Plenty to do as growth continues, say Pinal mayors
By Jodie Newell | Pinal Central
A panel of Pinal County mayors told a Pinal Partnership breakfast about healthy growth that also brings challenges.
Newly elected Mayors Lisa Navarro Fitzgibbons of Casa Grande, Jon Post of Marana and Keith Eaton of Florence joined Apache Junction Mayor Chip Wilson as they discussed various city projects and initiatives Friday at Central Arizona College’s Signal Peak Campus.
Forum facilitator Jordan Rose of Rose Law Group asked each mayor to paint a picture of what their cities are focusing on. The response from all four had a recurring theme; it was all about growth that requires more infrastructure along with more retail options for residents.
Fitzgibbons described current economic conditions in Casa Grande as “exciting,” adding that the city is working hard on a number of key infrastructure projects to keep up with the continuing growth.
“Being my first term as mayor, it’s exciting to see where we’re going. There’s so many challenges, and there’s so much growth going on,” she said. “The challenge is for our infrastructure that comes along with that and we are struggling when it comes to roads. We’ve had a lot of expansion with our sewer expansion on Kortsen Road, we have some infrastructure improvements going on Trekell and McCartney roads. … The great thing is we’re making these improvements and people are going to be able to get around town. There’s never enough but it’s something that we’re going to have to be constantly on top of because of the overwhelming growth.”
