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Cindy Barks

Stories by Cindy

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From a new police building that would be more centrally located, to two new fire stations that would help to serve the residents in north Prescott, the Prescott Fire and Police Departments listed a number of immediate needs to the City Council this week.

By Cindy Barks March 27, 2024
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Prescott Police, Fire departments identify $50 million in ‘immediate capital needs’
April 2 City Council study session tentatively set to discuss funding sources

Acknowledging that Prescott’s Police and Fire departments have been “doing a lot with a little” for years, Prescott City Council members appeared supportive this week of taking a tax-increase proposal to the voters for help with needed capital improvements.

By Cindy Barks March 27, 2024
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On one side, most of the audience members offered a message of “no means no” on the matter of a new hotel on Whiskey Row. On the other side, the applicant claimed that a ‘no’ would infringe on his private property rights.

By Cindy Barks March 26, 2024
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For nearly three decades, 126 acres of leafy cottonwood and willow forestland that lines Granite Creek south of Watson Lake has been preserved as the Watson Woods Riparian Preserve.

By Cindy Barks March 25, 2024
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The Whiskey Row hotel proposal that has generated opposition from local residents and the Prescott Preservation Commission over the past two years is now headed to the Prescott City Council for a decision on whether to overturn a previous rejection of the project.

By Cindy Barks March 23, 2024
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After going through months of staff recruitment challenges and other start-up issues, the new Yavapai County Criminal Justice Center and Jail in Prescott is slated to be fully staffed and operational within the next week.

By Cindy Barks March 23, 2024
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Touting management experience in communities in Arizona, Colorado, and California, three finalists for the role of Prescott City Manager met with dozens of local residents this week.

By Cindy Barks March 21, 2024
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Less than a week before the deadline for filing petitions, the drive to recall Prescott Mayor Phil Goode appears to have ended with the withdrawal from the race of prospective candidate Stan Goligoski, as well as the failure to gather the needed number of signatures.

By Cindy Barks March 20, 2024
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Downwinders compensation program set to expire in June
Reauthorization passes U.S. Senate, still needs House approval

With less than three months to go before the federal “Downwinder” compensation program is set to expire, legislation recently passed the U.S. Senate for extension of the program.

By Cindy Barks March 19, 2024

A program that saves Yavapai County home builders about $10,000 in architectural costs has now been used by about 50 property owners in communities from Congress to Paulden and has generated inquiries from several other Arizona communities.

By Cindy Barks March 18, 2024
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A Whiskey Row hotel proposal that has generated considerable controversy over the past two years is scheduled to be back on a Prescott City Council agenda in late March.

By Cindy Barks March 16, 2024
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Wildfire mitigation Town Hall meeting set for April 4 in Prescott Valley
Event intended to get word out about new mitigation techniques in preparation for Arizona’s wildfire season

With the recent devastating wildfires in Texas and Hawaii in mind, area officials are gearing up for Arizona’s approaching wildfire season of 2024.

By Cindy Barks March 14, 2024
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While news of a recent fuel spill at a Circle K station in Chino Valley has prompted concerns from citizens about Prescott’s water wells in the area, the city’s Utilities Manager has stated that the event should have no effect on the city’s water supply.

By Cindy Barks March 14, 2024
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From an original total of 45, and then a list of 11 semifinalists, the applicants still in the running to be appointed as Prescott’s new city manager is now reportedly down to three finalists.

By Cindy Barks March 13, 2024
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With this week’s contract amendment for the addition of a backup generator, the tally for the renovations of the new City Hall building at 201 N. Montezuma St. grew by more than $300,000.

By Cindy Barks March 13, 2024
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Months of discussion about a traffic signal at Gail Gardner Way and Fair Street came to an end this week when the Prescott City Council officially rejected the $1,040,050 federal grant that would have covered the project cost.

By Cindy Barks March 12, 2024
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Sixty-nine new homes near the corner of Pioneer Parkway and Williamson Valley Road got the final go-ahead from Yavapai County this week, despite concerns from neighbors about drainage issues and construction access.

