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North American area code 623 is a state of Arizona telephone area code which was created in a split from area code 602 on April 1, 1999, when it was deemed that the Greater Phoenix metropolitan area could no longer continue with just one area code due to its explosive growth in the 1990s. The west side and the western half of the far north side became 623, while the eastern suburbs and the Phoenix neighborhood of Ahwatukee became area code 480.
623 covers areas such as Glendale (except the section north of the Arizona Canal and south of Union Hills, which is still 602), Peoria (except northwest near Vistancia and Lake Pleasant), Sun City, Sun City West, El Mirage, Surprise, Youngtown, Avondale, Tolleson, Goodyear, and Buckeye, as well as some of west Phoenix, specifically the city north of Union Hills and west of the 2000 E Grid, south of the Arizona Canal from 43rd Ave to 39th Ave, west of 39th Ave from the Arizona Canal south to Maryland Ave, along 43rd Ave from Maryland to Indian School, diagonally southwest from 43rd Ave & Indian School to 63rd Ave & Interstate 10, then south along 63rd Ave to the Salt River and then the Gila River Indian Reservation.
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Phoenix | |||
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— City — | |||
City of Phoenix | |||
Images, from top, left to right: Downtown Phoenix skyline, Saint Mary's Basilica, Arizona Biltmore Hotel, Tovrea Castle, a saguaro cactus, Camelback Mountain | |||
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Nickname(s): Valley of the Sun, The Valley | |||
Location in Maricopa County and the state of Arizona | |||
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Coordinates: 33°27′N 112°4′W / 33.45°N 112.067°W / 33.45; -112.067 | |||
Country | United States | ||
State | Arizona | ||
County | Maricopa | ||
Incorporated | February 5, 1881 | ||
Government | |||
• Type | Council-Manager | ||
• Mayor | Greg Stanton | ||
Area | |||
• City | 517.948 sq mi (1,338.26 km2) | ||
• Land | 516.704 sq mi (1,338.26 km2) | ||
• Water | 1.244 sq mi (3.22 km2) | ||
Elevation | 1,150 ft (350 m) | ||
Population (2010) | |||
• City | 1,445,632 (6th) | ||
• Density | 3,071.8/sq mi (1,188.4/km2) | ||
• Metro | 4,192,887 | ||
Time zone | MST (UTC−7) | ||
• Summer (DST) | no DST (UTC−7) | ||
Area code(s) | 602, 480, 623, 520 | ||
FIPS code | 04-55000 | ||
Major Airport | Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport- PHX (Major/International) | ||
Website | http://www.phoenix.gov/ |
Phoenix ( /ˈfiːnɪks/ FEE-niks; O'odham: Ski:kigk; Yavapai: Wathinka or Wakatehe; Western Apache: Fiinigis; Navajo: Hoozdoh; Mojave: Hachpa 'Anya Nyava[1]) is the capital, and largest city, of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the sixth most populous city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,445,632 people according to the official 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data.[2] It is the anchor of the Phoenix metropolitan area (also known as the Valley of the Sun), and is the 12th largest metro area by population in the United States with about 4.2 million people in 2010. In addition, Phoenix is the county seat of Maricopa County, and is one of the largest cities in the United States by land area.[3] Phoenix is the largest capital city in the United States and the only state capital with over 1,000,000 people.
Phoenix was incorporated as a city in 1881, after being founded in 1861 near the Salt River, close to the confluence with the Gila River. The city has a notable and famous political culture and has been home to numerous influential American politicians and other dignitaries, including Barry Goldwater, William Rehnquist, John McCain, Carl Hayden, and Sandra Day O'Connor. Residents of the city are known as Phoenicians.
Located in the northeastern reaches of the Sonoran Desert, Phoenix has a subtropical desert climate. In summer average high temperatures are typically over 100 °F (38 °C) and over 120 °F (49 °C) on occasion.[4]
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For more than 2,000 years, the Hohokam peoples occupied the land that would become Phoenix.[5] The Hohokam created roughly 135 miles (217 km) of irrigation canals, making the desert land arable. Paths of these canals would later become used for the modern Arizona Canal, Central Arizona Project Canal, and the Hayden-Rhodes Aqueduct. The Hohokam also carried out extensive trade with the nearby Anasazi, Mogollon and Sinagua, in addition to Mesoamerican civilizations. It is believed that a Hohokam witness of the supernova that occurred in 1006 CE, created a representation of the event in the form of a petroglyph that can be found in the White Tank Mountain Regional Park west of Phoenix. This has been interpreted as the first known North American representation of the supernova.[6]
It is believed that between 1300 and 1450, periods of drought and severe floods led to the Hohokam civilization's abandonment of the area.[5] Local Akimel O'odham settlements, thought to be the descendants of the formerly urbanized Hohokam, concentrated on the Gila River. Some family groups did continue to live near the Salt River, but no large villages existed. Yavapai also had settlements in the area. Later, Maricopa peoples fleeing enemy tribes, came from the lower Gila River near its confluence with the Colorado River, and settled alongside the Akimel O'odham.
Father Eusebio Kino (1645–1711) was among the few Europeans to travel here in the 17th and 18th centuries. The Spanish focused mostly on the Pima missions in southern Arizona; the Salt River Valley had almost no European inhabitants for several centuries before the 1860s.
American and European "Mountain Men" likely came through the area, while exploring what is now central Arizona during the early 19th century. They obtained valuable beaver and otter pelts; these animals, as well as deer and Mexican wolves, often lived in the Salt River Valley when water supplies and temperatures allowed.
When the Mexican-American War ended in 1848, most of Mexico's northern zone passed to United States control, and a portion of it was made the New Mexico Territory (including what is now Phoenix) shortly afterward. The Gadsden Purchase was completed in 1853. The land was contested ground during the American Civil War: both the Confederate Arizona Territory, organized by Southern sympathizers in 1861 with its capital in Tucson, and the United States Arizona Territory, formed by the United States Congress in 1863 with its capital at Fort Whipple (now Prescott), included the Salt River Valley within their borders. The valley was not militarily important, however, and did not witness conflict.
In 1863, the mining town of Wickenburg was the first to be established in what is now Maricopa County. At the time this county did not exist, as the land was within Yavapai County along with the other major town of Prescott.
The US Army created Fort McDowell on the Verde River in 1865 to quell Native American uprisings. Hispanic workers serving the fort established a camp on the south side of the Salt River by 1866, which was the first non-native settlement in the valley after the decline of the Hohokam. In later years, other nearby settlements would form and merge to become the city of Tempe,[7] but this community was incorporated after Phoenix.
The history of Phoenix as a city begins with Jack Swilling, a Confederate veteran of the American Civil War (1861–1865), who had come west to seek wealth in the 1850s, and worked primarily in Wickenburg. On an outing in 1867, he stopped to rest at the foot of the White Tank Mountains. Swilling observed the abandoned river valley and considered its potential for farming, much like that already cultivated by the military further east, near Fort McDowell. The terrain and climate were optimal; only a regular source of water was necessary. The existence of the old Hohokam ruins, showing clear paths for canals, made Swilling imagine new possibilities.
Swilling had a series of canals built, which followed those of the ancient Native American system. A small community formed that same year about 4 miles (6 km) east of the present city. It was first called Pumpkinville, due to the large pumpkins that flourished in fields along the canals. Later it was called Swilling's Mill in his honor, though later renamed to Helling Mill, Mill City, and finally, East Phoenix. Swilling, a former Confederate soldier, wanted to name the city "Stonewall", after General Stonewall Jackson. Others suggested the name of "Salina". However, neither name was supported by the community.
Finally, Lord Darrell Duppa suggested the name "Phoenix", as it described a city born from the ruins of a former civilization.[8]
The Board of Supervisors in Yavapai County, which at the time encompassed Phoenix, officially recognized the new town on May 4, 1865, and formed an election precinct. The first post office was established on June 15, 1868, with Jack Swilling serving as the postmaster. With the number of residents growing (the 1870 U.S. census reported about a total Salt River Valley population of 240), a town site needed to be selected. On October 20, 1870, the residents held a meeting to decide where to locate it. A 320 acres (1.3 km2) plot of land was purchased in what is now the downtown business section.[9]
On February 12, 1871, the territorial legislature created Maricopa County, the sixth one formed, by dividing Yavapai County. The first election for county office was held in 1871, when Tom Barnum was elected the first sheriff. Barnum ran unopposed as the other two candidates, John A. Chenowth and Jim Favorite, had a shootout that ended in Favorite's death and Chenowth withdrawing from the race.[10]
Several lots of land were sold in 1870 at an average price of $48. The first church opened in 1871, as did the first store. Public school had its first class on September 5, 1872, in the courtroom of the county building. By October 1873, a small school was completed on Center Street (now Central Avenue).[10] Land entry was recorded by the Florence Land Office on November 19, 1873, and a declaratory statement filed in the Prescott Land Office on February 15, 1872. President Ulysses S. Grant issued a land patent for the present site of Phoenix on April 10, 1874. The total value of the Phoenix Townsite was $550, with downtown lots selling for between $7 and $11 each. A short time later, a telegraph office, 16 saloons, four dance halls and two banks were opened.[11]
By 1881, Phoenix had outgrown its original townsite-commissioner form of government. The 11th Territorial Legislature passed "The Phoenix Charter Bill", incorporating Phoenix and providing for a mayor-council government. The bill was signed by Governor John C. Fremont on February 25, 1881. Phoenix was incorporated with a population of approximately 2,500, and on May 3, 1881, Phoenix held its first city election. Judge John T. Alsap defeated James D. Monihon, 127 to 107, to become the city's first mayor.[12] In early 1888, the city offices were moved into the new City Hall, at Washington and Central (later the site of the city bus terminal, until Central Station was built in the 1990s). This building also provided temporary offices for the territorial government, when it moved to Phoenix by the 15th Territorial Legislature in 1889.[13]
The coming of the railroad in the 1880s was the first of several important events that revolutionized the economy of Phoenix. A spur of the Southern Pacific Railroad, the Phoenix and Maricopa, was extended from Maricopa into Tempe in the late 1880s. Merchandise now flowed into the city by rail instead of wagon. Phoenix became a trade center, with its products reaching eastern and western markets. In response, the Phoenix Chamber of Commerce was organized on November 4, 1888.[13] The Phoenix Street Railway electrified its mule-drawn streetcar lines in the 1890s, with streetcar service continuing until a 1947 fire. From 1911 to 1926, an interurban line carried passengers and express packages between Glendale and downtown Phoenix.
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In 1902, President Theodore Roosevelt signed the National Reclamation Act, allowing for dams to be built on western streams for reclamation purposes. Residents were quick to enhance this by organizing the Salt River Valley Water Users' Association (on February 7, 1903), to manage the water and power supply. The agency still exists as part of the Salt River Project.[14] The Roosevelt Dam east of the valley was completed in 1911. Several new lakes were formed in the surrounding mountain ranges. In the Phoenix area, the river is now often dry due to large irrigation diversions[citation needed], taking with it the large populations of migrating birds, beaver dams, and cottonwood trees that had lived on its waters.
On February 14, 1912, under President William Howard Taft, Phoenix became the capital of the newly formed state of Arizona.[15] Phoenix was considered preferable, as both territorial and state capital, due to its more central location, compared to Tucson or Prescott. It was smaller than Tucson, but outgrew that city within the next few decades, to become the state's largest city.
In 1913, Phoenix adopted a new form of government, from mayor-council to council-manager, making it one of the first cities in the United States with this form of city government.[16]
During World War II, Phoenix's economy shifted to that of a distribution center, rapidly turning into an embryonic industrial city with mass production of military supplies. Luke Field, Williams Field, and Falcon Field, coupled with the giant ground-training center at Hyder, west of Phoenix, brought thousands of new people into Phoenix.[17]
On Thanksgiving night 1942, an illegal prize fight between a champion boxer of a black regiment and a white boxer of another army regiment, degenerated into a melee between competing camps. Subsequently, the black regiment left their barracks en masse, and began attacking whites and rioting into downtown. Unable to contain the spreading violence by the black soldiers, local police called in the military. The rioters were met by several military police units that attempted to arrest the rioters. Instead, the rest of the black soldiers based nearby joined the rioters with firearms. The Army quickly responded to the mutiny, and surrounded the area with armored personnel carriers and machine guns, ordering soldiers to use full military force against the mutineers, which resulted in dozens of fatalities. The Colonel of Luke Field, who had oversight of the city, soon declared Army personnel banned from Phoenix. This pressured civic leaders to reform local government, by firing a number of corrupt officials, in turn getting the ban lifted. This same bipartisan effort also successfully convinced the city council to give more power to the city manager to run the government and spend public funds, making Phoenix one of the largest cities in the country to not use the strong mayor structure for municipal government.
Another wartime incident took place at a Prisoner of War Camp that was established at the site of what is now Papago Park and Phoenix Zoo, for the internment of German soldiers captured in Europe.[18] In 1944, dozens of prisoners had devised a plan to escape from the camp and use boats to go down the nearby Salt River to reach Mexico. However, they were unaware that the river was mostly dry and had not been navigable for decades, and were thus easily apprehended near the camp.
