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38-490: The East Valley Partnership is a coalition of civic, business, educational and political leaders from Ahwatukee , Apache Junction , Carefree , Cave Creek , Chandler , Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation , Florence , Fountain Hills , Gila River Indian Community , Gilbert , Guadalupe , Mesa , Queen Creek , Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community , Scottsdale , Sun Lakes , and Tempe dedicated to promoting economic development in

76-602: A 7.5 miles (12.1 km) test track, dirt tracks, a special testing area with 20 to 60% grade, service shops, and a runway for company executives. The grounds were sold to a property development company in 1983, due to a combination of economic issues, labor union problems, and a patent infringement judgement against the company. The area is now a part of The Foothills and Club West developments. Development of Ahwatukee began in 1970, when Presley Development Company, led by Randall Presley , bought 2,080 acres (840 ha) of land. The land included Ahwatukee Ranch, then owned by

114-646: A handshake deal between Maricopa County Supervisor Bob Stark, who was also an attorney with Presley Development, and Mayor of Phoenix John D. Driggs . However, Chandler and Tempe officials were noted to have refused offers of annexing Ahwatukee. Phoenix annexed the area in stages, from 1980 to 1987. It has been suggested that Phoenix's annexation of Ahwatukee had, to a degree, affected Tempe's future development. Plans for Ahwatukee were approved by Maricopa County in November 1971, and 17 model homes were opened in an area near 50th Street and Elliot Road in 1973. In

152-510: A land syndicate led by an Arizona State University English professor, as well as land owned by a local moving and storage firm. Presley originally planned for the area to be a retirement community , but later devised a mix of retirement living, family living, and light commercial zoning for the area. Presley Development was noted to have a role in Ahwatukee eventually becoming a part of Phoenix, instead of neighboring Chandler or Tempe, through

190-501: A solution to the demise of community that is often associated with modernism and sprawl. The concept uses the social and physical morphology of the traditional rural village as an inspiration for creating better functioning communities. The urban village movement has been influenced by Ebenezer Howard ’s Garden City ideals which also emphasize environmental determinism in relation to community. Urban design techniques such as public space and pedestrianization are employed to facilitate

228-492: A strong, vital economy and preparing for greater global competition. Since March 2010, East Valley Partnership has published Gateway to the East Valley magazine, a quarterly publication that exists to promote the economic development and quality of life of one of the most vibrant growth centers in the U.S. It highlights notable events in business, education, healthcare, technology, tourism, aviation and aerospace. The magazine

266-431: A true urban village form, have not achieved their objectives. Some planners question whether a genuine urban village has actually been built. The objectives of urban villages are often criticized as unrealistic because they ignore broader social and economic realities. The ability to create self-contained villages is questionable as employment and activity patterns continue to become more complex. The viability of creating

304-428: A variety of employment and activity within an area with a small population base can also be questioned. It has been suggested that the demise of the neighborhood community is a function of "conscious economic and social choice" rather than a product of urban form. The limitations of the urban village concept to achieve sustainability in urban areas have also been studied in developing countries, which further emphasizes

342-699: Is also available online at www.eastvalleygateway.com https://tech.aztechcouncil.org/list/member/east-valley-partnership-mesa-1363 Ahwatukee, Phoenix Ahwatukee Foothills (also Ahwatukee ) is an urban village of Phoenix, Arizona . Ahwatukee forms the southernmost portion of Phoenix, and is considered part of the East Valley region of the Phoenix metropolitan area . In 2022, Niche rated Ahwatukee "#1 in Best Neighborhoods to Live in Phoenix". Prior to

380-547: Is expected to grow to nearly 736,000 households by 2015. This unprecedented growth has resulted in the following: Young, higher income residents; a culture that values education; high educational attainment; an influx of a highly skilled and talented workforce; a consumer base of over $ 36 billion; over 62,000 business establishments; science and research-based companies; and new infrastructure and transportation networks. A strong collaboration of civic leaders, policymakers, business leaders and educational leaders are working to foster

418-402: Is in contrast to the single-use zoning that helped fuel urban sprawl during the industrial and manufacturing eras. Through more consolidated development, urban villages can reduce the intrusion of urban growth on the countryside. These environmental consequences of urban sprawl have come to dominate discussion promoting urban villages in recent years. Urban villages are widely seen to provide

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456-466: Is operated by Valley Metro Bus . Riders, however, have complained of poor service after a new contractor took over the route in 2016. Portions of Ahwatukee are also served by Valley Metro Routes 56-Priest Drive, 108-Elliot Road, 140-Ray Road, 156-Chandler Boulevard/Williams Field Road, and the I-10 East RAPID route. As a result of having access points only via 48th Street in the northeastern part of

