News Release: Marana’s Street Plan Opposed by Two Properties in North Marana

Notices of claim against the Town of Marana totaling $16.9 million have been filed by the owners of two proposed northwest Marana development projects, Marana Mercantile and Uptown. The Marana Mercantile property is the vacant land on the north side of Marana Road just west of the Marana interchange. The Uptown property is the farm field immediately west of the Marana Mercantile property. The owners are willing to settle for a combined total of $12 million.

The claims relate to recent changes to the northwest Marana street plan.

Northwest Marana is served by two freeway interchanges—at Tangerine Road and Marana Road. Marana’s street plan creates an inner loop to serve northwest Marana, connecting the Marana Road interchange on the north to Tangerine Road interchange on the south. The Town has always desired for the inner loop to connect directly to Marana Road on the north, just as it connects directly to Tangerine Road on the south.

But when the Marana Mercantile and Uptown developments were approved in 2007, a traffic study predicted massive growth and population in far west Pima County and northwest Marana, leading the Town to adopt a plan that would direct all traffic from the Marana Interchange westward on Marana road, away from existing businesses and future downtown, and requiring left turn access to the inner loop.

Recent population and growth projections now make it feasible to implement the Town’s preferred direct inner loop connection to the Marana interchange. So in April 2015, the Town changed its street map to make the direct inner loop connection to the Marana interchange and draw traffic closer to existing and planned downtown Marana businesses.

Marana’s adopted roadway plan alignment gives dramatically improved access to the existing Sandario Road Business District and future Marana Main Street, and provides direct, continuous right-turn access onto Marana Road for traffic heading west to Marana Mercantile, Uptown, and beyond. The result is a safe, direct, and balanced distribution of regional traffic to future public amenities and destinations for the benefit of the entire community.

Marana a Top-10 Digital City

For the fourth year in a row, Marana ranks as a top 10 digital city as designated by the Center for Digital Government.

The Center for Digital Government announced the winners of the 2015 Digital Cities Survey today, recognizing leading examples of cities using technology to improve services and boost efficiencies. Marana is ranked 5th for populations up to 75,000.

“The top-ranked digital city governments in this year’s survey are using cloud services, data analytics and mobile apps—among other technologies—to help citizens interact with government more easily than ever before,” said Todd Sander, executive director of the Center for Digital Government. “These cities are true innovators and we applaud their efforts to increase transparency and open government, encourage citizen participation, and enhance cybersecurity. Congratulations to the winners!”

The Center for Digital Government highlighted the following Town of Marana technology initiatives:

• Town Website redesign.  On July 1, 2015 the Town launched a new web site. The site was designed with a single page concept so that visitors to the site can quickly find what they are looking for with just one click from the home page. The design team also went with a more open design that integrated commonly used plugin apps and apps coded by the Town staff. Feedback from residents and businesses has been very positive. It is a simple design that provides easy access to the information that Town site visitors require.
• In 2012 the Town introduced its Mobile app “My Marana”. Until recently the app has been a 311 application for reporting issues within the community. Town staff worked to provide additional information to its users via the app. These include Town social link feeds, GIS maps, employment opportunities, news and event information, and the ability to pay utility bills through the app.
• The Town's app creation capabilities were put to good use in the fast-tracked construction of a new outlet mall, which paired Technology Services and Building Services staff to speed contractor site inspections. The team developed an app with features like a one-click inspection request and a quick permit lookup that proved helpful in keeping the project on track.

Now in its 15th year, the Digital Cities Survey is part of the Center for Digital Government’s Digital Communities program, which focuses on collaboration among cities, counties and regions. The survey focuses on citizen engagement, policy, operations, and technology and data. Responses are reviewed and judged based on a set of criteria and how well the cities implemented these services across the city.

The survey honors cities in four population classifications: 250,000 or more; 125,000 to 249,999, 75,000 to 124,999 and fewer than 75,000. 

News Release: Town Council Passes Resolution Supporting Fisher House

On Tuesday, October 20, the Marana Town Council approved a resolution in support of the Arizona Fisher House to be located on the campus of the Southern Arizona VA Health Care Center in Tucson.  This facility will provide free housing for families of active military and veterans who are undergoing treatment provided by the Southern Arizona VA Health Care System at the Tucson VA hospital or area facilities.  As a Purple Heart Town, Marana firmly supports all efforts that support our veteran community.

