Lights and Sirens

Sorry for the delay....there is so much to see and learn about in Marana PD! I spent Monday and Tuesday over with them and probably did not even see 2/3 of the great services they provide the Town. I was able to chat with the records department, get a tour of the new police department building (including the Crime Scene Unit), sit in with the dispatchers, ride along with an officer, chatted with the Chief, a Sergeant, a Detective, and the Crime Analyst! Each one of these jobs is vital to protecting Marana citizens and I am thankful for them taking the time to talk with me, and for the fact that they are there at all!

I started the tour meeting with Betty Horrigan who is the Records Unit Manager. She does most of the reports that need to go to the Federal and State governments and to other law enforcement agencies, or just reports that the Town might need. She uses the database that the Town Clerks office has as well to supplement her data. They are working on making this whole process more digital and reducing the need for the large storage space. While, of course, they keep permanent records for homicide cases there are some records that have to be kept for 99 years! Geez, who is going to be around to shred those documents? Betty oversees the clerks who help citizens who come in that need to get their car out of impoundment, get fingerprinted etc… They also answer phones and any questions that might arise. They are the public face of the administrative side of the police department.

I then went on a tour of the new police facility that it attached to the Marana Municipal Complex. (It’s really nice that all the services are located in one central place, Courts, Police, Development Services etc…). I was able to walk through the evidence room and the Crime Scene Unit. The storage system is so organized! Shelf after shelf of case files and evidence that is associated with each one…it would get exhausting trying to keep up, but those men and women over there do a great job.

Then I went up to the dispatch area. There were two dispatchers, Grace and TJ. At first I just sat and watched what they were doing. How the phone calls came in and how they redirected them to either a department or a police vehicle. They are responsible for most all of the calls that come in, not just 911. They respond to the inquiry or problem on the other end and the redirect the best they see fit. They know what questions to ask and what code goes with what problem and then send out the right officer. It was pretty impressive. They have massive computer station with five monitors each on presenting something else, location of the vehicles on patrol, phone numbers, maps of the area; you name it they can find it! They also act as support for the officers on patrol. They can ask to run a license plate or something to find out more information about someone they stopped. They have an awesome system over there!

For the rest of the afternoon I went on a ride-along with Officer Larkin. She is a newer officer, only in the department for 2 and half years, and she was great to talk to. Not only did she answer all my questions, which I’m sure was tedious; she also was able to give me a female perspective, which I appreciated. We talked about how she sees the Town growing and where policing needs are going to be.

We made one traffic stop, a guy was speeding down Tangerine, and we responded to an alarm going off in Dove Mountain at an AMAZING custom home! She told me that she likes to get to know the managers, workers and neighbors of the area she is patrolling just in case anything should happen they know to contact her. It was really reassuring knowing that there are professional and dedicated officers policing the Marana streets, not that there was any doubt of that beforehand!

PHEW! That was just day 1…

One the second day it was much more discussion. I talked with Sgt. Steve Johnson who is an incident committee member, which means he works on emergency management and disaster planning type things. We talked about how the Town prioritizes what types of disasters can occur and how to be proactive should something horrible happen. He also has the responsibilities of a commanding officer of 7-10 patrol officers. This means he handles complaints or disciplinary action that might come arise and reviews their paperwork before it goes into Betty’s storage rooms. He gave me some great advice of how to keep safe in my regular life also. Keep your keys in your hand and get off the cell phone while walking home ladies (and gentlemen).

I next sat with Judy Capen who is the Administrative Manager for the department. She does all the admin things like paying bills and submitting things to the Finance Department, processing time off requests…things like that. She told me about the awesome volunteer program the department has. She said there are about 50 people that are trained and come out to events to help direct traffic, block off roads, fingerprinting, and neighborhood watch programs. They are trained by a sworn officer and are there to help keep their community safe, which I thought was great. Not to mention that they are helping to keep costs down (sorry, that the bureaucrat in me). Judy is also the Arizona Public Safety Retirement Board Secretary and we talked quite a bit about the retirement process and approvals and benefits.

Then came the big time…my sit down the Chief Terry Rozema. We were able to talk about his new plan to move towards more “community policing” meaning that the officers are out and getting to know the managers and workers (nice job! officer Larkin) and beginning in July officers are going to be assigned to the same area when they come to work, to help build up trust between officers and residents should anything happen. He just wants to make “reasonable decisions.” Does what you are asking for, both budgetary and administrative, make sense. This is how I would run a department as well. I think it mandates more accountability and responsibility, which will then increase the service provided. We had a great talk about why we do what we do, and that is to serve the public, whether you are an admin person or a sworn officer, you are there to provide service. Ok, off the soap box.

