by Ethan Faverino | Jun 30, 2025 | News
By Ethan Faverino |
The Prescott City Council has voted down a proposed General Plan on Tuesday, rejecting what critics said contained “woke policies.” If the proposal had been approved, it would have made its way to the ballot for the next election.
The proposed General Plan included policies such as Vision Zero, road diets, and pricey, unreliable energy. These were just a small part of the “woke proposal,” according to critics, that seemed to change the dynamic of the city, rather than shape the future in a way that reflects the community’s vision and priorities.
Vision Zero aims to eliminate all traffic deaths and injuries, which may seem noble on the surface, but is designed to ultimately eliminate the use of fossil fuel vehicles.
Road diets have a similar goal, reducing vehicle lanes to add bike lanes or wider sidewalks.
Prescott Mayor Phil Goode, along with two city council members, opposed the original proposal, citing its misalignment with the city’s conservative values and practical needs. Mayor Goode spoke strongly against this proposal, which he believed reflected policies that could transform the small, historic town into Los Angeles or San Francisco.
In the final vote, the original plan failed to obtain the five-vote supermajority needed to be referred to the ballot. A revised version, which made minor adjustments but retained many of the original policies, was also brought forward but failed again, this time with a 4-3 vote.
Prescott City Council is running out of time to agree on a General Plan that best describes the community’s needs for future development. If they do not vote and decide soon, they may likely miss the ballot for this fall’s general election.
Associate of Government Affairs for Arizona Free Enterprise Club, Mylie Biggs appaluded the move, saying, “This is a major win for the people of Prescott and the members of the Council that stood firm. Every other city in Arizona should be cautious of the language in their own General Plans and follow Prescott’s lead in rejecting wokeness in their cities.”
Ethan Faverino is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Staff Reporter | Apr 26, 2025 | News
By Staff Reporter |
Prescott residents are citing concerns over what they believe to be a progressive slant directing the city’s 2025 General Plan.
The latest draft of the general plan was rolled out for last month’s city council meeting. State law requires cities and counties to introduce growth-related plans every decade. These plans must include maps, diagrams, objectives, principles, standards, and plan proposals pertaining to land use, circulation and transportation, open space, growth areas, environmental planning, public services and benefits, and water resources.
Communities with populations over 50,000 persons must also include plans for conservation, recreation, extensive transit, public services, public buildings, housing, rehabilitation and redevelopment, public safety, bicycles, energy, and neighborhood preservation and revitalization.
The plan focuses on five “livability” goals: resiliency and sustainability (fire, environmental planning, water resources, climate, and energy); community connection (circulation or transportation, open space, wildlife corridors, and digital connectivity); great places and neighborhoods (land use and growth areas, historic preservation, recreation, dark skies, tree city USA, and bike and pedestrian paths); economic competitiveness and prosperity (economic development, tourism, growth and cost of development, housing, and the Prescott Regional Airport); and community quality (police, education assets, library, community center, healthcare assets, childcare and youth programs, and arts and culture).
Certain strategies of concern (out of over 300 proposed) outlined in the plan include developing and funding a transit system, changing wood burning stove and fireplace standards, redeveloping stormwater infrastructure to be “green” and more sustainable, changing new development ordinances, eliminating emissions in city-owned buildings, establishing electric vehicle infrastructure, redesigning local streets for lower speeds and multimodal use, and establishing a “Dark Sky” lighting code.
Some of these strategies hinged on the initial or continued reliance on local and federal funding.
A group of concerned, longtime citizens, “Prescott Pulse,” say the general plan would not only adopt California-esque policies, but jeopardize millions in housing, transit, airport, and water federal funding due to likely conflicts with the Trump administration’s prohibitions on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.
Specifically, the group cited concerns over the inclusion of language expanding discrimination or harassment protections to sexual orientation and gender expression or identity.
The group also cited concerns over the plan’s extensive focus on enacting climate change policy, as well as the costs for proposed “Vision Zero” speed humps and cameras, lighting retrofits, bike lanes, tree mandates, and the additional property taxes connected with environmental reforms.
“We’ve watched as skewed narratives and incomplete information leave most residents unaware of what’s truly happening in our city council until decisions hit home and it’s too late to act,” said the group in a statement. “Today, our city stands at a crossroads. The divide between low-growth advocates and those who see the need for strategic expansion has never been clearer.”
Prescott Pulse also claims the proposed general plan goes beyond its intended scope of planning land use decisions (land, roads, water, and city growth) by introducing new property rights regulations and taxpayer burdens.
The general plan will appear on the November 4 ballot this year. The city council is scheduled to make a decision on the general plan during their meeting on May 27.
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