PARC Treasurer Jim Jochim sits down with Allison Hurtado to discuss the Phoenix Loop 202 project at the Ahwatukee Foothills News office on Monday, May 13, 2013.

Even though “The Great Gatsby” has gotten the movie treatment several times in the past, no film adaptation has ever really stood out as the definitive version of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s celebrated novel. Director Baz Luhrmann’s film is certainly the most visually arresting interpretation of “The Great Gatsby” ever produced. Catherine Martin, who previous worked with Luhrmann on “Moulin Rouge,” “Romeo + Juliet,” and “Australia,” deserves multiple Oscar nominations for her hyper sets and eye-popping costumes. As wonderful as Luhrmann’s “Great Gatsby” is to look at, the enchanting visuals are also ironically the movie’s downfall. In the midst of the art direction, costumes, and music, the story and characters that made Fitzgerald’s book a classic become a mere afterthought.

A new statewide survey suggests that if Arizonans were asked about it today, it's more likely that gay couples would be able to marry here.

Responding to recent absurd arguments... speeding, stealing and insider trading are not rights guaranteed by the Constitution... the right to bear arms IS!

Where are the “silver linings” for the Ahwatukee Foothills area from the proposed South Mountain Freeway?

Even though “The Great Gatsby” has gotten the movie treatment several times in the past, no film adaptation has ever really stood out as the definitive version of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s celebrated novel.

It’s no secret to Realtors that fabulous kitchens sell homes. Improve the room used primarily for food preparation, and the entire house will feel homier to residents, guests and prospective buyers alike.

Now that the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) has finally been released by the Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT) and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) on the proposed South Mountain Freeway Loop 202 expansion, we can start doing a feasibility check on the proposed freeway.

Last week, the Division I and II baseball state tournaments moved to spring training stadiums across the Valley.

The persistence and determination I have shown in the past four years is about reform and getting us ready for the new world we live in. There is a bigger reason why I have been pushing so hard for change. It’s about getting Phoenix ready to compete in a global economy. If the council repeals the food tax it will be added to a long list of reforms we accomplished. There were three significant reforms toward the goal of getting us ready to compete in this new world market and getting government to operate more like your household

It's not a big breakthrough.

The long-awaited Draft Environmental Impact Study for the South Mountain Loop 202 Freeway will be released today and available for review and comment over the next 90 days.

City Councilman Sal DiCiccio says he believes he’s reached a compromise with other City Council members that will allow at least a portion of the city’s food tax to phase out before the 2015 deadline.

Robert Redford does his most compelling work in some time as both actor and director in "The Company You Keep," a tense yet admirably restrained thriller about a fugitive forced out of hiding after 30 years to prove his innocence. Adapted with clarity and intelligence by Lem Dobbs from Neil Gordon's novel, and lent distinguishing heft by its roster of screen veterans, this gripping drama provides an absorbing reflection on the courage and cost of dissent.

One arrived before Rudy Valee and the other a year before The Beatles, but together they made beautiful music in nurturing a piece of Ahwatukee that spanned the decades between the roaring ‘20s and this year’s cold winter rains.

This was the only contents of a recent evening’s U.S. Postal Services “deposit,” so there’s no excuse for the mangled condition.

Over three days more than 50 dogs made their way in and out of a house in north Phoenix as Ahwatukee Foothills resident Brad Jaffe filmed his complete at-home dog teaching system.

Coming soon to downtown Mesa: big changes to one of the city’s acclaimed all-ages attractions.

"Impactful, rowdy and rewarding” (and maybe a little tiring) is how I would describe the experience I had last year serving as a team captain for the 2012 Ahwatukee Foothills Family YMCA “Frames for Families” initiative. That’s a fancy way of saying “fundraising event,” which translates to “bowl-a-thon!” I was so impressed by the event and the result that I agreed to chair the event this year, along with my friend and fellow YMCA board member, Jim Hunt, local Farmers Insurance agent and all around Renaissance Man. In all seriousness, I am passionate about it because I have seen and heard the testimonials of families, kids and seniors in this community who have benefitted from the proceeds of this event.