Scottsdale leaders have abandoned an anti-discrimination ordinance that proponents were hoping would make the city more inclusive to LGBT people.
The ordinance was designed to ban discrimination in Scottsdale based on sexual orientation or gender identity in employment, housing and public accommodations. Cities like Phoenix, Tempe, Tucson and Flagstaff already have such edicts in place.
City councilwoman Virginia Korte pushed the ordinance as a way to stay competitive in attracting new visitors, businesses and residents to Scottsdale, calling it “the right thing to do.”
She found herself in the minority among her colleagues.
“The majority of council believed that (in) excluding businesses with 15 employees or less from this ordinance that would eliminate 91 percent of our businesses and really made the whole ordinance useless,” Korte said.
Korte said the lack of the ordinance has already led to some companies choosing other Valley cities over Scottsdale to house their businesses.
She’s hoping state leaders will instead consider an anti-discrimination law that would supersede local authority and cover all of Arizona.
