Listen to new Goodyear Mayor Joe Pizzillo as he describes what his 2022 vision is for the city and what he loves about being in public service. Plus, Mayor Pizzillo talks about what the city council is looking for in candidates that are applying for the vacant council seat.
Listen to new Goodyear Mayor Joe Pizzillo as he describes what his 2022 vision is for the city and what he loves about being in public service. Plus, Mayor Pizzillo talks about what the city council is looking for in candidates that are applying for the vacant council seat.
Welcome to Growing Goodyear, a podcast that provides in depth conversations with the movers and shakers in the ninth fastest growing city in the nation. Located just 20 minutes west of downtown Phoenix, people and businesses are flocking to Goodyear, Arizona. It's a great place to live, work and play. And despite its rapid growth, it still feels like everyone's hometown. Simply put, it's a great time to be in Goodyear Arizona. Now here is the host of Growing Goodyear, Digital Communications Director Tammy Vo.
Host Tammy Vo:Welcome to Growing Goodyear. In this episode, we will talk to recently appointed Goodyear Mayor Joe Pizzillo. On December 17, the City Council voted to unanimously select councilmember Pizzillo to become the next mayor of Goodyear and complete the term of his dear friend and colleague, Georgia Lord. Mayor Pizzillo has been a staple of the Goodyear community for years having served on the city council since 2009 and eventually the role of the city's acting mayor. His background in government extends well beyond his time as a public servant. As Mayor Pizzillo has over 30 years of state and local finance experience. We'll discuss with Mayor Pizzillo what he hopes to accomplish during his next year in office, and how the city of Goodyear can continue to grow and build for the future. But first it's time for our Fast Five with Mayor Pizzillo. You are an avid motorcycle rider. Where is your favorite place to take your bike on a day cruise?
Mayor Pizzillo:Oh day cruise is up the backroads up through Vulture Mine Road and up through Wickenburg.
Host Tammy Vo:What is your favorite book or movie?
Mayor Pizzillo:Being the kind of guy I am, it's gotta be Caddyshack. I love Caddyshack.
Host Tammy Vo:Okay, going on vacation, mountains or the beach?
Mayor Pizzillo:Oh the beach, definetly the beach.
Host Tammy Vo:What is the best piece of advice that you've ever been given?
Mayor Pizzillo:Best piece of advice I ever gotten was basically just watch all around you, who's successful and how they're getting it done.
Host Tammy Vo:Otherwise you can't change if you haven't learned from your mistakes.
Mayor Pizzillo:You can't change it. Yes.
Host Tammy Vo:What do you love most about living in Goodyear.
Mayor Pizzillo:You know what? It's growing, we got 100,000. But I still feel it has that small town feel because what makes us great is our residents. Anytime we need something done they step up, whether it's a committee that we need them for, whether its a study we need them for. Or it's make a difference day, when we get out and we improve the community. It still has that small time feel and I hope to keep it that way.
Host Tammy Vo:Mayor Joe Pizzillo. Has a nice ring to it.
Mayor Pizzillo:Sounds good.
Host Tammy Vo:You getting used to hearing mayor now?
Mayor Pizzillo:Yeah I'm sort of getting used to it right now. I really enjoy working for the people of this city, and to try and make it a better place to live, raise our family and work.
Host Tammy Vo:There's been a lot going on with you lately. It's been a very busy holiday into 2022 time. How has it been? You've been mayor now for several weeks, how's it going?
Mayor Pizzillo:Actually, it's going pretty good. And the toughest part is managing. And for me personally, I've been fortunate to try to keep a low kind of profile, to the extent that I don't get too high, don't get too low. And I just go in and get done when has to get done. To me it's a challenge and I enjoy doing the job. And to me, it's only work if you don't enjoy what you're doing. And I enjoy what I'm doing.
Host Tammy Vo:I know Mayor Lord had an impact on you and you were close. What does it mean for you now to be the mayor of Goodyear?
