Arizona and Valley of the Sun Multi-Use Trails

I'm taking a break from traditional real estate news and information to take a look at the amenities that draw so many people to Arizona to buy homes and visit our resorts (and please do buy some homes in Arizona and visit the state's resorts).   After years of planning, constructing and linking miles and miles of trails, many well known (and some lesser known) trails are near completion within the state.  These trail systems offer unique hiking, equestrian, cycling or off-road vehicle experiences to visitors and residents of Arizona.  Some more significant trails include:

Regional: The Great Western Trail (Arizona, Utah, Idaho, Wyoming and Montana). This 4,455 mile trail is intended for use by motorized and non-motorized users. Eventually this trail will connect Mexico with Canada via the United States route. The Arizona section of this trail consists of back country roads that run from Mexico to Utah. Several sections of the Arizona trail are still under consideration or construction. Maps and detailed information about this trail can be found at: http://www.gwt.org/.

State: The Arizona Trail. When complete, this trail will include 807 miles of trail for use by hikers, mountain bicyclists, trail runners, cross-country skiers and equestrians. The trail runs from the southern border to the northern border of the state and requires only 35 miles of improvements to be complete. Maps and detailed information about this trail can be found at: http://www.aztrail.org/.

County: The Maricopa Trail and the Valley's Pedestrian Freeway. The Maricopa Trail is a 240 mile multi-use (non-motorized) trail that links open space projects and trail systems (including 9 regional parks) into one large loop around Maricopa County. This trail is supplemented by the Valley's Pedestrian Freeway conceived by Valley Forward to provide for interconnectivity among trails and parks within Maricopa County. The network of existing trails within Maricopa County is extensive, but there's still plenty of opportunity to help complete this network. Maps and information about how to help complete this trail system can be found at: http://www.valleyforward.org/issues/52/.

Local and Accessible: The Rio Salado Habitat Restoration Area. There are several local trails throughout the Valley of the Sun, but one that might be overlooked is the five mile stretch of the Salt River located just south of downtown Phoenix. Several paved trails easily accessed from ample parking lots are available throughout the Rio Salado Habitat Restoration Area. This accessible trail system offers unique bird watching and site seeing opportunities. The Rio Salado Habitat Restoration Area is another Valley Forward project that provides unique educational opportunities about varied habitats within the Valley. Maps and information can be found at: http://phoenix.gov/riosalado.

Organizations like Valley Forward have been instrumental in designing, organizing, constructing and maintaining trail systems within Maricopa County. There are several volunteer opportunities to help complete and maintain the existing, extensive network of trails started and supported by Valley Forward. These volunteer efforts are local, convenient and rewarding. Find out more about Valley Forward and volunteer opportunities at http://www.valleyforward.org/.  Get outside and enjoy Arizona!

City of Phoenix Rezoning Application Trends

The City of Phoenix Planning Department recently presented an excellent Continuing Legal Education program to the Real Estate Section of the Arizona Bar Association. The presenters included some interesting slides at the end of their program showing trends in the number of zoning related applications submitted to the department on an annual basis. This first slide shows the number of applications submitted each year for the last 5 years for general plan amendments, rezonings, special permits and planning hearing officer requests. The chart shows a chilling, steep decline in zoning application filings for the last 5 years:

The picture isn't much better for zoning adjustment cases (use permits and variances) for the last five years:

Some good news: the chart below shows application submittal trends for the last 50 years and the chart always moves upward after a period of decline (to be expected, of course). You'll likely note a spike in rezoning applications in 1960 (largely thanks to the widespread use of central air conditioning), a spike in the mid 1980's (the last economic boom that ended with the Savings and Loans crisis in the late 1980's) and a dip in applications for the last significant recession in the early 1990's. The chart trends upward after the early 1990's recession until we enter this most recent recessionary period. As of the end of May, the City of Phoenix Planning Department had a grand total of twelve rezoning applications for 2010. That's a terrifying number. Let's hope the chart will trend upward again very soon.