Do you remember when…?
2010
■ More than 50 people were affected by an eye virus in the Village of Oak Creek.
■ In April, many Sedona employees were laid off due to the economic downturn. The city of Sedona and school district laid off eight employees each. Several Sedona police officers were also laid off.
■ In May, Sedona scrounged to find $160,000 to help keep Red Rock State Park open. Located outside city limits, the park was slated for closure later that year due to budget cuts.
■ The city cut its budget by 30%, and outgoing council members lowered council salaries by 50% before they left.
■ Sedona students topped the state average for passing the 2010 AIMS test in spring.
■ In August, local boy scout troop No. 48 made an emergency landing in Flagstaff after flying back from a camp in Idaho. In their camp, they had received training on how to deal with emergency situations, and they followed instructions that they had recently learned, which led them to receive honors by city officials.
■ Red Rock Academy online classes started through Sedona Red Rock High School.
■ A vote on a National Scenic Area designation for the Sedona area failed in Congress. To pass, it needed 279 votes, but fell 21 votes short. The NSA would have greatly limited local control of U.S. Forest Service lands around Sedona.
■ In October, the SRRHS football team had to forfeit its homecoming game because they didn’t have enough players to suit up due to injuries suffered the previous week.
■ On Nov. 12, the newly opened Sedona Performing Arts Center put on its first show, produced by Sedona Red Rock High School.
2011
■ In February, Sedona City Council voted to add dispensing medical marijuana to the city’s land development code after Arizona voters approved Proposition 203.
■ In May, vandals caused between $1,000 and $3,000 worth of damage to the Shrine of the Red Rocks on Airport Mesa.
■ The refurbished Sedona Community Pool opened. It cost nearly $700,000 and held over 177,000 gallons. In July, the Sedona Community Center Pool closed due to low membership and costly repair bills.
■ In June, the Sedona Roadrunner Circulator in Uptown made its last trip. The trolleys were discontinued due to low ridership, catering mainly to tourists in Uptown and Gallery Row. The trolleys were sold to Lake Havasu City.
■ In March, Sedona Marathon organizers announced they were short about $20,000 between costs of the marathon and the money it brought in and they could not afford to run it again. In August, the Sedona Chamber of Commerce bought the marathon.
■ Sedona Police Department officers served search warrants at three spiritual-healing centers, called Sedona Temples, on Sept. 7. The bust was part of a sting operation resulting from allegations of prostitution at the “Goddess Temple” out of Phoenix. Three women were arrested.
■ In November, self-help author and speaker James Arthur Ray was sentenced to two years in jail for a fatal sweat lodge incident that took place in October 2009 at Angel Valley Retreat Center southwest of Sedona. Three adults died in Ray’s sweat lodge ceremony and 18 were hospitalized.
■ In December, around $600,000 in silver, gold and cash was taken from a Sedona home. Oshin Thomas, 33, of Tempe, was arrested. Afterward, detectives were able to locate much of the stolen property, including some buried in the desert.
2012
■ In February, safety improvements on SR 89A got underway on an Arizona Department of Transportation project that included continuous roadway lighting from Dry Creek Road to Airport Road in West Sedona. The project had been contested for months, with city council unsuccessfully attempting to buy the span of highway from ADOT to prevent street lights. In two 2011 propositions, 70% of Sedona voters rejected council’s attempt to buy the road and 77% of voters passed a measure requiring that any future attempt to buy a road must be approved by voters first.
■ Outdoor instrument maker Richard Cooke donated seven of his interactive musical creations to Uptown.
■ In June, the Chapel of the Holy Cross was included in the National Register of Historic Places. The chapel had been the dream of Sedona resident Marguerite Staude and her husband Tony in the 1950s. The designation ensured the chapel preservation.
■ In July, local siblings Jessica and Cody Kirkham each claimed a world champion title at the 31st annual World Championship of Cowboy Action Shooting.
