INSIDE:
COMMUNITY P.22 | AROUND AF P.27 | OPINION P.31 | BUSINESS P.35 | FAITH P.37 | GETOUT P.39 | SPORTS P.43| CLASSIFIED P.48
AHWATUKEE FOOTHILLS NEWS www.ahwatukee.com
FREEWAY ORDER
Wednesday, August 23, 2017
@AhwatukeeFN |
@AhwatukeeFN
Early ballots will determine next week’s City Council winner In 2013, DiCiccio won a second term by taking 54.2 percent of the vote over his sole opponent. In that election, 31,122 of the total 33,012 total votes were early ballots. That might explain why both Patterson and DiCiccio in recent weeks have been mounting aggressive campaigns on social media to court early voters. KEVIN PATTERSON SAL DiCICCIO If neither DiCiccio 22,408 ballots received by the City Clerk nor Patterson get more than 50 percent in a four-way contest. DiCiccio received of the vote, they will head into a runoff in 47.5 percent of those total votes, well November. ahead of second-place finisher Dana Marie Kennedy’s 29.2 percent. See ELECTION on page 6
AHWATUKEE FOOTHILLS NEWS W BY PAUL MARYNIAK AFN Executive Editor
. 10
P
ith Election Day in Phoenix City Council District 6 officially six days away, historical data suggests the outcome will be decided before then. In that race – the only contest among the four council seats up for election – incumbent Sal DiCiccio is seeking his third, and final, consecutive four-year term with business executive Kevin Patterson hoping to topple him. City Clerk records for the last two District 6 elections show that the overwhelming number of ballots were cast before Election Day. Only around 5 percent or less of the votes came at city voting centers. In 2009, for example, a scant 1,526 votes were cast on Election Day out of the total
AHWATUKEE FOOTHILLS NEWS TUKEE ROCKS
. 22
P
BAGS OF LIFE
Gridiron opening night
ABM apologizes for, rescinds board election screening BY PAUL MARYNIAK AFN Executive Editor
A
. 32
P
ZILLOW TALK
(Kimberly Carrillo/AFN Photographer)
. RE3
P
For a while Friday night, it was all smiles at Desert Vista High School’s stadium as the Thunder varsity football team opened its 2017 season by hosting Perry High. Students, who wore camouflage as part of a themed dress for the evening, didn’t stay happy for long as Perry whipped their team. Mountain Pointe High had plenty to cheer about after thumping host Sandra Day O’Connor High School. For details of both games, see page. 44.
FREE 30 DAY FIT CHALLENGE! OR CALL 480-759-1630
See
ABM on page 20
MENTION THIS AD
AUGUST 27TH 8AM & 10AM
REGISTER NOW @ TRUHITFITNESS.COM/CHALLENGE
Center Court widow who challenged her exclusion from the Ahwatukee Board of Management’s annual elections earlier this year has won a settlement that eliminates its candidate-screening process for the 2018 board election. The board also agreed to formally apologize to Karin E. Gray, a private investigator and mother of two, on the ABM website, and reimburse her for the $500 she spent on filing fees for her complaint. In a formal complaint to the state Land Department
earlier this year, Gray said the screening panel was created to eliminate her candidacy because she opposed The True Life Companies’ plan to replace the defunct Ahwatukee Lakes Golf Course with about 270 singlefamily homes and duplexes as well as a farm, private school and other amenities. The selection panel reduced the number of candidates for four seats to four people, several of whom “were hand-picked” by the board, she said. “I’m feeling pretty good,” said Gray, who had served for nearly 10 years as the board’s treasurer,
4302 E Ray Rd - Ahwatukee
• Child Care AND GET A • Shower Facilities • Smoothie Bar POST WORKOUT SHAKE!
FREE