What you have written sent me into fits of laughter. Reminds me so of past times in Woodland Hills, CA. My husband was Catholic, my claim was and remains “Spiritual While Working In Yard,” and our neighbors were a mixture of Mormons, Catholics, and Jews. Except for the Mormons (only because they probably wouldn’t have approved of our style of entertaining) all were invited for Christmas and other holidays. One year I gave my husband the gift of a chalkboard in order to have regular sessions about the handling of money. The only use it ever served was as a welcome to our guests as he neatly printed the words: “HAPPY HANUKLAUS” (He omitted the beginning C)

Enough said?

While visiting today my wife wants to know who found and put up the ugly (she also called them cheap looking) wreaths on the bridge at the creek roundabout and who put up the Chanukah gift boxes?? Sedona here’s clue one…there aren’t Chanukah gift boxes. Jews aren’t offended by Christmas colors or gift wrapping or gift boxes or Christmas carols or holiday music or Norman Rockwell paintings of Christmas gift giving. Ask any intelligent Jew and you’ll discover we never have been or will be offended by Christmas in America or Americans celebrating Christmas except for my half witted brother, Allen. He hates everybody. His government office doesn’t decorate or sing carols anymore because of Allen. He complained it offended him as a Jew when the office sang carols. They’re idiots. He likes to be the purveyor of doom and gloom. My siblings and I think he’s adopted. Better he influences your family than my family. BTW, he’s an atheist.

Jews celebrate traditions. Rest your diversity bones easy progressives. Go hang strings of red and green bulbs. You know you want to do that and we’ll hang blue maybe silver maybe none. Our religion doesn’t forbid light bulbs of any color.

My daughter’s B’nai Brith group rents a space at the mall in the midwest (last 15 years or so) and earns a years worth of fundraising money wrapping Christmas presents. You might say we like Christmas a lot. Two of my kids put up trees and decorate with tiny menorahs, blue lights and stars of David! The eldest goes with the traditional look and everybody has a Santa list. It’s okay. We like the little elf too.

My son asked why in a city with lots of artists no artists volunteered to decorate for the holidays? My wife said it was Sedona being Sedona. Count on that as not complementary. See you in NYC where every religion knows how to celebrate holidays and how to fix pizza.

Let’s take your observations one by one:

You saw two Sedona police officers having an “extended” chat…

May I ask what an “extended” chat means to you? Would that be 5 minutes, 10 minutes or even 20 minutes? Do you have any idea if those officers were chatting about an active case, sharing notes about a wanted person or some other official matter? Of course not but you are quick to question them on the internet without any facts.

You saw a city worker at the B of A at 11:45 which is just about lunch time for most workers. Is that really a problem for you if that worker was withdrawing money to buy lunch, pay some bills or some other quick personal matter DURING HIS LUNCH HOUR? You have no idea do you? You’re just quick to question their actions without knowing the “full story” of what you’re talking about.

Lastly, you and your wife “witnessed” our Fire Chief on a Saturday which is his DAY OFF utilizing his authorized department vehicle buying groceries with his family. Since this man is on call 24/7 and responds from home many times, do you REALLY see a problem with that? I don’t.

His attire may be an issue I can agree with you on that but if you have an issue with it why don’t you call Chief Kazian and tell him about your concerns?

Richard, it looks like you have too much spare time on your hands, if you have nothing more to do in your day than to question how our city workers spend their time. Why don’t you spend some of your free time volunteering for some worthwhile organization like Paws or the Humane Society?

Most of us at least thought we relinquished atmospheres of lust for greed and power at the places we chose to leave behind when deciding to make Sedona our home.

The real sadness is, in my opinion, that the true agendas and ulterior motives of those who continue to wreak havoc are most likely rationalized by their own lame excuses for the deeds they continue to pursue.

The upside is learning from supporting comments that I am not walking this road of regret alone.

Thank you for that.

Eddie

You bring some very factual information to light. Your input is always from the heart and well documented as opposed to those who just spout venom without providing the facts to back them up like you do.

Of most interest to me was your history about the C of C.

Your work and contributions have not gone without notice and support.

I was able to take pictures today, Saturday, November 30, 2013 of two Sedona police officers having an extended chat at the West Sedona Circle K, and a City worker driving a City vehicle, making his bank deposit at the Bank of America ATM at 11:45. I doubt he was making a city bank deposit, as he was wearing a safety vest. I would guess it was an overtime day, but I doubt it was “City” business.

