Public Safety Open House on March 1
The Chandler Fire and Police Departments are joining together to hold a free public safety open house on Saturday, March 1. The event will be from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Washington Street in Downtown Chandler between Boston and Chicago streets.
In addition to a car show, a variety of fire apparatus and police vehicles will be on display. See demonstrations of vehicle extraction techniques and rappelling performed by the Technical Rescue Unit, as well as the K-9 Unit and Tactical Robot Unit. Aquatics staff will provide free life jackets and fittings as well as an interactive water safety activity as part of its #WaterYouDoing campaign. Hands-Only CPR classes will be offered every half hour. There will also be a free child fingerprinting ID clinic.
Free parking is available within walking distance, including the City Hall Garage at 240 S. Washington St.
Volunteers provide free tax assistance
Chandler, in collaboration with Azura, is kicking off its Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) Program for the 2025 tax season.
Volunteers assist with preparing income taxes for free for low- to moderate-income individuals and families, seniors, or individuals with disabilities. This free service is offered at several locations through April 12, to those whose income is less than $67,000. Clients may walk-in to any site during scheduled hours of service; only one location will require an appointment. Chandler residents also may use myfreetaxes.com, a self-paced, step-by-step guide to file simple tax returns online for free.
Contact Mesa United Way/Azura with any questions at 480-834-2122, or visit AzuraCares.org/VITA for more information.
The American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) provides free tax assistance at the Chandler’s Downtown Library through April 15. Advance appointments are required.
Budget outlook for Fiscal Year 2025-26
Chandler continues to be one of the leading communities in the state for new businesses and job creation. Local sales tax revenues are stable, and investment in both the business and residential sectors continues. City officials take these and many other economic factors into consideration as work begins on the 2025-26 Fiscal Year budget.
Each year, we focus on continuing fiscal strength by conservative forecasting and managing expenditure growth, which positions the city well to ensure we do not have more growth in our ongoing expenditures than we have in ongoing revenues. We desire to continue the traditions of transparency, maintaining strong financial policies, adding efficiencies, providing essential public services in innovative ways and maintaining infrastructure to continue to make Chandler attractive for businesses and their employees as well as our residents. These efforts are paying off as many companies continue to move to or expand in Chandler. Many of these businesses are future-focused and provide quality jobs in innovative sectors.
An important part of the budget process is an ongoing review of the many programs and services the city provides, as well as reviewing the budget feedback received during the recent budget survey. This process is among the reasons the city’s budget so closely matches the community’s highest priorities each fiscal year. Your involvement in this process makes a difference and ensures the needs of the entire community are heard.
Chandler Ostrich Festival returns March 14-16 and 21-23
The 35th annual Chandler Ostrich Festival returns to Tumbleweed Park on two weekends in 2025, from Friday, March 14 through Sunday, March 16, and Friday, March 21 through Sunday, March 23.
The popular festival, known throughout the Southwest, is a community event featuring live ostriches and ostrich-themed activities. National, regional and local entertainment will be showcased on several stages, as well as a carnival, kids activities, arts and crafts and much more.
Don’t fuel trash and recycling truck fires
Chandler is reminding residents about the crucial role they play in preventing truck fires by avoiding the disposal of hazardous items in their trash and recycling cans. Placing household chemicals and flammable items in trash and recycling containers can lead to dangerous collection truck fires.
Truck fires can occur while collecting recycling and trash. If the collection truck driver notices the load has started to smolder, first try to extinguish the load by packing it to deprive the fire of oxygen. As a last resort, dump the load in an open area, which may happen on a residential street, and call 911 for the Fire Department to take over.
DO NOT place the following in your recycling or trash containers:
- Rechargeable batteries, rechargeable electronics & toys, and vape pens
- Hot ashes or coals, matches, fireworks, or flares
- Motor oil, gasoline, antifreeze, kerosene or lighter fluid
- Paint, varnish, pesticides or other household chemicals
- Cooking oil from fryers
- Liquid waste of any kind
We urge residents to use the Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) Collection Facility to dispose of hazardous items. This
service is free of charge, but appointments are required. Call 480-782-3510 for more details or to schedule a drop-off
appointment.
Thank you for being an integral part of keeping our collection truck drivers and our community safe!
• City offices will be closed Monday, Feb. 17 for the Presidents’ Day holiday. Trash and recycling collection will not be affected.
• The 17th annual Chandler Family Bike Ride will take place
April 5 this year. More information will be shared next month, but registration opens soon. Visit chandleraz.gov/FamilyBikeRide for details.
• For Our City Day has officially moved to the spring. Save the date for Saturday, March 29. Sponsor and volunteer
opportunities are available at chandleraz.gov/ForOurCityDay.
4 History Bites, Chandler Museum, 480-782-2717
5 C-Town Suitcase Club: Seeds, Chandler Museum, 480-782-2717
5 Senior Expo, Chandler Community Center, 480-782-2720
7 DEI International Women’s Day Breakfast, Soho63, 480-782-2224
8 DRUMLine Live, Center for the Arts, 480-782-2680
9 Play Day, Chandler Museum, 480-782-2717
9 In a Different Key Film Screening, Center for the Arts, 480-782-2224
12 Art Tots: Art in Bloom, Chandler Museum, 480-782-2717
12 Water-Wise Workshop: Water Saving Landscape Design, Sunset Library, 480-782-3813
14, 15 The Wizard of OZ, Center for the Arts, 480-782-2680
14-16 Chandler Ostrich Festival, Tumbleweed Park, ostrichfestival.com
18 Book Club, Chandler Museum, 480-782-2717
19 C-Town Suitcase Club, Chandler Museum, 480-782-2717
19, 20 Spice of Life Senior Variety Show, Center for the Arts, 480-782-2741
20 Sonoran Sunset Series, Veterans Oasis Park, 480-782-2890
21-23 Chandler Ostrich Festival, Tumbleweed Park, ostrichfestival.com
21 Youth and Teen Art Show, Community Center, 480-782-2730
22 Make and Take: Painted Rocks, Vision Gallery, 480-782-2695
24, 27 City Council meeting, Council Chambers, 480-782-2180
26 Art Tots: Art in Bloom, Chandler Museum, 480-782-2717
29 Art Social: Monster Dolls, Vision Gallery, 480-782-2695
29 Water-Wise Workshop: Desert Watering Tips for Thriving Landscapes, Chandler Nature Center, 480-782-3813
30 Elvis: Aloha From Vegas featuring Victor Trevino Jr., Center for the Arts, 480-782-2680
| Contact Us Communications & Public Affairs | 480-782-2228 Mayor & Council | 480-782-2200 | Tune In Visit Chandler Video for live stream and videos on demand of meetings and original programming. |
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