The positively charged atmosphere of business and community leaders at the 2018 Annual Meeting of the Prescott Chamber of Commerce crackled further when Prescott Mayor Greg Mengarelli took stage in January to address the State of the City. Comparisons to the “pioneer spirit” that has historically defined the city and that today thrives through business entrepreneurship invigorated attendees.
“The energy in this room is amazing,” said the newly elected Mengarelli, who took office Nov. 29. “It warms my heart to meet so many great people and hear the great things going on in your businesses.”
Not to be outdone by the Chamber in an imaginary contest between the business advocacy group and City Hall, Mayor Mengarelli acknowledged earlier accolades and heaped more praise on the Chamber’s President and CEO Sheri Heiney, while confiding that the city has its own secret weapon in her husband, John Heiney, its community outreach manager and the other half of the “dynamic duo.”
Mengarelli expressed gratitude to former Prescott Mayor Harry Oberg and others who have smoothed the transition from one administration to another, agreeing that the role of mayor indeed is the “part-time job seven days a week” described to him by Prescott Valley Mayor Harvey Skoog.
Mengarelli’s leadership strategy supports his goal of preserving all that is good about the city, while likewise enhancing the inevitable growth ahead. The key to success, he said, is to provide a government mindset that intently promotes free enterprise capitalism.
“We need a government structure that is nimble, lean and responsive,” he said, advocating repeal of excess regulation while “judiciously enforcing” the necessary. Then emerged the sentiment that entrepreneurial businesses have espoused all along: “only the private sector creates wealth” and government should get out of its way.
The backbone of Mengarelli’s vision is strategic cooperation with area communities, an approach that has not always been valued. He credits his wife, Sheila, as instrumental in solidifying that cooperative foresight.
Citing the surprise announcement about the Sam’s Club closure, the mayor shared the range of thoughts that ran through his mind, one after another upon hearing the news. He ultimately settled on the upward revenue impacts to Prescott from potentially absorbing the soon-to-be defunct store’s clientele. As he basked in this scenario, “Sheila asked me a somber question: ‘What will happen to all of those people who will lose their jobs?’ She was thinking of them as our neighbors.”
The “if you win, I must lose” attitude must be replaced with private sector initiatives to expand the pie so everyone benefits, Mengarelli asserted. “If we are to secure the future for generations to come,” there must be more pie to go around. Two of Prescott’s most valuable assets – water from the Big Chino Ranch and the transportation hub at the Prescott Regional Airport – will not be optimized without the spirit of cooperation among Quad Cities’ communities, he said.
“Someday, we are going to need to tap into the water in the Big Chino aquifer, and as for the airport, it’s probably the greatest untapped resource that City of Prescott owns. We must seek the cooperation of Prescott Valley, Yavapai County, Dewey-Humboldt and Chino Valley to create a true regional airport. Only then can we build the new terminal and extend the runway. It’s time to get something done at the airport. We are going to get that done, make it happen.”
Quad Cities residents and leaders should be proud when a neighboring community achieves a milestone or successful contract, he urged, noting that market dynamics determine where people and businesses choose to live or set up shop.
Mengarelli recited the story of a 14-year-old immigrant who left home in Italy to board a ship to America in 1912. The young man remained seasick for the entire two-week Atlantic crossing. After leaving Ellis Island, he made a new home in a small Kansas village. The harsh reality of the area’s mining community most likely was not what he had expected. He lived in less than ideal conditions to save money, shot wildlife for food, and a decade later, bought a farm with his new wife. In another 10 years, he bought more land for a total of 640 acres. Blood, sweat and tears made this hardworking man successful in America, the land of opportunity.
“He was my great grandpa,” Mengarelli revealed about the man he knew as Nonno, or Grandpa. “He is someone who has motivated me and inspired me for a lifetime. Why I tell this story is because when I think about Nonno’s journey, it reminds me of you. It took courage for him to leave his home; the same courage it takes you to open and start up a business. It’s the same kind of determined motivation to keep your business afloat when the economy tanks or the unexpected happens. It’s the same devotion in pursuing your own dream.”
Nonno “took great risk in leaving everything he knew,” Mengarelli said. “For the same reasons, you are my heroes. The pioneer spirit that brought my great grandpa to America founded this city, and that pioneering spirt will move us ahead in 2018. You, my friends, are the lifeblood of our city.” QCBN
By Sue Marceau, QCBN
Photo caption:
Prescott Mayor Greg Mengarelli compared the life story of his great grandfather with the pioneer spirit of the Quad Cities at the Prescott Chamber of Commerce Annual Meeting at the Prescott Resort and Conference Center on Jan. 18.
Photo courtesy of Bob Shanks