My wife and I witnessed the Sedona Fire Chief, Kazian, along with his elementary school aged daughter at Safeway. What stood out about this was it was the Saturday prior to Thanksgiving. Kazian was wearing “his team’s” jersey with backwards baseball cap and was loading groceries into the back of the Sedona Fire Chief’s vehicle. With his attire he was not representing the Fire District in an official capacity and certainly not on a Saturday. Should he have been in an accident it most likely would have been our tax paying dollars that would have paid for damages and injuries to not only him but his daughter as well. To those that are unaware, the “Sedona Fire Department” is not part of the ” City”,of Sedona, but paid through property tax assessments.

Together we can end this”City”. I intend to start a website and voting campaign to do just that, I will keep the Sedona Eye and it’s readers advised of my progress.

It is time.

#1: What We Have Today: Chamber of Commerce has consistently refused to offer any financial or P&L information to the City- as they just continue to cry for $ without any business plan for any of their cries….and the City continues to allow that.
#2: What We Have Today: A Council who seems so greedy, in their personal wants, to spend City $ on their “visions” rather than actually spending $ on basic and necessary citizen’s needs.
#3: What We Have Today: A very transient and second home basis of community = new folks coming to town who have no respect or knowledge of the accurate history of the concept of small town and volunteerism and how nice it was here before the free for all began by the new transplants.
#4: What We Have Today: Residents – the hard working business people and those of us who have sustained this community in a vast variety of ways – who are criticized for not agreeing with, or wanting to pay for, the “all Wise and Knowing Council’s dreams. Residents only want just the drainage and streets and etc. issues taken care of.
#5: What We Have Today: Council and new-be Folks who’s ethereal wish lists have no financial vision or understanding = they just pick apples off the apple tree and somehow they think that equates to applesauce.
#6: What We Have Today: A Council who does not listen to Us (unless Us is in one of their special interest groups) when they don’t want to hear what Us intelligently say – as they continue to very poorly spend our $ and they hide in their regal chairs –
#7: What We Have Today: A City Staff and Council holding far too many meetings on far too many non relevant issues that are not related to our basic health, safety and welfare issues – only in order to quantify their Existence.

#8: What We Don’t Have Today: A community that comes together for the greater good of saving a treasure that used to exist…..without raising Bed taxes or threatening us with higher Sales Taxes or new Property Taxes and Special District Tax’s and new Bonds – all in order to pay their bills. (kinda like – I have a credit card (tax payers are their credit card) and I can just spend and spend my credit card will pay for it…as I try to figure out how to pay off my credit card…oh, I can do minimal payments with interest?

I choose to not be a Credit Card for this City Council and Staff who can’t just live within their means.

I also will vote no on the Community Plan as well………….la-la Land as I read it.

Having lived our first 11 years in Sedona prior to incorporation, my late husband and I enjoyed a friendly community and never lacked for benefits relating to our health, safety, and welfare.

For example, and I perhaps should qualify as residents of Coconino County, we felt safe in knowing that a Coconino County Sheriff’s Sub-Station existed uptown on Forest Road (now still occupied as a fire department station.) The county roads in our subdivision never were neglected to the point where driving became a game of “dodge-em” with potholes.

We enjoyed the former library on Jordan Road and shared pride when volunteers created the beautiful facility on White Bear as we also did when a caravan of people relocated the animal shelter from Soldier Pass Road to the first-class facility on Shelby. All of this was done without financial assistance from the “city” because such a thing didn’t exist.

It wasn’t until years later that we appreciated Coconino County’s policy relating to fencing we placed on our property when we first moved to Sedona. No way would they allow us to obstruct the flow of storm runoff through the wash crossing our property. Not so after Sedona incorporated. Not once but twice the city said OK to fencing in that same wash by two different property owners on an adjacent property, the first resulting in our need to retain an attorney to assist in mitigating damage to our property after, in fact, flooding had occurred due entirely to the neglect of city inspectors.

