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Latest News
Major Acquisitions in December 2011 Add to Preserve
Brown's Ranch Trailhead Update
Tom's Thumb Trailhead Update
Temporary Closure in Northern Preserve
Gateway Access Area Receives "Platinum" LEED Certification
State Land Reform
Proposed Desert Discovery Center
Major Acquisitions in December 2011 Add to Preserve
In December, 2011, the City of Scottsdale acquired approximately 4,419 acres of land from the Arizona State Land Department. The land was purchased at public auctions on December 7th and December 14th where the city was the only bidder. The acquired properties will be permanently protected from development as part of the City of Scottsdale’s McDowell Sonoran Preserve.
The total purchase price for the 4,419 acres, including fees was approximately $88 million. Approximately $36 million of that will come from two Growing Smarter State Trust Land Acquisition Grants, awarded to the City by the Arizona State Parks Board in September, 2011. The remainder of the purchase price will come from money generated by two sales taxes approved by Scottsdale voters in 1995 and 2004 for the purpose of acquiring land for the McDowell Sonoran Preserve. The use of the matching grant funds from the State frees additional dollars to be used on future land purchases.
“It’s been a great week for Scottsdale’s McDowell Sonoran Preserve, and for everyone who supports and enjoys it,” said Mayor W.J. “Jim” Lane. “With just two auctions, we have combined our citizen-approved dedicated sales tax dollars with more than $36 million in state grant money to add nearly seven square miles to the preserve.”
With these acquisitions, Scottsdale has established an important wildlife corridor by connecting approximately 13,000 acres of land in the McDowell Mountains to approximately 4,000 acres north of Dynamite Boulevard purchased in previous years. Those two separate areas total about 17,000 acres. Add to this the additional 4,419 acres, for a current total of protected Preserve lands of approximately 21,400 acres. The ultimate goal is to expand the preserve to about 34,000 acres, nearly a third of the city’s land area.
The preserve land acquired in December, 2011 includes rolling topography with exposed bedrock, boulder outcrops, portions of Fraesfield Mountain, Rock Knob, Cone Mountain, Granite Mountain, Cholla Mountain, and upper Sonoran Desert vegetation including Rawhide Wash and a number of other large washes housing abundant wildlife.
See the latest acquisition status map here (pdf/277kb/1p).
Brown's Ranch Trailhead Update
Click here for more conceptual designs of Brown's Ranch Trailhead.
The Brown’s Ranch Trailhead will be the first trailhead to provide access to the northern region of the McDowell Sonoran Preserve. The Trailhead will be located approximately 1.25 miles north of the intersection of Alma School Parkway and Dynamite Boulevard. The design process began in March 2011, and will continue through the remainder of the year. Construction is estimated to begin in the first half of 2012, and be complete in early 2013.
The first phase will include 200 passenger vehicle parking spaces (additional phases could bring the total up to 300 spaces), parking for horse trailers, hitching rails, water trough, bike racks, restrooms, interpretive signage, shade ramadas, water fountain, an entry drive with access control gate, and a small office and maintenance yard.
The municipal use master site plan for the trailhead was approved by the Planning Commission in December 2011 and the City Council in January 2012. The City's Development Review Board approved the design of the trailhead in January 2012.
To view the conceptual site plan and building elevations for the Brown's Ranch Trailhead, click here.
For more information, please visit the project website.
Tom's thumb trailhead Update
Construction of the Tom's Thumb Trailhead began in October 2011, with completion estimated for July 2012. The trailhead will be located southeast ofthe intersection of 128th Street and the Pinnacle Peak Road alignment. Access to the trailhead will be via 128th Street — Site Plan (pdf/2.87mb/1p).
Temporary public access to the Tom's Thumb Trail will remain open during construction of the trailhead, although temporary closures or delays may occur. The temporary parking can be accessed by traveling south on 128th Street from Dynamite Boulevard or Ranch Gate Road. Once you enter the Preserve, please follow the directional signs to the temporary parking area. Please drive slowly and be cautious of construction vehicles in the area.
The new trailhead will include parking for at least 200 passenger vehicles (additional phases could bring the total up to 300 spaces), parking for 10 horse trailers, hitching rails, bike racks, restrooms, interpretive signage, shade ramadas, and an entry drive with access control gate. The first phase will not include water — Conceptual Design (pdf/444kb/1p).
