Chandler Mayor elected Chair of Maricopa Association of Governments

Chandler Mayor Kevin Hartke has been serving the City of Chandler since 2019. He has now been elected as Chair of the Maricopa Association of Governments (MAG) Regional Council.

Hartke said his top priority is to assure that if Maricopa County voters approve Proposition 479 in November, MAG will be prepared to implement projects like the Regional Strategic Transportation Infrastructure Investment Plan. Proposition 479 extends a dedicated half-cent sales tax for transportation.

Hartke joined “Arizona Horizon” to talk about what his new position entails.

MAG is a planning agency representing all of the cities and agencies as well as tribes in the greater Maricopa area. It represents 33 entities, 27 cities, Pinal county, Maricopa County and ADOT. “It has a large scope; it’s quite engaged in areas that cross jurisdictions like transportation, homelessness, heat relief and air quality,” Hartke said.

Provincialism is a thing of the past, Hartke said. “Mayors are people that understand collaboration, and on these big issues, we want to come together because we realize what affects either Phoenix or Goodyear also affects Chandler,” Hartke said.

Transportation issues are a priority to Hartke, and he has put together what is now Proposition 479, which will be on the ballot in November.

“There’s so many of these projects that are huge and have a long runway in terms of planning,” Hartke said. “We pride ourselves on having a much shorter commute than cities like LA, Houston or Denver. But if this doesn’t happen, it will severely increase our time on the streets.”

MAG is working with power grid companies such as SRP to ensure there’s awareness of the need. And they are looking at grants that can help sustain operations in the Valley. This also helps our air quality, which is another big assignment Hartke is prioritizing.

Another part of Prop 479 is funding future innovations for 20 years.