■ A small plane from New Mexico crashed at the Sedona airport after a failed takeoff attempt. Two-time Olympic athlete Patrick Porter, 53, was killed along with his 15-year-old son and his son’s 14-year-old friend.
■ Michael Frye of Sedona qualified to play in the 94th PGA golf Championship in South Carolina along with Tiger Woods and other top golfers.
■ In August, the dome structure at Posse Grounds Park collapsed, delaying construction. No one was hurt.
■ In September, Yavapai County Superior Court Judge Michael Bluff forbade 12 retailers from selling synthetic drugs like bath salts and spice. Even though the drugs were legal, they were considered dangerous.
2013
■ The state’s first rabies attack of the year happened near Sedona in early January when a child was bitten by a rabid fox on Elmersville Road.
■ A fierce winter storm hit Sedona on Feb. 9, dropping six inches of snow.
■ On April 2, Vice President Joe Biden and U.S. Sen. John McCain [R-Arizona] spoke at a resort near Sedona at the opening dinner of the McCain Institute for International Leadership’s annual Sedona Forum.
■ In May, an intoxicated driver crashed through a door at Fire Station No. 3 in the VOC, causing significant damage to the door, a fire engine and another vehicle as well as herself.
■ Entertainment venue Studio Live Sedona closed its doors on July 1 due to expenses caused by attempts to comply with Sedona’s noise ordinance.
■ On June 30, 19 Prescott firefighters were killed battling the Yarnell Hill Fire, which destroyed much of the small town near Prescott. Sedona firefighters were sent to the scene. The tragedy was later told in the 2017 drama “Only the Brave.”
■ Following a four-and-a-half hour Sedona City Council meeting in August — where Mayor Rob Adams walked out of the proceedings with no explanation — a vote was taken regarding the city’s public commissions. By a 4-2 decision, council approved city staff’s concept for a new Citizen Engagement Program which eliminated the commissions.
■ In September, many were left in tears when the council took the first step in allowing civil unions within the city. By a 5-2 vote at a following meeting, Sedona became one of just four communities in Arizona at the time to recognize civil unions for same-sex couples.
■ On Oct. 3, the Sedona Red Rock News celebrated 50 years of publishing. Robert S. and Loretta Larson founded the paper in 1963, printing in a private house in Uptown, then with the Arizona Daily Sun in Flagstaff and finally with their own printing press on Van Deren Road, where the newsroom has been located since 1978. Their eldest son, Robert B. Larson is the current publisher and one of their grandsons, Kyle Larson, is the newspaper chain’s general manager.
■ In October, all national parks and monuments, including Montezuma Castle, Montezuma Well and Tuzigoot, were shut down due to the larger government shutdown.
■ By unanimous vote, council approved the Harmony-Windsong Phase IV drainage project that would cost almost $1 million.
■ In December, council unanimously approved long-term leases with several Uptown businesses for the use of their parking lots. The partnership created an additional 163 spaces to the city’s existing 400.
2014
■ In February, city council approved the purchase of the 3.5-acre land at 250 Brewer Road, where the old U.S. Forest Service Ranger Station was located, for $640,000.
■ In March, filmmaker Kweku Mandela made a guest appearance at the Sedona International Film Festival to promote an upcoming documentary and speak about his grandfather, the late Nelson Mandela, a political prisoner under Apartheid who became the first black president of South Africa.
■ A March 16 fire in the VOC caused tens of thousands of dollars worth of damage and forced one couple out of their home.
■ After three years of discussions, planning and meetings, the city council approved a zone change for Sky Ranch Lodge resort in April. The zoning change expanded the property’s size and added affordable housing units and other amenities.
■ More than 300 people showed up to the opening of Sedona Fire Station No. 6 off SR 179 near Chapel Road.
■ The city of Sedona opened a splash pad at Sunset Park.
