SUSD May Never Be The Same

Denise Birdwell is leaving people with a terrible taste - particularly those who are now being forced to eat crow.

With each revelation and news report, it is becoming increasingly impossible for long-time Birdwell backers to continue denying her role in a scheme of deception and backchannel dealings. It's difficult to say exactly what took them so long to come around ... or what the tipping points have been for each of those steadfast supporters of the superintendent.

But better late than never.

There are those who want to treat the past year as an aberration - so they would just as soon move on and not dwell on the destruction created by the Birdwell administration. Unfortunately, it's impossible to ignore the collateral damage.

Under just about any other circumstances, school district decision makers would be advocating placing a budget override on the November election ballot. Thanks to all the shenanigans during 2017, that possibility is now remote. It would be a fool's errand. After all, who still trusts the SUSD School Board with taxpayer dollars?

Even if the School Board decides to go for broke and stage an override election, there's no one left to run the campaign. The "Yes To Children" organization, the grassroots group responsible for victories on behalf of SUSD at the polls the last two elections, has disbanded. Understandably, volunteers felt betrayed by how Birdwell and the School Board were mishandling the $228 million in bond funds voters approved in 2016.

There is, by the way, serious skepticism about how the bond funds are currently being appropriated by the new acting superintendent and the new acting chief operating officer - because both, who were hired by Birdwell, are thought to have questionable qualifications for executing the bond program.

The full extent of the damage probably won't be known for months. That's when the district will be able to accurately measure student enrollment totals for the new school year. The same holds true for the district's workforce, including teachers, who have just filed a notice of claim against SUSD alleging breach of contract.  

There's no debating that the school district's brand is suffering and a rebranding campaign is required. But that can't happen until all members of the School Board are replaced. Barring resignations and incumbents choosing not to run for re-election, it could take two election cycles for the current board to be swapped out with people who haven't been politically corrupted.

Notwithstanding the electability of current School Board candidates Patty Beckman, Mike Peabody and Jann-Michael Greenburg, SUSD will likely struggle to regain its statewide status any time soon. For instance ... even if two of the challengers replace Pam Kirby and Kim Hartmann this November, three board members (Barbara Perleberg, Sandy Kravetz and Allyson Beckham) will still remain and can rule the roost until 2020.

Then there's the matter of hiring a permanent superintendent to replace acting Superintendent Amy Fuller -- not to mention replacing some of the shady characters Denise Birdwell found to fill SUSD positions to perpetuate her policies and prolong her inevitable demise.

It will take years to repair the damage and restore trust in SUSD.

Bad News Usually Travels Fast

Except in Scottsdale.

In fact, if it isn't good news, most of us would rather not hear it - especially if it means being able to avoid harsh realities.

Right?

This year's Chamber of Commerce's Scottsdale Forward was called "A Path for Progress and Economic Development." As usual, the annual event was reminiscent of a pep rally. Speakers, mostly plucked from the business community, agreed things couldn't be better.

If there's one thing we're good at in Scottsdale, it's bragging about our city - and how much better Scottsdale is than just about anywhere else.

Attendees got to hear that marquee events like Spring Training, the Waste Management Open and the Barrett-Jackson Auto Auction are all setting attendance records. Rachel Sacco of Experience Scottsdale said the city's hotel growth is out-pacing the entire country's hotel industry. WestWorld is going great guns, according to Carter Unger, the late Fred Unger's son. He said the facility is operating at 95% efficiency.

City Manager Jim Thompson got into the action, too. He updated the group on Jerry Colangelo's mixed-use development coming to the nearly 30-acre Cracker Jax site on North Scottsdale Road. More hotels are also on the way in Old Town, as is a large retail-residential project in the Loloma area. 

But then, with a hint of reluctance and the risk of being a party pooper, Thompson told the audience that there was an 800lb gorilla. Actually a $800 million one. That's the amount necessary to address the city's infrastructure needs, which, Thompson explained, would require bonds that must be approved by voters.

If the results of the last three bond elections are an indicator, passing bonds will be difficult. Combining bond elections in 2010, 2013 and 2015, there were a total of 12 measures. Only two measures, road improvements and the construction of fire stations, passed. Both were approved in 2015. In 2010, the total bond package was $63 million. In 2013, it was $212 million. And in 2015 it was $96 million. If the City Council places a bond election on the November ballot, don't expect the bond package to be $800 million. The Council knows better.

It's important that taxpayers don't suffer sticker shock.

Next week councilmembers will engage in a work-study session on the infrastructure issue -- some of which will be about replacing old infrastructure and some of which will be about creating new infrastructure. The discussion is expected to be guided by the recommendations of the Capital Improvement Plan Subcommittee that's comprised of councilmembers Guy Phillips, Virginia Korte and David Smith.

The work-study session begins at 4PM Tuesday in the Kiva.

SUSD Needs A Political Exorcism

A variety of terms are being used to describe Denise Birdwell.