494-709: Is partnered with the East Valley Tribune , a newspaper that has served the East Valley for over 100 years. Gateway to the East Valley is distributed to community leaders and elected officials, businesses, medical facilities, retail stores, college and university campuses, libraries, hotels, airports, golf courses, health clubs and other high-traffic areas throughout Chandler, Gilbert, Mesa, Tempe, Queen Creek, Apache Junction, Fountain Hills, Scottsdale, Ahwatukee, Carefree, Cave Creek, Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation, Florence, Gila River Indian Community, Guadalupe, Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community and Sun Lakes. The magazine

532-410: Is rumored to have, in the 1940s, disassembled and buried in the Ahwatukee desert a Studebaker auto purportedly owned by Al Capone . One of the first houses in the area was built by Dr. William Van Bergen Ames, who co-founded Northwestern University 's now-closed Dental School. The house was built on a piece of land measuring over 2,000 acres (810 ha), which was purchased for $ 4 an acre. At

570-498: The periphery of Phoenix, the East Valley stood in the shadow of the superior political clout of Phoenix with little united strength to win government funding or allocations for the seven individual cities comprising the East Valley. In the spring of 1982, a group of influential business leaders held the first meeting to create guidelines for an aligned coalition that became the East Valley Partnership. An executive committee

608-427: The urban sprawl that has characterized the development of many cities since World War II . Urban villages are seen to create self-contained communities that reduce the need to travel large distances and reduce the subsequent reliance on the automobile. The decline of noxious industry and the emergence of the service economy allows the mixing of employment and residential activities without detriment to residents. This

646-604: The Ahwatukee Foothills Chamber of Commerce acknowledged "house of dreams" as the meaning of the area's name. However, according to the Crow language dictionary maintained by the Crow Language Consortium, the Crow word for "house" is ashé , and the Crow word for "dream" is baashíale or balewaashíale . Some sources claim the name is a Crow term for "land on the other side of the hill", based on

684-402: The Crow word awe chuuke . According to the same Crow dictionary, the word awé means "ground", "land", or "earth", and the word chúuke means "over the ridge", "over the hill", or "the next valley over". According to one source, the name closely resembles a Crow term for "flat land" or "prairie". According to the Crow language dictionary maintained by the Crow Language Consortium,

722-593: The Crow word for "flat land" is alawachúhke . The Ahwatukee Foothills Village is bordered by Interstate 10 to the east, South Mountain to the north, and the Gila River Indian Community & Loop 202 to the west and south. Ahwatukee is geographically isolated from the rest of Phoenix, and was once seen as appropriate for semi-rural development. Based on 2016 estimates, the Ahwatukee Foothills Village has 83,464 residents. 83% of

760-422: The East Valley Partnership was originally conceived as a small, restricted group of top leaders, today it has broadened to include leading individuals from all areas of business, education, government and civic enterprise united as an entity representing the interests of the East Valley. The East Valley Partnership, recognizing that more can be accomplished by working together, now regularly collaborates with Phoenix,

798-471: The East Valley. The Partnership actively advocates in areas such as economic development; education; transportation and infrastructure; arts, behavioral health; and other important areas. In 1980, The Wall Street Journal noted that the East Valley of metropolitan Phoenix was one of the most vibrant growth centers in the United States, with extremely high residential and commercial market potential. Located on

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836-706: The United States. Urban villages are seen to provide an alternative to recent patterns of urban development in many cities, especially decentralization and urban sprawl . They are generally purported to: The concept of urban villages was formally born in Britain in the late 1980s with the establishment of the Urban Villages Group (UVG). Following pressure from the UVG, the concept was prioritized in British national planning policy between 1997 and 1999. Urban villages also come in

874-469: The area's development, the name "Ahwatukee" referred to a since-demolished house that sat in an area near Sequoia Trails and Appaloosa Drive, west of the Warner-Elliot Loop. The name has been said to derive from a Crow word meaning "house of dreams", however Ahwatukee is not a Crow word. At least two major thoroughfares in today's Ahwatukee are named after people who claimed lands in the area, in

912-710: The area, and a number of east–west crossings over I-10, Ahwatukee has been called the world's largest cul-de-sac . The building of Loop 202 's South Mountain Freeway segment, however, has given the area a western gateway, via a series of exits along the southern border of the community. Urban village In urban planning and design , an urban village is an urban development typically characterized by medium-density housing , mixed use zoning, good public transit and an emphasis on pedestrianization and public space . Contemporary urban village ideas are closely related to New Urbanism and smart growth ideas initiated in

950-575: The area: Desert Vista and Mountain Pointe . Both schools are operated by the Tempe Union High School District There are a number of private schools in Ahwatukee. One of the schools, Summit School of Ahwatukee, is ranked as one of the most expensive private schools in the Phoenix area by The Arizona Republic in 2014. The community is served by the ALEX neighborhood circulator, which