We talked about the Town’s strategic plan for growth and how policing and safety fit into that, and also about recruiting practices including how to get the best officers to come to the Town. (Why they would not want to it beyond me). He is having a more active role in the day to day of the officers, producing videos that are sent out relaying his message for the department. He is doing all these things, in only 5 months mind you, in order to get the department up to what he thinks it should be. While it is currently great, there is always room for improvement and he gets it.

I spent the afternoon with Janice Moser, the crime analyst and Det. Joe Castillo. Janice has probably the coolest job. She works with data and maps to predict where crime has the potential to happen. She develops targets for prevention and increase patrol in order to reduce crime! She made me want to go back to school and get ANOTHER master’s to do her job. It was really awesome to see her modeling and mapping and charting the crime statistics for the Town. She also helps the detectives searching for suspects and linking them to other crimes, so they can be prosecuted by the County Attorney. She said her job is all about helping to make decisions. Could not be more true! Her maps helped prevent some truck thefts!

Detective Castillo and I sat for a while discussing how his job differs from other sworn officers. He was working on collecting evidence for some sensitive cases in order to bring them down to the Count Attorney to present for trial. They have a hard job getting interview data and searching (using Janice) for suspects. They will not take something downtown unless they are sure the suspect is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. They are hard working and have a lot of cases going at the same time, making it that much more difficult.

I just want to say thanks again to the men and women I met in the department. Criminal Justice was not an area that I studied in school and they gave me a crash course in community policing. Public Safety takes up a large portion of the general fund budget and it could not be more worth it to have people like those I talked with.

The Chamber

On Friday I spent the day with Ed, Kathy and Lizzie who are the entire Chamber of Commerce staff! It is amazing the amount of work they have to do and it's just the three of them! The Chamber functions as the Voice of Businesses that are located in Marana or those that want to/already do business in Marana. I got a taste of this at the networking breakfast I attended on Tuesday. The Chamber provides an outlet for the business community to expand and access additional resources. They also put together a review of legislation to show what is important both from the Town's perspective as well as the business community's.

The Chamber works to reach out to businesses after they have decided to locate in Marana. While Josh's department does not actively go recruit businesses, he is involved in the planning before the business has made the decision to locate here, while the Chamber provides resources after. This help includes how to get permits and what contact should be made with the Fire District. It seems like a great relationship between the Strategic Initiatives Department and the Chamber.

The Chamber is run by a Board that is made up of both large businesses and smaller businesses. About half of the board members are small business owners, and that helps to keep balance. They are there to be objective and listen to any issues that arise within the community and present a way to resolve some of the issues, if applicable. There are no term limits and they conduct interviews for finding new members.


There are monthly breakfasts and lunches to bring members together for networking and to introduce new members. They also give Informational Sessions about the community as well as specific business courses. One of the most exciting things is that they plan international trips for the business community to reach out to other nations. They are going to China this year!

While I was visiting I was able to sit in on an advertising meeting discussing some in-kind benefits the Chamber might be able to receive, and was able to work on their website. They are looking to update the website so I sat with Lizzie and talked about how to make sure the sponsors names appear clearly and at the top, and how to reduce the drop downs and make it more reader friendly.

I really enjoyed my time with the Chamber, they are very friendly and very good at what they do. If you ever need any information about something to do in the area check them out! They are also a registered visitors center!

It's the Quality of Life, and it moves us all......

Strategic Initiatives involves several different focus areas in the Town. It was newly created in February and houses Economic Development and Tourism, Intergovernmental Affairs, Special Events, Communications and Marketing, Strategic Planning, Heritage, Arts and Culture, and Performance Management. PHEW!

Josh Wright is the director and he has the special events coordinator, the public information officer and soon to have a graphic designer and analyst all under his department and does all of those jobs! It is pretty impressive!

We started the day at the Kino Pima County One Stop Center that is down on Ajo. This is a resource for people who have either been laid off or are trying to get a new job. They have classes teaching resume building and other general skills including getting a GED. We toured and saw the classrooms, computers and the books of job descriptions, and the people that work with DES to get people their unemployment benefits, or to help them understand their benefits. These resources are two tiered, there are core services that are just for looking up jobs on the computer or resume review, but then they also have a program where it teaches people essential skills for getting and keeping a job. This are services provided for free, and in some cases allows the clients to keep their unemployment benefits while they are getting this training.If you or someone you care about needs these services, check out their website.