There are 65 Fisher Houses located on 24 military installations and 24 VA medical centers across the United States, Germany, and England. Tucson will be home to the 66th Fisher House.  By recognizing that “a family’s love is good medicine,” the Fisher House network unites relatives as they gather in a time of need.  By removing the stress of finding a place to stay, Fisher Houses everywhere seek to ease the already heavy burden borne by military and veteran families.  Since its inception in 1991, the Fisher House community has saved families an estimated $282 million in out-of-pocket lodging and transportation expenses. In 2014 alone over 25,000 families were served.

In 2011, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs approved the Southern Arizona VA as the site for the newest Fisher House.  Construction is anticipated to be complete by the end of 2015 and hosting guests in early 2016.  When it opens its doors, it will offer 16 fully furnished suites to visitors, along with a large shared kitchen, laundry facility, and communal living space.

“The Marana Town Council is deeply committed to its veteran community,” says Town Manager Gilbert Davidson.  “With the new veterans cemetery to be completed next year, along with the Town’s Purple Heart designation, we are eager to support any effort that helps improves the lives of veterans.” 

In 2013 alone, the Southern Arizona VA in Tucson served over 2,000 veterans with families living outside Tucson.  Soon, those families will be able to stay nearby, rather than having to find a hotel or travel a long distance for a brief visit.  Marana is a proud supporter of this project and is pleased that the Southern Arizona VA will soon be able to offer this amenity. The Friends of Arizona Fisher House Foundation will continue supporting families by providing food, local transportation and other necessities for the families and needs of the house itself. For more information on how to help, please visit www.arizonafisherhouse.org.

Town Council and School Board Host Joint Meeting

MUSD Superintendent Doug Wilson Addresses Council and School Board

In many communities, schools and local government operate in entirely different worlds.   That division begins in the polling booth, where voters elect separate council and school board candidates.  In Marana, however, local elected leaders are working to bridge that chasm.  Tuesday night, the Town Council and the Marana Unified School Board convened a joint meeting at the Marana Municipal Complex in which representatives from each side shared examples of the many ways schools and government are inextricably linked.  By creating a space for collaboration, both the Town Council and the School Board hope to open an ongoing dialogue about the ways schools and government can achieve their shared goal of creating a vibrant, well-educated community.

Mayor Ed Honea and School Board President Dan Post called the meeting to order, each acknowledging the importance of a close relationship between the two political bodies.  “If we can share resources, it’s an asset for both of us,” explained Honea, as he welcomed the members of the School Board. 

Town Manager Gilbert Davidson echoed Honea’s remarks, describing the feedback loop in which the Council and School Board operate.  “If the Town works to create a great space, people are going to want to move to this community.”  Those new residents will pay property taxes and will send their children to Marana’s schools, Davidson explained. 

Marana’s Economic Development Director Curt Woody, who is deeply familiar with the local business community, provided the concrete evidence to back up these claims.  When businesses choose to locate here, they care much more about the quality of the local schools than they do about tax incentives.  “A strong educational system is the most important element for economic development,” affirmed Woody emphatically.  “We have to break down the silos between education, government, and businesses.”

Responding to these assertions, Cathie Raymond, who directs career and technical education for MUSD, shed light on some of the programs the district runs which enable students to experience real-world work environments.  She listed off a wide array of career-oriented options, from automotive engineering to business management.  “Our job is to teach our students how to become adults and how to become financially independent,” summarized Raymond for the Council and School Board.  Around the room, heads nodded firmly in agreement.

Concluding the meeting was a joint presentation from Patricia Cadigan, MUSD’s executive director of bond projects, and Russ Federico, the district’s executive director of operational support.  Cadigan detailed how MUSD plans to spend the $125 million bond approved by voters in 2014.  Principally, the district has already broken ground on a new elementary school serving Gladden Farms.  The creative design of its classrooms includes moving glass walls which teachers can manipulate to construct all kinds of different learning environments.  This new school, which can serve 750 students at capacity, will open in time for the 2016-2017 school year. 

Physical construction, though, is not the only plan MUSD has in the pipeline.  Eventually, all students grades three through twelve will receive their own Chromebooks, announced Federico.  “We want to put our students together not only physically, we want to put them together digitally.”  In the long term, the digital and physical will meet in a new STEM Academy serving Dove Mountain, which the district hopes to open in the 2019-2020 school year. 

