Golden Corridor LIVING Magazine

ROX Interview: Greg Stanley & Tim Kanavel . . 14

Coldwell Banker ROX on the Move . . . . 48

Africa!. . . . . . . . 96

“THE VOICE OF THE COMMUNITY”

Special Section: PINAL COUNTY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Connected Development

The Growing Technology Sector of the Golden Corridor In Every Edition:

GOLDENCORRIDORLIVING.COM

$4.95 Complimentary • FALL 2018

ARIZONA CIT Y • C A SA GR ANDE • COOLIDGE • ELOY • FLORENCE • MARICOPA

Residential & Commercial

520-705-5250 ROC303493

Landscape Cleanup New Installation Gravel & Pavers Sod and Synthetic Grass Hardscape Outdoor kitchen & BBQs Firepits & seating Ramadas Paver patio & driveway

AL I C E P S R PAVE g at $4.99 Startin q. ft. per s

Basic backyards start at $2500* *Includes sod, basic curbing, assorted trees/plants and drip system.

Built With Pride From The Ground Up

(520)836-6511

Custom Homes On Your Lot Or Ours ROC#175926

Coming Soon - Arroyo Verde Estates

Meet our A proud part of the

Kelly Herrington

team

“I love to help sellers list their homes.”

Gretchen Slaughter

“I love to help buyers find the PERFECT home!”

520.780.0843

520.483.6054

1919 N. Trekell Rd. Casa Grande

520.423.8250

ROXsells.com

©2018 Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. All Rights Reserved. Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act. Each Office Is Independently Owned And Operated.

Coldwell Banker and the Coldwell Banker Logo are registered service marks owned by Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC.

Have you often longed to live in a new custom home surrounded by the beauty of the Sonoran Desert?

Stop longing and start living your dream.

6562 W Appaloosa Trl, Coolidge, AZ 85128 Located in Saddle Creek $

399,000

Placed on an acre lot zoned for horses, this home offers panoramic mountain views and captivating experiences with desert fauna and flora. The open floor plan includes living room with a dramatic see-through gas fireplace and soaring ceilings. The kitchen boasts granite counters and a spacious industrial kitchen sink.

With 4 bedrooms, 3 Baths, 2,685 square feet and an extended side entry three car garage, this home has room for everyone and everything.

Additional lots available as “Build to Suit” Turn Key Homes

Building in Southern Arizona since 1973 ROC#: 291306

KAY KERBY

520.560.0769

SARAH CAMPBELL KELLY HERRINGTON 520.424.6577

520.780.0843

520.423.8250 | ROXsells.com ©2018 Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. All Rights Reserved. Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act. Each Office Is Independently Owned And Operated.

Coldwell Banker and the Coldwell Banker Logo are registered service marks owned by Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC.

ROX Interview: Greg Stanley & Tim Kanavel . .14

Coldwell Banker ROX on the Move . . . 48

Africa! . . . . . . . 96

“THE VOICE OF THE COMMUNITY”

Special Section: PINAL COUNTY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Contents

THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION

Features:

Connected Development

The Growing Technology Sector of the Golden Corridor

Pinal County Press Local News

In Every Edition:

GOLDENCORRIDORLIVING.COM

Fall 2018

$4.95 Complimentary • FALL 2018

12

ARIZONA CIT Y • C A SA GR ANDE • COOLIDGE • ELOY • FLORENCE • MARICOPA

Pinal County Gregory Stanley & Timothy Kanavel

14

Coldwell Banker ROX Realty on the Move

48

THE LIVING INTERVIEW:

o 5 routine, and the opportunity to get

dvantages.

he-art technology, the strength of a global network mpowering culture of excellence—advantages elevate your brand in the minds of consumers and h you from the competition.

g and a world-class agent platform with predictive and business management tools to help you drive ness to new levels of success. The advanced CB e portal streamlines communication and content o agents can spend more time growing their And, of course, presentations and marketing are designed to look gorgeous across desktop, d mobile. Together, these cutting-edge tools make sharpest agents that much sharper.

bigger is most certainly better. real estate companies talk a good game, but rubber meets the road, few others stack up to fides at the Coldwell Banker brand. Whether g over $240 billion in sales volume,1 leading the d digital media environment, contributing to local ties and causes, or activating the power of a global or referrals, the Coldwell Banker network has the on’s number. Which means so do our agents

ON THE MOVE Pinal County Economic 67 Development Prospectus Col d we ll

B a n ke r

ROX

Re a l t y

SPECIAL SECTION:

$650,000

someone looking for a career change and your first ystems available to help you succeed.

50 | ROXsells.com

ACREAGE 3770 S. Peart Rd. 20.86 acres, horse property 3bd, 1.75ba, 2,191 sf

$497,000

Economy, Finance & Business

Health, Happiness & Education

Travel, Dining & Entertainment

Employers & Employees: Are you ready? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Out & About Photos. . . . . . . . . 38

Africa: A Once-in-a-lifetime Adventure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96

l Rd, Casa Grande, AZ 85122

state LLC. All Rights Reserved. Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC he Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act. Each Office Is rated. Coldwell Banker and the Coldwell Banker Logo are registered ell Banker Real Estate LLC.

COYOTE RANCH 104 W. Crimson Sky Ct. 4bd, 3ba, 2,776 sf With pool and casita

Kelly Herrington Sales Manager, REALTOR

1919 N. Trekell Rd. | Casa Grande, AZ 85122 O: 520.423.8250 | C: 520.780.0843 ROXSELLS.COM

©2018 Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. All Rights Reserved. Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act. Each Office Is Independently Owned And Operated. Coldwell Banker and the Coldwell Banker Logo are registered service marks owned by Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC.

Tax Victory for Arizona Agriculture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 We Need Skilled Leaders. . . . . 30

A Team of Breast Cancer Experts Focused on You. . . . . . 42 Saving Lives and Property through Fire Prevention. . . . . . 44

Golden Corridor LIVING Coloring Contest Winners. . . . 98 Against Abuse is Ready. . . . . .102

G OLDENCORRIDORLIVING .COM

Letter from the Editor

FALL IS TIME TO CELEBRATE AS PINAL COUNTY’S PLAN FOR GROWTH BECOMES REALITY

A Bea Lueck

s our thoughts turn to ghosts and goblins and the fall season in Arizona, Pinal County is celebrating the economic growth heading this way.

Nikola Motor Company, a hybrid truck manufacturer, recently announced plans to build a millionsquare-foot facility in Coolidge, with the promise of 1,800 to 2,000 jobs.

The manufacturing plant was originally proposed for Buckeye but the timeframe for the development of the Buckeye site did not fit the schedule for expedited construction.

Previously announced electric car manufacturer Lucid Motors received a $1B infusion of investment cash and will be speeding up their plans to produce the Tesla-rival Lucid Air in Casa Grande, creating 2,000 new tech jobs.

Both companies are said to be

FALL 2018 • THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION

catalysts to attract ancillary industry to the region.

This edition’s interview with the County Economic Development Manager Tim Kanavel and County Manager Greg Stanley shares how the county’s strategic plan drives their marketing efforts that in turn brings in this new business, along with new tourists.

For a clearer understanding of the County’s marketing efforts, check out the latest Pinal County Economic Development Department’s area prospectus featured in this edition. Pinal County is growing with more positive announcements on the horizon.

And speaking of growing, meet the ROX Stars of Coldwell Banker ROX Realty. Good things are happening to Pinal County business!

Are you ready to test your travel

boundaries? Follow along with Paula Leslie as she recounts her greatest adventure, the African safari. She’ll give you some useful tips and maybe spark your inner travel desires!

Remember our coloring contest cover last edition? The results are in and the winners are showcased here.

Thank you to everyone who submitted their creations, it was a tough decision because everyone did an amazing job!

We hope you enjoy this information-packed issue, and don’t forget … the next edition will feature the Women in Business of the Golden Corridor!

This edition is also the Holiday edition, time for your favorite recipes and shopping tips.

–Bea

GOLDEN CORRID OR LI V ING

7

G OLDENCORRIDORLIVING .COM PUBLISHER Elaine Earle, CPA EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Bea Lueck SENIOR COPYWRITER & EDITOR Robin Layton CONTRIBUTING WRITER Donna McBride ADVERTISING EXECUTIVES Loriann Rhodes CREATIVE DIRECTOR/GRAPHIC DESIGNER Tim Clarke SENIOR GRAPHIC DESIGNER Jake Pagano GRAPHIC DESIGNER Rebecca Bowen CUSTOMER SERVICE/AD TRAFFIC MANAGER Jo Wobser PUBLIC RELATIONS & MARKETING MANAGER Julie Turetzky COMMENTS & IDEAS editor@roxco.com CALENDAR INQUIRIES calendar@roxco.com • goldencorridorliving.com/calendar

VOICES Meet some of our contributing Voices of the Community. These leaders come from public, private and nonprofit organizations. You’ll find their fresh ideas and timely stories in this edition.

Angela Askey Executive Director, Public Relations and Marketing, Central Arizona College Angela is the Executive Director of Public Relations and Marketing for Central Arizona College. Prior to her arrival at CAC, Angela served as the Media Relations Coordinator at Mesa Community College and the Community Relations Coordinator at Idaho State University College of Technology.

SUBSCRIPTIONS info@roxco.com • goldencorridorliving.com/copies ADVERTISING INQUIRIES info@roxco.com • goldencorridorliving.com/advertise (520) 426-2074 442 W. Kortsen Rd, Ste 101 Casa Grande, AZ 85122

Joel Belloc Mayor, City of Eloy Mayor Belloc was re-elected for his second term as Mayor of the City of Eloy in November 2016. He has also served as a member of the Eloy City Council from 2002-2012 and as Vice Mayor from 2012-2014. He graduated from Central Arizona College with an AAS degree in drafting/design, attended Pima College and the University of Arizona, where he enrolled in landscape architecture. He currently manages his family’s farming business Belloc Inc. Mayor Belloc is a longtime resident of Eloy and has been married to his wife Cecilia for over 40 years. Together they have three children, 10 grandchildren and one great grandchild.

Breanna Boland Golden Corridor LIVING is published by Raxx Direct Marketing. Editorial content is provided by affiliates of Raxx Direct Marketing, community members and local organizations. © 2018. All rights reserved. No part of this publication, including but not limited to editorial content, illustrations, graphics and photographic images, may be republished, reproduced or reprinted without the prior express written consent of the publisher.

The publishers of Golden Corridor LIVING assume no responsibility for errors or omissions of any advertisement beyond the actual cost of the advertisement. In no event shall the publishers be liable for any consequential damages in excess of the cost of the advertisement. Golden Corridor LIVING shall not be liable for inaccuracies, errors, omissions, or damages from the use of information contained herein. Submitted articles do not reflect the opinions of the owners or management of Golden Corridor LIVING Information contained within submitted articles had not been verified for accuracy and readers are responsible for CORRID LI V ING 8 GOLDEN forming their own opinions.OR Real estate information is as of 9-1-18 and is subject to current availability and pricing.

Executive Director, Casa Grande Alliance Breanna is the Executive Director of the Casa Grande Alliance. She started working for the organization in 2012 as a Prevention Specialist. Breanna studied public health at Northern Arizona University and is an Arizona Certified Prevention Specialist.

THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

of the

Community

Tiffanie Grady-Gillespie

Helen Neuharth

Certified Physical Trainer, CPT, WickedFiTT Tiffanie is the owner of WickedFiTT in Casa Grande, AZ. She is a well-known personal trainer, group fitness instructor and allaround fitness junkie. Tiffanie specializes in weight loss, strength and conditioning and general fitness.

President & CEO, Greater Casa Grande Chamber of Commerce Helen was hired as the President/CEO of the Greater Casa Grande Chamber of Commerce in August 1991 and is a graduate of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Institute for Organizational Management from Boulder, CO. Helen is an active member of the Arizona Chamber Executives.

Corianna Lee

Lynn Parsons

Performing Arts Center Director, Coolidge Performing Arts Center Corianna “Cori” is a performing-arts teacher at Coolidge High School and the Performing Arts Center Director for the Coolidge Performing Arts Center. At Coolidge High School, she directs the dance, drama and technical theater programs and was named as an Arizona Teacher of the Year by the Arizona Thespian Society. Corianna has a bachelor’s in fine arts in dance and a master’s in special education. She is married with four children from kindergarten to high school and has been a resident of and employee in Pinal County for 17 years.

Donna McBride

Executive Director of the Coolidge Chamber of Commerce Lynn Parsons has been the Executive Director for the Coolidge Chamber of Commerce for over nine years. Prior to this, she was a local business owner and very active as a Chamber board member for many years. She is also a board member on the Arizona @ Work & Friends of the Casa Grande Ruins.

She is very passionate about her community and committed to working for positive growth. She and her husband raised their children in Coolidge and now are enjoying being grandparents. They believe faith and family are the basics to a good life.

Christian Price

Councilwoman, City of Casa Grande Donna is the Program Administrator/Public Information Officer and Supervisor for the CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate) Unit for Pinal County Juvenile Court. She is actively involved as a Board Member for Casa Grande Alliance, Parks and Recreation Advisory Board, BlackBox Foundation, Mayor’s Reading Program, Pinal County Town Hall Vice Chair, Parks and Block Watch Captain for the Casa Grande Police Department. She is a current member of the Casa Grande City Council.

Mayor, City of Maricopa Mayor Price is serving in his third term as Mayor. Mayor Price is an entrepreneur and small-business owner and is a partner of the Sierra West Group, a financial advisory firm. Raised in Tucson and a graduate of Northern Arizona University, he participates in numerous regional and national coalitions including serving as the Treasurer on the Executive Committee of the Arizona League of Cities and Towns.

Craig McFarland

Rina Rien

Mayor, City of Casa Grande Born and raised in California, Mayor McFarland has lived in Casa Grande since 2005. He is a graduate of California State University, Fresno and retired from Golden Eagle Distributors in January 2015 as VP of Sales after a 10-year run with the company. He has spent 36 years in beverage business-sales management, marketing and operations. McFarland began his first term as Mayor in December 2016.

Director, Casa Grande Main Street As Executive Director of Casa Grande Main Street since 2012, Rina fosters a collaborative approach toward building a vibrant downtown community. Rina enjoys partnering with highly creative people who share a passion for promoting Historic Downtown and preserving its rich history.

Gigi McWhirter

Jon Thompson

Resident Animal Whisperer Conceived in a plane behind the Airport Tavern, Gigi is living proof that it takes a village to raise a kid properly. Married to the best man and we live in what I call the “Best Dog House in Casa Grande” shared with a bunch of dogs, two parakeets and a finch called “Rusty”. Lived in Alaska, drove on the Arctic Ocean, walked on the Great Wall of China and drank Guinness in Ireland. But none of this compares to my profound love of animals and Flying Leap wines!

FALL 2018 • THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION

Mayor, City of Coolidge Mayor Thompson graduated from NAU in 1979 with a Bachelor of Science degree. He was first elected to the Coolidge City Council in 2002 and served as Vice Mayor from 2006 to 2010.

He gave up his council seat to run for Mayor and since being elected has retired as Division Director for the Pinal County Adult Probation Department after 30 years.

GOLDEN CORRID OR LI V ING

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SEPTEMBER

18

CHALK NIGHT - 6:30 PM-8:30 PM - A Latte Vino - 958 E. Rodeo Rd., Casa Grande. $25. chalkingwiththemillers.chalkcouture.com for more info.

18

22

CASA/FOSTER CHILDREN BENEFIT EVENT - 7:00 PM - 1251 W. Gila Bend Hwy., Casa Grande. Tickets $100 include cocktails at 5pm, dinner at 7pm and comedy show. Call 520-705-2472 for info.

BINGO NIGHT - 9:00 PM-11:00 PM - Cotton Bowl Lanes 1740 N Pinal Ave, Casa Grande.

Come play FREE BINGO & win prizes. Must be 21 and older.

22

20

25

22

26

WILD FOR READING FAMILY NIGHT - 5:00 PM-6:30 PM - Grande Innovation Academy, 950 N. Peart Rd., Casa Grande. Join us for an entertaining night with Wildman Phil and our book fair!

RAMON AYALA LIVE - 5:00 PM-10:00 PM UltraStar Multi-tainment Center @ Ak-Chin Circle, 16000 N. Maricopa Rd., Maricopa. Tickets at ultrastaraz.com. Bring your low lying beach chairs.

DUELING PIANOS - 8:00 PM - A Latte Vino, 958 E. Rodeo Rd., Ste. A-1, Casa Grande. Call 520-788-6677 for info.

SILENT WITNESS ANTI CRIME NIGHT - 5:30 PM-8:30 PM - Vista Grande, 1556 N. Arizola Rd., Casa Grande. CGPD and Silent Witness hosting demos, games, activities, prizes and food. Call 520-5185518 for info.

PUMPKIN LOVE - PAINT NITE - 6:00 PM-8:00 PM - A Latte Vino - 958 E. Rodeo Rd., Casa Grande. Tickets available at www.paintnite.com.

27

HOME Find. Buy. Protect.

Protecting Your

Property Rights Title & Escrow Services Commercial Service 1031 Exchange

Direct Title Services Account Servicing

Land Development/Trust

421 E. Cottonwood Lane Casa Grande, AZ 85122 Office: 520.426.4600 I Fax: 520.426.4699 Email: latisha.sopha@titlesecurity.com

WOMEN IN BUSINESS NETWORKING NIGHT - 5:00 PM-8:00 PM - A Latte Vino, 958 E. Rodeo Rd., Ste. A-1, Casa Grande. Celebrating Women in Business, special section for Golden Corridor LIVING Magazine. Call 520-426-2074 or email info@roxco. com for info.

28

CASA GRANDE FFA STEAK FRY - 5:00 PM7:30 PM - Casa Grande Union High School 2730 N. Trekell Rd., Casa Grande. A long standing tradition that directly benefits the FFA members at CGUHS. Steak dinner grilled over mesquite wood with

all the fixin’s! Live entertainment, raffles, and cash prizes! Bouncy house fun for the kids!

28

FOOD TRUCK FRIDAY - 5:30 PM-9:00 PM 45295 W. Honeycutt Ave., Maricopa. Have some great new trucks in the line up!

29

WESTERN PINAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS GOLF TOURNAMENT - 7:00 AM - Dave White Golf Course 2121 N. Thornton Rd., Casa Grande. 10th annual tournament benefitting The Boys and Girls Clubs of Casa Grande. $65 individual/$250 team of four. Call 520-208-0418 or wparonline@gmail. com for more info.

29

MURDER MYSTERY DINNER - 6:00 PM-9:00 PM - The Silver Spur Grill at The Duke, 42660 W. Rancho El Dorado Pkwy., Maricopa, AZ 85138. A dance with death! Sock Hop gone sour! Come dressed in your 50’s attire and help solve the nights mystery with your fellow Tortosa neighbors! Deadline to register is 9/10. Tickets at events.r20.constantcontact.com

29

DIERKS BENTLEY & SPECIAL GUESTS - 7:00 PM-10:00 PM - Harrah’s Ak-Chin, 15406 N. Maricopa Rd., Maricopa, AZ 85139 Ticket info at http:// bit.ly/getyourdierksbentleytix

29

GIRLS NIGHT OUT - 8:00 PM-11:00 PM The Luxe Lounge, 16000 N. Maricopa Rd., Maricopa. The #1 ladies night event. Tickets at www. ticketor.com.

OCTOBER

2

OKTOBERFEST IN OLD TOWN - 5:30 PM-8:30 PM - Florence St., between 2nd & 4th St., Casa Grande. Historic Downtown to kick off our Fall Season. Live music, food, fun Biergarten Style! 520836-8744 for info.

5

PINAL 40 GOLF CLASSIC 6:45 AM-5:00 PM - Ak-Chin Southern Dunes Golf Club 48456 W Hwy 238, Maricopa. 3rd annual charity golf tournament. Info and tickets available at pinal40.org

5

LA COCINA FOOD TRUCK FESTIVAL - 5:30 PM-9:00 PM - 280 E. 3rd St., Casa Grande. Come

and enjoy great food and music every 1st Friday of the month.

5-7

COOLIDGE DAYS CELEBRATION - 10:00 AM - San Carlos Park 300 W. Central Ave., Coolidge. Parade is Saturday, Oct. 6th at 10:00AM. For more info call 520-723-4551.

10

CG CHAMBER 27TH ANNUAL BUSINESS SHOWCASE - 5:00 PM-7:30 PM The Property, 1251 W. Gila Bend Hwy., Casa Grande. Open to the public . $5 per person. Call 520-8362125 for info.

11

FALL INTO WELLNESSHEALTH FAIR - 9:00 AM1:00 PM - CAC 8470 N. Overfield Rd., Coolidge. On the Green @ Signal Peak Campus. FREE health info, screenings. Vision & Dental (under 18 only)

12

MOVIE IN THE PARK - THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS - 6:30 PM-10:00 PM Paul Mason Sports Complex - 2525 N. Pinal Ave., Casa Grande. Brink blankets and chairs for this family fun event. Activities start at 6:30PM before the movie starts.

www.titlesecurity.com

10

GOLDEN CORRID OR LI V ING

THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

BUSINESS INDEX Absolute Homes / Vivid Landscape . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Against Abuse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102 Alliance Cancer Care Arizona . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

September – October 2018 OCTOBER (continued)

13

2018 MARICOPA MUD RUN - 6:00 AM - Copper Sky Recreation Complex 44345 W. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Maricopa. To register visit www.maricopamudrun.com

13

5TH ANNUAL TIP OVER THE SHELVES 5K - 7:30 AM - Main Street Park, 601 N. C St., Eloy. Race proceeds to help stock shelves to help fight hunger.

14

HEALTHY KIDS RUNNING SERIES MARICOPA - 3:00 PM - Copper Sky Recreation Complex 44345 W. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Maricopa. Tickets available visit runsignup.com/hkrsmaricopa for info.

16

CANGEN WATER SYSTEMSRIBBON CUTTING - 10:00 AM Cangen 418 N. Marshall St., Casa Grande.

Call 520-836-9800 for info.

16

ALLIANCE ONCOLOGY-RIBBON CUTTING/OPEN HOUSE - 4:00 PM-6:00 PM - Alliance Oncology, 1876 E. Sabin Dr., Ste. 10, Casa Grande. Contact 520-836-9800 for more info.

17

20

CITYWIDE CLEAN-UP - 8:00 AM-10:00 AM - City of Casa Grande Dorothy Powell Senior Center 405 E. 6th St., Casa Grande. Get your group together, pick an area in town that matters to you and clean it up. Call 520421-8760 for info.

21

32ND ANNUAL TASTE OF CASA GRANDE - 1:00 PM-4:00 PM Eva’s, 665 N. Pinal Ave., Casa Grande.

Call 520-836-1239 for info.

23

FALL TABLE RUNNER CLASS - 10:00 AM-4:00 PM - PM Quilting - 800 E. Florence Blvd., Casa Grande, AZ 85122. Triangle Frenzy Twist fall table runner. This is a quick and easy project that is typically completed in class.. For more info visit pmquilting.com

23

CRUCIAL CATCH-FREE BREAST SCREENING EVENT - 2:00 PM-6:00 PM - Sun Life 1864 E. Florence Blvd., Ste. 2, Casa Grande. Free education and screenings, activities, refreshments, photo booth and resources. No appt. necessary, but encouraged. Call 520-381-0380.

SUGAR SKULL ROSES - PAINT NITE - 6:00 PM-8:00 PM - A Latte Vino - 958 E. Rodeo Rd., Casa Grande. Tickets available at www. paintnite.com.

24

DAY OUT DOWNTOWN & HISTORIC WALKING TOUR 9:30 AM - Main Street Patio, behind main office at 110 W. 2nd St., Casa Grande. Join us for coffee and pastries before we head out. Contact 520-8368744 for info.

18

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2018 TRANSITION FAIRBUILD YOUR FUTURE - 5:00 PM-7:00 PM - Casa Grande Union High School 2730 N. Trekell Rd., Casa Grande. Secondary students receiving Special Education/504 service encouraged to attend, gain valuable information to transition from school to adult responsibilities. Call 520-8368500 for info.

TRUNK OR TREAT - 10:00 AM-11:00 AM - Vista Grande High School - 1556 N Arizona Rd., Casa Grande. Annual event. Call 520-421-8677 if interested in hosting a trunk.

CENTRAL ARIZONA SPEEDWAY - HOWL-O-WEEN BASH - 7:00 PM - Central Arizona Speedway, 512 S. Eleven Mile Corner Rd., Casa Grande.

Admission $15 Adults, $12 Seniors/ Military, Kids 11 and under free. Call 520709-0718 for info.

HALLOWEEN FAMILY FRIGHT NIGHT - 6:00 PM-8:00 PM Historic Downtown Casa Grande - If you dare, visit Downtown Casa Grande on Halloween for a spooktacular night full of frights. There will be game booths, inflatables, vendors, music and a costume contest with prizes for different age groups.

FALL 2018 • THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION

Annie-Mac Home Mortgage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108 Banner Casa Grande Medical Center . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 Capital R Construction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Casa Grande Alliance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59 Casa Grande Family Dentistry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Casa Grande Main St- CG Mosaic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 Central Arizona College . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56 Chris Buys Houses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 City of Casa Grande . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92 City of Maricopa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90 Coldwell Banker ROX - BROKERAGE . . . . . . . . 3,4,39,107 Coldwell Banker ROX - Property Management . . . . . 63 Copper Corridor Economic Development Coalition . . . . 89 Cypress Point . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Desert Sun Heating, Cooling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 Dick & Mitchell DDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 DM Family Dentistry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Ed Whitehead’s Tire Pros . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Fitzgibbons Law Offices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Grande Innovation Academy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Greater CG Chamber of Commerce . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Jewell Glass & Mirror . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Mankel Mechanical . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 Norris RV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Out of Africa Wildlife Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Pinal 40 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 Pinal Alliance for Economic Growth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95 Pinal County Economic Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 ROX Casa Grande Insurance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93, 101 Seeds of Hope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Star Towing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Sun Life Family Health Center . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 Superior Chamber of Commerce . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88 Title Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Western Pinal Assoc of REALTORS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Yang and Horsley Dentistry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 GOLDEN CORRID OR LI V ING

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PINAL COUNTY

by Staff Reports

• A RIZONA CIT Y • CASA GR ANDE • COOLIDGE • ELOY • FLORENCE • M A RICOPA • A RIZONA CIT Y • CASA GR ANDE • COOL

Casa Grande council votes in support to assist homeless

T

One of Nikola’s hydrogen electric semi-trucks. (Photo courtesy of Nikola)

2,000 jobs coming to Coolidge

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hybrid truck manufacturer, with the promise of over 2,000 jobs, is coming to Coolidge.

