Two decades and counting

InMaricopa celebrates its 20th year of operation this year.

Over the last two decades, InMaricopa published 26,000 articles about the happenings in Maricopa (more than four stories per day on average) and has proven itself as the go-to source for citizens who want to know about the community in which they live.

InMaricopa has been there for it all. We published our first story a mere few months after the city’s incorporation in the fall of 2003. The goal here at InMaricopa has been to cover the successes and failures of this city, and to do it with accuracy, consistency and urgency.

We believe in an informed citizenry and the reason we’ve been able to further that goal all started with the dreams of one man, Scott Bartle, the founder and publisher of InMaricopa.

Bartle launched our newsgathering organization as 85239.com in March 2004 as a hyperlocal, online news source for the growing community in the midst of a housing boom.

Bartle’s father, Jeff, was part of the team that developed what was then called Southern Dunes Golf Club.

“That’s how I got introduced to the town of Maricopa,” Bartle said. “They had incredible projections for growth.”

Bartle launched Outside the Box Marketing in 2000 and was looking for an opportunity to take advantage of the growth.”

New kid on the block

In 2004, there were two monthly newspapers in the tiny town of Maricopa, then home to just over 4,000 people. Bartle felt Maricopans deserved better.

“They didn’t serve the community like I thought they could have,” Bartle said. “I knew we could compete in that arena. I had a background in advertising and sponsorship, and I liked to write. I felt like I could do it, so we started an online newspaper.”

The news website quickly took off and became the real-time news center for the rapidly growing city.

InMaricopa represented change, which meant asking difficult questions and holding leaders accountable. However, some in the community were determined to keep the status quo.

“In retrospect, I wish I had a better sense of the mindset of small-town Maricopa,” Bartle said. “Many were not only resistant to the change we brought to the market, they proactively sabotaged our efforts. I’d like to think there would have been a better and less stressful way to navigate those relationships.”

Bartle didn’t have much to throw at the business other than grit, determination and as he put it, a “stubbornness and a refusal to fail.” He knew it was a high-growth market and if he “could just get up on the surfboard, the wave of development would get me to shore.”

Bartle is modest about his sacrifices but admits to putting quite a bit of sweat equity into the enterprise. Those early days were lean.

“I didn’t sacrifice much — just my 30s and early 40s,” Bartle quipped. “It was all-in for a very long time. There were weeks I clocked 40 hours before breakfast Wednesday. There was a seemingly infinite amount to do and no money to pay for help, so working until I couldn’t see straight was the rule, not the exception.”

The vision takes flight

The word got out about 85239.com, which during those days bore the moniker “Maricopa’s Homepage.” The buzz on the street was palpable.

“As soon as we launched 85239.com, it was clear our model was a winner,” Bartle said. “The immediacy of our news and information for a town that only had monthly newspapers was an immediate game-changer for the community.”

The concept was to follow the online news site with a weekly printed publication, but it became obvious the printed and online products were competing with one another.

As a result, the InMaricopa Magazine that now fills Maricopans’ mailboxes each month first got its pages glossed in 2006 as a quarterly publication.

A monthly newspaper would follow in 2009 in addition to the quarterly magazine. In 2016, the publications were consolidated into the monthly magazine we all know today.

But, if you were to travel back in time, you’d see the magazine and website were called 85239, the city’s zipcode at the time.

The problem, however, came when the U.S. Postal Service started adding and eventually changing the ZIP code as the town quickly became a city.

Just a few years after starting the company, the Postal Service split the city into two codes down John Wayne Parkway, using 85239 and 85238. Then all the 852 codes were transferred from Pinal to Maricopa County and Bartle took action.

“OK,” Bartle remembered thinking at the time. “I’d better take my brand out of the hands of the U.S. Postal Service. That’s when we came up with InMaricopa.”

A primetime player arrives

A key moment in the operation’s history came in 2017 when co-owner Vince Manfredi joined the team.

“Vince is a terrific partner. He’s really good with people and smart,” Bartle said. “Some of his strengths are my weaknesses and vice versa. We complement each other well. He’s made a big difference, not just in the company but in the community. There are few who share his extraordinary commitment to serving our community.”

Manfredi said early on he noticed InMaricopa offered an important service to the growing community.

“When I first moved to Maricopa, InMaricopa (85239 at the time) provided us with a lot of information about the community,” said Manfredi. “We read the newspaper, magazine and website. I am proud to be part of a company that provides that much information to new and existing residents.”

Manfredi said the reason he became a partner in the company is Bartle’s belief system.
“Scott is a different type of person,” Manfredi said. “He gives 100% to what he is doing. He is a guy who has integrity. When it comes to even the smallest thing, you know you can trust and rely on him to do the right thing. You don’t find that much in the world today. When he gives his word, he follows through. He’s a guy who holds people accountable, works hard and he loves the community.”

Success over the long haul

Bartle wanted a publication that would be around for years to consistently inform citizens about the goings on in their community — the good, the bad and the ugly.

There were plenty of shortcuts that could have been taken along the way, but Bartle realized the focus from the start was on quality journalism and not making a quick buck.

“My life would have been easier and profits much greater had I not been so committed to content and quality,” Bartle said. “That’s not a regret per se, but the business model I chose was not for the faint of heart.”

Along the way, Bartle has nurtured a company that thrives on telling the stories of Maricopa. He roots hard for Maricopans and the businesses who have supported InMaricopa along the way.

Bartle said during the last 20 years, his greatest pleasures have come from the success of this community and its citizens.

“Employing Maricopans and contributing to other entrepreneurs’ and business owners’ and operators’ success makes me proud. So does much of the content we publish that is easy to take for granted. If we don’t tell many of the stories we tell, they will never be told. And I’m proud we are still standing two decades later when countless other businesses — and many naysayers — are not.”

As for the future of InMaricopa, Bartle said it’s all about the community.
“I really defer to our readers and our advertisers to identify what the future looks like. We are just a conduit to serve the community — both the business community and the general citizenry,” he said. “We are small enough and nimble enough that we can make changes to our business model as necessary to fill the voids that exist.”