Mold Remediation in Peoria, AZ

Vice Presidential Nominee, Senator JD Vance, will deliver remarks in Peoria, Arizona on Tuesday, October 22, 2024, at 1:00PM MST.

For nearly four years, the Harris-Biden administration has put unnecessary stress on Arizonans. Since Kamala Harris took office, Arizona households have paid nearly $6,000 more on energy, with little relief in sight. Instead of allowing families to save and support their communities, they are being forced to shoulder the consequences of Kamala's disastrous economic policies.

Arizona families and retirees are desperate for relief. Under Kamala Harris, prices have skyrocketed by over 20 percent, while real wages have declined, leaving hardworking Arizonans struggling to make ends meet. President Trump is the only candidate who understands their pain and has pledged to eliminate taxes on Social Security, overtime, and tips, offering the financial lifeline Arizonans need.

President Trump has a proven track record of standing up for Arizona families. From boosting economic growth to lowering energy costs to securing the border, Trump has consistently prioritized the needs of everyday Arizonans. He's the only leader capable of reversing the damage and bringing real change to Arizona.

Date and Time:

Tuesday, October 22, 2024

1:00PM MST

Venue:

TYR Tactical

9300 N 91st Ave.

Peoria, AZ 85345

Timeline of Events:

11:00AM – Doors Open

1:00PM – Vice Presidential Nominee, Senator JD Vance, Delivers Remarks

General Admission Tickets:

REGISTER HERE

Request Media Credentials:

REGISTER HERE

All requests for media credentials must be submitted by Sunday, October 20, 2024, at 5:00PM MST.

Tacos, tequila and good times will soon be flowing in Peoria, as Blanco Cocina + Cantina announced today its newest location and first in the West Valley, will open on Wednesday, Oct. 16 at The Park at 83, steps away from the Peoria Sports Complex.

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One of the many popular brands under the Fox Restaurant Concepts umbrella, Blanco offers a vibrant twist on Sonoran-style Mexican cuisine alongside an extensive margarita and cocktail menu, with a laid-back yet chic and refreshing vibe that West Valley locals will love.

“A longstanding request we get from Arizona residents is to expand to the West Valley, and we are happy to announce that the time has come,” said Sam Fox, founder of Fox Restaurant Concepts. “Blanco’s fun and energetic atmosphere is the perfect place for our guests to enjoy Mexican food favorites and relax with great margaritas.”

Blanco’s colorful menu is filled with rich flavors showcasing a commitment to quality; housemade corn tortillas, all-day braises, fresh-squeezed margaritas – every dish and drink is crafted with care and attention to detail. Guests can look forward to Blanco staples including Tiger Shrimp Fajitas with spicy garlic butter; a variety of tacos like slow-cooked BBQ Pork with roasted corn slaw, pickled onion and crema fresca; and twists on Sonoran-style classics like the Roasted Poblano Chile & Tomato Cheese Crisp, and the Short Rib Machaca Chimichanga (made “Sam Style” by adding a crunchy taco), to name just a few.

The beverage menu is just as dynamic, featuring a wide variety of seasonal margaritas and infused tequilas. Standouts include Blanco’s signature Dodge’s Cadillac with casa noble blanco, grand marnier, & house naranja liqueur, the Tamarindo Mule with spicy tamarind, ginger beer, and fresh squeezed lime, flights of mezcal and tequila, refreshing agua frescas, and more.

Blanco Cocina + Cantina is located at 8191 W. Paradise Lane in Peoria and will be open Sunday- Thursday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Friday-Saturday from 11a.m. to 10 p.m. for lunch and dinner. Happy Hour will be available Monday-Friday from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.

For more information about Blanco and to view the full menu, visit blancococinacantina.com. Get social on Instagram at @blancotacostequila.

PEORIA, AZ (AZFamily) — A multi-million dollar lawsuit has been filed against the Abrazo Health Network, accusing doctors, nurses and staff of medical malpractice.

The lawsuit accuses Abrazo of negligence in its treatment of 40-year-old Stephanie Van Emst, leading to the Peoria mom becoming paralyzed.

“There’s life before and life after,” said Van Emst. “There’s the mom I was before and the mom I am now. Every ounce of independence has been ripped overnight. There’s just no way to prepare.”

The Peoria mother of three went to the emergency room at the Abrazo Arrowhead Campus in Glendale in September 2023, complaining of severe back pain, shortness of breath and numbness in her legs.

