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🌱 Patch AM: Will Phoenix’s syringe ban actually make city parks any safer?

Be sure to catch Dave Koechner on the Phoenix Patch calendar

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Sunday December 28th Patch AM
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Good morning to you Phoenix! Catch up on our news and events right here. Keep reading to stay in the know. ☕️️

In today's newsletter:

  • Will Phoenix’s syringe ban actually make city parks any safer?
  • Which Phoenix freeways are getting new lanes and ramps in 2026?
  • How a Phoenix worker lost his entire business in one minute

Also on today's calendar: Dave & Buster's Family New Years Event Party! and 9 more events.

Find out what's happening in Phoenixfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

Today's riddle: I’m trying to think of a new cloud joke. 🤔 (Answer below!)

Weather forecast:

Find out what's happening in Phoenixfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

  • Sunday: Some sun, with a high of 67 and low of 46 degrees.
  • Monday: Pleasant with plenty of sun, temps: high: 73, low: 50.
  • Tuesday: Nice with periods of sun, with a high of 71 and low of 52 degrees.

📰 News we're reading

1. Syringe ban in Phoenix parks triggers debate (ahwatukee.com) — Phoenix leaders have approved a controversial ordinance limiting medical treatment and syringe exchange programs in city parks, responding to complaints about discarded needles while delaying enforcement 90 days for expert input. Supporters cite safety and liability concerns, while opponents, including some council members and health advocates, warn it will criminalize homelessness, reduce lifesaving overdose prevention, and push vulnerable Phoenicians further into the shadows.
   

2. New projects to expect on metro Phoenix freeways in 2026 (ktar.com) — Major freeway upgrades are coming to metro Phoenix starting as early as January 2026, including new ramps at I-17 and Loop 303 in north Phoenix and added HOV connections toward downtown. Several Loop 101, Loop 202, and Loop 303 widening projects across the Valley will roll through 2026 and beyond, promising more lanes but also years of construction impacts for local commuters.
   

3. 'That's my livelihood gone': Trailer full of work equipment stolen in Phoenix on Christmas (12news.com) — A Phoenix small-business owner is scrambling after a trailer packed with about $9,000 in pressure-washing equipment was stolen from outside his home near 32nd Street and Beardsley Road on Christmas Day. Security video captured the quick theft, Phoenix police are investigating, and he’s scouring online marketplaces hoping the distinctive tools resurface.
   

4. Blank wall becomes a canvas for hope at transitional housing center (abc15.com) — Residents at Rosalie’s Place in downtown Phoenix are turning a once-blank wall into a colorful mural that symbolizes hope and second chances. Guided by local muralist Jesse Perry, participants in St. Vincent de Paul’s transitional housing program are using paint to build community, confidence, and a fresh start as they work to complete the final wall by the new year.
   

5. Valley shoppers hoping post-Christmas donations at thrift shops result in good finds (abc15.com) — Phoenix residents are flocking to Goodwill and other thrift shops as post-Christmas donations pour in, hoping to score marked-down finds while others clear out unwanted items. With Arizona’s secondhand market nearing a billion dollars and new Goodwill locations opening, rising retail return fees may push even more Valley shoppers toward donating instead of returning.
   

📸 Around Phoenix

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🗓 Upcoming Events in Phoenix

Add your event to our calendar and newsletter!

★ Featured events ★

    Monday December 29
  • Dave Koechner
    Stand Up Live, 50 W Jefferson St, Phoenix
    7:00 pm

Want to see your event featured? Click here!

Other local events

📣 Phoenix Shout Outs!

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Thank you 👏👏👏 to the local businesses for making Phoenix PatchAM possible:

  • Mindsee.it — (646) 663-8317
    Teach your kids they can achieve the impossible!

Click here to show your appreciation! 💚

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💬 Chatter

What your neighbors are talking about on social media

  • To all who have helped and reposted and went above and beyond to help my Misie be reUnited with us I want to let you all know ….
    this amazing wonderful gracious woman and her son found my Misie at 59th ave and McDowell, and we have been reunited I don’t know how I could ever … (Nextdoor Wedgewood)
  • THIS WAS FOR SURE A CHRISTMAS MIRACLE...
    I want to take this time to thank everyone who prayer for his safe return, those that helped spread the word that he was missing, that reposted his… (Nextdoor 29th Place)
  • Onni Group posted a job opening for Porter in Phoenix. Apply here.
  • Sodexo, Inc. posted a job opening for Floor Technician (1st Shift) at Phoenix Children's Hospital in Phoenix. Apply here. You can search for other jobs near Phoenix here.

Ok Phoenix! So now you're in the loop about what's happening today. Thanks for reading, and see you in your inbox next time! Oh -- and if you like what you're reading, invite a friend to Patch AM!

-- The Patch AM Team

P.S. The answer to today's riddle: I haven’t the foggiest.
Got a good riddle for PatchAM? Send it to us!

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