Mayor Pizzillo:You know, looking back for that first days when the mayor actually kind of encouraged me to run and get involved in this because of my background. Now I look back and we've had a really good working relationship all that time. And I know she's looking up from up above. And she's watching us as we go forward. And the key is to keep working on all of our successes. We've had a lot of them. Let's build on them.
Host Tammy Vo:How many years now have you been in public service?
Mayor Pizzillo:Well, I went to work for the city of Goodyear in 97. And I retired in 2008, roughly 10 years. I've been on the council now for about almost 13 years. That makes it almost 25 years here. Prior to that, you know, I had another 20 years of different stops, one in the state of Maryland and then one here in the city of Glendale. So that's been pretty much most of my life.
Host Tammy Vo:It's been a long time. What made you want to get into public service?
Mayor Pizzillo:I just love the service part. I really do. I know sometimes that may sound a little corny or whatever the case, but I do love the work that I do. And again, you know, I've been told, and it's true, if you like what you're doing, you'll never work a day in your life and I truly enjoy what I'm doing.
Host Tammy Vo:Why did you come to Goodyear in the first place? I know you said you've lived other places. You've worked for other public service organizations. Why Goodyear for you?
Mayor Pizzillo:Well, I knew the city manager and I knew it was a city getting ready to blossom. And I wanted that opportunity. I want to be a part of a growing city so I can look back and say, you know, this is all part we helped build. And that's the reason.
Host Tammy Vo:What other kinds of things do you do in terms of organizations and charities that you you'd like to let people know about?
Mayor Pizzillo:I'm on the Southwest lending board, closet board, we rent at no costs, non motorized equipment. Wheelchairs, knee scooters, things that people need that may not be covered for insurance, 90 days free of charge. And it's an all volunteer organization. Nobody gets paid in the organization. I'm also a member of the Goodyear Pebble Creek Rotary. And the rotary is well known for doing a lot of charitable work out into the community.
Host Tammy Vo:So let's talk about Goodyear. There's a lot going on with the city right now, were the ninth fastest growing city in the nation. And you're the mayor of it. How does that feel for you, and what kinds of things go through your mind as you think about this rapid growth we were going through?
Mayor Pizzillo:Well, the first thing is you have to have a great team around you. And I'm a firm believer, number one, our council is a great team. And nothing gets done with one individual plus staff. It all works together to deliver what the people want in the community. And our job is to try to create balance. And what I mean by balance, we've got a lot of growth, and a lot of people moving in here. But it needs revenue as well to provide those services that our residents want. And fortunately we've been able to create that balance. We're bringing in good paying jobs, and businesses that generate the revenue to help us do a rec center, and what I'm really looking forward to is in July when we open our city square. So again, balance and managing growth is going to be key. One thing I want to look forward to in the future, though is we have traffic issues as we rent growth, to make sure we can still keep this small time feel. And we use our facilities to bring out the community that loves to participate in here at Goodyear.
Host Tammy Vo:You were the city's budget manager for some time. So you really have a history and appreciation for what goes in the city's checkbook, if you will. How do you think that translates to now you being the mayor, as you focus on things like how the city is spending its money?
Mayor Pizzillo:That's how I actually got in this business to start with. I went to Georgia. She was at that time on just the city council and I just retired in 2008. And I asked her, I said city has been good to me, I'd like to give back. You know, and I'm very familiar with the finances. Would there be any value in having somebody with my background on the council? And Georgia says yeah it would, because a lot of times people who are unfamiliar with a subject are afraid to ask questions, they are afraid of how it would look if the question is a good one or a bad one? My response has always been just like to my students, there's no such thing as a stupid question, only doing something stupid by not asking the questions. So she encouraged me to run. And one of the first thing I got in and when I ran in 2009, we had the great recession. And at that time, there were several issues in which we were running deficits. And I thought I could help come in and help with the city setting up some of our reserves and some of the things. One of my things I really am proud of is a reserve we set up for the ballpark. I wanted to set up a sinking fund so when it came time for the principal, we actually had the money. When the money was supposed to come from the sports authority so they didn't have it. Fortunately, we did because of our sinking fund. So I think that is what I really kind of focused on when I first came in on the council to make sure our finances were sound. And it made us through the Great Recession, and obviously through the pandemic, because we do have some very sound fiscal policies here at the city.