The rest of the day I spent with Josh and Adelina Martin, the special events coordinator. Josh and I talked a lot about how the Town has decided to tackle economic growth. The Town focuses on what is termed the “Garden Method,” which means that they are fostering the relationships that currently exist rather than trying to go out and find new businesses. The Town is totally focused on how to keep the businesses that are currently located in Marana, and the best way for them to grow. The goal is these large corporations stay in the Town and keep providing jobs and revenues. The feeling I got today was not really focused on revenues, rather the quality of life. Now, revenues are obviously important, but the driver for economic growth is more closely tied to the quality of life the Town can provide the employees of these large companies. Think about it…..where would you locate your business? In a place that has great economic incentives or a place that has great schools for your kids? These are the decisions that Josh tries to help the businesses make, and the marketing for the Town is much more focused on the “soft” things rather than money.

Marana is the most business friendly jurisdiction I have ever been around! They really want to make the Town a destination for international headquarters. This is really important since NERD ALERT! Businesses bring in homes and people; those people in turn buy homes in the Town and spend money in the Town thus driving up revenues. What I thought was really cool, was the economic incentives are not great, but they are stipulations on what some of those monies can be used for. The Sargent project, for example, had to put their incentive monies into programs that provided internships for local students, or training for their employees, and even for landscaping making I-10 look more presentable. These are ways that these businesses are providing additional benefits to the community in other ways, which is highly innovative and makes the Town much more sustainable.

The end of the day I spent some time with Adelina Martin, and was talked about several of the events that are coming up. Here is a link to the events calendar. There is something most nights and the Star Spangled Spectacular is coming up on July 4! There is so much that goes into planning these huge events, sometimes 800 people come!, and she is the guru when doing anything. The biggest plus is that most of these events are funded through other sources and sponsors rather than the taxpayer dollars. Although, these events are going to be super cool I bet people would be willing to pay for them!Keep your eyes peeled for the Founder's Day Celebration and the Holiday Tree Lighting later this year!

Tomorrow I am off to the Chamber of Commerce, and know that I have all this development knowledge I can’t wait to see how they fit into the whole picture! Clearly, I am huge dork!

The Wheels on the Bus....

I spent yesterday with T VanHook. She is the Community Development Director. She oversees grant funding applications, affordable housing initiatives, annexation, and transit. The department is kept very segmented in that each area is its own distinct entity. Her primary job is to set the goals and objectives and to help the Town with the grant process. Most of the funding is FEMA, Homeland Security, Affordable Housing and HUD, and Neighborhood Services.

There were two projects I worked on with T. The first were several transit issues. The Town is putting in several new bus stops and T is working to get these put in the proper places. We had a meeting with the Operations guys and talked about where, when and how they are going to pour concrete and put up the stops. The U of A School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture to create new cool transit stops that creates designs in the shade. The other exciting news is that the Town is unveiling the new shuttle schedule on November 1!! I got to take a look at the draft from the RTA and run scenarios to see where any glitches might have been. It looks like it is going to be really helpful for those trying to get to work before 8am!

The second half of the day I spent working on neighborhood relations stuff. We went to a meeting in Marana Estates to talk to the residents about re-certification as a colonia. The Housing and Urban Development Department establishes the definition of a colonia and the required documentation to be named as such. These areas are set aside and are able to receive specific funding dollars that are not available to larger neighborhoods. There is a lot that goes into this re-certification including photos and history of the homes prior to 1990! We talked with several residents and many of them are walking history books of the area. It was really great to hear their stories and tell tale of who used to live where and how many kids they had and what color their house was.

It looks like in order to get some of the more statistical data required for the re-certification the neighbors are going to complete a survey, and we were able to solicit resident's help to administer the survey. It was really cool to see the neighbors working together to make their community a better place. This meeting was also a time where residents presented any grievances, which in this case were the same issues they have been dealing with for a while. It was nice to go out into the community and talk with people to see what types of services they wanted to have provided. They are not overly demanding (at least not yesterday) and since T knows most of them by name and address, they are more willing to be understanding that the Town is doing the best it can to get these issues resolved.