The long established relationships between organized crime and the business elite grew after World War II. A primary incident, which marked the post-war face of Phoenix, was its involvement in the Great American streetcar scandal, in which arson and sabotage was added to the list of illegal business activities in destroying the city's mass transit system. A fire in October 1947 destroyed most of the Phoenix Street Railway fleet, making the city choose between implementing a new street railway system, or using buses and cars. Simultaneously, the city began changing the rights of way downtown, expanding street sizes, raising speed rates, thereby lowering the quality of life in many old neighborhoods. As a result of these changes, automobiles became the city's preferred method of transportation. This was followed by a number of the first housing developments that helped spread the size of Phoenix, and in turn enriched many of the area's largest landowners.[citation needed] By 1950, over 100,000 people lived within the city and thousands more in surrounding communities. There were 148 miles (238 km) of paved streets and 163 miles (262 km) of unpaved streets.[17]
Over the next several decades, the city and metropolitan area attracted more growth and became a favored tourist destination for its exotic desert setting and recreational opportunities. Nightlife and civic events concentrated along now skyscraper-flanked Central Avenue. In 1965, the Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum was opened on the grounds of the Arizona State Fair, west of downtown, and in 1968, the city was surprisingly awarded the Phoenix Suns NBA franchise. By the 1970s, however, there was rising crime and a decline in business within the downtown core.
Arizona Republic writer Don Bolles was murdered by a car bomb in the city in 1976. It was believed that his investigative reporting on organized crime and politics, particularly the relationships in Phoenix between real-estate developers, organized crime, and out-of-state corporations, especially in regards to land and housing fraud, made him a target. Bolles' last words referred to Phoenix land and cattle magnate Kemper Marley,[19] who was widely regarded to have ordered Bolles' murder, as well as John Harvey Adamson, who pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in 1977 in return for testimony against contractors Max Dunlap and James Robison. Dunlap was convicted of first degree murder in the case in 1990 and received a life sentence. He died at the Arizona State Prison Complex - Tucson on July 21, 2009 due to natural causes.[20] Robison was acquitted, but pleaded guilty to charges of soliciting violence against Adamson.
In 1970, the Census Bureau reported Phoenix's population as 12.7% Hispanic, 4.8% black, and 81.3% non-Hispanic white.[21] With the advent of desegregation and the Fair Housing Act, the white flight, which had begun with the Great American streetcar scandal accelerated, as the remaining white middle class families fled the growing street gangs, violent crime, and the drug trade. As a result, by the 1980s, these criminal activities had become public safety issues with the transplanted, noncohesive nature of many neighborhoods, which made crime difficult to monitor. Van Buren Street, East of downtown (near 24th St), became associated with prostitution, and many sections of the city's south and west sides were ravaged by the crack epidemic. The city's crime rates in many categories have improved since that time, but still exceed state and national averages[citation needed].
After the Salt River flooded in 1980 and damaged many bridges, the Arizona Department of Transportation and Amtrak worked together and temporarily operated a train service, referred in Metro Light Rail (Phoenix) as the "Hattie B." line, between central Phoenix and the southeast suburbs. It was discontinued because of high operating costs and a lack of interest from local authorities in maintaining funding.[22]
The famous "Phoenix Lights" UFO sightings took place in March 1997. The Baseline Killer and Serial Shooter crime sprees occurred in Phoenix, Tempe, and Mesa. Steele Indian School Park was the site of a mid-air collision between two news helicopters in July 2007. In 2008, Squaw Peak, the second tallest mountain in the city, was officially renamed Piestewa Peak after Army Specialist Lori Ann Piestewa, an Arizona native who was the first Native American woman to die in combat with the U.S. military, and the first American female casualty in the 2003 Iraq War.
Phoenix has maintained a growth streak in recent years, growing by 24.2% before 2007. This made it the second-fastest-growing metropolitan area in the United States following only Las Vegas, whose population had grown by 29.2% in that time.[23] In 2008, Phoenix was one of the hardest hit by the Subprime mortgage crisis. In early 2009, the median home price was $150,000, down from its $262,000 peak in recent years.[24] Crime rates in Phoenix have gone down in recent years and once troubled, decaying neighborhoods such as South Mountain, Alhambra, and Maryvale have recovered and stabilized. Recently Downtown Phoenix and the central core have experienced renewed interest and growth, resulting in numerous restaurant, stores and businesses opening or relocating to central Phoenix.[25]
Phoenix is located at 33°27' North, 112°4' West (33.4485°, −112.0738°)[26] in the Salt River Valley, or "Valley of the Sun", in central Arizona. It lies at a mean elevation of 1,117 feet (340 m), in the northern reaches of the Sonoran Desert.
Other than the mountains in and around the city, the topography of Phoenix is generally flat, allowing the city's main streets to run on a precise grid with wide, open-spaced roadways.
The Salt River runs westward through the city of Phoenix; the riverbed is often dry or a trickle due to large irrigation diversions, except after the area's infrequent rainstorms or when more water is released from upstream dams. The city of Tempe has built two inflatable dams in the Salt River bed to create a year-round recreational lake, called Tempe Town Lake. The dams are deflated to allow the river to flow unimpeded during releases. Lake Pleasant Regional Park is located in Northwest Phoenix within the suburb of Peoria, Arizona
The Phoenix area is surrounded by the McDowell Mountains to the northeast, the White Tank Mountains to the west, the Superstition Mountains far to the east, and the Sierra Estrella to the southwest. Within the city are the Phoenix Mountains and South Mountains. Current development (as of 2005) is pushing beyond the geographic boundaries to the north and west, and south through Pinal County. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 517.9 square miles (1,341 km2); 474.9 square miles (1,230 km2) of it is land and 0.2 square miles (0.6 km², or 0.05%) of it is water.
The Phoenix Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) (officially known as the Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale MSA), is the 12th largest in the United States, with a total population of 4,192,887 as of the Census 2010. It includes the Arizona counties of Maricopa and Pinal. Other cities in the MSA include Mesa, Scottsdale, Glendale, Tempe, Chandler, Gilbert, and Peoria. Several smaller communities are also included, such as Cave Creek, Queen Creek, Buckeye, Goodyear, Guadalupe, Fountain Hills, Litchfield Park, Anthem, Sun Lakes, Sun City, Sun City West, Avondale, Surprise, El Mirage, Paradise Valley, and Tolleson. The communities of Ahwatukee, Arcadia, Laveen and some others are part of the city of Phoenix; Ahwatukee being separated from the rest of the city by South Mountain.
The city is the largest city in the Arizona Sun Corridor. The Sun Corridor is the 8th largest megaregion, in terms of area, in the United States of America and is predicted to be the 10th most populous megaregion in 2025. The Sun Corridor is equivalent to Indiana in size and population and had a GDP of $191 billion in 2005.
Phoenix is the nation's sixth most populous city with approximately 1.44 million people, however, with a huge land area of 475 square miles (1,230 km2), the city has a low density rate of about 2,785 people per square mile due to 1/3rd of its land area being undeveloped desert. By comparison, Philadelphia has approximately 1.5 million people in a land area of 127 square miles (330 km2), giving it a high density rate of over 11,000 people per square mile.
As with most of Arizona, Phoenix does not observe daylight saving time. In 1973, Gov. Jack Williams argued to the US Congress that energy use would increase in the evening, as refrigeration units were not used as often in the morning on standard time. He went on to say that energy use would rise "because there would be more lights on in the early morning." He was also concerned about children going to school in the dark, which indeed they were.[27] The exception to this are lands of the Navajo Nation in Northeastern Arizona, which observe daylight saving time in conjunction with the rest of their tribal lands in other states.
Phoenix has a subtropical desert climate (Köppen: BWh), typical of the Sonoran Desert in which it lies. Phoenix has extremely hot summers and warm winters. The average summer high temperatures are some of the hottest of any major city in the United States, and approach those of cities such as Riyadh and Baghdad. The temperature reaches and exceeds 100°F (38°C), on average for 110 days of the year, including most days from late May through to early September. Highs top 110 °F (43 °C) an average of 18 days during the year. On June 26, 1990, the temperature reached an all-time recorded high of 122 °F (50 °C).[28]
Overnight lows greater than 80 °F (27 °C) occur frequently each summer, with the average July low being 81 °F (27 °C), and the average August low being 80 °F (27 °C). On average, 67 days throughout the year will see the nighttime low at or above 80 °F (27 °C). The highest low temperature recorded in Phoenix was 96 °F (36 °C), which occurred on July 15, 2003.[29]
Precipitation is sparse during a large part of the summer, but the influx of monsoonal moisture, which generally begins in early July and lasts until mid-September, raises humidity levels and can cause heavy localized precipitation and flooding occasionally. Winter months are warm, with daily high temperatures ranging from the mid-60's to low 70's (18–22 °C), and low temperatures rarely dipping below 40 °F (4 °C).
Phoenix averages 85% of possible sunshine[30] and receives scant rainfall, the average annual total at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport being 8.3 inches (210 mm). March is the wettest month of the year (1.07 inches or 27 mm) with June being the driest (0.09 inches or 2 mm). Although thunderstorms are possible at any time of the year, they are most common during the monsoon from July to mid-September as humid air surges in from the Gulf of California. These can bring strong winds, large hail, or rarely, tornadoes. Winter storms moving inland from the Pacific Ocean occasionally produce significant rains but occur infrequently. Fog is rare but can be observed from time to time during the winter months.
On average, Phoenix has only five days per year where the temperature drops to or below freezing.[31] The long-term mean date of the first frost is December 15 and the last is February 1; however, these dates do not represent the city as a whole because the frequency of freezes increases the further one moves outward from the urban heat island. Frequently, outlying areas of Phoenix see frost, but the airport does not. The earliest frost on record occurred on November 3, 1946, and the latest occurred on April 4, 1945. The all-time lowest recorded temperature in Phoenix was 16 °F (−9 °C) on January 7, 1913.
As Phoenix grows, snow is becoming a common sight[citation needed] along the outskirts but is still rare in central Phoenix. Snowfall was first officially recorded in 1898, and since then, accumulations of 0.1 inches (0.25 cm) or greater have occurred only eight times. The heaviest snowstorm on record dates to January 21, 1937 – January 22, 1937, when 1 to 4 inches (2.5 to 10 cm) fell in parts of the city and did not melt entirely for three days. Before that, 1 inch (2.5 cm) had fallen on January 20, 1933. On February 2, 1939, 0.5 inches (1.3 cm) fell. Snow also fell on March 12, 1917 and on November 28, 1919. The most recent snow of significance fell on, December 6, 1998 across the northwest portions of the valley that are below 2,000 feet. During the 1998 event, Sky Harbor reported a dusting of snow. The last measurable snowfall was recorded when 0.1 inches (0.25 cm) fell in central Phoenix on December 11, 1985.[32] On December 30, 2010, graupel fell, although it was widely believed to be snow.[33]
Dust storms form mostly during the summer. Three major ones occurred in the summer of 2011. These dust storms form from monsoon storm "outflows", or sudden gusts of wind.
Climate data for Phoenix, Arizona (Phoenix Int'l), 1981-2010 normals | |||||||||||||
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Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °F (°C) | 88 (31) |
92 (33) |
100 (38) |
105 (41) |
114 (46) |
122 (50) |
121 (49) |
116 (47) |
116 (47) |
107 (42) |
96 (36) |
87 (31) |
122 (50) |
Average high °F (°C) | 67.4 (19.7) |
70.9 (21.6) |
77.1 (25.1) |
85.4 (29.7) |
95.0 (35.0) |
104.1 (40.1) |
106.2 (41.2) |
104.5 (40.3) |
100.0 (37.8) |
88.7 (31.5) |
75.8 (24.3) |
66.2 (19.0) |
86.78 (30.43) |
Average low °F (°C) | 45.6 (7.6) |
48.7 (9.3) |
53.5 (11.9) |
60.2 (15.7) |
69.3 (20.7) |
77.7 (25.4) |
83.4 (28.6) |
82.7 (28.2) |
76.8 (24.9) |
64.7 (18.2) |
52.6 (11.4) |
44.8 (7.1) |
63.33 (17.41) |
Record low °F (°C) | 16 (−9) |
24 (−4) |
25 (−4) |
35 (2) |
39 (4) |
49 (9) |
63 (17) |
58 (14) |
47 (8) |
34 (1) |
27 (−3) |
22 (−6) |
16 (−9) |
Precipitation inches (mm) | .91 (23.1) |
.92 (23.4) |
.98 (24.9) |
.27 (6.9) |
.11 (2.8) |
.02 (0.5) |
1.05 (26.7) |
1.00 (25.4) |
.64 (16.3) |
.58 (14.7) |
.64 (16.3) |
.88 (22.4) |
8 (203.2) |
Avg. precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 4.1 | 4.4 | 3.9 | 1.7 | 1.0 | .5 | 4.2 | 5.0 | 2.8 | 2.5 | 2.6 | 3.9 | 36.6 |
Mean monthly sunshine hours | 257.3 | 259.9 | 319.3 | 354.0 | 399.9 | 408.0 | 378.2 | 359.6 | 330.0 | 310.0 | 255.0 | 244.9 | 3,876.1 |
Source no. 1: NOAA [34], Weather.com (extreme temps) [35] | |||||||||||||
Source no. 2: HKO (sun, 1961–1990) [36] |
Since 1986, the city of Phoenix has been divided into urban villages, many of which are based upon historically significant neighborhoods and communities that have since been annexed into Phoenix.[37] Each village has a planning committee that is appointed directly by the city council. According to the village planning handbook issued by the city, the purpose of the village planning committees is to work with the city's planning commission to ensure a balance of housing and employment in each village, concentrate development at identified village cores, and to promote the unique character and identity of the villages.[38]
Currently, there are 15 urban villages in the city: Ahwatukee Foothills, Alhambra, Camelback East, Central City, Deer Valley, Desert View, Encanto, Estrella, Laveen, Maryvale, North Gateway, North Mountain, Paradise Valley (not to be confused with the town of Paradise Valley), South Mountain and Rio Vista. Rio Vista was created as New Village in 2004 and is currently very sparsely populated, with no large amount of development expected in the near future.[39]
Commonly referred-to Phoenix regions and districts include Downtown, Midtown, West Phoenix, North Phoenix, South Phoenix, Biltmore, Arcadia, Sunnyslope, Ahwatukee.
