EMDR Therapy in Queen Creek, AZ

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints — one of the largest private landowners in Arizona — plans to develop a gated rental community in Queen Creek.

On Oct. 18, the Queen Creek Town Council unanimously approved zoning changes to the land near Pima and Meridian roads to pave the way for development.

The gated rental community, to be called Elanto, will total 320 units and be built on nearly 54 acres.

In 2018, 516 acres owned by the church were annexed by the town, said Adam Baugh, partner at Withey Morris Baugh and zoning attorney for the project.

"This is the first phase of what that long-term plan will be for the property," he said.

Builder has a long history

Phoenix-based Hancock Builders, which has built thousands of build-to-rent units since 2014, has been selected to build out Elanto, Baugh said.

The new community will include detached single-family homes, attached homes, and paseo homes on narrow lots with private rear patios and garages.

Shared amenities will include pickleball courts, dog parks, pools with a lazy river and a clubhouse, he said.

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Plans call for starting construction during the first quarter of 2024, said Greg Hancock, president and founder of Hancock Builders. His company currently is building nearly 3,000 build-to-rent units for eight different owners in metro Phoenix, with upward of 7,000 units also on the drawing board.

"We are woefully short on housing, period," Hancock said. "Now we've got an 8.5% 30-year fixed mortgage and entry-level price of $420,000. Affordability for housing is out. It's gone. I don't see it coming back, candidly. It might. But it's a very difficult situation. The vast majority of the world rents. I believe rentals are absolutely where we're headed."

In January, Hancock will celebrate his 48th year of homebuilding. His dad had built homes in Phoenix for 27 years before that. Hancock Builders has a solid base of subcontractors through its decades of doing business.

"Because of that, we're able to build so much faster than the other guys out there," he said. "They just don't have the background we have."

The gated rental community is part of a village concept that includes commercial shopping and a regional park.

The commercial shopping center zoned C-2 on 24.3 acres is at the northeast corner of Meridian and Queen Creek roads.

Property Reserve Arizona LLC — an entity tracing back to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints — is developing the project. It has set aside 56.98 gross acres for a regional park for the town to purchase and develop along Queen Creek Road, Baugh said.

Elanto is essentially a micro village, where people can shop next to where they live, with a potential park site nearby, he said.

"Rarely do you get opportunities to facilitate all three," he said. "Folks who live close by can enjoy the same benefits of the commercial shopping center and parks as folks who live inside the community."

Posted Monday, October 23, 2023 3:10 pm

The Arizona Manufactures Council, or AMC, has named Queen Creek Mayor Julia Wheatley its 2023 Manufacturing Champion of the Year for her advocacy for legislation that will help communities attract manufacturers and meet their public infrastructure needs, as well as for her work to bring a multibillion-dollar investment by LG Energy Solution to Queen Creek.

Wheatley was presented with the award at the Queen Creek Town Council’s Oct. 18 meeting.

“This award is the culmination of a lot of hard work from a lot of people – I was thrilled to present the award to our Queen Creek Town Council and amazing community,” shared Mayor Julia Wheatley, in a town press release. “Our efforts with House Bill 2809 help municipalities, businesses and the state – but most importantly, it benefits Queen Creek as it provides the town with reimbursement for a portion of the town’s $84 million in public infrastructure investments including roads, water and wastewater in the northeastern portion of our community. I’d like to express my sincere appreciation to Rep. Michael Carbone who sponsored House Bill 2809, and to all those champions who helped it reach the finish line.”

Queen Creek is consistently ranked one of the fastest-growing communities in the United States. The Town’s General Plan helps guide the growth, which includes the northeastern part of town, primarily owned by the Arizona State Land Department. The general plan identifies the section as a special district and growth area encouraging the private investment that fosters job creation, the release stated.

Last year, LG Energy Solution announced an investment of $5.5 billion for an advanced manufacturing facility, bringing thousands of jobs that “aligns with the state’s goal to be a leader in the high-tech industry,” according to the release.

“Without strong local leaders like Mayor Wheatley, Arizona risks losing out on these major job-creating investments,” AMC Executive Director Grace Appelbe stated in the release. “Mayor Wheatley understands what it takes to land these mega projects and why local government is an essential partner in the state’s economic development strategy.”

LG Energy Solution is slated to break ground in late 2023 or early 2024. For more information regarding the project, visit QueenCreekAZ.gov.