I spent today with the Court system. This was a bit different than my previous experience with the prosecutor, in that I focused more on what actions the judge was taking. I met with Sandy Celaya who is the Court Supervisor and she oversees all the staff that make up the court office. The clerks, probation officers, and the collections officials all report to her. She gave me a short tour of the court building (which is super nice) and then I went and sat in on the proceedings. The morning was much slower than when I was with the Laine Sklar last week. The cases that the judge did rule on/hear were the same type of crimes; shoplifting, domestic violence and DUI. The judge always made sure that the defendant understood what they were charged with and what the agreed to, if they took the plea agreement. He shows them exactly what the form they are going to sign looks like, and asks any questions from the case file, which I think serves two reasons. It allows him to get the story from the defendant, but also puts that information in the recording. After this, he makes sure they understand what will happen next and gives them their court date. Most of them are so scared/worried that they miss some of what was said. He does a great job of making people feel comfortable while still remaining an imposing figure of the law. This day just reinforced my lesson of do NOT commit a crime, but followed it up with Come to Court!


Today there were two special instances of the court. The first was video court, which is not special to the Town since they hold it often, but is special in the sense that it is a unique way to save money on transporting prisoners and quickening their release. There was only one case today, and it went very quickly. No one wants to spend more time in jail than they have to, I'm sure. The other cool thing about today was the Spanish interpreter that came to court today. The first Wednesday of each month is interpreter day, and the court has had people who speak all kinds of languages come in; Cantonese, Japanese, Vietnamese and Polish were just a few that I was told about. The interpreter comes up to the prosecutor and the judge when the defendant's name is called and helps them to understand what is going on. Since the judge is very committed to having them understand what they are charged with and their rights, it was really cool to see this carry across all aspects of the court.

This morning I was able to attend the Marana Chamber of Commerce networking breakfast. This was held at a local restaurant and had business owners and operators from all over the area. I was able to meet some great people and hear about all the different businesses that are present in the Town. After a speech by the sponsor company, each person had to introduce themselves and tell what they did. I thought this was a really cool way to show other people where and who they can go to for specific services. There was a lady who had gotten into a small car accident and she was going to have her car fixed by one of the other members! Marana is so business friendly in policies and codes that this supplement fit in perfectly. I am going over there on rotation on Friday and I am excited to hear more about the projects and events they have planned for the future. This is one area of local government that I am very interested in! I'm starting this area tomorrow by shadowing Josh Wright, the Strategic Initiatives Director. We are going to take a tour of the Pima County One Stop, should be awesome!

My day with Marana's Bravest

On Friday, I spent the day with the Northwest Fire District. This was the first time that the Town had sent an intern to the Fire District, and I was happy to go.

You might be asking yourself, "Why does she keep saying district? It's the Fire Department." Northwest Fire District is a distinct entity and operates under separate guidelines and Arizona statutes. They are funded primarily through a property tax imposed on those buildings that are within its boundaries. NERD ALERT! It is $2.47 per $100 of assessed value of the property. This is on the higher side. However, because they are ranked as a class 3 with the Insurance company it makes your homeowners insurance less expensive. Learning this was just the first way I found that they protect and service the homes and businesses within the district. It is the largest district in the state, and encompasses 148 square miles. There are 250 employees and 10 fire stations distributed based on quickest response time.

I met with Chief Piechura and Financial Director Dave Gephart in the morning to talk about the history, structure and budget. The rest of the day I traveled around with Battalion Chief Mike Duncan. There are 10 stations within the district, and we visited 8 of them. Each station has a fire truck and some have a rescue vehicle. I was able to go up in the bucket at the top of a 100 ft ladder. This is used for helping those that are not able to climb down the ladder. I thought I would have been more terrified, but it was fine. They strapped me in and I wore a helmet so was safe as could be.

Of course they would not let me drive an fire truck, they are specially trained for that, but I did get to go on a ride with the guys at Station 39. All the fire fighters are consummate professionals. While they were taking me out they got a call from the dispatch and immediately changed gears from jocular friendly conversation to serious business. It made me feel that if ever anything should happen there would be a pro there to help. And also that they have been very well trained.

The final thing that I was able to see was a training session for how to find a lost fire fighter. When they are in a fire they are crawling around rather than walking, and the training center had set up a course where the testee had to find their way to the hose and then work their way out of the simulation. It was really awesome to see how they would actually have acted if it was a real situation. The main point of the training was to have non-management workers experience the decision making process of the leadership during a Mayday situation.

Northwest Fire has two apparatus that are unique to any disaster situation. They were both utilized during the January 8 tragedy. One is the Rapid Response vehicle, which is used during things like swift water rescues, it even has a zodiac on the roof of the vehicle. The other is a Metropolitan Medical Response System, which is meant to act like a mobile hospital should something similar to the tornado in Missouri. These both are amazing pieces of equipment and it was really amazing to see all the supplies that are incorporated in the apparatus.

