Pinal area ponders new name, incorporation

It's an area with more residents than Flagstaff. And it uses the Queen Creek name for addresses, even though it's not really in the town and has more than three times as many residents.

Despite having 79,000 inhabitants, this area of unincorporated Pinal County near the San Tan Mountains, sometimes referred to as the Greater San Tan Area, doesn't have its own identity or city government. It depends on Pinal County to provide services and has one local representative, Supervisor Bryan Martyn, who is advocating change.

While large subdivisions sprouted out of the desert and developed identities during the housing boom, including Johnson Ranch and Copper Basin, the larger area doesn't have a sense of place or local control, he says.

Martyn wants to fix it with a two-step process. First, give the community a name. Then, vote on whether to become an incorporated city.

Name game

Martyn figures to time the first step with a change already being imposed: He wants the area to adopt a unique name the same time its ZIP code changes July 1.

He began meeting with homeowners associations in February. After conferring with roughly 200 people, which he acknowledges isn't a majority but contends represented a wide geographic area, he settled on the name Bella Vista.

The name, "beautiful view," comes from a road in the center of the community, Martyn said.

As word got out and surprised residents, Bella Vista wasn't received as well by others. Tisha Castillo, president-elect for the San Tan Area Chamber of Commerce, is holding a meeting Monday, and she set up an online voting forum to discuss the name.

"People are surprised that this is a discussion," Castillo said. "People are finding out now that this is being pushed on them rather than having a discussion."

Since there's a one-year grace period on using old ZIP codes, Castillo doesn't think a name change - if one happens at all - needs to be rushed in the next few weeks.

Residents are divided on whether they like the name, but even some who don't mind the moniker are perturbed by the process.

"We found out about the ZIP code change a couple of weeks ago. The issue of naming it Bella Vista we found out about in the last five days," said Steve Beal, who has lived in Johnson Ranch for about three years. "I can live with the name Bella Vista. I can't live with the manner it's been done."

Martyn said it's been difficult to get the word out about the change.

"Most people aren't really worried about the name. They just want to make sure their voice was heard," he said.

Martyn sent a letter to the post office last week requesting the name change but then called to ask for a one-week extension.

Voting on the area's new name will be tabulated and announced Tuesday , he said.

Incorporation questions

Whatever the community is called, residents will have a larger question moving forward. Namely, whether to incorporate.

Incorporation would immediately make the area the largest city in Pinal County. The biggest city at the moment is Casa Grande, with 45,000 people.

Martyn thinks the area is limiting its own potential without incorporation.

As it is, the area costs the county more than it contributes. Based on the original incorporation map Martyn drew, which includes 60,000 people, the area receives $34 million worth of services but pays $19 million in property taxes, Martyn said.

And that's without services like its own library or fire department. Martyn said he recently turned down a library for the area because of the cost.

Incorporating would give the city access to state shared revenues and the option to impose property or sales taxes. Residents could do with that money what they want, Martyn said.

"They should have a city council. They should have a mayor. They should have a say about what happens in their borders," he said.

Not a new concept

Incorporation talks aren't new to the area, although they would be to most residents.

Two incorporation efforts were pushed in 2004 and 2005. Newspaper reports from the time pegged the area at 20,000 residents.

There are two methods areas can use to incorporate: gather signatures of two-thirds of registered voters or get the signatures of 10 percent of registered voters to force the issue to a ballot.

Martyn hopes to put the issue to voters in November 2010. While he's in favor of incorporation, he insists the drive has to come from the community.

Leading that conversation is Steve Johnson, a business owner on the board of the San Tan Area Chamber. Johnson leans toward incorporating but is careful to say he's not completely sold.

The biggest question is how money would be generated. Johnson said the area couldn't incorporate if it was just homes, but there is potential for revenue with developments like the under-construction Banner hospital at Gantzel and Combs roads.

He also sees potential for the area to develop in a manner he likened to the Scottsdale Airpark, which is now a destination but something Johnson questioned when moving to Arizona in 1993.

"Our first couple years, we may be eating ramen noodles and be that poor starving college student," Johnson said. "But in a couple years, we may be able to eat steak. This area that was the 'drive till you qualify' ... could draw in economic development and end up being a lucrative area, much like the Scottsdale Airpark."

Roads will be a challenge, but existing rail lines could help development, Johnson said. And because cities have more control over development impact fees, that could mean charging less than the county does for new development.

But lower fees aren't a guarantee, and Banner has explored annexing into Queen Creek, he said.

'Ton of rooftops'

Castillo has questions, too, but she's leaning the other way.

"We don't have any revenue. We don't have any commercial. We are a ton of rooftops," Castillo said. "It's scary to think how we would be able to support ourselves."

Other residents have different thoughts. Janiece Fowler, who is helping Castillo spread the word about Monday's meeting, moved to Johnson Ranch hoping Queen Creek would bring them into its boundaries.

She wants city services but questions whether the area could set up a new city. It may be smarter to annex into an existing area, like Florence, she said.

Lori Leiman, who thought Johnson Ranch was in Queen Creek when she moved there, is for incorporation. She's been in similar situations in California and Florida.

"This is the third time I've not lived where I was supposed to," Leiman said.

While she said some places don't have enough light industry to support a city, she seemed confident industry would grow in Pinal County.

Beal said he would probably vote for incorporation.

"You hear both sides of it. You hear there's going to be a huge cost, a tax increase if we incorporate," Beal said. "But there are also benefits for incorporation. We'd have our own identity, and that's worth something."

Voting for a name

A meeting to discuss a potential name for unincorporated Pinal County will be held at 6:30 p.m. Monday at Circle Cross Ranch K-8 School, 35900 N. Charbray Drive, Queen Creek

Online voting through Monday is available on the Greater San Tan Area Coalition Web site, www.ourgstac.com. Click on the "meetings" tab at the top of the page.