All,
So far, our contact with the town council members (Shelley Anderson and Tom
McGuire) suggests there is little support for Enchanted Canyon on the
council. Instead of finding comfort in this we need to ask ourselves why
the developer would spend the money and time he has in this endeavor in the
face of such apparent lack of support. I met with planning staff and Usama
on Thursday and was told, the town had told the developer their plan had
very-little chance of approval.
The owner of the 220 acres making up Enchanted Canyon has spent a serious
amount of money developing the plan and examining the legal aspects of the
proposed development. If the developer, his planner and his legal staff are
as sophisticated as we believe, they would not be pressing ahead unless
they were highly confident of success.
Unfortunately we can only guess at what they have in mind for the "end
game". Our most effective counter is massive opposition. Therefore, we must
continue to grow our attendance at the April 19th P&Z meeting and, most
importantly, the May 7th Council meetings.
During my meeting with staff and Usama, a thought occurred to me that I
would like to share. Over the ~ 25 years since Cave Creek incorporated, our
demographics have changed dramatically. If Enchanted Canyon was proposed 20
years ago, few of the towns residents would have spent much time worrying
over it because they would have known, with certainty, it would fail at
council.
The makeup of the council changes every election cycle. Fiscal pressures
come, go and change as the council and town staff change and/or respond to
pressure from inside and outside the town. If we want to keep Cave Creek
Cave Creek, the only constants upon which we can rely are ourselves and our
commitment to fight the forces of change. It is unfortunate, but I'm
afraid, certain that rural zoning will continue to be threatened after we
win Enchanted Canyon. This threat will be most intense while the real
estate slump continues. Out best, short-term defense is to kill Enchanted
Canyon in a very convincing manner. This will require a serious turn out
at the previously-mentioned meetings. Please reach out to friends,
neighbors and strangers to help us grow our ranks.
Thanks,
Mike
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