Sahuarita council seeks economic solutions

Sahuarita Town Council members have economic issues on their mind, including both immediate budget matters and long-term economic development concerns, judging from their comments after the August retreat-turned-study-session at Quail Creek.

Vice Mayor Phillip Conklin said, “My greatest concern is the future financial stability of our town. We received a report from Piper Jaffray, our financial consultants. At current spending rates, we will be in the red in a couple of years. We must find additional revenue sources or curtail spending.”

Scott Downs spoke of the hurdles facing the town in developing light industry, which is seen as a key component of a diversified, high-wage local economy, one that could help pay for town projects in the future.

“The major thing on economic development is making sure as we look at the future that we have the income we need. Now we have money from the new construction sales tax, but 20 years from now we want to make sure we have the businesses that will support the cost of government.

“We had a finance presentation. So far we’ve been able to pay bills as they come in. We may be going toward bonds or loans for different projects,” Downs said.

Mayor Lynne Skelton praised the background presentation on development given by the town economic development manager, saying “Kathy Ward did a wonderful job taking us through land-use opportunities, annexation, the role of incentives, infrastructure, workforce and marketing with regard to economic development planning challenges.

Contact with landowners

“Council provided direction and support for Ms. Ward to contact major landowners plus smaller ones, both in and out of the town limits, regarding timing for development and specific land use. Council requested additional information as it pertains to selected land purchase (land banking), when and why it may make sense for the town to purchase land and why it may not.”

Council member Roger Minor said the town must increase its financial power, possibly through borrowing, because “we need money for a number of things, including wastewater (plant expansion), the Town Center, any number of things.”

Developing the Town Center at this point is mostly the responsibility of Rancho Sahuarita developer Bob Sharpe, who recently sent a mailing townwide making the case for the town to reimburse him for several million dollars for building roads, a park and other improvements.

Sharpe has not made a formal request to the Town Council or staff on this matter.

Under the current Rancho Sahuarita Specific Plan, the developer is responsible for roads, parks and sewer and utility lines in the area described as the Town Center.

A story on the incentive plan was published in the Aug. 8 edition of the Sahuarita Sun.

Development incentives

Council members discussed development incentives and asked staff for guidelines on how to evaluate such requests fairly.

Skelton said, “With regard to incentives, council believes we need to set policy. The policy will take into consideration future proposed annexations.”

Minor and Downs said the town staff needs to research the issue of incentives and provide some background information.

Minor said the possibility of “incentives is an interesting issue. I’d have to be shown more detail about the viability of it and whether or not it’s something you could use taxpayer money for, if its something that will really create more jobs,” Minor said.

Downs said he’d like to have some framework or policy by which the council could evaluate specific requests so all requests are given equal treatment.

Ward said she hoped to have something to council members within several weeks on incentive guidelines.

She noted that typically towns and cities evaluate individual requests on a case by case basis, but also spoke of the need for Sahuarita to follow a comprehensive development strategy.

Council Member Charles Oldham said, “I don’t think incentives are very popular with the council, and they are not popular with me.”

Oldham said of the Rancho Sahuarita proposal, “Mr. Sharpe in his development plan laid out very specific commitments he had to make and at no time in that did he foresee the town ever having to provide any additional commitments, since he got everything he wanted.

“He made some commitments and the town has made some commitments and we have tried to keep those commitments. Now he finds a reason to rewrite the game plan, and so I’m not particularly willing to rewrite that.”

Council Member John Sullivan could not be reached for comment.

pfranchine@sahuaritasun.com | 547-9738