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Phil Goode

December is a Special Time in Prescott

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Come out and celebrate the season with us!

December in Prescott is a special time as we fully embrace our designation as Arizona’s Christmas City. Traditional annual events nearly every weekend of the month are connected by the magical lights on the Courthouse Plaza on display every night. Whether you enjoy the reverie of festive traditional events or just a quiet stroll through a display of thousands of brilliantly colored lights, Prescott has something for everyone this month.

The 41st Annual Christmas Parade opens the events at 1 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 2. The pageantry of the Christmas season is on full display throughout the downtown area, with Santa himself closing out the parade. Immediately following the parade, Santa will visit with children on the Courthouse Plaza.

Later that day, you can take in the 69th Annual Courthouse Lighting on the steps of the Yavapai County Courthouse. Beginning at 6 p.m., this beloved event is truly at the heart of Arizona’s Christmas City, bringing the entire community together.

On Friday, Dec. 8, Prescott comes alive with music for the Acker Musical Showcase. This event features musicians, choirs and musical groups performing for free at local shops and businesses around the downtown area. Donation canisters at each location combine to raise thousands of dollars for youth music education in Prescott.

One of our newest traditions features the Prescott Christmas Village and Kristkindlmarket, Dec. 15 through 17, on Goodwin Street across from the Courthouse Plaza. Modeled after European holiday markets, visitors will enjoy horse-drawn carriage rides, kids’ activities, traditional German food and drink, and dozens of local vendors selling thoughtfully curated gifts of all kinds.

Finally, on Dec. 31, we will give 2023 “the boot” with the 13th annual Whiskey Row Boot Drop. Enjoy live music, a Ferris wheel and lots of family fun activities. The six-foot boot will drop from the top of the Palace/Jersey Lilly at 10 p.m. and 12 Midnight to ring in the New Year on East Coast time and Arizona time.

All of these events and more can be found at ArzionaChristmasCity.com.

Another new element worth noting is the Enchroma Colorblind Accessibility program. Prescott is a color-blind friendly destination. Colorblind residents and visitors alike can borrow special glasses to help them seen the full spectrum of beautiful holiday colors on our Courthouse Plaza. The glasses are free to borrow at the Prescott Public Library, the Prescott Chamber Visitor Center, Western Heritage Museum and several other locations around the city. For more information go to ExperiencePrescott.com.

As you can tell, Prescott proudly reflects the designation of Arizona’s Christmas City. Come out and celebrate the season with us! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. And Happy Hannukah to our Jewish friends and neighbors. QCBN

By Phil Goode

Phil Goode is the mayor of Prescott.

November is a Time to Honor and Celebrate as We Usher in the Holidays

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Please join me in these months of honor and celebration in our great City of Prescott.

One of the things I appreciate about Prescott is that our community truly enjoys celebrations and honoring those who serve. November is a time to do just that, as we celebrate Veterans Day and Thanksgiving, and then we usher in one of the most significant seasons with the events of Arizona’s Christmas City.

Veterans Day was originally named Armistice Day following the end of World War I, and then in the United States, it became a celebration honoring all of our military veterans. While Memorial Day is more of a remembrance of the veterans who sacrificed their lives for our great nation, I view Veterans Day as a celebration, giving us a chance to thank all veterans for their service to our country. We do so in grand style here in Prescott, with the annual Veterans Day Parade beginning at 11 a.m., Nov. 11, through the streets of historic downtown Prescott. I am proud of Prescott for hosting this important event. I believe that the Veterans Day Parade embodies the genuine appreciation our citizens show to veterans. Many thanks to Michelle Stacy-Schroeder, also a veteran, and her team of volunteers and city staff, who help make the parade a truly special event.

A few years back, Prescott was named one of the Most Patriotic Cities in the United States and is recognized as having one of the highest concentrations of veterans per capita, in any community, other than towns that host military bases. The Northern Arizona Veterans Administration Healthcare System works alongside numerous non-profits serving veterans, drawing these large numbers here. Prescott is truly one of the most veteran-friendly communities anywhere. Citizens genuinely support all veterans. As a Vietnam veteran who served in combat, I know how meaningful genuine expressions of appreciation are, since we did not receive a friendly reception when we returned from service many years ago.

