Pro-Prop 420 groups probed for violations / P. 24
An edition of the East Valley Tribune
INSIDE
This Week
NEWS .................................. 4 Leaders back Question 1 sales tax prop, but will voters?
Ducey visits to unveil new initiative / P. 26
FREE ($1 OUTSIDE OF SCOTTSDALE) | scottsdale.org
Sunday, October 14, 2018
Newly minted developer pursues a game-changer BY WAYNE SCHUTSKY Progress Managing Editor
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arter Unger is not your typical real estate developer, primarily because he has only been a developer for the past eight months. But that hasn’t stopped him from pursuing an ambitious new development project, with a working title of Southbridge 2, that could change the landscape of Scottsdale’s 5th Avenue Shopping District. From a bird’s eye view, it would be an ex-
pansive multiuse project with office, hotels and condos complete with ground-level retail throughout. All aspects of the project are meant to work collaboratively to increase the flow of pedestrians through downtown. In total, the project will feature nearly 200,000 square feet of new Class A office space if constructed, making it one of the most significant office projects in downtown Scottsdale since the Galleria conversion. Once fully built out, Southbridge 2 could generate over 1,700 direct jobs, including over 700 office jobs, according to an econom-
ic impact study performed by Elliott D. Pollack & Company. The construction of the project alone is expected to create $1 billion in economic impact throughout the Valley, according to the Pollack report. The report also estimated that once the development is completed and stabilized, it will generate over $383 million in annual output and directly contribute about $4 million in annual tax revenues to the city.
see SOUTHBRIDGE page 22
Community opens its heart to save Navajo School
OPINION ....................... 41 This forum is for you, not us.
FOOD ................................51 Help fight breast cancer at these Scottsdale establishments.
NEIGHBORS ........................ 27 LOOKING BACK ..................36 BUSINESS .............................38
OPINION ...............................41
SPORTS ................................ 47
ARTS ....................................48 FOOD & DRINK....................51 CLASSIFIEDS ....................... 53
BY WAYNE SCHUTSKY Progress Managing Editor
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early two months after damage from an overnight fire shut down the Navajo Elementary School campus indefinitely, the school is getting back into the swing of things at a new location thanks to the effort of teachers, administrators, staff, parents and the Scottsdale community. “Now I feel like we’re getting into a pretty good groove,” Navajo Principal Matthew Patzlaff said. “We’re getting back at it and we’re here and we’re really truly getting back to educating kids. Just getting to this point took a monumental effort from everyone involved. “It’s amazing to see what we’ve done – to open up this school in about 24 hours is phenomenal,” said Greg Thorne, who started the W.A.T.C.H. Dogs group for fathers at the school. Following the fire in the early morning hours on Aug. 22, the school relocated three miles away to the Scottsdale Unified School District’s Oak campus, which was being used as the district’s central kitchen. The move occurred in just one day’s time with Navajo administrators, teachers and staff able to get the school up and running at its new location. That effort involved an
(Photo by Kimberly Carrillo/Progress Staff Photographer)
Jonathan Montgomery, left, and his brother Colin show off their t-shirts supporting Navajo Elementary.
emergency meeting coordinated by interim Superintendent John Kriekard and an allhands-on-deck effort to prepare the new site, Patzlaff said. “Our number one job is to educate kids,” Patzlaff said. “(The district asked) ‘How can we get kids back here as quick as possible to this campus?’” Navajo, which opened in 1960, is a beloved neighborhood institution. Many local residents went there themselves before watching their children and grandchildren
also attend the school. The district has already announced that the Navajo campus will be closed for the duration of the school year due to the fire damage. The school board will meet on Tuesday, Oct. 16, to discuss Navajo’s future and which schools to renovate with its remaining bond funds. The school was able to successfully re-
see NAVAJO page 6