Originally slated for Buckeye, the million-square-foot Nikola Motor Company plant will now be located east of the Union Pacific Railroad, south of the Santa Rosa Canal, north of Houser Road and west of Vail Road in the City of Coolidge.

“Production model versions of Nikola’s world class hydrogen powered trucks will be unveiled for fleet testing early next year and Nikola’s Reckless all electric UTV is also being tested in conjunction with the U.S. military,” said Rick Miller, Coolidge City Manager.

“Nikola has decided to move our manufacturing plant from Buckeye, Arizona to Coolidge, Arizona. Both properties are

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just outside Phoenix. Coolidge had a shovel-ready 430-acre piece of property with the infrastructure already in place that will shave years off our construction time. We have customers like Anheuser-Busch and U.S. Xpress who are ready for their trucks, and with this move, we’ll be able to deliver much faster,” said Trevor Milton, CEO, Nikola Motor Company.

“The City of Coolidge, the Arizona Commerce Authority, Pinal County and Saint Holdings, LLC, worked with Nikola Motor Company to quickly identify a location in Coolidge for a manufacturing facility,” said Miller. “Nikola will invest $1 billion in a capital investment and bring 2,000 jobs to the region by 2025, when it has completed full buildout of the

Coolidge facility and its nearly-completed Phoenix headquarters and research and development facility.”

“Arizona is a great place to do business. The Governor’s office and the City of Coolidge both were incredible to work with and helped us find a solution to getting up and running quicker.

Ultimately, we have over 2,000 employees to hire and we had nowhere to put them. We needed a quicker path to manufacturing and Coolidge provided that for us with a property that was ready to go.”

Jackob Andersen of Saint Holdings, LLC, worked closely with the City of Coolidge a few years ago to put into place an extensive development agreement, annex and zone a 2,738-

continued on page 109...

he Casa Grande City Council in August passed a resolution in support of the Homelessness Strategic Plan and Goals developed by the Mayor’s Task Force on Homelessness.

“After several meetings with our task force members, it became clear that the dynamics surrounding homelessness are complex, impacting families with children, the mentally ill, victims of domestic violence, veterans, and more,” said Casa Grande Mayor Craig McFarland. “While homelessness is not just a local problem, our community leaders have demonstrated a strong commitment to developing solutions and taking action to reduce homelessness in our region.

This is truly a community effort.”

The product of these efforts has been the creation of a strategic plan document, outlining a myriad of goals and objectives to be executed by an existing community group, the Casa Grande Homeless Coalition. The goals contained within the strategic plan include affordable housing, temporary shelters and transitional housing, support services and education, public safety, targeted populations, and community engagement, as well as the creation of a Resource Center to be housed at the Peart Center.

For more information on the Mayor’s Task Force on Homelessness or the Casa Grande Homeless Coalition, contact Mannie Bowler, Executive Director of the United Way of Pinal County, at (520) 252-9987.

THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

PRESS

Visit GoldenCorridorLiving.com for Up-to-date Local News from Golden Corridor LIVING Magazine

LIDGE • ELOY • FLORENCE • M A RICOPA • A RIZONA CIT Y • CASA GR ANDE • COOLIDGE • ELOY • FLORENCE • M A RICOPA •

Lucid Motors announces $1B investment

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car company that announced plans in 2017 to build a manufacturing plant in Casa Grande announced Sept. 17 that the business is receiving $1 billion in funds to launch its first electric vehicle in 2020.

According to a Lucid Motors press release, “Lucid plans to use the funding to complete engineering development and testing of the Lucid Air, construct its factory in Casa Grande, Arizona, begin the global rollout of its retail strategy starting in North America, and enter production for the Lucid Air.” Tim Kanavel, Economic Development Manager for Pinal County, said the county is extremely excited about this latest news.

“This infusion of cash will allow Lucid to get the project starter faster than what they first announced. In addition to the recent good news from Nikola, we’re looking at 4,000 new jobs for our county, all well-paying jobs in the high-tech industry.”

Nikola Motor Company, a hy-

brid truck manufacturer, recently announced they were building a million-square-foot facility in Coolidge, with the promise of 2,000 jobs.

Kanavel shared that about half of Pinal County’s workforce commutes out of the area for their jobs.

“With the jobs we are bringing into the county, we can retain the people who are commuting out of the area. Now, you can afford to work and live here,” said Kanavel.

“Our priority one effort is going after jobs that are head of household type of positions. This increases demands for new homes and more retail opportunities.”

The $1 billion investment agreement was signed with the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia (PIF).

“The convergence of new technologies is reshaping the automobile, but the benefits have yet to be truly realized. This is inhibiting the pace at which sustainable mobility and energy are adopted. At Lucid, we will demonstrate the full potential of

The Lucid Air Launch Edition is limited to the first 255 cars off the production line.

the electric connected vehicle in order to push the industry forward”, said Peter Rawlinson, Chief Technology Officer of Lucid.

A spokesperson for PIF said: “By investing in the rapidly expanding electric vehicle market, PIF is gaining exposure to longterm growth opportunities, supporting innovation and technological development and driving revenue and sectoral diversifi-

cation for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.” The spokesperson added: “PIF’s international investment strategy aims to strengthen PIF’s performance as an active contributor in the international economy, an investor in the industries of the future and the partner of choice for international investment opportunities. Our investment in Lucid is a strong example of these objectives.”

Casa Grande leadership adopts strategic plan

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asa Grande’s Strategic Plan is a collaborative effort between City Council and City executive leadership, Mayor Craig McFarland shared with Golden Corridor Living.

“With the help of a consultant to lead the Council through a process we developed five focus areas.”

These areas are: • Financial sustainability • Quality of life • Marketing

• Infrastructure • Education Residents will see improved work in these areas over the next five years. For instance, in the education arena, leaders hope to increase the number of baccalaureate degrees earned by Casa Grande residents by 10 percent, as well as increase the number of students attending post graduate institutions or vocational education by 20 percent through 2020.

FALL 2018 • THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION

The plan for the city’s infrastructure includes access to the internet for 100 percent of its residents by 2019, as well as identifying and funding a transit plan within five years.

“This process and the plans that came from the process have given our City great focus and direction,” McFarland said.

“Council and staff came away from this with a clear direction and vision: We will leverage the current economic climate, new

opportunities and our strong community to improve quality of life, civic pride and quality jobs.

Casa Grande’s strategic location and strongly motivated City leadership will honor diversity and provide opportunities for all residents to be successful. By building a sustainable and attractive community we can create a place where people can safely live, work and play.”

Read more news on page 109...

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The LIVING Interview

PINAL COUNTY EcDev LEADERS Greg Stanley

Tim Kanavel Interview by Rock Earle

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Greg Stanley, Pinal County Manager Tim Kanavel, Pinal County Economic Development Program Manager

GC LIVING: It seems the county has taken a really aggressive, positive stance on marketing.

It’s the optics, the vision, look and feel, and shouting about your strengths. Hopefully out of that process comes economic development. That hasn’t always been the case.

GREG STANLEY: I’ll go first. In 2014, Tony Smith was the Chairman of the Board of Supervisors, and I had just started as county manager. We just finished a strategic planning process. We had done strategic plans in the past, but I would say that the 2014 strategic plan dramatically changed our focus. Previous plans were in doing things fast and more efficient. The more recent ones have been very much focused on creating jobs and what can we do to help facilitate the creation of jobs within Pinal County. That was 2014-17. We re-upped it more in the new 2017-2020 strategic plan. It still has that same focus but I think even more expanded and we grew the team that’s participating in our strategic planning process.

GC LIVING: So is it coincidental to say that the new emphasis happened with your arrival?

GREG STANLEY: I think it naturally occurred as things change, don’t you, Tim? TIM KANAVEL: For me as economic development manager, it all changed when we went from three supervisors to five. The new

five-member board made economic development a priority. And part of it is marketing. We’re marketing in the United States to around 3,220 county equivalents. What makes us different? Why Pinal County? We are different from any other county within Arizona or the United States. You have to market that difference and that’s the reason why we always answer the question, “Why Pinal County?” All of our marketing says that, “Why should you choose Pinal County?” You can see the result of the marketing efforts with these different projects we’ve been able to attract. That would have never have happened if we didn’t market.

TIM KANAVEL: It was a change in leadership and that leadership actually wanted to create good paying jobs. We’ve adopted six targeted sectors. They’re stable, sustainable and they pay well. Everything we’ve been able to attract within the last few years was within those targeted sectors.

GC LIVING: Looking through your 2017-2020 strategic plan there are action steps and plans everywhere. Is that what you’re saying changed?

GREG STANLEY: One of the complaints that the board would hear from developers was that it took long to do this and that. A lot of it was focused internally on how can we be more efficient in turnaround times? You know someone wants a building permit. How can we turn it around quicker? This really did

THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

What does the announcement of Nikola Motors mean for both Coolidge and the region?

This is an incredible opportunity for not only the City of Coolidge and the county but for the entire region and state. This project will have international implications as this cutting-edge technology develops worldwide.

With nearly 2,000 high paying jobs with great benefits coupled with the company centrally locating within the county — this makes a great opportunity to continue our “Live, Work and Play” mantra. More and better homes, better education opportunities, better retail shopping and other employment opportunities all add up to a better quality of life for Pinal County residents.

When working with projects of this size, typically how long is

the process from idea to announcement?

We go as fast as the client wants to go is the short answer.

The long answer is that many factors determine how long the project takes from the day we receive the initial call until it is a viable project under construction or production.

Those factors would include: Is the company funding in place to go forward immediately, is the land properly zoned, is the needed infrastructure in place — do we need to build roads, run sewer, run water, etc., and how far, — do the clients want an existing building or a Build to Suit (BTS), is the needed workforce available already or will extensive training be needed, is the required permitting in place because federal and state permits may take some time to be approved? These and many other factors have a direct effect

change and was much more focused on how can we create jobs and improve our transportation system.

GC LIVING: Most strategic plans sit on the shelf, but this one seems to be a real active one.

TIM KANAVEL: Oh yes! You can follow it and see we’re going right through it. You can get sidetracked so easily and start going every direction. This keeps us on task and moving straight. We know this works. When you can bring down the unemployment level from 13.2 percent in 2009 to 4.1 percent, we must be getting fairly close.

GREG STANLEY: We routinely sit down and follow up with the team leaders. I have one of the board members that’s always involved in those meetings.

GC LIVING: Which one?

GREG STANLEY: It’s Tony Smith, and he’s done it since the start. We sit down and monitor our progress and make adjustments.

GC LIVING: This type of marketing is generally seen as very positive and something that everybody needs to do and yet it’s ques-

FALL 2018 • THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION

on how long it takes to get a project off of the ground.

How important is it for developers and communities to invest in infrastructure to such attract projects?

Just behind available workforce, infrastructure is the biggest concern for all the companies. Whether in the unincorporated county or in an incorporated city or town, most clients prefer to have a site that is considered “shovel ready” meaning everything is in place to get the project going.

The proper zoning is in place, water, sewer, electric, natural gas is also in place.

The “perfect scenario” is to have the needed acres of industrial, commercial and retail all shovel ready — but that is rarely the case. Communities and the county constantly have to up-

tioned in certain circles. What’s the deal with that from your point of view?

GREG STANLEY: This whole discussion about marketing started when it seemed everything reported was negative. For example, several years back right before Memorial Day the articles in the newspaper were about snipers sitting on mountaintops taking out people in Pinal County. That’s not the kind of publicity you need going into a three-day weekend when you have all kinds of great assets to show off. That’s when we got into discussions on how can we move toward positive news stories.

TIM KANAVEL: When we first started people said, “There’s nothing to do ... there’s nothing here...” What the board and the county manager have done is consolidate everything into a solid, comprehensive marketing effort. One of the biggest things we’ve been able to accomplish is encompassing and marketing the county as a whole, not necessarily in individual parts.

GREG STANLEY: When Lucid Motors an-

grade infrastructure to be able to handle ongoing progress. One big example for infrastructure improvements we at the county are constantly working on are our roads (the RTA is an example): Our roads not only handle commercial traffic but also need to be adequate to be able to get our workforce from home to their place of work more easily, families to shopping, church, school, etc. The local utility companies are constantly upgrading respective delivery systems to reflect growth of residential, retail, industrial and commercial opportunities.

nounced to us privately they were coming to the Casa Grande area, the people we were talking to said, “It’s real easy to find information about Sedona, or things to do in the Phoenix area, but what is there to do in Pinal County?” That really helped us focus on all the great and positive things in Pinal County. The first video we produced really helps to showcase Pinal County.

GC LIVING: Let’s talk about both the video and print pieces. We’re in the print business. We love print. We look at and feel the paper.

There’s always an economic development aspect in Golden Corridor LIVING. Your promotional piece is included in this edition so our readers can see how effective it is. Talk about the process and how that made you rethink what you’re doing.

TIM KANAVEL: This is actually our second version. Marketing goes stale really, really quick. We updated it. It’s indicative of the technology we’re pursuing. Even the front page is technology. It also details again, “Why Pinal County?” We also included in-

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The LIVING Interview (continued) serts that talk about many of the things we’re working on: recreation, tourism, Arizona@Work. And here’s our bragging page, testimonials from some of the companies that are already here and that we work with all the time. It’s pretty down to earth, and it deals with our targeted sectors of transportation and logistics, manufacturing, health services, aerospace and defense, natural and renewable resources and tourism. In 2019, we look to add innovation and technology.

It’s increasing quality of life. Better jobs, better opportunities. We’re trying to relieve some of the poverty. You do that by attracting good paying companies that are sustainable. When manufacturing and industry puts a billion dollars into a project, they don’t just walk away from it over night.

You know they’re going to be here a while.

The average yearly income in Pinal County is still less than $35,000. Some of the jobs we’re getting now, the minimum wage is $55,000 a year.

GREG STANLEY: One of the other things we did with this new version of print media is we

created inserts so cities and towns or even chambers could use this template and can tailor it to their needs.

TIM KANAVEL: Plus we have English and Spanish versions.

GC LIVING: I’m glad you brought up tourism because we do a lot of work for destination marketing organizations and it’s provable if you dig in the statistics that destination marketing also has a sense of economic development. You will bring the CEO in who golfs or stays at a boutique hotel or has a great experience at a unique destination.

Economic development marketing bleeds into tourism. We think it’s important to have that integrated in the whole package and the best videos have a little bit of all of it covered. That makes me think about the video you produced and the recreation piece you have here. Tell us a little bit about it and how it feeds economic development.

GREG STANLEY: I think part of it was missing when Lucid Motors mentioned, “What is there to do in Pinal County?” I think that is really when we started talking about differ-

Nikola Two

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ent topics for the videos.

TIM KANAVEL: The second video is about food.

They filmed all over the county. There’s a bunch of foodies out there who love to go and eat different places. So this is an opportunity for them. The next will be on hiking and outdoor activities.

GC LIVING: As an adjunct to that are the kind of print pieces for tourism.

TIM KANAVEL: Our tourism piece will probably be its own brochure. Tourism is a base industry. You know people bring money in from somewhere else and spend it here. And we love that. Tourism is an industry just like manufacturing. It’s not just for tourists, the Sheriff is going to use it to recruit employees. Some of the chambers are using it for the same thing. We need to get people here.

We need to boost up our workforce. And that’s one of the ways to do it.

GREG STANLEY: Print media yes. Also social media. We know that is a huge audience.

We try to keep these videos short enough to make them attractive on social media as well.

TIM KANAVEL: We’re active on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. We’re adding Foursquare.

GC LIVING: Some locations can’t get economic development so they focus on tourism. Every place has a different path, but you have a totally integrated view. We realize how tourism and destination marketing affects hiring and inbound tourists. In many senses tourism dollars are the least impactful dollars you can generate. Tourism is the cleanest thing.

TIM KANAVEL: We like tourism because we don’t have to pay to build Picacho Peak.

Same for the rivers and trails on the east side. That’s the great thing about our ecotourism. All this stuff’s already here.

GREG STANLEY: You know things like the Anza Trail, that’s a historic trail. Limited costs for us — put up some signage. The state trails goes through our county.

GC LIVING: Pinal County is always overshadowed by Phoenix and Tucson. That’s not fair.

You have great things to shout about. But nobody knows about it. Even our own residents don’t know. And they also don’t know what you’re doing to attract new business.

TIM KANAVEL: I wouldn’t say who, but in 2012 when we had a bunch of people running for county supervisor several didn’t know the Biosphere is in Pinal County. There’s people in Pima County who don’t know Biosphere’s

THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

in Pinal County because Tucson has always marketed it. Pinal County never had, and that was embarrassing to us.

GREG STANLEY: One thing that was a real eye-opener for me was when I was in California, in Coronado, at the military installation there. They had a bird-watching event one morning. I told the lady who led it where I was from and she didn’t know anything about Pinal County. But when I mentioned the bird-watching area along the San Pedro River, she said, “Oh, one of the best places in the world.” Here’s a woman from San Diego who knew the area as one of the best bird-watching areas in the whole world.

That’s the information people don’t know when they say, “That’s in Pinal County?”

GC LIVING: Let’s switch focus a little bit for an update on where all the prospects are right now and what’s new on the horizon.

GREG STANLEY: One of the big ones in operation right now is the biogas facility in Stanfield. If you go out there, you can see the four big domes. Looks like a nuclear power plant out there, but it’s actually four digesters.

They take cow manure and turn it into natural gas and pump it into the pipeline. You couple that with the ethanol plant, and you have corn energy in Maricopa. And with all the solar we’ve got assembled on the drawing board, soon Pinal County is going to be the biggest producer of green energy in the state of Arizona.

Lucid Motors just had a big announcement about securing funding from Saudi investors. I’d say myself, Larry Rains and others have routine teleconferences with them that are all very positive. And Nikola Motors announced moving its manufacturing facility location from Buckeye to Coolidge. Pinal County will soon have the corner on transportation manufacturing in Arizona.

TIM KANAVEL: Severtson Screen, they make movie screens for AMC, Harkins Theatres, big, big movie screens. They also make the 3D ones. They’re moving to San Tan Valley. I believe they’re going to be starting the permit process soon. They are the largest family-owned movie screen manufacturer in the United States. They’re rather large, and they make some giant screens. The biggest I think they said was 200 feet by 253 feet.

We’re working with several other companies that we can’t divulge details.

It is all because of our aggressive market-

FALL 2018 • THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION

Lucid Air ing. People are starting to take notice and say we are a good alternative to either the Phoenix or Tucson metro areas. We have lots of available land. And our unique key is that we have a lot of rail-served land available. And that’s what we’d like to see for Union Pacific.

GC LIVING: When someone reaches out to you, how long does the process typically take from the initial inquiry to announcing it?

TIM KANAVEL: I have seen it take anywhere from days to months or years. It all depends on the company itself. Some companies keep everything quiet and hush-hush, and others are so outgoing about marketing immediately because they are so competitive.

We’ve been working on Severtson Screens for three years now. Lucid has also been three years. The bigger the manufacturing and more money their capital, the longer it takes.

When you’re talking a billion dollar plus project, those folks take their time. We’ve been waiting on the project near Picacho Peak with the rail yard for twelve years now and I don’t know if it will ever get done. But when the economy drives Union Pacific to needing it, it will happen. We’ve got one company we’re working with right now that needs 55 railcar loads a day. That’s extraordinary.

GREG STANLEY: We’ve got rail and a lot of land, so let’s focus on the agriculture-like stuff, natural removal resources, manufacturing and transportation logistics. Those are the natural areas to pick. And that’s what this is all working into.

GC LIVING: Where are we as far as prospects?

Are they up? Are they dwindling?

TIM KANAVEL: We have never really decreased, it just stays steady. We’ve picked those six targeted sectors because this is what our county can do. We didn’t pick the high time, pie-in-the-sky things like extremely high-

tech and bio-tech. We don’t have the workforce or locations for those sectors.

GC LIVING: One thing Supervisor Smith has talked about in conversations — the price Pinal County land is in comparison to other areas. Is it half?

TIM KANAVEL: Sometimes it’s even less.

GREG STANLEY: The reason why we don’t ever put numbers out there is there’s some real stiff rules about real estate and how to talk about it and what you can say. So all we ever say is, “OK. Here’s the land. Here’s the guy who represents it. You go talk to them.” And that keeps you out of trouble. That happened a few times with the state.

GC LIVING: I’m a land broker, if you compare our rail served sites with other potential sites, with a similar type of entitlements - you’re looking at the west Valley. You’re looking at Buckeye and BNSF. I see it totally something like twenty to thirty cents on the dollar sites versus sites up in the metro Valley area. That’s the rule of thumb. Prices up there are not good now.

GREG STANLEY: You’re absolutely right. And when we’re talking to people, we say very affordable.

TIM KANAVEL: I used to say cheap. You don’t like me to say that.

GREG STANLEY: (laughs) It’s not cheap, it’s affordable.

TIM KANAVEL: But it is. And that’s one of the reasons why different companies have said, “Wow, there is a huge price difference, and we still get the same workforce.” We do maps and graphs all the time — population maps.

If you take where Interstates 8 and 10 meet, in a 50-mile radius, some 2.1 million people live in the circle. In economic development terms of your given population a third is your

continued on page 31...

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CITY

SPEAK

YOUR LEADERSHIP IS PASSIONATE ABOUT CASA GRANDE

by Craig H. McFarland, Mayor, City of Casa Grande

D Leadership is linked to personality styles and can extend from the glass is half empty to the glass is half full. My style has always been the glass is half full, or in other words, use a positive approach when dealing with people.

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efining leadership can be a challenge. A friend shared a quote from Douglas MacArthur that I think does a good job of defining leadership, “A true leader has the confidence to stand alone, the courage to make tough decisions, and the compassion to listen to the needs of others. He does not set out to be a leader; but becomes one by the quality of his actions and the integrity of his intent.”

We are not given leadership, it is earned!

Leadership attributes are found in “The 7 Mindsets.”

They remind me every day: Everything is possible because we are passionate about Casa Grande, we are connected to each other and each other’s success, and it’s about giving back . . . our attitude of gratitude and because the time is now! Now is the time to make a difference in our community.

Leadership is linked to personality styles and can extend from the glass is half empty to the glass is half full. My style has always been the glass is half full, or in other words, use a positive approach when dealing with people. Over the last 20 months, I have had many opportunities to speak with individuals and groups about Casa Grande. My approach with City matters is to highlight the positive and find ways to support, promote

Recreation Center construction

and market our community. It has been, and will be, my passion.

Where is this leadership taking us? Casa Grande is positioned for tremendous growth. We need to be prepared and manage this growth. From 2018 to 2019,

Rendering of Recreation Center lobby

THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

Neon Park Sunset

“THE 7 MINDSETS”

by Scott Shickler and Jeff Waller • and beyond, there are thousands of new jobs projected with future large projects. Additionally, as my friend Mr. Powell always says, “The best communities are the most livable, sustainable and provide the best quality of life to residents.”

From here we can build on a plan to positively promote our community. We have our new Community Center, world class soccer fields, large industry, an amazing mountain trail system, a great hospital, Neon Park and a real downtown. With our council leadership we can manage growth, and more importantly, manage what growth looks like. I believe we all want a community that has things for people, has things to do, has managed growth and ultimately is a place that is livable, sustainable and has the best quality of life.

FALL 2018 • THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION

•

•

• • • •

Everything is possible. Dream big, embrace creativity and expect results.

Passion first. Pursue your authentic talents and deepest interests.

We are connected. Explore the synergies in all relationships and learn to empower one another.

100% accountable.

Attitude of gratitude.

Live to give.

The time is now.

From here we can build on a plan to positively promote our community. … With our council leadership we can manage growth, and more importantly, manage what growth looks like.

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COOLIDGE, ARIZONA CITY LEADERS WORKING WITH LARGE, SMALL DEVELOPERS TO HELP COOLIDGE THRIVE

I Our residents have rated jobs and economic development the first concern and I couldn’t agree more.

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by Jon Thompson, Mayor, City of Coolidge

t’s my pleasure to take part in the Golden Corridor Living Magazine. I enjoy writing about the great things Coolidge is doing and what we have planned for the future. Every year a survey is sent to the residents of Coolidge asking them to rank the City in its current condition and ways we can improve.

This is a very important piece of information that helps City Council members make decisions on how Coolidge moves forward.

As I look back at our prior year survey, I felt residents had great suggestions to improve the future of Coolidge. As I’ve mentioned in previous articles, roads were the No. 1 priority. The City Council directed staff to examine ways to make significant improvements in that area. I was happy to report that I am impressed with our staff’s budgeting skills and knowledge used to improve a significant portion of the downtown streets along with others. Residents and visitors have complimented the result of this work.

This year’s survey highlighted a different need and one we have been actively working on to improve. As the economy grows around the nation, some of the hardest areas to recover fully from the recession are our rural and small cities.

Our residents have rated jobs and economic development the first concern and I couldn’t agree more.

We have been actively working with large and small developers to take a look at Coolidge as a viable thriving community. One such land developer, Saint Holdings, has purchased more than 11,500 acres in southern Coolidge. This developer sees untold potential in our community with plans for an inland port, industrial park and a large mixed-use planned area development.

Homebuilders are also taking an interest in

Coolidge. Brown Homes will be building homes on the site of an existing planned development. On the east side of Coolidge, vacant lots have been transformed by a developer building homes on infill lots in our mature neighborhoods. I anticipate this is just the start, and the interest for more development is in the works.

Specialty companies have made a significant investment in Coolidge adding hundreds of jobs over the last few years. Our Development Services Department is currently looking at improvement plans for the Pinal County Justice Court and Elections Department.

All of these active projects bring jobs at the construction phase, but also expand the workforce after the completed projects.

Looking at our 2018 survey, our residents ranked these as the Top 5 positive items our City excels in: 1. Recycling 2. Fire services 3. Overall customer service by employees 4. Library 5. Neighborhood as a place to live As you can see, our residents are seeing positive changes coming. We added recycling to our waste services less than a year ago in October 2017. Since then, residents have been enthusiastic about this service and the City staff’s step to take their suggestions seriously. Our staff found ways to achieve this extra service without increasing trash bills.

I’ll close by thanking the residents who have taken their time to fill out our survey. It gives the Council and myself a compass to navigate the needs of the City. Our hope is to make significant changes to the lives of the residents and the landscape where we live.

I invite visitors to take a trip to Coolidge and visit our national monument, the Casa Grande Ruins. Enjoy a meal at one of the many great restaurants; or just explore the shops and services.