I had a great time with these guys and they showed me the best hospitality. They are brave men and women who put their lives on the line to give people the help they need. Just a quick thank you to all the guys that were there to answer all my ridiculous and sometimes silly questions. Thanks to all at Northwest Fire!

Money, Money, Money, Money......... MONEY!

Today I spent the day with the Finance Department. Erik Montague is the Director and Dot Caton is a Management and Budget Analyst. They both are CPA's and prepare the budget documents, many of which have won awards. The 2010 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, won the Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting for the third consecutive year! Nicely done! It is an amazingly detailed document, which includes all the financial statements for the Town. This CAFR includes the Management's Discussion and Analysis (or MD&A in budget speak) which highlights the major financial achievements of the Town. Things like where large portions of the funds went to and what projects were completed. It is a great document that can be compared to the other document I saw today the Budget Plan. This document puts together all the different department's budgets and projects what the next fiscal year budget will be. The CAFR is used to compare the Plan to reality and the Town Finance Department did a great job! Both of these documents can be found on the website here Finance.

Finance is one of the areas that I am particularly interested in, and being able to see the actual financial documents used to fund the Town was a really great experience. The thing that has always attracted me to finance is the ability to see priorities based on where the funds are allocated. Depending on what percentage of the budget a specific department gets, you can see how valuable that is to the citizens. Police and Public Safety are high priorities for the Town which is reflected in the fact that these departments take up a large portion of the budget.  It was really great seeing the theory turned into practice.

I had my first project assigned today, researching various brands for purchase in the next fiscal year. I was able to compare the operating costs across the board, and do a cost benefit analysis for the new purchase. Cost-benefit analysis is something that we do in everyday life. Is that cookie worth the extra weight, should I stay up and watch my favorite show and be tired for work tomorrow, or be well rested... I know that the decision will not be made today, but I do hope that the information I provided will give a better understanding of the details for the purchase and the right fiscal decision will be made for the Town.

Tomorrow I am going to Northwest Fire District and I am excited/nervous! Maybe they will let me drive the Fire Truck.......

The Truth, The Whole Truth, and Nothing but the Truth

I have spent the past two days with the town Legal Department. They are a terrific group of lawyers who work each day protecting the town from criminals or shady business deals. I began on Tuesday in the Civil department.

Civil law deals with things that center around private companies or businesses and their dealings with the town. During my visit it was dealing primarily with development and the building of a new subdivision in North Marana. I spent the day with Frank Cassidy, the Town Attorney, while he worked on a development agreement with the new developer of that plot of land. They have been sending this document back and forth changing details and points that were in the best interest of each side. While it may seem simple since it was two entities that are trying to agree, it was much more complicated. The developer wanted specific claims and leeway that are not always in the best interest of the town. Marana is committed to growth and development, and is very business friendly, but it does not mean they are going to give up any rights to public land or facilities.

PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION LESSON: (skip if not a total government nerd, like myself)

Some of the new developments in the town are on what are called Community Facilities Districts, which are monitored by the Mayor and Council acting as a Board of Directors. These districts are separately taxed and those funds go back into maintenance of public land like roads, sidewalks and parks. The residents of these neighborhoods are paying for their own upkeep through property taxes. Accountability and responsibility built into the system, just what a I like to see!

While these districts are great, they do complicate the development agreements just a little bit. Since they are technically a distinct entity from the town, there has to be an intergovernmental agreement in addition to the development agreement, which is all included in one document. PHEW!! As you can see there is a ton that goes into just one agreement on one subdivision.

Yesterday I spent the day in Marana Municipal Court with Laine Sklar, the Assistant Town Attorney, prosecuting misdemeanors. Well, Laine prosecuted. I observed. Vickie was on rotation with the Judge Charles Davies, so we both were in the same division of the town. While I saw how the pleas are created and agreed to, Vickie saw how the judge makes his decisions and when he makes a change.

The town does not prosecute felonies, so yesterday was primarily shoplifting, DUIs, domestic violence, and driving with a suspended license. I saw arraignments, probation hearings/updates, and plea bargains. Laine was fair and gave each defendant the chance to take her deal or take the case to trial. There were only two incidences where a defense attorney was present, which seemed to be the norm.

The probation officer was also present in the courtroom and had updates on community service, diversion course completion and other requirements defendants had to meet in order to avoid a warrant. Lesson: don’t commit a crime…

I really enjoyed these rotations. These are areas that I did not study when I was in school, and being exposed to the criminal and civil proceedings was a great experience. Learning how the laws and procedures work gave me much more insight into how the town has developed. The development agreements dealing with growth and prosecution protecting the town and keeping with stable community values.