■ On May 20, the Slide Fire started north of Slide Rock State Park. It eventually burned more than 21,000 acres and cost more than $10 million to fight. More than 1,000 personnel from local and neighboring fire agencies attacked the blaze from the air and ground. Residences and businesses in Oak Creek Canyon were evacuated. Containment lines were established by Memorial Day. No structures were lost. The fire was believed to be human-caused.
■ Heavy rains on the Fourth of July closed portions of SR 89A three times.
■ Four people, ages 18 to 23, were killed in a single-engine plane crash in rocky terrain in Fay Canyon. The crash started a fire that burned 20 to 25 acres.
■ Sedona City Council passed an ordinance prohibiting the use of cellular phones while driving in the city limits.
■ In August, Sedona was named an International Dark Sky City, following in Flagstaff’s footsteps.
■ Arizona State Sen. Chester Crandell, who represented District 6 in Sedona, was killed in a horseback riding accident in his ranch near Heber-Overgaard.
■ On Sept. 20, Slide Rock State Park reopened most of its swim area to over 1,000 visitors after being closed for months.
■ An early morning fire in October at SR 89A’s KFC/Taco Bell left the restaurant closed.
■ In November, Sedona City Council voted to spend more than $4 million on capacity upgrades to the Sedona Wastewater Reclamation Plant.
■ 20 plaques were placed along the railing in Uptown as part of its Walking History Project.
■ On Dec. 21, Sedona residents experienced a 4.7 magnitude earthquake centered just south of the Munds Canyon and Oak Creek Canyon confluence.
2015
■ On New Year’s eve 2014, snow blanketed the Verde Valley, resulting in several accidents before 10 a.m. on New Year’s Day, including one four-vehicle crash.
■ SOCSD Governing Board President Zachary Richardson stepped down but remained on the board after a failed recall effort based on his violations of executive session, discussing personnel outside official channels and “intimidating” teachers and parents. He was later accused of harassing a teacher, though initially denied there was any complaint or investigation until he was told details about the complaint, investigation and how he was disciplined by school officials was going to be published.
■ Sedona finalized a busking law, allowing for street performers to entertain in a safe manner, as long as they followed the city’s guidelines.
■ On March 6, Justin Clifton became the new city manager after Tim Ernster stepped down. The city received 108 applications for the position, with just seven from Arizona.
■ A small plane crash landed on Cathedral Vista Road. The plane lost power heading to the Sedona airport, and experienced pilot Charles McCury made a banking maneuver and crash landing. Two passengers were taken to the hospital.
■ Sedona’s first Habitat for Humanity home was built.
■ A bloody fist fight ended a Sept. 15 Keep Sedona Beautiful meeting when two people disagreed on turning the 10,000 acres in Sedona into a national monument. In October, Sedona council rejected the prospect 6-1.
■ Dec. 6 marked the fourth suicide in 13 weeks off the Midgley Bridge. This prompted months of discussions and pleas for state help with the issue, resulting in fencing along the bridge.
2016
■ In February, former Arizona Cardinals’ cheerleader Emily Grimm sued the VOC for injuries from when she was struck by a tent blown into her by a gust of wind during an appearance at Family Fun Day.
■ A BASE jumper plunged off Courthouse Butte, north of the VOC, soaring for a minute before landing safely on the ground by Bell Rock.
■ The L’Auberge de Sedona resort was found to be finishing more than $1 million in major renovations. The work was done without any permits, a violation of city code. On March 3, a stop work order was issued.
■ The SOCSD Governing Board voted 5-0 to not close Big Park Community School, but voted 4-1 to move all seventh and eighth graders to SRRHS and create a new junior high.
■ The VOC becomes the 14th community in the world to become International Dark Sky compliant, following in Sedona’s footsteps.
■ In contradictory acts in April, the SOCSD governing board laid off a handful of employees in order to save money, but approved raises for teachers and administrators.
■ A VOC fire left 11 family members homeless.
■ In June, a 10-car pileup killed one person and sent five others to the Flagstaff Medical Center, causing delays for hours on Oak Creek Canyon.
