![Construction at Pinal Energy Co.](https://s4745.pcdn.co/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Construction-at-Pinal-Energy-Co..jpg)
By Brian Wright | Maricopa Monitor
City leaders and those who live in Maricopa can see the transformation taking place. But what do those outside the city limits and across the state think of Maricopa?
The perception of Maricopa to many is still linked to the housing crisis during the economic recession, which peaked in 2009. That, however, is just scratching the surface about what people associate with the city.
Marshall Vest, one of the state’s premier authorities on all matters related to the economy and business, didn’t have a lot of information to offer on Maricopa.
“I don’t know all that much about the city of Maricopa. In fact, I’ve never been in the city of Maricopa,” said Vest, director of the Economic and Business Research Center at the University of Arizona.