Good morning, Gilbert. Last full week before Memorial Day.
🛒 Target rezoning at Higley and Ocotillo nears a decision. Back before town council this week after rounds of contested hearings. Details.
⚖️ EVIT funding lawsuit, partial ruling. Maricopa County judge weighs in on the career-tech fight that touches GPS and HUSD students. Details.
🦷 Gilbert orthodontist providing free braces. Dr. Nate Larsen's practice covering dozens of Valley kids through a national nonprofit. Details.
🎓 Higley High senior graduation practice Tuesday. 6 AM in the auxiliary gym. Mandatory for all seniors. Details.
🎸 Around the Valley. Mac McAnally at MIM, Mercury hosting Toronto's first WNBA team, plus a Hungarian chiptune-metal set in Mesa. Details.
The Target at Higley and Ocotillo
The proposed Target store at Higley and Ocotillo, contested by neighbors since the application surfaced, is heading back to the Town of Gilbert this week for what the Sun News reports could be a final council decision.
Key facts:
- Location: Higley and Ocotillo, southeast Gilbert. Higley is a major north-south arterial through Power Ranch, Layton Lakes, and Cooley Station. Ocotillo runs the southern band of town east to west.
- Applicant: GB Investments Inc, represented by Pew & Lake.
- The ask: a rezoning that would allow a Target store on the parcel.
- The opposition: nearby residents who have organized against the case across prior hearings.
- What's next: a public hearing on town council's docket.
The case is one of the more visible commercial rezonings southeast Gilbert has seen this cycle. It pits a regional retailer's interest in a high-traffic arterial corner against established neighbors who say the parcel was developed with a different scale in mind. Town council convenes Tuesday at 6:30 PM at Town Hall, and the formal agenda is posted in the OnBase Agenda Online system before the meeting.
What to watch: the Sun News write-up has the backstory and which way the case appears to be leaning. Read the full story. Council agenda lives here.
The week
A library-heavy week between Perry and Southeast Regional, with Tuesday's town council meeting as the civic anchor.
Monday, May 18
Tuesday, May 19
- 👶 Toddler Storytime at Perry. 10:15 AM. Drop-in. Details.
- 👨👩👧 Family Storytime at Perry. 11:15 AM. Drop-in. Details.
- 📚 Historical Fiction Book Club, Southeast Regional. 2 PM. Adults. Ticket required. Details.
- ✂️ Collage Club for adults, Southeast Regional. 6 PM. Ticket required. Details.
- 🏛️ Town council regular meeting. 6:30 PM at Town Hall. Agenda.
Wednesday, May 20
- 🔬 Full STEAM Ahead at Perry. 4 PM. Youth, tweens, and families. Details.
Around Gilbert
⚖️ Maricopa County judge issues partial ruling in EVIT funding lawsuit. The East Valley Institute of Technology's suit against Arizona public school districts over career-and-technical-education funding drew a partial ruling out of Maricopa County Superior Court late last week. EVIT operates as a regional joint-technical-education district, partnering with East Valley high school districts (including Gilbert Public Schools and Higley Unified) to deliver career-and-technical programs to high school juniors and seniors. The outcome of the broader case could shape how Arizona allocates that funding between member districts and JTEDs like EVIT going forward. Sun News has the ruling breakdown.
🦷 Gilbert orthodontist providing free braces through a national nonprofit. Dr. Nate Larsen runs a private orthodontic practice in Gilbert and has been quietly covering free orthodontic care for Valley kids whose families can't afford it. Not a corporate chain, not private-equity-backed. A reader flagged the story on r/Gilbert this weekend; ABC15 covered it earlier in May. The kind of item that's easy to miss in the regular news cycle. ABC15's piece.
From the schools
🎓 Higley High senior graduation practice, Tuesday morning. Higley Unified (the district covering southeast Gilbert) holds mandatory graduation practice for all Higley High School seniors Tuesday, May 19 at 6 AM in the auxiliary gym. Address is 4068 E Pecos Rd. Required to participate in commencement later in the week. School calendar.
Around the Valley
A few picks worth a drive this week, closest first.
💾 Master Boot Record at The Rosetta Room. Mesa. Tuesday, 7 PM. Hungarian chiptune-meets-metal in a small Mesa room, the closest of the week's bigger picks. An unusual one. Tickets.
🎸 Mac McAnally at MIM Music Theater. Phoenix. Tuesday, 7 PM. Ten-time ACM Musician of the Year and longtime Jimmy Buffett collaborator. MIM is the right room for a songwriter set. Tickets.
🏀 Phoenix Mercury vs. Toronto Tempo. Mortgage Matchup Center. Tuesday, 7 PM. Toronto's first WNBA franchise is in its inaugural season; Phoenix sees them only twice all year. Tickets.
🎤 Demi Lovato at Desert Diamond Arena. Glendale. Tuesday, 8 PM. A drive from the southeast side, but the room is the room. Tickets.
Back Thursday with the weekend look-ahead.