Cave Creek initiates purchase of 4,005 acres of open space

By Jeff Wendt
Mail

The Cave Creek Town Council voted unanimously March 31 in a special meeting to initiate the purchase of 4,005 acres of open space land within the town’s boundaries.

The town also approved a financing mechanism in which Cave Creek would secure $10.42 million in revenue bonds with a 25-year amortization.

“This has been a long time coming as (Development Services Director) Luke (Kautzman) said, 20 years or more,” said Council Member Joe Freedman in making the motion to initiate the purchase. “It was thought about even probably way before then. There’s been a lot of hard work, a lot of folks in the audience have done, a lot of folks preceding them before.

“It’s been going on for a long time,” Freedman added. “We finally got it up to the plate. This council right here has performed incredibly, our staff, everybody. I mean, this is a win-win for the entire community, period. End of story.”

“It’s an incredible privilege to be on a council and have a staff that has been able to put this together,” Mayor Robert Morris said. “It died for years, decades almost, at least one decade. And it really is a privilege to be on a council and be able to vote for this, something as significant as our signature piece, which is Spur Cross.

“Now we’ll have another one, and I’m just glad I was around to be able to participate in this one,” Morris added.

The Arizona State Land Department currently owns the land Cave Creek will aim to purchase. The town will have to go through an auction to purchase the land. The process, which could take between 12 and 18 months, will include a land appraisal, environmental and cultural studies, and approval of the appraisal. A public notice of auction posted in a newspaper for 10 straight weeks will then be done by the ASLD.

Cave Creek also has the opportunity to receive grants to pay for some costs for the land. Kautzman and former Maricopa County Parks director R.J. Cardin discussed the options available to Cave Creek for grants. Cardin was hired on as a consultant for the open space purchase.

One of the grants that could be available to Cave Creek is the Land and Water Conservation Fund, which Cardin helped to create.

“I was doing planning for the Land and Water Conservation Fund and the Heritage Fund,” Cardin said. “At that time, the heritage fund was a new program. So, I helped start up the heritage fund grant program. As a planner for the Land and Water Conservation Fund with state parks, I designed the grant priorities and the scoring system for that grant program and consulted with local governments on developing grant applications for that.

“I also reviewed and scored grant applications over a period of about seven years with Arizona State Parks and also developed the statewide comprehensive outdoor recreation plan, which is a requirement of the federal government who provides the funds for the Land and Water Conservation Fund,” Cardin added.

Approximately $9 million in grants are available, and Cave Creek could get a dollar-for-dollar match between $1.5 million and $2 million to help with the purchase.

Town Finance Director Cherie White worked with Stifel Managing Director Mark Reader and Director Jack Leeper in developing options for the project’s financing. Two options looked at revenue bonds, which don’t need voter approval, and two options looked at general obligation bonds, which would have needed voter approval.

Most of the town’s residents in attendance were happy to see the council make the decision to purchase the land.

“I love the all-in on the 4,005,” Cave Creek resident David Ackerman said. “I’m not just saying this because I was on the ad hoc open space committee. I hope that you submit the application and we do it expeditiously and we don’t mess around given time. So, thank you.”

Jeff Wendt
Reporter | Phoenix/Cave Creek

jwendt@iniusa.org

Meet Jeff
Jeff Wendt started at Independent Newsmedia in January 2023, after 25 years working for Gannett and The Arizona Republic. Started as a high school sports scoretaker, worked up to reporting high school sports and then became an associate high school sports editor in 2002. Also worked in the Design Studio as a copy editor.

Community: Jeff serves on the Board of Elders at his local church.

Education: Arizona State University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and Mass Communication

Random fact: Attended Game 2 of the 2001 World Series.

Hobbies: Playing video games (yes still the kid in me), watching reality TV, playing poker.