According to Van Emst, she was in extreme pain and desperate for help, but she still had to wait a day and a half to get an MRI that revealed an abscess on her spine that required emergency surgery at another hospital.

“Way too many mistakes, loopholes, whatever you want to call them. It was a lack of anything,” said Van Emst. “Nothing was essentially done for nearly 36 hours. I laid there and then I laid there paralyzed.”

The West Valley mom is now paralyzed from the waist down.

She cannot work and struggles to care for her three children.

A $13 million lawsuit has been filed against Abrazo, alleging that the health care provider failed in its duty “to provide medical care and treatment” that conformed to “appropriate standards” recognized by “healthcare providers practicing in this state”

“Stephanie Van Emst is now permanently paralyzed because of defendants’ negligent care and treatment,” the lawsuit stated.

Martin Mathers is one of the attorneys representing Van Emst.

“It’s not my opinion. It’s the opinion of neurologists saying, listen, she sat there too long without getting that MRI, and once the MRI was done, we would have done surgery and she would have walked again,” said Mathers.

Arizona’s Family has reached out to Abrazo Health several times to discuss the lawsuit and what happened to Van Emst, but have not yet heard back.

Van Emst hopes the hospital and its staff will be held accountable for what happened so that what happened to her doesn’t happen to anyone else.

“I fell through the cracks and things need to significantly change,” said Van Emst. “My kids shouldn’t have to live like this. They shouldn’t have to take on my burdens because of somebody else’s mistake.”

Mathers said if a jury determines that Abrazo Health was negligent, it will be up to that jury to decide what financial compensation Van Emst receives for lost income, pain and suffering.

Attorneys are asking Abrazo Health to settle the case for $13 million.

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Trilogy by Shea Homes, which celebrates its 25th anniversary this year, has broken ground at Ridgecrest™ – a Trilogy® Boutique Community™, a new 55+ resort-style community coming to Peoria, Arizona, in 2025. Located in the award-winning master plan of Northpointe® at Vistancia®, Ridgecrest is Arizona’s first Trilogy Boutique Community, a new offering from Shea Homes designed to deliver the vibrant Trilogy lifestyle on a more intimate scale. The 414-home Ridgecrest community is located approximately one mile north of Trilogy® at Vistancia, Shea’s 3,300-home community, which sold out last year. Presales for Ridgecrest begin in October and model homes are slated to open in spring. More information is available at Sheahomes.com/Ridgecrest.

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Ridgecrest offers three floor plan collections, featuring some of Shea’s most popular designs. Each home features single level open concept plans with contemporary designs and outdoor living spaces that make it easy for homeowners to embrace the Arizona lifestyle. The Freedom 35 Collection includes home plans ranging from ~1,649-1,988 square feet and has anticipated pricing from the high $400,000s. The Freedom 45 Collection includes home plans ranging from about 2,112-2,573 square feet and has anticipated pricing from the low $500,000s. The Ridge Collection includes home plans ranging from ~2,721-3,040 square feet and has anticipated pricing from the low $700,000s.

As with all Trilogy communities, a lifestyle centered around wellness and social connection is at the forefront of Ridgecrest’s design. At the center of the community, homeowners will enjoy a modern, amenity-rich approximately 6,000 square-foot Wellness Social Club designed to evoke the best boutique hotel lobbies and serve as the community’s wellness and social hub. The private club, designed by Greey Pickett, GSB Architects & Interiors, and TRIO, will offer indoor and outdoor social spaces, a fitness and movement studio, outdoor fitness and event lawns, resort and lap pool, and pickleball courts.

“We enlisted award-winning designers and researched top boutique hotels, incorporating the latest wellness design trends like biophilic natural elements, extensive glass and natural light, and colors and textures that reflect nature,” explains Hal Looney, Area President of the Shea Homes Active Lifestyle division for Arizona. “Creative and robust programming is designed to give residents easy access to new experiences where they can meet neighbors and new friends and enjoy fitness classes, keynote speakers, unique excursions, specialty food and wine events, cultural celebrations and more.”

Nestled at the most elevated and scenic point of Vistancia at the community’s newest Northpointe® neighborhood, Ridgecrest is surrounded by 1,000 acres of pristine desert and mountain preserves – the perfect basecamp for hiking, biking, and exploring nearby golf, sports, shopping, and dining. Golf lovers can tee it up at the nearby Trilogy at Vistancia Golf Club daily fee course, sports fans can take in Spring Training games at Peoria Sports Complex and NFL games at State Farm Stadium, and water seekers can enjoy Lake Pleasant, a popular destination just over 25 minutes away featuring boat rentals and launch, water sports, a great restaurant, and camping.

