January 1, 2023 | www.santansun.com
Relentlessly local coverage of Southern Chandler
An edition of the East Valley Tribune
Newbies ready for Chandler City Council challenges Jane Poston has embraced this city in many ways
Community engagement led Angel Encinas to seat
BY KEN SAIN Managing Editor
BY KEN SAIN Managing Editor
When Jane Poston finally had a chance to fully embrace a community, she took it. Poston grew up with a dad who worked in broadcast news, which meant they moved a lot as she was growing up. Putting down roots was not an option. “We moved all the time,” Poston said. “I was a kid that moved my whole life, about every two years. For me, you know, playing psychoanalyst, that’s why
when I found a community to stay in, I dug in deep and stayed because I always wanted that.” Poston is about to become a leader of that community. She will be sworn in on Jan. 12 to join the Chandler City Council. “I counted it once: by the time I was 14, I had been 14 different schools,” Poston said of her youth. She said she was a bit of tomboy growing up and didn’t See
POSTON on Page 5
New year could challenge city, school fiscal picture BY KEN SAIN Managing Editor
The previous year was a pretty good one financially for both the City of Chandler and the Chandler Unified School District. While this new year may not look scary, city and school officials this year face fiscal challenges that will likely comprise one of the top stories of 2023. But the new year promises other no-
table possibilities to keep an eye on locally – including possible steps by the city to regulate short-term rentals and the long-awaited opening of a tourist-attracting superstore.
Alberto Esparza has watched Angel Encinas grow up, meeting him for the first time when he was an 8-year-old boy. He said he’s a bit surprised Encinas got involved in local politics. Encinas will be sworn in to serve a fouryear term on the Chandler City Council on Jan. 12 and is believed to be its first openly gay member. “Well, it was somewhat of a surprise,” Esparza said. “I didn’t think he was going that way. But when he told me he was going into politics, I said, ‘Okay, then I’ll help you campaign,’ because I truly believe there are very few people like him. There are a lot of leaders who talk about community engagement, but you’ve
never seen them. “With Angel, and because of this family background, you see him.” Esparza and the Encinas family were involved in the United Farm Workers movement. “He comes from a family background that is very strong with the United Farm Workers Union and with others,” Esparza said. “So because of that, it’s already innate. It’s there, it’s in his heart.” Encinas calls Esparza a mentor. “He worked well with my mom,” Encinas said. “He’s one of the people who inspired me at a young age.” During the campaign, Encinas highlighted his roots in Chandler, having lived See
ENCINAS on Page 5
Reason to celebrate
City finances
Chandler was doing so well with its finances in 2022 that it made a one-time payment of $50 million toward its debt in See
AHEAD on Page 6
Tax defeat leaves area fire districts in a bind BY SCOTT SHUMAKER Staff Writer
State firefighter organizations lobbied the Legislature this year to put a question on the Nov. 8 ballot asking voters to approve a 20-year, .1% sales tax that would generate revenue for fire districts across the state.
The Legislature obliged, but in a 5248% vote – 1,230,042 against to 1,144,495 for – Arizona voters shot down Prop 310, sending fire officials back to the drawing board to address a funding problem they say isn’t going away any time soon. See
DISTRICTS on Page 10
IN-PERSON REGISTRATION REGISTRATION
The new year will get off to a glamorous start in Chandler as the seventh annual Chandler International Film Festival rolls out in a few weeks. There’s a special reason to welcome its return this year as it is the first since 2020 to be totally free of COVID-19 protocols. Moreover, festival President/Director Mitesh Patel has made some tweaks to enable more people to attend showings, as you’ll read on page 32. (Facebook)
F E AT U R E D STO R I E S
More
City, community college partner on student jobs . . . . . . . . . . . . News Page 4
Sports . . . . . . . . . 24
Lebanese restaurant here brings new delights. . . . . . . . . . . .Business Page 20
Business . . . . . . . 20 Neighbors . . . . . 26 Opinion . . . . . . . 29
Seton alumna wins awards for film work . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Neighbors Page 26
Faith. . . . . . . . . . . 30
Sun Lakes talent show in the works. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GetOut Page 33
Directory . . . . . . 36
GetOut. . . . . . . . 32