By the end of the meeting, it had become abundantly clear that neither the Town Council nor the School Board could see any limitation on their future work.  Superintendent Doug Wilson hopes eventually to create an entire complex near Marana Main Street that may include a new high school, performing arts theater, cultural center, and library.  This hub may grow to include restaurants, hotels, and retail options.  The district, he explained, already has $12 million dedicated to this project.  The problem, though, is that its overall costs are projected to be around $35 million. 

While it’s obvious that many of these ideas are still only fantasies, this sharing of information between Council and School Board allows each group to push the other to dream big.  As they each continue to think beyond their respective silos, they hope to envision the kind of projects that will make Marana a great place to live not only next year, but next decade.  Tuesday’s meeting was a strong marker of that effort, one that both sides are eager to maintain.

Your Town Podcast Episode 19: Chief Terry Rozema

In this Episode, we hear from Marana’s Police Chief Terry Rozema about the state of public safety in Your Town. He discusses how the department has handled the opening of the new mall, his reflections on the media attention Marana received when an officer struck a suspect with his vehicle, and his recent recognition from the Marana Rotary Club as Man of the Year.

Marana News: Seminar on drones coming to Marana Regional Airport on Friday

Written by Al Aven

Drones are a hot-button topic right now. From pocket sized ones that can be bought at a hobby shop, to military aircraft, unmanned aircraft have received a lot of press of late. On Friday, Oct. 23, from 10 a.m. until noon, the Marana Regional Airport will be the site of a free informational seminar — open to the public — on drones...

Real Estate Daily News: Hotel Development Next In Line at Marana Center

Vintage Partners, a leading Arizona real estate development and investment company, sold 6 acres at Marana Center to a Tucson-based hotel developer for approximately $3.5 million.

The buyer, Dupont Station Partners II, LLC (Michael Rubstoff, manager) plans to use half of the 6 acres for development of a hotel and the other half for restaurant and other retail use. Rubstoff has been dong hotel development mostly in Washington Statefor Marriott Hotels and others prior to this.

Real Estate Daily News: Ventana Distribution at Tangerine Commerce Park Sells for $8.6 Million

The Ventana Medical distribution building at 9831 W Tangerine Road in Marana in Tangerine Commerce Park was sold by Cottonwood Properties' (Bill Hallinan, CFO) affiliate, Tangerine Building One, LLC. Ventana Medical Systems, Inc., headquartered in Oro Valley, Ariz., is a member of the Roche Group and is a world leader and innovator of tissue-based cancer diagnostic solutions for patients worldwide.

Burglary Prevention Tips

Marana enjoys a reputation as a safe place for residents to make a home.  With serious crime rates in the single digits and property crime rates at half the national average, it’s not surprising that many families choose to make their homes here.  Nevertheless, it is always crucial to take certain precautions to ensure that you are not the victim of a crime. 

Recently, the Marana PD has noticed a slight uptick in burglaries.  While they have successfully apprehended several individuals suspected of committing many of these crimes, the risk of future incidents remains a chief concern to our officers.  In order to mitigate that risk, the Marana PD recommends a few key actions that can deter potential burglars, if not eliminate them altogether.

• Lock all doors and windows at night and before you leave your home.  This includes your garage door, which has recently served as a point of entry in several cases.
• Consider using a dowel to reinforce a locked window.  Dowels are readily available at local hardware stores.
• Install motion sensor lighting around your home.
• Add gravel around the home, especially outside doors and windows.  This will allow you to hear the sound of footsteps outside.
• Do not leave valuables in your vehicle overnight.
• If you are home when a burglar attempts to enter your home, immediately call 911.  Do not attempt to confront the intruder.

Marana is fortunate to enjoy a low a crime rate, but we’ll only maintain that level if residents and officers work together to prevent burglars from having any opportunity to enter homes and vehicles.  Know your neighbors, so you can look out for each other.  If you see an officer patrolling your neighborhood, give them a wave.  Crime prevention is as much about forming strong community relationships as it is catching the bad guys.  The Marana Police Department deeply appreciates the support they receive every day from our residents.  Thank you for helping make this community a safe and secure place where anyone can make a home.

Town of Marana partners with Grand Canyon University on scholarship program

(Oct. 19, 2015) – The Town of Marana has teamed up with Grand Canyon University to provide Educational Alliance Scholarships to its employees. The agreement provides a 10 percent tuition discount for employees seeking to further their education in GCU’s popular online programs.

