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November 17, 2000/Heshvan 19, 5761, Vol. 53, No.8
Beyond the drawing board
Community campus task force poised for fund-raising push
BARRY COHEN
Community Editor
Artist's rendering of the east elevation of the Ina Levine Jewish Community Campus, viewing the structure westward toward Scottsdale Road.
Courtesy of Langdon Wilson Architecture |
As the U.S. presidential race grinds laboriously toward conclusion, its outcome still in doubt, a Valley campaign remains in full swing. Yet its supporters say they've known from the start how it will end.
In the spring of 1999, a Jewish community campus task force began raising funds for a Jewish community campus in Scottsdale, now named the Ina Levine Jewish Community Campus. On Sept. 12 the task force launched a 100-day campaign to raise the remaining $3 million to achieve a $25 million goal. Fund-raisers are aiming for $50,000 in pledges every day until the end of the year.
"I am very confident we will hit our goal," says Ron Bookbinder, task force chairman.
When the fundraising began 20 months ago, the Jewish Federation of Greater Phoenix made a commitment to break ground only with the building paid off, to avoid not having to borrow money to make up the difference between pledges made and remaining costs.
According to Lanny Lahr, president of the federation, $22,150,000 has been raised. "It has been pretty good," says Lahr. "I'm not going to say 'gangbusters.'"
Federation leaders are in the midst of final efforts to close the gap before beginning construction of the 114,000-square-foot structure at the corner of Sweetwater Avenue and Scottsdale Road that will house the federation; the Valley of the Sun Jewish Community Center, including a preschool; the Bureau of Jewish Education; the Council for Jews with Special Needs; satellite classrooms for the Phoenix Hebrew Academy; and the Jewish Community Foundation.
The campus will also include a fitness center, gymnasium, senior center, meeting rooms, a swimming pool, and baseball, softball and soccer fields.
Facilities for The King David School and the Jess Schwartz Community High School are slated for future construction.
Fund-raisers face Catch-22
People do not want to contribute until they are certain the building will be constructed, says Lahr. "They won't give money until they see dirt being moved ... but we can't move dirt until we see $2 million."
It's a kind of Catch-22.
Lahr stresses the efforts campaign leaders have made to contact the community: parlor meetings, telemarketing and mass mailings. Leaders are planning a late-November telethon to reach as many families as they can.
"It's impossible to contact 100,000 Jews," he stresses.
Fred Zeidman, federation assistant executive director, says that in October, officials mailed 20,000 copies of "The Campus Connection," a newsletter. It included floor plans, major donor-naming opportunities and messages from Bookbinder, Lahr and Steve Hilton, chairman of the Jewish community campus task force design committee.
He notes that federation published advertising information on the community campus in "Community Directory 2001," a publication of Jewish News of Greater Phoenix.
"We have organized a new team of solicitors ... and are looking for gifts at every level," says Pamela White, director of the capital campaign for the community campus. "The time is now to give," she stresses.
How many have given?
According to Lahr, some 900 financial pledges have been made to date.
"I never thought we would have less than 2,000 (contributors)," he says. He notes a "tremendous apathy" in the community, but attributes it to the fact that family roots have not sunk deeply enough. Unlike in established communities in the East or Midwest, the majority of families have not been here for generations.
He says national trends show Jewish communities would rather give money to foster local institutions, rather than national or international causes.
"But on a positive note, there is the tremendous commitment of the 900 Jews who have contributed," he adds.
Gifts of any size are accepted, but for a gift $1,000 or over, the contributor will be recognized on a wall of honor, says Bookbinder. At the time this feature was written, there had been 46 contributions over $50,000 and five contributions of $1 million or over.
Lahr expressed hope that local families will invest in the Jewish community for their children and grandchildren, in a center where families and children play, learn, make friendships and build memories.
Meetings go smoothly
In addition to reaching out to the Valley Jewish community, campaign leaders have made a concerted effort to forge a connection with the Scottsdale-Sweetwater neighborhood.