Coolidge is changing for the better, and we have a great community to thank for that.

THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

“YEAH WE GOT TIRES FOR THAT”

Smart Retirement Living

Smart Retirement Living

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21

ELOY, ARIZONA REVITALIZING ELOY IS A GROUP EFFORT

by Joel G. Belloc, Mayor, City of Eloy

R One of the truisms in community development is that a city cannot expect others to invest if the city is not willing to invest in itself. … Eloy has embarked on several significant projects.

evitalizing Eloy’s downtown has become a labor of love for the City Council, the Downtown Advisory Commission, and it is a priority of the Eloy staff. Several initiatives are currently in place, in the works, or expected to roll out in the next year.

Two years ago, the City Council adopted (and subsequently expanded) its façade improvement grant program. This mechanism can be used by building owners to improve their buildings’ curb appeal by offering to rebate one-half of the improvement costs (up to $10,000) for the façade and up to $40,000 for a complete renovation. The application process is simple and, although not targeted for regular maintenance items, it is a great way to add value to an existing building and demonstrate not only a pride of ownership, but a commitment to our downtown and community.

One of the truisms in community development is that a city cannot expect others to invest if the city is not willing to invest in itself. As part of an overall effort to address future value and growth, Eloy has embarked on several significant projects.

The first is the construction of a new City Hall building at the southeast corner of Phoenix Avenue and “C” Street. Already underway, this new public building is taking shape and will be the cornerstone of the downtown revitalization effort. With nearly 18,000 square feet, including space for a private sector business, the new City Hall promises to become

the cornerstone for our downtown businesses and neighborhoods. It will also serve as one of our most important points of community pride. The new City Hall is expected to open March 2019.

As that building comes out of the ground, architectural programming work is also underway to assess and redesign the existing City Hall/Police Station. The City’s intent is to transform the existing building into a dedicated public safety facility, which will also accommodate our municipal court.

At the July 9th City Council meeting, the Council and public got its first view of proposed floor plans designed to enhance the efficiency and functionality of police department operations. It is expected that work on the facility could begin by the end of 2018 and be open for business in mid-2019.

In addition to the quarterly tours of the downtown for local real estate professionals and developers, staff is developing a request for qualifications to be solicited to architects and designers. The City’s intent is to complete a three-phase process to renovate the facades and arcades along both sides of Main Street, from Frontier north to 7th Street.

Phase one will be highlighted by a series of illustrations based on the existing architecture, Eloy history and culture of design and color options. Once the desired look has been determined, work will begin on construction documents specifying the design intent with supportive specifications and illustrations for contractor bidding.

Finally, the architect/designer will assist in overseeing the building and construction process. The resulting improvements are intended to provide an inviting, pleasant Main Street environment which in turn will attract renewed interest and investment by the private sector.

Overall, through proper planning, investment, marketing and leadership, the City Council, Downtown Advisory Commission and City staff are committed to bringing back Eloy’s former glory as the center of business, arts and culture.

If you would like to know more, contact Jon Vlaming, the Community Development Director, or Jeff Fairman, Eloy’s Economic Development Specialist at (520) 466-3082.

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MARICOPA, ARIZONA MARICOPA MUD RUN REGISTRATION OPEN

by Christian Price, Mayor of Maricopa

W

Back by popular demand are our superherothemed Costume Contest, Mayor’s Challenge, Mini-Copa Mud Run, and amazing obstacles we have been planning all year.

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e are excited to announce registration is open for the Maricopa Mud Run 2018 and the Mini-Copa Mud Run 2018. The event is Saturday, Oct. 13 at Copper Sky Regional Park in the City of Maricopa. The earlier you sign up, the more cash you save. Go to www.MaricopaMudRun.com to register.

Back by popular demand are our superhero-themed Costume Contest, Mayor’s Challenge, Mini-Copa Mud Run, and amazing obstacles we have been planning all year. We will also have great local food vendors and some energizing music to help you finish the course.

We are rewarding anyone who finishes the course in a superhero costume with an awesome bag of treats and an epic superhero cape. Over the last few years of this event we have seen some awesome acts of heroism and inspiration to help friends, family, and even total strangers, get through this course.

This is the third year for the Mayor’s Challenge.

This year we will be changing the rules to level the playing field. More information to come. Beat the mayor’s time and win a limited edition coin.

Last year we were able to get exciting feedback about our most popular category, the Mini-Copa Mud Run. We realized the kids not only enjoyed the course, but had the courage to complete every obstacle. Parents or authorized adults must participate with their mini-mudder to navigate the course and lead by example. Parents, we encourage you to start training

for this now because kids do amazingly well on this course with the proper encouragement.

We have redone competitive categories to have age groups, which we feel will help make things more evenly matched. All contestants will be running the first heat of the day on Saturday, Oct. 13.

This year all paid contests will get a cool headband and a finisher T-shirt.

You don’t want to miss this exciting and rewarding event.

Sign up today at www.MaricopaMudRun.com.

THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

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Economy • Finance • Business

Are You Ready?

EMPLOYERS & EMPLOYEES:

by Helen Neuharth, President/CEO, Greater Casa Grande Chamber of Commerce

D

o you know your neighbors?

Do you know what is happening in our community?

Let’s talk to one another more often, don’t always depend on social media. I recall the television ad relating a dating scenario: the message from the ad was “just because something is stated on the Internet – it isn’t necessarily true!”

In light of the current and projected business growth, the Greater Casa Grande Chamber of Commerce is working with its partners in economic development in advocating for a workforce ready to meet current and future job skills needed by employers.

That is the reason the chamber strongly encourages its business members (employers) and area employees to become familiar with and use the new Arizona Career Readiness Credential.

This major initiative set forth by Gov. Doug Ducey, in partnership with ARIZONA@WORK and the Office of Economic Opportunity, makes the Arizona Career Readiness Credential (ACRC) available to job seekers across the state.

Arizona’s employers have made it known they have difficulty finding job candidates with the foundational academic, personal and technical

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skills needed to be successful, and this initiative (acrc.az.gov) was designed in direct response to those concerns.

When discussing the importance of the ACRC free, job-training tool recently with John Nelson, consultant to the Arizona Office of Economic Opportunity, he noted that, “statewide, employers tell us they cannot find suitable candidates for their jobs and job seekers tell us they cannot find suitable employment.”

1. Arizona has one of the highest “labor market NON-participation” rates in the country. In the prime working years of 3554, 40 percent of Arizonans are sitting on the sidelines.

2. Projects are not starting because employers cannot find the workers they need. Millions of dollars are sitting on the sidelines, along with the people who could learn to thrive in those jobs.”

“What are those skills that employers need desperately but so many candidates lack? The Arizona Office of Economic Opportunity (OEO) asked hundreds of employers – across the state, large and small, in all sectors - for precise answers because generalities aren’t enough when fami-

ly livelihoods, business success, and the state’s economy are at stake,” said Nelson.

“Now that jobseekers can upgrade their skills to meet your standards, they need to know that help is available and that you value the service,” Nelson added.

This tool prepares job seekers for success by demonstrating their command of seven skill areas relevant to every occupation, industry and career pathway across the state: applied mathematics; reading for information; workplace data and graphics; communicating effectively; teamwork and collaboration; professionalism and critical thinking and problem solving.

In connecting business and community, the Greater Casa Grande Chamber of Commerce has long taken an active role in helping to meet the workforce needs of our area employers. Since employers specified which job skills are most valuable to their businesses in the development of the ACRC program, it will benefit both our local and state economies.

For more information about the ACRC, visit acrc.az.gov or contact the Casa Grande office of Arizona@Work of Pinal County at (520) 866-3600, or visit arizonaatwork.com/pinal.

THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

Greater Casa Grande Chamber of Commerce 27th Annual

BUSINESS

10th Annual Golf Tournament

GET REGISTERED TODAY! Saturday, September 29, 2018

Dave White Golf Course, Casa Grande AZ Registration: 7 am • Tee-off: 8:00 shot gun start Cost: $65 individual/ $250.00 team of four

This includes 18-holes of golf, riding cart, range balls, goodie bags and lunch!

On Course Awards: * Longest Drive Women * Longest Drive Men * Closest to the Pin Men * Closest to the Pin Women * Straightest Drive Men * Straightest Drive Women

25% of NET Proceeds benefit The Boys and Girls Clubs of the Casa Grande Valley

To register or sponsor, email: wparonline@gmail.com or call (520) 208-0418 for more information

Wednesday, October 10, 2018 5:00 pm - 7:30 pm The Property Conference Center 1251 W. Gila Bend Hwy., Casa Grande

More than 50 business exhibitors!

Back by popular demand Vacation Getaway Drawing!

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27

TAX VICTORY FOR ARIZONA AGRICULTURE: SOME IRRIGATION SYSTEMS, AGRICULTURAL MACHINERY EXEMPTED

by David A. Fitzgibbons III, Fitzgibbons Law Offices

I

n a recent private taxpayer ruling, the Arizona Department of Revenue determined that purchases of certain irrigation systems for commercial purposes are exempt from Arizona’s transaction privilege tax, commonly referred to as “sales tax.”

In its ruling, the Department of Revenue determined that such purchases are covered by the same exemption allowed for 4-inch pipe and new agricultural machiner y and equipment. Both exemptions are provided in A.R.S. § 42-5061(B).

The ruling is a win for Arizona farmers, including growers in the Casa Grande Valley, who may realize a significant tax savings in purchases of irrigation equipment. Irrigation system construction and maintenance constitute a major cost for growers, particularly those converting flood irrigation systems to more efficient drip systems.

TPT Overview Arizona’s transaction privilege tax (TPT) taxes the privilege of conducting certain businesses in Arizona. Technically, the TPT taxes the seller, not the purchaser, although as a practical matter, the purchaser ultimately pays the tax, which the seller must then

28

GOLDEN CORRID CORRIDOR OR LI LIVVING ING • BIZ!

pay over to the Department of Revenue and to local taxing authorities. All sales subject to the TPT are also subject to applicable county excise taxes.

Arizona’s use tax is a complementary tax to the TPT, and even if a company is not liable to collect and pay TPT, Arizona’s use tax may apply. A.R.S. § 42-5155(A) imposes the use tax on retail purchases of tangible personal property used, stored or consumed in Arizona.

Irrigation System Details Irrigation equipment such as inline-steel filters, mainline pipes and 4-inch sub-mainline pipes generally qualify for the TPT exemption, as they are all larger than the required diameter and are used to transport water as part of a commercial agricultural irrigation system. Any fittings, seals and any other parts used in operating those pipes are also exempt.

Exempt items used for commercial agricultural purposes include drip irrigation lines.

The exemption does not apply to all irrigation-related equipment, however. State law – A.R.S. §§ 42-5061(C) (7) and 42-5159(C)(7) – specifically excludes motors and pumps used in irrigation systems. Also, the pipes and

other components that generally do not qualify include: • Sub-mainline pipes less than 4 inches in diameter • Lateral lines • Emitters • Risers less than 4 inches in diameter • Field and flush valves less than 4 inches in diameter • Valves not connected to 4-inch or larger pipes • Seals, couplings, fittings, flanges and other adaptors not attached to 4-inch or larger pipes.

Whether a grower is responsible for the TPT or use tax on the purchases of components for its irrigation system depends on whether any specific statutory exemption or deduction is applicable. To determine whether an exemption applies, you should consult a state and local tax attorney or accountant.

Fitzgibbons Law Offices have served agricultural families and businesses in the Casa Grande Valley for decades. If you have a questions about any of the issues discussed in this article, contact David Fitzgibbons at (520) 426-3824 or david@fitzgibbonslaw.com.

THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

NEON SIGN PARK UPDATE

by Rina Rien, Director, Casa Grande Main Street

L

ast fall, Casa Grande Main Street placed second in a national online voting campaign to win $144,000 to build the Casa Grande Neon Sign Park.

This project is supported by a grant from the American Express Partners in Preservation program, a partnership of the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the American Express Foundation. Funds are earmarked for restoration of vintage and neon signs and upgrades to the Arizona Plaza site owned by the Kramer Family of Casa Grande Valley Newspapers in Historic Downtown.

Since the inception of our partnership with the Casa Grande Historic Preservation Commission, the Museum of

Casa Grande and local business Coxon’s Building Materials have donated additional signs for restoration and installation that include authentic landmarks that once dotted Old Highway 84. The first signs nearing completion include The Horseshoe Motel, Arizona Edison and Goddard Shoe.

When completed, the park will serve as a unique pedestrian connection between the commercial district and the Arts and Culture District. It will light up the night downtown as an evening destination and generate interest in adjacent business opportunities for restaurant and entertainment venues. As of this printing, we should be near ground-breaking, with a lighting ceremony for the opening planned in early 2019.

MAKE YOUR MARK ON THE NEON SIGN PARK

We wish to thank over 40 local businesses and families who’ve supported our “Make Your Mark on the Neon Sign Park” founders campaign. To date, we have raised over $10,000 to sponsor sign plaques, tailgate benches and other features to enhance the ambience of the park. We still have opportunities for $100 pavers on the Founders Walk and $250 historic license plates on the Founders Wall. Need more information? Contact Casa Grande Main Street at (520) 836-8744 or email: downtown@cgmailbox.com

JOIN US FOR NEON NIGHTS!

Stay tuned to our calendar and join our text or e-newsletter service to learn more about upcoming evening events themed “neon” leading up to our lighting ceremony for the park.

Casa Grande Main Street is a nonprofit 501(c)3 organization working on downtown revitalization and historic preservation. The Main Street program is designed to improve all aspects of the downtown experience.

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COOLIDGE, ARIZONA

WE NEED SKILLED LEADERS

by Lynn Parsons, Executive Director, Coolidge Chamber of Commerce

Bill Gates said, “As we look ahead into the next century, leaders will be those who empower others.”

30

L

eadership is something you learn as well as earn.

It is a skill you develop over your lifetime. There is no leadership style best for everyone and all situations. The more you understand the basic characteristics of leadership, the more you will incorporate them in your daily life.

Honesty and integrity. Without this there is no trust.

Telling the truth is essential. Sometimes we don’t like the truth but it is essential to succeed. Your integrity of character and strong moral principles are what enable people to trust you to make good decisions.

Commitment. When you make a commitment and you fulfill that commitment, your word can be guaranteed. This creates trust in your integrity. As a leader you need to be committed so others will follow your lead. It is your commitment that will inspire others to be committed to the success of your goals as a leader.

Inspire. As a leader you must be able to inspire people to be the best they can be. Everyone has abilities. You must help them recognize and use their abilities. As a leader you need to be willing to do whatever you are asking your team to do.

Communication. Being able to effectively give information, as well as receive it, allows the whole team to work together. When the goals for a team can be clearly communicated the entire team can work toward the same goals.

Decisiveness. To be confident in your decisions you must be open to understanding and seeing the whole picture. When you have a firm understanding of the situation you decide the best

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course of action quickly and with confidence.

Accountability. A leader must be accountable for what the team is doing. As a leader you are responsible for the outcome.

It is important that you make your team accountable and encourage them to do their very best.

Delegate & Empower. Leaders can’t focus on everything.

They must empower their team and give them the tools to be successful. You will then be able to share and celebrate the success of the team.

Bill Gates said, “As we look ahead into the next century, leaders will be those who empower others.”

If our leaders continue to learn and grow and take on these basic characteristics, we can look to them for their wisdom and guidance. This is especially true in the upcoming elections. We want people who are honest, exhibit integrity, and are passionate in their service.

We need people to inspire us to be the best we can be.

As citizens, we need to look for people with essential leadership characteristics to make good decisions when voting.

IMPORTANT DATES TO REMEMBER: • • •

Oct. 8, 2018: County voter registration closes for general election Oct. 10, 2018: Distribution of early ballots for general election begins Nov. 6, 2018: General Election Day - Last day to return early ballots

THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

The LIVING Interview (continued) ...continued from page 17 workforce. There’s 700,000 people within a 50-mile radius of that intersection. We can get about any workforce we need from the southern part of Phoenix, the northern part of Tucson, Marana and Oro Valley.

GREG STANLEY: One of the things that’s changed in the last few years as well is people saying there’s no workforce in Pinal County. We hear that all the time, so we’re working as hard as we can to change that image. One of the great things that happened that was a tremendous stroke for us was creating our own ARIZONA@WORK Pinal in Casa Grande. That took the state and the governor for it to happen. It’s in our strategic plan. We used to be partnered with Gila County, and its focus on economic development is very, very different. We really give a lot of credit to Supervisor Miller and the people we have that sit on that board because they helped facilitate making the change at the state level to get our own work

force board focused just on Pinal County.

GC LIVING: And didn’t one of your staff get an award associated with that?

GREG STANLEY: Yes. Joel Millman. He received Workforce Practitioner of the Year for the entire state. His category wasn’t divided up into small, medium, and large. His was for the entire state. To get that he competed against everyone in all fifteen counties, plus the state office people. That was quite an achievement on his part. It was quite an achievement for Pinal County to be able to hire Joel. When we were going through this process of splitting up the Workforce Board, he was helping us through that process. When we made the announcement, and were recruiting for it, I heard he put his name in. I said, “We’ve got to get him.

Whatever it takes. We’ve got to get this guy.”

TIM KANAVEL: He’s really good at it. We had a project that we’re working on, and these folks didn’t need 9,000 people over a period of 20-years. They need 90,000 employees

over 20-years. It’s a bigger company. And I call him up and he never even blinked.

That’s the guy I want to work with because most people would have a stroke and run out the door screaming. And he was like, “Well, we’ll have to do this.” He had the whole plan right then.

GC LIVING: That’s an example of background work the average guy on the street doesn’t know about. I didn’t know and I’m as clueless as anybody. I didn’t know about any of the workforce development emphasis you’re making. No one shouts about it, including you guys. And speaking of awards, I was going wait to the last to cap this off with the awards competition. You guys are winning all kinds of awards for your efforts.

TIM KANAVEL: We applied for one this fall too, our brochures and videos have a pretty good chance of getting it because it is so unique.

GC LIVING: Greg, why don’t you brag about Ka-

continued on page 61...

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JOSH WUCHTERL - FATHER SUN HIKING TRIP

PHOTO BY VICTOR ORELLANA JR CIFI CASA GRANDE SOCCER LEAGUE SHOWING THE WINNING TEAM, THE REAL MADRID AGES 10&11

BRI BOSARGE JULY 10

KRISTEN HILLS MILLER

JOYCE AURICH - CAT LOVES SLEEPING WITH HER MONKEY

DEANNA HACKNEY JULY 10 TRAIN DERAILMENT IN MARANA

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ANGELICA RODRIGUEZ

KELLY ROSS FRY JULY 10 - CHILD PHOTO

CHERYL MIKEL JULY 10 - DUST MASK

Out & About

If you would like to contribute images of area events, people, pets and scenery, please post on our Facebook page or email to: editor@roxco.com

THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

Health • Happiness • Education

AGUSTIN PEREZ JULY 10

AUDRIANNA HOOVER - 4TH IN LABOR & DELIVERY

AUGUST MEZA

CASSANDRA HONEYCUTT JULY 10

KAREN MARIETTA WINTERS JULY 10 - RAINBOW

CECE YA - MJ PROUDLY FLYING HIS FLAG

JANA BARNARD

MELISSA MCVICKER

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LISA MENDIVIL AGRESTA

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FALL 2018 • THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION

MARCELA GUERRERO-POTTER - EXPRESSION AFTER FIRST LOOK AT FIREWORKS

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33

SUN LIFE: YOUR HOMETOWN PHARMACY

by Renee Louzon-Benn, Director of Community Outreach

Affordable, Convenient, Friendly Casa Grande 865 North Arizola Rd. 520-381-0363 M - F 8:00am - 7:00pm • Sat. 8:30am - 12:30pm

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GOLDEN CORRID CORRIDOR OR LI LIVVING ING • YOU!

D

id you know that Sun Life Family Health Center on Arizola Road not only provides the community with family practice and family dentistry, but also a full-service community pharmacy, open to the public?

The Sun Life Pharmacy in Casa Grande is one of six community pharmacies operated by Sun Life in Pinal County.

While many of Sun Life’s patients benefit from the convenience of a pharmacy located at their doctor’s office, you do not have to be a patient to use our pharmacy. Everyone in Sun Life’s communities can use Sun Life Pharmacy. Sun Life accepts most major insurances, AHCCCS, Medicare and TRICARE. Sun Life offers a $3.99 Generics Program, with many medications including amoxicillin, warfarin, pravastatin, metformin, lisinopril, fluoxetine, ibuprofen and levothyroxine.

Sun Life’s generics program also offers certain oral contraceptives at $9. Generics are offered at a cash price to the public, and no insurance is necessary.

Sun Life’s hometown pharmacy recruits staff from our communities. When you use a Sun Life Pharmacy, your neighbors and friends are serving you.

“Seeing your health-care provider at Sun Life and then being able to have a pharmacist on site review not only your prescription history, but also your medical history provides a more thorough continuity of care that makes us unique and sets us apart,” said Director of Pharmacy Dr. Matt Bertsch, PharmD. “I want our customers to know that we have their health and well-being as our top priority. Our pharmacy team is committed to provide a great customer care experience to our local community.”

THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

Superheroes Welcome!

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When it comes to the health and wellness of your little superhero our pediatric team is here for them, and you.

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A TEAM OF BREAST CANCER EXPERTS FOCUSED ON

E

very year, more than 250,000 women are diagnosed with breast cancer in the U.S., according to cancer.org.

From the moment a woman is faced with the news of an abnormal mammogram, it is impossible not to feel a great deal of anxiety and uncertainty.

Having a team of physicians and breast cancer experts focused on you from that moment, being your guide with the decision-making and ensuring the most collaborative care with all treatment options available, is the best start.

There are several types of breast cancer, with treatment options unique to every cancer patient. At Alliance Cancer Care Arizona and Alliance Surgery Arizona, our physicians and team work together throughout your breast cancer diagnosis and treatment.

Our integrated treatment approach with surgery, radiology, medical oncology, radiation therapy, along with resources such

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GOLDEN CORRID CORRIDOR OR LI LIVVING ING • YOU!

as local support groups, nutrition and exercise, allows you to have the best possible outcome.

Our ultimate goal is to provide individualized care with a multidisciplinary approach and make a difficult time as easy as possible.

The surgical care of breast cancer is a very important component to achieve a cure, and the goal is to remove the disease with the least trauma and least change to the body.

Surgical options include breast conservation techniques and mastectomy with or without reconstruction. The decision on which option is best will be determined by several factors addressed on an individual basis, but you will have all the options available to make a decision with the surgeon.

The role of radiation therapy for the treatment of breast cancer is very important in allowing women to preserve their breast.

Historically, women with breast cancer used to have their entire breast removed. Patients can now have the breast lump

You

removed (lumpectomy) followed by radiation therapy to the remainder of the breast, which is now the new standard of care called breast conserving therapy.

There are now multiple types of radiation therapy for the breast, including whole breast radiation therapy or partial breast radiation therapy.

Patients now can receive radiation therapy to the breast in much shorter periods. It used to take up to six weeks of daily radiation treatments, but now many patients can get this treatment done in three weeks.

There are also newer forms of radiation therapy that can just target a part of the breast, rather than the whole breast, and some patients can receive radiation at the same time as surgery.

In addition to surgery and radiation therapy, medical oncology will help if further treatments are needed. This will depend on the type of breast cancer the patient is diagnosed with.

Broadly, the different breast cancer types include hormone

sensitive breast cancer, for which medications such as anti-estrogens (Tamoxifen) to aromatase inhibitors (Anastrazole, Letrozole, Exemestane) and estrogen receptor down regulators (Fulvestrant) are offered, HER 2 positive breast cancer, named after the discovery of the oncogene HER2, for which therapies to block the effect of HER 2 on cancer growth are offered (Trastuzumab, Pertuzumab) and triple negative breast cancer, generally associated with the breast cancer genes (BRCA1/BRCA2) for which traditional chemotherapy continues to be the main treatment strategy.

Increased knowledge and innovations in breast cancer diagnosis and treatments make the future bright for women diagnosed with this disease.

If you, or a loved one, have had an abnormal mammogram, been diagnosed with breast cancer, or would like to receive a second opinion on breast cancer treatment, please visit ACCArizona.com or AllianceArizonaSurgery.com.

THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

Saturday, October 20TH First Presbyterian Church Of Casa Grande Family Life Center 702 E Cottonwood Lane 6:00pm – 7:30pm

EDDIE DIAMOND Neil Diamond Tribute Close your eyes and you might swear it 's Neil!

Tickets $20 in advance, $25 at the door Purchase online at www.seedsofhopeaz.com In person at the Seeds of Hope admin office Mon – Thu @ 702 E Cottonwood Lane By phone at 520-836-6335

Seeds of Hope promotes opportunities to improve lives through relationships and community development. We’ve provided spiritual, educational, and social support to Casa Grande since 1993. This concert will benefit our ongoing benevolent ministries that include the Hot Lunch program, Stanfield medical clinic, and the MACC wellness clinic.

Come on in and relax.

2959 N Rosewood Ave, Casa Grande $271,900 Comfortable Living Complete With a Touch of Glamour • 2,609 SF • 4 BD plus Office • 2.5 BA • Single Level • Open Floor Plan • Carefree Landscaping • 3 Car Garage This lovely one owner home has been beautifully maintained and is inviting from the charming front porch to the extended patio with a freestanding hot tub. A huge gathering area includes living /dining and a kitchen boasting a large granite island, stainless appliances and a walk-in pantry.

KAY KERBY SARAH CAMPBELL 520.560.0769

520.424.6577 | kay_sarah@coldwellbanker.com

520.423.8250 | ROXsells.com ©2018 Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. All Rights Reserved. Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act. Each Office Is Independently Owned And Operated. Coldwell Banker and the Coldwell Banker Logo are registered service marks owned by Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC.

BENEFITING PINAL COUNTY Mission Statement

Pinal 40 exists as a fraternity of community members who organized with the primary objective of promoting Pinal County, its youth as well as farming and agriculture related businesses. Philanthropically, Pinal 40 and its membership focus on providing support and funding for youth and education through agribusiness related scholarships and support of local charities.

