Menzel seeks quarantine clarity / P. 13
An edition of the East Valley Tribune
INSIDE
NEIGHBORS.............20 Scottsdale group helping nonprofits.
Coyotes' EV site woes / P. 16
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Scottsdale complex’s rent hikes trouble elderly BY WAYNE SCHUTSKY Progress Managing Editor
S
ome elderly residents at a Scottsdale apartment complex believe management is using steep rent hikes and other tactics to force them out in order to free up units for renovations used to target higher-
Famed lighting company coming to Scottsdale.
ARTS................................29 School of Rock grads take to venues.
NEIGHBORS..........................................20 BUSINESS............................................... 23 SPORTS................................................... 26 ARTS......................................................... 29 FOOD........................................................30 CLASSIFIEDS........................................30
dollar tenants. Louise Lowther moved into a two-bedroom unit at the Denim Scottsdale apartment complex eight years ago. She got used to the annual rental increases, which were usually in the $50-$100 range. “Last year when Covid hit us, they upped mine by over $100 and I still stayed,” said
Lowther, who is 65 years old. But Lowther, who is reaching the end of her lease, is now searching for new housing after the latest round of increases saw her rent go up $500 to nearly $1,800 per month – more than double the $800 per month she paid
as superintendent here. Eventually joining her were concerned parents, teachers, staff and community members, many of whom had never met before.
Among them were Jann-Michael Greenburg and Patty Beckman, who have since been
see APARTMENT page 10
Group feels vindicated by Birdwell indictment BY WAYNE SCHUTSKY Progress Managing Editor
BUSINESS................... 23
Sunday, August 8, 2021
W
hen the Arizona Grand Jury indicted Denise Birdwell for alleged bid rigging and payoffs in the Higley Unified District, some Scottsdale residents felt vindicated over their efforts years ago to expose allegations of wrongdoing that led to her ouster in Scottsdale in 2018. Back in 2017 and 2018 they found evidence of procurement issues and alleged payoffs – some of which were cited in an Auditor General’s report presented to the grand jury in July. They also documented alleged mistreatment of teachers and staff that led to a mass exodus from the district, Rose Smith told the Progress. Smith – an SUSD graduate and former employee and grandmother to students – was one of the first locals to pull together public records about Birdwell’s alleged infractions
Andrew Bloom REALTOR®, Senior Partner Andrew@BVOLuxury.com VOTED #1 SCOTTSDALE REAL ESTATE TEAM FOR 2018
see BIRDWELL page 6
Denise Birdwell, far right, was ousted by the Scottsdale Unified Governing Board in 2018. (Progress file photo)
(480) 999-2948 www.BVOLuxury.com