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SEATTLE, Aug. 4, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Seattle-based fashion retailer Nordstrom, Inc. (NYSE: JWN) announced plans to open a new Nordstrom Rack in Queen Creek, Arizona.

"We look forward to opening this new Nordstrom Rack location in Queen Creek, strengthening our network of stores and introducing new customers to Nordstrom Rack's unique product offering," said Carl Jenkins, Senior Vice President of Nordstrom Rack Stores. "In addition to shopping great brands at great prices, our customers in Queen Creek can take full advantage of this convenient new location to pick-up online orders and make returns."

The 28,000 square-foot store will be located in Queen Creek Marketplace, a popular shopping center that includes Target, Trader Joe's, Harkins Theatres, Dave & Buster's and Total Wine. Queen Creek Marketplace is owned and managed by Vestar and is located off the southwest corner of Rittenhouse and Ellsworth Loop Roads. With the addition of this new location, Nordstrom will operate ten Nordstrom Rack stores and one Nordstrom store in Arizona. The store is scheduled to open in spring 2024.

"We are thrilled to welcome Nordstrom Rack to Queen Creek Marketplace. They are the perfect addition to our well blended tenant mix and expect they will be well received by our growing community. Queen Creek Marketplace is positioned well in terms of overall traffic and activity and continues to expand and grow, seeing 7.6 million visits to the center annually. Retailers recognize the continued growth in housing and development within the Town of Queen Creek and are enthusiastic about the future," said Angela Manca, Property Manager at Queen Creek Marketplace.

Nordstrom Rack is the off-price retail division of Nordstrom, Inc. and plays a critical role in the company's Closer to You strategy, which focuses on delivering customers a more convenient and interconnected experience across its stores and digital platforms. Nordstrom Rack offers customers up to 70 percent off on-trend apparel, accessories, beauty, home and shoes from many of the top brands sold at Nordstrom stores as well as core services like online order pickup for Nordstrom.com and NordstromRack.com, easy returns and alterations at select stores. Nordstrom Rack is the largest source of new customers to Nordstrom.

Nordstrom is committed to giving back to the diverse communities where it operates. Since 2019 along with its customers, Nordstrom has donated more than $1.7 million in support of its long-term partnership with Big Brothers Big Sisters of the United States. These proceeds support the recruitment, training and engagement of adult mentors and mentorship moments between Bigs and Littles, including preparing for an interview, learning to tie a tie and helping with homework.

About VestarVestar has over 30 million square feet currently under operation and management. Vestar is responsible for creating many of the largest and most successful open-air retail centers with a conscientious approach to developing community-oriented and environmentally sensitive properties.

About NordstromAt Nordstrom, Inc. (NYSE: JWN), we exist to help our customers feel good and look their best. Since starting as a shoe store in 1901, how to best serve customers has been at the center of every decision we make. This heritage of service is the foundation we're building on as we provide convenience and true connection for our customers. Our digital-first platform enables us to serve customers when, where and how they want to shop – whether that's in-store at more than 350 Nordstrom, Nordstrom Local and Nordstrom Rack locations or digitally through our Nordstrom and Nordstrom Rack apps and websites. Through it all, we remain committed to leaving the world better than we found it.

MEDIA CONTACT: Lauren Herrin Nordstrom, Inc.NordstromPR@Nordstrom.com

SOURCE Nordstrom, Inc.

QUEEN CREEK, AZ (3TV/CBS 5) — It was the headline of the week: Governor Katie Hobbs announces pause for new home builds that rely on groundwater. The announcement came after a new study revealed that about 4% of the groundwater demand needed for the Valley would not be met in the next 100 years if nothing is done. As required by law, Hobbs said the state is pausing new construction in the areas that rely on that groundwater.

Queen Creek is a town that’s often brought up in the discussion. How does the groundwater study impact people currently living in Queen Creek?

If you live there right now and you currently get water from the town, you’re in the clear — you will continue getting water. That’s according to the director of the Queen Creek Water Division and state officials.

Most cities in the Valley, like Phoenix and Scottsdale, have what’s called an assured water supply designation. That means leaders there can prove they have enough water to support current and future development for the next 100 years. Queen Creek is not one of them. However, Paul Gardner, the director of the Queen Creek Water Division, says about 92% of the people who live there, as well as the land, have assured water supply certificates. While the town as a whole doesn’t have the designation, those with certificates have enough water for at least the next century.

