Business View Civil & Municipal | Volume 2, Issue 8

109 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 2, ISSUE 8 MAR I COPA , AR I ZONA visitors to Maricopa every weekend.” The city estimates that in 2020, Copper Sky hosted over 250,000 visitors and tournament participants. Of that number, 89 percent had Arizona zip codes, and less than 1 percent were from Pinal County proper. “That means that 99% of our visitors traveled to us,” says Steele. “They didn’t come from Maricopa, but from other places. So, when you ask about tourism, or you ask about recreation, Copper Sky is one of our biggest driving forces behind who’s visiting here.” The word is out and Maricopa is keen to see the positive spillover effects of re-investing in Copper Sky. “We’re going to continue to grow Copper Sky,” Steele says. “The city’s first hotel, La Quinta, is nearly open. It’s being built right there, adjacent to the Copper Sky fields. I think about all those families that are coming here for sports tournaments, and I know they’ll appreciate being able to stay right there on site, rather than having to drive in from a hotel in Phoenix.” Steele’s hope for Maricopa is that it attains the hub status it has aspired to for some time. “We love that more and more people want to live here,” he says, launching into the intricacies of scaling a small city. “Maricopa is popular. Home values are higher than ever. Houses aren’t staying on the market longer than a week because people are snatching them up. We’ve already issued over 1,200 new single-family home permits this year and are on track to do 2000 or more this year alone. What we don’t want is for people to move here and then go work or spend their money somewhere else. That’s why we’re working so hard to bring more jobs to the community. That’s why we’re exploring the tourism and recreation component – those fun things to do. We want them to be able to stay here in Maricopa.” As the city continues to attract residents with its still-affordable housing (including a Courtesy of Victor Moreno Courtesy of Victor Moreno