Phoenix is the sixth largest city in the nation according to the 2010 United States Census, making it the most populous state capital in the United States, with a population of 1,445,632.[40] According to the Census:[41]
Phoenix's population has historically been predominantly white.[21] In 1970, non-Hispanic whites represented over 80% of the population.[21]
According to the survey, the top ten ancestries were Mexican (38.4%), German (12.8%), Irish (8.8%), English (7.1%), African American (6.0%), Italian (4.0%), American (3.5%), Polish (2.2%), French (1.4%), and Scottish (1.6%).[42]
According to the survey, the linguistic abilities of Phoenix residents were as follows:[42]
Historical populations | |||
---|---|---|---|
Census | Pop. | %± | |
1870 | 240 |
|
|
1880 | 1,708 | 611.7% | |
1890 | 3,152 | 84.5% | |
1900 | 5,544 | 75.9% | |
1910 | 11,314 | 104.1% | |
1920 | 29,053 | 156.8% | |
1930 | 48,118 | 65.6% | |
1940 | 65,414 | 35.9% | |
1950 | 106,818 | 63.3% | |
1960 | 439,170 | 311.1% | |
1970 | 581,572 | 32.4% | |
1980 | 789,704 | 35.8% | |
1990 | 983,403 | 24.5% | |
2000 | 1,321,045 | 34.3% | |
2010 | 1,445,632 | 9.4% | |
sources:[43][44] |
According to the 2000 census, there were 1,321,045 people, 865,834 households, and 407,450 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,782 people per square mile (1,074/km²). There were 895,832 housing units at an average density of 1,044 per square mile (403/km²).
There were 865,834 households out of which 35.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.9% were married couples living together, 12.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.0% were non-traditional families. 25.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.79 and the average family size was 3.39.
In the city the population age distribution was 28.9% under the age of 18, 10.9% from 18 to 24, 33.2% from 25 to 44, 18.8% from 45 to 64, and 8.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 103.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 102.7 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $41,207, and the median income for a family was $46,467. Males had a median income of $32,820 versus $27,466 for females. The per capita income for the city was $19,833. 15.8% of the population and 11.5% of families were below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 21.0% of those under the age of 18 and 10.3% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.
As of 2000, the racial makeup of the Phoenix population was 71.1% White, 5.1% African American, 2.0% Native American, 2.0% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 16.4% from other races, and 3.3% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 34.1% of the population.[45] Since the 2000 census, the non-Hispanic white population in Phoenix dropped below 50.0%, according to William Frey, a demographer with the Brookings Institution.[46]
In 2000, the Phoenix metro area's religious composition was reported as 45% Catholic, 13% LDS (concentrated heavily in the suburb of Mesa) and 5% Jewish. The remaining 37% are largely members of Protestant denominations or are unaffiliated.[47]
The early economy of Phoenix was primarily agricultural, dependent mainly on the "5Cs" which were copper, cattle, climate, cotton and citrus. In the last four decades most of the farmlands have been turned into suburbs, and the economy has diversified as swiftly as the population has grown. The construction boom collapsed in 2008, as the financial crisis of 2007–2010 began; housing prices plunged. As Phoenix is the state capital, many residents in the area are employed by the government. Arizona State University has also enhanced the area's population through education and its growing research capabilities. Numerous high-tech and telecommunications companies have also recently relocated to the area. Due to the warm climate in winter, Phoenix benefits greatly from seasonal tourism and recreation, such as the golf industry.[48]
Phoenix is currently home to seven Fortune 500 companies: Allied Waste, electronics corporation Avnet, Apollo Group (which operates the University of Phoenix), mining company Freeport-McMoRan (recently merged with Phoenix based Phelps Dodge), retailer PetSmart and energy supplier Pinnacle West. Honeywell's Aerospace division is headquartered in Phoenix, and the valley hosts many of their avionics and mechanical facilities. Intel has one of their largest sites here, employing about 10,000 employees and 7 chip manufacturing fabs, including the $3 billion state-of-the-art 300 mm and 45 nm Fab 32. American Express hosts their financial transactions, customer information, and their entire website in Phoenix. The city is also home to the headquarters of U-HAUL International, a rental and moving supply company, as well as Best Western, the world's largest family of hotels. Choice Hotels International has its IT division and Operations Support Center in in the North Phoenix area. US Airways relocated it Corporate Headquarters to Metro Phoenix area(Tempe)in 2005 after being acquired by America West Airlines. US Airways is the largest carrier at Sky Harbor International Airport in Phoenix. Mesa Air Group, a regional airline group, is headquartered in Phoenix.[49]
Despite the housing collapse, Phoenix is seeing an improvement in its rental housing. “Commercial-property owners are counting on apartment buildings to lead the Phoenix area's real-estate market toward recovery, based on a recent rebound for units rented and buildings sold.”[50] The military has a significant presence in Phoenix with Luke Air Force Base located in the western suburbs. At its height, in the 1940s, the Phoenix area had three military bases: Luke Field (still in use), Falcon Field, and Williams Air Force Base (now Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport), with numerous auxiliary air fields located throughout the region.[51]
Foreign governments have established 30 consular offices and eleven active foreign chambers of commerce and trade associations in metropolitan Phoenix[52][53]
Phoenix and the surrounding area have several cultural activities, including the performing arts, museums, and events.
Several music venues take place around Arizona, but primarily in and around downtown Phoenix and in Scottsdale. One such venue is the Phoenix Symphony Hall, where performances from groups such as the Phoenix Symphony Orchestra, Phoenix Youth Symphony Arizona Opera and Ballet Arizona often occur. Another venue is the Orpheum Theatre which is home to the Phoenix Metropolitan Opera. Concerts also regularly make stops in the area. Venues for concerts include the US Airways Center and the Comerica Theatre in downtown Phoenix, Cricket Wireless Pavilion in Maryvale, Jobing.com Arena in Glendale, and Gammage Auditorium in Tempe. Since 2002, Phoenix has also seen a rapid growth in local arts through Artlink Phoenix. Several smaller theatres including Trunk Space, Space 55 and Modified Arts support regular independent musical and theatre performances.
Phoenix has been home to numerous popular musicians, mostly of the country and rock genres. Solo artists originally from the area include Duane Eddy, Stevie Nicks, Willy Northpole, Buck Owens, Wayne Newton, Jordin Sparks, Marty Robbins, CeCe Peniston, Dierks Bentley, Alice Cooper, and Linkin Park's Chester Bennington. Several prominent rock groups have come from the Valley, including Meat Puppets, Andrew Jackson Jihad, The Refreshments, Jimmy Eat World, Mr. Mister, Gin Blossoms, Several Members of the Coasters and The Tubes. Phoenix is becoming a musical hot spot as more established artists like George Benson, Steve Gadd, Bob Hoag, Joey DeFrancesco, Samuel David Moore have moved to the city, drawn by the lower cost of living and comfortable climate.
Several television series were set in Phoenix, including the current top-rated Medium, the 1960–1961 syndicated crime drama, The Brothers Brannagan, Alice and the CBS sitcom, The New Dick Van Dyke Show from 1971 to 1974.
Several museums exist throughout the Valley.
Phoenix Art Museum is the Southwest’s largest destination for visual art from across the world. Located at 1625 North Central Avenue, the 285,000-square-foot (26,500 m2) art museum stands at the intersection of Central Avenue and McDowell Road on the historic Central Avenue corridor. Phoenix Art Museum displays international exhibitions along side the Museum’s comprehensive collection of more than 18,000 works of American, Asian, European, Latin American, Western American, modern and contemporary art, and fashion design. A community center since 1951, Phoenix Art Museum presents a year-round program of festivals, live performances, independent art films and educational programs. Visitors can also experience PhxArtKids, an interactive space for children; photography exhibitions through the Museum’s partnership with the Center for Creative Photography; the landscaped Sculpture Garden; dining at Arcadia Farms at Phoenix Art Museum; and shopping at The Museum Store.
Another prominent area museum is the Heard Museum just north of downtown. It has over 130,000 square feet (12,000 m²) of gallery, classroom and performance space. Some of the signature exhibits include a full Navajo hogan, the Mareen Allen Nichols Collection containing 260 pieces of contemporary jewelry, the Barry Goldwater Collection of 437 historic Hopi kachina dolls, and an exhibit on the 19th century boarding school experiences of Native Americans. The Heard Museum attracts about 250,000 visitors a year.
Other notable museums in the city include the Arizona Science Center, Hall of Flame Firefighting Museum, Phoenix Museum of History, the Phoenix Zoo, the Pueblo Grande Museum and Cultural Park, and the Children's Museum of Phoenix. In 2010 the Musical Instrument Museum opened their doors, featuring the biggest musical instrument collection in the world.
The downtown Phoenix art scene has developed in the past decade. The Artlink organization and the galleries downtown have successfully launched a First Friday cross-Phoenix gallery opening.
In April 2009, artist Janet Echelman inaugurated her monumental sculpture, Her Secret Is Patience, a civic icon suspended above the new Phoenix Civic Space Park, a two-city-block park in the middle of downtown. This netted sculpture makes the invisible patterns of desert wind visible to the human eye. During the day, the 100-foot (30 m)-tall sculpture hovers high above heads, treetops, and buildings, the sculpture creates what the artist calls "shadow drawings", which she says are inspired by Phoenix's cloud shadows. At night, the illumination changes color gradually through the seasons. The large three-dimensional multi-layered form is created by a combination of hand-baiting and machine-loomed knotting, and is the result of a collaborative effort with an international team of award-winning[citation needed] engineers.
Author Prof. Patrick Frank writes of the sculpture that "...most Arizonans look on the work with pride: this unique visual delight will forever mark the city of Phoenix just as the Eiffel Tower marks Paris."[54]
The Arizona Republic editorialized: "This is just what Phoenix need: a distinctive feature that helps create a real sense of place."
Phoenix has long been renowned for authentic Mexican food, thanks to both the large Hispanic population and proximity to Mexico. But the recent population boom has brought people from all over the nation, and to a lesser extent from other countries, and has since influenced the local cuisine. International food, such as Korean, Brazilian, and French, has become more common throughout the valley in recent years. However, Mexican food is arguably still the most popular food, with Mexican restaurants found all over the area.
Phoenix is home to several professional sports franchises, including representatives of all four major professional sports leagues in the U.S. – although only two of these teams actually carry the city name and play within the city limits. Of all the U.S. metropolitan areas with teams in all four leagues, Phoenix was the last to get its first major franchise, this being the Phoenix Suns of the National Basketball Association (NBA), which started play in 1968 at the Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum. In 1992 the Suns moved to the America West Arena, which is now the US Airways Center. In 1997, the Phoenix Mercury was one of the original eight teams to launch the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Both teams play at U.S. Airways Center. The U.S. Airways Center was the setting for both the 1995 and the 2009 NBA All-Star Games. The Phoenix Flame of the International Basketball League began play in the spring of 2007. They play at the Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum.
The Arizona Cardinals moved to Phoenix from St. Louis, Missouri in 1988 and currently play in the Western Division of the National Football League's National Football Conference. The team, however, has never played in the city itself; they played at Sun Devil Stadium on the campus of Arizona State University in nearby Tempe until 2006. Sun Devil Stadium held Super Bowl XXX in 1996 when the Dallas Cowboys defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Cardinals now play at University of Phoenix Stadium in west suburban Glendale. University of Phoenix Stadium hosted Super Bowl XLII on February 3, 2008, in which the New York Giants defeated the New England Patriots. It is also the home of the annual Tostitos Fiesta Bowl, a college football bowl game that is part of the Bowl Championship Series (BCS).
Phoenix has an arena football team, the Arizona Rattlers of the Arena Football League. Games are played at US Airways Center downtown.
The Phoenix Coyotes of the National Hockey League moved to the area in 1996; they were formerly the Winnipeg Jets franchise. They play at Jobing.com Arena, adjacent to University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale.
The Arizona Diamondbacks of Major League Baseball (National League West Division) began play as an expansion team in 1998. The team plays at Chase Field (downtown). In 2001, the Diamondbacks defeated the New York Yankees 4 games to 3 in the World Series, becoming not only the city's first professional sports franchise to win a national championship while located in Arizona, but also one of the youngest expansion franchise in U.S. professional sports to ever win a championship.
Additionally, due to the favorable climate, fifteen Major League Baseball teams conduct spring training in the metro Phoenix area in what is known as The Cactus League. The Cincinnati Reds were the last team to begin play in Goodyear, AZ as the 15th Cactus League team and share the stadium in Goodyear with the Cleveland Indians. Beginning in 2011, the Cactus League will be based solely in greater metro Phoenix as the last two teams that had played in Tucson (The Colorado Rockies and the Arizona Diamondbacks) will be sharing a spring training home near Scottsdale.