By Cindy Barks March 11, 2024
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A 190-foot mono-pine cell tower that was proposed on 84 acres of land in the Groom Creek area got a unanimous rejection from the Yavapai County Board of Supervisors this week.

By Cindy Barks March 11, 2024
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Three Prescott Airport director finalists meet with community
Choice of new director expected by end of week

After a day full of interviews, tours, and a community meet-and-greet on Monday, March 11, a new Prescott Airport director could be chosen by the end of the week, city officials say.

By Cindy Barks March 11, 2024
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After unanimously rejecting a temporary traffic signal at the Gail Gardner Way/Fair Street intersection on Feb. 27, the Prescott City Council will now consider officially turning down the $1 million grant that would pay for a permanent light.

By Cindy Barks March 9, 2024
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Prescott’s leaked investigative reports now posted online
City continues to claim attorney-client privilege; refuses to make reports public

The investigative reports that the City of Prescott has refused to officially release to the public have now entered a new realm of unauthorized public access — this time on the internet.

By Cindy Barks March 9, 2024
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Rezoning request for Prescott Rodeo Grounds submitted in mid-February
Review process will include seven public meetings

With a rezoning request for the Prescott Rodeo Grounds now under review by Prescott city staff, a months-long review process that was set out by the City Council in a July 2023 resolution has officially started.

By Cindy Barks March 7, 2024
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A final plat for the first phase of the Stringfield Ranch project, and a use permit for a proposed 190-foot cell phone tower in the Groom Creek area will be among the issues that the Yavapai County Board of Supervisors will consider this week.

By Cindy Barks March 4, 2024
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With months of state-mandated requirements still ahead of it, a recall election of Prescott Mayor Phil Goode — if petitions are successful — appears likely to land on the general election in November 2024.

By Cindy Barks March 2, 2024
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Getting Prescott’s trash to the Dewey-area Gray Wolf Landfill, and its recyclables to Phoenix, will cost the city over 40% more in the future, after a new hauling contract was approved by the Prescott City Council this past week.

By Cindy Barks March 2, 2024
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Despite worries from Prescott Canyon Estates residents about noise, light and gasoline pollution, a new QuikTrip gas station/convenience store on Highway 69 got a positive recommendation from the Prescott Planning and Zoning Commission this week.

By Cindy Barks February 29, 2024
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The City of Prescott’s update of its Water Management Policy will have to wait for about a month, after the Prescott City Council rejected a plan this week to replace the existing policy with a 2024 version.

By Cindy Barks February 29, 2024
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Prescott’s police, fire pension currently 97.6% funded
Unfunded liability for 2023 stands at $3.9M

After devoting tens of millions of dollars of sales tax money in recent years toward paying down its unfunded liability with the Public Safety Personnel Retirement System, the City of Prescott’s police and fire pension accounts are now 97.6% funded.

By Cindy Barks February 28, 2024
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$100M needed in improvements for Prescott Police and Fire
City: Additional tax revenue source would be required to cover cost

With nearly $100 million in needed improvements for Prescott’s Police and Fire Departments, and city sales tax revenues relatively stagnant, current tax revenues are not expected to cover the community’s needs over the next six years or so.

By Cindy Barks February 28, 2024
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There will be no temporary traffic light at the intersection of Gail Garden Way and Fair Street in central Prescott, and residents in the area continued to push this week for no permanent signal as well.

By Cindy Barks February 27, 2024
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New aeration system in Watson Lake expected to improve water quality
City of Prescott: Results expected over next one to two years

The results won’t be immediate, but Prescott officials say the installation of four new aerators in Watson Lake should gradually improve the quality of the lake water that has long been classified as impaired.

By Cindy Barks February 26, 2024
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A $30,000 to $38,000 test run for a traffic signal at Gail Gardner Way and Fair Street, as well as a look at the city’s budget at the mid-fiscal-year mark, will be among the issues the Prescott City Council will consider this week.

By Cindy Barks February 24, 2024
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Even though the City of Prescott’s new Gateway Dells Gateway Park could still be a year and a half or more away from being funded, a recently opened trail along Granite Creek is serving as a “gateway” of its own.

