[{"_1":2,"_100":-5,"_101":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76,88],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6184261,"mediaKeyId","5091805-88621074ae409786c3028462f5904a0a","parentId",5091805,"title","Parks, fire and heat-response teams install locked ice machines at busy trailheads to aid rescues","audioSeconds",171,"startMs",423000,"endMs",594000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=5091805-88621074ae409786c3028462f5904a0a&start=423&end=594","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5091805-88621074ae409786c3028462f5904a0a/thumbnail_423000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6184261/Arizona/Parks-fire-and-heat-response-teams-install-locked-ice-machines-at-busy-trailheads-to-aid-rescues","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6184261-445ded6d077e459156e6429677f90ac2/orig.mp4?Expires=1770920784&Signature=a5EtqvUZVorBWHf32KiJkINwkByOqUfklMIumKA6~E84rJg9MD9TrxXUqMqjgqV7z4dCptmdZsE5-D02hV-O530fur9WrNo5qW89D2DZoqAykpaHoKB82btMlZuBreYkIHG294trsUujgPvpmfcrrtpvbt-8bol7UAmvAhw2B8zDVLi7KB5LuU2Ewom5hRWmNyR4qQGnN3kMHJKfeiuq-UlPR6tOF1-COmHVmUlKiiw7-Qm4MWMbbmRrNqFDt~YlyTGJllumcbMlu9r3o4oqj~8~gUoW9Ci~bdGAOQCk5bzubv37CGbjqM3Msy6G-CMNUE2pt7M3K92ieYHtbcl0pg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","City of Phoenix, AZ","date","2025-06-27T17:07:05Z","article","City parks staff and Phoenix Fire Department officials told the Parks and Recreation Board that locked ice machines were installed at two of the city’s busiest trailheads to support outreach and rapid-cooling treatments for hikers with heat-related illness.

Deputy Parks and Recreation Director Jared Rogers said the units — installed at Piestewa Peak and Echo Canyon trailheads — were first made available on June 6 and were funded and sited through a cross-department partnership that includes the Office of Heat Response and Mitigation, Parks and Recreation, the Phoenix Fire Department and Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) volunteers. “The office of heat provided funding … for the installation of ice machines at both Piestewa and Echo Canyon Trailheads,” Rogers said.

The machines are locked and not intended for general public use, Rogers added; the department provides chilled drinking water at the sites and will add signage explaining the ice machines’ purpose. The initial cost to stock the machines for the first month was “just over $400,” Rogers said.

Deputy Fire Chief Maki Lloyd described how the ice supports a prehospital “ice and cold water immersion” protocol the department began in 2024 in partnership with local hospitals. Lloyd said the treatment is used for patients with core temperatures greater than 104 degrees Fahrenheit and altered consciousness and that early cooling substantially improves outcomes. “In 2023, heat stroke typically had a mortality rate of between 60 to 70 percent,” Lloyd said. “We found in 2024 … the patients had a survivability rate of over 80 percent.”

Lloyd recounted a recent case in which crews began rapid cooling on a hiker while still on the mountain; the patient arrived in the parking lot with a temperature of 104.4 degrees Fahrenheit and was discharged from the hospital six days later, neurologically intact.

Board members asked how sites were selected. Rogers said staff used rescue data and technical-rescue team input to choose locations with high rescue frequency and strong hiker traffic, balancing that with site power availability. Rogers said staff are assessing additional sites, including Pima Canyon at South Mountain Park, where solar power capacity or hardwired power solutions may be required.