The Phoenix International Raceway is a major venue for two NASCAR auto racing events per season. Boat racing, drag racing, and road course racing are also held at Firebird International Raceway. Sprint car racing is no longer held at Manzanita Speedway.
Phoenix hosted the United States Grand Prix from 1989 to 1991. The race was discontinued after poor crowd numbers.[55]
Phoenix has also hosted the Insight Bowl at Chase Field until 2005, after which it moved to nearby Tempe, as well as several major professional golf events, including the LPGA's Safeway International and The Tradition of the Champions Tour. Phoenix was originally scheduled to host the 2006 NHL All-Star Game, but it was canceled due to the 2006 Winter Olympics (the recently adopted NHL collective bargaining agreement prohibits the All-Star Game to be held during Olympic years).
Phoenix has been named as a team in the WAMNRL which will begin in summer 2011.[56]
Phoenix's Ahwatukee American Little League reached the 2006 Little League World Series as the representative from the U.S. West region. Phoenix is one of the three cities that hosts the annual Rock 'n' Roll Arizona Marathon in January.On March 28, 2010 The University of Phoenix stadium hosted WWE's annual extravaganza WrestleMania XXVI which had broke the stadium's attendance record with 72,219 fans which have been broken by the 2011 BCS National Championship Game with 78,603 fans.
(*) Note: The Cardinals won 2 of their championships while in Chicago.
Phoenix is home to a large number of parks and recreation areas. Many waterparks are scattered around the valley to help residents cope with the harsh desert heat during the summer months. Some of the notable parks include Big Surf in Tempe, Wet 'n' Wild Phoenix in Phoenix (has a Glendale mailing address), Golfland Sunsplash in Mesa, and the Oasis Water Park at the Arizona Grand Resort – formerly known as Pointe South Mountain Resort – in Phoenix. The area also has two amusement parks, Castles N' Coasters in north Phoenix, next to the Metrocenter Mall and Enchanted Island located at Encanto Park.
Many parks have been established to preserve the desert landscape in areas that would otherwise quickly be developed with commercial and residential zoning. The most noteworthy park is South Mountain Park, the world's largest municipal park with 16,500 acres (67 km2); others include Camelback Mountain, and Sunnyslope Mountain, also known as "S" Mountain. The Desert Botanical Garden displays desert plant life from deserts all over the world. Encanto Park is the city's largest and primary urban park, and lies just northwest of downtown Phoenix. Papago Park in east Phoenix is home to both the Desert Botanical Garden and the Phoenix Zoo, in addition to several golf courses and the Hole-in-the-Rock geological formation.
The first newspaper in Phoenix was the weekly Salt River Valley Herald, which later changed its name to the Phoenix Herald in 1880.
Today, the city is served by two major daily newspapers: The Arizona Republic (serving the greater metropolitan area) and the East Valley Tribune (serving primarily the cities of the East Valley). The Jewish News of Greater Phoenix is an independent weekly Jewish newspaper that was established in 1948. In addition, the city is also served by numerous free neighborhood papers and weeklies such as the Phoenix New Times, Arizona State University's The State Press, and the College Times. For 40 years, The Bachelor's Beat, a paid weekly newspaper, has covered local politics while selling ads for area strip clubs and escort services.
The Phoenix metro area is served by many local television stations and is the 12th largest designated market area (DMA) in the U.S. with 1,802,550 homes (1.6% of the total U.S.).[57] The major network television affiliates are KPNX 12 (NBC), KNXV 15 (ABC), KPHO 5 (CBS), KSAZ 10 (Fox), KUTP 45 (MNTV), KASW 61 (CW) and KAET 8 (PBS, operated by ASU). Other network television affiliates operating in the area include KPAZ 21 (TBN), KTVW 33 (Univision), KTAZ 39 (Telemundo), KDPH 48 (Daystar), and KPPX 51 (ION). KTVK 3 (3TV) and KAZT 7 (AZ-TV) are independent television stations operating in the metro area. KAZT broadcasts in digital format only.
The radio airwaves in Phoenix cater to a wide variety of musical and talk radio interests.
Many major feature films and television programs have been filmed in the city, including, Waiting to Exhale, War of the Worlds, Days of Thunder, Anastasia, American Anthem, 24, The Kingdom, Transamerica, The Uninvited, What Planet Are You From, Take Me Home Tonight, Titan A.E., O.C. and Stiggs, Pardners, Private Lessons, Song of the South, The Gauntlet, Psycho, Raising Arizona, Jerry Maguire, Baraka, Little Miss Sunshine, Interstate 60, Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, Beyond the Law, A Home at the End of the World, The Prophecy, A Boy and His Dog, Used Cars, Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure (used as a stand-in for San Dimas, California), U Turn, Eight Legged Freaks, Bus Stop, The Getaway, The Grifters, Electra Glide in Blue, Private Lessons, Medium, Blue Collar Comedy Tour: The Movie, Never Been Thawed, Just One of the Guys, Away We Go, Terminal Velocity, Taxi, Twilight, and The Banger Sisters.[58]
As the capital of Arizona, Phoenix houses the state legislature. In 1913, the commission form of government was adopted. The city of Phoenix is served by a city council consisting of a mayor and eight city council members. The mayor is elected in a citywide vote to a four-year term. Phoenix City Council members are elected to four-year terms by voters in each of the eight separate districts that they represent.[59] The current mayor of Phoenix is Greg Stanton, a Democrat who was elected to a four-year term in 2011.[60] The mayor and city council members have equal voting power to adopt ordinances and set the policies that govern the city.[59]
Phoenix operates under a council-manager form of government, with a strong city manager supervising all city departments and executing policies adopted by the Council.[61]
As of February 9, 2009, Phoenix offers a domestic partnership registry open to opposite- and same-sex couples with no resident requirements for registrants.[62]
The city's website was given a "Sunny Award" by Sunshine Review for its transparency efforts.[63]
The Arizona Department of Juvenile Corrections operates the Adobe Mountain School and the Black Canyon School in Phoenix.[64] Another major state government facility is the Arizona State Hospital, operated by the Arizona Department of Health Services. This is a mental health center which is the only medical facility run by the state government.
The headquarters of numerous Arizona state government agencies are in Phoenix, with many located in the State Capitol district immediately west of downtown.
The Federal Bureau of Prisons operates the Federal Correctional Institution (FCI) Phoenix near the northern boundary of the city.
The Sandra Day O'Connor US Courthouse, US District Court of Arizona, is located on Washington Street downtown. It is named in honor of retired US Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, who was raised in Arizona.
The Federal Building is at the intersection of Van Buren Road and First Avenue downtown, and contains various federal field offices and the local division of the US Bankruptcy Court. This building also formerly housed the US District Court offices and courtrooms, but these were moved in 2001 to the new Sandra Day O'Connor US Courthouse. Before the construction of this building in 1961, federal government offices were housed in the historic US Post Office on Central Avenue, completed in the 1930s.
By the 1970s there was rising crime and a decline in business within the downtown core. Arizona Republic writer Don Bolles was murdered by a car bomb at the Clarendon Hotel in 1976. It was believed that his investigative reporting on organized crime in Phoenix made him a target. Bolles' last words referred to Phoenix land and cattle magnate Kemper Marley, who was widely regarded to have ordered Bolles' murder, as well as John Harvey Adamson, who pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in 1977 in return for testimony against contractors Max Dunlap and James Robison. Dunlap was convicted of first degree murder in the case in 1990 and remained in prison, until his death on July 21, 2009, while Robison was acquitted, but pleaded guilty to charges of soliciting violence against Adamson. Street gangs and the drug trade had turned into public safety issues by the 1980s. Van Buren Street, East of downtown (near 24th St), became associated with prostitution. The city's crime rates in many categories have improved since that time, but still exceed state and national averages.
The city has recently seen a tremendous drop in crime in recent years with 2008 and 2009 recording large declines in car thefts and murders. Phoenix expects to report to the FBI nearly 100 murders fewer in 2009 compared to two years prior when 222 murders occurred.[65] Through November 2009, 106 murders were recorded in Phoenix.[66]
Car theft has been a problem in Phoenix. The city consistently ranks high for both total thefts and rate per 100,000. In 2001, Phoenix was number one for theft rate with 35,161 total thefts, giving a rate of 1,081.25 per 100,000.[67] However, in 2003, Phoenix dropped to second place with 1,253.71 per 100,000 (behind Modesto, California), although total car thefts rose to 40,769.[68]
In 2008 Phoenix also experienced a huge decline in auto thefts dropping the city to the number 19 spot for such crimes; credit for the decline has been given to the Phoenix Police Department's efforts to patrol areas where reporting of thefts are prevalent and in use of bait cars to deter would-be thieves.[69]
Phoenix continues to experience large drops in all crimes in 2009 (A 24% drop in all violent crimes in Phoenix for 2008, and a further 18% drop in crime through November 2009 have been experienced in the city).
In the late 2000s, Phoenix earned the title "Kidnapping capital of the USA".[70] The majority of the kidnapped are believed to be victims of human smuggling, or related to illegal drug trade, while the kidnappers are believed to be part of Mexican Drug War cartels, particularly the Sinaloa Cartel. John McCain has also called Phoenix the "Number-Two Kidnapping Capital of the World",[71] even though fact-checkers universally regarded the statement as false.[72]
Public education in the Phoenix area is provided by over 30 school districts.[73] The Phoenix Union High School District operates most of the public high schools in the city of Phoenix. Charter schools such as North Pointe Preparatory, Sonoran Science Academy, and Veritas Preparatory Academy also exist.
Arizona State University is the main institution of higher education in the region. Its main campus is in Tempe. ASU also has campuses in Northwest Phoenix (ASU West Campus), Downtown Phoenix (ASU Downtown Campus) and Mesa (ASU Polytechnic Campus). A branch of the University of Arizona College of Medicine is located at the downtown Phoenix campus. ASU is currently one of the largest public universities in the U.S., with a 2011 student enrollment of 72,250.
There are also small satellite offices for the University of Arizona (based in Tucson) and Northern Arizona University (based in Flagstaff) located in Phoenix.
The Maricopa County Community College District includes ten community colleges and two skills centers throughout Maricopa County, providing adult education and job training. Phoenix College, part of the district, was founded in 1920 and is the oldest community college in Arizona and one of the oldest in the country.
Phoenix is served by Sky Harbor International Airport (IATA: PHX, ICAO: KPHX), which is centrally located in the metro area near several major freeway interchanges east of downtown Phoenix. Sky Harbor is the tenth-busiest airport in the U.S. and 24th in the world[76] for passenger traffic, handling more than 42 million travelers in 2007. The airport serves more than 100 cities with non-stop flights.[77] Aeroméxico, Air Canada, British Airways, and WestJet are among several international carriers as well as American carrier US Airways (which maintains a hub at the airport) providing flights to destinations such as Canada, Costa Rica, and Mexico.[78]
The Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport (IATA: AZA, ICAO: KIWA) in neighboring Mesa also serves the area's commercial air traffic. It was converted from Williams Air Force Base, which closed in 1993. The airport has recently received substantial commercial service with Allegiant Air opening a focus city operation at the airport with non-stop service to over a dozen destinations.
Smaller airports that primarily handle private and corporate jets include Phoenix Deer Valley Airport (IATA: DVT, ICAO: KDVT), located in the Deer Valley district of north Phoenix, as well as municipal airports including Glendale Municipal Airport, Falcon Field Airport in Mesa, and Phoenix Goodyear Airport.
Amtrak has not served Phoenix Union Station since 1996; Phoenix is the largest incorporated city in the United States without intercity passenger train service. The Sunset Limited and Texas Eagle stop three times a week at Maricopa, thirty miles south of downtown Phoenix (for shuttle and other travel information, see the Texas Eagle site).
Amtrak Thruway buses connect Sky Harbor to Flagstaff for connection with the daily Southwest Chief service to Los Angeles and Chicago. Phoenix is served by Greyhound bus service, with the station at 24th Street located near the airport.
Valley Metro provides public transportation throughout the metropolitan area, with its trains, buses, and a ride-share program. 3.38% of workers commute by public transit. During the summer it is very difficult to wait for a bus in the heat as many of the stops have no canopies.[79] Valley Metro's 20-mile (32 km) light rail project, called METRO, through north-central Phoenix, downtown, and eastward through Tempe and Mesa, opened December 27, 2008. Future rail segments of more than 30 miles (48 km) are planned to open by 2030.[80]
In 2000, bicycle transportation was a mode that 0.89% of Phoenix commuters utilized, down from 1.12% a decade earlier.[79]
The Maricopa Association of Governments has a bicycle advisory committee working to improve conditions for bicycling on city streets and off-road paths.[81]
A 2011 study by Walk Score ranked Phoenix the 33rd most walkable of fifty largest cities in the United States.[82]
The street system in Phoenix (also adhered to by some of its suburbs, such as Glendale and Scottsdale) is laid out in a traditional grid system, with most roads oriented either north-south or east-west. The zero point is the intersection of Central Avenue and Washington Street. Numbered Avenues run north–south west of Central; numbered Streets run north–south east of Central. Major arterial streets are spaced one mile (1.6 km) apart. The one-mile (1.6 km) blocks are divided into approximately 1000 house numbers north and south, and 800 house numbers east and west, although this varies. Scottsdale Road, being 7200 East, is approximately 7200 / 800 = 9 miles (14 km) east of Central. The Valley Metro bus numbers are also based on this numbering system, with the Central Avenue bus being Route Zero, and Scottsdale Road being Route 72.
