Cave Creek voters choose among 8 candidates for 6 council seats. What to know

Residents of Cave Creek will be voting between eight candidates on who will win six Town Council seats in the July 30 election.

Cave Creek voters will be choosing between four incumbent candidates and four newcomers, so the new panel will have at least two fresh faces.

Incumbents Tom Augherton, Dusty Rhoades, Thomas McGuire and Kathryn Royer face challenges from Cynthia Driskell, Joe Freedman, Julie Goldammer and Alex Nadesan. All of the candidates spelled out their ideas in response to the Arizona Republic's candidate questionnaire.

This election comes at a time when the city faces issues on water, reducing congestion of traffic and providing more parking.

Voters will have to decide between candidates who oppose one another regarding a current city ordinance governing mayoral powers and plans to fix water issues.

Arizona election: Read our full coverage of the Cave Creek council race

Early voting began July 3. Voters can check on the status of their mailed-in ballot on Maricopa County’s website at https://elections.maricopa.gov/voting/voter-dashboard-login. Those who choose to vote by mail are advised to mail their ballot by July 23 or drop it off at a ballot drop-off location or voting location by July 30.

Who is running for City Council for Cave Creek?

Augherton, 69, has worked for the state of Arizona for 40 years in legislative affairs for both the private and public sectors. He has served on the planning and zoning commission and the town council. Augherton was the first elected mayor of Cave Creek and is currently a town councilman.

Driskell, 67, has served three years on the Cave Creek Planning Commission and is the owner of Carefree Physical Therapy.

Freedman, 66, is a retired sports marketing professional who has worked with Arizona State University, the University of Arizona, the Phoenix Suns and the Fiesta Bowl. He has lived in Cave Creek since 2001.

Goldammer, 59, has a background in corporate and small businesses, including engineering, real estate and local advocacy.

McGuire, 79, is a current member of the Town Council. He has lived in Cave Creek for 24 years and is a retired educator. He has been active with the Cave Creek Museum, the Spur Cross Ranch Conservation area and the Desert Foothills land trust.

Nadesan, 60, is a former infantry officer and a U.S. Army veteran. He is also an entrepreneur and former business owner. He has served on the water advisory committee and was the board chair of the Holland Center. He was also an assistant regional coordinator for the Arizona Site Steward program.

Rhoades, 43, has been a resident of Cave Creek since 2017 and is a retired Colonel U.S. Marine Corps. He is part owner of an IT consulting firm.

Royer, 67, was elected to the Cave Creek Town Council in 2018 and has served as vice mayor since 2022. Royer was an associate general manager of communications and public affairs for the Central Arizona Project in Phoenix for 20 years.

What are Cave Creek candidates' ideas on improving traffic and parking congestion?

Augherton said there has been discussion about formalizing an annual discussion on the commercial corridor to see if there are long-term projects that could be funded on a periodic basis.

He wants to plan discussions around incorporating a consistent walking surface and putting in street lights while pushing for gas lights.

Driskell believes it’s important to have a good circulation plan and adequate parking for all special events. She said safe corridors should be implemented as well as lighted crosswalks for pedestrian traffic.

She thinks having adequate parking is necessary whether that means incorporating shared arrangements with multiple businesses or creating new town-sponsored properties that afford better parking would be beneficial.

Freedman has spoken to businesses such as Harold’s and Hideaway and has come to realize parking is an issue that needs to be addressed soon. He believes the town needs to examine any potential area and come up with a plan to acquire land for parking.

Goldammer suggests looking at other places that have systems that work for them when it comes to parking. A system she thinks they could use is a shuttle system like they have for the Phoenix Open.

McGuire recognizes that Cave Creek is a tourist town and that parking will be an issue. He believes businesses should work with the town to resolve the parking issue.

Nadesan says this is just another problem to solve and in order to solve it the town must come up with some options that will also engage the business community. He said whatever the options are he wants businesses to thrive in the end.

Rhoades thinks the city needs to look into buying a piece of property and building a parking structure to address this issue.

Royer says the council has been looking at ways to deal with parking such as trading some parcels and other options that would not cost them any money. She also thinks it’s important to work with merchants on resolving the parking situation.

What are candidates' positions on putting items on council agendas?

Driskell thinks the control of the agenda should stay with the mayor and the town manager, and if two council members want to bring an item forward, that is reasonable consideration to talk among colleagues.

Freedman is not in favor of the mayor having control of what goes on the agenda and believes if two council members were to propose an item on the agenda that should be fine.

Nadesan is not against the current ordinance and believes it leads to more collaboration amongst the council.

Goldammer thinks it should be a collaborative approach, but the council should be able to vote on it.

Royer says she never had a problem getting an item on the agenda.

McGuire thinks the existing system works well and believes it’s important to work with the mayor and the other council members.

Augherton believes the purpose of a strong mayor is to be a leader in council and committee matters. He does not find any issues with the current ordinance.

Rhoades believes every council member should have an opportunity to put items on the agenda. He states each member on council, including the mayor, has heard from different groups of people with different interests and if they don’t hear from all of those different interests they are missing out.

What are hopefuls' thoughts about future water availability?

Driskell knows that water will be one of their most important issues and must be taken care of with budgeting early and often.

She said Cave Creek must pay attention to those who are on wells and septic tanks because, at some point, their aquifer may not be adequate to support all the wells currently in place. Driskell wants to work on building the water infrastructure across the whole town.

Rhoades said the town needs to look at groundwater and see what it can do with the Salt River Project and the Bartlett Dam. He does not think the town should be reliant on just the Central Arizona Project.

Nadesan wants to put in plans and scenarios before any cuts come. One of those plans is to educate people on water usage and how to reduce it. He also thinks it's a good idea to look at wells as a source of water.

Augherton cautions people about the town looking at domestic wells. He believes authorities will meter the wells, then implement a tax and will then close them.

Goldammer thinks the town should consider having someone buy the water companies from them and work with outside agencies such as Phoenix instead of worrying about capital expenditure problems.

McGuire recognizes how water is a complex issue right now. He thinks the various states need to come together to figure out a plan.

He states the lower Colorado River states have already put in a plan of how to deal with Lake Mead when it reaches a certain level. He thinks the state currently has a good priority on water and won’t have any problems moving forward.

Royer said Cave Creek is fortunate to have good people and experts on top of this issue. She believes the mayor has done well in taking care of the infrastructure of the water distribution system.

Freedman noted Cave Creek having a year's supply of water on the west side and questions how they are going to get it as the water is underground and there are no wells in the area.  He said this should be discussed because there is no plan set on how to get this water if they will need it in the future.

Major endorsements?

Augherton, Rhoades, Royer, and Goldammer have received an endorsement from the Scottsdale Area Association of Realtors.

Augherton has raised $500 in campaign contributions.

Driskell does not have any endorsements and is not seeking campaign contributions.

Freedman has received endorsements from For the Love of Cave Creek organization and several businesses in Cave Creek, including Flat Tire Bike Shop, Harold’s, Local Jonny’s and others. He has not raised any money in campaign contributions.

Nadesan has not received any endorsements. He has not raised any money in campaign contributions.

Reach the reporter at [email protected].

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Cave Creek Town Council election 2024: Meet the 8 candidates