The board and staff said they will continue to coordinate outreach, add explanatory signage, and evaluate additional trailheads for machines in coming months.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Parks and Recreation Board Meeting 2025-06-27","oneSentenceSummary","City parks and Phoenix Fire Department officials said locked ice machines have been installed at two popular trailheads to support heat-relief outreach and rapid prehospital cooling for heat-stroke patients.","taxTitle","Events, Phoenix, Maricopa County, Arizona","taxId",80566,"location","Arizona","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6184252,"Public urges alternative survey access and protection for burrowing owls in parks master plan comment",260,53000,313000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5091805-88621074ae409786c3028462f5904a0a&start=53&end=313","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5091805-88621074ae409786c3028462f5904a0a/thumbnail_53000.jpg","/articles/6184252/Arizona/Public-urges-alternative-survey-access-and-protection-for-burrowing-owls-in-parks-master-plan-comment","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6184252-8fb101ac2aec2b47f75a7e7bc9e87267/orig.mp4?Expires=1770920784&Signature=n4w1QXiZ6aFmrnlEwjafWmlAq22qtmDis8ZbRI-DoDlGROdPqiSxuCiXzd7d0IEUKSoyB8rZMLKVFiCm4sPf-LGguRU~UBdFRKo09uzIFCQ7n5rUizTFox51SQ5AVRHW0v3OhZO3NOMrdp~DCw2vHrKJlUVzmuVC~ta5d1bU4KmW5xiWq9lbuH5XFgHj5VXN0zU5nwKNp8aucHYS~Hy6qQTkfrdOR1PFYeukUn~KZVUSm-vDe7lKXwoxgqkJHH5zS9LJOPAY~SIb0NKJldhJwCwBDtcgLCCYQU50qU97RfxqWiBca4xg6ZfSe4Mj9-v3rEcGOESy1un4e1j-9~kGEg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Members of the public used the meeting’s agenda-item comment period to press the parks board for additional outreach options for the parks master plan and to raise wildlife-protection concerns for proposed park work.

Julia Taggart, who spoke virtually, praised the online survey and interactive map but said some locations do not appear correctly unless an exact address is entered. “One thing I did notice is the Northbound Visitor Center. You can't put in Northbound Visitor Center. You have to put in the exact address, 12950 North Seventh Street, Phoenix, Arizona 85022,” Taggart said. She asked whether the department can accept input from residents who do not use digital tools, citing Amish and Mennonite neighbors and older Sunnyslope residents who lack computer access.

Deputy Director (parks) responded that the parks master plan effort is concentrating on urban parks and that North Mountain and preserve-focused work is addressed through a separate North Mountain master planning process. He said the department will hold a series of town meetings through the fall and additional stakeholder meetings so people without digital access can provide feedback.

Michael Norton, speaking on behalf of members of the Rogers Ranch community in South Phoenix (District 7), said the community has long sought protections for burrowing owls that use a dirt lot near the Levine area conveyance channel. Norton said early informal polling in his neighborhood showed residents wanted to preserve owl habitat when park property is redeveloped: “We've heard repeatedly that our community members wanted to be sure that whatever we did with that park property, we kept the owls,” Norton said. He added that his working-class community may have difficulty attending meetings and that neighbors will circulate a petition to bring to staff.

Board members and staff said they will hold in-person town meetings, stakeholder sessions and regional meetings through the fall and noted the department is conducting a separate North Mountain planning process where preserve-specific concerns may be addressed.