Veterans Day is soon followed by another celebration with Thanksgiving, this year on Nov. 23.    This is an exciting time for me, since just a few days later, we begin the official Arizona’s Christmas City events. The festivities start with the Holiday Light Parade, 6 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 25, in the downtown area. One week later, on Saturday Dec. 2, we celebrate with the annual Christmas Parade, then the magical lighting of the Yavapai County Courthouse Plaza. Of course, there are other great Christmas City events, including Acker Night and many others. To see the full calendar of Arizona’s Christmas City events, check out ArizonaChristmasCity.com.

Please join me in these months of honor and celebration in our great City of Prescott. QCBN

By Phil Goode

Phil Goode is the mayor of Prescott.

Understanding the Facts about Widening SR89

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This 2.5-mile section of SR89 is the only remaining two-lane section of the roadway between SR69 and the northern border of Chino Valley.

When the City announced the proposed widening of State Route 89 between the Phippen Roundabout and Willow Lake Road Roundabout earlier this summer, there was a great deal of discussion, in the form of letters to City Council, online and the local media outlets. Much of the early reaction expressed concern about how widening of the roadway would affect the scenic Granite Dells rocks. It is important to understand all of the reasons why the city is considering this project and the actual scope of the project.

The main and immediate reason for the project is the construction of sewer infrastructure improvements along SR89, between the two roundabouts. With the construction of the sewer line, the roadway will have to be rebuilt. While the focus of the project is upgrading sewer mains to centralize the wastewater treatment processes at the Airport Water Reclamation Facility, we also have the opportunity to improve access and safety at intersections, reduce traffic congestion, provide for more efficient evacuation routes and improve the ride quality for motorists.

This 2.5-mile section of SR89 is the only remaining two-lane section of the roadway between SR69 and the northern border of Chino Valley. Central Yavapai Metropolitan Planning Organization (CYMPO) identified this as the highest priority expansion project for their 2045 Regional Transportation Plan. The average daily traffic count for this corridor is 18,429 vehicles per day. Therefore, the Level of Service (LOS) rating for this section of SR89 is currently an E/F for handling traffic congestion during peak hours. This means traffic is congested, irregular and approaching gridlock with traffic jams in the early morning and late afternoons. It’s projected that the LOS will deteriorate to a rating of F by 2030, making traffic even worse.

Such traffic delays and congestion will cause the traveling public to seek alternate routes such as Willow Creek Road, Pioneer Parkway and Williamson Valley Road, contributing to increased traffic congestion and delays on those routes.

Continued residential and commercial development in Deep Well Ranch, planned development by Arizona Eco Development along the Pioneer Parkway/SR 89A corridor and the entrance to the newly proposed nature center and Glassford Dells Regional Park will impact this corridor. Traffic volumes will significantly increase in the years to come. We must prepare now for future transportation needs.

The greatest area of concern about this project so far is centered around a quarter- to half- mile stretch of this project. The proposal includes four lanes, with a center turn lane or median. This means that a roadway of approximately 75 feet in width is needed. In the narrowest sections, where the dells come very close to the current roadway, we have about 45 feet of width. This means a total of about 15 to 18 feet of additional width on each side of the existing roadway is needed. While the exact widening method has not been established, modern rock removal measures include drilling and controlled blasting along the naturally occurring fracture lines within the rocks. This project will not require condemnation of private property and there will be no loss of trails or recreational amenities.

The project is still in the early stages of development. There is no formal design in place, but a conceptual layout has been produced to illustrate the potential roadway improvements being considered. The city is committed to an open and transparent dialogue as we plan this project.

There is a link on the city website, or you can go directly to SR89Improvements.com, where citizens can see additional information and take a survey to share their opinions and concerns. There will also be a series of public meetings to review and approve plans and budgeting for project costs. We invite you to continue to stay informed, voice your concerns and attend future public meetings when they are scheduled, as we plan for Prescott’s future. QCBN

By Phil Goode, QCBN

Phil Goode is the mayor of Prescott.

Updating Ordinances

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My goal is to make sure that the ordinances of the City of Prescott meet the needs of our citizens in these modern times.

During my time as a councilmember and mayor, there have been many instances of antiquated, outdated and sometimes ineffective ordinances that were not consistent with our current times, or the real-world environment. In addition, several judicial decisions and case law have affected some of these ordinances. For that reason, I have been working with the city attorney and his team to identify and update some highly visible ordinances, to meet the test of modern times.