Phoenix is served by a growing network of freeways, many of which were initiated by a ½ cent general sales tax measure approved by voters in 1985. Before this network, Interstate 10 and Interstate 17 handled almost all freeway traffic in Phoenix, placing a large burden on surface arterial streets, leading to increased traffic congestion as the area grew in size.
The current freeway system comprises two interstate routes (I-10 and I-17), the nearly transcontinental US 60, and several state highways as well – including SR 51, SR 85, Loop 101, SR 143, and Loop 202.
Eventually, several other state highways (Loop 303, SR 24, and SR 30) will make their way into the system as they are needed.
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Phoenix, Arizona, has ten sister cities, as designated by the Phoenix Sister Cities Commission:[83]
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Historic Structures in Phoenix, Arizona (NRHP = National Register of Historic Places) [86] (PHPR = Phoenix Historic Property Register) [87] |
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Coordinates: 33°26′54″N 112°04′26″W / 33.4482°N 112.0738°W / 33.4482; -112.0738
State of Arizona | |||||
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Nickname(s): The Grand Canyon State; The Copper State |
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Motto(s): Ditat Deus | |||||
Official language(s) | English | ||||
Spoken language(s) | English 72.58%[1] Spanish 21.57%[1] Navajo 1.54%[1] |
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Demonym | Arizonan[2] | ||||
Capital (and largest city) |
Phoenix | ||||
Largest metro area | Phoenix Metropolitan Area | ||||
Area | Ranked 6th in the U.S. | ||||
- Total | 113,990[3] sq mi (295,234 km2) |
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- Width | 310 miles (500 km) | ||||
- Length | 400 miles (645 km) | ||||
- % water | 0.35 | ||||
- Latitude | 31° 20′ North to 37° North | ||||
- Longitude | 109° 03′ West to 114° 49′ West | ||||
Population | Ranked 16th in the U.S. | ||||
- Total | 6,482,505 (2011 est)[4] | ||||
- Density | 57/sq mi (22/km2) Ranked 33rd in the U.S. |
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Elevation | |||||
- Highest point | Humphreys Peak[5][6][7] 12,637 ft (3852 m) |
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- Mean | 4,100 ft (1250 m) | ||||
- Lowest point | Colorado River at the Sonora border[6][7] 72 ft (22 m) |
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Admission to Union | February 14, 1912 (48th) | ||||
Governor | Jan Brewer (R) | ||||
Secretary of State | Ken Bennett (R) | ||||
Legislature | Arizona Legislature | ||||
- Upper house | Senate | ||||
- Lower house | House of Representatives | ||||
U.S. Senators | John McCain (R) Jon Kyl (R) |
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U.S. House delegation | Five Republicans and three Democrats (list) | ||||
Time zones | |||||
- Most of state | Mountain: UTC-7 | ||||
- Navajo Nation | Mountain: UTC-7/-6 | ||||
Abbreviations | AZ Ariz. US-AZ | ||||
Website | www.az.gov |
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The Flag of Arizona. | |
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Animate insignia | |
Amphibian | Arizona Tree Frog |
Bird(s) | Cactus Wren |
Butterfly | Two-tailed Swallowtail |
Fish | Apache trout |
Flower(s) | Saguaro Cactus blossom |
Mammal(s) | Ring-tailed Cat |
Reptile | Arizona Ridge-Nosed Rattlesnake |
Tree | Palo verde |
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Inanimate insignia | |
Colors | Blue, Old Gold |
Firearm | Colt Single Action Army revolver |
Fossil | Petrified wood |
Gemstone | Turquoise |
Mineral | Fire Agate |
Rock | Petrified wood |
Ship(s) | USS Arizona |
Slogan(s) | The Grand Canyon State |
Soil | Casa Grande |
Song(s) | "Arizona March Song" "Arizona" (alternate) |
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State Quarter | |
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Released in 2008 | |
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Lists of United States state insignia |
Arizona (i/ɛrɪˈzoʊnə/; /ærɪˈzoʊnə/) (Navajo: Hoozdo Hahoodzo; O'odham: Alĭ ṣonak) is a state of the United States, located in the southwestern region of the country. Arizona is also part of the Western United States and of the Mountain West states. Arizona is the sixth most extensive and the 16th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. The second largest city is Tucson, followed in population by eight cities of the Phoenix metropolitan area: Mesa, Chandler, Glendale, Scottsdale, Gilbert, Tempe, Peoria, and Surprise.
Arizona is the 48th state and last of the contiguous states to be admitted to the Union, and it achieved statehood on February 14, 1912. Arizona is noted for its desert climate in its southern half, where there are very hot summers and quite mild winters. The northern half of Arizona also features forests of pine, Douglas fir, and spruce trees, a very large, high plateau (the Colorado Plateau) and some mountain ranges—such as the San Francisco Mountains—as well as large, deep canyons, where there is much more moderate weather for three seasons of the year, plus significant snowfalls. There are ski resorts in the areas of Flagstaff and Alpine.
Arizona is one of the Four Corners states. Arizona has borders with New Mexico, Utah, Nevada, California, and Mexico, and it has one point in common with the southwestern corner of Colorado. Arizona has a 389-mile (626 km)-long international border with the Mexican states of Sonora and Baja California.
Arizona is the most populous landlocked state of the United States, ranking slightly ahead of Tennessee as of 2011. In addition to the Grand Canyon National Park, several national forests, national parks, and national monuments are located in Arizona. About one-quarter of Arizona[8] is federal land that serves as the home of the Navajo Nation; the Hopi tribe; the Tohono O'odham; the Apache tribe; the Yaqui peoples; and various Yuman tribes, such as the Yavapai people, the Quechan people, and the Hualapai people.
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The general consensus is that the name of the state comes from an earlier Spanish name, Arizonac, derived from the O'odham name alĭ ṣonak, meaning “small spring”, which initially applied only to an area near the Mexican silver mining camp of Planchas de Plata, Sonora.[9][10][11][12] This is supported by the fact that that area is still known as alĭ ṣonak in the O'odham language.[13] Other possible origins that have been proposed are the Spanish phrase árida zona (“arid zone”), shortened to “Arizona” or the Basque phrase aritz ona (“the good oak”).[14][15][16]
Arizona is located in the Southwestern United States as one of the Four Corners states. Arizona is the sixth largest state in area, after New Mexico and before Nevada. Of the state's 113,998 square miles (295,000 km2), approximately 15% is privately owned. The remaining area is public forest and park land, state trust land and Native American reservations.
Arizona is best known for its desert landscape, which is rich in xerophyte plants such as the cactus. It is also known for its climate, which presents exceptionally hot summers and mild winters. Less well known is the pine-covered high country of the Colorado Plateau in the north-central portion of the state, which contrasts with the desert Basin and Range region in the southern portions of the state (see Arizona Mountains forests).
Like other states of the Southwest, Arizona has an abundance of topographical characteristics in addition to its desert climate. Mountains and plateaus are found in more than half of the state. Despite the state's aridity, 27% of Arizona is forest,[17] a percentage comparable to modern-day France or Germany. The largest stand in the world of Ponderosa pine trees is contained in Arizona.[18]
The Mogollon Rim, a 1,998-foot (609 m) escarpment, cuts across the central section of the state and marks the southwestern edge of the Colorado Plateau, where the state experienced its second worst forest fire ever in 2002.
Arizona belongs firmly within the Basin and Range region of North America. The region was shaped by prehistoric volcanism, followed by the cooling-off and related subsidence.
The Grand Canyon is a colorful, steep-sided gorge, carved by the Colorado River, in northern Arizona. The canyon is one of the seven natural wonders of the world and is largely contained in the Grand Canyon National Park—one of the first national parks in the United States. President Theodore Roosevelt was a major proponent of designating the Grand Canyon area, visiting on numerous occasions to hunt mountain lion and enjoy the scenery.
The canyon was created by the Colorado River cutting a channel over millions of years, and is about 277 miles (446 km) long, ranges in width from 4 to 18 miles (6 to 29 km) and attains a depth of more than 1 mile (1.6 km). Nearly 2 billion years of the Earth's history have been exposed as the Colorado River and its tributaries cut through layer after layer of sediment as the Colorado Plateaus have uplifted.
Arizona is home to one of the most well-preserved meteorite impact sites in the world. The Barringer Meteorite Crater (better known simply as “Meteor Crater”) is a gigantic hole in the middle of the high plains of the Colorado Plateau, about 25 miles (40 km) west of Winslow. A rim of smashed and jumbled boulders, some of them the size of small houses, rises 150 feet (46 m) above the level of the surrounding plain. The crater itself is nearly 1 mile (1.6 km) wide, and 570 feet (170 m) deep.
Arizona is one of two states that does not observe Daylight Saving Time, except in the Navajo Nation, located in the northeastern region of the state. The other state is Hawaii.
Due to its large area and variations in elevation the state has a wide variety of localized climate conditions. In the lower elevations, the climate is primarily desert, with mild winters and hot summers. Typically, from late fall to early spring, the weather is mild, averaging a minimum of 60 °F (16 °C). November through February are the coldest months with temperatures typically ranging from 40–75 °F (4–24 °C), although occasional frosts are not uncommon. About midway through February, the temperatures start to rise again with warm days, and cool breezy nights. The summer months of June through September bring a dry heat ranging from 90–128 °F (32–53 °C), with occasional high temperatures exceeding 128 °F (53 °C) having been observed in the desert area.[19] Arizona’s all time record high is 128 °F (53 °C) recorded at Lake Havasu City on June 29, 1994, and July 5, 2007; the all time record low of −40 °F (−40 °C) was recorded at Hawley Lake on January 7, 1971.
Due to the primarily dry climate, large temperature swings often occur between day and night in less developed areas of the desert. The swings can be as large as 50 °F (28 °C) in the summer months. In the state’s urban centers, the effects of local warming result in much higher measured nighttime lows than in the recent past.
Arizona has an average annual rainfall of 12.7 inches (323 mm),[20] which comes during two rainy seasons, with cold fronts coming from the Pacific Ocean during the winter and a monsoon in the summer.[6] The monsoon season occurs towards the end of summer. In July or August, the dewpoint rises dramatically for a brief period. During this time, the air contains large amounts of water vapor. Dewpoints as high as 81 °F (27 °C)[21] have been recorded during the Phoenix monsoon season. This hot moisture brings lightning, thunderstorms, wind, and torrential, if usually brief, downpours. These downpours often cause flash floods, which can turn deadly. In an attempt to deter drivers from crossing flooding streams, the Arizona Legislature enacted the Stupid Motorist Law. It is rare for tornadoes and hurricanes to occur in Arizona, but there are records of both occurring.
The northern third of Arizona is a plateau at significantly higher altitudes than the lower desert, and has an appreciably cooler climate, with cold winters and mild summers. Extremely cold temperatures are not unknown; cold air systems from the northern states and Canada occasionally push into the state, bringing temperatures below 0 °F (−18 °C) to the northern parts of the state.
Indicative of the variation in climate, Arizona is the state which has both the metropolitan area with the most days over 100 °F (38 °C) (Phoenix), and the metropolitan area in the lower 48 states with nearly the most days with a low temperature below freezing (Flagstaff).[22]
Marcos de Niza, a Spanish Franciscan, explored parts of the area in 1539 and met some of its original native inhabitants, probably the Sobaipuri. The expedition of Spanish explorer Coronado entered the area in 1540–1542 during its search for Cíbola. Father Kino was the next European in the region. A member of the Society of Jesus, he led the development of a chain of missions and converted many of the Indians to Christianity in the Pimería Alta (now southern Arizona and northern Sonora) in the 1690s and early 18th century. Spain founded presidios (“fortified towns”) at Tubac in 1752 and Tucson in 1775. When Mexico achieved its independence from Spain in 1821, what is now Arizona became part of the Territory of Nueva California, also known as Alta California.[23] In the Mexican–American War (1847), the U.S. occupied Mexico City and pursued its claim to much of northern Mexico, including what later became Arizona. The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (1848) specified that the sum of US$15 million in compensation (equivalent to about $403 million in 2012[24]) be paid to the Republic of Mexico.[25] In 1853, the land below the Gila River was acquired from Mexico in the Gadsden Purchase. Arizona was administered as part of the Territory of New Mexico until southern New Mexico seceded[26] from the Union as the Confederate Territory of Arizona on March 16, 1861. Arizona was recognized as a Confederate Territory by presidential proclamation of Jefferson Davis on February 14, 1862. This is the first official use of the name. Arizona supported the Confederate cause with men, horses, and supplies. Formed in 1862 Arizona Scout Companies fought with the Confederate Army throughout the war. Arizona has the farthest recorded Western engagement of the war, the Battle of Picacho Pass. A new Arizona Territory, consisting of the western half of New Mexico Territory was declared in Washington, D.C., on February 24, 1863. The new boundaries would later form the basis of the state.