By Cindy Barks February 24, 2024
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With its accrued liability outweighing its pension assets, Yavapai County’s “unfunded actuarial accrued liability” with the state’s Public Safety Personnel Retirement System now stands at $43,518,320.

By Cindy Barks February 21, 2024
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Goodman tapped as interim Prescott city manager
Permanent manager could be on board by May/June

For the next several months, as the City of Prescott continues its search for a permanent city manager, city government will be managed by previous deputy manager and acting manager Tyler Goodman.

By Cindy Barks February 17, 2024
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From Prescott Fire Department improvements that include a new fire station to a continued push to purchase land near the airport, the Prescott City Council committed to a number of priorities this week, several with significant price tags.

By Cindy Barks February 17, 2024
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Prescott releases settlement agreement with former city manager
Terms: Nine months severance pay, benefits

Nearly two months after the Prescott City Council approved a settlement with a non-disclosure agreement with former City Manager Katie Gregory in the midst of her resignation, the city released the agreement to the public on Thursday afternoon, Feb. 15.

By Cindy Barks February 15, 2024
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A Highway 89 improvement project that already has received considerable public involvement is now scheduled to have even more required meetings and public comment in the coming months.

By Cindy Barks February 14, 2024
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Prescott City Charter emphasizes ‘council-manager form of government’
Charter: ‘Council shall deal with the administrative service under the city manager solely’

Even as the Prescott City Charter refers to the mayor as the “chief executive” of the city, it also emphasizes that Prescott operates as a “council-manager form of government” and cautions against any member interfering with the duties of the manager.

By Cindy Barks February 13, 2024
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From the city’s handling of confidential information, to the breadth of Prescott City Council discussions that occur behind closed doors, to the way city employees are treated, a number of local residents maintain that an “abuse of power” has been occurring at City Hall.

By Cindy Barks February 13, 2024
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A citizen petition regarding the possible widening of Highway 89 through the Granite Dells, three legal issues in closed-door session and a contract amendment for the White Spar Trailhead project will be among the issues the Prescott City Council will deal with this week.

By Cindy Barks February 10, 2024
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When a group of four long-time Prescott residents met at City Hall in late-November 2023 to begin the process for a recall of Mayor Phil Goode, they listed a number of allegations, ranging from a lack of public transparency to creation of a hostile workplace.

By Cindy Barks February 10, 2024
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With a ribbon-cutting event in the community of Congress this week, Yavapai County officially unveiled the first round of its $20 million initiative to bring improved high-speed internet to unserved and underserved rural areas.

By Cindy Barks February 8, 2024
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To date, the City of Prescott appears to have spent more than $40,000 on three investigations on recent actions taken by the mayor, City Council members, and city staff, as well as a still-unknown amount for a settlement agreement with the former city manager.

By Cindy Barks February 8, 2024
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Prescott Docu-gate: Confidential settlement agreement with Prescott city manager violated law, says media attorney
City Attorney: Case law gives city authority to weigh public interest against detriment of release

When the Prescott City Council approved a settlement agreement with former City Manager Katie Gregory in December 2023 without releasing the terms, the action violated the Arizona Public Records Law, says media and constitutional law Attorney David Bodney.

By Cindy Barks February 6, 2024
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A legislative update that will include progress on proposed state bills on aggregate mining and transportation allocations will be among the matters that the Yavapai County Board of Supervisors will consider this week.

By Cindy Barks February 5, 2024
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With the estimated cost of the controversial Sundog Connector now set at a sticker-shock-inducing $151.5 million, the project is not expected to move beyond the Design Concept Report.

By Cindy Barks February 5, 2024
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A sheaf of papers that the City of Prescott has deemed confidential and not available for public consumption has taken on a life of its own in the community, regardless of city steps to squelch it.

By Cindy Barks February 3, 2024
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After about seven years of compiling an annual strategic plan with the help of the city’s State Legislative lobbyist, the City of Prescott is embarking on a new planning process this year with a professional plan facilitator.

By Cindy Barks February 1, 2024
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With more than double the number of retirement-age residents than the state of Arizona in general, as well the entire United States, Prescott’s new housing units over the past several decades have skewed dramatically toward single-family detached homes on large lots.

By Cindy Barks January 31, 2024

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