Prior to incorporation it was with pride that a celebration of “burning the Chamber of Commerce mortgage” occurred at the appropriate time at Poco Diablo. You see, back then the C of C was respected as a contributing part of our unincorporated area because they gave back to the community by way of sponsoring our then well publicized Saint Patrick’s Day Parades which attracted visitors across the nation due to exposure in travel agencies and, yes, word of mouth. Those parades occurred along the West Sedona 89A Route at which time cooperation of Sheriff’s Departments from both counties maintained traffic control as the highway was completely closed during the event! (that practice was later discontinued under the recommendation of I believe Sedona’s first Chief of Police, Bob Irish.)

In addition the C of C sponsored summer meller-dramas in uptown Sedona, “corny” performances on an outdoor stage and also where steak dinners were offered at affordable prices. Another winner for both residents and tourists and all provided without one cent of city funding because such a thing didn’t exist. What we have now is a money grabbing Chamber of Commerce who cannot get enough dollars to spend for questionable biased operation of the Visitor’s Center as well as undefined destination marketing leaving questions relating to who will benefit, Sedona businesses and residents or Chamber members, many of whom are located outside City Limits and collect neither city sales nor bed taxes.

What the proponents of incorporating Sedona had offered that was “for one additional penny on the dollar” we would receive what you mention (although some of us thought we were already doing just fine) but, of course, in addition was the promise that all of Sedona would be provided connection to the alleged critically needed sewer (Wastewater Treatment.) Not so.

What we have to this day, and as a result of a development boom in the years following incorporation, are still some existing older subdivisions not on sewer (in deference to new construction) and who will most likely never be on sewer.

What we have today are new areas of flooding questionably as a result of ill conceived drainage engineering on at least some of the larger and more lofty Sedona developments.

What we have today is less than one mile of “city owned” SR89A in Uptown Sedona that has been redesigned by non-professional input instead of strict regiment such as ADOT engineers which was a defined “must” at the time of the new design of SR179. Having attended many of those public meetings, never do I recall that ADOT representatives didn’t reiterate that their engineers would have final say for obvious safety and traffic flow decisions. The outcome of the mess City of Sedona allowed to occur on uptown 89A is obvious.

What we have today are many, many non-profits and special interests who line up annually at City Hall expecting for city government to assist in financing their programs. Entitlement, entitlement, entitlement seems to be the theme of today and tomorrow but most assuredly did not exist prior to incorporation. This is also true as indicated by those who make demands for child care and entertainment, a Recreation Center, more parks, more this, more that when, in fact, the city is in need of what? . . . almost $20 million to reinvent some means by which to deal with runoff during Sedona’s frequent intense summer storms. In my opinion, Coconino County would have been on top of this before the additional problems ever occurred.

What we have today is constant criticism that “residents aren’t paying their fair share.” Really? Why must we now be responsible for years and years of bad planning and design for things like timeshares (not subject to bed tax) and other poor decisions which have drained both our environmental and economic resources?

Incorporation would have never been approved had not the promise been made that there would be “NO CITY PROPERTY TAXES.”
That, of course, is presently on the table with other methods of enhancing funding such as G-Bonds and Special District assessments.

Realizing that many of my “gripes” have been stated at previous times, it just didn’t work for me to ignore addressing the question posed by “Enough Already.” There are many more reasons why Sedona was a better place prior to the controls (or lack thereof) of local government: i.e. Questionable acquisition of the ever failing City Hall, usage of “Alternate Standards” and “Administrative Waivers,” insistence to secure property for creek side park and pathway with full knowledge that it’s a liability risk waiting to happen as well as a potential attractive nuisance. All because maybe a total of a couple hundred (if that many) people continue to whine and say “please, please, please?”

No doubt in my mind that incorporation was a terrible idea. Obviously it was great for developers during those first years. However, it’s unfortunate that some of the key people who lobbied for incorporation pulled up stakes and moved out of here not long after realizing their own “dream” for an incorporated city went the direction of the WWTP.

Let us not forget the water-downed “Environmentally Sensitive Land Ordinance” or the initial sign code. Then there was the “deal” made in violation of the parking code when several spaces at the new city parking lot uptown were sold to the new owner of the former Canyon Portal Motel. (To my recollection those off-street parking spaces were sold even prior to the final approval for that city public parking area.)

It might be worth mentioning that prior to incorporation Sedona was well represented at County Supervisor’s Meetings through the auspices of Keep Sedona Beautiful and a local Taxpayer’s Association, both organizations presenting the concerns of Greater Sedona on a regular basis.

The list goes on but my head is already hereby on the chopping block. So be it.

Sincerely,
Eddie Maddock