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The City of Globe: Planning for the Future

from Globe Miami Times June 2021 Issue

from Globe Miami Times June 2021 Issue, page 19

Recognitions

These custom banners will soon be hung along hwy 60 and downtown Globe. The banners dovetail with the summer marketing campaign using print and social media platforms of Phoenix New Times. Courtesy photo. The City of Globe: Planning for the Future

BY LINDA GROSS

The old adage says it best: “If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail.”

Of course, that applies universally to us all, but it is especially important in a government setting, where the difference between good and bad planning affects so many people.

Here in Globe, the City has been working on multiple levels to achieve results that will have long-lasting impacts on its citizens. The work being done within the halls of City government has involved not only activating old plans but also establishing new bold visions for Globe, and building on funding and partnership opportunities that are moving the community forward.

Only problem is, Globe residents may not be aware of everything happening right now. By necessity, planning and partnerships often have to fly under the radar until some milestone is met or agreement is reached. That might leave people thinking that nothing is happening, but that is far from the case.

In a new monthly series, we’ll be working with Linda Oddonetto, Economic Director for the City of Globe, to loop you in to the exciting things that are happening in our community.

“Everything (planning) we are doing now is intertwined and helps us build upon past successes,” Oddonetto said. “It is a layered approach which allows us to leverage our funding sources and partnerships to get to the next level. It is exciting to see it coming together.”

Phoenix New Times partnership

Case in point: Just as the fires started this month and went on to ravage our beautiful Pinal mountains, the City of Globe pulled the trigger on a multilevel marketing campaign through Phoenix New Times to drive traffic to Globe this summer and fall. Phoenix New Times touts nearly 1.8 million readers, and the City has contracted with them for a summer and fall campaign to include print, social media, and a Globecentric website.

The campaign, #SmallTownSummer, will feature iconic images of Globe’s assets and will be paired with print and social media ads. Coming on the heels of the Telegraph and Mescal fires, the campaign will focus on a positive message that touts the many things there are to discover in Globe and to draw visitors and help support our local businesses.

Currently, the main website putting out the word about Globe is DiscoverGilaCounty, a website with a county-wide mission to promote Gila County and highlight its 30+ cities and towns. Oddonetto said, “DiscoverGilaCounty is a wonderful tool, but we will never be able to measure the effectiveness of our marketing by driving traffic to another site. We need our own. Look for banners on the Highway 60 corridor and the hashtag #smalltownsummer to show up on your social media radar.

Maybe we should start a new hashtag: #Planningmatters.

“DiscoverGilaCounty is a wonderful tool, but we will never be able to measure the effectiveness of our marketing by driving traffic to another site. We need our own. With the REDI grant we are able to develop a website which promotes Globe and offers us better tracking and more control over our messaging...”

– Linda Oddonetto, Economic Director, City of Globe

Progress on community center pool rehab

And this month, the City will consider a $500,000 investment at their June 22 meeting to restore the pool at the Community Center in time for next year’s swim season. When the pool was initially pronounced DOA in 2014 because of leaks, an effort was launched to build a regional aquatic center. That effort has been working its way through multiple roadblocks and challenges, and is still in the works.

But after a structural engineering study underwritten by Freeport McMoRan determined that renovating the City pool was feasible, the City of Globe approved the expenditure of $500,000 to do so. The new community pool will have a stainless steel gutter system, continuous skimming, a new vacuum sand filter, new drains, new deck, new ladders, and a new ADA-compliant lift. The pool itself will have a new PVC membrane liner.

The City has also applied for additional funding from the Freeport-McMoRan Community Investment Fund and AZ Complete Health. The goal is to open in May 2022 and have the pool open to the public Monday through Saturday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., with extended hours available for groups and special events.

The Recreation Master Plan, outlined on page 6, includes not only restoring the community pool but new playgrounds, splash pad, field upgrades and Phase 1 of the Pinal Creek Parkway. u

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