A Message from Steve K...04/03/2023

In Nashville last week a heavily armed shooter entered a private Christian school and killed 3, 9-year-old kids and 3 staff members, each of whom were around 60 years of age. The shooter had purchased 7 weapons that were used in the killing spree. The fact that they were all purchased legally begs the question about why it’s so easy to buy a gun in America. 

Representative Andy Ogles, whose congressional district covers the Nashville area issued this heart-warming message of sympathy to the community: “My family and I are devastated by the tragedy that took place at The Covenant School in Nashville this morning. We are sending our thoughts and prayers (my emphasis) to the families of those lost. As a father of three, I am utterly heartbroken by this senseless act of violence.” 

Andy my friend, we don’t need your thoughts and prayers. And coming on the heels of this Christmas card he and his family sent out last year, the notion of being utterly heartbroken is simply not believable.  

That’s too ‘partisan’ for UA president Robbins and the UA administration where they’re busy reacting to the murder of Tom Meixner a couple of months ago. Last week a 205-page report was issued addressing the lax response from the UA that directly led to the shooting of Tom Meixner. In reading the report, Robbins said he was ‘angry at myself for not doing more.’  He had previously said he should be ‘held accountable.’ It’s just words.  

The Meixner family filed a notice of claim asking for $9M in response to the killing. ABOR now has 60 days to respond to the notice of claim. If history is prologue, they’ll give Robbins a raise and a contract extension. 

There was a faculty group formed to interact with UA administration and Robbins, the purpose of which was to address safety protocols that were (and were not) in place on campus. The group disbanded due to what they perceived as actions from the admin putting their jobs at risk if they continued to rock the boat. From my experience I’d say they probably read those tea leaves correctly. Members of the UA administration directly lied to the UA general counsel about incidents surrounding their ‘elimination’ of my position after 32 years of employment. That’s how they roll. 

So, I’ll help the students find a spot off-campus for their very controversial event pointing out how the proliferation of guns continues to cost people their lives.  

Last week 39 people were killed in a fire that occurred in a migrant shelter in Mexico.  Mexican authorities have 8 people in custody they feel might be involved in the incident. The shelter is one of many that is in place because of the huge backlog our slow and ponderous immigration system causes. Those who have made it across and who are staying at the Alitas Welcome Center continue to need – and continue to be grateful for – the donations you bring to the ward office. 

Where are they all coming from? Cuba, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Haiti, Venezuela, some from Eastern Europe – all over. The folks running the Alitas Welcome Center come by weekly to gather up the donations you bring into the ward 6 office. The weekly trips are necessary because they continue to get 300-500 new arrivals daily at Alitas. We can’t get families who helped in our own war effort united, and we leave it up to donors to help with people coming across our border escaping trauma in their home countries. At the ward 6 office we continue to be grateful to all of you who see the needs and support the people we’re serving. 

Last week I shared emails with another local person who’s trying to help the helicopter pilot who supported our efforts in Afghanistan. I’ve written about him before – his sons are in Kazakhstan, hospitalized and he’s trying to get authorization to fly there and support his family. We are getting no help from anybody in congress with the sole exception of an aide for Representative Grijalva. Nothing from senators or others in congress. It’s shameful. A local attorney and I are talking about ways to shine a light on this system that’s failing so many people on so many levels. This is what was sent to one Afghani who’s stuck in neighboring Pakistan. It took a month to get this message from a senator’s office – after being told that we’re not evacuating people from Pakistan. The message – follow these safety recommendations. 

SAFETY PLAN RECOMMENDATIONS  

• Get cash out now. We have reports that banks/Western Unions are closed right now, so if you cannot access cash, keep items of value to be able to trade later if needed. 

• Stock up on non-perishable food, water, medication, diapers and formula if needed. 

• Find a safe place to stay hidden. Tell someone in the U.S. your location with as much specificity as possible. Have a back-up location ready. 

• If possible, get wireless chargers for phones but be ready if cell phone towers go down. Some have suggested using the app Signal rather than WhatsApp. 

• Get a “go bag” together and put important papers and documents (passport, marriage/birth certificates, immigration approvals, etc.) in it and keep it hidden.  

• Take photographs of important papers and send the photos to U.S. relative/anchor.  

• Delete all social media and any evidence of support of the United States.  

• Avoid being recognized by the Taliban if they have your biometric data. 

• If someone makes it to a third country, they should register immediately with a UNHCR office and tell their U.S. anchor once that is done.  

That’s it. Stock up on food, hide your documents and hunker down. The cavalry is not coming. With that message coming from our congressional staffers, it’s pretty hard for them to deny guilty knowledge of the danger these people are in.

With all of those needs in front of us, we’re giving a special focus on our appeal for this week. Macy Head is doing a Bar Mitzvah project through which he will provide some care packages for our local homeless. Without a good ‘point in time’ count we’re working with estimates. Most of the shelter operators feel we’ve got north of 2,000 chronically homeless people in Tucson right now. We’re helping Macy get goods that he’ll hand out to that group. 