“We are pleased to partner with GCU to help give employees the opportunity to continue their education while still working full-time,” said Town Manager Gilbert Davidson. “We’re hoping that this partnership also helps keep higher education affordable and accessible to employees of the Town.”

GCU, a private Christian university in Phoenix, helps students find their purpose and achieve their potential through more than 160 academic programs at the bachelors, masters and doctoral levels. The online curriculum features small class sizes and interactive lesson plans that keep students engaged.

GCU has 55,000 students enrolled in its online programs, while enrollment on its ground campus has jumped from less than 1,000 students in 2008 to 16,000 this fall. To help keep higher education affordable, GCU has frozen tuition on its ground campus for eight straight years.

Marana is an innovative community that attracts residents and business owners from across the region. The town has grown to approximately 40,000 residents, around 5,000 more than the 2010 Census figure.                       

Grand Canyon University was founded in 1949 and is Arizona’s premier private Christian university. GCU is regionally accredited and emphasizes individual attention for both traditional undergraduate students and the working professional. GCU offers traditional programs on its growing campus, as well as online bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degree programs.  The University’s curriculum fuses academic and clinical rigor with Christian values to prepare its students to be skilled, caring professionals. For more information about GCU, visit gcu.edu.

The Town of Marana is a fast-growing, innovative community that serves as the Gateway to Southern Arizona.  The Town prides itself on its business-friendly environment, celebration of local heritage, and high quality schools.  For more information, visit www.maranaaz.gov.

Marana Community Award 2015 recipients

Last week, the Town of Marana recognized three recipients of the Marana Branding Iron and Crystal Legacy Awards at the annual Marana Rotary awards dinner. The recipients were selected from a list of nominations made by the community and were awarded based on their volunteer service and community impact. 

The Town of Marana is proud to partner with the Marana Rotary Club to honor the tremendous men and women who are making a difference in this community. Marana's dedicated residents are what make this community so special. Every day, passionate teachers prepare our students for the future, nonprofit leaders serve the needy, and business owners forgo higher profit margins so that they can give back to those around them. 

Sally Hard- Crystal Legacy Award

Every year, Marana is proud to acknowledge an individual whose dedication and service improve the lives of others.  This year, no one better encapsulates that description than Sally Hard.  For years, Sally has led by example through her work with Honor Flights of Southern Arizona. 

As a result of her service, countless World War II veterans have flown to Washington, D.C. to visit the World War II Memorial, Arlington National Cemetery, and many of the other sites that pay homage to their sacrifice.  As a Purple Heart Town, Marana deeply appreciates both Sally’s efforts and the veterans she serves. 

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James Attebery- Branding Iron Award- Individual

This award recognizes individuals who “make their mark” on Marana.  As a long-time music teacher at Marana High, James Attebery not only makes significant personal contributions, but also imparts powerful lessons on innumerable students. 

“With Mr. Attebery, it isn’t just music and lyrics,” writes a former student, “It’s an attitude.  He always stresses that when we put on that ‘MHS Band’ t-shirt, we don’t represent just a band, but also our community.  We owe it to everyone to be the best that we can be—on and off the field, in and out of school, in every part of life.”

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M.Y. Martial Arts- Branding Iron Award- Organization

As a martial arts facility, it would be easy for M.Y. Martial Arts- Marana just to run its Taekwondo classes, but this is an organization that seeks to serve the whole community.  Because of this passion, Marana is pleased to award them the Branding Iron- Organization Award.

Their commitment to service has driven M.Y. Martial Arts- Marana to host the first ever community safety day.  With free trainings on bullying prevention, fire safety, and self-defense, this event will help participants feel more confident and comfortable wherever they go.  That feeling of empowerment is an integral part of Marana’s community spirit.

Arizona Daily Star: El Tour announces new title sponsor

Photo by Kelly Presnell: Founder and President of El Tour de Tucson Richard DeBernardis speaking to Marana Town Manager Gilbert Davidson. Original story by James Kelley.

This year’s race will showcase the town of Marana more than ever before, DeBernardis said. El Tour will stage a 25-mile race there in 2016.

“We want people to know when they come here that there is a difference between Marana and Tucson,” DeBernardis said. “Just go up there and look at their bicycle paths, they’re almost twice as wide as ours.”

