A tentative increase in the Oro Valley Police Department’s budget this year was a cause for concern for some members of council during a study session last Wednesday at Town Hall.

In a town revered for its forward thinking, Oro Valley isn’t forgetting to take a look back at history as it celebrates Settler’s Day on April 13 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

It was a near-empty council chamber by 10:20 p.m., but it was about that time the last item on the Jan. 16 agenda was addressed – and it proved to be one that sparked some heated rhetoric between the members of the Oro Valley Town Council.

While the Town of Oro Valley will retain all current council members until at least June of next year, the Town of Marana will have a busy election season come March, when four incumbents and two challengers will compete to earn a seat on council. 

On Dec. 12, students, police, and community members gathered for an annual shopping spree at the Oro Valley Target as part of the Shop-With-A-Cop program. The 18 students selected to Shop-With-A-Cop spent an afternoon stocking up on clothes, toys, and Christmas presents, courtesy of the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge #53.

October’s Helping Hand nomination goes to Ken Blanchard, an Oro Valley resident and employee of Edward Jones, whose initiation of the Southern Arizona’s annual Bag-a-Thon food drive is receiving increased recognition and effectiveness.

The Town of Oro Valley’s council meetings are back in full swing, following a two-month summer break, and it hasn’t taken long for some discord to surface between the council members. 

It takes a lot of work and dedication by a lot of people to make saving 10,000 lives over a span of 10 years possible, but that’s exactly what Oro Valley’s Project Graduation program has done.

Response to unknown note writer

It’s a major election year, and it’s hard not to focus on the big race. Who will be running our entire nation after November? Will it be Barack Obama for a second term, or will Republican Mitt Romney pull off the upset? 

Consider the source

The Oro Valley Town Council expressed its faith in the Tucson Regional Economic Opportunities (TREO) and Metropolitan Tucson Convention and Visitors Bureau (MTCVB) during the June 20 meeting, but the decision to approve funding for each organization didn’t come without some debate.

Things got heated during the Oro Valley Town Council’s tentative adoption of the proposed 2012-2013 fiscal year budget on May 2.

The timing of Oro Valley’s potential budget adoption for fiscal year 2012-2013 is causing a stir among members of the Oro Valley Town Council. Current members look to pass the budget soon, while newly-elected council members want to wait.

Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer has reappointed Oro Valley Councilwoman Mary Snider to the Arizona Automobile Theft Authority (AATA). Snider, who was originally appointed four years ago by form Gov. Janet Napolitano, is one of two public members on the AATA Board of Directors. There are 12 members total.

The old adage “Never let facts get in the way of a good story” seems to apply to Councilwoman Roxanne Ziegler’s recent opinion in The Explorer (“County official should follow best practices,” Oct. 5, 2011).

What is wrong with Pima County? That question probably isn’t unusual for most people who live here, but what many probably don’t know is just how far off base the county is when it comes to best practices for managing local governments.

With unanimous approval from its town council Aug. 9, the Town of Marana is preparing to eliminate physical polling locations and instead transition to mail ballot elections.

The Town of Marana has a new vice mayor. During the June 21 town council meeting, Councilwoman Patti Comerford was unanimously selected to replace Herb Kai, who had served in that position for more than 10 years. Kai nominated Comerford for the position.

It is the tale of two budgets. While Oro Valley is challenged with where to make deep cuts due to a lack of growth, in neighboring Marana, officials spent their first budget work session planning how to spend extra money coming from a growing population.

Marana voters turned out in record numbers for the March 8 election, according to the official canvass results confirmed by the town council on March 15.

A primary election contest for two seats on the Marana Town Council is scheduled for Tuesday, March 8.

On Saturday, Feb. 19, youths in five Pima Community College TRiO programs will volunteer to help the city’s graffiti abatement efforts.

On March 8, Marana voters will determine who will fill two open seats on the Marana Town Council. Incumbents Roxanne Ziegler and Russell Clanagan are being challenged by newcomers David Bowen and Jeffrey Gray. Mayor Ed Honea is running unopposed.