Oro Valley, Arizona
Oro Valley, incorporated in 1974, is a suburban town located 6 miles (9.7 km) north of Tucson, Arizona, USA in Pima County. According to a July 2008 estimate, the population of the town is 43,223,[2] an increase from 29,700 in 2000 (according to the U.S. Census.) Dubbed the “Upscale Tech Mecca” of Southern Arizona by the Arizona Daily Star newspaper, Oro Valley is home to over 10 high tech firms and has a median household income nearly 50% higher than the U.S. median.[3] The town is located approximately 110 miles (180 km) southeast of the state capital of Phoenix.
Oro Valley is situated in the western foothills of the Santa Catalina Mountains at the base of Pusch Ridge. The Tortolita Mountains are located north of the town, and vistas of the Tucson valley are to the south. The town occupies the middle Cañada del Oro Valley. Oro Valley hosts a large number of residents from around the US who maintain second or winter homes in the town.
In March 2008, Fortune Small Business magazine named Oro Valley #44 on its list of “100 Best Places to Live and Launch” a business.[4] The August 2008 issue of Family Circle magazine featured Oro Valley as one of the top ten best towns for families in America.[5] Money magazine reported Oro Valley was one of the best places to live in 2007 and 2008.[6] Nick Jr. Family Magazine rated Oro Valley as one of the “Ten Most Playful Towns in America” in 2004. The magazine used criteria such as schools performing in the top third of their states, favorable student-teacher ratios, general safety, library programs, and access to arts and recreation activities. In 2005, Oro Valley was named one of “America’s Top-Rated Smaller Cities” in the publication by Grey House Publishing. The publication specifically noted the excellence of Oro Valley’s schools, medical facilities, and golf courses. According to FBI statistics, in 2006 Oro Valley ranked #1 in the State of Arizona for the lowest levels of both violent crime and property crime, among cities with populations of 5,000+. It was also ranked #1 every year from 2001 through 2005 in either category or both.
The town hosted the 2006 Pac-10 Women’s Golf Championships at the Oro Valley Country Club. Oro Valley Country Club was also the site for the 2006 Girl’s Junior America’s Cup, a major amateur golf tournament for the Western U.S. Annual events in Oro Valley include the Oro Valley Festival of the Arts, El Tour de Tucson bicycle race, the Tucson Marathon, the Cactus Speed Classic for inline skaters, and the Arizona Distance Classic.
Contents
The area of Oro Valley has been inhabited discontinuously for nearly two thousand years by various groups of people. The Native American Hohokam tribe lived in the Honeybee Village in the foothills of the Tortolita Mountains on Oro Valley’s far north side around 500 AD. Hohokam artifacts continue to be discovered in the Honeybee Village that the Hohokam inhabited continuously for nearly 700 years, and studied by archaeologists around the globe.
Early in the 16th century, Native American tribes known as the Apache arrived in the southern Arizona area, including Oro Valley. These tribes inhabited the region only a few decades prior to the arrival of the Spanish Conquistadors, including Francisco Coronado. The Spanish established forts in the area, including the Presidio at Tucson (1775) beginning in the late 16th century.
Arizona Territorial period
Beginning in the 19th century, Americans increasingly settled in the Arizona Territory, following the Mexican-American War and the subsequent Gadsden Purchase including Southern Arizona. George Pusch, a German immigrant, settled in the area of Oro Valley in 1874, establishing a cattle ranch. This ranch was unique because it utilized a steam pump to provide water, eventually popularizing Pusch’s property as the Steam Pump Ranch on the Cañada del Oro. The steam pump was one of only two in the Arizona Territory.
Pusch’s ranch provided respite for settlers and travelers entering and leaving the Tucson area. Pusch Ridge is named in honor of George Pusch.
Ranching in the area continued to flourish as greater numbers of Americans settled in the Arizona Territory. Large ranching families in the Oro Valley area included the Romeros and the Rooneys.
Gold rushers into the American West also were attracted to southern Arizona, where gold was said to be in abundance in and around the Santa Catalina Mountains north of Tucson. Fueled by the legend of the lost Iron Door Gold Mine in the mountains, those in search of gold trekked through the Oro Valley area focusing their attention along the Cañada del Oro washbed.
Post-World War II period
After World War II, the Tucson area experienced dramatic population growth, impacting Oro Valley as well. In the early 1950s the Oro Valley Country Club opened at the base of Pusch Ridge, affirming the area’s future as an affluent community. Although one tract housing development was built in the area in the early 1950s, the majority of homes in the Oro Valley area were built by individual land owners on large lots in a low density residential style.
Founding of the town
The community continued to grow gradually, and area residents increasingly desired local control of the land in the area. In the late 1960s, incorporation became a greater focus in Oro Valley. Tucson Mayor James M. Corbett, Jr. expressed great interest in expanding the Tucson city limits to the far north side of Pima County. Corbett vowed to bring the Oro Valley area into Tucson “kicking and screaming,” alluding to the reservations Oro Valley residents expressed in joining Tucson.
A petition to incorporate began circulation in Oro Valley in 1968. The Pima County Board of Supervisors officially refused to allow Oro Valley to incorporate, and litigation followed. Ultimately, the Arizona Supreme Court ruled in favor of incorporation, and in 1974 the Town of Oro Valley was incorporated with only 2.4 square miles (6.2 km2). The original town limits included the Linda Vista Citrus Tracts, Campo Bello Estates, Shadow Mountain Estates, and Oro Valley Country Club Estates. Activity in Oro Valley centered primarily around the Oro Valley Country Club and Canyon del Oro High School. While originally referred to as Palo Verde, town founders proceeded with incorporation efforts with the official name of Oro Valley to garner support from influential residents of Oro Valley Country Club. The Town began with a population of nearly 1,200.
Record growth period
Year Population
1970 581
1974 1,200
1980 1,489
1985 3,012
1990 6,670
1995 19,657
1998 25,455
2000 29,700
2002 34,050
2004 38,280
2005 39,335
2008 43,223
Through the 1980s and particularly in the 1990s Oro Valley experienced significant residential and commercial growth. In 1990 the town had a population of 6,670, and by 2000 that figure had increased to 29,700 residents. During that time, residential communities of all housing-unit densities were developed in the town, including several master-planned communities. For several years in the 1990s Oro Valley was the fastest growing municipality in Arizona.
Current state of the town
Formed by citizens of Oro Valley, the not-for-profit Oro Valley Historical Society has a mission in “preserving the Town’s heritage for future generations.” Additional information can be found on the Society’s website.
Geography
Oro Valley is located at 32°25′N 110°59′W (32.4212, -110.9760) in the middle Cañada del Oro Valley.[9] Oro Valley sits at an average elevation of 2,620 feet (800 m) above sea level.
According to the United States Census Bureau (2000), the town has a total area of 31.9 square miles (83 km2), of which, 31.8 square miles (82 km2) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.26 km2) of it (0.31%) is water.
The topography of Oro Valley is distinguished by the Cañada del Oro riverbed bisecting the town. The eastern banks of the Cañada del Oro rise dramatically to the Santa Catalina Mountains. The western banks of the Cañada del Oro rise more gradually to a plateau and the foothills of the Tortolita Mountains farther north.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
