Street name changes OK’d; city staff gets Copper Sky memberships

The Maricopa City Council approved name changes for three Maricopa roads.

The changes only affected roads inside various subdivisions around Maricopa. Ramona Street in the Santa Rosa Spring subdivision will now be named Rojo Street. West Orvieto Way in the Sorrento subdivision will now be West Meta Way, and North Caven Drive in the Rancho El Dorado subdivision will now be North Braden Road.

The name changes around Maricopa were made in conjunction with the Postal Service and emergency services in the area. The city hopes this will avoid any confusion of mix ups during emergency calls or mail deliveries.

“One thing we did proactively to avoid issues was to discuss the [new roads] with our postmaster,” Maricopa Senior Planner Rodolfo Lopez said. “Our postmaster explained to us that the new addresses will be linked permanently between the existing and proposed addresses.
 

The council also unanimously passed a resolution for a public trail and open space easement in the Province subdivision. The resolution states Maricopa will take over care and maintenance of the trail running along the Santa Rosa Wash. The trail will go through Province on one side, and the Villages on the other.

There was initial concern from City Councilmember Nancy Smith about the costs of the project. However, the city will not take over the wash itself. That will still be the responsibility of the surrounding subdivisions. The city will just maintain the area provided in the resolution.

The final decision made by the council Tuesday night revolved around a new wellness program being piloted for government workers. The council approved the six-month pilot program that would give city employees free access to Copper Sky facilities.

City Council member Peggy Chapados was concerned for employees who currently have paying memberships to the Copper Sky facility. However, City Manager Gregory Rose quickly put her at ease by explaining any employees who enroll in the program but currently have a membership will not pay moving forward. It does not reimburse them for months paid before the program.

The program will also be eligible to any employee who receives a consistent paycheck from the city. This will include both full-time and part-time workers.

Another concern for the council was employees registering for the program but not actually participating in it.

Rose stated employees enrolled in the program will need to be involved in the program’s activities or they will lose their free membership to Copper Sky. Each enrolled employee’s involvement will be measured, but the city is still deciding what data will be collected. After six months, the success or failure of the wellness program will be determined through another City Council vote.