A few of these are related to adult entertainment, or sexually oriented businesses, and the hosting of sexually oriented shows such as cabaret or drag shows. I have heard from many citizens concerned with these types of shows appearing more frequently in Prescott, at a variety of venues and events. Citizens have alleged that children have been brought into these events by adults, but the city does nothing. This is due in part to outdated ordinances that do not address this type of activity specifically. While the banning of such shows is beyond the city’s authority, the city can require licensing of such events, and limit underage attendance. I have asked the city attorney to bring these updated ordinances to council this fall, for the council and the public to review and comment on.

The other ordinance that needs to be updated, in my opinion, is the city’s camping ordinance. The camping ordinance needs to be updated following 9th Circuit Court opinions that limit bans on camping within city limits. These cases do allow for time, place and manner restrictions, though, and our update is intended to restrict camping in areas near pedestrians, schools and concentrations of people, and to prevent the biggest issues presented in many cities, namely encampments, clustering of a homeless population, and interfering with sidewalks and public rights of way.

These are two examples of outdated ordinances that must be updated to address current-day issues. Prescott is a very old city, and there are, no doubt, many more ordinances that should be updated to address modern-day issues. We will continue to identify opportunities to update ordinances and codes, and will seek to establish a policy of enforcement of these codes.

My goal is to make sure that the ordinances of the City of Prescott meet the needs of our citizens in these modern times. QCBN

By Phil Goode, QCBN

Phil Goode is the mayor of Prescott.

How Prescott is Funded for City Needs

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Property Tax is a consistent funding source, while sales tax is subject to the cycles of the economy and tourism variations.

As we conclude budget approval for Fiscal Year 2024, which begins on July 1, questions arise about the city’s tax structure and how we are funded. Many are surprised to learn that transaction privilege tax (TPT, or sales tax) is the primary source of revenue for the city’s general fund, which pays for public safety and other critical city services. Property tax in Prescott accounts for less than 4% of revenue for the general fund.

As growth continues in and around Prescott’s city limits, the low city property tax plays a minor but important role in funding our public safety and other critical services. The Prescott property tax rate is much lower than the rate in the unincorporated county areas. For this reason, growth and increased property values disproportionately benefit the county, with their higher property tax rate. However, growth in the north Prescott area, both in the city and county areas, is stretching city public safety services capability and response times.

This means that the police, fire and emergency medical services are funded from the city’s general fund with a vastly lower property tax rate. Currently, for example, a property with a $400,000 assessed value outside of the city limits located in the Central Arizona Fire and Medical Authority’s district, pays an additional $1,041 annually above the same valued property in the City of Prescott.

As council moves to approve the Fiscal Year ‘24 budget, for the first time since 2017, we are considering an increase in the property tax levy by the maximum allowed 2%. This increase will trigger a Truth in Taxation process, which will include public notices and public hearings. What does this increase mean for Prescott homeowners? The answer is about $13.04 a year for a similar $400,000 property. While not a significant sum, the additional revenue will help the city keep up with the need for more police and firefighters.

Property Tax is a consistent funding source, while sales tax is subject to the cycles of the economy and tourism variations. Police and fire protection is a constant need and requires a more stable funding source. Property tax and its role in funding critical city services must be considered as a way to provide a more balanced source of revenue to meet the needs of our growing community. QCBN

By Phil Goode

Phil Goode is the mayor of Prescott.

Granite Creek Corridor Project Expected to Be Completed By Summer

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In my opinion, once completed, this one-mile stretch along Granite Creek will provide a scenic, safe and accessible trail for citizens and visitors.

As the city’s Granite Creek Corridor improvements are moving toward a conclusion, I would like to take this opportunity to remind our citizens about this project and provide current information and an account of the history.

The Granite Creek Corridor project is almost four years in the making. Back in 2019, city staff identified an opportunity to enhance one of Prescott’s great natural assets, Granite Creek and the associated trail running alongside. Over the years, the creek had fallen into disarray, with encroachment from urban development, non-native species growing on the banks, and general deterioration of the banks and the water flow. In addition, the trail gained a reputation as being unsafe and unclean. Most citizens said they generally avoided the trail.

Knowing all of this, Prescott City Council formed a committee consisting of citizens and staff. Their first task was to ask citizens what they would like to see when we improve this amenity. A planning firm was hired to garner feedback from citizens, business leaders and others. Public open houses were also held and surveys conducted to garner citizen feedback. From that feedback, a master plan was created to guide the project.

