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From Uptown to Downtown, covering Chandler like the sun.
An edition of the East Valley Tribune
MAY 3, 2020
City girds for major revenue hit from pandemic
INSIDE
This Week
BY KEVIN REAGAN Arizonan Staff Writer
NEWS ............................. 12
Chandler online marketplace a hit with shoppers.
NEWS..............................14
'Isolation Buster' helps seniors in care homes.
COMMUNITY................
FREE | chandlernews.com
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Chandler student overcomes ASU closure. NEWS........................................ 2 COMMUNITY.........................17 BUSINESS............................... 19 CLASSIFIEDS.......................... 21
T
he City of Chandler’s proposed budget for the upcoming fiscal year makes a number of contingencies in case the COVID-19 pandemic wrecks the local economy but still adds millions of funding for infrastructure projects that officials say need to be done. The city’s proposed budget of $901 mil-
lion totals $27 million less than the current fiscal year and accounts for projected revenues losses expected to come as a result of the public health crisis that’s been ravaging the state since early March. Dawn Lang, the city’s management services director, said several spending requests submitted by the city’s departments had to be removed from the proposed budget because of the uncertainty surrounding the pandemic’s impact on Chandler’s finances.
Quarantine fuels vehicle thefts
“We pulled out a lot of those new requests and tried to keep the budget as even as possible,” she said. Requests for new pool equipment, extra Christmas lights and a tourism coordinator position are some of items going unfunded in the fiscal year beginning July 1, according to budget documents. The city is not intending to eliminate any
see SPENDING page 6
Tense standoff
BY KEVIN REAGAN Arizonan Staff Writer
A
n elderly man pulled into the Circle K near Arizona Avenue and Riggs Road in Chandler shortly after midnight on April 9 to pump some gas. As he stood there waiting for the fuel to finish dispensing, 21-year-old Jordan Sullivan allegedly came up from behind and assaulted him. Sullivan grabbed the elderly man by the neck and threw him to the ground, according to Chandler Police, before rifling through the victim’s pockets and grabbing his car keys. Sullivan then allegedly jumped in the man’s car and sped off, leaving the victim lying helplessly on the ground for 20 minutes before a bystander noticed him.
see CARTHEFTS page 13
Chandler Police had some tense hours April 27 when a man allegedly shot three officers - none fatally - and then hole up in a house before setting it on fire. The series of events ended peacefully when he surrendered. For details, see page 16. (Pablo Robles/Arizonan Staff Photographer)