Marana Water News: What can Marana Water do for you?

This week, we here are Marana Water have been hard at work to share the Value of Water with our customers and Marana residents and visitors. Our hope is something from this week triggered an idea or curiosity in water distribution and conservation. Marana Water is committed to preserving such a precious resource, and we need some help to do so.

RESOURCES

MaranaWater.com has resources of all types for anyone curious about water and water conservation. For our customers, there are videos on how to read you water bill (which can be found below), how to pay your bill online (here), and much more. Take a few minutes and look around the site, see what you can find that could be started in your home or yard.

We also understand that water is not just the responsibility of Marana Water. There are regional opportunities for conservation efforts including information from the Arizona Department of Water Resources. To find out more about the conservation efforts please click here.

 

WATER QUALITY

The water quality team is out in the community every day ensuring the water for our customers is safe. We are required each year to test for minerals and contaminants in the water. That information is gathered into a Consumer Confidence Report and mailed to every customer. You can find your report here.

Another water quality program is the Lead and Copper testing. We need your help for this one! Our staff need water samples from inside the customers' home, and this short video shows how simple it is to be a part of this program. There are certain water systems checked each year. In 2015, we sampled the Airline/Lambert, Palo Verde, and Hartman Vistas systems. Up next year, the Continental Reserve/Picture Rocks system

VALUE OF WATER

We hope this week shed some light on how Marana Water operates in the community. Our staff are dedicated to keeping our system safe and reliable for the future of the Town. We have wonderful customers who understand what goes into having safe and reliable water come from their tap everyday. We are working hard behind the scenes to ensure that reliable water is there every time you need it.

Marana Water News: Just the facts

At the Town Council meeting on October 6, the new logo was debuted. This new branding will be used throughout the department, and the Town for all Marana Water related materials and events. Keep an eye out for all things from Marana Water. If you want to sign up to receive notifications please click here.

The new logo will debut in October on the website, in social media, and on the water bills. It took hard work from Marana Water staff and the Town's Communications and Marketing division to have this created entirely in-house. Here at Marana Water, we are excited to roll out the new design! There have been many additions to the department this year including, a new name, online bill pay, new employees, and now a new logo. 

CUSTOMERS

Marana Water was created in 1997 with a little over 500 customers. Now, there are over 6,400 customers and sewer services have been added. These customers are in seven distinct water systems spanning the Town limits. The chart below shows the growth of the customer base since the department began.

Marana Water has seen steady growth since its creation in 1997.

WATER USE & CONSERVATION

Yesterday's post talked about water conservation and gave tips on how to change habits to reduce water demand. In general, the water use between 2014 and 2015 decreased. The chart below shows the water use trends for the two years. Keep in mind, about 300 customers were added over the year time frame. Keep up the great work conserving this precious resource!

Shows customer water use over a nine-month span for 2014 and 2015. While there are some months that the water use has crossed, overall the use for 2015 has decreased. This chart is presented in millions of gallons.

WATER RECLAMATION

In 2012, Marana Water began providing sewer, or water reclamation, services. Prior to 2012, Pima County had been serving all the customers in Marana. This transition allows Marana Water and the Town to control our destiny. The water rights that come from processing the wastewater will be helpful for future growth and development in the Town. The customer base has grown, and through September 2015, it is almost an even split of sewer customers served by Marana Water and those served by Pima County.

SUPPORT

Marana Water works with departments across the Town. The Finance, Legal, Technology Services, and HR teams help keep everything running smoothly, and we provide water service to many of the other Town departments. Public Works will use our water on street cleaning or other projects; the Airport has fire extinguishing requirements that we help to meet; and Parks & Recreation has over 37 acres of grass that is irrigated by Marana Water. These arces are divided between five parks, Crossroads at Silverbell District Park, Continental Reserve Neighborhood Park, San Lucas Neighborhood Park, Gladden Farms Community Park, and Ora Mae Harn District Park.

At the Town of Marana, all departments work together to make our community a great place to make Your Town.

Marana Water News: Water and...

The Community

Marana Water serves over 6,400 accounts, both residential and commercial. In September 2015, 54 million gallons of water was provided to these customers. Fall is quickly approaching and Marana Water is starting to see the decrease in water use each month. The highest water use months so far in 2015 have been, unsurprisingly, June - August. These summer months typically see higher use from customers who maintain pools or water plants a little more frequently when dealing with the desert sun. The Environmental Protection Agency has tips and information on how to conserve water, facts about energy, and special tips to use if there is a drought.

