Taylor SeelyArizona Republic
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Councilwoman Laura Pastor released internal text messages that show Phoenix staff told Mayor Kate Gallego about plans to name a downtown transit hub after the late U.S. Rep. Ed Pastor before she asked to name it for U.S. Rep. Greg Stanton.
The messages were included as part of an application from Verma Pastor that sought to name the downtown transit center, which is under construction, for Ed Pastor, her husband and a former congressman who focused on supporting mass transit in Phoenix.
The messages, released Monday, show for the first time that the mayor knowingly cut off the Ed Pastor proposal by asking council members to name the station for Stanton before they knew about city staff's plans to name it for Ed Pastor.
Laura Pastor is the daughter of Ed Pastor.
The revelation is the latest chapter in a feud that erupted last month over naming the downtown transit hub at Central Avenue and Van Buren Street.
In May, the mayor asked Councilmembers Carlos Galindo-Elvira, Jim Waring and Debra Stark to sign a letter suggesting the city launch a process to name the downtown light rail transit center after Congressman Stanton, the former mayor of Phoenix.
When Councilmember Laura Pastor and several Pastor family members fiercely opposed the Stanton naming proposal, contending the city already had promised to name it for Ed Pastor, multiple council members said they had never been made aware of the idea.
Deputy City Manager Mario Paniagua pushed back slightly against the Pastor family's claim, saying there never was a formal commitment. But he acknowledged preliminary, informal discussions took place.
Despite fierce opposition from Councilmembers Pastor and Betty Guardado, plus several Pastor family members, the request passed 7-2, with Councilmembers Ann O'Brien, Kevin Robinson and Kesha Hodge Washington supporting the Stanton name. Their vote did not finalize the naming but rather sent a proposal to the Heritage Commission for consideration.
A spokesperson for the mayor did not dispute the text messages that showed Gallego was aware of Paniagua's plans to begin naming the downtown hub after Ed Pastor.
Instead, when asked why the mayor moved forward with the Stanton naming proposal despite being aware of Paniagua's plans, Communications Director Arielle Devorah said Gallego's request was months in the making.
Gallego's office first approached Stanton in the spring with the idea, Devorah said. Stark and Waring have previously confirmed this with The Republic.
Devorah also said Gallego was concerned Pastor acted improperly.
"The mayor was troubled to learn that Councilwoman Pastor had worked with staff to name a prominent building for her family. It felt deeply inappropriate to do that work in secret and without consulting her colleagues," she told The Arizona Republic in an email Tuesday.
The mayor previously said she had first thought of naming the downtown transit hub for Stanton after the death of former Phoenix Mayor Thelda Williams. The city named the light rail station near the old Metrocenter mall after Williams, but she died days before the unveiling.
Pastor has previously denied any conflict of interest and said such accusations are a "red herring."
On Tuesday, Pastor said the mayor "bypassed the process to gain personal, political favor with a sitting congressman."
She denied any wrongdoing, pointed the finger at Gallego and said the text messages speak for themselves.
"It was she that worked under the radar. ... If Mayor Kate Gallego had followed the mandated process, city staffers would have provided my colleagues with briefings and the information regarding the history of light rail in Arizona," Pastor said.
The text messages show Paniagua texting Councilwoman Pastor.
He says, "I let the mayor know that I was planning to bring a request to the Heritage Commission to transfer the name from the existing Ed Pastor Transit Center to the new central station. The conversation only included me and her."
Other text messages show Paniagua and City Manager Jeff Barton confirming Councilman Galindo-Elvira was not made aware of the Pastor-naming proposal before the mayor made her request.
Councilman Galindo-Elvira's support for the proposal was the subject of fierce scrutiny by the Pastor family, who believed he should have stood up for Ed Pastor given his employment at Chicanos por la Causa, an organization that supports naming the station for Ed Pastor.
Verma Pastor, the mother of Laura Pastor, serves on the CPLC board and called the organization over the matter. Galindo-Elvira abstained from the vote, although Phoenix City Code bans abstention, so his vote was counted in the affirmative.
The Republic reached out to councilmembers who signed the mayor's letter that triggered the Stanton naming request.
Councilman Jim Waring told The Republic Tuesday he "did not feel blindsided by the mayor" because she had mentioned other ideas were circulating for what to name the station.
Waring added if he had he been informed of plans to transfer the Ed Pastor name first, he would have approved it. He also said he took "no issue" with Councilwoman Pastor advocating for her father.
Galindo-Elvira declined to comment. Stark could not immediately be reached.
On Monday night, Phoenix's Heritage Commission approved the City Council's request to name the hub the "Greg Stanton Central Station."
The 9-2 vote came a month after the commission first paused voting on the request, citing concerns about whether the mayor and council sought adequate public input and whether Stanton himself supported the proposal.
Stanton never directly weighed into the Heritage Commission, although one commission member said he told her directly that he approved.
Stanton also told The Arizona Republic on Tuesday he did not seek the honor but accepted it when the mayor offered it.
Gallego said she was "thrilled" with the commission's decision, noting "Phoenix would not have achieved the incredible growth of our light rail and bus systems" without Stanton's advocacy.
She and other council members have argued his work getting the voter-approved Transportation 2050 fund helped catalyze modern transit in Phoenix.
Verma Pastor's application to name the downtown hub for her husband was not considered. Historic Preservation Officer Helana Ruter told the Pastor family the application could not be accepted because no city department was supporting or sponsoring it.
Ruter also noted that the City Council denied a motion in May to start the process to name the downtown transit center after Ed Pastor.
The City Council is slated to officially cast its final vote on the Stanton naming proposal June 26.
Reporter Taylor Seely covers Phoenix for The Arizona Republic / azcentral.com. Reach her at tseely@arizonarepublic.com or by phone at 480-476-6116.
