by Charlene Clark
October 2011
Well we’re back in operation again and looking forward to the cooler seasons. We had a great Chamber meeting this month with a lot of updates.
Phoenix Water Committee: The City of Phoenix received one bid on the sale of the property and it was below their required opening bid so it was rejected.
Centennial Wash: Holly Irwin from the La Paz County Board of Supervisors reported that the wash has been significantly cleared. There are piles of brush that you can see from the road. There is more to be done but the County must work with individual property owners to get permission to clear. There is a possibility that when the brush is dry that they may be used for fire fighter training.
Waste Water Treatment Plant: AEDQ is pushing to have stronger requirements for individuals to tie in to the system. The Drainage District is pushing back on this as it would not be feasible for our community as it would be costly to individuals.
Redistricting: The Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission is looking into how to restructure the congressional and legislative districts to reflect the results of the most recent census. The Arizona State Constitution requires the commissioners to start from scratch to create new district dimensions. The general consensus of those present was that we need to be in a district without Tucson. Please take a look at their web site, AZREDISTRICTING.ORG, and see what approach is being taken and provide your input.
County Rezoning: La Paz County Community Development has held meetings to review the current zoning standards. Two of our members have attended those meetings and are providing input for those things that are appropriate for our current environment and future development. One of the things being reviewed is creating Conditional Use Permits instead of Special Use Permits. The Conditional Use Permits would stay with the land if it is sold. You can take a look at the county web site, CO.LA-PAZ.AZ.US, for future meetings or look for them in the Parker Pioneer.
Chamber Board Members: There will be three opening for Board members coming up for this next year. If you are interested in being a board member or know someone who is please contact Fran Erickson. You can leave a message for her at the Chamber Office, 859-3846. This is a great way to be involved in community activities and be aware of what is happening in the area.
Solar Power: Once again there is a possibility of a solar plant being created in our area. EnviroMission has secured a 200MW Power Purchase Agreement with Southern California Public Power Authority to deliver power from the first of two planned Solar Tower Power developments in Arizona. The Solar Tower will offset 1 million tonnes of green house gases per year and will abate the use of up to 1 billion gallons of potable water annually – water that is typically associated with traditional power generation methods. The proposed site for this is reported to be between Quartzsite and Parker. If it is successful it is anticipated that there will be approximately 1500 construction people needed at the peak of development and approximately 30 – 50 permanent staff. If you would like to review the activity their website is ENVIROMISSION.COM.AU or SolarTower
Yakima Finalized: Holly Irwin reported to the Chamber that the Board of Supervisors passed the sales tax bond. Yakima will be paid off and the money will be recollected from the ½ cent sales tax that was signed by the governor earlier this year.
Don’t forget – there is a lot of information in the Chamber office about local sites, events and services as well as on this website – AZOUTBACK.COM. If you have any comments or questions please let me know.
You can contact me at home, 859-3517, or by email clarkdc@tds.net
Thanks, Charlene Clark, Publicity Director
McMullen Valley Chamber of Commerce
Thanks
for visiting the Arizona Outback Online 
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