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4A- RED ROCK NEWS, Sedona, AriZona Wednesday, January 13, 2009
ION
Verniers kind heart
?
created positive
image for city cops
Jan. 15, when Sedona Police Chief Joe
retires.
, Vernier announced his retirement Nov. 23
years with the city of Sedona.
Sedona loses another community leader Friday,
Vernier
after 10
City Manager Tim Emster, a newcomer himself to
the city, is faced with the job of replacing a man who
not only led the police department but who related
personally to his officers and community members.
Vernier not only knows each of his officers by
their first name, but he can tell anyone the names
of the officers' spouses, their children and their pets,
according to SPD Cmdr. Ron Wheeler.
I experienced Vernier's personable nature firsthand
while working with him when I was the city reporter
for the Sedona Red Rock News.
During our first meeting, he gave me his cellphone
number and told me to call whenever I needed
anything.
Later, he shared a very intimate moment of his life
with me when he told me the story of the heart attack
he suffered while mountain biking in Sedona just a
few years ago.
When I needed his help, he proved he was a man
of his word. I'd received menacing phone calls from
a reader that caused some alarm on my part. I imme-
diately called Vernier, who assured me the police
department would take care of it, which it did.
Vernier's softer side contrasts starkly with the
stereotypical "tough guy" cop image, which in
turn strengthened the department's image in the
community.
Ernster has a tough job ahead of him trying to
find a candidate who can embody even part of what
Vernier represents in this city.
The city will celebrate Vernier's retirement with an
open house Thursday, Jan. 14, at City Hall from 4 to
6 p.m. where staff, elected officials and residents can
thank him for his service to the community.
We also thank Vernier for his dedication and wish
him the best in his next adventure.
-- Trista Steers
News Editor
The Sedona
"Opinion"
Red Rock News
P.O. Box 619 Sedona, AZ 86339
The Voice of Sedona and Oak Creek Canyon for more than 45 years ' x"~ ~.
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'I0
Sedona RED ROCK
NEWS
to the Editor
Servers donate to
Sedona's food bank
All of the servers at the Coffee Pot
Restaurant are to be highly commended.
I was impressed with the Coffee Pot
Restaurant when they kept their doors open
after hours during the Christmas holiday to
serve free meals to anyone in the commu-
nity who wanted a free holiday meal.
I was overwhelmed when the Sedona
Community Food Bank received a dona-
tion from all the servers who selflessly gave
their time and donated all their tips from
one entire day.
Although other restaurants in our
community have generously donated in
other forms, since I have been serving as
a food bank volunteer, to the best of my
knowledge, this is the first time that a group
such as this has monetarily sacrificed a full
day of the major part of their income for the
welfare of the needy in our community.
The thought, effort and sacrifice involved
in this donation not only go above and
beyond the spirit of Christmas but exem-
plify a sense of community which all of us
can be proud of.
Kay Amalfitano
Sedona Community Food Bank volunteer
Postmaster made
my Christmas twice
While enjoying my coffee on Christmas
morning the telephone rang. The voice
on the line" identified himself as Dave
Cartlidge, postmaster for Sedona.
He said that he had stopped by the post
office to see what his workload would be
like for the day after Christmas and found
some undelivered Christmas gifts and one
had my name on it.
I replied that this sounded jtlst like a conver-
sation he and I had had a year ago. He said
that the package was from Martin Greenberg,
and I replied, "Oh, that's the other son."
This postmaster is very modest and will
deny that he'did anything special. I would
like to acknowledge him for making my
day special [two years in a row] as I am
certain is the case for the other folks that he
made calls to.
Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus, and
he lives right here iff Sedona.
Thank you, Dave Cartlidge, for contrib-
uting to the charm of our small-town
feeling.
Pinky Greenberg
Sedona
As the campaign season heats
up, we may hear opinions about
the streetlights in West Sedona.
Here are some facts for your
consideration.
Some candidates and others
continue to tell us that lights
will destroy our dark skies and
are not necessary for pedestrian
safety. Not so. Consider the
following:
The International Dark-
Sky Association wrote us by
e-mail Dec. 19, '" Quality
lighting projects can
actually enhance the
community's ability to
successfully apply for
the IDSC [International
Dark-Sky Community
designation]."
And, Sedona
already has signifi-
cant pedestrian
street lighting in
use. According Guest
to John Harper, Perspective
Arizona Department
of Transportation MARK
Fla.gstaff District
engrneer, there are DINUNII0
95 lights installed on
State Route 179 from
Canyon Road north to the 'Y'
roundabouts. "We will have
the following from Canyon
north: 72 15-foot tall 150-watt
pedestrian lights and 23 30-foot
tall 250-watt roundabout lights.
Total 95. Average is about 2.0
foot-candles for the 'Y' and the
pedestrian lights."
Eighty-six lights are already
installed, Harper'wrote in an
e-mail.
Folks, we will have 95 dark-
sky compliant lights on State
Route 179 and the 'Y' in about
half of a mile.
What is your experience in
that lighted area? Any glow or
glare? Is your peripheral vision
improved?
When traveling through the
roundabouts at the 'Y,' do you
have good visibility? Can you
see the sidewalks and pedes-
trians? There are 14 light poles
that are 30-feet tall in about 100
yards.
Does it seem like "the Las
Vegas Strip" as some groups
predict for West Sedona?
How is your visibility on
State Route 179 compared to
State Route 89A? How is your
depth perception?