Formed in 2014, Pinal 40 is a fraternity of community members organized with the primary objective of promoting Pinal County, its youth as well as farming and agriculture related businesses. Philanthropically, Pinal 40 and its membership focus on providing support and funding for youth and education through agribusiness related scholarships and support of local charities. The Pinal 40 is run by an all-volunteer board with all profits benefitting the community via Agricultural Scholarships, Boys and Girls Clubs, FFA, 4-H, and other Charitable Youth Organizations. Since inception, nearly $700,000 has been distributed to the community including over $190,000 in individual scholarship awards. Applications for the 2019 Agricultural Scholarships are available online at Pinal40.org

Recipients of Pinal 40 Foundation funding includes:

2017 Beneficiaries Include: • Boys & Girls Club • Pinal County Jr. Livestock (Auction) • AZ FFA Foundation • 4-H (Camp and Scholarship) • Seeds of Hope • Natural Resource Education Center • Central Arizona Fair Association • Central Pinal Lions Foundation, Inc. • Big Shots 4H • Casa Grande Valley Historical Society • Ride for the Warrior • Casa Grande Main Street • Pinal Hispanic Council • Casa Grande Friends of the Arts • Delta Research and Educational Foundation • Pinal/Gila Community Child Services • John T. Pagel Scholarship Fund • Pinal County Jr. Livestock Committee • Pinal County 4H • The Central Arizona College Foundation • Maricopa Football Boosters

Funding for the scholarships and grants is made possible by donations and fundraising including the upcoming Pinal 40 Charity Golf Classic. Once again this year, the tournament will be held at the Ak-Chin Southern Dunes Golf Club, rated in the top 10 golf courses in Arizona. To participate, sign up at Pinal40.org/golf

PINAL40.ORG 40

GOLDEN CORRID OR LI V ING

THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

PINAL 40 CHARITY GOLF CLASSIC DATE: Friday, October 5th, 2018

LOCATION:

Ak-Chin Southern Dunes Golf Club 48456 AZ-238 Maricopa, AZ 85139

TIME: 6:45 AM Registration I 8:00 AM Shotgun Start

To register: www.pinal40.org/golf Event Overview:

Four-person scramble playing (4) Par 3s - (10) Par 4s - (4) Par 5s The 3rd Annual Pinal 40 Charity Golf Classic, hosted by Pinal 40, is one of Arizona’s premier charity golf tournaments. Golfers will spend their day on the beautiful links of Ak-Chin Southern Dunes, enjoying breakfast, lunch and beverages on the course followed by an awards banquet, auctions, raffles and prize ceremony.

Pinal 40 Members: Bass Aja Brant Bingham Brian Blevins Frank Boyce Craig Caballero Steve Coester Dennis Dugan Sean Dugan Tony Dugan Jamie L. Dykstra Rock Earle Marc Ehlers James E. English David C. Feenstra David A. Fitzgibbons III Gerrit Griffioen Andy Hampton Eric Lehman Chris Lopez

Dan Mace Craig McFarland Douglas Meier Michael Norris Bill F. Raney Cody Raney Tim Robinson Tony Salcido Bill W. Scott Peter Smith Terry Strain Jim Suor Fred Tucker Donald J. Van Hofwegen Matt Warth Cory Weddle Bobby Wuertz Zach Zimbelman

About Pinal 40: Mission Statement Pinal 40 exists to promote youth programs in Pinal County through agricultural and other businesses.

Golf Classic Participants 2017

Vision Statement

Pinal 40 will be the premier civic organization in Pinal County known for its generous giving to youth charities, educational scholarships and others throughout Pinal County. Our foundation promotes our economy in the region and the State of Arizona. Membership in this fraternity will be highly coveted and annual charitable giving will exceed $1,000,000 along with a growing endowment.

Giving Recipients - Total 2015-2017 CG Boys & Girls Club..................$146,000 Ag Scholarships ............................$140,500 Endowment.....................................$80,000 Youth Community Grants...........$74,500 Pinal County Jr. Livestock Auction...$42,000 Scholarship Recipients Photo by Egan Eyes Photography

AZ State FFA FoundaPon............$25,000

TICK TALK AND OTHER BITING CONVERSATIONS

by Gigi McWhirter

T

he dog days of summer are soon over but some of the dangers remain far beyond monsoon season and into the fall. Animal owners should be aware of diseases that are spread by mosquitoes and ticks that really enjoy the heat.

It is important to know that in our area, because of the temperature range, we can see these blood-sucking, disease-carrying pests all year long. Also, even though your pets may be indoor-only animals, both ticks and mosquitoes can still get into your house or other enclosed areas and leave their nasty aftermath behind. A leaky faucet or sprinkler can be a perfect harbor for mosquitoes.

Mosquitoes and ticks could easily be called grim reapers because of all the havoc they can cause not only to animals, but to humans as well. It is essential that you protect your entire family – human and furry – against

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GOLDEN CORRID CORRIDOR OR LI LIVVING ING • YOU!

them. You should consult with a reputable exterminator for in the house and the outside perimeter. They will help you develop a plan of attack. If you can get your neighbors on board, that is even better – because those little suckers can move. Have a discussion with your veterinarian, not Dr. Google, about prevention for your animals, including horses and livestock.

Here are a some of the illnesses your pets can incur from a mosquito bite: West Nile Virus: According to Kansas State University College of Veterinary Medicine “Infection of the West Nile virus (WNV) causes a potentially fatal encephalomyelitis (inflammation of the brain and spinal cord).

WNV affects a variety of animals including birds, horses, humans and other animals.” In horses, an annual vaccination is recommended and is typically given in the early spring. Also of concern

is Sleeping Sickness, another central nervous system virus in horses which is spread through mosquitoes and horse flies.

Prevention is insect control and vaccinations.

Heartworm: A thread-like parasitic roundworm that attaches to the inside of a dog’s heart.

The body can extend into the lungs. A mosquito bites your animal and transfers the larvae to the host. Without treatment it grows into an adult Heartworm.

Prevention can be in the form of a monthly chewable or topical application. An injection given by a licensed veterinarian every six months is also available. Talk to your veterinarian about what is the best choice for your pet.

Ticks: Those nasty little buggers – can pass on disease to humans and animals with one simple bite. In dogs, the most common infections are Ehrlichia and Anaplasma. In people, we need to be concerned about a

disease called Rocky Mountain Spotted Tick Fever. If you travel out of the central desert of Arizona, you and your pets can run into the ticks that spread Lyme Disease. Once again, talk to your vet about tick control measures.

There is an annual test that your veterinarian can perform that tests for Heartworm, Ehrlichiosis, Anaplasmosis and Lyme Disease. Should your pet be diagnosed with any of these infections, your veterinarian will develop a treatment plan.

If you want to get good, but scary, information about tickborne diseases of the U.S., especially in humans, check-out cdc.gov.

Always consult with your veterinarian or primary care provider with questions and concerns about any health-related issues.

Remember, prevention is way less expensive than the cure.

Happy Tails!

THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

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FALL 2018 • THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION

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CAN YOU FEEL IT? THE CRISP COOLNESS IN THE AIR?

Fall is here!

by Tiffanie Grady-Gillespie, Certified Physical Trainer, CPT, WickedFiTT

F

all is the perfect time of year to begin, or ramp up, your fitness program, and this way, by the time the holidays hit, you won’t be easily sidelined (or fattened up) by holiday festivities.

And, the fall season is the perfect time to get into your workout groove and achieve fitness goals by next spring.

Getting into your groove now also ensures that when the dark winter chill comes, you’ll be in the right place mentally and physically to continue staying active until spring.

Here are some fall fitness goals everyone can try: 1. Schedule your workouts

Schedule your workout sessions into your calendar like you would an important meeting, and don’t miss them. You can also fit in activity throughout your day by walking, standing, climbing stairs and stretching (as opposed to sitting) whenever you get the

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GOLDEN CORRID CORRIDOR OR LI LIVVING ING • YOU!

chance. Make it a high priority and schedule your day around the exercise, not the other way around.

heartburn, headaches and preventing water weight gain.

2. Set goals

Keep your kitchen well stocked with unprocessed, whole foods that are quick and easy to munch on. Cut-up veggies, lean meats, healthy fats and nuts are all great options.

Set short simple goals, such as exercising for 20 minutes as soon as you wake up every Monday. It’s your “Never Miss a Monday Rule.” This makes achieving your simple goals realistic and allows you to progress to longer-term goals.

3. Moderation (Newbies, listen up)

It’s OK to indulge once in a while with your diet, just be sure to keep your goals in mind each day. If you do veer off course, don’t beat yourself up. Simply make better choices at your next meal. Take baby steps.

4. Stay hydrated

Water is essential for healthy metabolism and detoxification and for warding off dehydration.

Try adding ginger and sliced cucumbers, lemons and limes to your water for added benefits, such as help with indigestion,

5. Stock up on healthy food

6. Get proper sleep (This is a tough one)

Lack of sleep is strongly linked to weight gain, low energy and fatigue. Without adequate sleep, you’ll have a harder time sticking to your diet and your exercise plan.

7. Grab a group or a friend

Partnering up with a friend who has similar fitness goals will boost your motivation and your accountability. Plus, it’s way more fun.

8. Track your progress

Our smartphones can assist us in a lot of ways to keep us healthy. From sleep-tracking apps that ensure a sound sleep

to work out-tracker apps, to nutrition-tracking apps, your phone can be a simple tool to use for better health.

9. Take time to recover

Overdoing exercise is counterproductive and can actually damage your muscle tissue and cause injuries. Give yourself adequate recovery time between workouts and be sure to alternate muscle groups or body parts in your exercise sessions.

10. It’s all up to you, so don’t give up

The greatest goals are achieved one step at a time.

Keep persevering and you will eventually reach them. Maybe even surpass them. You have to make the decision to get fit.

When you commit to it, you’re making a contract with yourself.

What do YOU think?

What are some of your best tips for staying active during the fall? Post your tips on my Facebook page www.facebook.com/wickedfittaz

THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

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FALL 2018 • THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION

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45

PATIENT LIVING ACTIVE LIFESTYLE THANKS TO BANNER EXPERTS

by David Lozano, Earned Media Senior Manager, Banner Health

T

he Banner CORE Center of Orthopedics at Banner Casa Grande Medical Center has been helping patients for several years with their orthopedic surgical needs. This includes patients like 85-year-old Emil Butz, a retired business owner from Maricopa, who benefited from these services after recent knee surgery.

Until November 2017, Butz hadn’t needed major surgery other than having his tonsils taken out as a child. After an old gymnastics injury to his knee finally caught up with him, he turned to the medical experts at Banner Casa Grande for help.

“I waited two years to do it,” Butz said, pointing to his knee.

The Banner CORE Center of Orthopedics offers a fully integrated continuum of care to patients. That means patients like Butz start with Independence Expedition®, an education class that prepares patients both physically and emotionally for surgery.

It’s also where patients receive their Patient Passport®. This guidebook explains in depth what will happen before, during and

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GOLDEN CORRID CORRIDOR OR LI LIVVING ING • YOU!

after, orthopedic surgery. It also includes information about the patient’s post-surgical recovery, and highlights the importance of doing rehabilitation while a patient is in the hospital, and after they’ve gone home.

Butz said the classes offered valuable insight into his overall surgical treatment plan, and credits that, as well as the orthopedic staff at Banner Casa Grande Medical Center,f for making his recovery easier.

“We’re proud to be able to offer our patients programs like this to help them with their orthopedic surgical needs,” said Rona Curphy, CEO of Banner Casa Grande Medical Center. “If you look at Mr. Butz as an example, we have patients from all over Pinal County (including many people from Maricopa County) who come to us for orthopedic surgery. He could have very easily traveled north to the Phoenix area for this same procedure. But instead, he traveled south and came to us.”

She added, “We were able to help empower him when it comes to active participation in his own care and treatment. The outcome of all this was alleviating

the pain and discomfort he had before surgery, and helping him by focusing on our mission of ‘making health care easier, so life can be better.’”

The journey to orthopedic surgery at the Banner CORE Center of Orthopedics at Banner Casa Grande Medical Center is a three-part process: Step 1: The patient comes in or contacts us to set up an appointment for their surgical procedure by calling directly, or getting a referral from a primary care doctor.

Step 2: During the appointment with the Banner CORE Center of Orthopedics doctor, the patient is evaluated and a diagnosis is made. The doctor will then discuss the next steps in the patient’s care plan.

Step 3: If surgery is recommended as part of a treatment plan, the patient will begin the journey toward wellness with the Banner CORE Center for Orthopedics.

It’s been only a few months since his surgery, but Butz has been able to increase his active lifestyle and continue enjoying his retirement. While he was having

trouble walking before because of his bad knee, he now walks wherever he wants to. In fact, he’s been doing a lot of landscaping work. He goes grocery shopping every day and celebrates a successful surgery with extensive traveling across the U.S. and into his native Canada.

The only thing that remains from his surgery is a minor scar.

He now looks back at the hard work he put into making sure he could walk without pain. While the success to knee surgery is having the right medical experts such as those at Banner Casa Grande to help, Butz also realizes how important it is for patients like him to continue rehabilitation after they’ve left the hospital. He recounts what it was like when he finally saw the great results of his surgery. “I was pleased with the progress,” Butz said.

To request an appointment with the experts at the Banner CORE Center of Orthopedics at Banner Casa Grande Medical Center, please call (855) 409-7520. For more information about the orthopedic services offered at Banner Casa Grande, go to BannerHealth.com\casagrande.

THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

47

Hello!

We’re Coldwell Banker ROX Realty

On behalf of Coldwell Banker ROX Realty, I’m thrilled to introduce the newest agents to our team! Please join me in welcoming Jennifer Turner and Jonathan Orphanidis as our newest ROX Stars! We are excited for their energy and enthusiasm and desire to make the home buying and selling experience exciting and enjoyable.

Kelly Herrington

Sales Manager/REALTOR

Jon Orphanidis

Introducing Jon is your friendly neighborhood Realtor and is ready to help you.

Originally from New York City, he attended Hunter College while working in the hospitality industry.

Jon moved to Coolidge in 2009 to pursue the American dream of home ownership. Jon brings a strategic yet personable approach to the home buying and selling process. He understands buying and selling real estate is one of the biggest

Jennifer Turner

Jennifer takes pride in giving the best care to her clients she possibly can. Providing them with communication before, during and after their transaction is extremely important to her.

Born and raised in South Dakota, Jennifer moved to Arizona about 15 years ago. Growing up in a small town, knowing everyone, and where everyone knows you,

decisions in a client’s life. He views representation and guidance of his clients through this process as a privilege.

There’s no place on Earth quite like Pinal County, Arizona, according to Jon. He loves this area and says, “once I show you around, I am convinced you will love it too, so much so, that you’ll want to plant roots of your own here.”

When to buy? Where to buy? How can I really make sure I’m getting a good deal? These are the questions Jon can help you answer.

Give him a call today at (520) 252-7399 to get started. has given her a great respect and perspective for life in a smaller town like Casa Grande, Maricopa and the surrounding cities. Utilizing her sales and client relations background, Jennifer is happy to represent you in home buying or selling.

Reach Jennifer today at cell: (480) 245-3435, office: (520) 423-8250, fax: (520) 423-8247, email: Jenna_1276@yahoo. com, Coldwell Bank ROX Realty, 1919 N. Trekell Road, Casa Grande.

Featured ROX Star

One of the crucial parts within any real estate transaction is an inspection. The Arizona real estate purchase contracts, whether residential, commercial or vacant land state the buyer is entitled to a due diligence period, also called the inspection period. The Residential Purchase Contract provides 10-days, unless changed on the contract, where the buyer has the opportunity to hire an independent home inspector to visit the home and perform a very thorough inspection. The inspection typically covers electrical, plumbing, roof, HVAC and other structural components.

After receiving a copy of the inspection report, the next step is the Buyers Inspection Notice, Seller Response (BINSR).

This is the document in which the buyer may request the seller to make functional repairs. This document is not for cosmetic issues but for functional issues, such as a leaking pipes, an air conditioner that does not achieve a proper temperature split or faulty breaker within in the electrical box. The seller has 5 days to either agree to all repairs, refuse to make any repairs OR make some repairs, but not all. Once the buyer receives the sellers response, if the seller did not agree to all repairs, the buyer can either accept the seller’s terms or cancel and receive a refund of their earnest money. Timing for responses are critical!

Gretchen Slaughter REALTOR

RBI Real Estate Stats

PINAL COUNTY RESIDENTIAL REAL ESTATE Annual Changes from September 2015 to August 2018 Active Listings for Sale = 917

Closed Sales = 511

+ 27.8%

Median Sales Price = $200,000

+ 30.9%

-44.2% PINAL COUNTY CURRENT AVAILABLE INVENTORY Sept 2016 3.1

Sept 2017 2.2

Aug 2018 1.8

Source: Arizona Regional Multiple Listing Service

CASA GRANDE RESIDENTIAL REAL ESTATE Annual Changes from September 2015 to August 2018 Active Listings for Sale = 188

-59%

Roxsells.com

Closed Sales = 88

+ 27.5%

520-423-8250

Median Sales Price = $184,950

+ 33%

Š2018 Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. All Rights Reserved. Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act. Each Office Is Independently Owned And Operated. Coldwell Banker and the Coldwell Banker Logo are registered service marks owned by Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC.

Experienced agents

Susan Abdallah

Robin Armenta

Sarah Campbell

Susan Gallegos

Aiessa Guerra

Karen Henson

Kelly Herrington

Kay Kerby

Jerry Kirkpatrick

Bea Lueck

Jon Orphanidis

Roxsells.com Š2018 Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. All Rights Reserved. Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act. Each Office Is Independently Owned And Operated. Coldwell Banker and the Coldwell Banker Logo are registered service marks owned by Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC.

who live in our community.

Connie Rush

Georgia Schaeffer

David Schlagel

Gretchen Slaughter

Joyce South

Annalisa Tapia

Cathy Taylor

Jennifer Turner

Dawn Zimbelman

Keith LaVoo

Rock Earle

Visit us today!

1919 N Trekell Rd, Casa Grande, AZ 85122

520-423-8250

Kelly Herrington

Gretchen Slaughter Gretchen Slaughter is a local REALTOR who really loves what she does. Gretchen is a wife and mother of 3 adult children and one in grade school. She can relate to the diverse wants and needs of today’s families.

Gretchen grew up on a farm here in Casa Grande, the daughter of a doctor and a REALTOR. She was a stay at home mom for several years, then went on to own and run Elite Cleaners until she sold the business and began working in the escrow industry. She worked with Title Security Agency for nearly 7 years which taught valuable knowledge of title, escrow and the real estate purchase transaction process.

This experience has helped her guide clients through a smooth and informed transaction from start to finish.

She has extensive

knowledge in specialized property research and gives all clients the best possible care, which everyone, no matter the size of the transaction deserves.

Integrity, loyalty and honesty are all very important to Gretchen, as well as good communication by responding to emails and phone calls in a timely manner. Since becoming a REALTOR, she has received the Coldwell Banker International President’s Elite, International President’s Circle and International Diamond Society awards, which puts her in the top 5% worldwide for transactions in one year. Referrals and past clients returning are the biggest compliments to her.

Gretchen loves spending time with her family and working in her yard, where she can be found most evenings.

Reading is what she does in down time, but she also enjoys working on dirt bikes with her husband and trail riding in her UTV with friends as well as hands on projects anytime she has time available.

Born in Van Nuys, CA, Kelly spent much of her childhood moving around and experiencing different people and communities. Some of the lucky states varied from California, Idaho, Colorado and Missouri to name a few, before settling in Arizona in 1995. It helped her become adaptable and diverse to the changing world around her. She spent her high school years in Scottsdale and then moved to Tucson where she is a proud graduate of the University of Arizona! BEAR DOWN! Kelly obtained her degree in Marketing and has been in the sales and marketing industry for over 15 years. She began her professional career in the marketing field where she worked for AnheuserBusch and Golden Eagle Distributors.

With over ten years’ experience in the beverage industry, Kelly worked her way up and learned many different skills and jobs along the way. She has helped run major marketing events, worked in the sales department selling beer to local bars and restaurants and worked with major chain store buyers such as Fry’s, 7-Eleven and Buffalo Wild Wings as a category manager. She was even a sales trainer and also the brand manager for the wine and spirit division of the local beverage distributor.

Kelly enjoys being active in the community and has spent several years as a member and board member of the Junior League of Tucson, a professional woman’s charity organization. She currently serves as Treasurer on the WESTERN PINAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTOR Board and President Elect in 2019. She is co-chair of the WPAR Memorial Run benefiting the local Casa Grande Cancer Support Center, and serves on the WPAR Golf tournament committee benefiting the Boys and Girls Club of the Casa Grande Valley. She has two amazing children and a loving husband and enjoys running, golfing, gardening and any other outdoor activity when it’s not 110 degrees outside!!!

Kelly brings compassion to everything she does and is happy to be a local real estate expert in Arizona!!

Currently, Kelly is a local REALTOR and sales manager in the Pinal County area for Coldwell Banker ROX Realty and truly loves the joy and help she gets to bring to peoples’ lives every day! Kelly has such a compassion for helping people and is also able to use her own moving experiences to be more relatable and empathetic to her clients.

Do You Want to Be a

?

ROX STAR

Are you a licensed Real Estate agent looking for a change? Or looking for a career in Real Estate?

Coldwell Banker ROX Realty is looking for new and experienced agents.

We offer: • New Agent Training • Mentorship • Marketing Toolkit • In-house Lead Generation A career in real estate offers new challenges, freedom from the 9 to 5 routine, and the opportunity to get paid what you are worth.

• Residential • Commercial • Land

• Agricultural/Farm • Leasing • Property Management

The possibilities are endless.

To find out more, call or text:

Kelly Herrington Sales Manager

520.780.0843 1919 N Trekell Rd, Casa Grande, AZ 85122 Send resume or letter of interest to: HR@roxsells.com 520-423-8250 ©2018 Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. All Rights Reserved. Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act. Each Office Is Independently Owned And Operated. Coldwell Banker and the Coldwell Banker Logo are registered service marks owned by Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC.

Let 's Talk!

A career in real estate offers new challenges, freedom from the 9 to 5 routine, and the opportunity to get paid what you are worth.

Welcome to the real estate company with real advantages.

All real estate agents aren’t the same, so it’s not surprising that the same holds true for real estate companies. In every facet of our industry, Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC sets the standard for innovation, expertise and support.

As a Coldwell Banker affiliated agent, you’ll enjoy access to

state-of-the-art technology, the strength of a global network and an empowering culture of excellence—advantages that will elevate your brand in the minds of consumers and distinguish you from the competition.

Cutting-edge tools that give us an edge.

In this day and age, if you’re not leading, you’re at a major disadvantage. That’s why at Coldwell Banker,® our finger rests firmly on the pulse of technology. We leverage the latest trends and developments to keep Coldwell Banker affiliated agents in the lead, turning Silicon Valley tech into indispensable tools that are simple to use and understand.

Our powerful CBx application harnesses big data to more accurately identify and locate potential buyers for ultratargeted marketing. Our website, coldwellbanker.com, is powered by Zap® , which offers high impact agent

marketing and a world-class agent platform with predictive analytics and business management tools to help you drive your business to new levels of success. The advanced CB Exchange portal streamlines communication and content sharing so agents can spend more time growing their business. And, of course, presentations and marketing materials are designed to look gorgeous across desktop, tablet and mobile. Together, these cutting-edge tools make even the sharpest agents that much sharper.

Coldwell Banker ® by the numbers.

The Coldwell Banker ® brand is a global network of over 92,000 agents spanning 47 countries, united by what is perhaps the strongest legacy in real estate. As an individual agent, you’ll see some serious advantages from affiliating with one of the industry’s largest names. Advantages such as global referrals, unparalleled brand recognition, advertising campaigns and advanced tools ensure that our agents have the resources they need to maximize their business. Because when it comes to your real estate

business, bigger is most certainly better.

Plenty of real estate companies talk a good game, but when the rubber meets the road, few others stack up to the bona fides at the Coldwell Banker brand. Whether it’s having over $240 billion in sales volume,1 leading the social and digital media environment, contributing to local communities and causes, or activating the power of a global network for referrals, the Coldwell Banker network has the competition’s number. Which means so do our agents

Wanted - New and Experienced Agents Whether you are a seasoned agent looking for a change or someone looking for a career change and your first brokerage, Coldwell Banker ROX Realty has the tools and systems available to help you succeed.

Call me - let’s talk!

Kelly Herrington Sales Manager/REALTOR 520.780.0843 kelly@roxsells.com 520.423.8250 | ROXsells.com

1919 N Trekell Rd, Casa Grande, AZ 85122 ©2018 Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. All Rights Reserved. Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act. Each Office Is Independently Owned And Operated. Coldwell Banker and the Coldwell Banker Logo are registered service marks owned by Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC.

ON THE MOVE Col d we ll

B a n ke r

ROX

$650,000

ACREAGE 3770 S. Peart Rd. 20.86 acres, horse property 3bd, 1.75ba, 2,191 sf

$497,000

COYOTE RANCH 104 W. Crimson Sky Ct. 4bd, 3ba, 2,776 sf With pool and casita

Kelly Herrington Sales Manager, REALTOR

1919 N. Trekell Rd. | Casa Grande, AZ 85122 O: 520.423.8250 | C: 520.780.0843 ROXSELLS.COM

©2018 Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. All Rights Reserved. Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act. Each Office Is Independently Owned And Operated. Coldwell Banker and the Coldwell Banker Logo are registered service marks owned by Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC.

Re a l t y

NEW TEACHING METHOD BENEFITS CAC STUDENTS

by Angela Askey, Executive Director Public Relations and Marketing

C

entral Arizona College students enrolled in BIO201 and BIO202 are experiencing a new form of learning using MANIKEN® Student Models and clay in these human anatomy and physiology courses.

Professor of Biological Sciences Samuli Rauhalammi introduced the ANATOMY IN CLAY® Learning Systems to 14 students enrolled in BIO201 at the Aravaipa Campus.

The goal of this new teaching method is to minimize the time spent on lectures, allowing students’ time for self-discovery and hands-on learning. Students learn about all body systems

including skeletal, muscular, nervous, tissue types and cell function. At the end of the class, they will complete a case study of a chosen clinical condition.

Professor Rauhalammi explains, “Each student receives a half-skeleton model that will stay with them for the two years they are enrolled in the biology courses. The students put together their model, one system at a time and each model develops their own characteristics.

Through this method, all learning styles (visual, kinesthetic, and auditory) are addressed. It is a paradigm flip for the classroom.”

Kyndra Barney, a BIO201 student said, “I’m a visual learner,

so it was nice to have something to look at.”

Although this currently is only being provided in biology courses taught at the Aravaipa campus, this teaching method was rolled out districtwide in fall 2018.

Multiple students have commented about the positive benefits of this learning model.

Maranda Petty: “I feel the hands-on part of the class with clay models was very useful.

They gave a better understanding of where the body parts are placed. I really enjoyed it.”