Interested homebuyers are encouraged to sign up on the interest list at Sheahomes.com/Ridgecrest to stay in the know on pre-sales, community events, and announcements.

The $275,000 was essentially a gift the board rejected.

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PEORIA, Ariz. — A surprise vote Thursday night by two Peoria school board members abruptly ended a federal mental health grant that supports social workers on campuses.

Despite a last-minute plea from the district superintendent KC Somers to preserve the program “for the sake of students and families," board members Heather Rooks and Becky Proudfit voted “no” on the extension. Members David Sandoval and Melissa Ewing voted “yes.”

The board has an empty seat, which means the tie vote halted the program.

The $275,000 was essentially a gift the board rejected.

The U.S. Department of Education had already approved the funds for current social worker contracts, a district spokesperson told 12News.

“It was very unfortunate and very surprising,” Ewing said. “All of a sudden, this program ends September 30th. So we are two weeks away.”

Board member Heather Rooks told 12News she voted “no” because schools should not be involved in providing mental health services.

“For me personally as a parent, hearing from other parents, we just don’t think that it should be in the schools. That should be a parent taking a child, if they have a mental health concern, to an outside provider,” Rooks said. She added the grant has been in place for five years and she does not see evidence it increased academic achievement.

“We have to look at results,” Rooks said.

RELATED: 'We need more support for our kids': Dysart schools to eliminate all social workers after current school year

The Arizona Educators Association, which represents public school teachers, accused Rooks and Proudfit of voting for an ideological agenda rather than doing what’s practical for students.

“Peoria is not the only place dealing with out-of-touch school board members who care more about far-right media than about their constituents,” said AEA President Marisol Garcia in a written statement to 12News. “We’ve seen the same pattern in districts all over the state, and we’re determined to fight back."

Proudfit tells 12News she viewed the remaining grant funds as a band-aid. She said the district should not continuously rely on grants to support social workers and instead needs a contingency plan.

“We have to have a contingency plan. We cannot be reliant on a grant going through.”

Asked if she has a contingency plan, Proudfit says, “I just think that number one, if we're saying that social workers are essential, then we have got to be building it into our M&O (Maintenance and Operations) budget. We can't be funding that out of, out of funds that may or may not be there,” Proudfit said. “I have every confidence in our superintendent and in our district that we can work together to be innovative, be intentional and problem solve.”

But districts can only innovate so much. Arizona remains near the bottom nationally in per-pupil funding. Proudfit said she believes passing the upcoming bond election will be part of a comprehensive solution for the district.

The district reported that a technical issue prevented a video-recording of the meeting. The district is now working to assess the impact of the vote.

“We will be developing a plan for next steps to continue to support students with minimal interruption,” said district spokesperson Danielle Airey.

Rooks said her vote was not due to culture wars, but rather the result of research she has done into the grant. She accused the district of allowing social workers to provide psychotherapy and said she’s skeptical of federal grants with strings attached.

Airey said the social workers do not provide psychotherapy but rather general “emotional support” services such as teaching a child how to deregulate during a stressful situation so they can return to the classroom. In cases where children need higher levels of care, Airey said, social workers are trained to connect families with outside organizations.

Last year alone, the district reports the grant-funded social workers served 1,800 students (whose parents signed permission forms) for services that included:

“Going away from this type of program is also going away from a program that parents are asking us to provide,” Ewing said. “They were a partner in providing what the children needed in order succeed in our classrooms.”

According to Airey, 73 parents last year declined to sign parental permission forms and therefore their students did not participate in services.

Rooks cited a parent’s public comment at a board meeting last year. The mother said their child was pressured to participate in group therapy at school.

“When I spoke with the parent, they felt defeated because they were constantly having to say ‘Hey, don’t talk to my kid.’ They went through a lot,” Rooks said. “I think we’re crossing into dangerous territory.”

She also said she’s concerned about the liability created by utilizing interns.

“I get a little nervous when we have interns coming in taking kids out of class providing group therapy, one-on-one therapy,” Rooks said.

Ewing said she had received no direct complaints from parents.

“Our schools have processes in place to ensure we’re gathering permission for any service. It’s not only a requirement of the school, but a requirement of their profession,” Ewing said. “When problems come across they are addressed and communicated.”

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