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Landmark day • Tuesday, November 7, 1967

November 7, 1967: Scottsdale Rewrites Its Charter

Six years after adopting its charter, the boomtown rewrites it: longer terms, a staggered council, and the legal power to keep Indian Bend Wash open and plan the city.

Illustrated plaque for November 7, 1967 in Scottsdale history SALOON TRADING POST MOTEL NOVEMBER 7 1967 BOOMTOWN

What happened

At a special election on November 7, 1967, Scottsdale voters approved all six charter amendments the council had placed on the ballot by Ordinance 350 on September 19. They lengthened the mayor's and council members' terms from two years to four and staggered the council seats; gave the city express power to designate floodways and to adopt a comprehensive plan with zoning and subdivision rules; let the mayor govern by proclamation during a riot; dropped the rule that city employees live in the city; required ordinances to be posted 24 hours before a vote; and changed how a primary majority was counted. Mayor Bud Tims certified the results on November 27, and Governor Jack Williams approved them in January 1968.

Why it matters

Every Scottsdale election since 1968 has been run on four-year staggered terms, which is why three council seats, and every fourth year the mayor's, are on the ballot at a time. The floodway and general-plan powers gave the city the legal footing for the Indian Bend Wash Greenbelt and for the planning that followed.

Six years in

Scottsdale’s council-manager charter of 1961 had given the mayor and council two-year terms, and the city had worn out five mayors in seven years. By 1967 it had a general plan, adopted that July, a citizen-planning program asking for more, and a flood channel fight in Indian Bend Wash that the city meant to win. On September 19 the council adopted Ordinance 350 putting six charter amendments on a special election ballot for November 7, 1967. The city’s 1969 STEP report later counted “the revised City Charter” among the program’s accomplishments.

What voters approved

All six questions passed:

  1. New powers for the city. The power “to designate and establish as floodways or flood plains, areas of land within the boundaries of the City … and prevent and prohibit encroachments and obstructions” in them; the power “to adopt and may from time to time modify, a comprehensive plan of the future physical development of the City,” with an official map and zoning and subdivision rules; and powers over liens, notices, streets, agreements with other governments and utility rates.
  2. Four-year terms. The mayor’s term went from two years to four, and council terms became four years, staggered so that half the seats come up every two years. In 1968 six council seats were elected at once, and the three top vote-getters took four-year terms.
  3. Emergency powers. The mayor could govern the city by proclamation in times of riot or civil insurrection.
  4. Residency. City employees no longer had to live in the city, though its officers still did.
  5. Posting. Ordinances and resolutions had to be posted 24 hours before the meeting, and no longer had to be read aloud.
  6. Primaries. A primary majority was counted on “ballots cast” rather than “votes cast.”

Mayor Bud Tims signed the authentication of the amendments on November 27, 1967, attested by City Clerk Fern Anderson, and Governor Jack Williams approved them in January 1968.

What it changed

The term change is the one residents still meet at every city election: since 1968 Scottsdale has elected three council members at a time, and its mayor every four years, under the rules adopted this day. The new powers mattered as much. The floodway clause gave the city the authority to keep building out of Indian Bend Wash while it argued with the Corps of Engineers over a concrete channel, the fight told on the greenbelt fight page, and the general-plan clause put the city’s planning into its constitution. The charter guide explains how the charter works today, and the 1960s politics chapter tells the rest of the decade.

Gaps in the record

  • The vote count and turnout (the canvass, Resolution 603, is not online).
  • Who drafted the amendments. The city’s records mention a charter review committee in 1966, and the 1969 STEP report credits the citizen-planning program, but no drafting record was found.
  • Whether anyone campaigned against any of the six questions.