The proposed lights on 89A
will have taller poles [maybe
35 feet], but the light output is
expected to average as low as
1.2 candlepower, significantly
less than what the 95 lights on
179 and the "Y" are emitting.
"The [SR] 179 lights are nearly
twice as bright as the ones we're
proposing for SR89A," Harper
wrote. There will be fewer
lights over a longer distance.
Also, opponents to streetlights
have distorted pedestrian safety,
the primary issue that ADOT is
addressing on 89A, a significant
commercial corridor. Activity
doesn't stop at night. Are street
lights really unexpected in such
a commercial corridor?
This issue is not
about reducing vehicle
accidents and fender-
benders. Rather, it's
about improving night-
time visibility for drivers
and pedestrians.
It is not about dark
skies, it is about dark
ground. Due to' poor
visibility, there have
been multiple pedes-
trian deaths, the loss of
human life.
To use daytime vehicle
accident rate statistics
to try to discredit the
effectiveness of lights
at night not only sorely misses
the point, it minimizes the cata-
strophic severity of a lost life.
A broken headlight does not
equal a broken human being.
ADOT doesn't think so. Do
you? Should others?
This darkness safety issue
has been in front of ADOT for
four long years. In August 2006
ADOT presented the city with
its conclusion that visibility
needed to be improved on 89A
through continuous lighting. In
August 2007 ADOT proposed
installing 76 Dark-Sky
Compliant streetlights.
The Sedona City Council
agreed [7-0] to support
improved visibility through
lighting, then reversed itself at a
subsequent meeting and formed
a safety panel to explore alter-
natives to lighting.
ADOT participated with resi-
dents and city staff throughout
the safety panel process. When
the panel's final recommenda-
tions were reached in early
2008, ADOT immediately
wrote to the city on April 15,
2008, clearly stating its position
that it would agree to the recom-
mended package of alternatives
to lighting as follows: "ADOT
is agreeing to this compromise
solution only if the median and
pedestrian barriers are include l
for the remainder of the study
area [89.A corridor] The
median and pedestrian barriers
should mitigate the potential
nighttime pedestrian crossing
in the segments without
continuous roadway lighting. In
areas where there is no median
or pedestrian barrier, these
segments will have lighting."
ADOT's position was clear.
Medians and/or barriers could
be used tO block pedestrians
from crossing. Where there
were no medians and/or
barriers, there must be lighting.
The primary focus remained
intact. Increased visibility for
pedestrians and drivers was not
to be compromised.
Some still argue that ADOT
had agreed to legs than contin-
uous medians. There is no docu-
mentation that ADOT approved
"strategic location" of medians.
There is documentation that
ADOT wanted medians or
lights along the entire two miles
of highway.
ADOT made it clear that it
had secured funding for lights,
but not for alternatives, which
would likely include round-
abouts at a significantly greater
expense. Without ADOT's
funding, the city would bear the
entire cost of the alternatives to
lights.
In June 2008, the City
Council considered the panel's
recommendations but did not
approve the option of the total
alternative package. Rather,
they wanted ADOT to imple-
ment a partial solution that
did not solve the problem that
ADOT had identified 2 years
earlier, i.e "improved driver
and pedestrian visibility and
safety over the dark two miles
from Dry Creek Road to Airport
Road."
In response to a subsequent
city inquiry into possible
compromise options that ADOT
might agree to, ADOT wrote
the city onAug. 12, 2008, again
outlining its position regarding
lights and alternatives. ADOT
encouraged the city to accept
the package of alternatives or
consider taking over responsi-
bility for thetwo-mile segment
of the highway. That letter is
part of the record of the Aug.
13, 2008, council meeting.
At that Aug. 13, 2008, council
meeting, it became clear to a
majority of council members
that the city's expense for the
alternative to lights was finan-
cially prohibitive.
The council voted 4-2 to once
Editor's Note:
The Sedona Red Rock
News verified the quotes
Sedona City Councilman
Mark DiNunzio provided
with documents written
by International Dark-
Sky Association Programs
Director Kim Patten, Arizona
Department of Transportation
Flagstaff District Engineer
John Harper arid council
communications from former
Sedona City Manager Eric
Levitt
again support ADOT's original
proposal to improve visibility.
ADOT retains responsibility for
the road, its maintenance and
financial liability. The city, with
resident input, is participating
in the selection of the design of
the lights.
As you form your position
on 89A safety and whether you
agree with ADOT and your City
Council, please ask yourselves
these questions:
Was it a financiallyprudent
decision for the city?
Will ground visibility
improve?
Will safety for pedestrians
and drivers improve?
Will Sedona still have dark
skies?
Was it the right decision
for Sedonans and our visitors
who travel at night?
Are the streetlights on 179
and in Uptown an effective
improvement?
Please know that councilors
made the lighting decision
despite being subjected to some
verbal and "personal affronts by
some opponents, a behavior that
continues to this day.
These city councilors have
served us with grace and courage
on this issue. In so doing, they
have set an example for us that
reminds us all that how we
conduct ourselves personally
is a major ingredient, perhaps
the most important one, as we
work together to keep Sedona
beautiful.
I am honored to serve with
them.
These comments are mine
alone and not necessarily the
opinion or position of the city
of Sedona or the City Council.
Mark DiNunzio is a current
member of the Sedona City
Council. He is not standing for
election.
A