Marana Water serves over 6,400 accounts, both residential and commercial. In September 2015, 54 million gallons of water was provided to these customers. Fall is quickly approaching and Marana Water is starting to see the decrease in water use each month. The highest water use months so far in 2015 have been, unsurprisingly, June - August. These summer months typically see higher use from customers who maintain pools or water plants a little more frequently when dealing with the desert sun. The Environmental Protection Agency has tips and information on how to conserve water, facts about energy, and special tips to use if there is a drought.

The Economy

The US economy relies on water. Almost half of the water used in the US goes into manufacturing products. Below show some of the ways water impacts items in our daily lives. The Value of Water Coalition has more information on how water fits into our economy.

You

Water is a vital part of everyday lives. Imagine a day without turning on the tap, taking a shower, or watering plants. The average Marana Water customer uses about 7,000 gallons per month. On average, water is used most frequently by toilets, showers, and other miscellaneous activities around the house. Further, a large portion of water used each year goes to irrigation. These systems can be a common source of leaks around the home. Click here are some tips for helping conserve water when irrigating your home.

Marana Water understands the importance of water conservation and there are several programs of which our customers can take advantage to help conserve water at home. We provide water meter monitors, which allow customers to read their water meter when convenient to identify areas of potential high water use. We can also provide certain water auditing services at a customer's home to help identify where a leak may be. Please call the office at 520-382-2570 or stop by the office at 5100 W Ina Road to get more information. There are some complimentary dye test and fact sheets available. There are several helpful links and tips on the Water Conservation page of the website, which is constantly updated to include more ways to conserve water. Click here to go to the Water Conservation page.

Water conservation is such an important part of our lives here in the desert climates, and Marana Water is dedicated to this effort. Learn more about how Marana Water is communicating with the community and the new branding campaign!

Marana Water News: The Financial Side of Water

There are over 6,200 water customers served by Marana Water. These customers contribute to the budget used for supplies, water resources, preventive maintenance, and many other aspects of the department.

Excluding the salary costs of the 26 employees, 20% of the annual budget goes toward preventive maintenance of the water and water reclamation systems. Our dedicated staff work on reservoirs, booster stations, water pumps, treatment facilities, and the miles of water lines that run through our service area. Each day, Marana Water's mission of providing safe and reliable drinking water is achieved by this small and mighty group of employees.

The water and sewer rates paid monthly by our customers allow Marana Water to fund maintenance projects and to keep the high level of service our customers have come to expect. When setting rates and budgets, water service level, maintenance, and future growth are all factors.

The Environmental Finance Center and the University of North Carolina recently did a study on trends in water revenues, nation-wide, over the last ten years. The call on California water providers to reduce their water deliveries highlights some interesting details about how the water industry budgets revenue. The study even shows some of the changes during the economic downturn in 2008-2009. It shows how dramatically the revenues can change year to year, and how certain tools are in place so water providers are able to maintain levels of service. Click here to read the short story.

Marana Water greatly values our customers and is committed to providing the best service possible. Whether it is customer service, or a field operator investigating a leak, Marana Water is here to resolve any issue.

The other side of the coin is how water conservation efforts and decreasing demand for water have affected water providers, and Marana Water is no exception. Stay tuned tomorrow to read about conservation efforts and how Marana Water is contributing to the conservation efforts.

2016 AAA Five Diamond Award Announced for Marana Luxury Destination

Photo provided by RItz-Carlton, Dove Mountain

MARANA, ARIZ. – October 2, 2015 – The Town of Marana is proud to announce the Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain received AAA’s Five Diamond Award. Below is information provided by the Ritz-Carlton about this prestigious honor. 

The Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain is celebrating the receipt of a prestigious new rating for 2016, as AAA has presented the resort with its first ever Five Diamond award. The accolade comes just months after Forbes presented a coveted Five Star rating to the property, making The Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain one of the rare hotels in North America to carry Five Diamonds as well as Five Stars. 

"This AAA Five Diamond award is a well-deserved acknowledgement of the 350 Ladies and Gentlemen who create the guest experience here at The Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain," said Liam Doyle, General Manager. “Because of their deep personal commitment to exceeding guest service standards and to bringing a truly stunning destination to life, ten Stars and Diamonds are now shining brightly over southern Arizona." 

