July’s meeting of the Fountain Hills Republican Club (FHRC) took place in the Community Center on Saturday, July 15, where Town Council Members Gerry Friedel and Brenda Kalivianakis spoke.

“Their mid-summer report was far ranging and detailed,” club spokesperson Nancy Plencner said.

Friedel is in his third year on council and recently announced his running for mayor. He started the forum off by saying, “residents elected us to listen and that is exactly what we have been doing.”

Friedel pointed out that he, along with Kalivianakis, Allen Skillicorn and Hannah Toth, comprise a majority on the council.

“We four believe in fiscal sanity, always listening to the voices of the community, with a top focus on public safety, quality economic development and maintaining the quality of life that brought all of us to Fountain Hills.” he said.

Friedel is placing a priority on making sure every dollar spent on public safety delivered by the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office is spent wisely, Plencner added. Friedel predicts the Town’s contract with MCSO will rise 19% this coming year, Plencner said. He emphasized the need for law enforcement patrols, particularly in neighborhoods to stave off crimes of opportunity.

Since the three new council members were sworn in last December, Friedel pointed to many successes including a newly renovated skate park and detox facilities which have to abide by Fountain Hills ordinances, Plencner said.

“Without those ordinances two companies under federal investigation would have succeeded in opening and operating facilities in Town,” Friedel said. “5G towers...this is a beautiful community, it was planned with all electrical infrastructure underground, our ordinances require undergrounding in order to maintain that beauty.

“As I say in my campaign for mayor...Fountain Hills First and economic reports show that priority is paying off. The sales tax revenues are up 15%, people are spending money here and that's great.”

Friedel continued to provide examples of success in town including a half dozen apartment complexes and new home site permits which include the second phase of Park Place that will purportedly include 400 units overlooking Fountain Lake. The Dark Sky project and new businesses like Fountain Hills Coffee Roasters were also mentioned in attracting national and international visitors to Fountain Hills.

Council member Brenda Kalivianakis opened her remarks by reminding the audience that her father came to this country as a legal immigrant from Greece, a country that offered little freedom and few opportunities for his family.

According to Plencner, Kalivianakis spoke of the town being at a crossroads and how community leaders must focus on smart economic development, deal with homelessness, growth, business needs, social issues and quality of life.

“I fought to rework and rewrite the liberal environment draft that was right out of the Chinese playbook, Kalivianakis said. “Such onerous over-regulation would have put us all on bicycles, public transportation and taken away our cars.”

According to Plencner, Kalivianakis has worked to redirect funds from paying a Town lobbyist to fund community projects like fixing roads and public safety.

“There is so much more to do, homelessness is a multimillion dollar a year business for the Left,” Kalivianakis said. “Fountain Hills, for example, gives $50,000 of their revenue to out-of-town homeless shelters, and aggressive panhandling is another issue. The solution to any and all of our Town's problems lies in good governance.

“In conclusion let me say, this is what I see in the future: year-round residences in Park Place, a vibrant downtown restaurant district,” Kalivianakis continued. “A push to fill vacant store fronts, a total revamp of the Town’s service center to better serve the needs of business and development where permits and licensing are expedited, greater revenue through more sales tax dollars, perhaps our own police department to expand the Fountain Hills Citizen's on Patrol Program. And I see a future that includes Gerry Friedel as mayor, a majority or more conservatives on the Council and a better quality of life for all.”

FHRC meets every third Saturday of each month. Registration begins at 8:30 a.m. at the Community Center. Republicans and likeminded Independents are welcome. For more information, visit FountainHillsRepublicanClub.com.