Op-Ed by Amber Smith and Jim Marian
Dream with us for a moment. Imagine a future when every time a major pro-growth or pro-development issue is before the City Council or Board of Supervisors a group of individual citizens from the real estate community speak in strong favor of the issue? Would the Broadway corridor already be under construction? Would more rezoning be approved quicker in a less political environment? Would we have a downtown arena?
Currently this is a dream because almost all of us are not engaged and certainly not in an organized fashion. While we have an overabundance of real estate groups (MPA, PCRERC, CCIM, BOMA, TAR, CREW, SAHBA, ABA, ATB etc.) that represent thousands of employees, our political leaders still want more from us. Having a “paid gun” stand up and speak on behalf of their membership doesn’t hold the same power as the head of an HOA speaking on behalf of their neighborhood. Ask our Political Leaders. They will tell you that many times, we are not at the table and all they hear is from are the residents which we refer to as no-growthers and NIMBYs. While this is factually untrue, we must change the perception.
There are constant calls for assistance to show up and attend on important matters by the aforementioned groups, but so often the request is ignored and the same players remain engaged. We refuse to believe that the vast majority of the Real Estate Community…that’s YOU… simply do not care. Rather, we believe our consistent lack of involvement is a result of the following:
- We do not pay attention to issues until after the fact.
- We are too busy to consistently study the issues and keep up with them.
- We do not believe a single individual’s involvement will have an impact.
- We believe others are working on the issue.
This Real Estate and Business Industry Coalition is being formed to address all three of these concerns. Here’s how;
-The Coalition will keep track of public hearings that directly impact growth and jobs.
-The Coalition will provide project summaries and suggest talking points to be made at hearings.
-The Coalition, with coordinated support of real estate trade associations and trade professionals, will organize and immobilize the support needed for a given hearing.
We sincerely believe that this organized effort will have a significant and positive impact on future hearings and growth related issues IF YOU MAKE THE CHOICE TO BECOME INVOLVED TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE.
As you read this article, real estate trade associations have already been contacted to illicit support. Support will include both participation and funding necessary to execute our plan. It is our hope that an army of volunteers will sign up if individuals know up front that they will only be asked to attend just a few hearings per year and are armed with the tools necessary TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE.
Members will be asked to speak as individual citizens and not as a representative of any group. And of course, our plan will need to be fine tuned with input from those involved. Additionally, this is your opportunity to also help improve policies that impact you- Education drives advocacy. This is a two-prong approach. While a coordinated effort is important to achieve our goals, we must also offer to support our trade associations when they need it because they are the ones that get in the weeds and help craft solutions to create overarching public policy changes and process efficiencies. Not only are we taking a stand to express that the real estate industry is present and loud, we must also offer solutions to problems and issues we identify. Help us educate our elected bodies.
Are you happy with the status quo? If so, please stop complaining about how things are. If not, please consider joining us so that we can BE HEARD AND MAKE A DIFFERENCE.
Amber Smith is the Executive Director of Metropolitan Pima Alliance. Her goal is to lead the organization in advocating for equitable land use policies within the Pima County region. She can be reached at amber@mpaaz.org
James B. Marian, CCIM, is Designated Broker for Chapman Lindsey Commercial Real Estate Services LLC. He has been a land broker for 28 years. Jim is the current President of the Board of Pima County Real Estate Research
Council and is an active member of Arizona Association of Realtors Professional Standards Committee. Jim can be reached at (520) 622-8864 ext. 106 or via email at jbm@chapmanlindsey.com.