Jacob Reidhead: “I found the clay model to be very useful in learning about the body. I got to see it. If it was just a lecture, it would be hard to see what they looked like.”

Kadi Monfred: “This is the best class I’ve ever had at CAC.” Visit centralaz.edu or one of the college’s five locations for more information.

www.centralaz.edu 56

GOLDEN CORRID CORRIDOR OR LI LIVVING ING • YOU!

THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

SAVING LIVES AND PROPERTY THROUGH FIRE PREVENTION

by Barbara Rice, Fire Marshal, City of Casa Grande

I

n 1925, President Calvin Coolidge proclaimed the week containing Oct. 9 as Fire Prevention Week to commemorate the Great Chicago Fire that occurred in 1871 and that took nearly 300 lives and destroyed more than 3 square miles of Chicago.

Nearly six decades later, fire departments and fire protection organizations are promoting Fire Prevention Week to share important life safety messages to citizens nationwide.

In Casa Grande, our fire department works every day to promote fire prevention and provide life safety education programs to protect our community members from injury or death. We teach CPR and first aid, drowning prevention, fall injury prevention, babysitter safety – the list goes on. We teach in schools, businesses, at special events and in homes.

This year, we are hosting our third annual open house for Fire Prevention Week and

will be promoting the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Fire Prevention Week theme “Look. Listen. Learn: Be aware. Fire can happen anywhere.”

Fire can happen anywhere, but four out of five fire-related deaths occur in the home (NFPA, 2017). Our focus will be on messages that promote fire prevention in the home.

Fire Prevention Week will kick off our Smoke Alarm Installation campaign that leads to our 11th annual smoke alarm installation event in January. We will have an open house for you to come and visit with firefighters, play games and learn important tips for staying safe in your home.

We practice fire prevention every day and want to help you do the same. Please join us in celebrating Fire Prevention Week Oct. 7 – 13.

Open House Saturday, October 13th 10AM-2PM Fire Station 504 1637 E McCartney Road

casagrandeaz.gov/fire FALL 2018 • THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION

GOLDEN CORRID CORRIDOR OR LI V ING YOU! • GOLDEN

57

DEVELOPING STUDENT LEADERS THROUGH

S.A.D.D.

L

earning leadership skills as a young person is important; they promote communication, teamwork, creativity and proactivity. A perfect opportunity for students to develop these skills is available in a program called Students Against Destructive Decisions (S.A.D.D.).

S.A.D.D. is a club in which students develop and grow leadership skills in the school and community. Members are encouraged to be vocal and positive role models to their peers on various subjects young people deal with daily.

S.A.D.D. aims to develop student leaders who inspire other students to live a life full of making healthy and positive decisions.

These decisions include abstaining from underage drinking and drug use, refraining from distracted driving, and renouncing bullying.

There are many messages S.A.D.D. spreads through awareness campaigns, community events and other outlets. The goal is for each club to be student-led. Members are in charge

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GOLDEN CORRID CORRIDOR OR LI LIVVING ING • YOU!

by Dymon Campa, Prevention Specialist, Casa Grande Alliance

of being creative, running the meetings and developing ideas on how to tackle the previously-mentioned subjects to educate and support their peers.

One major campaign run by Casa Grande S.A.D.D. members is Making Our Students Think (M.O.S.T.). It is a “social norming” campaign, which dispels myths about use of harmful substances by young people. Through this campaign, members get hands-on experience with bringing ideas to life, communicating, organizing and working as a team.

A subject-matter expert from the University of Arizona trains the members on social-norms theory and how to effectively plan and implement the campaign.

The members develop posters, student body announcements, social media posts and lunchtime activities.

For one of the lunch-time activities, S.A.D.D. partners with state, county and local law enforcement to raise awareness about the dangers of underage drinking. Law enforcement officers run simulations allowing

students to understand how alcohol can impair functioning and abilities. S.A.D.D. members assist law enforcement with the simulations, as well as encourage their peers to sign a pledge banner to stay drug and alcohol-free.

The M.O.S.T. campaign runs for several weeks on three Casa Grande high school and three middle school campuses with S.A.D.D. chapters.

S.A.D.D. also works in the community by manning booths at various community events such as: Public Safety Day, Silent Witness Anti-Crime Night, City of Casa Grande’s Day of Play, health fairs and more. Students interact with youth and adults by sharing information on substance abuse, displaying banners to sign, offering activities and starting conversations about what S.A.D.D. does and what it means to be a leader on campus and in the community.

The high school S.A.D.D. chapters partner with the Casa Grande Alliance and play a key role in anti-drug rallies that are implemented in the elementary

schools in Casa Grande and nearby for fourth- and fifth-grade students. S.A.D.D. students perform a skit and an interactive song to educate students about making good decisions, peer-pressure resistance techniques and staying drug and alcohol-free.

During the year, S.A.D.D. members become strong school leaders If you are interested in getting your student involved, there are S.A.D.D. chapters at the following schools in Casa Grande: Mission Heights Preparatory, Casa Grande Union High School, Vista Grande High School, Casa Grande Middle School, Cactus Middle School and Grande Innovation Academy.

The S.A.D.D. program is a great way for students to develop leadership skills, shape them as a student, and to create friendships. I highly encourage your child to get involved in this program. For more information, contact the Casa Grande Alliance at (520) 836-5022 or email YouthHope.Cga@gmail.com.

THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

What’s for dinner? ?

Good conversation!

Eating together at least 5 nights a week can prevent youth drug use and other risky behaviors.

Share a meal to celebrate National Family Day on Sept. 24th, 2018.

Go to www.CasaGrandeAlliance.org/family-day to see local participating restaurants and deals.

Teens that have good relationships with their parents are 2 times less likely to use alcohol and 3 to 4 times less likely to use marijuana. One way to keep that good relationship with your child is by having frequent family dinners, 5 to 7 times per week, whether at home or at a restaurant. It is not about the food being eaten, but about the conversation and parental engagement that takes place at the dinner table.

The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University, The Importance of Family Dinners V111. (Sept. 2012)

Drug Abuse Prevention and Treatment Referrals 280 W. McMurray Blvd.

Casa Grande, Arizona 85122 520-836-5022 www.CasaGrandeAlliance.org Facebook: CGAlliance | Twitter: @CG_Alliance Funding was made possible by the Partnership For Success Grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, and the State of Arizona.

FLORENCE NATIVE HONORED FOR THREE DECADES OF JUVENILE COURT WORK

by Donna McBride, Program Administrator/PIO and Supervisor for the CASA Unit, Pinal County Juvenile Court, Casa Grande City Councilwoman

W

e often marvel at the idea that when local kids go away to school they choose to come back to do great things for their community, leading us all into the future with stability.

That’s exactly what Denise Smith did. Graduating in 1981 from Florence High School after a successful career in school sports, she attended Arizona State University. After graduating in 1986 with her bachelor’s degree in criminal justice, she found her way back to Florence, working for Pinal County Juvenile Court Services.

She moved forward through court services, going from diversion officer, probation officer and field supervisor to detention manager, division director and, 32 years later, became director of Juvenile Court Services for Pinal County. Her educational journey also netted her a master’s degree in public administration.

When asked why she settled in Pinal County, Denise explained it was a natural fit. Born and raised here, she knew the county was a good place to work and there were professional growth opportunities. Knowing growth was coming, she wanted to be part of the change. It was her time to give back to a county that had been so good to her growing up.

No doubt that growth has happened, especially for women in the community-corrections field. But why?

Denise is quick to point out that there

was a shift in the focus of corrections, especially for juveniles. The old “nail them and jail them” attitude is long gone. Clearly it was not working. The focus progressed to embrace more of the social work aspect.

Historically, there have been more women than men in the social work field. That holds true today, as the ratio of female employees outnumber male employees at Pinal County Juvenile Court. Looking at juvenile corrections in Arizona, there currently are three female directors in the 15 counties. Pima, Mohave and Pinal counties have women in their top leadership position. Pinal County is lucky to have Denise Smith.

Putting a twist on the routine question of what type of leader taught her the most, we talked about what type of leader she did not want to be like.

Traits Denise knew she wanted to stay away from – not having trust in her employees, being a micro-manager, being a dictator. She didn’t want to hinder creativity or the opportunity to take risks. Spending her time watching an employee’s every move is not a motivating factor for her.

Reminiscing over her 32 years with Juvenile Court Services, Denise emphasized one of her most important decisions in her career: When she was offered the promotion to detention manager. The culture and philosophy change in juvenile corrections was being implemented across the country, and Denise knew it needed to happen

here. Pinal County embraced it by developing relationships and trust with community partners, as well as with the juveniles and family involved.

That meant transforming from a punitive lock-up facility to a therapeutic environment. Change is always hard, but this was an explosion of change in Pinal County. It wasn’t just about saying change was coming – but it was here. From staff development, training and policies to employees understanding they are now “coaches, not referees.” It took leadership change from every angle: The support staff and janitors to the detention officers, supervisors and yes, even the director.

There have been challenges along the way. But the successes have been great. The phrase “it takes a village to raise a child” holds true in juvenile corrections. Denise knows that she cannot do it alone. It is the staff she trusts with our youth that make the difference. She understands her style of leadership is reflected through the work of her employees. Transparency and understanding is critical.

Although there may be a building with a fence around it for youth who need guidance, Denise knows she has a responsibility to encourage creative thinking when dealing with those youth. If we don’t have leaders willing to think outside the box, we will never tear down that fence and open the detention doors for the kids who need it… and deserve it the most.

Three leadership qualities Denise Smith said a leader must have: 1. Emotional intelligence: Having empathy with your staff. Having relationships with them by knowing who they are and what empowers them.

2. Validation: Being able to give staff the autonomy to make changes, be creative and think outside of the box. Not only support them, but acknowledge them.

3. Respect: Don’t expect staff to do what you aren’t willing to do. Work alongside your staff, know what they do, and help them understand what you do.

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GOLDEN CORRID CORRIDOR OR LI LIVVING ING • YOU!

THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

The LIVING Interview (continued) ...continued from page 31 vavel for a bit - Mr. Economic Development.

GREG STANLEY: Tim is the focal point for a lot of this. He’s been with the county nine years now and he really has dragged us all kicking and screaming, but Tim will be the first to say, “Oh, this is a big team effort and we’re all working together,” but Tim really is the face of it. He’s our biggest cheerleader and I can’t say enough good things about him.

GC LIVING: He talks a lot though...

GREG STANLEY: He does talk a lot (laugh).

TIM KANAVEL: You have to. Hey, I’ll tell you, this is really funny though. On the weekends, I don’t call anybody, I don’t talk to anybody, I don’t hardly see anybody. I really don’t. I don’t go anywhere. Because I have to recharge. At work you’re always on. So at home, I just don’t talk to a soul. (laughs) GC LIVING: Let’s talk a little bit about areawide economic development. Now I’ve been around this for a long time, and whenever it’s not regionalized, all the smaller constituents think, “Oh let’s band together, pool our resources and have a bigger footprint.”

So they do, and then the bigger footprint gets out there, and then they start squabbling about, “Well I spent this much, I’m not getting this much.” And it seems to erode.

But you’re changing the regionalization game. Let’s talk about that a little bit and how that is balanced out.

GREG STANLEY: I’ve always approached business in government saying you’ve got to cooperate. You get along and it helps float everybody’s boat. We’re big believers in that. We’ll go and sit with GPEC (Greater Phoenix Economic Council) and Maricopa County. We meet with Pima County and talk. At the same time, we’re making this effort to reach out with all of our cities and towns — anyone we can meet with to try and help improve and work on the relationship and coordination among all of us. We do hear comments in cities saying, “What good does it do me?” That’s a constant. But trying to continue to foster that cooperation — if it helps one community, it’s going to help the county as a whole.

TIM KANAVEL: That’s probably been the hardest message to convey, no matter where a business locates in this county, it benefits us all. People are so territorial. If it doesn’t happen on their street, it’s no good for them. And that’s one of the biggest, proba-

FALL 2018 • THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION

bly the biggest problem we deal with, these communities, because we didn’t help them directly. I’ve said, “It isn’t all Casa Grande but they’ve got two interstates and the main railroad. I’m sorry you don’t have that. You need to be your own unique self.” And some of the cities have actually taken it to heart.

They now have economic development personnel. I work with each and every one of them and help in a variety of ways.

GC LIVING: One of the reasons I asked that question is because I know you are some of the most inclusive people I’ve seen in the environment. It’s the concept of fungibility. Sites are not the same. Ten acres in Casa Grande isn’t the same as ten acres anywhere else. There are no two sites alike unless you have two pieces next to each other that are fundamentally the same. And even then, this one’s further from the utilities and that one’s closer to the interstate - So the whole concept that Casa Grande has something that another community really should have is just ludicrous. Anything that locates anywhere in Pinal County, we are all going to be better off. That’s my opinion.

TIM KANAVEL: When I first started, we had so many different economic development groups all over the county. Now we don’t hardly have any. Because the county is taking over what those organizations used to do. Everyone had their own agenda. They didn’t care about the rest of the county. I think part of it was we only had three supervisors. That’s a huge area for three people.

Now we have five and that has settled things out just a little bit because they don’t have such a big area to take care of.

GREG STANLEY: Pete Rios still has a district about the size of Rhode Island. There’s four incorporated communities up there plus San Manuel and Oracle that are not incorporated. You’ve got San Tan Valley, Gold Canyon and Saddlebrook that are unincorporated. Those are the counties’ responsibility to market them. We help market with the city because guess where those unincorporated residents go to shop? They go to shop in the cities. It behooves us to help everybody work together.

GC LIVING: It’s a domino effect.

GREG STANLEY: If I may go back to our strategic plan. One of the items we are trying to focus is on what can we do for those areas that are more economically depressed?

We are working very hard now trying to get something going in San Manuel and we have had some positive calls.

TIM KANAVEL: Our business assistance program is countywide and is available to any qualified business within the county. We’ve done two so far. One is in Casa Grande, Abbott Labs. The other one is Applegate Insulation located in the county. We are currently working on a third.

GC LIVING: One of the big things we have to talk about is tourism, and what is the future for the Copper Corridor in economic development and job growth and also tourism. How do you market that destination? Tourism?

TIM KANAVEL: You picked it, tourism. It’s going to be about the Copper Corridor.

GREG STANLEY: The Copper Corridor and the people who live there would say why market this? Why? Because it is already our open space. We see that as being a tremendous tourism mecca for this county. Anyone who has been to Aravaipa and hiked through the canyon, it’s a gorgeous piece of the county that most people don’t recognize. We think it’s ecotourism.

GC LIVING: There are all kinds of recreational stuff along the San Pedro, it is beautiful. Is there any chance for anything other than mining and mineral extraction in your forecast?

TIM KANAVEL: The power source out there is adequate for what they’ve currently got, but not for more manufacturing. They don’t have water resources and they also don’t have the workforce. In that whole Copper Corridor region, it’s only has about 15,000 people. There is a brand new casino and it’s going to get bigger. They’re going to be hiring people, and they already have a whole lot of people available to hire. A lot of people are coming out of Tucson or Oro Valley, Catalina area because there just isn’t available people.

That is not an area that’s going to be big for manufacturing and not really big for retail. You need to have a specific number of people to be able to have successful retail.

And they don’t have that critical mass. It’s going to be mining for quite a few years. The Superior Mine route and Resolution Copper.

That’s projected 60-plus more years — decades and generations. We are working on a project at one of the former mine sites that’s

continued on page 91...

OR LI V ING THE INTERV IE W • GOLDEN GOLDEN CORRID CORRIDOR VING

61

RENT with Coldwell Banker ROX Realty and have

peace of mind with our experienced management team.

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Contact Coldwell Banker ROX Realty today for a FREE consultation

520.423.8250 | info@roxrents.com 1919 N Trekell Rd, Casa Grande, AZ 85122

©2018 Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. All Rights Reserved. Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act. Each Office Is Independently Owned And Operated. Coldwell Banker and the Coldwell Banker Logo are registered service marks owned by Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC.

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KAREN HENSON

ROXrents.com

Special Section:

PINAL COUNTY PINAL COUNTY’S FUTURE:

PURPOSE-DRIVEN GROWTH They are marketing it - selling Pinal County to the nation as the most desirable place to start, expand or relocate a business that offers good wages and promising careers for residents.

L

ucid Motors, Nikola Motors, Severtson Screens, Apex Motor Club, LKQ Corporation and Green Gas Partners just to name a few companies with recent significant announcements impacting Pinal County.

Pinal County’s leaders, with officials from the cities and towns, are jointly laser-focused on that growth.

They are marketing it - selling Pinal County to the nation as the most desirable place to start, expand or relocate a business that offers good wages and promising careers for residents.

The good news keeps coming for the future of Pinal: Car company Lucid Motors received a $1B infusion of investment cash and will be speeding up their plans to produce their cars in Casa Grande … creating 2,000 jobs.

Nikola Motors announced they are moving their manufacturing facility location to Coolidge. This means another 2,000 high-tech, well-paying jobs for Pinal.

“Pinal County will soon have the corner on transportation manufacturing in Arizona,” declared Pinal County Manager Greg Stanley.

According to the county, Severtson Screen is moving to San Tan Valley from Mesa. “… they’re going to be starting the permit process soon,” said Stanley.

The screen company is the largest family-owned movie screen manufacturer in the county. It celebrated its 30th anniversary in 2016 and continues to be a global leader in innovation and quality. The addition of a new facility with its state-of-the art robotic application system not only increases the company’s production capability, it also increases the number of screen sizes available to their clients, according to severtsonscreens.com.

A Fortune 500 auto parts and vehicle recycling company, LKQ Corporation, has a conditional use permit and development plan from the Casa IMAGE COURTESY OF APEX MOTORSPORTS

64

GOLDEN CORRID OR LI V ING

Grande Planning and Zoning Commission. Construction on the 107,000 square-foot warehouse located at the northwest corner of Thornton and Peters roads in Casa Grande is underway. The company plans to hire up to 100 people upon completion.

Renewable energy operations is becoming a dominate economic generator for Pinal County. Earlier in September, the Pinal County Board of Supervisors approved the county’s Industrial Development Authority to issue $60 million in bonds for Green Gas Partners, a methane processing facility outside of Stanfield. The bonds do not cost the county, rather it results in a tax break for bond buyers and a lower interest rate for the borrowers. Green Gas Partners, through the use of anaerobic digestion takes cow manure and processes it to methane gas and fertilizer.

The facility is located next to several dairies in Stanfield.

Apex is a motorsports country club for racing in a private setting. Located on 280 acres in Maricopa, it will be the only private motorsports club and race track within the metropolitan boundaries of one of the six most populated cities in America, Phoenix, according to the company.

Besides the two race-quality asphalt road courses, the club is planning a country club, multi-purpose event building, 264 condominiums and for-lease temperature controlled garages for vehicle storage, a tuning shop and fuel station, as well as a

THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

IMAGE COURTESY OF LUCID MOTORS

IMAGE COURTESY OF NIKOLA MOTORS

projected as the home of nearly 1,600 Attesa employees upon buildout,” the company states on attesa.com.

Attesa, a $1.1 billion project, announced it will initially recruit over 8,000 workers in the construction

FALL 2018 • THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION

and building industry as it produces two racing circuits, a 300-room hotel and 20,000 sq. ft. conference center, driving club, multi-use venue, waste water treatment plant and solar canopied plaza.

IMAGE COURTESY OF ATTESSA

karting facility.

According to Pinal County officials, these companies are just the beginning for future growth.

“With the solar we’ve assembled on the drawing board, soon Pinal County is going to be the biggest producer of green energy in the state of Arizona,” said Stanley.

“We’re working with several other companies that we can’t divulge details. Some of them have to do with military defense, also other manufacturers. Some rather large manufacturing ones that hopefully we’ll be able to announce soon,” added Kanavel.

Located near Casa Grande, Arizona, Attesa is seven miles from Interstate 10, just off Interstate 8’s Exit 167.

“Attesa will create an economic engine for the region, provide thought leadership for automotive innovation, serve as an educational partner with universities conducting research and development, and deliver a multifaceted sporting and entertainment venue,” according to attesa.com.

Announced in 2016, Attesa officials reported approximately 61 percent of their future employees will reside in Pinal County, according to updated projections from an Economic Impact Study prepared by Elliott D. Pollack & Company.

“Casa Grande is projected to benefit most from incremental local economic activity associated with nearly 5,000 Attesa employees. Maricopa, the county’s second largest city, is

GOLDEN CORRID OR LI V ING

65

Special Section: Pinal County Economic Development

PINAL COUNTY

AT A G L A N C E Poverty Level Arizona 14.9%

Pinal County 12.6% THE LOWEST IN THE STATE and below the National Average of 13.4%

Mean Commute Time

440,000

31 Minutes

2010 Census 375,768 INCREASE of 14.6% since 2010

Education

Land Area 5,635 square miles

High School Graduate

(Connecticut is 5,543 square miles)

Total Civilian Labor Force

171,385

or Higher

84.9%

51,190

$

Housing Units

173,681 Owner-occupied 72.5%

Median Sold Price: $200,000 UP 11.1% since August 2017

Median Household Income

Employment by Sector – August 2018 Total Private. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39,550

• • •

Goods Producing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7,275 • Mining and Construction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,425 • Manufacturing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,850

Government. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19,900 • Federal Government . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,575 • State and Local Government. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18,325

Total Nonfarm. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59,450

Service-Providing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52,175 • Trade, Transportation and Utilities. . . . . . . . . . . . . 10,475 • Information. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 525 • Financial Activities. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,425 • Professional and Business Services. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6,125

66

CORRID OR LI LIVING V ING • SPECI A L SEC TION GOLDEN CORRIDOR

Education and Health Services. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6,075 Leisure and Hospitality. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5,925 Other Services. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,725

Sources: US Census, Arizona Regional MLS, laborstats.az.gov

THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

PINAL COUNTY PROSPECTUS: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY -1-

FROM THE CHAIRMAN: Welcome to Pinal County which offers wide

Pinal County is dedicated to enhancing the lives

open opportunity for domestic and international

of our residents and local businesses. We have an

business. Our rapidly growing community has

unwavering commitment to invest in amenities,

a rich history and strong tradition of embracing

parks, and transportation infrastructure.

newcomers. We’re focused on innovative ways to support trade and commerce.

Renowned for wide open spaces and an abundance of natural beauty, Pinal County provides an exceptional

With our central location in Arizona between

quality of life. Residents can take advantage of

Phoenix and Tucson, we offer competitive and

outdoor and recreational activities such as hiking,

strategic advantages not found elsewhere.

skydiving, ziplining or nearby skiing.

Businesses benefit from our favorable climate, low cost

Our modern and well-developed transportation

of doing business, quality of life, affordable housing,

system includes three international airports, Union

talented workforce, and educational opportunities.

Pacific rail service, and access to Interstate highways that allow day trips to markets in California, Texas

As a result of these factors, Pinal County has

and Mexico.

developed into a center of medium and large-scale

We invite you to learn more about Pinal County and

business operations that represent major sectors of

welcome the opportunity to work with you and your

the global economy. Industries include advanced

company to realize your success in the Southwest.

automotive, aerospace and defense, distribution, health services, logistics, manufacturing, natural and renewable resources, and transportation.

The Pinal County Board of Supervisors and county government are firmly committed to ensuring that

Sincerely,

Todd House Todd House, Chairman

Pinal County Board of Supervisors

every business expanding, locating, or starting in our community will receive personal attention and commitment to their continued success.

Pinal County has been nationally recognized for financial reporting and fiscal performance. We understand businesses require a stable operating environment.

That’s why Pinal County consistently delivers a fiscally responsible and competitively priced business climate.

PINAL PINALCOUNTY COUNTYPROSPECTUS: PROSPECTUS:EXECUTIVE EXECUTIVESUMMARY SUMMARY - -22- -

WHY PINAL COUNTY? Welcome to Pinal County, the nexus of the Sun

vehicles, was substantially upgraded in 2014 to

Corridor, a burgeoning region that begins in central

facilitate more streamlined entry of people and goods

Arizona and extends south into northern Mexico.

into Arizona and beyond.

This megalopolitan location, combined with unparalleled economic advantages and desirable

Pinal County has a prosperous and diverse economy

amenities, places Pinal County at the heart of a

that spans a wide range of economic sectors. While

powerful economic engine that will grow and

agriculture, mining, and healthcare are the county’s

prosper decades into the future.

historic economic pillars, Pinal County has also experienced a rapidly increasing concentration of

As one of the fastest growing counties in the United

firms in aerospace, biosciences, renewable and green

States, with a current population of 418,300 that is

technologies, and high-tech manufacturing over the

projected to grow to more than 1 million residents by

last decade.

2050, Pinal County offers unparalleled opportunities for businesses across all economic sectors.

Pinal County’s government invests in preserving open space while championing the development

Companies located in Pinal County benefit by

of robust recreational, cultural, and tourism

being adjacent to one of the most well-developed

opportunities. Because of this, residents and visitors

transportation systems in the U.S. It includes an inland

have a wide range of retail and dining choices, access

port, three international airports, interstate highways,

to collegiate and professional sports as well as many

expansive local freeway systems, and rapid rail

arts and cultural offerings. It’s no wonder why so

systems in Phoenix and Tucson.

many people are locating their businesses and families to Pinal County.

