Merry Christmas to All

Local Product

I'm shopping locally again for Christmas. I'm excited as there is a new product at the Olive Mill.

Strawberry Balsamic Vinegar - divine.

Queen Creek Hometown Christmas

Queen Creek Hometown Christmas

Enjoy crafts, carols, food and fun!

Friday, Dec. 45-9 p.m. Queen Creek Library, 21802 S. Ellsworth Road Bring the family to enjoy holiday traditions at the Queen Creek Hometown Christmas from 5-9 p.m., Friday, Dec. 4 at the Queen Creek Library, 21802 S. Ellsworth Road.

There is no better way to get into the spirit of Christmas than to join in the fun at this unique community event. The event will feature Santa Claus, a sing-a-long, holiday arts & craft

activities for kids, food and craft vendors, stage entertainment, and a winter skating rink. Queen Creek's Hometown Christmas is sure to get you in the holiday spirit!

Queen Creek Hometown Christmas is hosted by Queen Creek Parks and Recreation Special Events, the Queen Creek Branch Library and the Friends of the Library.

For more information, contact the Queen Creek Parks and Recreation Department at 480-358-3700.

Queen Creek Olive Mill Expands / Grand Reopening Thursday

Ribbon Cutting for their Grand Reopening
DATE: Thursday, September 24th
TIME: 12:00pm - 1:30pm
LOCATION: 25062 S Meridian Rd in Queen Creek

MORE: Come see the newly renovated mill!Join them for a complimentary slice of their famous Olive Oil Cake!Stay for lunch!

Visit

www.queencreekolivemill.com for directions
Queen Creek Olive Mill
25062 S. Meridian Drive
Queen Creek, Arizona 85242
480-888-9290

Happy Birthday Queen Creek

Queen Creek turns 20. Just a baby.

Click here for an article from the East Valley Tribune about this auspicious occasion.

Another Sad Story ~ Don't Drink and Drive

How many hearts were broken this past week due to a negligent drinker. Sadly this victim was hit by a drunk driver who crossed to the wrong side of the road and hit a teenager who was bicycling with two friends. The driver left the scene.

To the friends and family of Russell, our prayers are with you.

A Visit to Gilbert & Liberty Market

I took a little drive the other morning to our neighbor to the west - Gilbert Arizona.

I'd been hearing about Liberty Market and stopped in for some breakfast and coffee.

I was impressed with Liberty Market. It had a modern coffee bar feel in a relaxed atmosphere.

My breakfast was good but the coffee was better.

There was a nice crowd at about 10 am on a weekday.

No, that's not me in Paris riding a scooter through the busy streets. It's one of the bathroom stalls at Liberty Market. What a crack up. Each stall has a different theme and when you shut the door music turns on.

I love themed bathrooms. Barrio Cafe in Phoenix has some pretty cute ones.

A Graffiti stall.

A disco themed stall?

The back wall of the Vespa bathroom.

Someone has a good sense of humor. And hey, as a bonus the bathrooms were clean! What a concept.

All in all my visit to Gilbert was good and made all the better by visiting Liberty Market. We sure could use a place like this in Queen Creek / San Tan Valley. Hint, Hint.

If you are want more information about Liberty Market and their menu and locations click here.

Too Hot to Post

Yikes, this heat has made me so lazy. I haven't posted in a while. I blame it on the 100+ weather we have been having. I'm begging for more monsoon rain.

Went to Sushi Creek today for lunch. Nice and cool in there. Excellent food. Tried their special today the Roadrunner roll. Not bad. Still love the Bigfoot.

If you haven't been there, try it - you'll like it. They even have an I hate sushi menu.

Naming of Area flawed?

I for one do think that the re-naming of the area was done too quickly without proper widespread notification of the residents. Click here for a recent opinion by another area resident.

Queen Creek Fireworks - Schnepf Farms

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!

Celebrate 4th of July tonight at Schnepf Farms in Queen Creek. $10 a carload and all proceeds go to charity.

Click here for the Schnepf Farms calendar of events.

Stay safe y'all.

Around Town

Local photos from the San Tan Valley area in June.

Queen Creek Farmers Market.

Red Rainbow seen on Ironwood / Gantzel.

Banner Ironwood Medical Center coming along nicely.

Click here for information about this project.

The new Poston Butte High School, also coming along nicely.
Click here for more information about the upcoming school year at Poston Butte.

Rebuttal to a previous post.

OPINIONS VALUED HERE

I may not post all comments in the body of an actual post but this one is a rebuttal to this previous post from another commenter.

Anonymous said...
Who are the 200 people Sup. Martyn supposedly queried to move forward with Bella Vista, AZ prior to this vote? A whopping .0025 percent of the 80,000 residents of this unincorporated area.

