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Van Cleave: Why Prop 420 leads to Bob Littlefield for Scottsdale mayor

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Some history first to help see the future. We know the citizens were victorious in the 2018 battle to Protect Our Preserve! After all, it was and is the “People’s Preserve!”

As a voter who cares deeply about Scottsdale’s future, I want you to have straight answers, and honest facts so your important voting power can be informed by reality and you can be confident that you have a view of how Scottsdale could be at risk or benefit in the future based on your vote.

For a look at the future, the reference is the truth on Prop 420:

Don’t be fooled by partial, anecdotal information taken out of context. You just received a flyer from Suzanne Klapp with claims that are bold faced lies. She doesn’t know how smart Scottsdale citizens really are ... but how would she know? She was not one of the hundreds of Scottsdale citizens who volunteered to get out every day for weeks, months, and talk to thousands and thousands of Scottsdale registered voters who wanted to protect our Preserve.

Suzanne thinks she can confuse you with her fabricated view of that history.

You deserve the Truth, so here’s how 420 really worked and who supported citizen’s:

1. Twelve years ago Bob Littlefield supported what the Desert Discovery Center was originally intended to be a small, low-impact desert interpretive center with no commercial or night-time activity.

This has already been built. It is a completed vision. It is the current Preserve Gateway.

2. Sadly, in the intervening years, the Desert Discovery Center concept was hijacked by special interests who wanted to morph it into a Desert Disneyland, complete with commercial activity and nighttime events, right smack in the Gateway to our McDowell-Sonoran Preserve. And to add insult to injury, they wanted Scottsdale taxpayers to pay for it!

It was this outrageous proposal that Councilmember Klapp supported right up until the voters of Scottsdale put a stake through its heart by their 70% approval across all precincts of the city for Prop 420, which Bob Littlefield helped to pass. No other 2020 mayoral candidate did. Obviously Suzanne was missing in action through all the work; Virginia wanted third-party commercial development in the Preserve yet she now claims she is a Preserve Pioneer. A term she adopted from others who earned that designation.

Ortega has been 100% missing in action for 12 years, as has Lisa Borowsky who also didn’t sign the 420 petition and hasn’t told you yet that she is a VP in her and her father’s development company, pushing very high density housing near Sedona against almost unanimous citizen disapproval.

3. Virginia Korte never came around to supporting the citizens’ voices even when 37,608 registered voters signed the petition in favor of Prop 420, a gigantic physical effort by citizen volunteers, which should have been unnecessary, and granted by the City Council to go on the November ballet in the first place.

But Mayor Lane, Suzanne Klapp, Virginia Korte, and Linda Milhaven thought they knew better and they certainly didn’t want to give the citizens a vote.

They didn’t think the pesky citizens would attain the required 24,000 signatures to get Prop 420 on the ballot. They wanted the natural Sonoran desert and its animal habitat to get out of their way and let them accommodate their third party interests who fund their campaigns.


Suzanne claims she supported Prop 420, but leaves out the part that she waited until not only 24,000, but in fact, 37,608 registered voters signed the 420 petition making it a certainty to be on the November 2018 ballot did Suzanne suddenly say she would support it.

Both Suzanne Klapp and Virginia Korte greatly underestimated how smart Scottsdale voters were and are.

4. Again with Southbridge 2 in December, citizens were back out getting signatures and learning again from Scottsdale citizens about how frustrated they are with over-development across the entire city.

They know what the city needs now: a mayor who has a rock solid commitment with broad reaching city experience, ethics, a priority on citizen safety, and a promise to always protect our Preserve, and to listen to the citizens voices --- no exceptions!

Bob Littlefield believes in Scottsdale, the citizens, and the city’s need for fiscal accountability and stability, as well as smart growth that is respectful of existing neighborhoods and views.

Scottsdale citizens want thoughtful growth without defacing the beauty and charm of Scottsdale, He knows it’ll take rolling up sleeves and making hard decisions to restore the city of financial health and sustainability and he’s got the vision and knowledge it takes to do it.

Now you have the truth. Please think of that knowing there are huge challenges in front of Scottsdale and in who’s hands you want the responsibility to make the right decisions, and who will be listening to you, and do the thinking and hard work to get things done correctly for you.

The other mayoral candidates were missing in action when all the days and weeks and months of work were needed to get the petitions signed to save the citizens’ Preserve, except Bob Littlefield was there!

No other mayoral candidate can be trusted not to be beholding to their big campaign contributors or their own development plans.

With your vote, Bob Littlefield will be there for you and our city. He’s the one you can trust.

Editor’s Note: Patricia Van Cleave is a Scottsdale resident.