■ The Sedona Fire District purchased a new $600,000 fire engine.
■ Arizona Senate Bill 1350 was passed, allowing for short-term rentals throughout the state. They were previously banned in, Sedona, Jerome, Tucson and Bisbee.
■ In July, a 46-year-old man was arrested after barricading himself in his car on SR 179 and threatening to shoot “as many people as he needed to.”
■ On Sept. 24, Tlaque-paque North held its grand opening.
■ David McGill became the city police chief.
■ In November, the Uptown Pedestrian Walkway was completed after two years of delays. Kinney Construction completed it for $1.05 million.
■ A CVS store opened on the 5.2-acre corner of SR 89 and Airport Road after years of contentions between locals, city council and the developers.
2017
■ On Jan. 6, just hours after the Sedona Fire District performed a swift-water rescue drill, SFD crews were called to assist the Copper Canyon District with the real thing, rescuing three individuals who were stranded in their vehicle at Beaver Creek.
■ On Jan. 12, a rabid bobcat attacked four people within 2.5 miles of each other in separate incidents. The bobcat was killed.
■ The day after Donald Trump was inaugurated on Jan. 21, more than 1,000 marchers walked in West Sedona in “peaceful unity” while the Women’s March on Washington, D.C., occurred.
■ Starting in March, SR 89A closed nightly for eight months in order to widen 8.4 miles of the highway.
■ On the evening of April 3, high winds left 13,000 people without power. Gusts hit 55 mph at Sedona airport.
■ On June 20, there was a propane explosion due to an incident with a hot air balloon company’s gas tanks. An unoccupied hot air balloon, vehicle and tree caught on fire.
■ On June 28, 101 paid parking spaces on SR 89A in Uptown became operational after a deal with area businesses.
■ On Sept. 2, a toddler fell to his death at Midgley Bridge.
■ Several injured Japanese women were airlifted from Bell Rock.
■ On Oct. 9, two teens were charged with arson and burglary after more than two dozen fires were reported at and near West Sedona School, causing an estimated $25,000 worth of damage.
■ In November, voters reject the Sedona Fire District’s proposed $17.9 million bond to rebuild two stations and renovate others.
■ The Sedona Dog Park reopened on Nov. 18 after a 2-month closure for $250,000 worth of renovations.
■ In December, the Sedona Northern Lights Show 3D drew thousands of people to Uptown. Resorts and restaurants reported they were at full capacity in what is normally a slow part of the year.
2018
■ After a Jan. 5 traffic incident, a U.S. Forest Service police officer fatally shot 51-year-old Tyler W. Miller, of Kansas. No drugs were in Miller’s system, but he had been acting erratically and was reportedly suicidal, according to his family.
■ In March, a rollover involving an area Jeep tour company sent three to the hospital.
■ The city launched the Sedona in Motion traffic improvement campaign.
■ In April, FBI agents raided the VOC home of Michael Lacey, founder of the Phoenix New Times newspaper and founder and owner of backpage.com. Lacey and seven others were indicted for conspiracy, 50 counts of facilitating prostitution, human trafficking and child sex trafficking via the website in addition to 40 counts of money laundering.
■ Red for Ed caused educators across the state to walk out, demanding higher wages. SOCSD schools closed for several days.
■ On April 11, Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey signed Sedona-based State Bill 1382, which required all online lodging market places to remit taxes for short-term rentals.
■ On May 1, the SOCSD governing board finally agreed to close Big Park Community School in response to the $1.5 million deficit for the school year.
■ On July 17, Arizona State Sen. Judy Burges [R-District 22] filed a Senate Bill 1487 complaint with the Attorney General’s office alleging the city had violated the Arizona Constitution through a contract the city had with the Sedona Chamber of Commerce and Tourism Board. It was found that Arizona Rep. Bob Thorpe [R-District 6] was behind the complaint, though he denied it.