No board vote or direction restricting park design was taken at this meeting; public comments were recorded for staff consideration in master-plan outreach and future design work.","Speakers at the Parks Board meeting urged staff to provide non-digital ways to submit input to the parks master plan survey and asked that North Mountain Visitor Center concerns be included. Residents from Rogers Ranch asked that future park plans preserve burrowing owl habitat.",{"_33":89,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":90,"_41":91,"_43":92,"_45":93,"_47":94,"_49":95,"_51":96,"_53":97,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":98,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":99,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6184257,"Midyear CIP update highlights dozens of projects; public questions surface about Piestewa bridge and 3PI funding",1076,967000,2043000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5091805-88621074ae409786c3028462f5904a0a&start=967&end=2043","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5091805-88621074ae409786c3028462f5904a0a/thumbnail_967000.jpg","/articles/6184257/Arizona/Midyear-CIP-update-highlights-dozens-of-projects-public-questions-surface-about-Piestewa-bridge-and-3PI-funding","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6184257-0a8bacc736734bb0fe45de483e3982bf/orig.mp4?Expires=1770920784&Signature=fUdk-1u~ce01CzoDY0uH6Etw18iy6tZ9ZeARdtTT5RXWrnP6gkGKwdhRNW7-WA-dMlSZoaL-qNrvO-E9D8f1DPX22ZK0P4UjzV6ck2kXmZkk1RP9bbLaAm0bosPLh0EqaaHKQdIaiFB4q4tqqHBr7zeQmbXw3EY1kubeMaZPv7KCwq9EhaebxTBfW3VZLotXCzoNIXdR~BHScZwiLxvIRhWNWiO~YaH8nT9rRtmgLPnloe9lnhTfnEHXlJEneAXH3jncAfjUZI9Ko4AeR8DHysjyFMTN9Q0GlfZAgcR2OPbAWFTjcsU5HJoIgycBoIhGFQtE9AYGkSzuz2zg~AmDpw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Parks and Recreation Board received a midyear update on the department’s 2025–2030 capital improvement program, including ongoing and planned projects funded by the Phoenix Parks Preserve Initiative (3PI), American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) dollars and $64 million in voter-approved GO Bond funding.

Assistant Director Whitfield told the board that the CIP focuses on new facilities, redevelopment and critical upgrades across the system. Deputy Parks Development Director Todd Shackleford outlined projects at Piestewa Peak, North Mountain Park, South Mountain Park and other sites, and said design and construction schedules vary by project. “The 2025 through 2030 CIP focuses on constructing new park facilities, redeveloping existing amenities, and addressing critical upgrades to aging infrastructure,” Whitfield said.

Several members of the public used the meeting’s public-comment period to question a recent construction phase at Piestewa Peak. Tim Serakowsky called the structure a “Bridge To Nowhere” and demanded to know who authorized it. “Who authorized the Bridge To Nowhere? Why doesn't anyone want to come forth and say this is the individual that said, yes. Let's put this into operation?” Serakowsky asked.

Public commenter Jerry Van Gass said he and others believe the footbridge and associated work were added after original plans and suggested the department and board should be investigated. “We have absolutely no faith that the parks department, parks board, the oversight committee for 3PI, none of them are ever gonna do an investigation because it would implicate them as complicit,” Van Gass said. He also referenced past project budgets, saying the Paestua Peak renovation was a $23,000,000 project in 2016.

Piestewa-area resident Ernest Martinez, speaking for the Piestewa Fallen Heroes Memorial group, said the sudden fencing and road closures in April left neighbors “blindsided” and expressed concern about a 140-foot handicap-accessible bridge and landing that he said appeared to be added later in the work plan.

Shackleford and other staff responded to board questions about timelines and communications. Shackleford described progress across many projects — from completed ARPA-funded accessible-playground upgrades to underway construction at Piestewa trailhead improvements and the South Mountain Park Preserve activity complex — and outlined design milestones and estimated construction windows. He said professional services and design work are underway for seven projects funded by the GO Bond and that permitting and public outreach vary by project.

The board previously approved installation of a USS Phoenix Cold War monument in February; project fundraising and design continue, presenters said. The department reported completing $2,900,000 in ARPA-funded work by spring 2025 and noted ongoing outreach plans for other projects.

No formal board vote to halt or alter the Piestewa work occurred during the meeting; public speakers requested records and investigations. Staff said they are developing improved public communication materials and a process to post project updates on the department website.

Board members asked staff to continue providing updates and to keep neighborhood groups informed as projects move from design to construction.","Parks staff presented a midyear capital improvement program update covering GO Bond, ARPA and Phoenix Parks Preserve Initiative (3PI) projects. Public commenters questioned a recently fenced bridge at Piestewa Peak (described as a 140-foot accessible bridge) and raised concerns about project authority, timelines and 3PI fund sustainability.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Parks, fire and heat-response teams install locked ice machines at busy trailheads to aid rescues

Public urges alternative survey access and protection for burrowing owls in parks master plan comment

Midyear CIP update highlights dozens of projects; public questions surface about Piestewa bridge and 3PI funding