To the editor,
Federal dollars do not come back to Maricopa by accident. They come back because our council and city staff build relationships, make the case, and keep pushing.
Last week, during a meeting with Nexxus, our federal lobbying team shared the amount of dedicated federal funding Maricopa has secured since fiscal year 2009. The total is nearly $30 million. That is real money for real projects.
Maricopa secured:
- $143,000 through the Energy Efficiency Community Block Grant Program in 2009
- $2.42 million for the Lower Santa Cruz River Watershed
- $15 million TIGER grant in 2015 for the State Route 347 Grade Separation Project
- $3.5 million for the West Maricopa Transmission Waterline
- $3 million for aquifer recharge
- $3.5 million for the Union Pacific pedestrian bridge
- $1.383 million in FEMA funding for the Desert Sunrise High School box culvert
- $867,000 in federal HRSA funding for ambulances in fiscal year 2026
This list tells a clear story. Maricopa fights for its share.
How do we get it done?
- We do not sit back and hope someone remembers us
- We go to Washington, D.C.
- We meet with federal partners
- We explain our needs. We make the case for our residents
That work does not always make headlines. Sometimes it is a meeting, or a phone call. Sometimes it is a grant application, a follow-up email, or years of quiet work before the funding comes through. But that is how cities win.
When all of that lines up, Maricopa benefits. Some people like to say nothing gets done and I hear that often, but the facts say something different.
Nearly $30 million in dedicated federal funding has come back to Maricopa for transportation, water infrastructure, flood control, pedestrian safety, public safety, and community improvements. That did not happen by luck. It happened because Maricopa earned a seat at the table and used it.
We still have work to do. A lot of it. Anyone who lives here knows our infrastructure needs to keep catching up.
But we should also be honest about the progress. Maricopa is no longer a small city hoping someone notices us. We are a growing city that must keep fighting for roads, water, public safety, jobs, and infrastructure.
That is what our residents deserve. That is what our staff works for every day. And that is what I will keep fighting for.
Vincent Manfredi owns InMaricopa and this is a letter written to the editor.
Want to submit you letter to the editor? Email [email protected]
16 Responses
You also rub elbows with the most repugnant people in congress, I see.
I meet with all members of Congress, Republican and Democratic, as they can all contribute to our goals.
I know you’re the owner of this publication, but for you to send a direct email to me with this comment was a tad creepy.
“2018 meeting of Congressman Andy Biggs, former Congressman Andy Biggs, former Mayor Christian Price, and Vice Mayor Vincent Manfredi during a 2018 meeting.”
Andy Biggs is still an incumbent congressman running for governor. I don’t understand how the owner of InMaricopa can’t write his own articles properly.
You must agree with the substance of what I wrote. You are just upset that I did not say it perfectly?
None of us is perfect. We all strive to be better, but only one has ever achieved perfection, and that is God.
So instead of picking apart how something was typed, maybe focus on whether it was true.
Residents did not deserve 22,000 apartments.Many of them section 8 AND paying zero property tax.Do your research BK,oh don’t forget to blame Trump….loser.
Hello, I want to break this down fairly and clearly.
1. There is not one Section 8 apartment complex built in Maricopa in the last 20 years that accepts Section 8 today. The rentals that do accept Section 8 are some government-owned units owned by Pinal County, and some private residences.
2. There are not 22,000 apartments in Maricopa. Where did that number come from? In fact, there are a little over 300 total improved multifamily units, which makes up about 12% of the total housing stock in Maricopa. I agree that we do not need more apartments right now, but there is no need to exaggerate the numbers.
3. Apartments do pay property taxes. They also pay property taxes at a higher classification rate than primary homeowners do. Their rate is not capped the same way a primary residence is because it is considered a business property.
These are simple facts. We can disagree on policy, but we should at least start with accurate information.
3000* not 300
I have said this for the 20 years that I have lived in this town, I will continue to say it Vincent Manfredi is not good for Maricopa, I had this argument with you 15 years ago when you wanted to bring the Apartments to Maricopa, I stood up and said it would create crime in our nice town and it has! I said it would bring 347 to a halt and it has we are starting to build the infrastructure we needed 20 years ago and now we are behind the curve as now we need 4 lanes in each direction with overpasses or underpassed for Casa Blanca, Cement Road and Riggs Rd, but in the new plans there is no mention of any overpasses or underpasses. Our growth is not planned it is for the developers and not the citizens of Maricopa. We need leadership that will look at sustained growth with infrastructure that is planned for the growth
Also all of the Apartments in Maricopa accept Section 8 according to Apartments.com
I think you have me confused with someone else, because much of what you’ve written simply isn’t accurate.
