Maricopa And The Valley In 20 Years

Maricopa And The Valley In 20 Years? The old joke is that eventually, Phoenix will keep growing until it runs into Los Angeles. God knows we have enough Californians here! Many say that probably won’t happen, but you will see the desert start to fill in with development heading out West. But IF Phoenix DOES turn into another LA, will that make Maricopa like – El Segundo, Redondo Beach (without the beach) or Beverly Hills? Cause there’s a BIG difference between those three right?

Does the potential growth of Phoenix & Maricopa county in general directly affect Maricopa so much? Think about the Valley in 2002. No State Farm Stadium, Y2K, downtown Phoenix was a ghost town after 3 p.m.

Now imagine what the Valley will look like 20 years from now.

“We’re projecting we’re going to add another million and a half people to Maricopa County by 2040,” said Scott Wilken with the Maricopa Association of Governments.

Wilken is a numbers guy. Technically he is the data guru who looks at the numbers to make predictions about what the future holds. And right now, Wilken says that equals one new person moving to the Valley every six minutes.

EVERY 6 MINUTES? Can we set up road blocks?

“People are coming from everywhere around the United States,” Wilken said. “Twenty percent of our movers [are] coming from California (yeah, no crap), but we’re also seeing four, five, 6% of our movers coming from places like Illinois, Florida, Colorado, Washington, Texas.”

Great, FLORIDA MAN is moving to The Valley??? Like we don’t have enough people driving the wrong way on our roads.

And the reasons are varied, Wilken said. Everything from climate to taxes and economics. Guess everyone likes 120 degree summers and rising rent.

Where will they live?

Maricopa? Ah man. Well, actually, Wilken’s data & projections show the far west Valley growing in population over the next 20 years. Buckeye and Surprise are all gaining in population. The estimates show those cities will be roughly the same population as Scottsdale, Chandler and Glendale. But while those cities will get more populated, the projections show Phoenix will stay the most populous city, followed by Mesa. Wilken’s projections did NOT mention Maricopa.

But Maricopa is one of the fastest growing cities in Arizona, and the country. Some say Maricopa is a Boom Town! It’s NO news flash — Maricopa is growing. Fast. We know it. And if you live here in Maricopa- you see & feel it everyday. Between the echoes of hammers every morning to the increasing bottleneck of traffic on 347 – yeah we know.

For those who would rather see Maricopa maintain a more rural lifestyle and put off all the growth, don’t worry, there’s a note of encouragement. It’s not going to happen tomorrow. It’s going to take years if not decades for it all to be realized. And people say we’re not ready for it, and they are right, we’re not ready now. But we’ll get ready for it incrementally as the development occurs.

Where will they work?

Well, Maricopa is getting a Cold Beers & Cheeseburgers over by Sprouts. And a Thai Food joint. Maybe Chilis? Hope they like minimum wage and customers just arrived from California. Not much in the way of industry coming to Maricopa.

But seriously, the Arizona Commerce Authority believes tech will be an even bigger sector for Arizona’s economy in the next 20 years. Perhaps Maricopa is in some big-tech CEO’s mind huh?

Intel is already expanding its Chandler campus. Many Maricopians are Intel employees. Heck, my daughter’s BFF at school, her Dad works there. I USED to, while back.

Also the big semiconductor manufacturer, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) is currently building a massive facility near I-17 and Carefree Highway. Kind of far away, but maybe they will eventually widen the 347, right? Right?

“The more significant area for the advanced manufacturers and the technology companies in the corridor between Tucson and Phoenix,” a pretty lady named Sandra Watson said. She’s president of the Arizona Commerce Authority.

Other companies have moved into the Valley, dealing with solar power, battery production, recycling, and electric cars (like Lucid in Casa Grande).

It’s almost impossible to tell what the future holds, but it’s a safe bet Maricopians will have lots of new neighbors in the next 20 years.

On THAT note, Archangel Companies Gun Store & Accessories makes custom AR-Builds, custom ammo, has a full range of custom and store bought targets and other fun stuff. Heck, they even have a private shooting range to practice with everything your bought there. Call (480) 540-2374 and ask for Rob. Or, visit their website and make a range appointment there.

That is NOT an encouragement to shoot your neighbors just ’cause they’re from California!!! Or anywhere else for that matter…Just popped into my head is all. Good prices and friendly people is all……