Good morning, Arizona. Here's what our reporters are working on and what you should know before you start your day.
The Arizona Department of Transportation announced a litany of road closures for travelers t o be aware of during the upcoming weekend.
Such closures include parts of Interstate 10 near Sky Harbor International Airport and Loop 101 , while southbound Interstate 17 will be reduced to one lane in north Phoenix between Friday and Saturday for improvement projects.
The agency recommends that drivers should allow extra travel time and consider alternate routes .
More about the planned closures .
Other big stories
➤ The former Sandbar Mexican Grill in Gilbert is getting a transformation : It will now house the Valley's second location of Backyard , an indoor-outdoor restaurant and bar with yard games and a stage for live music.
➤A recent campaign finance report is again bringing up questions about whether Republican state Sen. Wendy Rogers lives in the rural Arizona district she was elected to represent .
➤ Did you pay attention to the top headlines in Arizona this week? Test your knowledge with azcentral.com's news quiz for July 20.
➤ Today, you can expect it to be mostly sunny, with a chance of rain in the afternoon with a high near 115 degrees. Expect it to be cloudy with a chance of rain at night with a low near 92 degrees. Get the full forecast here .
WNBA All-Stars come to Phoenix
The official All-Star weekend events kicked off Friday night at Footprint Center with the Skills Challenge and 3-point contest. Here is everything you need to know about this year’s WNBA Live .
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We'd love your feedback about the AZ Briefing. Email us at karen.kurtz@arizonarepublic.com .
Today in history
Here are just some of the events on this date in the past.
- On this day in 1944: Col. Claus von Stauffenberg attempted to assassinate Nazi leader Adolf Hitler but failed as a briefcase bomb injured but did not kill the dictator. Now known as the July Plot, it was an attempt by high-ranking German dissidents who believed Hitler was leading Germany into a suicidal war.
- In 1968 : Over 1,000 athletes from U.S. and Canada participated in the world’s first Special Olympics at Soldier Field in Chicago. The sports event, the brainchild of Eunice Kennedy Shriver and a joint venture between the Kennedy Foundation and the Chicago Park District, highlighted young people with disabilities and grew into an international phenomenon.
- In 1969 : History was made as astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin became the first humans to step foot on the moon. After the successful landing of the lunar module Eagle at the Sea of Tranquility, Armstrong and Aldrin exited and made the first walk on the moon, with Armstrong famously saying, “That’s one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.”
- In 1973: Actor and martial-arts expert Bruce Lee died at age 32 from a cerebral edema in Hong Kong. Lee, founder of the martial art called Jeet Kune Do, was one of the most popular icons of the 20th century and was renowned for his action films.
- In 1976 : The Viking 1 successfully landed at Chryse Planitia region on Mars, the first lander in history. It operated on the red planet for 2245 Martian solar days or 2,307 Earth days ― more than six Earth years.
- In 2012 : A dozen people were killed and 70 others injured when James Holmes open-fired into a crowded movie theater in Aurora, Colorado, during a midnight showing of “The Dark Knight Rises.” Holmes had set off tear gas grenades and indiscriminately shot people with multiple firearms. He was sentenced to 12 life sentences without parole ― one for each murdered victim ― and a maximum of 3,318 additional years.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: AZ Briefing: Check out weekend road closures; Gilbert's Sandbar to become Backyard bar; Questions return about where Wendy Rogers lives
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