The master plan document states the long-term goals of the project are as follows:

  • Clean up and restore the beauty and native landscape of the corridor, allowing the riparian habitat to thrive and water quality to improve.
  • Improve the usability of the trail in the downtown corridor, allowing greater access and enhanced safety.
  • Improve opportunities for interpretation of Prescott history and resources.
  • Reduce the risk of flood conditions for the properties along the creek.

Along with stream bank restoration activities, amenities such as lights, benches and an ADA accessible entrance were planned to make this a safe and accessible trail.

The improvements begin at Aubrey to the south, going north to end in Granite Creek Park. The trail goes through the heart of Prescott’s historic downtown and provides unique perspectives on businesses along the creek.

The total budget for the project was set at just over $3 million. The city received funding from the Arizona State Parks and Trails in the amount of $1 million. There was an unrestricted private donation of $656,000. The streets fund paid $640,000. An additional $220,000 was provided by the Bed Tax, from tourism dollars. The total outlay from the General Fund was under $500,000.

After some delays related to the grant funding and other factors, work began along the creek in the third quarter of 2022. Expected completion date has been delayed most recently by the extremely wet winter season; however, work continues and is expected to be completed by summer. In my opinion, once completed, this one-mile stretch along Granite Creek will provide a scenic, safe and accessible trail for citizens and visitors. Prescott is known for its trails, lakes and other natural assets. With a modest investment, the city has created a trail and public space for our citizens and visitors to enjoy for years to come.

All of the information about the plan, including Master Plan and other documents, are available here https://www.prescott-az.gov/city-management/programs/granite-creek-corridor-master-plan/. QCBN

By Phil Goode

Phil Goode is the mayor of Prescott.

Improving, Maintaining Streets Following an Intense Winter

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Spring is here and the city is gearing up for road construction and street maintenance projects.

Traffic, road conditions, street maintenance and construction are generally areas of great interest for our citizens. With more than 750 miles of paved surface in the city boundaries, improving and maintaining our streets in Prescott is a year-round job. Keeping traffic flowing smoothly and safely is another priority that requires constant attention and improvement.

Spring is here and the city is gearing up for road construction and street maintenance projects. This past winter was very hard on our roads. Numerous snowstorms kept the plows rolling more than usual. Plows and the freeze/thaw cycle added to the emergence of potholes around town. Prescott has streets in various configurations and levels of use. Keeping our streets in good condition is the job of the Public Works Department. The systematic approach to determine the type and priority of road maintenance is lifecycle pavement management. There is a methodology to prioritizing street projects for the maximum cost-benefit of our allocated budget.

Pavement conditions are ranked on a scale of 0-100, commonly referred as a Pavement Condition Index (PCI) based on information obtained from a third-party consultant who drives and analyzes the city’s entire network. Staff will also validate the consultant report and assess the prioritization of recommended pavement treatments for the conditions of a particular road.

  • The three types of pavement maintenance are preservation, rehabilitation and reconstruction.
  • Roads in the 70-100 range (Very Good – Excellent) will receive preservation treatments, which include rejuvenating fog seals, master seals and slurry seals. These are very cost-effective treatments to prolong pavement life.
  • Roads in the 40-70 range (Marginal – Good) will receive rehabilitation treatments, which will include high and low volume chip seals, micro seals and mill and overlays.
  • Roads in the 0-40 range (Very Poor – Poor) will typically require full pavement reconstruction, which includes the full removal and replacement of existing pavement and the base structure.

In the past few years, the city has made major budget commitments to improving our city streets and roads. The overall conditions of our city streets have improved from an average PCI of 49, to the current 67 rating.

The city is catching up on a number of projects on both arterial and residential streets. Here are some important projects we can expect to be addressed this year:

  • Prescott Lakes Parkway from Willow Lake Road to SR89 – Pavement repairs and Micro Seal Type III application.
  • Willow Creek Road from Green Lane to Willow Lake Road – Rejuvenating Fog Seal and Crack Seal.
  • Stetson Road from Robinson Dr. to Bradshaw Dr. – Full depth pavement replacement.
  • Garden St. and Western Ave. – Full depth pavement replacement (project also includes sewer main replacement).

For exact dates and times, sign up for email alerts here: news@prescottutilityimprovements.com.