"We want to have a partnership with the neighbors," says Zeidman.
On Oct. 5 and 12, campus leaders met with neighbors in the Sweetwater-Scottsdale community adjacent to the proposed community campus. The meetings were required by the city of Scottsdale.
Zeidman characterized the get-togethers as positive. "We did not focus on 'you' vs. 'me,'" he adds.
The neighbors' primary concerns have been twofold - traffic and lighting - says Alan Ward, senior planner for Scottsdale's community development planning system.
Thus, a "traffic mitigation plan" has been developed to address the increased flow of automobiles the community campus would produce. Ward explains the plan requires vehicles to turn east onto Sweetwater Avenue from Scottsdale Road and south into the campus; cars will not be allowed to turn south into the campus when traveling west on Sweetwater Avenue, or to turn east onto Sweetwater Avenue when leaving the campus.
The goal is to control traffic flow entering and exiting the neighborhood adjacent to the community campus.
Dr. Richard Dobrusin, a member of the neighborhood committee and board member of the Jewish Community Center, cites statistics that 5,000 cars per day travel on Sweetwater Avenue. Visitors will make an estimated 4,000 trips a day to the Ina Levine Community Campus; it is predicted 20 percent to 25 percent will use Sweetwater Avenue. Per day, Dobrusin says, traffic will increase around 20 percent.
"This does not seem like a significant increase," he adds.
Neighbors' other concern, lighting, has been addressed in a high-tech fashion. Owners of nearby homes are worried about "light trespass," light escaping from the 50-75-foot towers on the campus' ball fields, Ward says.
Shielded spotlights and light meters will be installed, to illuminate contained areas.
"It's quite scientific," he adds.
"We have worked so hard to ensure we will be good neighbors," says Bookbinder.
Zeidman says officials may schedule two additional meetings in late November, one with a small working group and another inviting all neighborhood residents.
The meetings would be scheduled in advance of a hearing with the city of Scottsdale's development review board on Dec. 7, to review the site plan, along with the building elevation, construction materials and automobile and pedestrian traffic plans.
Ward does not anticipate problems in approval but says "there is always potential for these."
The Dec. 7 meeting will take place at Scottsdale City Hall, 3939 Drinkwater Blvd., in the Kiva, at 1:00 p.m., says Eva Wallace, secretary of community development.
Jewish community meetings?
Meetings are not currently set for the general Jewish community to review the campus project and ask questions, Lahr and Zeidman say.
Bookbinder says first the task force needs to receive final approval of the building design and make final architectural drawings.
Campus leaders see construction of the building as a way to energize and rally the Jewish community. Bookbinder says he looks forward to the groundbreaking, now scheduled for June, as a way to excite Valley Jews.
"This is not about money but about the central address of the Jewish community," Bookbinder says. "You need to see an investment to sell it."
He expects the step-by-step construction of the campus will help Valley Jews imagine themselves as part of the community campus' legacy.
Zeidman adds that with a constructed building, people can see what will be located there and why they should pay a visit and take advantage of it.
What timetable to expect
At the Dec. 7 development review board meeting, Ward explains, the community campus architectural design will be approved, continued or denied. A continuation would mean questions were raised that community campus staff could not immediately answer, but would research and submit answers at a review board meeting in late December or early January.
Once approved, the final plan review process is expected to take eight to 12 weeks. Jon Chase, development quality compliance director, says his office needs that much time to consider "the various and sundry requirements in the city code for construction," such as wiring, zoning and fire codes.
A building permit would be issued about two weeks after completion of that process.
Ward says it is prudent to expect the process to take an additional six weeks, affirming Bookbinder's expectation that construction would not begin until June.
"You're not on your timetable. You're on (the city of Scottsdale's) timetable," says Bookbinder. "There's no hurry. When we get it right, that's when we'll break ground."
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