Throughout this week we’re asking that you bring non-perishable foods and new unused socks to the ward 6 office. We’re open from 9-1 from Monday to Thursday (04/06). This weekend Macy will come and gather what you’ve donated, put together ‘care packages’ and distribute them to unsheltered people he encounters. For the food you should concentrate on things such as sealed beef jerky, canned tuna or chicken salad snack packs, pre-packaged and sealed peanut butter crackers – generally sealed food items with a focus on protein.  

On Saturday morning some (fill in adjective here) rode past me on a bike while I was running out on the loop. He yelled out ‘fix the homeless problem, Kozachik.’ On it. Help us help Macy with his project. 

If you Google the federal definition of sex trafficking, you’ll get this: Human trafficking, also known as trafficking in persons, is a crime that involves compelling or coercing a person to provide labor or services, or to engage in commercial sex acts. The coercion can be subtle or overt, physical or psychological.  Exploitation of a minor for commercial sex is human trafficking, regardless of whether any form of force, fraud, or coercion was used. 

Because it’s so simple to find that on the internet I was surprised to learn from people within some local law enforcement agencies that they were reaching out to referral agencies around the state asking for the definition. Google it – the answer pops up in less than 1 second. 

That came from someone in law enforcement who’s supposed to be working trafficking cases. Let’s be clear – youth being sold into commercial sex acts are not ‘prostitutes’, they’re not ‘self-exploiting’, and the comment about selling themselves for sex of their ‘own accord’ not being trafficking flies in the face of the clear federal definition of being trafficked. 

When a minor is being sold for sex, that’s not a kid pretending to be a pretty pink princess. The youth is a victim and calling the person a prostitute and accusing them of ‘self-exploiting’ is beyond offensive. 

There is a statewide trafficking hotline. Please keep it handy. It was formed through a grant from AZDPS and any service-related calls are sent to one of the trafficking agencies we’re working with on the upcoming educational forum. The number is 1.877.4AZ.TIPS. 

My office referred a tip to some local law enforcement folks last week. We appreciate the follow up our constituent got. However the message to her was ‘you’re lucky to be getting a call. These types of cases usually take 2 months for a response.’ Seriously we don’t need the attitude. This is about addressing the needs of victims.  

Changes are needed within local and regional law enforcement so victims are not lost in an unresponsive system. We’re co-hosting a forum on Monday, April 17th in which data, definitions, red flags, and most importantly appropriate responses will be shared. I know we’ll have some law enforcement people in attendance as well as several people who deliver trauma therapy. It’d be great to have you there as well.  

Here is the link to the registration-

https://SextraffickingandPimaCounty2023.eventbrite.com 

The event will be held in the new community meeting room in the lower level of the Benedictine – 800 N. Country Club. Free parking is available across the street and around the corner at the lots colored in green: 

TPD Traffic Watch 

One law enforcement effort that is being responsive to many of the calls we get is related to reckless driving – or other illegal driving behaviors you likely see while you’re out and about on our city streets. There’s now a way to report them without calling 911 and tying up the emergency lines. 

Beginning last Wednesday, the TPD Traffic Section began a program called Traffic Watch. This was one of the priorities not-so-new anymore Chief Kasmar announced when he took over that role. When you see illegal driving behavior you can use this link to report it. http://tucsonaz.gov/trafficwatch 

A motor officer will review the reports and will decide what the most appropriate course of action to take is. That could include issuing a citation, a courtesy letter, or possibly even an arrest. Please do not pull out your cell phone and start taking pictures of someone driving recklessly while you’re also driving. That’s both dangerous and it’s illegal. Also, if you see what is clearly an impaired driver please DO call 911. That will get an immediate response. 

This QR code will also take you to the reporting site. We at the ward 6 office are grateful to Chief Kasmar for following through on making traffic safety a priority. 

A few weeks ago I included in the newsletter several examples of how you can easily reduce the amount of plastic that’s in your life. Taking your own left-over containers to the restaurant with you was one example. Using your own refillable water bottle is another. By sharing these options I have no fear that we’re going to undercut the ability of the plastics program to collect enough non-recyclable plastic to make it a success. 

One other idea I shared was to take your own reusable carry out bag with you to stores. There’s another group who’s also advocating that people do that. And importantly, they’re joining in encouraging retailers to post signs and support their customers’ involvement in doing that.  

Closed Loop Partners is a New York based investment firm that is focused on all facets of creating a circular economy. I’ve circled the piece of that whole cycle that speaks to their Beyond the Bag initiative. 

The goal is to change customer behavior and reduce the number of single use plastic bags floating around the city – around the ocean and world. Closed Loop is offering free signage and free training to any retailers who would like to take part. I’ve shared their contact information with the Director of the Metro Chamber, but there are plenty of other retailers who can and should get involved. 