Although names, including “Gadsonia”, “Pimeria”, “Montezuma” and “Arizuma” had been considered for the territory,[27] when President Lincoln signed the final bill, it read “Arizona”, and the name became permanent. (Montezuma was not the Aztec Emperor, but the sacred name of a divine hero to the Pima people of the Gila River Valley, and was probably considered—and rejected—for its sentimental value before the name “Arizona” was settled upon.)
Brigham Young sent Mormons to Arizona in the mid-to-late 19th century. They founded Mesa, Snowflake, Heber, Safford and other towns. They also settled in the Phoenix Valley (or “Valley of the Sun”), Tempe, Prescott, and other areas. The Mormons settled what became northern Arizona and northern New Mexico, but these areas were located in a part of the former New Mexico Territory.
During the Mexican Revolution from 1910 to 1920, a few battles were fought in the Mexican towns just across the border from Arizonan border settlements. Throughout the revolution, Arizonans were enlisting in one of the several armies fighting in Mexico. The Battle of Ambos Nogales in 1918, other than Pancho Villa’s 1916 Columbus Raid in New Mexico, was the only significant engagement on U.S. soil between American and Mexican forces. The battle resulted in an American victory. After U.S. soldiers were fired on by Mexican federal troops, the American garrison then launched an assault into Nogales, Mexico. The Mexicans eventually surrendered after both sides sustained heavy casualties. A few months earlier, just west of Nogales, an Indian War battle occurred, thus being the last engagement in the American Indian Wars which lasted from 1775 to 1918. The participants in the fight were U.S. soldiers stationed on the border and Yaqui Indians who were using Arizona as a base to raid the nearby Mexican settlements, as part of their wars against Mexico.
Arizona became a U.S. state on February 14, 1912. This resulted in the end to the territorial colonization of Continental North America. Arizona was the 48th state admitted to the U.S. and the last of the contiguous states to be admitted.
Cotton farming and copper mining, two of Arizona’s most important statewide industries, suffered heavily during the Great Depression, but it was during the 1920s and 1930s that tourism began to be the important Arizonan industry it is today. Dude ranches, such as the K L Bar and Remuda in Wickenburg, along with the Flying V and Tanque Verde in Tucson, gave tourists the chance to experience the flavor and life of the “old West”. Several upscale hotels and resorts opened during this period, some of which are still top tourist draws to this day; they include the Arizona Biltmore Hotel in central Phoenix (opened 1929) and the Wigwam Resort on the west side of the Phoenix area (opened 1936).
Arizona was the site of German and Italian POW camps during World War II and Japanese-American internment camps. The camps were abolished after World War II. The Phoenix area site was purchased after the war by the Maytag family (of major home appliance fame), and is currently the site of the Phoenix Zoo. A Japanese-American internment camp was located on Mount Lemmon, just outside of the state’s southeastern city of Tucson. Another POW camp was located near the Gila River in eastern Yuma County. Because of wartime fears of Japanese invasion of the west coast, all Japanese-American residents in western Arizona were required to reside in the war camps.
Arizona was also home to the Phoenix Indian School, one of several federal institutions designed to forcibly assimilate Native American children into Anglo-American culture. Children were often enrolled into these schools against the wishes of their parents and families. Attempts to suppress native identities included forcing the children to cut their hair and take on English names.[28]
Arizona’s population grew tremendously after World War II, in part because of the development of air conditioning, which made the intense summers more comfortable. According to the Arizona Blue Book (published by the Arizona Secretary of State’s office each year), the state population in 1910 was 294,353. By 1970, it was 1,752,122. The percentage growth each decade averaged about 20% in the earlier decades and about 60% each decade thereafter.
The 1960s saw the establishment of retirement communities, special age-restricted subdivisions catering exclusively to the needs of senior citizens who wanted to escape the harsh winters of the Midwest and the Northeast. Sun City, established by developer Del Webb and opened in 1960, was one of the first such communities. Green Valley, south of Tucson, was another such community and was designed to be a retirement subdivision for Arizona’s teachers. Many senior citizens arrive in Arizona each winter and stay only during the winter months; they are referred to as snowbirds.
In March 2000, Arizona was the site of the first legally binding election to nominate a candidate for public office ever held over the internet.[29] In the 2000 Arizona Democratic Primary, under worldwide attention, Al Gore defeated Bill Bradley, and voter turnout increased more than 500% over the 1996 primary.
Three ships named USS Arizona have been christened in honor of the state, although only USS Arizona (BB-39) was so named after statehood was achieved.
The United States Census Bureau estimates that the population of Arizona was 6,482,505 on July 1, 2011, a 1.42% increase since the 2010 United States Census.[4]
Arizona remained sparsely settled for most of the 19th century.[30] The 1860 census reported the population of “Arizona County” to be 6,482, of whom 4,040 were listed as “Indians”, 21 as “free colored” and 2,421 as “white”.[31][32] In 1980, the Census Bureau reported Arizona's population as 16.2% Hispanic, 5.6% Native American, and 74.5% non-Hispanic white.[33] As of 2006, Arizona had an estimated population of 6,166,318.[34] Arizona’s continued population growth puts an enormous stress on the state’s water supply.[35]
The population of metropolitan Phoenix increased by 45.3% from 1991 through 2001, helping to make Arizona the second fastest growing state in the U.S. in the 1990s (the fastest was Nevada).[36] As of January 2012, the population of the Phoenix area is estimated to be over 4.3 million.
According to the 2010 U.S. Census, Arizona had a population of 6,392,017. In terms of race and ethnicity, the state was 73.0% White (57.8% Non-Hispanic White Alone), 4.1% Black or African American, 4.6% Native American and Alaska Native, 2.8% Asian, 0.2% Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander, 11.9% from Some Other Race, and 3.4% from Two or More Races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race made up 29.6% of the state’s population.[37]
Arizona’s five largest ancestry groups, as of 2009, were:[38]
Arizona is home to the largest number of speakers of Native American languages in the 48 contiguous states, with over 85,000 individuals speaking Navajo,[1] and 10,403 persons reporting Apache as the language spoken at home in 2005.[1] Arizona’s Apache County has the highest concentration of speakers of Native American Indian languages in the United States.[39]
In 2010, illegal immigrants constituted an estimated 7.9% of the population. This was the second highest percentage of any state in the U.S.[40][41]
As of the year 2000, the RCMS[42] reported that the three largest denominational groups in Arizona were Roman Catholic, Evangelical Protestant and Mainline Protestant. The Roman Catholic Church has the highest number of adherents in Arizona (at 974,883), followed by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints with 251,974 members reported and the Southern Baptist Convention, reporting 138,516 adherents. The religious body with the largest number of congregations is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (with 805 congregations[43]) followed by the Southern Baptist Convention (with 323 congregations).
According to a 2007 survey conducted by The Pew Forum, the religious affiliation of the people of Arizona were:[44]
A November 2011 Public Policy Polling survey found that 44% of Arizona voters supported the legalization of same-sex marriage, while 45% opposed it and 12% were not sure. A separate question on the same survey found that 72% of respondents supported legal recognition of same-sex couples, with 40% supporting same-sex marriage, 32% supporting civil unions, 27% opposing all legal recognition and 1% not sure.[45]
The 2011 total gross state product was $259 billion. This figure gives Arizona a larger economy than such countries as Ireland, Finland, and New Zealand. The composition of the state's economy is moderately diverse; although health care, transportation and the government remain the largest sectors. The hub of economic output remains in the phoenix metropolitan area accounting for approximately 74% of the states domestic product. Arizona’s projected $1.5 billion deficit for fiscal year 2012, one of the largest in the country, behind such states as Texas, California, Michigan, and Florida, to name a few.[46][47]
The state’s per capita income is $40,828, ranking 39th in the U.S. The state had a median household income of US$50,448, making it 22nd in the country and just below the U.S. national median.[48] Early in its history, Arizona’s economy relied on the “five C’s”: copper (see Copper mining in Arizona), cotton, cattle, citrus, and climate (tourism). At one point, Arizona was the largest producer of cotton in the country. Copper is still extensively mined from many expansive open-pit and underground mines, accounting for two-thirds of the nation’s output.
The state government is Arizona’s largest employer, while Wal-Mart is the state’s largest private employer, with 17,343 employees (2008). As of June 2010, the state’s unemployment rate was 9.6%.[49]
Nearly 70 percent of the land in Arizona is owned by the U.S. government, which leases a portion of the public domain to ranchers or miners.
According to the Arizona Republic, the largest private employers in the state as of 2010 were:[50]
Rank | Company | Employees | Industry |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. | 30,000 | Discount retailer |
2 | Banner Health | 28,353 | Health care |
3 | Wells Fargo & Co. | 14,000 | Financial services |
4 | Bank of America Corp. | 13,000 | Financial services |
5 | McDonald's Corp. | 12,770 | Food service |
6 | Apollo Group Inc. | 12,000 | Educational services |
7 | Kroger Co. | 12,000 | Grocery stores |
8 | Raytheon Co. | 11,500 | Defense (missile manufacturing) |
9 | JP Morgan Chase & Co. | 10,500 | Financial services |
10 | Honeywell International Inc. | 9,716 | Aerospace manufacturing |
11 | Intel Corp. | 9,700 | Semiconductor manufacturing |
12 | Target Corp. | 9,300 | Discount retailer |
13 | US Airways | 8,926 | Airline |
14 | Catholic Healthcare West | 8,291 | Health care |
15 | Home Depot Inc. | 8,000 | Retail home improvement |
16 | Walgreen Co. | 7,750 | Retail drugstores |
17 | Safeway Stores Inc. | 7,500 | Grocery stores |
18 | American Express Co. | 7,465 | Financial services |
19 | Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. | 7,000 | Mining |
20 | Pinnacle West Capital Corp. | 6,900 | Electric utility |
21 | Bashas' | 6,641 | Grocery stores |
22 | Scottsdale Healthcare | 6,556 | Health care |
23 | UA Healthcare | 6,000 | Health care |
24 | Circle K Corp. | 5,690 | Convenience stores |
25 | General Dynamics | 5,026 | Defense, information systems and technology |
26 | Boeing Co. | 4,800 | Aerospace manufacturing |
27 (tie) | Carondelet Health Network | 4,690 | Health care |
27 (tie) | Mayo Foundation | 4,522 | Health care |
29 | CVS Caremark Corp. | 4,500 | Pharmaceutical services (including retail drugstores) |
30 | Salt River Project | 4,346 | Utility supplier |
31 | Costco Inc. | 4,151 | Membership warehouse club/discount retailer |
32 | Abrazo Health Care | 4,089 | Health care |
33 | Albertsons Inc. | 4,000 | Grocery stores, retail drugstores |
34 | FedEx Corp. | 3,918 | Courier, logistics services |
35 | Southwest Airlines Co. | 3,857 | Airline |
36 | Marriott International | 3,522 | Resorts and hotels |
37 | CenturyLink, Inc. | 3,200 | Telecommunications |
38 | United Parcel Service | 3,170 | Package delivery |
39 | John C. Lincoln Health Network | 3,166 | Health care |
40 | USAA | 3,045 | Financial services |
41 | Charles Schwab & Co. Inc. | 3,001 | Financial services |
42 | Freescale Semiconductor | 3,000 | Semiconductor manufacturing |
43 | IBM Corp. | 3,000 | Technology services |
44 | Cox Communications Inc. | 2,997 | Telecommunications |
45 | TMC HealthCare | 2,966 | Health care |
46 | Verizon Wireless | 2,901 | Mobile network operator |
47 | Cigna HealthCare of AZ | 2,865 | Health care |
48 | Grand Canyon University | 2,818 | Educational services |
49 | Starbucks Coffee Co. | 2,783 | Food service |
50 | Go Daddy Group Inc. | 2,754 | Domain name registry/Web hosting service |
In southern Arizona, the top ten largest public employers, as of 2011, were:[51]
Ranking | Institution/Agency | Employees (2011) |
---|---|---|
1 | University of Arizona | 10,481 |
2 | State of Arizona | 8,866 |
3 | Davis–Monthan Air Force Base | 8,462 |
4 | Tucson Unified School District | 6,709 |
5 | U.S. Army Intelligence Center and Fort Huachuca | 6,225 |
6 | Pima County | 6,403 |
7 | City of Tucson | 4,930 |
8 | Tohono O'odham Nation | 4,350 |
9 | United States Border Patrol | 3,530 |
10 | Pinal County | 2,340 |
Arizona collects personal income taxes in five brackets: 2.87%, 3.20%, 3.74%, 4.72% and 5.04%. The state transaction privilege tax is 6.6%; however, county and municipal sales taxes generally add an additional 2%.
The state rate on transient lodging (hotel/motel) is 7.27%. The state of Arizona does not levy a state tax on food for home consumption or on drugs prescribed by a licensed physician or dentist. However, some cities in Arizona, including Phoenix at 2%, do levy a tax on food for home consumption.
All fifteen Arizona counties levy a tax. Incorporated municipalities also levy transaction privilege taxes which, with the exception of their hotel/motel tax, are generally in the range of 1-to-3%. These added assessments could push the combined sales tax rate to as high as 10.7%.