■ The Platypus and Rhino fires began burning July 27, filling the city with smoke. A total of 5,744 acres were burned until heavy monsoon rains in September put them out.
■ U.S. Sen. John McCain [R-Arizona], who represented Arizona, died Aug. 25 from a brain tumor. Former U.S. Sen. Jon Kyl was appointed by Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey to fill McCain’s seat until the 2020 election. However, Kyl resigned shortly after the 2018 election, and Ducey appointed U.S. Rep. Martha McSally, who had just been defeated by U.S. Rep. Krysten Sinema to fill outgoing U.S. Sen. Jeff Flake’s seat.
■ On Sept. 5, a former Sedona couple was charged federally with 15 counts of fraud and conspiracy for allegedly defrauding investors of $5 million over 12 years.
■ Sedona City Council gave approval on Oct. 11 to allow residents to have chickens and beehives on their property.
■ In November, Sandy Moriarty won reelection to her third two-year term as Sedona’s mayor. She won over 53% of the vote, defeating two opponents.
■ The U.S. Forest Service removed “no drone zone” signs near the airport after it was found that the airport did not have authority to put them up.
■ On Dec. 19 a small plane crashed and caught fire at the Sedona airport. Three occupants were unharmed, and the SFD cooled the plane’s equipment to keep it from igniting further.
2019
■ The 2018-19 Sedona Red Rock Junior High School girls basketball team ended its regular season undefeated at 21-0.
■ From Feb. 20 to 22, West Sedona received 14 inches of snow and the east side of Sedona received 15 to 18 inches.
■ In March, an alleged sexual misconduct scandal became public after a video showed that a Sedona Red Rock High School staff member patted a student on the rear during an athletic competition in Nov. 2018.
■ By a rare 4-3 vote, the Sedona City Council approved the Sunset Community Focus Area on April 9. With the approval, commercial and residential buildings could be four stories high in the area.
■ On Aug. 20, the Arizona Attorney General’s Office cleared the city of Sedona of any wrongdoing regarding funding to the Sedona Chamber of Commerce.
■ The Sedona Police Department placed Sedona Red Rock High School on lockdown for almost an hour on Aug. 29 after former student Thomas William Zielinski, 19, was said to have been seen near the school with a gun. Zielinski returned to the school and was charged with multiple weapons felonies.
■ In September, former Sedona massage therapist Aaron Frank Orrico, 48, was ordered to pay $4.93 million after a jury found him guilty of alleged sexual misconduct against two women.
■ A professional service contract was awarded for design of the State Route 179 pedestrian crossing at Tlaquepaque for $297,099.
■ A federal grand jury in Iowa indicted a Sedona area teacher on Sept. 19 for vandalism and arson along the Dakota Access Pipeline in 2016 and 2017.
■ In October, the Sedona Police Department arrested 41-year-old Timothy Larson on charges of aggravated criminal damage, disorderly conduct, possession of stolen property, trespassing and possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia for vandalizing the Chapel of the Holy Cross in front of dozens of witnesses.
■ A state grand jury indicted Celestia “Celest” Ziemkowski, the former business manager for Valley Academy for Career and Technical Education, on charges of fraudulent schemes and artifices, violation of duties of a custodian on public monies, fraudulent schemes and practices, theft, forgery and computer tampering for allegedly using her position to steal approximately $30,500 of VACTE funds.
■ In November, there was a bomb scare at a Village of Oak Creek bank and nearby businesses were evacuated. Michael Willis Chase, 48, was charged with misconduct regarding a simulated explosive device, terrorist threats, false reporting and vandalism.
■ The Yavapai County Planning and Zoning Commission voted 5-4 on Dec. 19 to recommend denial of the Spring Creek Ranch rezoning proposal.
■ On Dec. 31, Ramsey’s Rocks and Minerals closed its door after 70 years in Sedona. Many other long-running Sedona businesses also announced their closure in 2019.
Alexandra Wittenberg
Larson Newspapers
