Defending Phoenix

One of the reasons why I started the North Phoenix Blog is because I honestly believe that Phoenix is a great place to live. Really, I do.

There is no secret agenda behind this site. I'm not trying to sell you anything and I don't have a vested interest in getting more people to move to Phoenix. I don't work in construction, real estate, or the financial industry. I'm not trying to "boost" Phoenix by promoting reckless growth and expansion. I am just a regular guy who loves life in the desert.

There are several reasons why I think Phoenix is a great place to live. Phoenix is more affordable than California and has a warmer climate than most other big cities. It is safe from major natural disasters such as earthquakes, volcanoes, hurricanes, tornadoes, and tsunamis. The City of Phoenix has a nice big airport, lots of brand new freeways, and a very simple layout that's easy to understand.

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Arizona Appliance Rebate Progam to Begin This Month

Last summer, the Federal Government passed the Car Allowance Rebate System ("CARS") act which gave car buyers a generous discount towards the purchase of a new vehicle when they traded in a less-efficient vehicle. The "Cash for Clunkers" program was such a wild success that its budget was depleted long before the program was scheduled to end, and as a result Congress had to approve additional funding. This year a similar rebate program has been announced, but this time it is for home appliances instead of cars! 
Yes, you read that correctly. The Arizona Appliance Rebate Program is scheduled to begin in late March 2010. This program will give individual consumers in Arizona an incentive to replace their older home appliances with more efficient Energy Star appliances. This program is backed by a $6.2 million dollar budget, which was awarded to the Arizona Department of Commerce Energy Office by the US Department of Energy.

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East Meets West at Matsuri of Arizona 2010

Konichiwa! If you are looking for something fun to do this weekend, you might want to check out the 26th annual Matsuri of Arizona in downtown Phoenix. This festival of Japanese culture runs from 10:30am to 5:00pm on February 27th and 28th, 2010. It's a lot of fun for the whole family and the best part is that admission is free!

Both days feature a full schedule of events including exhibitions, live music and dance performances, and more! There are plenty of food booths to satisfy your appetite and of course, it's also a great place to see lots of interesting people. You can get more information about the event at: https://www.azmatsuri.org.

Here are some photos I took at Matsuri of Arizona on Saturday:

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Happy 98th Birthday, Arizona!

Most people think of February 14th as a day of roses and chocolate for their special someone, but it's also special day for Arizonans. On this day in 1912, President Taft signed the Arizona Statehood Act which admitted the Arizona Territory as the 48th state to join the United States of America.

The history of how Arizona became the 48th state is pretty interesting. The Arizona Republic [article no longer available] says that Arizona was originally supposed to become a state on February 12th in honor of Lincoln's birthday, but President Taft had to delay signing the bill because of a trip to New York.

The Arizona State Library, Archives, and Public Records website tells a different tale. According to their article The Road to Statehood, President Taft initially refused to sign the Arizona Statehood Act because of a clause in the state's constitution about permitting the recall of judges. With the clause removed, the president then signed the bill into law.

Once Arizona was officially a state, an election was held and the clause about permitting the recall of judges was added to the State Constitution anyway! Talk about sticking it to the man!

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A Sad State of Affairs in Arizona

I did not start this blog as a political soapbox to stand on regarding Arizona politics, and I'm not about to let it turn into that, either. However, it's kind of hard to ignore the news regarding Arizona's budget crisis. The more I hear about it, the more I realize what a sad state of affairs this is for Arizona.

In case you haven't turned on the TV or read a newspaper in the last couple of years, let me bring you up to speed on the subject. The State of Arizona makes money by collecting taxes from individuals, businesses, and on the sale of goods. All three sources of income have been hit hard as the home-buying frenzy of the past few years abruptly came to a halt.

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