Firms located in Pinal County can also access California and Mexico within a one-day turnaround

A pro-business and pro-growth environment has

trip. And the future Interstate 11, a new federal

been carefully developed by the Pinal County Board

highway set to connect Mexico to Canada, will

of Supervisors. The county partners with local

traverse through Pinal County, opening up even wider

governments and the state of Arizona to ensure that

opportunity for international commerce and trade.

the local market delivers a competitive and business-friendly operating climate. This unwavering

International trade thrives in Pinal County. Ports of

commitment - along with lower business operating

entry in southern Arizona have undergone significant

costs, reliable utilities, an excellent transportation

capital improvements to enhance the efficient flow

system, and a skilled and available workforce - creates

of goods to and from Mexico. As an example, the Port

a community of WIDE OPEN OPPORTUNITY.

of Mariposa, America’s busiest land port for private PINAL COUNTY PROSPECTUS: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY -3-

TALENT/WORKFORCE

Executive, professional, and

Arizona, Arizona State University,

technical workers thrive in Pinal

and Northern Arizona University

County. Over 53% of the county’s

- maintain a constant educational

residents have college experience,

presence in Pinal County with

and 25% have an associate’s

representatives located at Central

degree or higher. Over 40% of

Arizona College.

the bachelor’s degrees earned by residents in the county are

Early in 2017, the Arizona

in science and engineering

Advanced Technologies Corridor

fields, and over 20% are

Project was initiated, bringing the

business-related degrees.

three community college districts of Maricopa, Central Arizona, and

Pinal County has a large workforce

Pima together to standardize a

trained in every major industry

technology curriculum to train the

category. With a local labor

workforce for manufacturers such

force of 165,000 - combined with

as Raytheon, Intel, Boeing, and the

nearly 675,000 additional workers

newly announced Lucid Motors.

who reside within a 45-minute commute in cities such as

For businesses that require

Chandler, Marana, Gilbert, Tempe

custom and specialized training,

and Mesa - employers based in

ARIZONA@WORK, a statewide

Pinal County can readily capitalize

workforce development

on the nearly 840,000 skilled

consortium, can work directly with

managerial, professional, and

companies in Pinal County to assist

technical workers.

in recruiting, developing, and retaining the best employees for

The county is committed to

their needs. Candidate matching

developing its talent pipeline.

and screening, skills assessment,

A Pinal County location offers

on-the-job training, internships,

an extraordinary wealth of

and apprenticeships are only part

training and educational

of what ARIZONA@WORK offers to

resources for companies across

companies expanding and

the economic spectrum. All three

locating in Pinal County.

state universities - University of

EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT KEY

PINAL COUNTY 23.3%

SOME COLLEGE, NO DEGREE

9.5%

ASSOCIATE’S DEGREE

11.2%

BACHELOR’S DEGREE

6.2%

GRADUATE OR PROFESSIONAL DEGREE

PHOENIX, MESA, SCOTTSDALE 21.1% 8.4% 18.9% 10.5%

UNITED STATES 20.7% 8.2% 19% 11.6%

POPULATION

PINAL COUNTY PROSPECTUS: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Arizona - 5 - Department of Administration, Office of Employment & Population Statistics, 12/11/2015

CONNECTIVITY/MARKET ACCESS Pinal County is ideally located in the center of the Sun Corridor, offering easy access to three of the world’s largest economies: California, Texas, and Mexico. The county’s prime location, along with its well-developed and multi-modal transportation system, allows people and products to move efficiently throughout the region.

AIR ACCESS

RAIL SERVICE

Businesses and residents can access virtually any

Union Pacific’s rail

destination through

operations in Pinal

three major airports:

County, along with its

Phoenix Sky Harbor

competitive freight

International Airport, Tucson International Airport,

rates, are a key driver for a producer economy.

and Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport. From a Pinal

Union Pacific, Pinal County, and the state of Arizona

County location, business travelers can take advantage

are currently developing the Red Rock Project, a

of the more than 100 daily flights to cities in

multi-million-dollar rail park and classification yard

California alone.

that is slated to be one of the largest logistics facilities

INTERSTATE HIGHWAYS

in the western U.S. Close to I-10 and I-8, Red Rock will significantly expand Union Pacific’s capacity to increase its long haul handling and offloading of goods.

Pinal County is connected to numerous

BROADBAND

major markets through a robust infrastructure of

Businesses and residents

freeways and interstates. In fact, a one-day truck haul

alike benefit from

can reach markets in California, Colorado, Nevada,

well-developed wireless

New Mexico, Texas, Utah, or even Mexico. Because

and wired networks.

of this, manufacturing and major distribution firms

CenturyLink and Cox

are strategically centered along Pinal County’s main

Communications are the

traffic corridors of Interstate 10 (California to Florida),

primary providers of

Interstate 8 (Pinal County to San Diego), and

wireless and broadband in the Pinal County region,

U.S. Route 60.

and work is underway to expand the county’s telecommunications infrastructure. Newly proposed

In addition, the state of Arizona is working

fiber routes will expand capacity and service with

vigorously with the federal government to begin

distribution points for fiber to the home/ fiber to the

construction on Interstate 11. Once complete, this

premises (FTTH/FTTP) throughout many areas in

extensive trade corridor will offer a continuous

Pinal County.

four-lane highway from Mexico City, through Arizona to Edmonton, Alberta in Canada.

PINAL COUNTY PROSPECTUS: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY -6-

PINAL COUNTY FLIGHT TIME

3 HOURS

4 HOURS 2 HOURS

1 HOUR

PINAL COUNTY DRIVE TIME

1-DAY TRUCK HAUL FROM PINAL COUNTY

PINAL COUNTY PROSPECTUS: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY -7-

BUSINESS CLIMATE Operating costs in Pinal County

• Business-friendly economic

are 40% lower than in California.

development professionals that

Combined with targeted business

will assist projects through the

tax credits and easy access to a

development review process.

• Accelerated depreciation schedules • 100% of net operating loss carried forward for five years

• Pre-development meetings

• Minimal regulation

customers, firms based in Pinal

initiated by Pinal County

• Right-to-work state

County benefit greatly from a

development specialists.

• Low unionization

distinct financial advantage over

These meetings play a vital

• Targeted incentives

many major U.S. markets.

role in eliminating unexpected

broad range of regional and global

The Pinal County Board of Supervisors and the elected bodies

delays during the development

With so many corporate

review process.

advantages, it’s no wonder why

• Personalized, hands-on

of its municipal governments work

assistance from Pinal

vigorously and collaboratively

County staff.

to ensure that companies benefit from its business-friendly culture.

PINAL COUNTY PRIORITY EXPRESS PERMITTING

STATE OF ARIZONA: OPEN FOR BUSINESS Arizona is an unparalleled location for business expansion and relocation thanks to its

Arizona consistently ranks high for business success.

1 5 5 8

#

MOST FAVORABLE REGULATORY CLIMATE

BY AREA DEVELOPMENT

#

OVERALL GROWTH PROSPECTS

BY FORBES

#

QUALITY AND AVAILABILITY OF WORKFORCE

BY CNBC

#

BUSINESS FRIENDLINESS

BY CNBC

TOP

Recognizing the critical need for

reduced government regulations,

companies to ramp up quickly,

available workforce, and low

Pinal County has implemented an

cost environment. Arizona’s

expedited specific and commercial

corporate income tax is among the

site plan review process for

very lowest in the nation. Other

10

BEST STATE FOR INFRASTRUCTURE AND TRANSPORTATION BY CNBC

new, expanding, or relocating

business advantages include:

TOP

10

BEST STATE FOR BUSINESS

BY CHIEF EXECUTIVE

TOP

BEST STATE FOR STARTING A BUSINESS BY U.S. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

businesses. Priority express permitting includes:

• No corporate franchise tax • No income tax on dividends from out-of-state subsidiaries

10

• No worldwide unitary tax

PINAL COUNTY PROSPECTUS: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY -8-

TRANSPORTATION/DISTRIBUTION With vital connectivity and modern well-developed

RAIL

infrastructure through several airports, freeways, and rail systems, Pinal County offers the ability to access more than 35 million consumers within a

• Union Pacific’s rail line along the western edge of the property

single day’s truck haul. Pinal County’s Inland Port

• Developer-planned service to both IPAZ/PLP

Arizona (IPAZ)/Pinal Logistics Park (PLP) is ready to

• Unit-train capable

be developed for commercial use with a favorable

• Approved Union Pacific onsite access and fully

development agreement in place. This inland port’s

engineered construction plans

location also provides: In addition to Pinal County’s 64 miles of I-10, 30 miles

TRUCK

of I-8, and the inland port, Union Pacific is proposing to construct a new classification yard to meet the

• Contiguous proximity to Highway 87

demand for increased freight rail service in Arizona.

• Access to Interstate 10, which spans from

Built with best practices that address environmental

coast-to-coast

concerns, this 250-acre project will be one of the

• Access to Interstate 8, which fast tracks to Southern California

largest of its kind in the U.S., surrounded by more than 1,000 acres of industrial land with the potential

• Contiguous proximity to I-11, a future interstate

to be served by rail.

connecting Mexico to Canada

PINAL COUNTY PROSPECTUS: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY -9-

ARIZONA@WORK

development network that helps employers of all

CUSTOMIZED RECRUITMENT SERVICES

sizes and types recruit, develop, and retain the

Providing Innovative Solutions and Strategies That Work

ARIZONA@WORK is the statewide workforce

best employees for their needs. For job seekers throughout the state, we provide services and

JOB POSTING

resources to pursue employment opportunities.

Employers can directly access the state’s largest workforce database – Arizona Job Connection

ARIZONA@WORK Pinal County is your local access

(www.AZJobConnection.gov). Arizona Job

to this public and private partnership, which is

Connection hosts thousands of job seekers and

comprised of 12 regional areas and over 40 local

employer-submitted job listings.

offices – all working together and sharing one mission: providing innovative workforce solutions for employers and job seekers.

CANDIDATE MATCHING AND PRE-SCREENING ARIZONA@WORK Pinal County can match candidates

Through the support of federal funding, our services

who meet your key hiring criteria, conducting initial

are provided at no charge. We are integrated in our

evaluations to identify experience levels and skill sets.

local communities to meet the employment needs of all different organizations and job seekers.

SKILLS ASSESSMENT Using a variety of tools to assess everything from basic

ARIZONA@WORK Pinal County partners with

reading and writing skills to computer proficiency, we can

employers throughout the state to meet their

help identify qualified candidates for your job openings.

workforce needs. With locally-based services, we have the network to connect people and jobs. By

HIRING EVENTS

helping businesses succeed and grow, we lay the

ARIZONA@WORK Pinal County regularly hosts hiring

groundwork for a stronger Arizona economy. By

events, providing an opportunity for you to connect

sharing the solutions you need to find the right em-

with available, interested, and skilled applicants.

ployees-right here, right now-we’re committed to real teamwork with you.

SPECIAL RECRUITMENT SERVICES We can provide interview space and other customized services, such as helping new Arizona companies hire employees quickly.

PINAL COUNTY PROSPECTUS: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY - 10 -

BUSINESS SUPPORT RESOURCES

Delivering skill and training that work - ARIZONA@ WORK Pinal County connects your company with

Offering information and expertise that works.

training programs employees require.

LABOR MARKET INSIGHT the economic and occupational picture of your market

ON-THE-JOB TRAINING AND WORK EXPERIENCE OPPORTUNITIES (INTERNSHIPS)

area into focus.

Qualified employees can receive on-the-job training

• Local and national labor market, employment and

with their salary partially subsidized.

ARIZONA@WORK Pinal County can help make sense of the changing labor landscape with data that brings

economic information • Population and demographic statistics

APPRENTICESHIPS

• Industry trends and occupational outlook surveys

Private and public sector sponsors operate registered

• Labor law compliance updates

apprenticeship programs and can coordinate to cover

• Unemployment insurance information

training costs and wages.

TAX CREDITS AND INCENTIVES

The registered apprenticeship system of training is unique in that it is the only formal, structured, and

Arizona companies that hire targeted employee

nationally recognized education and training program

groups or provide specialized training and services

available that combines the two most common forms

may be eligible for tax credits, from hiring qualified

of career and occupational learning: classroom

veterans and the disabled to operating within an

instruction with on-the-job training.

enterprise zone.

RAPID RESPONSE SERVICES

Apprentices not only learn occupational skills in the classroom but also receive paid, on-the-job training!

The program must be registered with the Arizona

For businesses that anticipate downsizing or

Apprenticeship Office (https://des.az.gov/services/

restructuring, ARIZONA@WORK Pinal County

employment/apprenticeship-home)

Rapid Response Services can help meet the needs of companies and employees with layoff aversion, pre-layoff assistance, and other specialized support.

PINAL COUNTY PROSPECTUS: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY - 11 -

101

Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport

10

Phoenix

Goodyear

202

Scottsdale Tempe

202

Mesa

202

Falcon Field Airport

Apache Junction

Lost Dutchman State Park

60

South Mountain Park

Estrella Mountain Regional Park

101

Gold Canyon

Gilbert Chandler Chandler Municipal Airport

87

Queen Creek Queen Creek Olive Mill

Sun Lakes

GILA RIVER INDIAN COMMUNITY

San Tan Mountain Regional Park

San Tan Valley

79

10

Sacaton

238

Maricopa AK-CHIN INDIAN Amtrak COMMUNITY Maricopa

Mobile

Ak-Chin Regional Airport

187

McFarland State Historic Park Florence

Blackwater 387

Casa Grande Municipal Airport

Station

87

Casa Grande Ruins National Monument Coolidge Municipal Airport 79 Coolidge

347

Cactus Fore

(Main Campus) 387

287

Casa Grande 287

84 84 8

Sonoran Desert National Monument

8

10

Eloy Municipal Airport

87

Key Arizona City 10

Interstate

60

US Highway

202

State Route

Eloy

Picacho

TOHONO O’ODHAM NATION

Railroad North South Corridor

Tat Momoli

North South Corridor (ROW)

Picacho Peak State Park 10

Pinal Airpark

Eloy Council Resolution Coolidge Council Resolution

FOUNDED:

AREA:

POPULATION:

1875

5,375 mi2

418,000 (U.S. Census Bureau 2016)

PINAL COUNTY PROSPECTUS: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY - 12 -

SAN CARLOS APACHE INDIAN RESERVATION

Superstition Mountains Miami-Inspiration Mine

Superstition Wilderness

Carlota Mine

Globe 60

170

San Carlos Superior 77 60

Boyce Thompson Arboretum State Park

70

Potential Resolution Copper Mine

Ray

Ray Mine

Calva

177 77

Christmas

Kearny Kearny Airport

177

Hayden

est

Aravaipa

Aravaipa Canyon Wilderness and Preserve

Dudleyville

Klondyke

Mammoth San Manuel Airport

77

San Manuel Copper Mine Oracle Biosphere 2

San Manuel Arizona Zipline Adventures

76

Oracle State Park

PINAL COUNTY PROSPECTUS: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY - 13 -

MANUFACTURING Arizona is home to thousands of manufacturing

Snapshot of Arizona’s Manufacturing Sector

companies, from small firms to global corporations, such as Intel and Honeywell.

• Total Manufacturing Output 2015 - $23.53 billion (NAM, May 2017)

According to the National Association of

• Manufacturing Firms in Arizona -

Manufacturers, Arizona ranks fourth in the nation for semiconductor employment and second for space and

5,008 and growing (MNI, June 2017) • Total Arizona Employment in Manufacturing -

defense manufacturing employment.

218,000 and growing (MNI, June 2017) • Total Exports of Arizona Manufactured Goods (2016) - $18.46 billion (BLS, 2017) • Growth in Manufactured Goods Exports 2010-2016 - 33.94% (BLS, 2017) • Top Five Export Market

Pinal County is home to a diverse manufacturing landscape, including companies such as Frito Lay, Abbott Laboratories, The National Vitamin Company, Hexcel, Cargill Incorporated, American Steel Corporation, Cemex, and Ceramitec Industries. That’s because manufacturers benefit greatly from partnerships with the Pinal County government and the Arizona Commerce Authority as well as many local, state, and federal resources.

ARIZONA MANUFACTURING DATA COMPUTER AND ELECTRONIC PRODUCTS

$7,481

AEROSPACE AND OTHER TRANSPORTATION

$4,826

FOOD, BEVERAGE AND TOBACCO PRODUCTS

$1,698

FABRICATED METAL PRODUCTS

$1,533

MISCELLANEOUS MANUFACTURING PRIMARY METALS

$1,330 $898

NONMETALLIC MINERAL PRODUCTS

$788

MACHINERY

$770

CHEMICAL PRODUCTS

$749

$558 MOTOR VEHICLES AND PARTS PINAL COUNTY PROSPECTUS: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY - 14 Source: http://www.nam.org/Data-and-Reports/State-Manufacturing-Data/State-Manufacturing-Data/April-2017/Manufacturing-Facts---Arizona/

AEROSPACE/DEFENSE The aerospace and defense (A&D)

Huachuca, Luke Air Force Base and

sector has a long history and a

the Marine Corps Air Station Yuma.

promising future in Arizona.

These facilities provide everything

The state is home to several

from training and testing labs to the

large military bases, including

largest unmanned aircraft systems

Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Fort

training base in the world.

Arizona boasts a strong concentration of specialized A&D proficiencies, including:

AEROSPACE PARTS DEVELOPMENT AND MANUFACTURING

AVIONICS AND SENSOR TECHNOLOGY

COMMAND CONTROL COMMUNICATIONS COMPUTERS AND INTELLIGENCE (C4I)

POWER SYSTEMS

SPACE TECHNOLOGIES

WEAPONS AND ARMOR SYSTEMS

INFORMATION SYSTEMS AND CYBER TECHNOLOGIES

More than 1,200 A&D firms operate in Arizona, including Boeing, General Dynamics, Honeywell, Raytheon, Lockheed Martin as well Hexcel and Ascent Aerospace Services in Pinal County specifically.

2 6

nd

2 10 nd

LARGEST IN GUIDED MISSLE SYSTEMS MANUFACTURING EMPLOYMENT

th

4

th

LARGEST IN SPACE AND DEFENSE SYSTEMS MANUFACTURING EMPLOYMENT

th

LARGEST IN MAINTENANCE REPAIR AND OVERHAUL (MRO) OCCUPATIONS EMPLOYMENT

LARGEST IN AVIATION AND AEROSPACE SERVICES EMPLOYMENT

PINAL COUNTY PROSPECTUS: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY - 15 -

LARGEST IN AVIATION AND AEROSPACE MANUFACTURING EMPLOYMENT

NATURAL AND RENEWABLE RESOURCES

MINING

AGRICULTURE

SOLAR

The mining industry is an

Agriculture is another economic

With more than 300 days of

important contributor to the

pillar for the Pinal County

sunshine annually, it’s no wonder

Arizona economy. According to

economy with hundreds of family,

why companies like Apple,

the Arizona Mining Association,

corporate, and university-based

APS, First Solar, and Avangrid

Arizona accounted for two-thirds

farms supplying commodities

Renewables consider Arizona an

of U.S. copper output, creating an

such as Pima cotton, hay, sorghum,

ideal location for the renewable

economic impact of approximately

millet, corn, sheep, cattle, and

energy industry.

$4.3 billion.

fresh produce.

In 2014, the Solar Energy

Since Pinal County’s inception

In addition to these farming

Industries Association (SEIA),

in 1875, copper mining remains

operations, Pinal County is also

in partnership with The Solar

an economic mainstay, creating

home to several state-of-the-art

Foundation, ranked Arizona

thousands of high-paying jobs and

research facilities dedicated

third in solar employment with

billions of dollars in tax revenue

to advancing agriculture

an estimated 9,200 jobs employed

to the state, county, and local

technology in the ways of crop

at 396 solar companies. This

economies.

protection, crop improvement,

equates to approximately 4.5% of

and resource conservation.

the nation’s total employment in the solar industry. Arizona also consistently ranks as a top state for photovoltaic energy generation with enough solar energy installed in the state to power 304,000 homes.

PINAL COUNTY PROSPECTUS: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY - 16 -

HEALTH SERVICES Health services are a central component of Arizona’s economy. In 2016, healthcare employers in Arizona added 13,600 jobs, a growth rate of 4.0%. That’s faster than both healthcare companies nationwide (2.7%) and Arizona employers as a whole (2.6%).

Banner Health, a nonprofit healthcare provider based in Phoenix, is Arizona’s largest private employer with 19 hospitals throughout the state, including the Banner Casa Grande Medical Center - a 177-bed general medical and surgical hospital - in Pinal County.

Other regional medical centers in the county include the Banner Health Goldfield Center in Apache Junction, the Banner Health Center in Maricopa, and the Banner Health Ironwood Medical Center in San Tan Valley. These regional health centers deliver a full range of health services, including urgent care, medical doctors, imaging, and emergency services.

In addition to these Banner Health facilities, there is an extensive network of Sun Life Family Health Centers providing primary healthcare services in 13 centers throughout the county. Pinal County has more than 225 health services companies, including primary and emergency care, specialists, pharmacies, dentistry, hospice care, laboratories, ambulance services, nutrition, research, and manufacturing.

Major employers include Abbott Laboratories, The National Vitamin Company, and Walgreens.

PINAL COUNTY PROSPECTUS: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY - 17 -

TOURISM Scenic beauty, majestic sunsets, and the natural wonder make tourism the number one industry in

BOYCE THOMPSON ARBORETUM

Arizona. In 2016, approximately 43 million people visited the state, spending roughly $21 billion locally.

Located in the heart of the county, the Boyce Thompson Arboretum offers stunning vistas and

As tourism continues to grow, so does Pinal County.

excellent walks focused on the unique flora and fauna

The community is already a destination hub for those

many times missed in these unique desert locations.

seeking recreational adventure, annual festivals, and an exploration of Arizona’s magnificent landmarks.

ARIZONA ZIPLINE ADVENTURES

THE SUPERSTITION MOUNTAINS Anchoring the northern part of Pinal County, the Superstition Mountains offer scenic trails as well

On the back of Mount Lemmon, the highest point of

as a museum for visitors to learn about the lore

the Santa Catalina Mountains, visitors can experience

of legendary landscape rumored to hold the Lost

the longest zipline in Arizona as well as mountainside

Dutchman Gold Mine.

musicals, camping, and dining events.

BIOSPHERE 2

CASA GRANDE RUINS A treasured national monument, the Casa Grande

Originally built to be an artificial, enclosed

Ruins National Monument features ruins of the

ecosystem, this three-acre structure remains

Hohokam people who settled and farmed the Arizona

the largest closed system ever created. Now a

region in the 13th century.

world-renowned center for research, outreach, teaching, and lifelong learning about Earth,

QUEEN CREEK OLIVE MILL

Biosphere 2 serves as an exciting and educational tourist destination.

Offering daily tours, a gourmet eatery, a specialty goods market, and seasonal community events, this family-owned olive farm and mill delivers agritourism at its finest.

PINAL COUNTY PROSPECTUS: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY - 18 -

QUALITY OF LIFE Pinal County is world renowned for its wide open spaces and abundance of natural and majestic beauty.

PARKS AND RECREATION

HOUSING

Throughout the year, people from around the world visit Pinal County for its nearby parks and

From sprawling ranches and equestrian estates to

recreational areas, including Casa Grande Ruins

master planned communities, housing in Pinal County

National Monument, Boyce Thompson Arboretum

is plentiful. Home buyers can purchase a new,

State Park, the Florence Historic District, McFarland

fully-amenitized, energy-efficient home at a median

State Historic Park, Picacho Peak State Park, Lost

price of $230,000 - well below the U.S. median of

Dutchman State Park, Oracle State Park, and San

$318,300 and greater Phoenix median of $313,000.

Carlos Lake.

EDUCATION

ARTS AND CULTURE

Educational offerings abound in Pinal County with

Pinal County’s arts and cultural scene appeals to

106 elementary, middle, and high schools as well as 19

history buffs and art lovers alike. The Pinal County

charter schools. For postsecondary education, Pinal

Historical Society & Museum, for example, brings

County residents are within commuting distance of

visitors back to America’s Old West with Native

both Arizona State University’s Tempe Campus and

American artifacts, relics of the pioneer era, and

the University of Arizona’s Tucson campus.

other vestiges of frontier days. In addition to these landmarks, residents can also enjoy seasonal events

Even closer is Central Arizona College, Pinal County’s

such as the Renaissance Festival, Country Thunder

primary two-year, accredited postsecondary institution

Music Festival, and of course spring training baseball

with nine campuses and learning centers located

games, throughout the metro Phoenix area.

throughout the county as well as a comprehensive online presence.

CENTRAL AZ COLLEGE

2015-2016

PINAL COUNTY PROSPECTUS: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY - 19 -

RECREATION HIKING/MOUNTAIN BIKING/ ATV TOURS/CAMPING

acrobatics, and comedy. Cheer on your favorite armored knight at the jousting tournament or

Pinal County, Arizona, is known for its outdoor

explore the marketplace with over 200 shops, studios,

beauty and recreation. The region boasts a wide

and galleries. Whatever you choose, the Renaissance

variety of parks, trails, and other outdoor recreation

Festival is a non-stop, family adventure.

opportunities. Pinal County is home to five state parks, and two national forests. Additionally, Pinal County

SKIING AND SNOWBOARDING

is home to almost 100 miles of the Arizona National

Yes! You can ski in Arizona! From Pinal County, you

Scenic Trail, a popular hiking and biking trail that

are only a 2.5-hour drive to Mount Lemmon in Tucson,

traverses the state from Utah to Mexico.

the southernmost ski destination in the United States.

four wilderness areas, three national monuments,

If you’d like to go north, you are just a 3.5-hour drive

CASINOS

to Snowbowl in Flagstaff or a 4.5-hour drive to Sunrise

Arizona is home to many casinos with surrounding entertainment and hospitality amenities. In

Ski Resort in the White Mountains of eastern Arizona.

Pinal County, you can choose from Apache Sky in

SKY DIVING

Dudleyville or Harrah’s Ak-Chin and Multi-tainment

Skydive Arizona, located in Eloy, has grown into the

Center, located near the city of Maricopa.

world’s largest skydiving center, averaging over 135,000

COUNTRY THUNDER

jumps per year. The clear desert weather allows over 340 jumping days a year, with average daytime

Country Thunder, located right in the heart of Pinal

temperatures ranging from the 60s in the winter to

County, is the premier country music festival in

the low 100s in the summer. Throughout the year, the

Arizona. The event attracts over 100,000 fans from

humidity is much lower than other parts of the country,

across the southwest and beyond. Past Country

resulting in perfect weather and cloudless skies.

Thunder lineups have included artists such as Miranda Lambert, Toby Keith, Jason Aldean, Big &

ARIZONA ZIPLINE

Rick, Blake Shelton, Luke Bryan, Dierks Bentley, and

On the back of Mount Lemmon, the highest point of

Jake Owen.

the Santa Catalina Mountains, visitors can experience

ARIZONA RENAISSANCE FESTIVAL

the longest zipline in Arizona as well as mountainside musicals, camping, and dining events.

The Renaissance Festival is a medieval amusement

WATER SPORTS & FISHING

park, offering 13 theatre stages, a 30-acre circus,

San Carlos Lake, Roosevelt Lak, and Canyon Lake,

an arts and crafts fair, a jousting tournament and

among many others, offer quick access to scenic

a feast. Step back in time and enjoy falconry, sea

water sport and fishing destinations for species

fairies, pirates, performances of music, dance,

including trout, catfish, bass, and bluegill.

PINAL COUNTY PROSPECTUS: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY - 20 -

Angeles Angels, Los Angeles Dodgers, Milwaukee Brewers, Oakland Athletics, San Diego Padres, San Francisco Giants, Seattle Mariners, and Texas Rangers all call Arizona their spring training home.

WINDMILL WINERY

GOLF There are 26 courses throughout communities in Pinal County.