Five Diamond establishments represent less than one third of one percent of the more than 28,000 hotels which are AAA/CAA Approved and Diamond Rated. In making its influential award decisions, AAA’s professionally trained inspectors use published guidelines to evaluate a property in person, sometimes over the course of multiple visits. They then submit their findings for a final decision rendered by a panel of experts. With a greater inventory than any other rating entity, AAA’s rating system covers the U.S., Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean. AAA has been inspecting hotels and restaurants for 79 years, and for 2015, only eight hotels were added to the Five Diamond roster. A total of only 121 hotels throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean received the 2015 AAA/CAA Five Diamond Rating. 

With a focus on golf, spa, adventures and outstanding dining, The Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain creates #RCMemories in a lush high Sonoran Desert setting between Phoenix and Tucson. Located in the scenic foothills town of Marana, the 253-room resort presents an authentic southwestern sense of place where guests can escape, play – and return to the youthful joys of life. Highlights include three swimming pools, a 235-foot water slide and splash pad, 27 holes of adjoining Jack Nicklaus signature golf, daily Sunset Vista Cocktail Hikes, guided rock art tours to discover ancient Hohokam petroglyphs, GPS-guided geocaching, morning Nature Walks, Cactus Discovery tours showcasing the rare and ancient Saguaro, astronomer-guided stargazing, and access to miles of scenic and beautiful hiking, cycling and four-wheel drive trails. 

A daily highlight is the property’s signature Spirit of Adventure Celebration, when guests gather to welcome the evening and take in the haunting refrain of a Native American flutist performing from the surrounding Tortolita Foothills. 

An adventure-filled Ritz Kids Rangers program provides younger guests with myriad delights, including indigenous critter meet-and-greets, desert expeditions and even In-Room Camping. An Arizona spa vacation is in store for couples and individual travelers as well, as The Ritz-Carlton Spa, Dove Mountain features spectacular open-air design, a private serenity pool with tanning island, spa cabanas, day beds and a roster of treatments inspired by the healing therapies of centuries-old Native American civilizations. For foodies, award-winning restaurants are complemented by weekend sushi in the lobby, the charming Roadrunner Food Truck which plies the resort grounds with holiday weekend ice cream treats and which also raises charitable funds via local food truck rallies, acclaimed wine and spirits experiences, and the destination’s own Dove Mountain Cuvée wine label. A 42-tree citrus orchard sits directly outside of the resort’s award-winning CORE Kitchen & Wine Bar, encouraging guests to pick their own fresh Arizona citrus for memorable morning libations. 

Reservations for The Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain may be made at 800-241-3333, at www.ritzcarlton.com/DoveMountain, or through a travel professional, or guests may engage directly with the resort at https://facebook.com/ritzcarltondovemountain/. Dining and spa experiences, luxury weddings, shared voluntourism/VolunTeaming™ activities, and award-winning meetings, weddings and events may be requested at 520-572-3000. The destination is served by both the Tucson and Phoenix international airports. 

For more information about all the ways visitors can connect with Marana, visit DiscoverMarana.org 

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About The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, LLC

The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, L.L.C., of Chevy Chase, Md., currently operates 90 hotels in the Americas, Europe, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and the Caribbean. More than 40 hotel and residential projects are under development around the globe. The Ritz-Carlton is the only service company to have twice earned the prestigious Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award which recognizes outstanding customer service. For more information or reservations, visit the company web site at www.ritzcarlton.com, and for the latest company updates, visit news.ritzcarlton.com. The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, L.L.C. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR). 

Cotton Festival on The Morning Blend

Special Event Coordinator Monique Meza and community volunteer Teri Murphy spoke on The Morning Blend this morning about the Cotton Festival this Saturday Oct 10. 

Visit MaranaEvents.com for more information on the event. 

Podcast Episode 18: Marana Unified School District

During this episode of the Your Town Podcast, we take another look at Marana Schools. Principal David Mandel and Assistant Superintendent Kristin Reidy share some of the exciting ways MUSD is partnering with the Town. They also take a stab at answering questions from the Arizona state tests for the Your Town Trivia Challenge.

