City of Mesa, Arizona

• City Services
• Things To Do
• Business
• City Hall
• Jobs

Boards and Committees

• US Conference of Mayors, Vice President
• US Conference of Mayors, Board of Trustees (Executive Committee)
• US Conference of Mayors, Finance and Audit Committee
• National League of Cities Transportation Infrastructure & Services Policy and Advocacy Committee
• Department of Homeland Security Regional Advisory Council (Appointed by Governor Janice K. Brewer)
• Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport Board, Director
• Maricopa Association of Governments, Vice Chair
• Maricopa Association of Governments, Regional Council Executive Committee
• Maricopa Association of Governments, Economic Development Committee
• Maricopa Association of Governments, Transportation Policy Committee (Former Chair)
• League of Arizona Cities and Towns, Executive Board
• AT Still University Advisory Council
• Interstate-11 Coalition Board of Directors

Accomplishments

• Mayor Smith is Vice President of the Unitied States Conference of Mayors. He will become the organization's president in 2013. He will be the first Arizona mayor to serve as president of the organization.
  
  
• Ran unopposed in his bid for re-election for Mayor and will begin his second term in January 2013.
  
  
• Spearheaded the recruitment of five liberal arts colleges to Mesa. Bendictine University, Westminster College, Albright University, Wilkes University and Upper Iowa University.
  
  
• Announced StartUpMesa, an innovative initiative to make Mesa the most business-friendly city in America. StartUpMesa expands collaboration between business and government, empowers and strengthens small business, expands access to capital, provides entrepreneurship education and removes barriers to success.
  
  
• Played a key role in securing the Mesa Arts Center for the February 22 GOP Presidential Debate by giving CNN producers a personal tour of the state-of-the-art facility. The event brought national recognition to Mesa.
  
  
• Had a significant role in the Air Force Research Lab (AFRL) agreement, which allows Mesa to lease the facility and eventually own it while maintaining its highly classified status. The AFRL site is the only such secured facility in Arizona and is one of just a handful in the United States. The facility will build a foundation for a true statewide effort in aerospace research and development, acting as a magnet for collaboration between Arizona's aerospace companies and college programs.
  
  
• Championed iMesa, a cutting-edge civic engagement initiative. Leveraging crowdsourcing technology, iMesa is a grassroots improvement effort where residents submit, vote, comment on, and process ideas that will transform the community. iMesa has been internationally recognized for innovation in civic engagement. In the November 6, 2012 election, Mesa residents passed a $70 million bond to fund city-wide parks and recreation projects that derived from the iMesa process.
  
  

• Implements the HEAT initiative (Healthcare, Education, Aerospace, Tourism and Technology), which has provided Mesa with economic development direction and focus that has lead to many successful efforts.
  

• Hits a grand slam in November 2010 when Mesa voters pass Proposition 420 by a 2-1 margin, allowing the City of Mesa to move forward with building a new Chicago Cubs Spring Training facility. Voters also passed a Bed Tax, Home Rule and Utility Bonds in the election.
  
  
• Receives the 2010 Harris Wofford Award for Public Officials, recommended by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg's office, for his Mayor's Youth Summer of Service program. This award is the highest honor Youth Service America gives each year and it carries significant prestige since it is presented in honor of one of our nation's greatest public servants. The Harris Wofford Award was created to honor those who do extraordinary work towards achieving Senator Wofford's vision of making service and service-learning the common expectation and common experience of every young person in America.
  
  
• Met with Federal Transit Administration Chief Peter Rogoff in Washington D.C. to discuss the Central Mesa Light Rail Transit Extension through Mesa's downtown. The Central Mesa Light Rail Transit Extension is the first light rail project in the country to submit an application with the federal Small Starts program. Under the Small Starts program, the federal government provides up to $75 million in funding for the project. The remainder of the projected $230 million cost of the extension will be paid for with Proposition 400 funds, which were approved by voters in 2004.
  
  
• In a forum sponsored by the Brookings Institute Metropolitan Policy Program and the National League of Cities, Mayor Smith was a panelist along with Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter, San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed and Bowling Green Mayor Elaine Walker in Washington, DC to discuss the impacts of the economy on local governments. 
  
  
• Hosted a new series of public town-hall style meetings titled, "A Conversation with the Community." Residents engaged in open dialogue with the Mayor to discuss City topics and neighborhood issues.
  
  
• Exactly one year after speaking at the Brookings Institution's Mountain Megas conference, Mayor Smith returned to Denver for the Mayors' Institute on City Design. Smith joined mayors from cities such as Las Vegas, Sacramento, Boise and Santa Fe. The Mayors' Institute on City Design is sponsored by the United States Conference of Mayors, the American Architectural Foundation and the National Endowment of the Arts.
  
  
• Elected by fellow mayors from across the country to serve on the Advisory Board of the United States Conference of Mayors (USCM), the leading organization of 1,200 large cities. Eleven mayors were elected to the 25 member Advisory Board. New leadership was elected during the annual conference where local leaders came together to discuss and debate policy issues that impact urban America and metropolitan areas.
  
  
• Appointed to the League of Arizona Cities and Towns Executive Committee consisting of 25 mayors and councilmembers from across the State. The League of Arizona Cities and Towns provides an important link among the 90 incorporated cities and towns in Arizona representing collective interests at the State Legislature and providing timely information on important municipal issues.
  
  
• Building America's Future Co-chairs Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger (CA), Governor Ed Rendell (PA), and Mayor Michael Bloomberg (NYC), welcome Mayor Smith as a member of the bipartisan, national infrastructure coalition comprised of state and locally elected officials to help secure a renewed federal commitment to infrastructure. Building America's Future is dedicated to smart infrastructure investment - energy systems, roads and bridges, mass transit, water and sewer systems, rail, ports, airports, levees and dams, schools and housing - to enhance the quality of life and safety of our communities, create jobs, and promote energy independence.
  
  
• Appointed to serve on the NLC Transportation Infrastructure & Services (TIS) Policy and Advocacy Committee. The Committee, consisting of mayors and council members from across the country, serves in a policy and advocacy role to the League's Board of Directors. Recommendations from the committee go to the League's entire membership for approval and inclusion in NLC's National Municipal Policy (NMP), a collection of position statements on a variety of issues with immediate and long-term implications for the nation's cities and towns.
  
  
• Met with President Barack Obama at Dobson High School and discussed the effect of foreclosures on local governments and the real estate market in the Phoenix-metro area. The Mayor aslo met with the President again at the White House to continue the discussion about issues facing our nation's cities.