented employees in the Kingman area, we have been unable to retain a base of more than 400 employees."

Frontier said it is implementing a Work-At-Home program in place of the Kingman Call Center. 62 people are already working from home and 20 more will be selected for the same role.

Frontier, however, is not disclosing how many other Call Center employees are not being provided the Work-At-Home option.

``We're not disclosing that," Beasley said. ``The reason being is that there are opportunities within Frontier for all of these employees, so, right now, the employees that work in the Kingman Call Center are being impacted in their current positions, but not in their opportunities with Frontier.

Beasley said it remains to be seen so far as how many of those impacted employees can be placed locally and how many others might be offered out-of-state transfer opportunities.

Beasley noted that Frontier employs 250 employees in Mohave County and will maintain a substantial presence through its Work-At-Home and its other business and commercial service operations.

How might have this been different if the city of Kingman was further developed like a normal city with normal amenities such as shopping, entertainment, and reasonable access routes??

What the article doesn't mention is that Frontier Communications owns the building they are located in and it is a rather large building. Frontier in recent years has gone through the motion of acquiring new commercial space and buildings in other locations around the country (in Minnesota and Florida). There would have been obvious advantages to simply make the Kingman location a 'super-center'.

So why didn't they?? Yes the article mentions difficulties keeping a 400 plus person workforce that is needed. However I believe another possibility is that Kingman couldn't attract the management personnel that would have been needed.

This is a guess only, but it is based on similar the talk going around town as to the difficulties of attracting needed doctors for the hospital. The talk is that the doctor's wives don't want to live here. How great will Kingman be for the many senior citizens with not enough doctors to service them??

I'll let you answer.

Update on Zillow.com in Arizona

You can say that I have been sidetracked lately with issues with a very local flavor.

In the back of mind though was a piece of proposed Arizona legislation that concerned price valuations. Namely the Arizona Board of Appraisals made a strong play to bar Automated Valuation Models (AVM's) like Zillow.com from providing the content they do on their website.

This would have meant that private property home owners would not have been able to place their listings on Zillow, and that would have been the same for REALTORS when all things were considered. In fact according to Greg Swann of BloodhoundBlog...

As originally drafted, the bill would have outlawed virtually any estimation of value, possibly even including the casual conversations of neighbors.

So as you can see our lawmakers stepped up not only for our private property rights, but possibly even freedom of speech.

Of course Greg has the full history of this on his blog, link here.

And littlepinkhouses.com did a fabulous wrap up, linked here.

A big hand of thanks no doubt goes out to the Arizona Association of REALTORS as well. I know there were lobbying efforts being made to protect not only the REALTORS, but private property owners at the same time. I'm also quite certain that the Board of Appraisal will think twice about messing around like this again.

To celebrate the news, I just placed two new listings on Zillow this morning.

Of course my one criticism of Zillow for the local area is that they really need to update the area, both listings had to be fully entered because the addresses were not in their database. This means I could not enter the 'what else is for sale' information in the neighborhood (or called electronic lead farming if you will). Time for them to offer more service to many Kingman area customers or else Cyberhomes.com may become a better option. Oh how I love competition.

Out for good behavior...

I want to once again thanks everyone who helped me raise bail money for my stay in solitary confinement at the Hotel Brunswick.

While I only raised half of my bail, I was set free on my own recognizance as long as I help raise money again for this group next year... which I look forward to doing.

I'll have to design new tee-shirts for next year (all four were claimed, 3 by fellow bloggers and one by my nephew).

The March of Dimes made this a fun and easy event with the Internet interface. I'm proud to say that I raised all the money using their web-site, there are no pledges that have to be collected.

Once again, thanks to all of you who participated. I'll be leaving the link up on the sidebar for a few more weeks if anyone suddenly feels compelled to donate (I have received such donations since the event ended).

Link to article

This was the article from the afternoon meeting I attended with many community leaders and recent critics of the city.

Here are a couple of interesting quotes from the article...

"We've got six monkeys that are poisoning our city," Jay Schritter said. "If they're not dirty ... they have the appearance of being dirty," he said later.

I actually cannot believe that one made the article.

This one is not as biting...

Developer Bill Nugent warned against going to the extreme and taking some of the issues to the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Arizona Attorney General's Office.

"The ballot box is where you change your officials," he said.

There were other memorable things said at that meeting that I wish did make the paper, I must say. I'm slightly disappointed that they weren't.

One would have been (paraphrasing) that RAID should be more mindful of the things they say in public (media or in front of Council) because many in the community already think the group is extremist.

The other was a reminder that when the Interstate was opened up through Kingman nearly 30 years ago and the three existing traffic interchanges were built that many right there in the room did very well for themselves, and created many opportunities for the residents of Kingman, with the added infrastructure.