The Windmill Winery is a top-tier events venue located in Florence, Arizona. In addition to being a highly south-after wedding venue, The Windmill Winery actively engages the community with a

HUNTING Pinal County is home to several areas that offer a variety of opportunities for hunting of all types. Big game such as javelina, mule deer, and whitetail deer can be found in the more rugged, mountainous areas of the county. Meanwhile, small game like rabbit, dove, and several species of quail are found in the

variety of events, including hosted food truck nights, paint and pour parties, property tours, and wine tastings. One of the featured highlights of the Windmill is its signature branded wine. Special events are offered throughout the week, including group tours by appointment.

expansive desert grasslands throughout the region.

BIOSPHERE 2

FARMERS MARKETS

Located in southern Pinal County, Biosphere 2

Arizona has more than 15,400 farms and ranches across the state, and Pinal County is proud of its agricultural heritage. Farmers markets can be found operating on various days of the week throughout the county in communities such as Maricopa, San Tan

is one of the more unique attractions in all of Arizona. Originally designed as a largescale science experiment, today Biosphere 2 is a living research laboratory where kids and adults alike can see science in action and explore life here on Earth.

Valley, Florence, Casa Grande, and Oracle.

GOLDFIELD GHOST TOWN

MAJOR LEAGUE SPORTS

Pinal County is home to many mining towns with

The Arizona Cardinals, Arizona Diamondbacks, Arizona Coyotes, and Phoenix Suns all call the region home and host games within a short driving distance to Pinal County. The area also has the highest concentration of professional baseball facilities in the United States.

Baseball lovers enjoy spring training every March when 15 teams come to train in greater Phoenix as part of the Cactus League. The Arizona Diamondbacks, Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox, Cincinnati Reds, Cleveland Indians, Colorado Rockies, Kansas City Royals, Los

rich histories that welcome tourists. One relic of past mining ventures is the town of Goldfield, located just outside Apache Junction near the Superstition Mountains. Here you can explore many shops and historic buildings, tour the historic underground gold mine, pan for gold, and take a ride on Arizona’s only narrow gauge train. After more than 115 years, travelers from all over the world still visit this gold mining town located on the historic Apache Trail and enjoy the excitement and grandeur of Arizona’s wild west.

PINAL COUNTY PROSPECTUS: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY - 21 -

RECENT ANNOUNCEMENTS Big things are happening in Pinal County. Get a sneak peek on future projects including Phoenix Mart’s global B2B marketplace, Lucid Motor’s luxury auto plant, and Attesa’s large-scale motorsports complex. It’s all happening right here, right now, in Pinal County.

PHOENIXMART

ATTESA

Currently under construction and slated to open

Announced in late 2016, Attesa is a $500-million

in 2018, PhoenixMart will feature a B2B buying

motorsports complex that features full-size race

and selling platform for finished goods and

and test tracks for autos and motorcycles as

products, raw materials, and supplies from around

well as luxury homes and a private airport. The

the world. Encompassing more than 1.5 million

development’s centerpiece encompasses two 2.8-mile

square feet and nearly 1,900 showroom suites,

professional-grade race tracks and a 0.7-mile

PhoenixMart will be available to domestic and

karting circuit. A grand plaza comprised of 300,000

global manufacturers, distributors, and suppliers

square feet also will be built, allowing the space

seeking to connect with buyers and sellers.

to host racing festivals, car and motorcycle shows,

PhoenixMart also will host industry trade shows,

product launches, corporate events, and farmers

product fairs, and training sessions on exporting

markets. This one-of-a-kind complex is being

and importing.

developed by Danrick Builders whose CEO formerly owned Phoenix International Raceway. Attesa will

Designed to be the largest global product

accommodate motorcross, supercross, and off-road

marketplace in the western hemisphere,

racing. Accommodations for vehicle owners,

PhoenixMart is similar to other global

enthusiasts, and fans include a resort hotel and

marketplaces overseas, where visitors will have

RV Park. Nearly 1,200 single-family homes will be

the opportunity to purchase finished goods, raw

developed as well, once all of the complex’s amenities

materials, and supplies from a vast selection of

are in place. A 6,000-square-foot private air strip also

international and domestic companies.

will be developed and adjacent, direct-access home sites will be available. Overall, this unique project is expected to generate more than 15,000 construction jobs for the central Arizona/Pinal County region.

Construction is slated to being in 2018.

PINAL COUNTY PROSPECTUS: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY - 22 -

LUCID

DREAMPORT VILLAGES

In November 2016, California-based Lucid Motors

Owned by The Block Sports Co. of Orlando, Florida,

announced plans to build a $700-million, 2,000 worker

Dreamport Villages is a more than 1,500-acre

auto plant in Casa Grande, Arizona. The company is

entertainment, resort, and commercial development

ramping up to compete with the likes of Mercedes,

that will be built near the junction of Interstates 8

Audi, BMW and other luxury brands producing

and 10. Announced in 2017, the $4-billion project

electric and self-driving vehicles. After evaluating

will feature water parks, a wildlife animal exhibit,

60 markets in 13 states, Lucid selected a site in Pinal

restaurants, and an amusement park. Plans also

County through an aggressive partnership between

include the construction of Arizona Extreme Sports

the state, the county, and the city.

Park, which will feature zip lines, rock climbing, and wakeboarding. A retail and commercial complex

Lucid CTO Peter Rawlinson stated that the

is also planned as well as a luxury resort and the

shovel-ready site, the richly experienced state, and

development of residential communities. It is

the efforts of collaborating local higher education

anticipated that four million visitors will be drawn to

institutes to create an advanced manufacturing

this destination complex annually.

training program all contributed to Lucid’s decision to site its manufacturing facility in Casa Grande.

Lucid unveiled the Air, its production model that will be built at the Casa Grande plant. The company projects that it will manufacture up to 20,000 vehicles annually. The roughly 600,000-square-foot plant will be built on an 80-acre site near the junction of Interstates 8 and 10.

“ARIZONA MADE US FEEL AS IF THEY WERE MORE OF A PARTNER FOR OUR SUCCESS. WE BELIEVE IN CASA GRANDE, AND WE BELIEVE THAT WE HAVE PICKED THE BEST LOCATION FOR OUR FACILITY.” BRIAN BARRON | Lucid Director of Manufacturing

PINAL COUNTY PROSPECTUS: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY - 23 -

PINAL COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS

THE HON. PETE RIOS

THE HON. MIKE GOODMAN

THE HON. STEVE MILLER

District 1

District 2

District 3

THE HON. ANTHONY SMITH

THE HON. TODD HOUSE

THE HON. GREG STANLEY

District 4

District 5

Pinal County Manager

Mr. Tim Kanavel Economic Development Manager

P.O. Box 827 31 N. Pinal St. Florence, AZ 85132

1.877.339.2630 www.pinalcountyaz.gov

The LIVING Interview (continued) ...continued from page 61 going to be a little bit different. They do have access to a lot of APS power and also water.

GREG STANLEY: It’s a very interesting project, extremely high-tech. High-tech plus high wages. A low number of employees, but big capital investment.

TIM KANAVEL: Fortune 500 company. Not a whole lot of employees, but the average wage they said is $121,000 a year. When it gets announced, we think we have a really good shot at it.

GC LIVING: One of the big elephants in the room is transportation. And I think the RTA (Regional Transportation Authority) is a huge plus. Although, even in our town, there is this whole sense of, “Oh, we pay taxes but we don’t get our share back.”

GREG STANLEY: The regional transportation plan was approved on the November ballot, as well as the half cent sales tax funding-mechanism. Right now it’s going through litigation, being argued in the tax courts. We feel very positive about where we are; we’re sure the brochure was very self-explanatory. We feel pretty confident it will go ahead. The regional transportation plan has a number of projects originally earmarked and then broken into four- or five-year chunks of priorities on what those projects would be. Many in the Casa Grande area are focused on economic development.

One of the things we get with these project requests is coordinated access to freeways.

We want to improve roadways in advance so industry can locate and have very easy access to the interstates. One of the things that’s always been lacking in our county is East-West connectors. People in Maricopa are very much focused on Maricopa County because that’s their access to where the jobs are. If we’re going to have jobs centered now around the I-10 and I-8 corridor, people in Maricopa will need to move east and west to get to those jobs. One of the big projects in the regional transportation plan is to get that connection going, as well as similar types of connections throughout the county.

So more North-South as well as East-West.

TIM KANAVEL: Why do people from San Tan Valley go to Phoenix? Because it’s about impossible to get to Casa Grande. You have to go here, there and over the river and through the woods. There is no direct route.

This new North-South freeway is going to

FALL 2018 • THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION

eliminate a lot of that.

GREG STANLEY: The regional transportation plan includes access to freeways. I know a lot of people call it I-11, but I believe the technical name is the Inter-Mountain West Corridor. There is a larger I-11 coalition.

We’re trying to use the regional transportation dollars to guide those decisions on alignment to where we think that freeway needs to go to best benefit Pinal County. We have our preferred alignment in the plan where we are working on the preservation of right-of-way.

TIM KANAVEL: It’s a very strategic process.

The alignment he’s talking about will open up the western part of that county. Interstate 8 is currently empty. That would cease to be. We need to start building out that direction.

GC LIVING: As I sit here listening, I live here, I’m invested here in Pinal County. And I think there is a general sense of nothing is being done. And whenever something does locate here, that it’s an accident. I love this conversation — you guys are on it. You’re thinking about the effects marketing has on everything. I don’t think the people in general believe that.

TIM KANAVEL: I live here and I work here. I’m proud to say I’m from Pinal County when I’m out of town.

GREG STANLEY: I know when Terry Doolittle was the county manager, he talked about a survey of the citizens and asking them about county government and what they do.

The answer overwhelmingly was they are there just to benefit themselves. We want to get out of that mentality and help make things better.

GC LIVING: It’s not just to change the perception of the world, but also your own people’s perception.

TIM KANAVEL: Best marketing we have are the residents of this county. We can buy ads anywhere, but the best marketing we have is the people who actually live here. Mike Knowles is a huge site-selector in Tennessee, he helped us with Tractor Supply. He told me that when he comes to a community, he sends his teams out ahead of time to explore the area. He said they never go to the economic people because they’re only going to say good things — same for the elected officials. He said they go to the person working at the Burger King or Dairy Queen, or go to

the Walmart and ask them what they think about the community. He said they get a much better view of the public perception.

GREG STANLEY: The site-selector, he’s talking about after he did Tractor Supply he was amazed at how rapidly we were able to turn things around. When the Tractor Supply wanted to get the Foreign Trade Zone established between the City of Casa Grande and Pinal County, it was done in nine days. He said, “I never would’ve thought something like that could happen that quickly.”

TIM KANAVEL: And the people at Lucid said they chose us because we partnered with them. We answered phone calls morning, noon, night and on weekends because that’s what you do when prospects call. I don’t feel good, I’m on dialysis, I got a transplant. They don’t care. So you work and you perform and you get it done.

GC LIVING: Let’s get back to where things are.

Talk a little about a couple of projects. For some reason, they’re all bogged-up in water issues. Talk about that situation.

GREG STANLEY: In Pinal County versus Maricopa county, we have a lot of private water suppliers. Because of the way the system is set up, they don’t have the incentive to proactively secure water the way a city does with its own municipal water service.

It is a significant issue in our county. Last year the governor started a process to look into changes and updates to the 1980s water laws. We need to update our water codes in the state of Arizona. Our county is very dependent on ground water. We, the state and county need to encourage more recharge for our water so that it is available. We are also caught up in the Arizona Department of Water Resources ground water model. It needs to be reviewed and updated to look at what is already committed out on the 100year assured water supply. A lot of water is currently tied up in projects that have not moved forward. The state needs to look at canceled projects that haven’t renewed.

GC LIVING: So would you say that the Legislature and the DWR are positively working on this? Or not?

GREG STANLEY: I think the discussion so far is very positive.

TIM KANAVEL: One of the things that I was tasked with a long time ago under former

continued on page 104...

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Special Section: Pinal County Economic Development

Things to Do

PETE CASILLAS

VISIT THE G ATE WAY TO THE COPPER CORRIDOR

S

uperior, unique in many ways, is the Gateway to the Copper Corridor.

The Town, with a population of approximately 3,000, is nestled between two beautiful mountains: Apache Leap and Picketpost.

The sunsets are some of the most beautiful to be seen, and area events draw crowds of people from all over the state, many discovering Superior for the first time.

Superior invites you to join the town each year for an eclectic Home Tour and Antique

Show, the Apache Leap Mining Festival, LOST Trail Fest, Magma Royale, Prickly Pear Festival, Fiesta & Car Show, 2nd Fridays and the Miracle on Main Street Holiday celebration. The world-class Boyce Thompson Arboretum is open year round and just 3 miles to the west.

Plan a trip to Superior and watch us “Rebuild Superior to be the Town it deserves to be.”

For more information on Superior, go to Superiorarizonachamber.org or call (520) 689-0200.

• Boyce Thompson Arboretum • Bob Jones Museum • Mine tours • Great restaurants • One-of-a-kind shopping and boutique coffee house • Rock climbing • Hiking of all levels including to the top of Picketpost Mountain and Arizona Trail for hiking and equestrians • Fabulous photo opportunities • Art galleries and classes • Off-road exploring and tours • Spectacular scenery and sunsets • Mattie Earp’s gravesite (Pinal Historic Cemetery) • Caboose Center and Mine History Trail • Desert Jeep Tours • World’s Smallest Museum • Rock collecting • Mountain biking • Trail running • Pinal City Ruins

• Diverse geology • Street Market and shops open late on 2nd Fridays

• New Mexico Green Hatch chiles in season

• Regional foods at local market • New age spa with yoga, massage, reflexology and facials

• Homemade Tortillas

Events Annual Home Tour, Legends of Superior (LOST) Trail Fest, Mining Festival, Casino Night, Fiesta & Car Show, Prickly Pear Festival, Trunk or Treat Halloween event, Miracle on Main St. Christmas event

Nearby:

• Bullion Plaza and mining museum • Besh Ba Gowah ruins • Devil’s Canyon • ASARCO open-pit copper mine • Cobre Valley Center for the Arts • Roosevelt Lake and campgrounds • Biosphere II

Historic Main St. & US 60 • Shopping & Dining • Hiking & Tours

CAT BROWN

LAUREN FIGDORE

PORTER’S

165 Main St. • Superior, AZ 85173 • Superiorarizonachamber.org • 520-689-0200 92

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Special Section: Pinal County Economic Development

EASTERN PINAL COUNTY, A DESTINATION FOR OPPORTUNITY AND ADVENTURE

T

ucked away in Eastern Pinal County is Arizona’s Copper Corridor. Nine unique communities comprise this region: Kearny, Hayden, Winkelman, Dudleyville, Aravaipa, San Manuel, Mammoth, Oracle and Superior. Each unique, but with its own charm and identity, together the communities comprise a region ripe for opportunity, and a place for everyone to find a new adventure or two.

The region is home to many scenic places — whether on the Arizona Trail, Aravaipa Canyon, rock climbing along Queen Creek or a float down the Gila River. It is where Arizona’s history comes to life and your story begins. The region is home to a variety of culinary delights including many authentic Mexican restaurants for those desiring a culinary adventure.

Copper mining developed the region and will remain an economic engine into the future. Economic diversification is welcomed, and leaders in the region are developing and implementing strategies to build opportunities for entrepreneurs, artists and those looking for small business development in many sectors including agriculture, tourism and small manufacturing.

The communities of Superior, Kearny and San Manuel were recently declared Opportunity Zones and they are ready for new investment. “Only in Your State” recently listed these communities in its “Top Ten Fastest Growing Communities with Populations Under 15,000 in Arizona.” Affordable housing, jobs in the mining industry and a rural quality of life attract many to these communities.

There is much to do in the Copper Corridor, including hiking, mountain biking, ATV riding, zip lining and kayaking. On four wheels, two wheels or four hooves, there are many scenic byways to experience.

Use the scenic highways of US 60 or Highways 77 and 177 to visit such wonderful attractions as the Apache Sky Casino, Boyce Thompson Arboretum, Oracle State Park, Biosphere and Arizona Zip Line Adventures.

Each month you will find a festival or special event to attend throughout the region.

Visit discovercoppercorridor.org.

Mila Besich, Executive Director azccedc@gmail.com • 480-490-8433

COPPER CORRIDOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COALITION 90 Miles of beauty, adventure and opportunity await in nine distinct mining communities. Oracle, Mammoth, San Manuel, Winkelman, Hayden, Dudleyville, Kearny, Superior, Miami and Globe.

Superior, Kearny and San Manuel are Arizona-designated opportunity zones.

MAP COURTESY OF COPPER AREA NEWS FALL 2018 • THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION

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MARICOPA: THE NEW AMERICAN CITY • Number of Businesses: 548 • Population: 48,052 • MALE 49.6% / FEMALE 50.4% • Median Age: 34.4 • Percentage of Population Age 30-59: 39.24% • Labor Force: 23,519 • White Collar: 58% • Percentage of Home Ownership: 81.55% WORK FORCE: • Unemployment: 4.4% • Education: Some college or higher: 65.59% Bachelors degree or higher: 25.26% • Median Household Income: $72,841 • Households earning more than national average: 47.99% • Average Commute Time: 29 minutes MARICOPA MEDIAN HOUSEHOLD INCOME IS: • 32% higher than Pinal County • 29% higher than State of Arizona • 20% higher than U.S.

Maricopa in the News APEX MOTOR CLUB On September 26, 2018 Apex Landco, LLC closed escrow on 273 acres of vacant land on SR238 near Ralston Road for $3,225.324. Apex Motor Club will be the only private motorsports club and race track featuring a 2.27mile race-quality asphalt road course

(expanding to 4.20 miles in a subsequent phase) designed by award winning track designer Bob Barnard of Motorsports Service International. According to the Apex Motor Club website, they have sold out the Executive (entry level) memberships.

Data Source: Applied Geographic Solutions and GIS Planning 2018

For development opportunities:

Denyse Airheart

Director of Economic Development 520.316.6990

MaricopaMatters.com 94

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Special Section: Pinal County Economic Development

“Within the next decade, we envision Maricopa becoming a major player and connector between the Pinal and Maricopa County regions as the City continues to experience hyper growth and unparalleled business opportunities.”

— Mayor Christian Price

lar Tree celebrated their grand openings. Also located in the shopping plaza, Dunkin Donuts and Burger King.

Construction was fast paced as the initial groundbreaking took place in July 2017. The developer, Vintage Partners, has also secured a full-service restaurant for the site.

RESIDENTIAL REAL ESTATE Residential real estate is extremely active in Maricopa. The number of new home permits continues to climb with up to 100 permits issued each month.

2017 total permits issued was 810. 2018 is anticipated to top 1100* Average new home pricing ranges from the high $190s to high $290s.

COPPER SKY RECREATION COMPLEX A hotel is part of the major plans for commercial development on the 18 acres adjacent to Copper Sky Recreation Complex. In May Commercial Properties Inc (CPI) was selected by the City of Maricopa to develop 18.3 acres to the south of Copper Sky for mixeduse commercial, including a hotel.

Other uses include retail, restaurant, office space and multi-family housing. The agreement’s goal is to have a hotel in place by July 2020.

EDISON POINTE Earlier this summer, Edison Pointe was the scene of numerous ribbon cuttings as Planet Fitness, Goodwill of Arizona, Ross Dress for Less and Dol-

The top 8 home builders are: • Costa Verde Homes • Fulton Homes • KB Homes • LGI Homes • Meritage Active • Meritage Homes • Pinnacle West Homes • Starlight Homes

tions show over 60,000 vehicles per day. There are currently 40 to 60 trains per day; the UPRR has plans to expand service, which would increase train traffic upwards of 100 trains per day.

Construction on the SR347 Overpass remains active with the majority of work scheduled at night due to the weather conditions. Area road closures continue with detours posted. Placement of the concrete piers is complete. Construction of the bridge continues with pier caps.

Utility work south of Maricopa-Casa Grande Highway is underway the second half of September. Road construction on Plainview Street and Honeycutt Street continues with the installation of sidewalk, concrete curb and gutter, and building of the subsurface of the future road. Plainview remains closed.

Residential real estate is extremely active in Maricopa.

The number of new home permits continues to climb with up to 100 permits issued each month.

2017 total permits issued was 810.

2018 is anticipated to top 1100*

*YTD AS OF SEPT 30 IS 818

The resale home market remains active as well. Inventory continues to decline with a 5-year low of 282 active listings noted in May 2018. August inventory is up slightly to 320. Lower inventory, coupled with increased demand, is continuing to drive stronger pricing. The August 2018 median sales price was $204,000, up 66.1% from the 5-year low of $135,000 in October 2013.

ROAD CONSTRUCTION OVERVIEW: The SR 347 Overpass will create a bridge over the Union Pacific Railroad (UPRR.) Traffic on SR 347 averages more than 31,000 vehicles per day and future (2040) projec-

FALL 2018 • THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION

WWW.OVERPASSTRACKER.COM

For updates and closures: www. overpasstracker. com

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Special Section: Pinal County Economic Development

GREAT THINGS ARE HAPPENING IN CASA GRANDE!

T

he City of Casa Grande has had many recent announcements of new businesses moving to the city. Construction on LKQ is underway. Lucid Motors has secured funding. Attesa, Dreamport Villages and PhoenixMart are still moving forward. Several new home builders have announced new subdivisions and new retailers are breaking ground.

The community quality of life amenities are important to the residents of Casa Grande as a new storefront. The Community Recreation Center is under construction and scheduled to open by the late spring/early summer of 2019.

The center will include: • 2 full size gymnasiums • 1 large dance studio downstairs • 1 large multi-purpose room for meetings, events, receptions, etc. (200 person capacity) • Fitness loft equipped with the

96

latest in free weights, strength, and cardio equipment • Walking Track overlooking the gyms • Upstairs group fitness studio • Two classrooms available for meetings and special interest classes In addition, the Boys and Girls Club will have dedicated space to host summer and after school programming for children as well as space for administration.

The facility will also include a large teen center and offer free programming and space to socialize and hang out with friends in a safe and supervised environment.

An overview of the anticipated programming includes:

Sneakers and Silver & Fit • Youth classes for beginning strength training, general fitness, dance, and gymnastics • Events such as movie night, father/daughter dances, and other family-oriented offerings at special times • Indoor pickleball classes and open play • Adult and youth basketball and volleyball leagues, camps, and classes • Special interest classes including non-fitness related offerings such as creative writing, arts & crafts, and other educational programs generated by interest from the public

• The lobby and teen center will be open and free to the general public • Day and monthly passes for individuals, couples, and families (3, 6, and 12-month memberships) • Senior passes and memberships for individual or couples • Premium memberships for those seeking to utilize Boys and Girls Club after-school programming as well access to full facility offerings • Group/Corporate passes and memberships • Room rentals for any size group or event up to 200 persons • Gym rental for team practices • Full facility rental

The Community Services Department is currently collecting interest lists for memberships, special interest class instructors, and fitness instructors.

Please contact the Community Services Department at (520) 421-8677 for more information on potential programming in the Recreation Center.

Rates and Memberships

• A wide range of group fitness classes open to members and drop in guests including cycle, boot camp, Pilates, kickboxing, power, Zumba, step, dance and other cardio/strength related offerings scheduled at various times to fit the differing schedules of the public • An entire series of fitness classes designed specifically for seniors such as Silver

CORRID OR LI LIVING V ING • SPECI A L SEC TION GOLDEN CORRIDOR

THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

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Special Section: Pinal County Economic Development

PINAL ALLIANCE FOR ECONOMIC GROWTH LAUNCHES PINAL COUNTY’S FIRST ASSOCIATION HEALTH PLAN Taking Action to Provide Affordable Health Insurance Options for its Members

F

inding affordable health care insurance is one of the biggest challenges facing small business today. Because they have fewer people to cover, small businesses do not have the ability to negotiate more favorable rates. Through this program, Pinal Alliance negotiates on behalf of its investors as if it is the employer offering the benefit. The result is lower premiums and better coverage.

Because health insurance in the United States has been, by and large, provided by employers, the ability for businesses to afford to offer coverage is at the heart of our health care system.

And yet, the cost of health care for employers has continued to escalate. One of the reasons is that small businesses do not have

98

the same bargaining power as larger companies. And, because their risk pool is small, they are more vulnerable to steep rate increases than a larger company.

Last year, President Donald Trump issued an Executive Order allowing for Association Health Plans (AHPs) to be a more viable option to lower the cost of health care coverage for smaller employers. With this change, AHPs give companies the ability to join with other businesses through Pinal Alliance for Economic Growth in order to broaden the risk pool.

The rising cost of health insurance has created a situation where more and more small businesses are no longer offering their employees a health insurance plan. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation,

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the share of all employees who work in businesses that offer health insurance and who are eligible to enroll went from 71 percent in 2000 to 64 percent in 2015. For small businesses, the drop was even more dramatic.

The share of all employees who work in small businesses (with fewer than 50 employees) that offer health insurance and who are eligible to enroll went from 53 percent in 2000 down to just 38 percent in 2015.

Offering employee health insurance gives a business a competitive advantage in attracting and retaining quality workers.

According to a recent survey by the job search company Glassdoor, 88 percent of workers say better health, dental and vision insurance is a deciding factor

when selecting a job. In fact, research finds that more than half of employees would accept a position with lower pay if offered better benefits. Another advantage to businesses that offer coverage? It helps keep your workforce healthy, reduces absenteeism, and boosts productivity, all of which have good return on investment to companies.

Pinal Alliance for Economic Growth is currently working through the process to identify a carrier and plan designs. If you’re interested in joining Pinal Alliance to take advantage of this program, please contact Patti King at (520) 836-6868 or via email at pking@pinalalliance.org.

THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

• Group health plan available to all employer members

For additional information, please visit www.pinalalliance.org or contact Patti King at 520-836-6868 or pking@pinalalliance.org.

AFRICA: A ONCE-IN-A-LIFETIME ADVENTURE

by Paula Leslie

E

very great adventure has a beginning.

Mine started by asking a friend about her recent safari while we both waited in the checkout line at a local grocery store. There are not enough words to describe how explicatively amazing this journey was for me.

My first experience in Africa was dining at Moyo Restaurant in Johannesburg, South Africa. It was there I tasted the fine delicacy of Mopane worms. Tastes like…well, let’s just say there isn’t enough spices in the world to add flavor. Someone at a table adjacent to ours in the restaurant was celebrating a birthday so the staff came to the table to sing much like our chain restaurants in the U.S. Only this was better with drums, clapping and harmony, and that high pitched melodic yipping sound the lead singer made. I was already smitten.

