Another opportunity to learn about Palo Verde Park at open house

Staff of the Pinal County Open Space and Trails Department will hold the second open house for the planning of Palo Verde Regional Park, a proposed regional park in western Pinal County.

The open house will take place on March 31 from 4:30 to 7 p.m. at the Copper Sky Multigenerational Center, multipurpose room A, 44345 W. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.

This will be an open house format with brief presentations at 5 and 6 p.m.  Residents of Pinal County, especially  residents of the City of Maricopa, are encouraged to attend, learn more about the project and provide input regarding:

* Possible recreation activities for this park;
* Potential park access points, and;
* Preliminary concepts of trailhead and campground configurations at one or two of these access points.
* Pinal County began the planning process for this regional park in the fall of 2015 and expects to complete the planning process in the fall of 2016.

The proposed Palo Verde Regional Park comprises more than 20,000 acres of mostly Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land approximately five miles west of Maricopa, in the northwest area of Pinal County, stretching from Interstate 8 to the south and Highway 238 to the north.

“We have had great public participation so far and encourage everyone interested to come to our open house and offer their input on this proposed Palo Verde Regional Park,” District 4 Supervisor Anthony Smith said. “This would be a great asset for both residents and visitors alike.”

The Open Space and Trails Department conducted a survey of residents to find out what elements they would like to see in the park’s master plan. According to the draft version, the top priority is 2-foot-wide trails. Primary trails with 4-foot-wide treads were No. 2. Ranking third were competitive tracks for biking, running or equestrian.

Rounding out the top five were a tent site and a family picnic area.

Though most of the Top 10 involved trails or camping, a shooting range was ranked at No. 9. The open house is one of several public outreach events the county will use to gather more information about what services residents want for this Regional Park.  For more information contact Kent Taylor at [email protected].

For more information about the proposed Palo Verde Park, visit http://www.pinalcountyaz.gov/OpenSpaceTrails/ParkTrailPlanning/Pages/PaloVerdePark.aspx