Southern Arizona Towns Navigating a More Moderate Growth
Oro Valley, Sahuarita, Marana mayors balancing residents’ needs with growth, planning and revenue.
The towns on the outskirts of the Tucson metropolitan area are still growing, though they have backed away from the surging growth of the early 2000s and are planning their expansions more deliberately now.
When land was available and home prices were cheap – but rising – Marana, Sahuarita and Oro Valley grew quickly, sometimes too quickly to keep up with infrastructure needs. But now they’re all taking a more measured approach, the mayor of each town said, in separate interviews.
Sahuarita is nestled between Tucson and Green Valley, along Interstate 19. People who live there often work elsewhere. Slower, steadier growth is a welcome change, said Mayor Tom Murphy, but housing growth is still a main focus for town planners.
