Even in the best economic climate with a willing public, gaining support for public financing of a professional sports team facility can be challenging. PDG embraced this challenge on behalf of the Arizona Cardinals and helped change the professional and youth sports landscape in Arizona. PDG’s creative approach to forming a coalition of supporters relied on a strategy that recognized a ballot initiative to fund a football stadium had to be about much more than just that. We promoted the opportunity to bolster funding for youth sports facilities across Maricopa County; funding for Major League Baseball spring training facilities; and critical funding for Arizona’s tourism industry by designing a ballot proposition that provided funding for all of those needs. After building this coalition and working thru the details of the ballot language, the funding sources, and the funding streams, PDG designed a kickoff event for the initiative. Because we knew that the bulk of the funding would go toward the multi-purpose facility/stadium, we took on that first by having the kickoff for the campaign at the Cardinals’ practice facility. That strategy allowed the campaign to address the other important elements of the initiative and not get bogged down with a protracted debate about professional football. Further, it allowed us to better organize and utilize the grassroots and grasstops organizations since they were not needing to spend their time defending a football stadium, and instead could focus on telling their stories. The result: the ballot initiative passed with a comfortable margin and today the Arizona Cardinals play in one of the most highly regarded stadiums in the world. In addition, Maricopa County youth play sports on hundreds of new youth sports facilities and the Cactus League has three new stadiums hosting six teams, five of which have relocated from Florida. Today, there is an authority managing the tax revenues and facilitating the funding of youth sports facilities, Cactus League facilities, and bolstering our State’s tourism promotion dollars. |
In 2006, Bombardier Transportation enlisted PDG’s help to connect them with our community and with potential partners for an exciting project in the Valley: the City of Phoenix’s new Sky Train project at Sky Harbor International Airport. Our years of experience in transportation issues and procurement support were further bolstered because Bombardier had the foresight to engage with the community well in advance of the City issuing any request for bids. The Sky Train project, which the City of Phoenix awarded to Bombardier in 2009, will give travelers a convenient and time-saving option to move between terminals, the rental car center, and even the Valley’s light rail system. Given the cost and the importance of this project, the City spent years in development and procurement. This afforded PDG and Bombardier the opportunity to draw upon both of our strengths. Bombardier excels in developing, designing, and building turn-key transportation systems. They drew upon their experiences around the world to take the best of their other projects and bring them to their design for the Sky Train. PDG excels in helping to navigate the municipal procurement process and putting their clients in the best position to win a bid. We identified a variety of strategic community partnerships with business leaders, policy makers, and quality Arizona contractors to ensure long-term success for the project. That diverse group of partners established Bombardier as a respected Arizona corporate citizen with a broad, multi-disciplinary, multi-cultural, and politically diverse coalition. |
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When interest and demand had grown in the East Valley for a retail outlet mall, a struggle ensued between both the competing developers and the municipalities (Tempe and Chandler) who were eager to land a massive tax revenue generator. It was a virtual arms race that included using regulatory roadblocks to slow down opponents and a frenzied quest for land, leases, and approvals; all these activities put many of the large, prospective retailers on the verge of bolting in sheer frustration. When PDG became involved and assessed the situation, we realized the current divide-and-conquer strategy would destroy any hope of seeing this project – wherever its ultimate home – become reality. Instead of continuing down the same road, we determined that both sides were pursuing flawed options and that a creative solution – the first significant revenue sharing deal in the Valley – provided a way forward. We worked closely with a small community adjacent to one of the potential mall sites: the Town of Guadalupe, a small, one-square-mile community, saddled with economic woes. By gaining their support and leveraging their sphere of influence at the national, state, and local levels, we prevented further deterioration of the situation and provided a way forward that had not been previously considered. That way forward gave each of the communities a win by establishing a way for Tempe and Chandler to share in sales tax revenues. Additionally, the Town of Guadalupe not only realized sales tax revenues, but also had a new source of employment for its citizens. Further, the competing developers joined forces and today, Arizona Mills enjoys its status as a premiere shopping destination and major economic engine for the East Valley. |