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www.ahwatukee.com
Wednesday December 23, 2020
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Ahwatukee’s last bit of state land heading to auction
Merry Christmas
BY PAUL MARYNIAK AFN Executive Editor
AFN.pdf 4 12/1/2020 8:59:46 AM C
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ne of the last large tracts of undeveloped land in Ahwatukee – and the only remaining parcel of State Trust Land here – is headed for the auction block as early as spring. The State Land Department is anticipating auctioning 373 acres of State Trust Land along the south side of Chandler Boulevard between 19th and 27th avenues and extending south to the South Mountain Freeway. Home builders already are priming for the auction, which likely will begin within 10 to 12 weeks with a sale completed by mid-summer. The starting price for the land has already
been set at $105 million, according to Mark Edelman, the Land Department’s director of planning and Engineering for the Arizona state land Department. “We have had a great deal of interest in this parcel from different parties, mostly home builders,� Edelman told the Ahwatukee Foothills Village Planning Committee in a briefing last week. Land across Chandler Boulevard from the parcel is owned by the city and part of the South Mountain Preserve. Across 19th Avenue from the state parcel are the Arizona Greens and Foothills Club West communities. People who might have thought the vacant state land was protected from development are due for disappointment on two fronts.
For one thing, Adelman explained, Trust Land exists for one reason: to be sold to the highest bidder “for the sole purpose� of providing money for 13 public service beneficiaries. The largest beneficiary is K-12 public education but others include state universities and even the Department of Corrections. “State Trust Land is not public land,� Edelman reminded the planning panel. “It is land held in trust and the land really belongs to our beneficiaries. The state Land Department was created to act in their stead to manage this land. So, we are very different from public lands and we really need to be thought of more like private land.�
Property crimes Light magicians drop, homicides soar in Phoenix
see LAND page 4
AFN NEWS STAFF
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roperty crimes and rapes decreased in the first 11 months of 2020 compared to last year but homicides – especially those involving domestic violence – soared, according to a report Phoenix Police provided City Council last week. Stating the statistics show “Phoenix experiencing a trend happening across the country,� the report says that while homicides increased, “Phoenix is performing better than the national average when it comes to solving homicides.�
see SAFE page 9
This is part of the warehouse for Christmas Lights Decorator, which has been responsible for the Festival of Lights installation along Chandler Boulevard for years. The company does a lot more this time of year, as you’ll see in the story on page 30. (Special to AFN)
16233 South 48th st. Phoenix, AZ 85048
Serving students in grades K-12