We boarded a plane the next morning to the Maun, Botswana, airport where our safari guide met us. One more night in a place with running water and flushing toilets before heading out to the wonderful world of tent safari and open-air vehicles.

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June and July are winter months in Botswana so there were mornings waking up in 40-degree weather. The blanket and hot-water bottle helped keep me warm as the crisp morning air whipped through our wide-open Land Cruiser.

Our early wake-up alarm when it was still dark was a staff member saying “knock, knock” outside our open-to-the-sky canvas latrine area, and the sound of hot water pouring into the galvanized buckets. Our toilet was shaped like a toilet, but simply covered a hole in the ground. Flushing the toilet was done with a spade and dirt.

Showers were quick and out of a canvas bucket and taken during the afternoon hours when the air wasn’t so nippy. Princesses need not to apply for this safari.

My favorite morning meal was porridge and campfire coffee, of which you chewed the last swallow. My favorite morning time was watching the sun rise off the horizon like a big red ball and listening as the birds started singing and the hippos continued their snorting. There’s a mixture of scents that I wish I knew which individual plant

aromas get captured by the cool breeze and then meshed into a fresh, clean outdoor perfume. I can only compare it to the Arizona desert after a rain.

But, ah, the safari. The first animal I saw was an elephant walking out of the bush toward our vehicle. It was the most majestic living creature I had ever seen. I was in for a whirlwind of majesty in the form of a lion, lioness with her cubs, leopard, cheetah, wild dog, warthog, giraffe, water buffalo, wildebeest, kudu, impala, ostrich, baboon, mongoose, crocodile, hippopotamus, lots more elephants, and dozens of different birds that I can’t remember. I’m sure I have omitted some of the animals, but not intentionally. They were all beautiful; they all took my breath away.

The last night at camp, after our dinner was complete and we all were sitting around the campfire feeling a little sad the safari was coming to an end, the camp staff showed up and entertained us with singing and dancing to Botswana folk songs. As we were on our last short safari drive the next morning, tears filled my eyes and ran down my cheeks. I was missing Botswana already.

THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

Traveling • Dining • Entertainment

After the six-day safari, we headed to Zimbabwe and Victoria Falls for our last stop of the trip. The falls were awe-inspiring.

Zip lining over the Zambezi River and then viewing the gorge is a “tourist-y” thing to do but it envelops enough grandeur for an article of its own.

This was technically a photo safari. I’ve been called a lot of things in my life, but photographer is usually not on that list. I took some decent pictures and recorded some decent videos (including the zip line). But, my notes? I will be writing journal entries about Africa for months. I hope the guide didn’t think I was playing word games and ignoring his astute explanations of his native land. I was typing

thoughts before they flew out of my head into the Botswana wilderness lost forever. A thousand words can paint a picture, and that is how I recall my travels – with words describing sounds, tastes, feelings, sights, scents.

I’ll share with you several entries combined in one: “I’ve seen most of these animals in a zoo setting, but to see them interact within their natural environment, to see them heedless of the carnival of safari trucks surrounding them with camera lenses clicking, to feel the warm afternoon breeze, to smell the air, to hear lion cubs mew as they ferociously play, and then gnaw on the defeated wildebeest which was last night’s kill, to wonder what will become of the wild dog

with the injured front right paw who struggles to keep up with the pack, to awaken in the middle of the night to lion roars and hyena cackles, to watch young elephants splashing around and dunking each other like teenage boys would do at a public pool, to listen as an elephant slurps up hippo grass much like a human would slurp spaghetti, to see nature as it should be without the manipulation of man, these are the things you miss by reading a magazine or watching a show. Your heart cannot get lost in a television show. Your heart can get lost here.”

I fear I have left a piece of my heart in Botswana and one future day I may find a need to retrieve it.

SAFARI TIPS:

FALL 2018 • THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION

•

Pack light. I typically pack light for all travel, but I could’ve packed even lighter for this trip.

•

If you go to Africa during winter months, take a scarf, gloves, knit cap, and layer your outerwear because the afternoons can get warm. The mornings are cold, but early morning is the best time to find the animals so it’s worth the runny nose.

•

Stay hydrated.

•

Be prepared to eat. There will be no losing weight on this trip. Well, unless you get malaria. But the mosquitoes don’t like the cold.

•

Enjoy the freedom and stress relief that being unplugged gives you. You will thank yourself for choosing the wilderness over the lodge. I haven’t slept this well in years.

•

And, if you have granddaughters who are sisters, never ever just buy one stuffed plush toy leopard.

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Golden Corridor LIVING

Summer Coloring Contest

! s r e Winn

Alexis Glover

Out of Africa General Admission Tickets (2 adult, 2 child)

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THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

Gina Shank

Enchanted Island Admission Tickets (4)

Ranelle Dietrich $100 AZ Airtime Scottsdale

FALL 2018 • THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION

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The LIVING Interview (continued) ...continued from page 91 County Manager Terry Doolittle is to start looking for industries and business that are low water users. Our projects are not huge water users. We’ve been asked several times from the state about food-processing places.

They are huge water users plus they are low wage — they are not part of our six targeted sectors. The only use Tractor Supply Distribution Center has for water is domestic restrooms. That’s a few thousand gallons a day with all those people. There is one prospect that even though it’s a billion gallons, it has very low usage as it’s in a loop system.

You bleed out a few thousand gallons a day and replenish to keep it clean, but it isn’t a continual billion-gallon usage.

GC LIVING: That makes sense. What about the Mesa water farms. Is that still active?

TIM KANAVEL: That’s sold. Jackob Andersen with Saint Holdings bought or has options to all 12,000 acres of it at the southern end of Coolidge. Coolidge annexed that area in 2015.

GC LIVING: OK, so guys can you tell us in your own words what you think about your homes, jobs, your own county, your own thoughts, your own pictures.

TIM KANAVEL: It’s my responsibility to be able to attract businesses, retain those same businesses, market the county and develop opportunities so that our residents who want a better life and better educated children can keep their families here. Right now we have a significant brain drain. Our best and brightest go somewhere else because we’ve never provided those opportunities. That’s one of the things I want to see change. I want the opportunity for these families to be able to stay here together. You hear statements like, “My son had to move to...” to get a good paying job. The county has always been, up until just a few years ago, willing to accept any employment. We didn’t care how bad a job it was or how low paying. Now, while we don’t discourage those companies, we don’t encourage them.

We want good-paying jobs. If they don’t pay a minimum $15.50 an hour, they don’t qualify for any of our incentive programs.

Plus they need to pay benefits. This is one of the things we can do to raise the quality of life in this county. The Board of Supervisors certainly understand that. We’ll never be perfect but it’s something we’re striving

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• THE INTERV IE W

for. One of our supervisors, Steve Miller is very fond of saying, “We quit being regulators, and we became facilitators.” And that’s exactly what we are.

One of the things about my job is it isn’t always necessarily to recruit business, but to make connections. I’ll connect this person with a vendor or that person with another company that may need their services. That’s what we’re doing in Mexico. Were now big in the Arizona-Mexico commission. Our finance director, Levi Gibson, is fluent, and he does all the marketing for us and is doing an incredible job. Pinal County is no longer just this county, were huge internationally now.

When Attessa announced, when Tractor Supply announced, Pinal County had media coverage in New York, in the Wall Street Journal and in Europe. Especially the racing news as that’s big in Europe. Those are the things to look at: “How do we do this locally, regionally, statewide, nationally and the big step — internationally?” Because that’s what our taxpayers deserve. And instead of treating this as an 8-5 job: Economic development is not an 8-5 job, it’s a 24-hour a day, 7-day a week job.

GREG STANLEY: (laughs) I would say, most people who go through transplants end up spending the rest of their life on disability.

As soon as Tim got his transplant over, he couldn’t wait to get back to work.

GC LIVING: I know. I teased him about it in Tucson at the Arizona Association of Economic Development (AAED) meeting.

TIM KANAVEL: Doctors told me to take four to six months off. I spent three weeks. And actually I was making phone calls the night of the surgery.

GREG STANLEY: (laughs) You were incoherent, but you made phone calls.

TIM KANAVEL: I promised all kinds of stuff to somebody!

GREG STANLEY: I give much credit to our Board of Supervisors. They have really helped facilitate a lot of this change. I grew up in Phoenix, went to West Point and spent 26 and a half years in the Army. Everything in the Army is about teamwork. That’s something we continue to preach at Pinal County.

In the Army when you were in a squad, you’d talk about those idiots at Platoon Headquarters. When you get into Platoon Headquarters, you talk about the idiots at Company Headquarter Unit, and so on. I don’t want us

to be the idiots at the county. We believe in this team approach and making sure we’re working with our communities and fostering good relationships with the state. Thirty-five percent of our county is state land.

We’ve worked hard to try and improve our relationship with the state land department.

Those are a few examples where we continue to work and stress positive communication.

GC LIVING: In any environment, communication is absolutely key. If you do the best job you can and no one knows it, something is missing. So we strive to be that marketing partner too.

TIM KANAVEL: If I have an issue, I can go right straight to Greg. That makes a big difference when need an answer right now, not tomorrow, not when he has time. There was an issue with Nissan Motors and we had to have an answer this second. And he just said, “yup.”

GREG STANLEY: It was a text.

TIM KANAVEL: (laughs) I texted him, he texted me. That solved the whole issue and that’s the reason why we got Nissan Motors.

GC LIVING: You guys really are the dynamic duo.

TIM KANAVEL: Oh we love to give presentations together. He’s the straight guy, then he turns me loose and I give everybody a scare.

GREG STANLEY: I give credit as well. Community Development Director Himanshu Patel’s approach is meeting with the developer and say, “you tell us what you want and we’ll figure out how to do it”. That’s where we want to be.

GREG STANLEY: That’s a good change.

TIM KANAVEL: When I first started in 2009, the county had 2,400 employees and now we have 1,800. The economy had tanked and we had to decrease numbers. I was brand new in a newly created position. Few people knew what I did or knew me. Terry Doolittle and Ken Buchanan did, but hardly anyone else did. The response was, “who are you, what are you doing and why are you doing it?” And now you’re making us change everything.

But for me to do my job effectively, things had to change. It was the new Board of Supervisors in 2012 and then with Greg coming on board as County Manager that made things start to happen. It’s reflective with what we’ve done with the entire county.

GC LIVING: We think you’re doing a great job.

Thank you.

GREG STANLEY: We appreciate it.

TIM KANAVEL: Thank you. 

THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

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FROM SHELTER TO VISITATION SUPPORT TO CARING FOR PETS, AGAINST ABUSE IS AT THE READY

by Pat Griffen, Executive Director, Against Abuse, Inc.

A

gainst Abuse, Inc. (AAI) began serving victims of domestic violence in 1981 using a Safe Home Network model.

The more male and female victims we served, the more we realized there was so much more that needed to be done to ensure their safety and help them get back on their feet.

We operate two shelters: a 32-bed domestic violence shelter in the City of Maricopa and a 24-bed domestic violence shelter in Casa Grande.

For those who are ready, we help survivors through our transitional housing services as they prepare to transition into their own homes.

For those who are divorced and have children, we provide court-ordered supervised visitation and safe exchange services in a family-friendly environment.

For families in which the children have been legally removed, we coordinate and supervise visits with family members and their children, with the ultimate goal being family reunification.

Many victims need a safe place for their pets while they are in a shelter. We established a volunteer-based Animal Safe Home Network where pets can be temporarily fostered in pet-loving homes.

Shelter services are not a victim’s only option. For those who don’t need or want to be in a shelter, we provide community-based and mobile services. These have expanded and we now have offices in Casa Grande, the

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City of Maricopa and San Manuel.

Often a victim leaves with only the clothes on their back, so we opened a thrift store to make sure our clients have the things they need, such as clothing, furniture and household items.

It is important to make sure our communities are aware of the issues we all face together. To enhance awareness in the communities we serve, Against Abuse hosts, or co-hosts, a number of events, such as The Taste of Casa Grande, the Pinal County Child Abuse Prevention Conference and the Seeds of Change Gala.

Against Abuse doesn’t do it alone. We are stronger because of our collaborative partnerships with first responders (sheriff’s office, police, fire, ambulance), medical, dental and behavioral health organizations, as well as a number of local businesses. We also draw strength from the generosity of the members of our community who donate their time, supplies and funds.

We have made great strides throughout the years. According to the statewide FY17 DES DV Programs Fund Report, out of Arizona’s 34 DES-funded domestic violence programs, AAI had the fourth highest census of total adults and children served. In FY 1718, 67 percent of those we served in shelters were children.

As long as there is a need, we will continue to provide services and supports that make a positive impact in the lives of those we serve.

Against Abuse, Inc. 2017-2018

Against Abuse provided services for

1,522

women, children and men Emergency shelters provided

17,131 bed nights for 630 survivors (364 women, 253 children and 13 men) 15 transitional living sites provided

7,317 bed nights Provided

3,563 hours of supervised visitation

1,438 safe exchanges Volunteers provided

6,204 hours

1,221 of those for the Animal Safe Home Network Provided

5,158 hours of non-shelter community-based services and supports. In addition, 4,497 people received 193 hours of outreach and education

THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

SPONSORSHIPS 2018 PREMIER ($5,000)

GOLD ($750)

SILVER ($500)

Eva’s Fine Mexican Food (Host)

Casa Grande Valley Newspapers (In Kind)

Abbott Nutrition

APS

Electrical District No. 2 Henry & Horne, LLP

Brass Lantern Photography & Creations (In Kind)

Las Palmas Linen (In Kind)

Chrissie & Dennis Jenkins

Pinal County Attorney’s Office

Cooper & Rueter, LLP

Pinal County Federal Credit Union

Egan Eyes Photography (In Kind)

Snider Consulting Services

First American Credit Union

Crescent Crown Distributors (In Kind)

PLATINUM ($1,500) Casa Grande Union High School – DECA (In Kind) John R. & Deborah McEvoy Living Magazine/Smart Shopper (In Kind) SRP Desert Basin Wal-Mart Distribution Center #7013

FALL 2018 • THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION

Banner Casa Grande Medical Center

PARTICIPATING RESTAURANTS 2018 Anaya’s Mexican Restaurant Chili’s Bar & Grill Banner Casa Grande Medical Center Buffalo Wild Wings Mi Amigo Ricardo

A Latte Vino

Cook E Jar

Golden 9 Restaurant

Eva’s Fine Mexican Food (Host restaurant)

Liquor Factory Bistro Bar & Deli

Eegee’s

El Perico Hot Dogs

Cold Stone Creamery

Sauce Boss

The Big House

Scoops Ice Cream Parlor

CGQ

Sho-Ga Japanese Restaurant

Olive Garden

Boston’s Pizza/Sports Bar

IHOP

Grande Café

Culver’s

Grand Central Sandwich Co.

Raising Canes

Foxtrot Café

Garye & Teri Vasquez iQ Total Source (In Kind) N & D Designs (In Kind) Southwest Gas Corporation The Foothills Bank TimeLens Photo & Video (In Kind) Villas by Mary T of AZ Western State Bank

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CAMILLE COFFEY

CAMILLE COFFEY

CAMILLE COFFEY

MUSIC & ARTS PROGR AMS STRIKE L ASTING CHORDS IN CUSD STUDENTS

by Corianna Lee, Performing Arts Director, Coolidge Unified School District

W

here can you find fine arts programs in Pinal County for middle and high school students that include a state-of-the-art piano lab and have passionate teachers serving students and the community?

Coolidge Unified School District is the place.

This wasn’t always the case for CUSD. Budget cuts and teacher attrition closed many arts programs, and after 2008, district performing arts programs were nearly nonexistent.

In 2013, CUSD officials created a plan to return the arts to all grades by hiring new teachers and rebuilding the programs. It began with hiring a performing arts center director, rebuilding drama, dance, choir and band programs, as well as expanding the visual arts program. In 2016, the arts were expanded to the elementary schools with band and vocal music, after a more than 10-year absence.

The unsung heroes of the fine arts department are the choir and piano programs. Under the direction of Camille Coffey, the choir program expanded from three choir and 10 piano students to 20 choir students in grades seven through 12, and over 50 piano students in grades

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seven through 12. Ms. Coffey is in her fifth year at CUSD, and is one of several dedicated fine arts teachers in the district. She also serves as president of the Arizona Choral Educators organization and spent time helping develop and pilot assessments of the Arizona state music standards.

In the district, she played a critical role in the development, purchase and installment of the piano lab at CHS/CJHS that integrates the one-to-one technology initiative implemented by CUSD. While many schools in Pinal County have a choir class, they are usually taught by a band or instrumental music teacher.

As Ms. Coffey grows the choir program at CHS/CJHS, support from administration at the site and district level is critical. Support is evident in the development of the class schedules and district, board and site administration attendance at events and performances.

Ms. Coffey is one of the few state-certified choir teachers working in Pinal County, making her expertise critical to the community she serves. She continues to refine her pedagogical skills by attending conferences offered

by Arizona Music Educators Association, Arizona chapter of American Choral Directors Association, and by continuing to

sing in choirs. senior high school site adminisIn the choir and piano classes, trators for being supportive and students receive individual feedhaving a vision that allows for the back needed to develop techexpansion of fine arts programs. nique and musical artistry. During Coolidge Unified School Disthe 2017-2018 school year, choir trict has managed to draw and and piano students performed in retain dedicated teachers like Ms. various concerts at the Coolidge Coffey because district and site Performing Arts Center. officials understand and recogMs. Coffey builds relationships nize how important the fine arts with her students, teaches vital are in the lives of students and music literacy skills and fosters the critical role it plays in student musical independence, which development. she hopes students will carry This allows teachers like her to with them as they continue to make a difference in the lives of perform throughout their life. their students, and give them the It is evident students in opportunity to experience and her classroom are continually develop life skills through musical exposed to big ideas and are performance. These are practices expected to develop and use that draw and retain students. higher-level thinking skills in their Many studies have proven rehearsals and performances. It that programs such as the arts is her belief there is a place for keep students in school, provide every student in these programs, positive learning experiences and and she has a strong desire to teach life skills that are transfercontinue building the programs. able in every aspect of life.

Ms. Coffey credits the Coolidge Unified School District administration and school board, especially CAMILLE COFFEE, MUSIC EDUCATOR, FINE ARTS DEPARTMENT CHAIR Coolidge COOLIDGE JR./SR. HIGH SCHOOL junior and

THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

PINAL COUNTY PRESS A R IZONA CIT Y • C A SA GR A NDE • CO OLIDGE • ELOY • F LOR ENCE • M A R ICOPA

CONTINUED…

It’s been a ‘banner’ year for this surgical robot

I

t’s been about a year since Banner Casa Grande Medical Center received its daVinci Xi Surgical System. It has served the community well, with 433 robotic surgical procedures performed.

“This surgical robot is more than just about having the best technology available,” said Rona Curphy, CEO of Banner Casa Grande Medical Center. “Our main goal is making sure our patients have the best possible surgical outcomes. We really have been pleased that we can provide such a great service to the people who live in our community.”

Since its inception, the daVinci Xi Surgical System has helped surgeons at Banner Casa Grande perform more than 400 hernia repairs and nearly 150 colon resections. Other treatments that have been performed using this technology include spleen and bladder surgical procedures.

The da Vinci Xi system uses four robotic arms that provide surgeons with greater precision,

2,000 JOBS...cont. from page 12 acre industrial mega-site adjacent to the Union Pacific Railroad along Highw ay 87 bet ween Houser Road and Selma Highway, according to Miller.

“Heavy industrial parcels ranging from 35 acres to over 1,200 acres are available which are currently being considered by other manufacturers. The proximity of the rail-served site to the new I-10/Hwy 87 Interchange, our regional labor force, and the innovative Central Arizona College leadership offering customized advanced manufacturing curriculum, have been key factors in getting the attention of these world class companies.”

BCGMC (Photo courtesy of Banner Health)

control and access to areas otherwise hard to reach. Surgeons control the movements of the arms, performing complex sur-

geries with only a few small incisions. The robotic arms include mechanical wrists that bend and rotate in ways like the move-

ments of a human wrist.

For more information, visit BannerHealth.com/casagrande.

Check it out yourself

N

ikola Motor Company is welcoming the public to Phoenix April 1618, 2019 for a new blockbuster event, Nikola World.

The first two days, April 16 and 17, are devoted to invitation-only Nikola reservation holders, suppliers, media and investors, while April 18 will be reserved for the public.

On April 16, Nikola will unveil the pre-production hydrogen electric semi-truck, 2.3 megawatt hydrogen station and the Nikola NZT 4X4. April 17 will be dedicated to demon-

FALL 2018 • THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION

stration drives and hydrogen filling. On April 18, the public is invited to see the latest trucks and NZT in action.

“Not only will our team be unveiling the most advanced production semi-truck the world has ever seen, but we will also be revealing the Nikola NZT all-electric 4x4 vehicle and a massive 2.3 megawatt hydrogen station. This is why we named it Nikola World - we want to create a better place to live where emissions are eliminated,” said Trevor Milton, CEO, Nikola Motor Company.

Nikola World registration will open Dec. 3, 2018 at www. nikolamotor.com. All the activities will be free.

The highlight of the event will be the Nikola truck, hydrogen station and NZT unveilings, followed by a series of demonstration drives. While only a few lucky guests will be in the vehicles during the drives, the truck and NZT will be available for viewing by everyone while in action. Nikola will also show off its 2.3 megawatt hydrogen station in Phoenix during the event.

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Library Creative Writing Contest

Casa Grande Public Library

CREATIVE WRITING CONTEST WINNER

T

he Vista Grande Public Library Creative Writing Contest is an ongoing monthly contest where children write stories at the library’s Creative Writing Station.

Each monthly winner gets his or her picture taken and placed on the Creative Writing Hall of Fame, receives a free book of his or her choosing from the creative writing cart and gets the winning story published in Golden Corridor LIVING Magazine.

Youth can also write stories

at home and submit them to the library. Winners are selected by library staff members, who read through monthly submissions and choose the one that stands out, based on creative merit.

Vista Grande Public Library has hosted this contest since 2013, and receives hundreds of submissions every year. The Creative Writing Station is a fun way to get kids involved in writing and storytelling by allowing them to write about whatever they want and making it a fun experience.

Have your child stop by the Vista Grande Library in Casa Grande to enter the Golden Corridor LIVING essay contest!

This Issue’s Winner

e f f a ir G l u tf s a o The B

by Kendylle Poehlman

O

nce upon a time, there lived a giraffe that could talk. Her name was Sophie.

Sophie liked to talk about her long neck.

She liked to wear necklaces on her neck.

Sophie liked to brag about her necklaces. Sophie had no one to play with for three days. Sophie was sorry for being so boastful.

The End

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THE BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP EDITION • FALL 2018

Help us celebrate

National Pet Adoption Weekend

October 13 2018

Location:

PetSmart Casa Grande Promenade Mall Time:

11am - 3pm

October 13, 2018 Contact:

Valley Humane Society 520-836-0904

Featured pets from

Valley Humane Society Event sponsored by Š2018 Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. All Rights Reserved. Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act. Each Office Is Independently Owned And Operated. Coldwell Banker and the Coldwell Banker Logo are registered service marks owned by Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC.

Coldwell Banker ROX Realty

1919 N Trekell Rd, Casa Grande, AZ 85122 520-423-8250

DOWN PAYMENT ASSISTANCE: COMPARING ARIZONA PROGRAMS PATHWAY TO PURCHASE

PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS

HOME IN 5 ADVANTAGE*

HOME PLUS

Down Payment Assistance

2 – 3% depending on loan type and credit score +1% for qualifying Veterans, First Responders, and Teachers

0 – 5% depending on loan type and credit score +1% for FHA and FNMA HFA Preferred

Up to 10% of purchase price maximum $20,000

Repayment Income Limits

Forgivable over three years

Forgivable over three years

Forgivable over five years

Debt-to-Income Ratio

45% – 50% depending on loan type

50%

45%

Credit Score Minimum

FHA: 640 - 659 (2% - 3% DPA) 660+ (3% - 4% DPA) USDA-RD or VA: 640+ (3% - 4% DPA) Conventional HFA Preferred & Advantage: 640+ (3% - 4% DPA)

FHA: 660+ (for 3%) HFA LTVs 95.01 – 97%: 680+ (for 4%) HFA LTVs 95% or less: 640+ (for 5%)

640

92,980 Annually

$

Eligible Areas

Maricopa County (Including the city of Phoenix)

Eligible Loan Types

FHA, Conventional FNMA HFA Preferred, FHLMC HFA Advantage, VA or USDA - RD

Purchase Price Limits Occupancy Requirements Homebuyer Education

$

371,930

99,170 Annually

$

(Can only be used in conjunction with Home Plus)

$

92,984 Annually

Bullhead City: 86442 Casa Grande: 85122 Glendale: 85301 Available statewide.

Green Valley: 85614 Eligible areas include: Kingman: 86409 Apache, Cochise, Coconino, Phoenix: 85042, 85016, 85017, Gila, Graham, Greenlee, La Paz, 85051 & 85041 Maricopa, Mohave, Rio Rico: 85648 Navajo, Pima, Pinal, Santa Sahuarita: 85629 Cruz, Yavapai and Sierra Vista: 85650 & 85635 Yuma Counties Tucson: 85730, 85706, 85747, 85712, 85710, 85711, 85713 & 85746 Vail: 85641 Yuma: 85364, 85365 & 85367 FHA, Conventional FNMA HFA Preferred, FHLMC HFA Advantage, VA or USDA - RD 396,680

FHLMC HFA Advantage 371,936

$

$

Primary Owner-Occupied

Primary Owner-Occupied

Primary Owner-Occupied

Yes

Yes

Yes

CONTACT ME TODAY! RUDY BENITEZ

MORTGAGE LOAN ORIGINATOR

NMLS# 279367 Phone: 520-836-7776 Cell: 602-481-3967 RBenitez@annie-mac.com rudybenitez.annie-mac.com

R E A L P E O P L E, R E A L S TO R I E S , R E A L S O LU T I O N S

Down Payment Assistance for Home in Five is offered by Miracopa County Industrial Development Authority (IDA) and Phoenix IDA neither of which is affiliated with AnnieMac Home Mortgage.

Approval for down payment assistance is subject to certain eligibility requirements, such as those described above and available funding. Program requirements are subject to change at any time without notice. AnnieMac Home Mortgage, 211 N. Florence Street, Suite 102 and 103 Casa Grande, AZ 85122 NMLS# 338923. Arizona Mortgage Banker License #0926586

*