988-480: The decades following the signing of the Homestead Act in 1862. Warner Road was named after Samuel Warner of Kansas, while Elliot Road was named after Reginald Elliott of California. Both claimed lands in an area now known as Tempe . A third man, Arthur Hunter, claimed land within an area now known as Ahwatukee. The street known today as 48th Street was, for a time, named Hunter Drive , after Arthur Hunter. Hunter

1026-516: The development of community by encouraging human interaction. This philosophy shares many attributes with the new urbanism school of thought. Many urban village developments, both Government and privately initiated, have been seen to depart from the original ideals of the concept. Private developments often use the "urban village" label as an advertising pitch or to win Government support for their project. Many developments, although intended to create

1064-465: The form of suburbs of metropolitan areas that are politically designated as villages. Urban village ideals have been applied to new greenfield and brownfield developments and urban renewal projects. The concept has been widely adopted in many countries and used by both government development agencies as well as private enterprise as a guiding concept for many projects. The ideas of the urban commentator Jane Jacobs are widely regarded as having had

1102-539: The house on Thanksgiving of 1921, but Dr. Ames died suddenly in February 1922. Ames' wife continued to spend her winters at the house until her death in 1933. Following Ames' wife's death, the Ames' property in Ahwatukee was willed to St. Luke's Hospital. The property was bought by Helen Brinton in 1935, who gave the house (and eventually the area) the name it is known by today (as explained below). Brinton died in 1960, and

1140-487: The house was demolished in 1979. In 1946, the International Harvester Company rented land from a United States Army tank testing facility located west of today's Lakewood community, for use as truck and heavy equipment proving grounds. The proving grounds eventually grew to over 4,000 acres (1,600 ha). The grounds were designed to stress-test trucks and heavy equipment with, among other things,

1178-434: The institutional barriers against such an application in the case of the developing countries. This issue becomes more critical when we accept that the institutional landscape in rural environments is more complex than urban areas and that incompatible institutional structure of the developing countries would add to the idealistic nature of the urban village concept. Some urban commentators believe that urban villages are not

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1216-514: The largest influence on the urban village concept. Jacobs rejected the modernist views that dominated urban planning and architecture in the 1950s–60s and constructed an alternative philosophy that values traditional neighborhoods and the role of the inner city. Proponents believe that urban villages provide a viable alternative to the social ills that characterize modernism in cities, such as freeways and high-rise estates. Another strong impetus for urban villages has been growing disenchantment with

1254-558: The name has roots in the Crow language . Some stories of the name's origin trace back to Brinton, who chose a Crow-rooted name for her new property due to her time among the Crow Nation tribal members in Wyoming , and the influence it subsequently had on her. Some sources claim the name is a Crow term for house of your dreams , house of my dreams , or house of dreams Until at least 2006,

1292-479: The population are White , 6.5% are Asian , 5.6% are Black or African American, 1.6% are Native American and 3.3% identify as some other race. 12.3% of the population is Hispanic. K-8 public school students in the area attend schools operated by the Kyrene School District . In fact, Ahwatukee-based schools constitute 12 out of 25 (48%) of Kyrene's schools. High school students go to one of two in

1330-570: The same year as the model homes’ opening, the Arizona State Legislature set aside $ 5 million to build a prison near the proving grounds. Plans for the prison, however, were later scrapped. The area's first elementary school, Kyrene de los Lomas , opened in 1976, while Mountain Pointe High School opened as the area's first high school in 1991. There exist three theories surrounding the name "Ahwatukee", with all three claiming

1368-680: The time, the Chandler Arizonan newspaper called the house, built in the foothills of the South Mountain , "unmatched in scope and size". The house was noted to be a 12,000 square feet (1,100 m ) winter residence, designed by prominent Phoenix architect Lester Mahoney, with construction starting in 1921. The house was given the name "The Mystic House" by the Chandler Arizonan , due to its cost, size, and isolated location. The Ames, however, called it Casa de Sueños . They moved into

1406-454: The western portion of the Valley and Pinal County leaders in a wide range of issues. The East Valley of Greater Phoenix, Arizona comprises fifteen communities and is one of the most dynamic regions in the country with record-growth since 1980. In fact, there has been almost one million new residents since the 1990 census. The East Valley currently has nearly 655,000 households in its trade area, and

1444-514: Was formed and appointed a selection committee to identify a list of influential leaders from the East Valley. The initial group was nonpartisan and represented the needs of the region. By early 1983, the East Valley Partnership had become a functioning body made up of legislators, city and county officials, business leaders and city leaders. Several primary concerns were identified. Among the concerns were transportation, court system decentralization, water, economic development, and human services. While

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