THE NEWSPAPER OF AVONDALE, BUCKEYE, GOODYEAR, LITCHFIELD PARK & TOLLESON
LP man lends support to transplant team
Pool Scouts eyeing WV expansion PAGE
17
PAGE
westvalleyview.com
INSIDE
This Week
NEWS .............. 7 Raw beef recall upped to 12 million pounds
SPORTS ........ 18 Golf tournament remembers heroes
9 DAYS ......... 21 Looking for something to do? Check out the 9 Days a Week calendar
LETTERS ........................12 BUSINESS..................... 15 SPORTS ..........................18 FEATURES .....................23 NEIGHBORHOOD......22 YOUTH ...........................29 OBITUARIES .................31 CLASSIFIEDS................32 NORTH
The Voice of the West Valley for 33 years
27
December 12, 2018
Group leads effort to preserve nature in Buckeye By Carrie Snider
Imagine what Buckeye will look like in 20 to 30 years. The city, which covers over 600 square miles, has already grown 15.6 percent since 2010 and is projected to grow to more than 300,000 people by 2040, according to growbuckeye.com. Certainly, people are attracted to this part of the Valley because of its natural beauty. The very nature that brings families here is in jeopardy, though, unless everyone works together with an innovative approach for how to balance population growth with nature. That’s exactly why the White Tank Mountains Conservancy (WTMC) was formed in 2014 and has been working rapidly to bring key people together to collaborate before too much growth happens. The WTMC is working with the city of Buckeye, ASU, Arizona Fish & Game, area land owners and developers, and many others who want to see Buckeye grow while preserving the local animal life, flora and fauna of the regional mountains that so many enjoy. WTMC co-founder and executive director Les Meyers loves nature and has spent a lot of time at the White Tank Mountains, but he also has a background in real estate development and sees the opportunity of much undeveloped land in Buckeye.
Les Meyers, co-founder and executive director of the White Tank Mountains Conservancy, is heading up a collaboration to preserve the unique beauty and ecosystem of the White Tank Mountains area as more people move to Buckeye. (West Valley View photo by Carrie Snider)
“Buyers want to be out here,” he said. “How do we make sure the natural beauty doesn’t die?”
As he and others of the WTMC have
Nature...continued on page 2
Family: Litchfield Marine missing near Japan By Christina Fuoco-Karasinski
A Litchfield Park native is among the U.S. Marines missing after a fighter jet collided with an aerial-refueling tanker midair 200 miles off the coast of Japan around 2 a.m. December 6. Rosa Bennett said she was informed her son, Staff Sgt. Maximo A. Flores, 27, was involved in the incident. Via email, the Marines would not confirm Flores’ status to the West Valley View.
Bennett said her son loads cargo and fuels aircraft during flights. His wife, Rebecca, lives in Japan, and Bennett was slated to join her December 10. Two Marines have been found; one in fair condition and the other deceased, the latter of whom was identified as the fighter jet pilot, Capt. Jahmar F. Resilard, 28. The other’s name has not been released. Five others are missing as of December 10.
The search-and-rescue operations continue for the remaining U.S. Marines who were aboard the KC-130 Hercules and F/A-18 Hornet, which were conducting routine training and aerial refueling when the mishap occurred, according to the U.S. Marines press office. The incident is under investigation. “He was an outstanding Marine,” said
Marine...continued on page 3