City Council honors Anderson, Kirkpatrick for overpass funding (video)

The Maricopa City Council took a moment to honor former Mayor Kelly Anderson and U.S. Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick for their work in securing the funds needed for the State Route 347 overpass.

“Kelly is one of the first mayors we had [in Maricopa],” Price said. “He’s lived here his whole life and this city is at his heart.”

Anderson played an integral role in gaining the funding needed to build the overpass. As the 2015 Arizona State Transportation Board Chair he helped secure the TIGER grant and other funding from the Arizona Department of Transportation in order to get the overpass built.

Anderson will be stepping down as the transportation chair on Dec. 18.

Kirkpatrick was also honored for her role in allowing Maricopa to receive the $15 million TIGER Grant in October. She was unable to attend the council meeting, but her deputy district director, Blanca Varela, stood in to represent her.

“Congresswoman Kirkpatrick has been a steadfast and tireless supporter for federal funding for the project,” Price said. “On May 25, 2015, Congresswoman Kirkpatrick led an Arizona congressional delegation letter signed by every member of the house delegation requesting a $15 million Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recover (TIGER) Grant in support of the State Route 347 grade separation project.”

The council later approved a transfer of $23,218 from the city contingency fund to the Maricopa Fire Department for a temporary position that will help organize the necessary maintenance to the department’s vehicles. Chief Brady Leffler said he hopes the department’s maintenance will improve by taking the administrative portion of the work out of the mechanics hands so they can focus on repairing the vehicles and keeping the department up to ADOT standards.

“Prior to my arrival we were simply having spreadsheets done by mechanics,” Leffler said. “It was in complete disarray and the routine maintenance for the vehicles was not being completed. It wasn’t for a lack of effort; it was because we didn’t have the resources to complete that.”

The council also approved the purchase of a 2015 Quantum 100-foot Platform Ladder Truck for the MFD in an amount not to exceed $1.3 million, the purchase of dispatch consoles and associated equipment for the Copper Sky Police Substation Communications Center in an amount totaling $269,092.82 (plus an owner’s contingency of $50,000 for a total of $319,092.82), and adopted the “Maricopa Area Transportation Plan Phase I” final report. This includes the Transportation Master Plan and the Regional Connectivity Plan.

The Maricopa City Council also unanimously voted to cancel the next scheduled meeting on Jan. 5, 2016. The council will not reconvene until Jan. 19 at 7 p.m.