Host Tammy Vo:What are you hearing from people out there? What do they want in the city this year?
Mayor Pizzillo:You know, what I'm hearing from a lot of them is, first of all, manage growth, number one. Number two, they'd like to see more amenities and some jobs, higher paying jobs. I hear, restaurants here entertainment, things that they would like for us to get. And that's one of the things I want to try to accomplish, you know, as mayor to bring those types of qualities. We've recently had a retail survey. And I'd like to work off of that to try to get what our citizens want, as we start to grow. And again, it's all about balance. As we grow. So what you're saying is sometimes our residents might We need the expansion as people come in to meet some of the needs, some of our restaurants, etc. Still won't come because we need greater daytime traffic. And we're getting that we're having office buildings built. We're having new businesses come in. And hopefully we can manage this all together, we can bring those amenities and jobs and quality of life so they can play, work and live in this great city of Goodyear. drive around, they might see construction for a new place. And maybe it's an office building, maybe it's an advanced manufacturing type of place. And they think, Oh, I wanted a restaurant or a grocery store. Is the message there that actually those things are good things and kind of tie into the whole big picture of what it is that residents really want. Well, when I'm out in the public, that's what I try to explain to them. Density brings what they want. Disposable income, depending on the nature of the jobs, that we've added brings what they want. So all that's part of building the community. The key is to make sure we have balance, we don't overdo certain things that aren't generating the revenue, or creating the traffic jams as a result of not balancing it all out. I'm hoping this year is one of my priorities to, is to take a look at some of our traffic, see if we can get a little more steady of flow throughout the city.
Host Tammy Vo:Anything pop out in your mind is as what you'd like to see here come to Goodyear?
Mayor Pizzillo:Like to see some quality restaurants that may not necessarily be chains. Could be some Ma and Pa's shops on there. Little more on the amusement side. We don't have anything similar to like maybe Dave and Busters, where people can come and enjoy that. We do have Urban Air. Been there. The girls love it. And when I take them there, that's a good start for the entertainment. Also our rec center. Our rec center is great. And in the teen part within a rec center is great.
Host Tammy Vo:It's going to be a big summer for the city of Goodyear with Goodyear Civic Square opening up, how do you feel about that?
Mayor Pizzillo:You know, I'm excited we had our 75th anniversary come and the number of people that showed up for a building that's not even complete, just flabbergast me, and I know that our citizens are going to get great use of that facility. I'm looking for many of the concerts that we're going to have there. Many of possibly, hopefully, maybe some outdoor plays that we have there. Also looking at, say maybe some craft festivals that'll bring the community out. And it's designed just for a place where we can coordinate it off, we can have some nice food trucks, we have some nice entertainment. It's gonna be a great facility for the residents and I'm looking forward to that.
Host Tammy Vo:And when you drive over in that area right now you do see some, by Harkins, you see some open lots, you don't see a whole lot of buildings right around there. But is the idea that over time that will change with this project?
Mayor Pizzillo:I'm hoping this project is going to be a great, well we've got we'll actually have two. Our rec centers will be a gathering place as well as our new Civic Square. This, I'm hoping will be the synergy that will jumpstart that area and bring more. More type of amenities that the city want, especially to the east of Harkins, that vacant land there. We're hoping that, in fact we've done some studies to see what the best use of that land is that we can also put something in there amenities that our citizens would like to see.
Host Tammy Vo:When you think about Goodyear, you look forward in your crystal ball, 10 years, let's say, what is the city look like?
