Phoenix Community Alliance Has Spent 40 Years Working To Create a Stronger Downtown for a Better Phoenix

Michele White, Executive Director of the Greater Phoenix Equality Chamber of Commerce (@gpeccaz), recently joined our Arts, Culture & Public Life (ACPL) Committee to share the incredible impact her organization is making in our community.\n\nFrom helping small businesses access funding, mentorship, and technical support to offering vital spaces of encouragement and belonging, GPECC is empowering entrepreneurs to thrive.\n\nUnder Michele's leadership, more than 350 LGBTQ+ and allied businesses are finding connection, opportunity, and support\u2014strengthening the fabric of our city with every step forward.\n\nReach out to us or connect directly with our Membership Services Coordinator, Alex Molina (amolina@dtphx.org), to learn how you can get involved with ACPL and our other Advocacy Committees, and take part in more opportunities like this.

It's all in the Little Rituals - with the Warehouse District Council! \ud83e\uddca \ud83e\udd43 \n\nThe Council reconvened this week after taking the month of July off for summer, and here are snippets of the impactful updates you may have missed: \n\n\ud83d\udd35 The City of Phoenix, AZ USA's 24-hour Heat Respite Center and its multiple cooling centers have received 20,534 visitors (as of August 13th) since opening in May. A surprising demographic that routinely uses the facility is families and children. A survey found that 81% of the people utilizing the shelter self-identified as individuals experiencing homelessness, who can then be diverted into supportive services.\n\n\ud83d\udd35 A presentation from Urban Phoenix Project (UPP) highlighted the effectiveness of bike lanes, using Third Street's bike lanes as a case study. UPP utilized data from ADOT that tracked record incidents beginning in 2017. Since the street was reduced to one lane in either direction in 2022, there have been no fatalities, while total incidents have been reduced by more than half.\n\nAfter the meeting, attendees were led through a back door to @little_rituals_bar, on Courtyard Residence Inn's fourth floor, where WDC offered complimentary cocktails. \n\nDid you miss this week's meeting (and the opportunity to connect over cocktails)? Mark your calendars for the third Wednesday at 3:30 p.m., and contact tcostello@dtphx.org to be added to the email distribution list.

Did you know that 1 in 5 of the unhoused residents that St. Vincent de Paul (@svdpaz) serves owns a dog? \ud83d\udc3e \ud83d\udc36 \n\nThe Marion and Bob Auray Animal Companion Clinic recently opened on its Downtown campus to address a community need for free services for these residents. \n\nThe fully equipped facility, which includes a grooming station and pantry, offers wellness checkups, vaccinations, spay and neuter procedures, and supplies. The 3,000 sq. ft. clinic, which volunteer veterinarians operate, is currently open by appointment, with plans to eventually offer services five days a week.\n\nTo learn more about the program, follow the \ud83d\udd17 in bio to learn more about the clinic. \ud83d\udd3c

What do Clayco, Colliers, Phillips Law Foundation*, and Salt River Project (SRP) have in common?\n\nThey're all PCA Member organizations with outstanding examples of women leaders on their teams. This summer, the Arizona Business Magazine \/ AZ BIG Media editorial board and judges selected the year's most influential female leaders from a pool of more than 2,200 nominees.\n\nHere are the PCA Members recognized in 2025:\n\n\ud83d\udd35 Ashley Nye, Associate Project Executive, Clayco\n\ud83d\udd35 Jenn Thomas, Senior Vice President, Colliers\n\ud83d\udd35 Olga Phillips, Founder, Phillips Law Foundation \n\ud83d\udd35 Vanessa Kisicki, Associate General Manager and Chief Customer Executive, Salt River Project (SRP)\n\nWant to celebrate? The award ceremony will be held on Thursday, August 21, from 5:00 pm to 8:30 pm at Chateau Luxe (1175 E. Lone Cactus Drive, Phoenix, AZ, 85024). \n\nFollow the \ud83d\udd17 in bio to read profiles on these Members and learn how they wound up in the company of many like-minded women leaders! \ud83d\udd3d\n\n* - Member as Phillips Law Group

You're not mistaken - the month of August has begun! \ud83d\udcc6\n\nTo accommodate people's summer priorities, PCA's Advocacy Committees took a break in July and will come back this month in full force.\n\nThe first of these Committee meetings kicks off the second week of August, featuring timely and exciting updates on @ValleyMetro's new BRT route, a spotlight on Phoenix Center for the Arts' (@phoenixcenterforthearts) new Executive Director, the community-driven @ECOPHX sustainability initiative, and more.\n\nIf you're a PCA Member, there's time to mark the dates in your calendar to attend. \ud83e\ude91 \ud83d\udca1 Follow the link below to reserve a seat at the table.

Cindy Dach prefers to think of herself as a Downtown steward. In 1997, she relocated to Phoenix from Denver with her husband, Greg Esser. Dach and other local leaders arrived at the right moment to help reevaluate the area as a walkable, friendly artist community.\n\nSince then, her community leadership as the CEO of Changing Hands Bookstore, Local First Arizona co-founder, and Downtown Phoenix Inc. (DPI) Board Director has helped shape Downtown as a place where communities formed and small businesses could shape their destiny and urban environment.\n\nLearn more about her story via the link in bio.