News & Updates

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Pinal County Residents Help Shape Future Of Superstition Vistas at Public Meetings Sept. 1 & 2
With their grandchildren and their children in mind, residents of Pinal County and the East Valley will gather at two public meetings in September to help set the course for a 50-year unfolding of Arizona’s largest and still undeveloped state trust land parcel – 275-square-mile Superstition Vistas situated in northeast Pinal County at the eastern edge of metropolitan Phoenix.
The meetings culminate an 18-month effort by a steering committee of diverse stakeholders and consultants to visualize four potential scenarios for Superstition Vistas and share them with area residents to get their feedback.  Each of the four scenarios includes information about its economic development potential, housing and livability profile and environmental impacts.
The two meetings are scheduled for 6:00-8:00 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 1, at The Views at Superstition in Gold Canyon, and 6:30-8:30 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 2, at the Anthem at Merrill Ranch Community Center in Florence.  Those planning to attend should call the East Valley Partnership at (480) 834-8335 ext. 201, or Pinal Partnership at (480) 440-9482.
Read the Press Release.

Joint Venture Names Dr. Jim Holway in Quest for Western Sustainability
A leading authority on water in the West has been named the new director of a joint venture collaboration between the Sonoran Institute and Lincoln Institute of Land Policy focusing on sustainability and quality of life in intermountain western states.

Dr. Jim Holway will direct the partnership in promoting regional scale planning, improving management of state and federal public lands, and integrating energy, transportation, water and conservation infrastructure at a regional level within the urban West.  Special focus areas will be Arizona’s Sun Corridor of Phoenix and Tucson, the West Slope of Colorado and the Northern Rockies.

“Jim brings an inherent expertise and understanding of critical western issues to our combined efforts,” said the Lincoln Institute’s Armando Carbonell, senior fellow and chair of the department of planning and urban form.  “He shares our determination to manage growth and seek a sustainable future for this highly arid region undergoing significant economic and environmental change.”

Holway most recently was director of the sustainability partnership at Arizona State University’s Global Institute of Sustainability.  He also was a professor of practice in ASU’s School of Sustainability and Department of Civil, Environmental and Sustainable Engineering in the Ira A. Fulton School of Engineering, and he served as the university’s coordinator for the Arizona Water Institute.

Prior to joining ASU, Holway was assistant director of the Arizona Department of Water Resources where he oversaw regulatory programs and developed water management policy.  He earned his PhD and MRP at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill and a bachelor’s degree from Cornell University.

“Our partnership offers a unique focus to addressing the West’s biggest challenges and Jim recognizes that,” said Luther Propst, executive director of the Sonoran Institute. “He wants to help build management capacity in communities that need it, create knowledge and understanding of what to do by sharing research tools and best practices, and spark the political will to meet challenges head on.”

According to Holway, the two organizations complement each other’s strengths: The Lincoln Institute has a national reputation for its research and innovation in land policy and strong understanding of how public policy impacts land use patterns that, in turn, shape the economy.  The Sonoran Institute brings boots-on-the-ground involvement throughout the Intermountain West with extensive experience engaging key stakeholders on growth, natural resources, and public lands management.

“I came to the joint venture because I felt I could make more of a difference here,” he said.

Founded in 1974, the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy is a leading resource for key issues concerning the use, regulation, and taxation of land. The Lincoln Institute conducts research, holds conferences, provides education and training, undertakes policy evaluations, and publishes books and reports to improve the quality of public debate and decisions in land policy. 

Results Shared From Climate Change Focus Groups
Initial results from Joint Venture-sponsored research into the views of local government officials on climate change policy were shared by consultant David Metz at the Rocky Mountain Land Use Institute conference in Denver on March 6, 2009.  Presenting his observations of focus groups in Colorado and Arizona, Metz told the audience that subjects expressed concern about issues related to climate change – water supplies, energy use and strain on local infrastructure – and they said that the term “climate change” can be controversial.  Most agreed that climate change should be addressed in local government planning. The research by Fairbanks, Maslin, Maullin & Associates includes focus groups and one-on-one interviews with elected officials, city and county managers and urban planners in the Intermountain West.  Full results will be compiled and shared by the Joint Venture in Spring 2009.  Read the preliminary findings

“On The Edge” Workshop, Casa Grande, Arizona, Winter 2008
The Lincoln Institute of Land Policy – Sonoran Institute Joint Venture held the workshop, “On the Edge: A Dialogue and Design Exercise for Public Land Managers, Local Government and Developers on the Urbanizing Edge of Protected Public Lands,” on January 23-24, 2008.

“Megaregions, the Sun Corridor and Superstition Vistas” Dialogue, Phoenix, Arizona, Summer 2008
Experts from across the nation convened for this dialogue and workshop presented by the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy – Sonoran Institute Joint Venture on June 6, 2008. Hosted at the ASU Morrison Institute for Public Policy, the workshop explored how a broad regional approach can inform planning efforts within the Sun Corridor including the long-term planning and visioning efforts taking place at Superstition Vistas.

Climate Change Workshop, Phoenix, Arizona, Spring 2008
The Sonoran Institute convened a group of land use planning and climate change experts to discuss the connections between their two areas. The two-day workshop provided a forum for peer review of the draft white paper, “Land Use Planning in the Changing Climate of the West,” which formed the basis of the discussions. The experts contributed to our understanding of barriers to local implementation of climate change action and strategies to overcome them, as well as a more refined understanding of the highest-leverage actions that communities can take to counter climate change. The workshop also led to the identification of several areas requiring further research.