This area should remain Queen Creek until it incorporates and ALL are enabled to vote on a community name.If it weren't for the newspaper articles and a couple of HOA newsletters with info. on this vote it wouldn't have been known to the dismal 2,000 people that voted. A whopping 2.5 percent of the residents.

Did you know Sup. Martyn already mailed in a letter to the USPS on June 11th requesting with the zip code change that a name change to Bella Vista be made? Talk about the wagon leading the horse... Give me a break. This was a scam. Thought he could sweep it under the rug. And let's see just how much more taxpayer money is wasted when a "revote" occurs during the election cycle because people will be outraged over the new name "San Tan Valley".

Another politician all about himself, way ahead of himself. Doesn't think he needs to consult others on his actions, even when it affects them.
June 24, 2009 12:56 PM

Evolution of San Tan Valley?

hmmm. I may have to change my blog banner to read: THE EVOLUTION OF QUEEN CREEK AND SAN TAN VALLEY, FORMERLY THE UNINCORPORATED AREA BETWEEN FLORENCE AND APACHE JUNCTION.

San Tan Valley Number One Name Choice at Vote

The press is stating that the number one choice of names for the unincorporated area near Queen Creek per a vote at the community meeting this week was.... San Tan Valley followed by Bella Vista.

Personally this blogger feels that although the name Bella Vista is beautiful, locals were upset that the name appeared to be pre-chosen for them and possibly voted for a different name in retaliation. Whatever the reason at least the residents of this area had a say.

Please click here for an article about Mondays meeting and vote.

Vote on San Tan Area re-naming Tomorrow

All joking aside...

The Greater San Tan Area Coalition website has the forms for submitting your vote on the re-naming of the unincorporated area between Florence and Queen Creek. Click here for ballot and more information.

Of note on the website is a tab titled Notifications. Kudos to Tisha Castillo for this notice .

Sadly the local newspapers and Pinal county did little to get the news out to the locals in the area. News articles mentioned the name change but provided little detail on where the vote was taking place. So click on the links above and pass on this information to your friends and neighbors - this "vote" is tomorrow.

The list of names currently up for consideration are:

Acacia Valley
Mountain View
Agave
Palo Verde Hills
Bella Verde
Poston Butte
Bella Vista
Primrose Hill
Carter
Saguaro Valley
Cholla Valley
Santana
Cholla Vista
San Tan Area
Goldmine
San Tan East
Goldmine Valley
San Tan Ridge
Ironwood
San Tan Trails
Ironwood Heights
San Tan Valley
Ironwood Vista
San Tan Vistas
Johnson
Valle Del Sol
Kennedy
NO CHANGE
Mansel

Meeting Monday to Vote on San Tan / Queen Creek area name change

Instead of me interpreting an article for you please read this article regarding the name change and upcoming vote regarding the unincorporated area in Pinal County.

Opinion from Anonymous regarding last post.

Anonymous said...
The poll is not a secret, it's on-going and will be available online tonight through the GSTAC website. There is also a public meeting 6/22 @ 6:30pm @ Circle Cross Ranch Elementary School. Residents may vote online prior to the meeting or in person (paper ballet) the night of the meeting. Rather than propagating misinformation, you might try to get some facts -- or at least make an effort to understand the situation. I've lived in this unincorporated area for several years now. We are not in Queen Creek. In fact, the town of QC doesn't want us! They are concerned with the high numbers of foreclosures in our area and the potential negative impact on their town image. Ask them...see what they say.As for Bryan Martyn being a rouge supervisor...well, I for one support our elected leaders in being decisive and pro-active. Have you talked to Bryan? If you do you might get a better handle on his motives. There is no unified voice or even a largely distributed newspaper in this area. You have an opportunity with this blog to provide residents with useful information. Instead, you've squandered that opportunity in lieu of taking pot shots at one of a few individuals that's trying to move things forward in our community.
June 19, 2009 8:07 AM

Secret Vote to name unicorporated Queen Creek Area

Please read this article from the Arizona Republic.

Rogue Pinal County supervisor Bryan Martyn has taken it upon his self to try and name the unincorporated area near Queen Creek on his own. Evidently there is a vote to be had on Monday but according to the article int he Arizona Republic Martyn and other organizers were still unable to say where the vote will be held.

Why not give others a chance to make suggestions for naming the area. This is so wrong! Haven't the people who bought homes here who were under the impression they lived in "Queen Creek" suffered enough without some politician deciding what he would like our area to be called. Put it to a real vote dude. What's your rush.

I'm with Tisha Castillo, president of the San Tan Area Chamber of Commerce in asking that this vote be delayed. There is no need for your stealth secret vote. Just because you have visited a couple of homeowner meetings does not give you the right to name our area. What's your rush? What's your motive?

Readers, and twitterers, if you have a good new name for our area let's hear it!

Queen Creek wants you to shop local!

I'll get right on that as soon as we have some more fun places to shop.