Gardner says what’s left in Queen Creek is about 4.5 square miles of planning property that needs a water source. Gardner says he actually embraces the recent announcement and groundwater study, saying the town has been working for years to bring in other water resources for that remaining 8%. “We don’t think it’s an overwhelming task,” Gardner told Arizona’s Family this week. “We have in the pipeline about 15,000 plated lots to build out that already have certificates. So it will be these last 10,000 lots that we really need to marry a renewable supply with their development needs.”

Queen Creek has been one of the fastest growing communities in Arizona, and the country, according to Gardner. He says in 2008, the town’s population was about 26,000. Town officials say it’s now around 75,000, and the water division covers even more folks in the county areas: around 125,000 customers. People move to Queen Creek because of the quality of life, the schools and the open space, Gardner says.

Among one of the projects to secure more water, the town is spending millions of dollars on 2,000 acre-feet of Colorado River water from a small farm in Cibola, which is more than 200 miles west at the Arizona-California border. Just one acre-foot of water is enough for two average homes per year, according to the state water resources department. Gardner says the purchased water will be delivered through existing Central Arizona Project canals to replace groundwater pumping.

“Our goal for the last 7 years has been to go out, find renewable supplies, and to become a designated provider,” Gardner says. “That’s a heavy lift. We’re about 35% of the way there at acquiring supplies and over the next decade we feel like we will be a designated provider and well have enough renewable supplies in our portfolio to move forward.”

The Cibola water sale took years and did not come without controversy. It included court hearings, and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and the Arizona Department of Water Resources had to approve. La Paz County was among one of the Arizona counties that filed a lawsuit to stop the transaction. Holly Irwin is a longtime supervisor in La Paz County who lives in Cibola. She doesn’t think any water off the Colorado River should be transferred to metro areas to support their development and believes it should stay in the small community of about 350 people. Irwin also tells Arizona’s Family she also thinks it sets a bad precedent.

Officials with the town of Queen Creek say they’re expecting that water sometime this summer. Despite the opposition, officials contend this was the correct move to ensure renewable water for their community’s future.

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QUEEN CREEK, AZ (3TV/CBS 5) - For the first time, Queen Creek is getting water from a property owner in the small town of Cibola, Arizona, in La Paz County. In some ways, experts say it’s a first-of-its-kind transaction in Arizona, and the sale did not come without controversy.

After years of court proceedings and getting approval from state and federal officials, the Queen Creek mayor, councilmembers and other city leaders met on Wednesday morning to celebrate the deal. For the first time, it was publicly used to water the grass at Desert Mountain Park.

READ MORE: Gov. Hobbs announces pause for new home builds that rely on groundwater

For Queen Creek officials, this was the right move to ensure renewable water for their community’s future. After a groundwater model was released in June, the town says it needs to find a water supply for about 10,000 lots that have yet to be built.

FULL STORY: How Queen Creek is impacted by the recent Arizona groundwater study

In some ways, experts say it’s a first-of-its-kind transaction in Arizona, and the sale did not come without controversy.

However, a number of Arizona counties, including La Paz, were part of a lawsuit to stop the transaction. Holly Irwin, who is on the Board of Supervisors and lives in Cibola, worries this will set a dangerous precedent and bigger, metropolitan cities will continue to buy water from smaller communities in the face of our ongoing drought and cuts to our state’s Colorado River water supply.

“And that was the biggest concern,” Irwin recently told Arizona’s Family. “That you’re going to start seeing more of this type of application to the state to allow for water transfers to occur off the Colorado River. And it’s already happening. What we feared is already coming true.”

Irwin sent a statement to Arizona’s Family on behalf of La Paz County and leaders in Mohave and Yuma counties. Below is a portion of that statement:

Meantime, Paul Gardner, the director of the Queen Creek Water Division, contends this was the right thing to do to diversify the town’s water supply and reduce its dependence on groundwater. He says at one point, groundwater was 90% of the town’s supply. It’s down to 50% now, and he hopes to get it to 10%.

“We feel like what this transfer is, is basically taking a water supply that was used for agricultural farming and having a better use for residential and future development,” Gardner explained. “I think that this was very timely and that this coincided this summer with the department and governor’s announcement that mining groundwater for development was over. And so this comes in the nick of time.”

Gardner says the town is working on bringing in other sources of water, including from Harquahala Valley.

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