As emails are reviewed and events reconstructed from the past year, it's difficult to find anything good to say about the superintendent who has been placed on administrative leave by the SUSD School Board.

Birdwell is being called Machiavellian and mean-spirited.  Some say she's a master manipulator. Others are convinced she's a narcissist with strong tendencies toward penis envy.

It also sounds like Denise Birdwell isn't afraid to dabble on the dark side.  

Governing Board members had no choice but to finally place her on leave.   While that should have happened months go, Birdwell is now one step closer to being gone for good.  It's only a matter of time.  

No matter how quickly the board musters up the courage to officially cut ties with Birdwell, the damage to the school district has already been done.  In just the short span of a year, the public has totally lost trust in the five-member school board - especially President Barbara Perleberg, Vice President Kim Hartmann and Pam Kirby, who have been the architects of the cover-up of corruption.

The control Birdwell had over the elected members of the School Board - including newcomers Allyson Beckham and Sandy Kravetz - has been remarkable.  It's as though they have been possessed.  When looking back on this period in which SUSD's reputation was systematically destroyed, the five board members will probably conclude:  "The devil made us do it."

That's why there needs to be a political exorcism.

There has been a community outcry for the members of the board to resign. But don't count on it.  These are five women who have refused to take any responsibility whatsoever for the havoc they have helped create. Time after time they have denied that their decisions have either directly caused or contributed to horrible hiring choices and poor policies.  For them, resignation will not be the better part of valor.
    
Remember that this saga started when the School Board hired Denise Birdwell without interviewing any other candidates ... and the crooks and con men naturally followed.  Whatever happens from here, these board members can't be trusted to hire a new superintendent.

Hartmann and Kirby, whose terms on the board expire this year, are keeping their options open.  Both have taken the initial step to run for re-election by taking out the necessary documents.  In order to run again, they would need to file nominating petitions.  They would then have until early August to submit them to qualify for the November ballot.  

If they decide to enter the race for another four-year term, it will mean their extra-large egos have made them even more delusional than most people already believe.

For now, "interim" is the term being most frequently used in SUSD.  The school district has an interim chief financial officer, an interim chief operating officer  ... and soon there will be an interim superintendent.  Because of the vacuum of leadership on the School Board, it will be the interim leadership team that will be responsible for restoring order in the school district by getting the $229 million bond program back on track.

That will at least start the process of purging the demons that are plaguing SUSD.

How Much Longer Will The Council Give Bike Companies A Free Ride?

Love them or hate them ... a lot of people believe there are too many lime and yellow bikes scattered around the city. And there could be even more on the way.
 
Councilman Guy Phillips, who's not reluctant to share his skepticism about the Bike Share concept, says the two primary bike companies, Lime Bike and ofo, have approximately 4,000 bikes in Scottsdale. Most are spread out in the southern and central parts of the city - although some have started showing up as far north as the intersection of Thompson Peak Parkway and Hayden Road.
 
Currently, the two bike companies aren't accountable. They don't have to answer to anyone, including the city. But councilmembers have to answer to their constituents. That's something the bike companies shouldn't underestimate. Unless they want the city to start regulating their businesses - which would undoubtedly begin with limiting the number of bikes each company would be allowed to provide their potential customers.
 
There's no question that Bike Share is popular, at least with users.
 
According to Lisa Johnson, the city's Transportation Plan and Transit Program Manager, since the program began three months ago, there have been about 110,000 "rides" in the city. That exceeds what the city had originally estimated, says Johnson. It also makes Scottsdale the most successful market in the country for the two companies.
 
Unfortunately, that high usage has produced negative feedback to both the city and the companies. The three most often received complaints are parked bikes blocking sidewalks, the sheer number of bikes and the visual clutter created by the high number of bikes.
 
Councilmembers are also receiving an earful from citizens, both from those who like the program and those who think Bike Share is out of control. Councilman Phillips, for one, is frustrated. "When people call me and complain, I have to tell them we (the city) can't do anything about it. It's embarrassing." Some citizens share Phillips' frustration as documented by photos of bikes that have been tossed in ponds, stuffed in trashcans or mangled.   
 
When the Council convened last week in a work-study session to discuss the Bike Share issue, they concluded that several things could be done - especially having the companies educate riders about bike etiquette. Not the most realistic of the recommendations, because the companies are in the bike business ... not the behavior modification business.
 
More tangible ideas included: Requiring companies to install bike racks and force riders to use the racks for picking up and returning bikes. In addition, they suggested imposing fees to cover the cost of hauling away bikes left in canals, fountains, front yards and around public art. The Council also discussed encouraging the companies to do a better job of dispersing bikes throughout the city, like placing more in the DC Ranch area.
 
That suggestion prompted Councilwoman Kathy Littlefield to factiously say: "I can hardly wait to hear from North Scottsdale residents."
 
While she is enthusiastic about the program, Councilwoman Suzanne Klapp told the Bike Share companies that she didn't want to tell them how to run their business, but added: "Please listen to citizens and the Council because we're the ones taking the heat, and you have to do something about it."