Community

Fireworks, bands to rock at Chandler July 4th celebration

By Colleen Sparks, Managing Editor   Chandler hopes to set off the Fourth of July with a bang at its annual festivities in Tumbleweed Park. The City of Chandler will hold its July 4th Fireworks Spectacular starting at 6:30...

Developer unveils plan for New Square across from City Hall

By John S. Wolfe, Guest Writer   The old dirt square across Arizona Avenue from Chandler City Hall will soon be New Square. Developer Spike Lawrence shared his company’s plans for the gravel parking lot behind Saba’s...

Two Chandler music school students tapped for concert

SanTan Sun News Staff   Two student pianists at East Valley Yamaha Music School in Chandler – 7-yearold Saadhvi Sri Jayaram and 15-year-old Luke Hoang – have been selected to perform at the Yamaha 2018 National Junior...

Dad’s tragic loss inspired Chandler opioid help

By Wayne Schutsky, Staff   Opiate addiction is a nationwide epidemic that claimed over 40,000 lives in 2016, and Gilbert father Randy Melle knows first-hand that the casualties of those overdoses are not the only victims....

A Chandler son gives his life for our country

By Colleen Sparks, Managing Editor   Chandler is mourning the loss of a soldier and Hamilton High School graduate who was killed by enemy fire in Somalia – the first Arizonan to die in combat since 2016. Staff Sgt....

Public safety debate only sparks at council forum

By Colleen Sparks, Managing Editor   Incumbent Chandler City Councilman Terry Roe was quick to defend the city’s crime-fighting record after a former member of council raised concerns about police response times. But...

No suspense in mayor’s race but plenty in others

BY Gary Nelson, Contributor   When Jay Tibshraeny first joined the Chandler City Council in 1986, the town was barely a dot on the map. Even then, however, growth was coming. And fast. It was all but automatic as waves of...

Firefighter-dad a warrior for cancer and kids

By Colleen Sparks, Managing Editor   Firefighters are used to rescuing people facing perilous flames and life-threatening medical issues, but Keith Welch takes his role as protector far beyond the call of duty. Welch, a...

Two East Valley men ordained as priests in Chandler

SanTan Sun News Staff   Two East Valley residents were among three men who were to be ordained today as priests by the Rev. Thomas J. Olmsted, Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Phoenix, at a special ceremony in...

Traffic death of Chandler mom yields new law

By Jim Walsh, San Tan news Staff   Pam’s Law stands as a tribute to a grieving mother’s persistence and her desire to right a wrong in the state’s traffic laws after discovering it in Chandler in the hardest way...