Reimagining the Park

The name of the Marana Heritage River Park is misleading.  It’s in Marana, yes, and it certainly celebrates the Town’s heritage.  There’s even a river, albeit seasonally.  But calling it a park conjures up entirely different images.  A park has wide expanses of grass, ball fields, maybe a community pool.  The Heritage River Park only has some of those.  Yet somehow, it manages to capture everything a community would want in a park.  Attractive landscaping.  Cultural significance.  Communal spirit.  Indeed, by abandoning the typical trappings of the average park, this space transcends the limitations of a narrow name.  Other features expand to fill the vacuum left behind by forsaken strictures.  What’s left is something new, something unimagined, but somehow, something that’s exactly what we were looking for.

Drop by Heritage River Park on a quiet weekday morning, and you’re likely to meet Nate Jansky.  Burly, calloused, and disarmingly friendly, Nate casts a watchful eye over everything that happens on these grounds.  His tattooed arms have spent many hours tilling this soil.  Ask him his vision for these acres, and he’ll describe a landscape replete with wheat fields, orchards, community gardens.  Looking around, it’s clear this is the direction the park is going, but Nate’s aspirations are many years away.  The park has space for five different fields; only one is currently active.  Two orchards are bearing fruit, but there is room for many more trees.  A community garden already thrives, but the waiting list for an open plot is dauntingly long.  Where others see fallow fields and wide open space, though, Nate sees opportunity.  He sees the park’s youth as perhaps its greatest asset.  He sees one citrus grove as a beacon for many more.  And he’s excited.

A little over a year ago, Heritage Park opened to the public.  A boulevard lined with walnut trees bisects the space.  To the left sprouts a cotton field, tinged with the white puffs that have played so vital a role in Marana’s history.  To the right, gardens managed by both community members and the Town itself invite walkers to enjoy a contemplative stroll.  An enclosure just off the parking lot pays homage to Marana’s history.  On two sides, an irrigation ditch cuts a furrow that meanders near picnic tables, past a silo, and under a rustic footbridge.  At one end, its water drains into a catchment that pumps it back to where it began.  A small tower lifts the water high above the ground and pours it over a tank, home to two indigenous desert tortoises.  Gradually, as the tank overflows, the water slips back into the irrigation canal, where it begins its cycle once again. 

History buffs and art lovers will want to spend a few extra minutes in this part of the park.  Amid the verdant vegetation, an iron sculpture pays tribute to the region’s past.  A timeline chronicles the long arc of history that has happened here, from the Hohokam people living in the Tortolitas, to the railroad workers who helped build one of the nation’s first transnational arteries, to the farmers whose descendants still sow their fields every spring and harvest them every fall.

The clearest testament to Marana’s history, though, is not found in this section of the park.  Across the walnut-flanked path, past a vintage barn, stands a fruit arbor, and at its center soars an impressive fig tree.  Last year, Nate trimmed it to a shadow of its former self, its tendrils only reaching up to his barrel chest.  Standing beneath its spreading limbs today, though, it towers over 25 feet into the air.  The sculpture across the park outlines plenty of times when Marana’s residents have experienced similar pruning, but whether it takes a year or a decade, they’ve always come back taller and stronger than before.      

On Saturday, October 10, the Town will host the Cotton Festival on these fertile grounds.    This installment of the Town’s Signature Event series invokes the halcyon days when communities gathered to celebrate the harvest.  With an old-fashioned steak fry (and also decidedly modern food trucks), a country band that invites dancing, and booths staffed by clubs from Marana High School, this is the kind of event that feels like a Norman Rockwell painting. 

Marana is a community that uses the past to spur forward thinking plans, and no place better captures that spirit than the Heritage River Park.  Young and protean, the space offers a wide range of potential utility.  Day in and day out, gardeners gather there to trade tips on how best to coax the finest fruit from the dusty earth, families enjoy a quiet afternoon picnic, and couples even celebrate their wedding beneath a web of glittering lightbulbs.  As the sun’s brutal summer heat relents into mild fall afternoons, consider a visit to the Heritage River Park, maybe even for the Cotton Festival.  If you see Nate, ask him what he’s up to.  Wander over to the fruit groves, and try a fig, or an apple, or a quince.  Feel the history of this land and connect with your community roots.  The Heritage River Park exists because of the value Marana places on its culture and history, and no place better embodies that idea than a dusty field near Gladden Farms.  Go out, see it for yourself, and connect with Marana.