Scottsdale breaks ground for preserve 'Gateway'

A new era was ushered in at Scottsdale's McDowell Sonoran Preserve on Saturday.

With shovels in hand, Mayor Mary Manross and members of the City Council and the McDowell Sonoran Conservancy broke ground for the preserve's long awaited "Gateway."

The Gateway, located northeast of the Thompson Peak Parkway and Bell Road intersection, is the largest entry point being planned for the preserve.

In the next year, the preserve is expected to expand its public access with additional interpretive trails and educational programming.

Scottsdale's preservation director, Bob Cafarella, said the estimated $5 million project (which includes planned trails) is funded with city money through the preservationtax and $180,000 in heritage funds.

Project plans include public and equestrian trails, an amphitheater for educational programs and events, a mountain bike area, restrooms, and a small office for city staff and volunteers.

Last week the council approved a $1.26 million dollar construction services contract for the first phase of the Gateway project.

Cafarella expects temporary parking at the Gateway to be ready by October, with overall construction being finished by April.

For Jamie Drinkwater Buchanan of Carefree, the groundbreaking marked the realization of one of her father's dreams.

"It's a great legacy to be part of," said Drinkwater Buchanan, regarding the preserve and remembering how her father, the late Scottsdale Mayor Herb Drinkwater, fought during his tenure to protect the sprawling open land now known as the McDowell Sonoran Preserve.

In 1995, she said voters passed an initiative to create the preserve and start a preservation tax. One of the mountains in the preserve was recently named Drinkwater Peak, after the mayor who served Scottsdale from 1980 to 1996.

Manross said preserving this land will go down as perhaps one of Scottsdale's greatest contributions to its residents and visitors for generations to come.

"Completing this preserve will have a great impact on the life of the community," said Manross, who urged voters Saturday to support the state land reform measure on the ballot in November.

If passed, the mayor said another 5,000 acres on the preserve's boundary will be protected and allow the city to sign a purchasing agreement for another 9,000 acres without having to compete at auction.

A little less than half of the preserve's 36,400 acres are protected from development. The balance of the acreage is state land.