Digital Free Press hosts Paradise Valley mayoral forum at Mountain Shadows
By Terrance Thornton | Digital Free Press
It was an intimate affair Monday, Oct. 7, as the Digital Free Press hosted a local political forum where about 30 Town of Paradise Valley residents came to hear both candidates vying for the station of mayor at the Tuesday, Nov. 5, general election.
The Paradise Valley mayoral forum was made possible by the generosity of Andrew Chippindall, general manager and vice president of the Mountain Shadows Resort, which is found along Lincoln Drive in the heart of the Town of Paradise Valley.
“This is our gift to the community to offer the venue for residents to come and hear from our mayoral candidates,” Mr. Chippindall said of his community service to the Town of Paradise Valley. “We have no expectation of monetary compensation, this is our contribution to the community.”
Paradise Valley mayoral candidates Anna Thomasson and Mark Stanton emerged from the primary election with Ms. Thomasson receiving the most votes for mayor in the primary race of the Town of Paradise Valley.
Of Note: The race for Paradise Valley Town Council was unchallenged ushering in re-election efforts for members of Town Council Scott Moore, Julie Pace and newcomer Karen Liepmann taking office January 2025.
The mayoral forum was held in the Paradise Ballroom North and at about 5:05 p.m. the majority of the audience had arrived and the civil dialogue ensued as the 55-miute program featured a spirited debate on the local issues that matter to Town of Paradise Valley residents.
The Digital Free Press came with a bank of 17 questions broken into distinctive categories, which were: City Hall & personality, public safety, development and short-term rentals. Read the script and bank of questions HERE.
The debate began with questions regarding technology and public safety at the Paradise Valley Police Department.
“Photo radar and photo enforcement saves lives — it is a key component of our public safety,” Ms. Thomasson said of the town’s usage of photo radar on local thoroughfares — major, minor and arterial. “It is key to protecting our town.”
It is no secret at Town Hall that every year elected leaders at the Arizona Legislature attempt to put an end to the municipal use of photo radar technologies and, when asked if elected mayor, what Ms. Thomasson would do to thwart those attempts, she offered a novel solution.
“I would like to create a coalition of the communities that have photo enforcement — in particular Phoenix and Tempe,” she said of taking a proactive approach to the typical legislative chagrin over the technology.
For Mr. Stanton, he says he is very proud of the usage of photo radar technology and the work of the Paradise Valley Police Department.
“The Town of Paradise Valley has really become a part of me — I have served in the town for 10 years,” he said. “I am very proud to be the only candidate who has the endorsement of first responders.”
Last month, Mr. Stanton received the endorsement of the United Phoenix Firefighters Association, Local 493.
“Most of all what photo radar does for us is it helps change the behavior of those folks who are driving through our town and to help to reduce distracted driving,” he said. “Photo radar is a great way for us to save money and so we don’t have to have our officers in danger along Lincoln, for example.”
With technology and public safety, Mr. Stanton says technology is an excellent tool to help catch ‘the bad guys’ but it also allows for better communication between resident and department.
“I am very proud of what we are doing with our new digital recruitment tools — we are almost 100% staffed,” he pointed out.
When it comes to technology at the Paradise Valley Police Department — including its usage of drone technology — Ms. Thomasson points to the dynamic leadership of Chief Freeman Carney.
“Here is why I feel comfortable with [technology] it is because of our police chief, Freeman Carney,” she said pointing out thoughtful and intelligent organizational skills Chief Carney has displayed taking over the department from Peter Wingert in 2023.
Resort development and the short-term rental marketplace
Moving into resort development and the short-term rental marketplace, both candidates vying for mayor spoke on their record fighting for the peace of mind of all Town of Paradise Valley residents.
“Tourism is the fundamental industry of the Town of Paradise Valley,” Mr. Stanton said of his initial reaction to the question: What does the resort industry mean to the Town of Paradise Valley? “I love this town and I love the work of the tourism industry — especially our resorts.”
Mr. Stanton pointed to the fact the Town of Paradise Valley is, for all intents and purposes, landlocked and built-out with little opportunities for population growth.
“The town is not going to grow, it is as large as it can grow to be,” he said suggesting the need to keep traffic flow factos a constant presence during development cases that come before Town Council.
“Traffic is a significant issue and is changing for Maricopa County — we are part of a regional community and we are always looking for best practices to keep easy access to our thoroughfares. I think my role as mayor and working with staff needs to be taking into consideration all of the issues. Taking feedback and making sure our staff are making thoughtful decisions.”
But when it comes to the STR marketplace, Mr. Stanton contends more work needs to be done.
“We have been vexed with the short-term rental issues throughout our community,” he explained. “I am incredibly proud of our work with short-term rentals but there is more work to be done as the issue really is a moving target and we need to hold the line on local regulations.”
Ms. Thomasson points to her extensive work testifying on behalf of the Town of Paradise Valley at the Arizona Legislature when issues have sprung.
“I concur with Mark about the issue of overreach by the Arizona legislate —I have personally testified in front of the Arizona Legislature five times,” she said of her work advocating for both stronger local control for short-term rental operators but also the municipality’s right to use photo radar technology.
“We have been a leader within our municipal community and I would say that we have been pretty successful.”
Ms. Thomasson says working with the short-term rental marketplace is like a game of ‘tug-of-war’ as the industry is ever evolving.
“One of the things we have done and will continue to do is have detailed conversations with operators because we want to know who they are,” she said. “A lot of the success in managing our STRs is transparency.”
Both candidates offered detailed accounts of ridealongs with the local police department, annual appointment tours at the forthcoming Paradise Valley Ritz-Carlton development and how each would work to keep Paradise Valley a premiere community of the Valley of the Sun.
“This is my hometown, this is where I am from and this is where I have chosen to raise my family,” Mr. Stanton said at the onset of closing remarks. “I am very proud of our work at Town Council where I promise to be listening to residents first.”
Ms. Thomasson says she is running for mayor of the Town of Paradise Valley because over the last 30 years she has come to love the community and its people.
“Every year that I have lived here, I have come to appreciate the town a whole lot more,” she said, recalling her home purchase 30 years earlier. “We care about our community and we care about our culture.”