We'd love the idea of shopping local. I love the idea of a farmers market but the farmers markets in our town are actually craft shows with maybe one person selling fresh produce. The selection is slim.

I'm waiting for the new Fresh and Easy to open here in Queen Creek.

Click here for a little reading about Queen Creek and the shop local craze.

Getting Ready for Rain

Cloud action. Getting ready for some rain.

Horse Soccer Anyone?

As you know their are a few horse lovers in the Queen Creek / Pinal County area. There is a new game in town and it is called Horse Soccer. There is even a Horse Soccer League in our area called the Arizona Horse Soccer League.

Click here and here for more information.

Queen Creek Marketing Plan

The East Valley Tribune ran an article titled "Queen Creek developing marketing plan". I wanted to make a few comments as I learned a few things about Queen Creek in this article.

1. Did you know that Queen Creek has a marketing department?

2. Did you know that Queen Creek had a marketing phrase?

"Convenience of the city, comforts of the country".

According to the article "Queen Creek is getting ready to embark on a branding initiative to define the down as a destination - not a bedroom community of the outskirts of the Valley"

The town spokeswoman stated that Queen Creek is "more than just homes" "There's a lot of culture that happens out here, like Schnepf Farms and the perming arts center and horseshoe Park".

The article indicated that the town is looking for branding and marketing ideas.

I can save you a million in marketing right now - let's twitter about it. If you have a twitter account and find something worth twittering about in Queen Creek, tweet about it. Use the words "Queen Creek" in your tweet. Anyone who does a search on Queen Creek on twitter will get tons of information. Yes it's a wild card. Some of it may not be the message that the town council would want to get out but it would be a real bites of information about the area.

I'm starting my Queen Creek tweets today. Feel free to follow my tweets by clicking the Twitter link on this blog. Tell the world what you want them to know about Queen Creek. I hope most of it is positive but also honest.

I'd love to hear more about other places in the Queen Creek area besides Schnepf Farms. I'm talking Queen Creek Olive Mill, I'm talking The Pork Shop, I'm talking Sushi Creek. I'm talking Queen Creek Library. You may get a bad tweet from me about the Queen Creek Post Office... but hey I'm talking honesty here.

Please share with me any other ideas you have about promoting Queen Creek. I'd be happy to share your comments on this blog.

Remberance

Please remember and pray for the souls who gave their lives for our country.

May in Arizona

This photo was recently taken in Arizona near Queen Creek

Cactus in Bloom

We've been in our subdivision for about four years now. We put our landscaping in about the same time. I'm so excited that some of my plants have bloomed for the first time this year.

Art in the Park at the Arboretum

If you have not been to the Boyce Thompson Arboretum you are really missing out on one of our local wonders. This place is amazing. Not only do they provide a beautiful area for walking and studying plants they also provide some nice programs for promoting local artists.

This Saturday they held an Arts in the Park art show.
the show was sponsored by the Soroptimists International of Gold Canyon. They did an excellent job with this Art fair.

There were some awesome jewelry artists showing their wares. I found some of the nicest quality beaded jewelry that I have seen in a long while.

Some of the most original art were these reclaimed art crosses from Desert Resurrections. These crosses are made from recycled wood and items found in the desert. The ultimate in recycling.

www.desertresurrections.com

I think a whole show of recycled art would be fantastic.

If you haven't been to the Arboretum yet I urge you to go there. It's a wonderful way to spend a day or morning. They have a picnic area if you want to have a little lunch with your family.

Please see their website for details.

http://ag.arizona.edu/bta/

Have a great week and let me know if have a favorite Queen Creek or Pinal County event coming up in the area.

Mesa Market Place Swap Meet

If you haven't been to the Mesa Swap Meet yet now is a great time to go. This time of year the vendor booths are full. Once the weather gets hot, and it will come quickly, the vendor booths pair down.

I love to take out of town visitors to this swap meet to get souvenirs. The prices are great and the variety is excellent.

You can find everything from cow skulls to cactus.

The vendor areas are shaded and you can buy food and drinks there including a nice cold beer.

There is usually some live entertainment near the food court. A great spot to enjoy a hot dog and a beer or a soda.

The odds are good and the goods are odd. You will find all sorts of interesting items that you may or may not be able to live without.

I think anyone would enjoy this place. If you are traveling and don't have enough room in your suitcase to bring something back, well you just buy a suitcase there. They have a ton of luggage and purse vendors.

This past weekend I saw vendors selling jewelry at discount prices. There were bead vendors, home decor and of course t-shirts galore.

(The only thing I can think of that I don't like about this place is the loud speaker with a man talking incessantly about the booths and deals you can get. I think it is wasted breath and unnecessary and sort of obnoxious.)

The place is nice, clean and safe. I would recommend it to anyone.

http://mesamarket.com/