Mayor Pizzillo:I would like to see it still without hometown feel. Plenty of events where there are residents enjoy coming out to the city of Goodyear. Still that feel that when we need them, they step up and help us. You know, one of the greatest thing that happened to the city during the Great Recession is our volunteers. Volunteers stepped up throughout the entire city and helped us. We didn't have the money when the ballpark open to pay people to actually usher people to their seats. And what happened? We had volunteers step up. To date, they're still doing it. We had 1000s of hours of volunteers that stepped up, manned the counters, worked in different departments. It really helped out a lot. And that's what I have to say about our community, great community when we needed them, they were there for us. I'd like to see that same feel as we get there, even 10 years from now.
Host Tammy Vo:We're looking for a new council member to complete the rest of this year's term. For the folks that might be interested in getting involved in public service, like you did, what would you say to them in terms of how it could change your life?
Mayor Pizzillo:I would say to them put your apps in. It's very, very rewarding to be part of this city, and to watch to see how this grows. And I believe the apps run through January 31. And looking forward to seeing who all puts in for applications. But again, it's a great city, you've got great counsel, great team. They all want what's the best interest of the city. We're all working for that. I'm really looking forward to going through those applications and trying to get another team member for this great counsel.
Host Tammy Vo:I'm hoping to chat with you a little bit more about you, and maybe kind of where you're from and your history for the folks out there who don't know a lot about you. Where are you from?
Mayor Pizzillo:I'm originally from Maryland, came out here in 86. In fact, I was working for a controller of the Treasury tax area in the state of Maryland. And I was out here doing some audits and I flew out here. Typically what we do is we take two week trips. So we had a week to kind of check the whole town I kind of fell in love with the state when I came out here. So I got on the phone and I call my wife said you won't believe I'd like to move to Arizona. She first thought I was nuts. And then I said get on the plane, come on out and see what I see. So she got on the plane, and she flew out to Arizona, and we spent some time out here and checking everything out. I hadn't been at that time, anywhere west of the Mississippi. So this was all new to me. And she fell in love with it too. And when I went back to Maryland, I told my employer I was going to look to see if I could locate in Arizona. Took me a little while and I did. I first landed in Glendale, I actually set up their audit department over there. That's what I was hired for. The rest is history, came over to Goodyear in the city manager's office as kind of their financial manager, so to speak. And here I am today.
Host Tammy Vo:What was it that you loved about Arizona when you saw it? Almost sounds like love at first sight.
Mayor Pizzillo:Pretty much. Wide open, you know, from back in Maryland, you know, everything's on a on a lot of some kind. You could drive for miles and see absolutely nothing. That's what I love about my motorcycle riding out here. I can go the back road, there's still plenty places go where you don't even see a car. Period. There are roads out there still. You can't do that back East. You can't do it, because it's all built up. So when I came out here, it's a whole different look. The desert, the cactus. The weather. Except when I moved here. Was it 86? August, and I opened the door and the first thing that came to mind was what did I do? Because I opened the door and it was 110 degrees outside. And I thought to myself, who left the oven door on? But you know what, I have no regrets. I love it out here. But the first inclination was, what did I do when it was 110 degrees coming from back east? 110 was tough.
Host Tammy Vo:Sure, sure. But no humidity out here.
Mayor Pizzillo:No humidity. The good news is I was swimming through December out here but you know, because we didn't get water any warmer than 70 degrees back there in our pool. So yeah, it was pretty good but just fell in love the countryside. And the people to be honest with you, everybody was so friendly. So friendly when you go to talk to him.
Host Tammy Vo:Well, we know you're very proud of Goodyear. Another thing we know is that you're very proud of your granddaughters. You're proud grandpapa.
Mayor Pizzillo:Yes, I am. Very proud. Got Aubrey Rose, who's 11. Sophia Irene Pizzillo who's 14. I got a singer and a golfer. The 11 year olds a golfer, the 14 year old is a singer. In fact, she's sung some of our events. She loves singing the Star Spangled Banner,
Host Tammy Vo:Can you sing or golf with them?
