THE VOICE OF THE EAST VALLEY SINCE 1891 AND WINNER OF THE PULITZER PRIZE FOR LOCAL REPORTING
Woven bit of history at Mesa museum
THE SUNDAY
Tribune
PAGE 22 Southeast Edition
INSIDE
This Week
NEWS.......................... 4 Mesa mobile home park mourns slain boy, 10, mom.
COMMUNITY ........12 Chandler gets its taco on.
SPORTS ...................... 17 Breaking gender barriers at Skyline High.
FOOD......................... 24 Spaghetti pie an off-beat Italian treat. COMMUNITY................ 12 BUSINESS....................... 14 OPINION........................ 16 SPORTS ...........................17 GETOUT.........................22 CLASSIFIED....................25
EAST VALLEY
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Serrano’s marks a century in EV PAGE 14 Sunday, September 8, 2019
End nears for a one-time Mesa gem BY GARY NELSON Tribune Contributor
T
he hotel whose banners flew over one of the Southeast Valley’s earliest master-planned communities is near the end of the line. The Dobson Ranch Inn, at the southwest
corner of Dobson Road and U.S. 60, is being sold to a developer that plans a 288-unit apartment complex in its stead. The hotel dates back almost 50 years to the early days of Dobson Ranch, a development that sprang from the ambitions of the famed — and later infamous — builder and financier Charles Keating. In its heyday the hotel
At one time, the inn was a Mesa legend’s pride BY JIM WALSH Tribune Staff Writer
D
wight “Pat’’ Patterson’s legacy as one of Mesa’s most influential leaders is inextricably linked to his successful efforts in attracting the Chicago Cubs and building the Cactus League into a multi-million tourist magnet. But the Dobson Ranch Inn, one of Patterson’s favorite business ventures, is just as deeply rooted in baseball. The inn was baseball central for many Cactus League seasons as the spring home of the Cubs and the Milwaukee Brewers during various times
in its 30-year lifespan. But the days of team hotels are long gone in Major League Baseball as they fell victims to big contracts that enabled wealthy players to buy a condo or rent a house instead. Soon, the Dobson Ranch Inn will be gone as well — a bittersweet moment for two people who have fond memories of it. Phil Kellis, the inn’s longtime managing partner, and Ann Patterson Cleghorn, Dwight Patterson’s daughter, are both practical business people. They see a need for change, but they also
see PATTERSON page 6
was a major draw for visitors and served as the spring-training home for the Chicago Cubs. The advent of newer and fancier venues in the region has depressed occupancy rates and maintenance has lagged as a result.
see DOBSON page 6
Ann Patterson Cleghorn remembers the passion her father, the late Dwight “Pat” Patterson, had for baseball – and for the Dobson Ranch Inn. (Kimberly Carrillo/Tribune Staff Photographer)
No pedals? No steering wheel? Waymo says it’s time BY KEVIN REAGAN Tribune Staff Writer
C
handler-based Waymo is urging federal watchdogs to “promptly” remove regulatory barriers that may interfere with producing self-driving cars that have no manual controls like steering wheels or brake
A/C APPROACHING 9 YEARS OLD?
REPLACE WITH A BRAND NEW CARRIER HIGH-EFFICIENCY A/C SYSTEM
pedals. The autonomous-vehicle company penned a letter on Aug. 28 to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, encouraging the agency to “move with all reasonable speed” to adopt new rules with how the government tests unconventional vehicles. “We urge NHTSA to move ahead promptly to
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remove the regulatory barriers the agency has identified,” Waymo’s letter stated, claiming regulatory revisions would ensure a timely deployment of self-driving cars without manual controls. NHTSA posted a notice last year, highlight-
see WAYMO page 10
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