My office is in direct touch with Closed Loop, but if you are a retailer and would like to reach out and get involved on your own, please do so by going to https://www.closedlooppartners.com/beyond-the-bag/byo/. At that link you’ll get information on how to get some of their free resources. And for other questions you can reach them at beyondthebag@closedlooppartners.com.  

This flyer explains more of what the program is about. We as customers can do this today. We’d love to see more retailers encourage a wider participation though. 

It’s made from the crushed glass Anita Goodrich markets through Bottle Rocket. Our paths crossed again on Friday as she delivered this award to Habitat while Diana and I were out visiting the Habitat open house. It’s nice to see how we share so many of the same circles. Anita made the entire trophy so if that plants a seed of interest, contact her at www.bottlerocketaz.com. 

As for Habitat, Charlie Buchanan and his team have opened a new instructional and fabrication site. They’re putting together proto-types of 720 sq/ft homes that could – and should – be included in the city’s pre-approved templates for ADU’s. The models Habitat has can of course be scaled to meet the size of lot calculations we have in our ordinance. At 720 sq/ft though they already meet the sizes the majority of people are building through our ADU program. By eliminating the architectural fees, and speeding up the permitting and inspection times, we can help reduce costs and truly make these affordable living units that comply with our new codes. And yes, I’ve put Habitat in touch with ByFusion so we can incorporate the ByBlocks in with their housing units and even further reduce costs. And save some trees. 

We had a great turnout at the Catalina Vista annual picnic on Sunday. I had blocks on hand and everybody who saw them and heard the story wants to be a part of what we’re doing. Last week we (you) topped 3 tons donated once again. The total was 3.20 tons.  We also had just under a ½ ton from one of the new locations – which is a good sign. That brings our total to 69.02 tons collected since last August. It’s great  -  and it’s another reason we need to get the legal terms of the service agreement done so all of the processing of the material can go full steam ahead. I brought the legal parties together last Thursday and I believe we made a lot of progress on the service agreement. Fingers crossed for getting it done this week. 

Reminder – the ward 6 office is no longer the only drop off location. Here are your options: 

Thanks to Nicole Ludden who wrote about Becton Dickinson (BD) confirming they’re no longer using Ethylene Oxide at their planned facility going in out by DM. Here’s a link to her story:

https://tucson.com/news/local/subscriber/medical-device-firm-opening-in-tucson-to-no-longer-use-cancer-causing-gas/article_666e93a0-ce61-11ed-8e6e-7b773e974744.html  

I won’t quibble with the BD representative who said our letter objecting to their use of EO had nothing to do with their decision not to use it. They had gone to quite an effort and expense to get the air quality permits and design of the expensive monitoring equipment all lined up. But hey, if they just decided to pivot and the motion I brought saying they weren’t welcome in this community as long as they used EO had nothing to do with that, then cool. I’m good with the result however it came about. Let them save some face in the process. 

They’re replacing the EO sterilization process with one in which they shoot electron beams at the objects they’re sterilizing. If you Google “Is E Beam sterilization safe for the environment?” here’s what you’ll get: 

Very safe 

The short answer is that E-Beam sterilization is very safe. The process is FDA approved and recognized and accepted by ISO. For over 60 years, E-Beam sterilization has offered a safe and environmentally-friendly process. 

The process does emit some ozone. That’ll be something the Pima County Department of Environmental Quality will look at. And our planning department will be reviewing the design plans to assure on-site capture of the pollutants is in place. What has been eliminated is the transportation of a highly flammable and toxic substance through our city streets, and using that substance under the flight path of planes carrying live ordnance.  

Here are some bullet points I was able to find on E Beam technology. While it’s not a perfect solution, I’m not sure there is such a thing, and it’s a whole lot better than EO. 

Topic: TEP Franchise Agreement 

Meeting ID: 813 3362 3339

Passcode: W@rd6 

The current agreement expires in 2026. The vote on May 16th will be to answer the question whether we should extend it for another 25 years. The agreement that’s on the ballot includes a slight increase in rate that will be largely earmarked for undergrounding utilities, with a smaller portion going to other climate initiatives. The impetus for holding the election this May was so TEP can begin to put together some funds to pay for undergrounding on our scenic and gateway corridors. 

I can’t take a pro or con position on the FA in the newsletter. Come on the 11th and bring your questions. You’ll start to see early ballots in the mail around April 18th.  

I used to include an ‘events’ section in the newsletter. Now I just add them sort of grouped together.  

First is our Ready, Set, Rec April schedule. As I do monthly I’m thanking Sierra Boyer from parks for putting this together and her work in organizing the events. Look over the schedule and if you haven’t gone to one of these before, please give it thought. It’s outdoor activity the entire family can enjoy together.