Also, you can call the project hotline at 928-237-3114.

Traffic flow remains a high priority as our population grows. There are several projects planned for the upcoming calendar year to help staff and city leadership monitor traffic conditions and plan for needed traffic improvements.

At the direction of Prescott City Council, Public Works staff is currently developing the scope and final details for a Citywide Speed and Travel Time Study. This study will be conducted to collect and analyze existing speed and travel time data on all arterial and select collector and local streets within the City of Prescott to provide an objective evaluation of our current conditions and to ultimately identify roadways that are experiencing ongoing speeding issues and/or poor travel times so that mitigation measures and improvement projects can be identified and implemented. This study will also grade our system against known standards related to speeding and roadway operations so that we can have a true understanding of how our roadways are doing and how they can improve.

In addition to this, the city will be conducting traffic count data collection in late spring. This involves collecting 24-hour traffic volume counts and intersection peak hour turning counts at various arterial and collector roadways and major intersections. This data will be used to determine traffic growth rates, analyze crash rates at intersections and be made available to realtors and businesses to understand traffic patterns and volumes at specific locations.

Maintaining our streets and keeping traffic moving safely are core functions of our city. We will continue to work to improve and maintain our streets, so that citizens can travel in a safe, efficient manner around our city. QCBN

By Phil Goode

Phil Goode is the mayor of Prescott.

Reducing Taxes, Protecting Airport Land, Expanding Open Space in the New Year

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As we come into 2023, I see several important and challenging issues ahead.

Happy New Year! I sincerely hope that your holidays were blessed with the warmth of this wonderful season. It was great to see Arizona’s Christmas City in full swing, with all of our favorite events and a few new ones.

Prescott City Council looks ahead to 2023, which will no doubt be an important year for the city. First I would like to congratulate our new Mayor Pro Tem Brandon Montoya, and thank last year’s Pro Tem Cathey Rusing for her leadership in 2022.

I am pleased to share with you an accomplishment from 2022 that will reduce taxes for everyone, starting immediately. As of Dec. 31, the city ended the .75% sales tax that was put in place to pay down the unfunded pension liability for our public safety personnel. The tax was able to sunset earlier than anticipated because we were able to pay down that liability from about $85 million in 2018, to under $1.5 million today.

As we come into 2023, I see several important and challenging issues ahead.

We will begin the year with a search for a new city manager. After six years with the city, Michael Lamar resigned his position to pursue other opportunities. His last day will be Feb. 14. We thank him for his service to the city and wish him well in his future endeavors.

The city will continue its work to protect the land around the airport from encroachment by residential development. We will work with the entitled property owners to make sure there is an appropriate buffer around the airport, keeping future homes out of crash impact zones and out of intense aircraft noise contour areas. The work we do now will benefit the entire Prescott region, especially those who use our air service, as well as the airport operations for years to come.

It is clear that as Prescott grows, our public safety infrastructure must also expand correspondingly. Our first responders have done an admirable job keeping up with the increased demands of our growing population. However, it’s time to invest in this growing demand. City Council will work with our public safety leadership to identify areas for new stations so that our citizens can continue to enjoy a consistently high quality of service as our city continues to grow.

After just over six months of the new water policy, we will continue to review and possibly reassess the policy as applications come in and issues are addressed. The Water Issues Subcommittee and the ad-hoc Water Policy Management Committee will continue to review the situation and together with staff, will make recommendations to council. The goal is to make sure that growth and water use increases at a reasonable and sustainable rate.

Finally, the City of Prescott and the entire region has a very special opportunity to expand open space, preserving thousands of acres for recreational use. The city is working with several partners, including Yavapai County and Prescott Valley, and in coordination with Arizona State Parks and with assistance from the governor’s office, to acquire a combined 3,200 acres on and around Glassford Hill. This land will be acquired in pieces, with each partner purchasing a number of acres. Thanks to a grant from the governor’s office, some of the land purchase costs will be offset. However, there is much more work to do in the coming year to ensure this open space is available to benefit generations to come. QCBN

By Phil Goode, QCBN

Phil Goode is the mayor of Prescott.

Undertaking the Updated General Plan

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The voters of Prescott will have the General Plan on the ballot in the city’s primary election in August 2025.