Mayor Pizzillo:No. They didn't get that talent for me.
Host Tammy Vo:Okay. Well we won't put you on the spot with any of that.
Mayor Pizzillo:No, no, no, no, not me. One thing I do love about being a mayor is not only helping the city, I'm making memories from grand girls. Parades. They love parades. They go with me all the time. Or my one granddaughter will sing at our events, or go to some of our events as well. They just love this city too. I'm not your youngest member on your council but the same token I got invested interest in the future, because I got two great grand girls, and I want to make sure has a great city to grow up in.
Host Tammy Vo:I was there not long ago in the room when you were sworn in as mayor. I know for a moment there was a little bit emotional for you.
Mayor Pizzillo:Yes.
Host Tammy Vo:Why? This is more than a job to you.
Mayor Pizzillo:It is but why became emotional? I don't know. It just one of those things that came over to me that it's like, now let's go to work.
Host Tammy Vo:You're ready to go to work?
Mayor Pizzillo:Ready to go to work. Well, there's several things I wanted to say. I just couldn't at the time.
Host Tammy Vo:Well, we felt it. I felt it. I felt that, this meant and does mean a lot to you.
Mayor Pizzillo:It does. And I really wanted to shed the light. I believe in collaboration, I really do truly to the point where one of seven votes, even though I'm sitting at the top as the mayor, still, it requires all seven of us rowing in the same direction to get things done at the city. Okay, and we have that we don't always agree. Nobody always agrees. But we try to find a common area where we can get what we need to get done in the city. And that's what I why I'm so proud about this city. And I'm hoping, fingers crossed, that when we pick the seventh one, that they will be able to pick right up and meld with the team in the best interest of the city.
Host Tammy Vo:Well, Mayor Pizzillo, thank you for your leadership. And thank you for this conversation, has been wonderful to get to know you better. And there are things I didn't know about you until today. So thank you for sharing that with us and in our residents as well. And we look forward to what I think is going to be an awesome year ahead.
Mayor Pizzillo:I'm counting on an awesome year. You will find with me I'm more happy go lucky, a little more lighthearted, not quite as serious at times. But that's all part of my nature. And I like to keep things light and moving. And when things do get tough, I try to bring them back down by making them a little lighter, so that everybody kind of tempers it down. So the steam doesn't kind of boil over. You know, that's the kind of guy I am. Means a lot, the city means a lot to me. And I look back in 97 when I first came out here as an employee, I look at that city then and I look at this city now. It's amazing what the city has come to. It really has. I mean, it's just so you go up Litchfield road, it's hardly anything. Period. Pebble Creek wasn't even built in. It was just getting off the ground.
Host Tammy Vo:Did you ever think you'd be mayor?
Mayor Pizzillo:In my wildest dreams? No. I like this role better, because I think it gets more and I look around at the city and I go, city is really turning into something special. And we got a lot of great people working here. That makes it special.
Host Tammy Vo:Thank you Mayor Pizzillo for your time. For decades, the vision and foresight of Goodyear leadership has been a driving force in making the city what it is today. As Goodyear continues to evolve and grow, it's our city leaders that represent the will of our community. And although we are going through changes in leadership, a foundation has already been built on how our local council works together to help make the ambitious future of Goodyear a reality. If you would like to get involved, you still have until January 31 to submit your application for the Goodyear City Council vacancy. You can find more information on the application process on the City Clerk's webpage at Goodyear az.gov. Until next time, I'm Tammy Vo. Thanks for listening and remember, it's a great time to be in Goodyear.
Open:That concludes this episode of Growing Goodyear. Make sure to leave us a review and subscribe on your favorite streaming or podcast player app. If you have any questions or comments, email us at communications at Goodyear az.gov And don't forget to follow us on the city of good years social media pages