Single | Tax Rate | Joint | Tax Rate |
---|---|---|---|
0 – $10,000 | 2.870% | 0 – $20,000 | 2.870% |
$10,000 – $25,000 | 3.200% | $20,001 – $50,000 | 3.200% |
$25,000 – $50,000 | 3.740% | $50,001 – $100,000 | 3.740% |
$50,000 – $150,001 | 4.720% | $100,000 – $300,001 | 4.720% |
$150,001 + | 5.040% | $300,001 + | 5.040% |
Interstate 8 | Interstate 10 | Interstate 15 | Interstate 17 | Interstate 19 | Interstate 40
U.S. Route 60 | U.S. Route 64 | U.S. Route 70 | U.S. Route 89 | U.S. Route 66
U.S. Route 91 | U.S. Route 93 | U.S. Route 95 | U.S. Route 160 | U.S. Route 163
U.S. Route 180 | U.S. Route 191 | U.S. Route 466 | U.S. Route 491
Main interstate routes include Interstate 17, and Interstate 19 running north-south, Interstate 40, Interstate 8, and Interstate 10 running east-west, and a short stretch of Interstate 15 running northeast/southwest through the extreme northwestern corner of the state. In addition, the various urban areas are served by complex networks of state routes and highways, such as the Loop 101, which is part of Phoenix’s vast freeway system.
The Phoenix and Tucson metropolitan areas are served by public bus transit systems. Yuma and Flagstaff also have public bus systems. Greyhound Lines serves Phoenix, Tucson, Flagstaff, Yuma, and several smaller communities statewide.
A light rail system, called Valley Metro Rail, has recently been completed in Phoenix; it connects Central Phoenix with the nearby cities of Mesa and Tempe. The system officially opened for service in December 2008.
In May 2006, voters in Tucson approved a Regional Transportation Plan (a comprehensive bus transit/streetcar/roadway improvement program), and its funding via a new half-cent sales tax increment. The centerpiece of the plan is a light rail streetcar system (possibly similar to the Portland Streetcar in Oregon) that will travel through the downtown area, connecting the main University of Arizona campus with the Rio Nuevo master plan area on the western edge of downtown.[52]
Amtrak Southwest Chief route serves Northern AZ, stopping at Winslow, Flagstaff, Williams and Kingman. The Texas Eagle and Sunset Limited routes serve South-Central Arizona, stopping at Tucson, Maricopa, Yuma and Benson. Phoenix's Amtrak service was canceled in 1996, and now an Amtrak bus runs between Phoenix and the station in Maricopa.
Airports with regularly scheduled commercial flights include: Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (IATA: PHX, ICAO: KPHX) in Phoenix (the largest airport and the major international airport in the state); Tucson International Airport (IATA: TUS, ICAO: KTUS) in Tucson; Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport (IATA: AZA, ICAO: KIWA) in Mesa; Yuma International Airport (IATA: NYL, ICAO: KNYL) in Yuma; Prescott Municipal Airport (PRC) in Prescott; Flagstaff Pulliam Airport (IATA: FLG, ICAO: KFLG) in Flagstaff, and Grand Canyon National Park Airport (IATA: GCN, ICAO: KGCN, FAA: GCN), a small, but busy, single-runway facility providing tourist flights, mostly from Las Vegas. Phoenix Sky Harbor is currently 7th busiest airport in the world in terms of aircraft movements, and 17th for passenger traffic.[53][54]
Other significant airports without regularly scheduled commercial flights include Scottsdale Municipal Airport (IATA: SCF, ICAO: KSDL) in Scottsdale, and Deer Valley Airport (IATA: DVT, ICAO: KDVT, FAA: DVT) home to two flight training academies and the Nation's busiest general aviation airport.[55]
The state capital of Arizona is Phoenix. The original Capitol building, with its distinctive copper dome, was dedicated in 1901 (construction was completed for $136,000 in 1900), when the area was still a territory. Phoenix became the official state capital with Arizona's admission to the union in 1912.
The House of Representatives and Senate buildings were dedicated in 1960, and an Executive Office Building was dedicated in 1974 (the ninth floor of this building is where the Office of the Governor is located). The original Capitol building was converted into a museum.
The Capitol complex is fronted and highlighted by the richly landscaped Wesley Bolin Memorial Plaza, named after Wesley Bolin, a governor who died in office in the 1970s. Numerous monuments and memorials are on the site, including the anchor and signal mast from the USS Arizona (one of the U.S. Navy ships sunk in Pearl Harbor), a granite version of the Ten Commandments, and the Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum.
The Arizona Legislature is bicameral (like the legislature of every other state except Nebraska) and consists of a thirty-member Senate and a 60-member House of Representatives. Each of the thirty legislative districts has one senator and two representatives. Legislators are elected for two-year terms.
Each Legislature covers a two-year period. The first session following the general election is known as the first regular session, and the session convening in the second year is known as the second regular session. Each regular session begins on the second Monday in January and adjourns sine die (terminates for the year) no later than Saturday of the week in which the 100th day from the beginning of the regular session falls. The President of the Senate and Speaker of the House, by rule, may extend the session up to seven additional days. Thereafter, the session can only be extended by a majority vote of members present of each house.
The current majority party is the Republican Party, which has held power in both houses since 1993.
Arizona state senators and representatives are elected for two year terms and are limited to four consecutive terms in a chamber, though there is no limit on the total number of terms. When a lawmaker is term-limited from office, it is not uncommon for him or her to run for election in the other chamber.
The fiscal year 2006–07 general fund budget, approved by the Arizona Legislature in June 2006, is slightly less than $10 billion. Besides the money spent on state agencies, it also includes more than $500 million in income- and property tax cuts, pay raises for government employees, and additional funding for the K–12 education system.
Arizona’s executive branch is headed by a governor, who is elected to a four-year term. The governor may serve any number of terms, though no more than two in a row. Arizona is one of the few states that does not maintain a governor’s mansion. During office the governors reside within their private residence, and all executive offices are housed in the executive tower at the state capitol. The current governor of Arizona is Jan Brewer (R). She assumed office after Janet Napolitano had her nomination by Barack Obama for Secretary of Homeland Security confirmed by the United States Senate.[56] Arizona has had four female governors including the current Governor Jan Brewer, more than any other state.
Other elected executive officials include the Secretary of State, State Treasurer, State Attorney General, Superintendent of Public Instruction, State Mine Inspector and a five member Corporation Commission. All elected officials hold a term of four years, and are limited to two consecutive terms (except the office of the state mine inspector, which is exempt from term limits).
Arizona is one of seven states that do not have a specified lieutenant governor. The secretary of state is the first in line to succeed the governor in the event of death, disability, resignation, or removal from office. The line of succession also includes the attorney general, state treasurer and superintendent of public instruction. Since 1977, four secretaries of state and one attorney general have risen to Arizona's governorship through these means.
The Arizona Supreme Court is the highest court in Arizona. The court currently consists of one chief justice, a vice chief justice, and three associate justices. Justices are appointed by the governor from a list recommended by a bi-partisian commission, and are re-elected after the initial two years following their appointment. Subsequent re-elections occur every six years. The supreme court has appellate jurisdiction in death penalty cases, but almost all other appellate cases go through the Arizona Court of Appeals beforehand. The court has original jurisdiction in a few other circumstances, as outlined in the state constitution. The court may also declare laws unconstitutional, but only while seated en banc. The court meets in the Arizona Supreme Court Building at the capitol complex (at the southern end of Wesley Bolin Plaza).
The Arizona Court of Appeals, further divided into two divisions, is the intermediate court in the state. Division One is based in Phoenix, consists of sixteen judges, and has jurisdiction in the Western and Northern regions of the state, along with the greater Phoenix area. Division Two is based in Tucson, consists of six judges, and has jurisdiction over the Southern regions of the state, including the Tucson area. Judges are selected in a method similar to the one used for state supreme court justices.
Each county of Arizona has a superior court, the size and organization of which are varied and generally depend on the size of the particular county.
This section appears to contradict itself about the population total (which does not match detail). Please see the talk page for more information. (January 2012) |
Arizona is divided into political jurisdictions designated as counties. As of 1983 there were 15 counties in the state, ranging in size from 1,238 square miles (3,210 km2) to 18,661 square miles (48,330 km2).
Arizona Counties | ||||||
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County name | County seat | Year founded | 2010 population[57] | Percent of total | Area (sq. mi.) | Percent of total |
Apache | St. Johns | 1879 | 71,518 | 1.12 % | 11,218 | 9.84 % |
Cochise | Bisbee | 1881 | 131,346 | 2.05 % | 6,219 | 5.46 % |
Coconino | Flagstaff | 1891 | 134,421 | 2.10 % | 18,661 | 16.37 % |
Gila | Globe | 1881 | 53,597 | 0.84 % | 4,796 | 4.21 % |
Graham | Safford | 1881 | 37,220 | 0.58 % | 4,641 | 4.07 % |
Greenlee | Clifton | 1909 | 8,437 | 0.13 % | 1,848 | 1.62 % |
La Paz | Parker | 1983 | 20,489 | 0.32 % | 4,513 | 3.96 % |
Maricopa | Phoenix | 1871 | 3,817,117 | 59.72 % | 9,224 | 8.09 % |
Mohave | Kingman | 1864 | 200,186 | 3.13 % | 13,470 | 11.82 % |
Navajo | Holbrook | 1895 | 107,449 | 1.68 % | 9,959 | 8.74 % |
Pima | Tucson | 1864 | 980,263 | 15.34 % | 9,189 | 8.06 % |
Pinal | Florence | 1875 | 375,770 | 5.88 % | 5,374 | 4.71 % |
Santa Cruz | Nogales | 1899 | 47,420 | 0.74 % | 1,238 | 1.09 % |
Yavapai | Prescott | 1865 | 211,033 | 3.30 % | 8,128 | 7.13 % |
Yuma | Yuma | 1864 | 195,751 | 3.06 % | 5,519 | 4.84 % |
Totals: 15 | 6,392,017 | 113,997 |
Arizona's two United States Senators are John McCain (R), the 2008 Republican Presidential Nominee, and Jon Kyl (R).
Arizona's representatives in the United States House of Representatives are Paul A. Gosar (R-1), Trent Franks (R-2), Ben Quayle (R-3), Ed Pastor (D-4), David Schweikert (R-5), Jeff Flake (R-6), and Raul Grijalva (D-7). Arizona gained a ninth seat in the House of Representatives due to redistricting based on Census 2010.
Year | Republican | Democratic |
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2008 | 53.60% 1,230,111 | 45.12% 1,034,707 |
2004 | 54.87% 1,104,294 | 44.40% 893,524 |
2000 | 50.95% 781,652 | 44.67% 685,341 |
1996 | 44.29% 622,073 | 46.52% 653,288 |
1992 | 38.47% 572,086 | 36.52% 543,050 |
1988 | 59.95% 702,541 | 38.74% 454,029 |
1984 | 66.42% 681,416 | 32.54% 333,854 |
1980 | 60.61% 529,688 | 28.24% 246,843 |
1976 | 56.37% 418,642 | 39.80% 295,602 |
1972 | 61.64% 402,812 | 30.38% 198,540 |
1968 | 54.78% 266,721 | 35.02% 170,514 |
1964 | 50.45% 242,535 | 49.45% 237,753 |
1960 | 55.52% 221,241 | 44.36% 176,781 |
See also: Elections in Arizona, Political party strength in Arizona
From statehood through the late 1940s, Arizona was primarily dominated by the Democratic Party. During this time period, the Democratic candidate for the presidency carried the state each election, with the only exceptions being the elections of 1920, 1924 and 1928—all three of which were national Republican landslides.
Since the election of Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1952, however, the state has voted consistently Republican in national politics, with the Republican candidate winning it in most presidential elections. Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan won Arizona by particularly large margins. The sole exception to this trend was the victory of Democrat Bill Clinton in 1996. Clinton also came within about a percentage point of gaining Arizona's electoral votes in 1992. However, the closest loss by a Democrat was by Lyndon Johnson in 1964, who lost the state by slightly over 5,000 votes to Senator Barry Goldwater, an Arizona native. This was also the most closely contested state in that year's presidential election.
In recent years, the Republican Party has also dominated Arizona politics in general. The fast-growing Phoenix and Tucson suburbs became increasingly friendly to Republicans from the 1950s onward. During this time, many "Pinto Democrats," or conservative Democrats from rural areas, became increasingly willing to support Republicans at the state and national level. While the state normally supports Republicans at the federal level, Democrats are often competitive in statewide elections, as in 2006, when Janet Napolitano was handily reelected the state's governor.
On March 4, 2008, John McCain effectively clinched the Republican nomination for 2008, becoming the first presidential nominee from the state since Barry Goldwater in 1964.
Arizona politics are dominated by a longstanding rivalry between its two largest counties, Maricopa County and Pima County--home to Phoenix and Tucson, respectively. The two counties have almost 75 percent of the state's population and cast almost 80 percent of the state's vote. They also elect a substantial majority of the state legislature.
Maricopa County is home to almost 60 percent of the state's population, and most of the state's elected officials live there. It has voted Republican in every presidential election since 1948. This includes the 1964 run of native son Barry Goldwater; he would not have carried his home state had it not been for a 20,000-vote margin in Maricopa County. Similarly, while McCain won Arizona by eight percentage points in 2008, the margin would have likely been far closer if not for a 130,000-vote margin in Maricopa County.
In contrast, Pima County, home to Tucson, and most of southern Arizona have historically been more Democratic. While Tucson's suburbs lean Republican, they hold to a somewhat more moderate brand of Republicanism than is common in the Phoenix area.
