Lost in the gloss

Extra! Extra! Read all about it! InMaricopa has been in business for 20 years as of the publication of this edition.

They say no news is good news. What about 20 years of news? That’s great news, if you ask me.

In Maricopa, no news is bad news, really. This community deserves timely information and thoughtful analysis. In March 2004, this desert town became a news desert no more.

Back then, I was a mere schoolchild in North Carolina. I had never been west of the Appalachian Mountains — I had definitely never heard of Maricopa. I was more interested in putting together LEGO sets than hard-hitting news stories.

A lot can change in 20 years, like going from LEGO architect to magazine editor. Or going from a city of 1,600 to a one of 74,000.

At InMaricopa, we went from an online community news and message board to an award-winning glossy magazine and 24/7 news site with its biggest reporting staff ever, welcoming more than 100,000 visitors every month. Many of our visitors make the port-of-call from far beyond Pinal County.

If this magazine landed in your mailbox, though, chances are you live in the city of Maricopa. If you’ve been around a while, you know how much things have changed over the last two decades. If you’re new here, welcome! You’re not alone. Our incoming city manager just moved here from Queen Creek — get ready to meet him in this edition. When the next issue hits the stands, he’ll be in his new role, working to make this city a more joyous place to live.

I don’t want to harp on everything we’ve done over the last 20 years. We’ve consistently provided quality journalism, and you know that — it’s how we earned your trust and why you’re taking your monthly voyage through these glossy pages to learn about everything new going on in town.

Like a new video game legally considered medicine by the federal government — that was invented here and debuts this month. I’m excited to tell you more about this futuristic technology.

We can’t forget about the old, of course. Like the dark past of several fraudulent contractors working in the city, the hundreds of people found dead in the area still waiting to be identified and the hidden nudist colony that predates InMaricopa. We’ll get into all that.

But with the old comes the new — medical examiners have a new chance to identify Maricopans who went missing or were murdered years ago and a primo nudist lot recently went on the market.

And a tell-all about local gig workers explores the struggles of transitioning from an old economy to a new one. Is the heyday of ridesharing apps behind us? We seek to answer that question in this edition.

So, whether you’ve been along for our entire 20-year ride or if you’re a first-time reader learning all there is to know about your new home, I invite you to get lost in these glossy pages with me and celebrate our significant milestone.

Here’s to the next 20!