Would Gold Canyon be interested in merging with city of Apache Junction?
Gold Canyon residents would need to petition the city of Apache Junction to start any annexation process, the city council was told at a special meeting Saturday, Feb. 11. The council met 10 a.m.-noon in part to discuss Mayor Jeff Serdy’s suggestion to approach residents in adjacent communities in unincorporated Pinal County to consider annexation or a merger with the city. Those areas include county islands, Gold Canyon, Superstition Foothills and the Superstition Mountain Museum area.
Funds the city receives from the state would be reduced if San Tan Valley were to become a city, Mayor Serdy said at the meeting. If the city of Apache Junction could increase its population from 39,000 people, it could receive more funding, he said.
“If the city gets to 50,000 people, you get on a whole different level of funding, eligible for much more (Community Development Block Grants) from the feds and much more state-backed matching revenue,” Mayor Serdy said at the special meeting. “We’d then be on the same level as Yuma or Flagstaff. And there’s already 50,000 people here. It’s not like we’re putting in new residents. They’re already here, they’re already on the roads, they’re already using everything, so let’s just get credit for them.”
One of the fears he has heard from Gold Canyon residents is that the area would lose its identity if it merged with Apache Junction, Mayor Serdy said at the meeting.