Visit our Capital Projects page for updates on the status of construction.
Temporary Closure in Northern Preserve area
In October 2011, Arizona Public Service (APS) began construction of an underground powerline along the 118th Street Corridor from the Dixileta Drive alignment north one mile to the existing above-ground powerline corridor on the Lone Mountain Road alignment.The purpose of this new underground powerline is to provide electric utility service to the northeast region of Scottsdale. A temporary closure of the vicinity near the construction site has been implemented. See map of the closed area here (pdf/927kb/1p).
For your safety, please observe this closure. People entering the closed area are subject to prosecution under State and City laws. For more information, visit the APS website.
Gateway Access Area receives "Platinum" leed certification
The Gateway Trailhead at Scottsdale’s McDowell Sonoran Preserve is the entrance to one of Arizona’s most picturesque environments. The building and grounds of the Gateway, themselves, are also environmentally special.
In January 2010, the Gateway received a “platinum” designation, the highest certification possible through the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design program.
Only six Arizona structures are certified platinum through the LEED program. Two are in Scottsdale: the Preserve Gateway and the Downtown Scottsdale Fire Station, 7522 E. Indian School Road.
LEED is a national standard for “green” buildings that use environmental techniques to conserve materials, resources and reduce energy consumption while contributing to the health of its occupants.
There are four progressively higher and more demanding levels of certification (from lowest to highest): Certified, Silver, Gold and Platinum.
The Gateway Trailhead is designed to have a minimal impact on our desert. It features public restrooms, a staff office, 200 parking spaces, an educational amphitheater, shade ramadas, multi-use trails and an accessible interpretative trail loop.
The Gateway’s green building elements include solar power generation, rainwater harvesting, rammed earth walls constructed of native soil from on-site excavation, structural steel made of high recycled content, native landscaping and parking lot and path surfaces made of stabilized, decomposed granite.
The Gateway is a “net zero” energy facility, meaning in a given year it generates more energy than it consumes from the utility grid.
For more information on the Gateway Access Area, visit: Scottsdale's McDowell Sonoran Preserve Gateway.
For information on other Trail Access areas, click here.
State Land Reform
For a number of years a broad based, diverse consortium of interests from around the State have been meeting to achieve State Land reform. This effort is important to Scottsdale because 16,100 acres of State Trust Land in the planned Preserve Boundary has been reclassified as suitable for conservation by the State ( State Trust Land Status ). Numerous strategies have been attempted including working through the state Legislature and submitting a proposition to Arizona voters.
There is general consensus that the rules and regulations controling the use of the millions of acres of State Trust Land need updating. Existing State Land laws were put in place at the time of statehood in 1912. Most agree the Arizona of today is much different than the Arizona back then. Laws pertaining to State Land need to be modified to address the needs of the State today. This is particularly urgent and necessary in Arizona's urban areas.
Currently, the State is required by law to sell State Trust land at its highest and best use value. Proceeds go to aid State institutions, primarily the public schools. The State Constitution does not recognize conservation as a possible use of State Trust land. In 1996, then Governor Symington signed into law the Arizona Preserve Initiative (API). The API provided a tool for appropriate State Land in urban areas to be conserved. Strict criteria relating to biological, scenic, and intrinsic values were used to determine whether proposed State Land was eligible for conservation consideration. Eligible land would still need to be sold at the highest and best use price. Recently, issues with the legality of the API have surfaced. This is all the more reason many have been advocating State Land reform.
Proposed Desert Discovery Center at the Gateway to scottsdale's Preserve
In November 2010, the City Council accepted the Phase II Feasibility study and the recommendations from the Phase II subcommittee to proceed with further detailed study of how such a facility might be funded and established. The discovery center is envisioned as an educational center which will provide opportunities for residents and visitors to discover the story of the Upper Sonoran Desert and instill a sense of harmony and respect for the desert environment in which we live through exhibits and environmental programs/experiences presented in a natural setting, located at the Gateway to the McDowell Sonoran Preserve in north Scottsdale. The council appointed the Phase III committee in April, 2011 and directed them to formulate recommendations for the City Council on the operating, funding, and business model for the DDC. The committee recommendations are expected to be completed and presented to the Council in the first quarter of 2012.
More on the Desert Discovery Center