Arizona rejected a same-sex marriage ban in a referendum as part of the 2006 elections. Arizona was the first state in the nation to do so. Same-sex marriage was already illegal in Arizona, but this amendment would have denied any legal or financial benefits to unmarried homosexual or heterosexual couples.[58] In 2008, Arizona voters passed Proposition 102, an amendment to the state constitution to define marriage as a union of one man and one woman, though by a narrower majority than similar votes in a number of other states.[59]
In 2010, Arizona passed the toughest illegal immigration legislation in the nation, igniting a fierce debate between supporters and detractors of the law.[60]
Phoenix, located in Maricopa County, is the largest city in Arizona and also the state capital. Other prominent cities in the Phoenix metro area include Mesa (the third largest city in Arizona), Glendale, Peoria, Chandler, Sun City, Sun City West, Fountain Hills, Surprise, Gilbert, El Mirage, Avondale, Tempe, Tolleson and Scottsdale, with a total metropolitan population of just over 4.3 million.[61]
With a metro population of just over one million, Tucson is the state's second largest city, and is located in Pima County, approximately 110 miles (180 km) southeast of Phoenix. It is home to the University of Arizona.
The Prescott metropolitan area includes the cities of Prescott, Sedona, Cottonwood, Camp Verde and numerous other towns spread out over the 8,123 square miles (21,000 km2) of Yavapai County area. With 212,635 residents, this cluster of towns forms the third largest metropolitan area in the state. The city of Prescott (population 41,528) lies approximately 100 miles (160 km) northwest of the Phoenix metropolitan area. Situated in pine tree forests at an elevation of about 5,500 feet (1,700 m), Prescott enjoys a much cooler climate than Phoenix, with average summer highs in the upper 80s Fahrenheit and winter temperatures averaging 50 °F (10 °C).
Yuma is center of the third largest metropolitan area in Arizona. It is located near the borders of California and Mexico. It is one of the hottest cities in the United States with the average July high of 107 °F (42 °C). (The same month's average in Death Valley is 115 °F (46 °C).) The city also features sunny days about 90% of the year. The Yuma Metropolitan Statistical Area has a population of 160,000. Yuma also attracts many winter visitors from all over the United States.
Flagstaff is the largest city in northern Arizona, and is situated at an elevation of nearly 7,000 feet (2,100 m). With its large Ponderosa Pine forests, snowy winter weather and picturesque mountains, it is a stark contrast to the desert regions typically associated with Arizona. It sits at the base of the San Francisco Peaks the highest mountain range in the state of Arizona, with Humphreys Peak, the highest point in Arizona at 12,633 feet (3,851 m). Flagstaff has a strong tourism sector, due to its proximity to numerous tourist attractions including: Grand Canyon National Park, Sedona, and Oak Creek Canyon. Historic U.S. Route 66 is the main east-west street in the town. The Flagstaff metropolitan area is home to 134,421 residents and the main campus of Northern Arizona University.
Lake Havasu City known as "Arizona's playground" resides on the Colorado river and is named after Lake Havasu. Lake Havasu City has a population of about 53,000 people. It is famous for huge spring break parties, sunsets and the London Bridge. Lake Havasu City was founded by Robert P. McCulloch in 1963. It has 2 colleges, Mohave Community College and ASU.
Public schools in Arizona are separated into about 220 local school districts which operate independently, but are governed in most cases by elected county school superintendents; these are in turn overseen by the Arizona State Board of Education (a division of the Arizona Department of Education) and the state Superintendent of Public Instruction (elected in partisan elections every even-numbered year when there is not a presidential election, for a four-year term). In 2005, a School District Redistricting Commission was established with the goal of combining and consolidating many of these districts.
Arizona is served by three public universities: The University of Arizona, Arizona State University, and Northern Arizona University. These schools are governed by the Arizona Board of Regents.
Private higher education in Arizona is dominated by a large number of for-profit and "chain" (multi-site) universities.[62] Only one traditional (single-site, non-profit, four-year) private college exists in Arizona (Prescott College).[63] Arizona has a wide network of two-year vocational schools and community colleges. These colleges were governed historically by a separate statewide Board of Directors but, in 2002, the state legislature transferred almost all oversight authority to individual community college districts.[64] The Maricopa County Community College District includes 11 community colleges throughout Maricopa County and is one of the largest in the nation.
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Professional sports teams in Arizona include:
Club | Sport | League | Championships |
---|---|---|---|
Arizona Cardinals | Football | National Football League | 2 (1925, 1947) |
Arizona Diamondbacks | Baseball | Major League Baseball | 1 (2001) |
Phoenix Coyotes | Ice hockey | National Hockey League | 0 |
Phoenix Suns | Basketball | National Basketball Association | 0 |
Arizona Rattlers | Arena Football | Arena Football League | 2 (1994, 1997) |
Arizona Sundogs | Ice hockey | Central Hockey League | 1 (2007–08) |
Phoenix Mercury | Basketball | Women's National Basketball Association | 2 (2007, 2009) |
Arizona Storm | Indoor Soccer | Professional Arena Soccer League | 0 |
Phoenix Monsoon | Soccer | National Premier Soccer League | 0 |
FC Tucson | Soccer | USL Premier Development League | 0 |
Tucson Padres | Baseball | Pacific Coast League | 0 |
Yuma Scorpions | Baseball | Golden Baseball League | 1 (2007) |
Due to its numerous golf courses, Arizona is home to several stops on the PGA Tour, most notably the Phoenix Open, held at the TPC of Scottsdale, and the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club in Marana.
With three state universities and several community colleges, college sports are also prevalent in Arizona. The intense rivalry between Arizona State University and the University of Arizona predates Arizona's statehood, and is the oldest rivalry in the NCAA.[65] The thus aptly named Territorial Cup, first awarded in 1889 and certified as the oldest trophy in college football,[66] is awarded to the winner of the “Duel in the Desert,” the annual football game between the two schools. Arizona also hosts several bowl games in the Bowl Championship Series. The Fiesta Bowl, originally held at Sun Devil Stadium, will now be held at the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale. The University of Phoenix Stadium was also home to the 2007 BCS National Championship Game and hosted Super Bowl XLII on February 3, 2008. The Insight Bowl is also held at Sun Devil Stadium.
Besides being home to spring training, Arizona is also home to two other baseball leagues, Arizona Fall League and Arizona Winter League. The Fall League was founded in 1992 and is a minor league baseball league designed for players to refine their skills and perform in game settings in front of major and minor league baseball scouts and team executives, who are in attendance at almost every game. The league got exposure when Michael Jordan started his time in baseball with the Scottsdale Scorpions. The Arizona Winter League, founded in 2007, is a professional baseball league of four teams for the independent Golden Baseball League. The games are played in Yuma at the Desert Sun Stadium, but added two new teams in the California desert, and one more in Sonora for the 2008 season.
Arizona is a popular location for Major League Baseball spring training, as it is the site of the Cactus League. The only other location for spring training is in Florida with the Grapefruit League. The Los Angeles Dodgers have a new spring training facility in Phoenix owned by Glendale which opened in 2009, making them the 14th team in Arizona. Spring training has been somewhat of a tradition in Arizona since 1947 (i.e. the Cleveland Indians in Tucson until 1991, and the San Diego Padres in Yuma until 1992) despite the fact that the state did not have its own major league team until the state was awarded the Diamondbacks in Phoenix as an expansion team. The state hosts the following teams:
Phoenix Art Museum, located on the historic Central Avenue corridor in Phoenix, is the Southwest’s largest collection of visual art from across the world. The museum displays international exhibitions along side the Museum’s collection of more than 18,000 works of American, Asian, European, Latin American, Western American, modern and contemporary art, and fashion design. With a community education mandate since 1951, Phoenix Art Museum holds a year-round program of festivals, live performances, independent art films and educational programs. The museum also has PhxArtKids, an interactive space for children; photography exhibitions through the Museum’s partnership with the Center for Creative Photography; the landscaped Sculpture Garden and dining at Arcadia Farms.
Arizona is a recognized center of Native American art, with a number of galleries showcasing historical and contemporary works. The Heard Museum, also located in Phoenix, is a major repository of Native American art. Some of the signature exhibits include a full Navajo hogan, the Mareen Allen Nichols Collection containing 260 pieces of contemporary jewelry, the Barry Goldwater Collection of 437 historic Hopi kachina dolls, and an exhibit on the 19th century boarding school experiences of Native Americans. The Heard Museum has about 250,000 visitors a year.
Sedona, Jerome, and Tubac are known as a budding artist colonies, and small arts scenes exist in the larger cities and near the state universities.
Several major Hollywood films, such as Billy Jack, U Turn, Waiting to Exhale, Just One of the Guys, Can't Buy Me Love, Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, The Scorpion King, The Banger Sisters, Used Cars, and Raising Arizona have been made there (as indeed have many Westerns). The 1993 science fiction movie Fire in the Sky, which was actually based on a reported alien abduction in the town of Snowflake, was set in Snowflake, but filmed in the Oregon towns of Oakland, Roseburg, and Sutherlin.
The climax of the 1977 Clint Eastwood film The Gauntlet takes place in downtown Phoenix. The final segments of the 1984 film Starman take place at Meteor Crater outside Winslow. The Jeff Foxworthy comedy documentary movie Blue Collar Comedy Tour was filmed almost entirely at the Dodge Theatre. Arguably one of the most famous examples could be Alfred Hitchcock's classic film Psycho. Not only was some of the film shot in Phoenix, but the main character is from there as well.
Some of the television shows filmed or set in Arizona include The New Dick Van Dyke Show, Medium, Alice, The First 48, Insomniac with Dave Attell, COPS, and America's Most Wanted. The 1974 film Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore, for which Ellen Burstyn won the Academy Award for Best Actress, and also starred Kris Kristofferson, was set in Tucson, the TV sitcom Alice, which was based on the movie was set in Phoenix. Also the movie, Twilight was filmed in Phoenix at the beginning and the end of the movie.
Arizona is prominently featured in the lyrics of many Country and Western songs, such as Jamie O'Neal's hit ballad "There Is No Arizona". George Strait's "Oceanfront Property" uses "ocean front property in Arizona" as a metaphor for a sucker proposition. The line "see you down in Arizona Bay" is used in a Tool song in reference to the possibility that L.A. will one day fall into the ocean.
"Arizona" was the title of a popular song recorded by Mark Lindsay. Arizona is also mentioned by the hit song "Take It Easy" written by Jackson Browne and Glenn Frey and performed by the Eagles. The song includes the lines:
Arizona's budding music scene is helped by emerging bands, as well as some well-known artists. The Gin Blossoms, Chronic Future, Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers, Jimmy Eat World, Caroline's Spine, and others began their careers in Arizona. Also, a number of punk bands got their start in Arizona, including JFA, The Feederz, Sun City Girls, The Meat Puppets, The Maine, and more recently Authority Zero.
Arizona also has its share of singers and other musicians. Singer, songwriter and guitarist Michelle Branch is from Sedona. Chester Bennington, the lead vocalist of Linkin Park, Bob Stubbs a former member and drummer of the band Social Distortion lives in Arizona, and mash-up artist DJ Z-Trip are both from Phoenix. One of Arizona's better known musicians would be shock rocker Alice Cooper, who helped define the genre. Maynard James Keenan, the lead singer of the bands, Tool, A Perfect Circle, and Puscifer, calls the town of Jerome his current home. Other notable singers include country singer Marty Robbins, folk singer Katie Lee, Fleetwood Mac's Stevie Nicks, CeCe Peniston, Rex Allen, 2007 American Idol winner Jordin Sparks, and Linda Ronstadt.
Arizona is also known for its heavy metal scene, centered in and around Phoenix, which includes bands such as Job for a Cowboy, Knights of the Abyss, Eyes Set To Kill, blessthefall, and Abigail Williams. The band Soulfly calls Phoenix home and Megadeth lived in Phoenix for about a decade.
Some famous Arizonans involved in politics and government are:
Arizona notables in culture and the arts include:
For a complete list, see List of people from Arizona.
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Nevada | Utah | Colorado | ||
California | New Mexico | |||
Arizona: Outline • Index East | ||||
Baja California | Sonora Mexico |
Preceded by New Mexico |
List of U.S. states by date of statehood Admitted on February 14, 1912 (48th) |
Succeeded by Alaska |
Coordinates: 34°N 112°W / 34°N 112°W / 34; -112lez:Аризона
Phoenix ( /ˈfiːnɪks/ FEE-niks; O'odham: Ski:kigk; Yavapai: Wathinka or Wakatehe; Western Apache: Fiinigis; Navajo: Hoozdoh; Mojave: Hachpa 'Anya Nyava) is the capital, and largest city, of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the sixth most populous city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,445,632 people according to the official 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data. It is the anchor of the Phoenix metropolitan area (also known as the Valley of the Sun), and is the 12th largest metro area by population in the United States with about 4.2 million people in 2010. In addition, Phoenix is the county seat of Maricopa County, and is one of the largest cities in the United States by land area. Phoenix is the largest capital city in the United States and the only state capital with over 1,000,000 people.
Phoenix was incorporated as a city in 1881, after being founded in 1861 near the Salt River, close to the confluence with the Gila River. The city has a notable and famous political culture and has been home to numerous influential American politicians and other dignitaries, including Barry Goldwater, William Rehnquist, John McCain, Carl Hayden, and Sandra Day O'Connor. Residents of the city are known as Phoenicians.