Globe Citizens Opposed to a Prison Town Pack the House

By: Linda Gross

The Globe City Council met a sea of opposition last night regarding a proposed private prison to be built in Globe as a part of the State’s RFP for 5000 more prison beds. Even though the State recently rescinded that RFP (on Friday), citing they no longer feel they need the beds, both the organizers of last nights opposition, as well as Mayor, Fernando Shipley believe it is not ‘really off the table’ … … Continue Reading

Creative Financing of Private Prisons

By: Linda Gross

The Kingman Case: Private Prison Politics

By Vince Yanez

The Private Prison sales pitch finds a receptive audience among small, economically challenged communities who want to find jobs and a way of paying the light bill at City Hall.  Or, perhaps more to the point in the case of Globe – a way of getting a new sewer line for the NW Corridor.

Yet, it turns out the sales pitch is does not give the whole story.

The Information Highway goes both ways

Consider the information provided by the Prison Policy Initiative, a non-profit, non-partisan organization which researches and documents prison policy. They report that in spreading the gospel of privatization, our friends at Corrections Corp of America (James Parkey) and its competitors (Emerald Companies, Management & Training Corp (Kingman),Cornell and others)”… have used a small body of professional literature that purports to approve the superiority of for-profit corrections. What they fail to mention is that much of this literature has been written by analysts who are either being funded by the industry or have an ideological predisposition in favor of privatization.”

What were murderers doing in Kingman?

In the effort to package their message to local communities who are more open to warehousing the “not so violent” residents are often told by the pitch men,  “Prisoners housed in private facilities are far less likely to be convicted of serious or violent offenses, or to have high medical and mental health needs,than prisoners housed in public facilities used to generate cost comparisons.”

In actuality, PPI reports,  Public prisoners were seven times as likely to be serving time for violent offenses, three times as likely to be serving time for serious offenses and twice as likely to have high medical needs than those housed in private facilities.

You need look no further for proof of this than our own example here in Arizona recently, when 3 murderers escaped last week, from the 1400 bed facility in Kingman which was approved in 2004 by voters as a minimum to medium security prison to house DUI and Substance Abuse Cases!

According to Management & Training Corporation – the needs of the DOC “expanded.”

Next week, we will look at the issue of funding and how that plays out in the debate over Private Prisons. You know that saying, “Freedom isn’t Free”? Well, Neither are Private Prisons.

Globe Mayor Shipley will serve on NALEO Board

By: Linda Gross

The 2010 Conference of the National Association of Latino Elected Officials just wrapped up last week and Globe’s Mayor, Fernando Shipley, was one of seven new members elected to a three year term on this prestigious 23 person board which includes State Senators, Councilmen, School Board Members, and other leaders at the local, State and National levels.

Globe Mayor, Fernando Shipley, was recently appointed to the NALEO Board for a 3 year term. The organizations' constituency includes more than 6000 Latino officials.

NALEO, formed in 1976, is a non-partisan organization which helps build leadership skills and facilitate “full Latino participation” in the American political process. It’s constituency includes more than 6000 elected and appointed Latino officials. … Continue Reading

Private Prison Predicament

The news this week regarding a riot and lock down at the Eloy prison where 13 prisoners pummeled a guard when he tried to break up a fight over an X-Box and the escape of three murderers from a Kingman prison both have one thing in common.

They are both private prisons.

Since Globe is now “on the short list” for a private prison of their own, it is time every voter in this community evaluate the proposal and the ramifications of placing a private prison in town.

Private prisons have a long and inglorious track record of problems like the ones in the news last week.  … Continue Reading

The Urgency and Importance of “Home Rule”

By: Dr. Thea Wilshire, Councilwoman District 2 Globe

OK, some English please!  “Alternative Expenditure Limitation”?  Huh?  And, even the simpler “Home Rule” name doesn’t explain much on the surface.  So what exactly is this item and why is it on the Globe primary election ballot?

In 1980, Arizona voters approved a tax reform package that placed limits on expenditures for cities and towns.  This means that regardless of the money coming into the community or their actual needs, the city cannot spend over the state-imposed ceiling.  The limit is the community’s 1979-1980 budget with a small cost-of-living increase built in for each subsequent year.  However, the cost-of-living increases have come no where near to keeping pace with actual costs of supplies and services, so the limits set 30 years ago are now less tax reform and more economic shackles.  Fortunately, a back door was built into the legislation wherein local voters could approve an exception to state-imposed expenditure limitations and decide locally what is best for their own city or town.  This back door is lovingly referred to as “Home Rule.”  … Continue Reading

Trees get planted on Broad Street

It took men and machinery to plant several mature trees reaching 10-15ft each in the planters on N Broad Street . Photo By : Johnny Kay

Last week a variety of deciduous and non-deciduous trees were planted along the newly developed pedestrian-way on North Broad Street. The on going street enhancements are part of a collaborative project involving the City of Globe, Historic Globe Main Street Program, Cobre Valley Center for the Arts, the Globe Tree Committe and the group which calls themselves the MOB. The majority of funding for the improvements stem from a $98,000 grant which was awarded to the Downtown District this summer. … Continue Reading

Pet Project OR Progressive Leadership?

By: Jim Moss

Can you think of one significant community project resulting in improved quality of life — that did not require foresight and strategic planning?  Do you recall any major municipal improvement that came without a price tag, or without controversy?
So it shall be with a recent Globe City Council decision to move toward a revitalization of our Public Library.
Is the Council’s majority decision to purchase the real estate on both sides of the existing Library (as a first step toward revitalization) — an example of visionary leadership OR irresponsible city governance? … Continue Reading

New Senior Housing Development breaks ground

Floyd Crank, Mayor Fernando Shipley, Clay McReynolds of Pacific Companies, Supervisor Mike Pastor, Mark Shellenberger, Ed Dawson

It was a tough slog to get to this point according to the developer and political leaders who attended Friday’s ground breaking ceremony for a new 48-unit senior housing development. Despite being billed as a senior housing development with the express intent of serving an older population who face special needs and fixed incomes, there was local opposition to the project from those who felt the development might turn into a low-income, drug-infested housing development – or those who simply didn’t want a building development of this size “in their back yard.” It took over three years and multiple city hall meetings, planning and zoning debates, meetings at local and state levels and closed door meetings to arrive at a point where bulldozers could go in and break ground on the project.

The final approvals coincided with the economic upheaval in September of ’08 and while the events of ’08 caused a delay in the project, according to Clay McReynolds,  the investors and banks held firm in their support of this project. A final vote on the project was put before the Globe City Council. The vote was 3-For and 3-Against.  The tie vote generated a discussion to table the vote for more discussion, or vote again. It was decided to vote again and with it still tied it was Mayor Fernando Shipley who stepped in to break the tie and cast the deciding yes vote to insure the project moved forward. … Continue Reading

Wilt fails to appear at Court Date

Dr. Glenn Wilt, who began teaching in the early 60′s,  distinguished himself as an educator at ASU’s  WPCarey School of Business. These days, however he is finding his reputation as educator eclipsed in the news by his reputation as a slumlord. Wilt, who has built a career out of teaching others about finance and real estate now finds himself at odds with the communities where he invests and the courts which are beginning to take action on his apparent blatant disregard of city codes and official requests for action. With over eighty properties – both residential and commercial- throughout Tempe, Superior, Globe, Hayden and Winkleman, Dr. Wilt and his company, Superior Development Co. are increasingly in the news. … Continue Reading