Miami residents may soon see new water conservation programs in their community and will also be asked to weigh in on long-term utility agreements this fall, following actions taken by the Miami Town Council during its March 23 meeting.
The council approved two resolutions that will put the question of granting franchises to Arizona Public Service and Arizona Water Company before voters this November 3.
“A franchise agreement allows certain utilities to use the right-of-ways for the city,” Town Attorney Joe Estes said, adding that it also explains how those right-of-ways are to be used.
The current 25-year agreements with APS and Arizona Water Company are up for renewal this year.
Estes said that if voters do not approve the franchise agreements, the town would need to convert them into license agreements.
A third resolution, doing the same for Southwest Gas, was tabled indefinitely at the utility's request.
According to Estes, Southwest Gas had balked at language providing they pay their proportionate share of election expenses — a requirement in Arizona franchise agreements.
He said the parties were discussing a written secondary agreement, and Southwest Gas appeared interested, but told the town to not begin working on the agreement, and asked to have the item tabled.
The meeting also included a presentation on a soon-to-launch water conservation program by Arizona Water Company.
Raluca Mihalescu, water conservation administrator with the utility, introduced the “From the Ground Up” campaign, a demand management program that will include Miami, Globe and Winkelman.
Mihalescu said “From the Ground Up” is set for launch on April 3, 2026, when the program's website and Facebook page will go live, along with a pre-campaign survey.
“We determined that adult education workshops on various topics would be really impactful in this community, so we're probably going to start rolling those out,” she said.
Mihalescu is hopeful that workshops could start before the end of 2026. The program will also offer educational topics on its Facebook page.
The council also approved an intergovernmental agreement with the City of Globe for Copper Mountain Transit System, in the amount of $73,000, and a cooperative purchasing agreement with Tiffany Construction for the Natural Resources Conservation Service project.
Councilmember Michael Sosh reported that the Arizona Department of Transportation had sent the town a letter saying they were looking at extending the eastern limit of the Mountain Breeze Memorial Gardens to the Reppy Avenue pavement rehabilitation project. Sosh said the proposed work would include surface treatment, road re-striping, and two left turn lanes, adding that the town would also ask for left turn signals at Reppy and Adonis Avenues.
Economic Development Director Evelyn Vargas said the town's facade program would roll out that week, and that the Economic Development, Annexation and Abatement Advisory Committee will meet April 8 and 22.
During the Call to the Public, Miami resident Ray Webb asked why the CenturyLink agreement was not on the agenda. Estes, when discussing the other agreements, said CenturyLink's was not up for renewal this year.
Webb also said there were a number of broken poles, which he deemed “serious safety hazards,” throughout town, which he had pointed out to council before.
Miami resident Douglas Berry asked whether Miami Police Officer Hernandez was promised a raise for taking the responsibility of chief, and if so, whether the town had followed through.
“It's very important that we give control of the police budget to the police department,” Berry said.
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