Glendale’s Community Newspaper
www.glendalestar.com
Vol. 78 No. 14
INSIDE
This Week THE VOICE OF BUSINESS
BUSINESS ......... 12
Local women unite to support community vendors
April 7, 2022
Glendale Fire to get thermal imaging cameras BY JORDAN ROGERS
Glendale Star Staff Writer
Glendale City Council voted to approve the purchase of new thermal imaging cameras for the fire department on March 22. Thermal imaging cameras, or TICs for short, are cameras that create images using infrared radiation. They show the outline of a person, temperature and heat signature. TICs are a staple amongst fire departments across the country and are used 100% of the time a team is walking into a fire of any kind. “Thermal imaging cameras are really an incredible technology,” Glendale Fire public information officer Ashley Losch said. “When we go into an atmosphere like a house fire or a structure fire where we nearly have zero visibility, the TIC cameras are able to see outlines of peo-
ple to give us temperature readings. If we’re doing a search in a zero-visibility environment, we are able to identify a possible victim much quicker with that technology.” Glendale Fire first added TICs to its arsenal back in 2008. Since then, a handful of models have been used. Losch could not recall the year of model that is currently in use, but she said replacement parts were un- Thermal imaging cameras are used 100% of the time a team is walking into a fire of any kind. (Glendale Fire/Submitted) available to purchase, so they were unable to be maintained. These grade will be needed. cameras were simply outdated. “By the mayor and council approving Costs for this upgrade will not exceed the buying of the new model, being able $235,000 and should have seven to 10 to maintain this program, keeping them years of normal use before another upSEE CAMERAS PAGE 3
Williams-Sonoma sets fulfillment, distribution center BY JORDAN ROGERS
Glendale Star Staff Writer
FEATURES ......... 22 Arizona Winds presents ‘Music for a Festival’
OPINION............................8 BUSINESS....................... 10 SPORTS ...........................14 CALENDAR .....................18 FEATURES.......................22 RELIGION ........................24 CLASSIFIEDS ..................27
One of the largest and most recognizable home furnishing companies is set to open a new fulfillment and distribution center in the West Valley. Located in The Cubes at Glendale Industrial Park near Reems Road and Northern Avenue, the center will sit on 74 acres of land and span 1.2 million square feet. The city will not be required to contribute an upfront cost, as property owners and users will front the entire $236 million capital investment.
Glendale City Council voted and unanimously approved the distribution center on March 22. “This has been a project our staff has been working on for some time, and on behalf of the city and our team, we just want to reach out and congratulate Williams-Sonoma,” City Manager Kevin Phelps said. “They are going to be a great partner for our community.” The new center will create roughly 2,400 new jobs with an average wage of over $46,000. In total, the new development will dish out $113 million in annual
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wages to employees. Many other cities around the Valley have committed to building foreign trade zones, and Economic Development Officer Randy Huggins said this gives Glendale the opportunity to compete with those cities. “This is a big deal. We’ve been working on it so long that we sometimes forget how important this is. We just want to extend to all of the people at Williams-Sonoma, we’re excited for your project and we’re excited for the jobs it will provide our community.”