Wedding Crasher / P. 15
Mesa’s Shield Makers / P. 4
An edition of the East Valley Tribune
Sunday, April 19, 2020
‘Tens of millions’ coming for Mesa virus relief
INSIDE
This Week
BY JIM WALSH Tribune Staff Writer
NEWS ....................... 4 Child abuse may be the pandemic’s ticking timebomb.
NEWS ...........................
FREE ($1 OUTSIDE THE EAST VALLEY) | TheMesaTribune.com
10
Guns sales skyrocket in Arizona.
M
esa expects to receive “tens of millions of dollars’’ in federal aid from the CARES Act, the $2 trillion relief package Congress passed last month to assist residents and businesses reeling from the recession stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic. Mesa and four other large governments in Arizona that serve populations of 500,000 or more are first in line to receive their share of $2.8 billion allocated to Arizona from the
Dr. Andi Fourlis is new Mesa schools head
act’s Coronavirus Relief Fund. And all that money will be used to aid residents and businesses, since it can’t be used to fill revenue gaps for governments that result from sharp decline in revenue caused by business closures. Overall, the CARES Act allocates $139 billion to states, counties and cities to deal with the economic consequences of layoffs and business closures. Mesa, Phoenix and Tucson – along with Maricopa and Pima Counties – will receive their relief directly from the U.S. Treasury, with these five governmental entities receiv-
ing 45 percent of Arizona’s allocation, Mesa Assistant City Manager Scott Butler said. The remaining 55 percent of CARES Act funding will be funneled through the Arizona state government, which will decide how it will be spent, he said. “We are going to be receiving tens of millions of dollars, that’s for certain,’’ Butler said. The millions in additional federal aid comes atop $4.6 million in additional Community Development Block Grant funding
Tough time for victims
see VIRUS page 6
BY ZACH ALVIRA Tribune Staff Writer
BUSINESS .............. 19
Mesa jeweler: don’t be fooled by ‘gold’
COMMUNITY .............................. BUSINESS .................................... OPINION .................................... PUZZLES .................................... CLASSIFIED ............................... Zone
14 17 19 20 21 1
I
n a survey earlier this year on what various stakeholder groups wanted in Mesa Public Schools’ next superintendent, a majority of community members, parents and students wanted someone who primarily is passionate about educating all children while teachers largely wanted someone who values their growth and contributions while administrators most wanted an effective communicator. And in picking deputy Superintendent Dr. Andi Fourlis as the district’s next chief executive, the Governing Board last week opted for
see SUPERINTENDENT page 8
A New Leaf staffer Kimberly Hubbard talks to a domestic violence victim seeking help at one of the Mesa organization’s shelters. Police and advocates say data so far has been sketchy on whether the pandemic has driven up domestic violence, though they fear many victims may be trapped. For details, see page 4. (Pablo Robles/Tribune Staff Photographer)
The latest breaking news and top local stories in Mesa!
TheMesaTribune.com