Smith: Life in the Sun Corridor

In the Sun Corridor (the megapolitan region stretching from Prescott to south of Tucson) Pinal County is strategically located as the centerpiece for Arizona’s next wave of growth.

As people move to Arizona, many will choose Pinal County as their home. According to the Arizona Department of Transportation, by 2050 Pinal County will have more jobs than Pima County. This is very exciting.

What we do in the next decade will determine how successful we will be in sustaining growth. One thing is for certain – growth will come. It is up to us to put into place solid plans and then execute those plans. This is why I am passionate about coming into an elected position with a plan or platform.

During each of my two terms as mayor of the city of Maricopa, I accomplished over 90 percent of my “platform.” If you would have visited my office when I was your mayor, you would have seen my platform, which I created in 2010, pinned to the wall next to my computer.

As projects got accomplished, I marked them off — a behavior I adopted in the project management profession. It keeps me focused and gives me a sense of satisfaction that real progress is being made.

At the top of my platform is economic development. The creation of sustainable communities is based on numerous, and varied, aspects. However, economic development is paramount for bringing jobs and prosperity to a region, city or community. You can see my complete platform by going to www.smith4supervisor.com.

Although reasonably undeveloped, Pinal County has the ingredients to be a very strong contributor to the Sun Corridor economy. We have some very valuable natural resources, a framework of key infrastructure components, and the presence of key industries such as energy, aerospace, defense and biotechnology.