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AHWATUKEE FOOTHILLS NEWS www.ahwatukee.com NEWS
DEADLY DAY
Wednesday, March 22, 2017
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Ahwatukee splendor
AHWATUKEE
Local man, killer did drugs before slaying
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LIVING HISTORY
Ahwatukee gets greater police FOOTHILLS NEWS presence on regular basis BY JIM WALSH AFN STAFF WRITER
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(Special to AFN)
CHEVY, NOT BENZ
Save the Lakes slams new golf course report
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COMIC HORROR
If you’ve been putting off a chance to buy a new house, here’s a deal you won’t want to miss. An Ahwatukee researcher and the former head of the ASU School of Engineering are selling their massive mansion at the foot of South Mountain for $6.4 million. Read what that buys on page RE1.
HOA boards can create more than enough problems for residents BY MIKE BUTLER AFN STAFF WRITER
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ary Jean Lindgren said she never had a problem with her neighborhood homeowners association when she lived in the 4200 block of E. Brookwood Court in Ahwatukee for 10 years. But when her neighbor across the backyard became president of Mountainside Master HOA’s board, her decades-old eucalyptus tree suddenly became a big problem. About a year ago, she received an order to trim the tree. She complied but kept receiving orders
to trim it again, plus clean up fallen leaves. Fines ensued. Since Lindgren lives and works in Sacramento now and rents out the house, she called Gilbert attorney Kevin Harper for help. He’s one of the few independent attorneys in the Valley who specialize in representing homeowners against the few big law firms that represent HOAs. Lindgren said board members won’t explain how much trimming would satisfy them. “They won’t give me a standard,” she said. “It’s very frustrating. I’m in limbo. It’s just a vicious circle.” See
hoenix police Commander Jim Gallagher doesn’t want Ahwatukee to feel forgotten. Gallagher, commander of the South Mountain Precinct, said there have been issues with staffing in Ahwatukee in the past, but Chief Jeri Williams’ redeployment plan has helped to correct that. He said that at least three officers are on duty south of Baseline Road at all times, and others can be called in as needed. “We recognize they are geographically isolated,’’ Gallagher said at a Coffee with A Cop event at The Farm at South Mountain March 16, which also was attended by Williams and several other commanders. “We are now able to fully staff those squads,” he added. “We are going to have three cops in Ahwatukee at all given times. That’s important to Chief Williams and me. I want them to feel equally cared for.’’ Gallagher and Lt. Tina Gonzales, the district’s resource officer, both said there are no particular crime trends in Ahwatukee, despite a homicide March 15 that police believe was drug-related. But they said it’s still important for police to remain diligent and to build contacts and support, realizing that they are badly outnumbered and that they need the public’s help to do their job properly. “We want to be partners with you,’’ Williams told a group of residents sitting at picnic tables, who may have been
HOA on page 10
Time to register for Kyrene Kindergarten At all Kyrene Elementary Schools.
Top-performing neighborhood schools • www.kyrene.org/kindergarten or 480-541-1000
See
POLICE on page 12
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