A local advocacy effort led more than a dozen Carefree residents to speak in favor of removing one of Carefree’s two Special Planning Areas during the Public Comment portion of the May 13 Planning & Zoning meeting. Former Mayor Les Peterson, who spoke in favor of retaining the SPA, has asked Carefree Unity to publish his response to some of the criticisms he received during the meeting.
The narrative Mr. Peterson is taking issue with is not new and has been debunked in the past. However, the opinions expressed here by Mr. Peterson are his alone. Carefree Unity does recommend readers follow the link to the Images Arizona article about Knoah Moan’s Eagle Scout project, which continues to pay dividends today.
We have agreed to publish this letter in the public interest.
Carefree Unity 5/19.2024
Former Mayor Peterson’s Letter
In the Call to the Public portion of the May Carefree P & Z meeting, I was erroneously accused of having some type of an interest in the properties on the NW Corner of Carefree Highway and Tom Darlington owned by John Lassen. Two speakers communicated that I, Les Peterson, acted in my own interests while I was the former Mayor of Carefree, and while they couldn’t prove it they believed that I would somehow benefit from the development of the subject Lassen Properties. They also communicated that I was now seeking to influence the Carefree P & Z and the Town Council to maintain the Special Planning Area (SPA) designation for those properties. These accusations were communicated by John Traynor, and another resident who also stated that I had frequently met with/communicated with John Lassen in my office.
At the conclusion of Call to the Public, I explained that, acting on behalf of myself personally or acting as the Mayor, I do not now have, nor did I ever have, any financial or other interest in any Lassen Properties at the subject locations or elsewhere.
I had known John Lassen prior to the time that his properties went through the full Town process to receive a SPA land use designation. I was the the Mayor of Carefree during 2019 which was the time period of their unfounded accusations, and it is customary and advantageous for the residents of Carefree as it is in other municipalities as well, for the Mayor to be acquainted with the major property owners and commercial property owners/managers within their community. I explained during the Call to the Public that I primarily worked with Mr. Lassen because of his interest in identifying a project for his grandson, Knoah, to perform to earn an Eagle Scout Badge. John and Knoah came in to see me to inquire if the Town had any projects which might fit with Knoah’s needs for a project. When I mentioned their quest to the Carefree Town Clerk, Kandace French Contreras who is also the Administrator of the Cave Creek Memorial Cemetery for the Town, she identified the sad state of affairs that the Cemetery (located along Pima Road in Carefree) was in and that there were many veterans buried there. Knoah sparked to the idea of organizing and leading a clean-up crew to improve the appearance of the Cemetery and he did a wonderful job with his chosen project, as highlighted in an article which appeared in a 2019 issue of Images Arizona.
The link to the article published in Images Arizona follows: https://imagesarizona.com/restoring-a-piece-of-history/
With Knoah’s hard work, the appearance of the Cemetery was dramatically improved and it is now used for the Town’s Memorial Day Celebrations and it is now a respectful site for all those buried there.
Best regards,
Les Peterson
Carefree Unity 