I’ve lived in Maricopa since 2010—16 years. Unless you somehow knew I would be moving here years before I actually did, this timeline doesn’t add up.
Before moving to Maricopa, I lived in Tempe. In 2006, I owned a real estate appraisal company there, which unfortunately was devastated by the 2008 financial crash. After rebuilding my life, I moved to Maricopa in 2010 and have lived in Maricopa Meadows ever since.
Fifteen years ago, I didn’t know many people here. I wasn’t an elected official—I was just a guy commuting to Tempe every day for work. I was happy, focused on my job, and had no interest in discussing apartments or bringing them to Maricopa with someone I didn’t even know. So either you’re confusing me with someone else, or the events you’re describing never involved me.
At that time, I also wasn’t discussing crime rates with you or anyone else. My daily commute on SR 347 gave me firsthand experience with the transportation challenges facing our community.
In fact, my primary reason for running for City Council in 2014 was to improve transportation, particularly by advocating for an overpass in town.
I wasn’t involved in planning Maricopa’s growth until 2013, when I helped rewrite the city’s zoning code to better manage development. Those changes established requirements for items like design standards, sidewalks, landscaping, trees, and other improvements that are now required in new developments.
Finally, I am not part of Pinal County or the federal government. I don’t control Section 8 housing, I don’t award Section 8 funding, and I have no role in deciding where those funds go.
I sincerely hope you figure out who you actually had those conversations with while I was still living in Tempe, because to be absolutely clear: it was not me.
Actually, I was fishing with the “fat orange master” comment. I didn’t want to assume you were MAGA based on your personality and obstinate refusal to accept facts. You took the bait quite nicely..
BK you might want to try stand up comedy as you’re a funny guy.
Holy fart nuggets. He replied?
See, now, THAT is a true statement, as opposed to your unsubstantiated claim of 22,000 apartments.
Manfredi lays it out above. Ghee did it in another article. Anyone with basic research skills and access to Google can disprove that number.
I own my SFR and have no skin in the game other than the fact that the statistic is boldly incorrect and you keep pushing it anyway.
And yes, it reminds me of election denialism, which is very dangerous to our democracy. We don’t have to agree with each other on everything but we do need to agree on the basic rules of the game.
Otherwise we are all just playing Calvinball…
I have said this for the 20 years that I have lived in this town, I will continue to say it Vincent Manfredi is not good for Maricopa, I had this argument with you 15 years ago when you wanted to bring the Apartments to Maricopa, I stood up and said it would create crime in our nice town and it has! I said it would bring 347 to a halt and it has we are starting to build the infrastructure we needed 20 years ago and now we are behind the curve as now we need 4 lanes in each direction with overpasses or underpassed for Casa Blanca, Cement Road and Riggs Rd, but in the new plans there is no mention of any overpasses or underpasses. Our growth is not planned it is for the developers and not the citizens of Maricopa. We need leadership that will look at sustained growth with infrastructure that is planned for the growth
I think you have me confused with someone else, because much of what you’ve written simply isn’t accurate.
I’ve lived in Maricopa since 2010—16 years. Unless you somehow knew I would be moving here years before I actually did, this timeline doesn’t add up.
Before moving to Maricopa, I lived in Tempe. In 2006, I owned a real estate appraisal company there, which unfortunately was devastated by the 2008 financial crash. After rebuilding my life, I moved to Maricopa in 2010 and have lived in Maricopa Meadows ever since.
Fifteen years ago, I didn’t know many people here. I wasn’t an elected official—I was just a guy commuting to Tempe every day for work. I was happy, focused on my job, and had no interest in discussing apartments or bringing them to Maricopa with someone I didn’t even know. So either you’re confusing me with someone else, or the events you’re describing never involved me.
At that time, I also wasn’t discussing crime rates with you or anyone else. My daily commute on SR 347 gave me firsthand experience with the transportation challenges facing our community.
In fact, my primary reason for running for City Council in 2014 was to improve transportation, particularly by advocating for an overpass in town.
I wasn’t involved in planning Maricopa’s growth until 2013, when I helped rewrite the city’s zoning code to better manage development. Those changes established requirements for items like design standards, sidewalks, landscaping, trees, and other improvements that are now required in new developments.
Finally, I am not part of Pinal County or the federal government. I don’t control Section 8 housing, I don’t award Section 8 funding, and I have no role in deciding where those funds go.
I sincerely hope you figure out who you actually had those conversations with while I was still living in Tempe, because to be absolutely clear: it was not me.