The City of Prescott is about to undertake the update and adoption of the 2025 General Plan.  The General Plan is the public document that guides the future of a city. Per Arizona Revised Statutes, a city’s land development decisions must be consistent withthe adopted General Plan. Cities under a population of 50,000 must have the following elements in their plans: Land Use, Circulation, Open Space, Growth Areas, Environmental Planning, Cost of Development, and Water Resources.

General Plans must be thoroughly reviewed and updated every 10 years. In 2015, Prescott adopted its most recent update, which contained all five of the required elements plus two additional voluntary elements: Economic Development and Community Quality. The 2015 Prescott General Plan can be accessed by visiting the City’s website: https://www.prescott-az.gov/business-development/planning/general-plan/.

To stay in compliance with state law, Prescott must adopt an updated general plan by the end of 2025. To undertake this effort, the city has created a General Plan Project Team led by the Planning Division within the Community Development Department. This Project Team will consist of city staff from all departments and will include input from our regional partners such as the Town of Prescott Valley, the Town of Chino Valley, Yavapai County, the Central Yavapai Metropolitan Planning Organization and other local and regional organizations.

To assist the Project Team, the City Council has appointed an 11-citizen General Plan Committee. This committee will play an integral role in the extensive public outreach process planned for 2023, which will ensure that the updated General Plan represents the vision of all of Prescott residents. The members of the committee are Don Michelman, Deborah Thalasitis, Ted Gambogi, Gary Worob, Andre Carman, James McCarver, Ralph Hess, Mary Fredrickson, Jim Huffman, Rod Moyer and Terry Sapio. Council liaisons are Eric Moore and Brandon Montoya.

Following the extensive public outreach, the Project Team will utilize the input gathered from Prescott residents and develop a draft document for the General Plan Committee to review. This draft will be presented to the City’s Planning and Zoning Commission for a recommendation and then to the City Council for approval. With that approval, the General Plan must then be ratified by the residents of Prescott to become effective. The ratification follows the same process as a referendum. The voters of Prescott will have the General Plan on the ballot in the city’s primary election in August 2025. QCBN

By Phil Goode

Phil Goode is the mayor of Prescott.

Keeping Up with Public Safety Services as We Grow

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Living safely in our beautiful city comes with a lot of responsibility for all of us.

We all know that Prescott is a highly desirable community in which to live and work. This is, in part, due to the high quality of core public services that the city provides to ensure the safety of our residents. However, community growth has impacted our ability to provide these public safety services. One of the issues we have been discussing at council is how to fund and plan for future public safety locations. I have met with Fire Chief Holger Durre and Police Chief Amy Bonney about several issues including fire codes, ambulance response times and enforcement priorities, to name a few. Both the fire department and the police department have been experiencing a significant increase in calls for service in the past several years. The last time we built a new fire station was in 1995, and the city has seen a significant amount of growth in our community since then.

To close this gap, the proposed FY 23 city budget contains funding to meet response time objectives, not only through new stations. In a community as geographically diverse as ours, more than just new stations is needed to be effective and fiscally responsible. To do so, the budget proposes implementing new technology to efficiently dispatch units, be more effective at handling lower priority calls and partner with the community to lower the risks we all face. This includes finding business-friendly but effective fire codes, encouraging and facilitating aggressive wildfire mitigation and leveraging public-private partnerships in emergency medical services more efficiently.

New fire stations and personnel are needed, but by also focusing our budget on initiatives that increase the efficiency of current and future resources, we can reduce the overall cost of catching up to the growth we have all experienced. Over the long term, this will ensure that the investments of taxpayer dollars are applied in the most efficient and responsible manner and will focus the city on meeting response time objectives that reduce the occurrence of negative outcomes.

Living safely in our beautiful city comes with a lot of responsibility for all of us. The city must do its part to effectively invest the tax dollars provided by our citizens and to implement wise initiatives that respect those investments. However, I urge citizens to also do their part. One way citizens can do so is by ensuring their properties are ready for wildfire and by supporting our public safety personnel. Yavapai Firewise provides resources for property owners to create defensible space around their property. Other ways you can be ready for emergencies is to check your smoke detectors, and if you are a business owner, to make sure you are up to date on all of the safety regulations impacting your industry. As your mayor, I am responsible for ensuring that our policies are effective, available and responsive. As a citizen, I urge you to also do your part to keep Prescott as vibrant, beautiful and safe as ever. QCBN

By Phil Goode

Phil Goode is the mayor of Prescott.