January 2015
Relentlessly local coverage of Gilbert and our neighboring communities
Mabel Patton flashes a winning smile!
She and mom, Sara, enjoyed the food and entertainment at the parking structure opening.
Generous boy wins award while awaiting kidney transplant BY LYNETTE CARRINGTON
Vibrant and active, Logan Carson is a typical 9-year-old boy who loves to play. His beaming smile and positive attitude are the traits that people notice first. But Logan suffers from end-stage kidney failure—and he doesn’t let it define him. In November, the Playa del Rey Elementary School fourth grader was awarded the Young Hero Award for generously sharing his Make-a-Wish playground. “There is no one more deserving of the Young Hero Award than Logan Carson,” says Gilbert Mayor John Lewis. “At his young age, Logan has made an enormous impact on our community, inspiring other Gilbertonians to get out TOUGH KID: Logan Carson and his parents, Candy and make a difference.” and Jamie Carson, display Logan’s Young Hero This chapter of Logan’s life started in Award that he received at the 19th annual Gilbert Community Excellence Awards in November. June 2012 when, after returning early see LOGAN CARSON page 4
GSN photo by Lynette Carrington
Topgolf dims lights, strives to be good neighbor BY CHRISTINA FUOCO-KARASINSKI
When Stacy Phillips and her family moved into Agritopia, they knew the land near their property was zoned commercial. But what they didn’t expect were the towering fences and bright lights over the fairway of Topgolf, an amalgamation of a driving range, nightclub and restaurant. As construction wrapped up in mid-October, Phillips says the building at SanTan Village was like something out of a movie. “It was like ‘Close Encounters of the Third Kind’ had landed a half mile away.” Initially, she thought they were construction lights. But when she drove by Topgolf, she realized they were permanent. In the name of being a good neighbor, Topgolf, after failing a photometrics
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LET THERE BE (LITTLE) LIGHT: Stacy Phillips and her fellow residents of Agritopia, were set at ease when Topgolf turned down the lights at its SanTan Village location. GSN photo by Tim Sealy
test, dimmed the lights, which appeased the Phillips family for the most part. “I was emailing the Town of Gilbert to let them know these lights were a see TOPGOLF page 4
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