|
By
Philip Franchine
GREEN VALLEY NEWS AND SUN
July 18, 2003
SAHUARITA---Sahuarita's
booming population has topped 7,000, according to two projections,
moving it out of last place among
Pima
County
cities and towns.
The town population estimate is just over 7,000, which more than
doubles the 2000 Census figure of 3,242, town Planning Director John
Neunuebel said.
And the projection of 7,201 by the Pima Association of Governments (PAG),
for the first time exceeds that for the city of
South Tucson
, whose July 1 population was projected to be 5,565, Neunuebel said.
PAG is the regional transportation planning agency for
Pima
County
. "It is kind of a milestone. We are no longer the smallest
incorporated area in the county. That honor goes to the city of
South Tucson
," Neunuebel said.
Projections
for future
Neunuebel said the town's explosive growth is consistent with its
general plan, which envisions a population of 23,200 in 2013 and
about 46,000 in 2023.
Town Manager Jim Stahle said, "It's directly related to the
construction of single family houses, a majority of which went into
Rancho Sahuarita. A hefty amount also went into
Quail Creek. Those two are the hotbeds of activity, but there is
growth coming in other areas. They are doing grading work for
[planned] Monterey Homes on
Duval Mine Road
in the Calle Valle Verde area."
The town has issued 943 building permits since
Jan. 1, 2001
, for single family homes in Rancho Sahuarita; 363 in Quail Creek,
and 81 in other locations, according to town records. The town also
has issued 207 permits for model homes and 100 for mobile homes in
that time frame.
Stahle said that town staff recently have been contacted by builders
who are planning to shortly submit a final subdivision plat to the
Town Council for 200 homes east of
Abrego Drive
and south of
Duval Mine Road
. The tentative plat has already been approved by the plan
commission, he said.
Active
developments
When work starts there, it will mean active development on all four
quadrants of the Duval Mine/Interstate 19 interchange, Stahle said.
The others will include the planned
Wal-Mart
SuperCenter
and Monterey Homes' Los Arroyos subdivision in the northeast, a KB
Homes subdivision to the northwest, and to the southwest, the
Safeway grocery store is opening a gas station Monday and expects to
add satellite stores in the future.
The town has not undergone a formal census since the federal census
of 2000, Neunuebel said. However, the estimate of 7,000 is based on
the March 31 number of occupied units, 2,517, multiplied by the
estimated average occupancy of 2.78 persons per unit. The average
occupancy figure is based on census figures and appears to be
relatively steady, Neunuebel said.
There is an estimated 90-day lag between the issuance of building
occupancy permits and actual occupancy, so only permit figures
through March were used, Neunuebel said. (The July 1 projection
works out to 6,997, and the July 15 number would be about 7,130.)
More
estimates due
PAG will issue its official estimates in the next month, Regional
Planning Director Andy Gunning said. Its projections are less
scientific than the methodology used in the annual estimates, which
are almost identical to the method used by the town. The town
annexed a large, but sparsely populated area after the 2000 Census
was conducted, but Neunuebel said the main growth comes from new
construction.
The town has added 1,387 single family houses since
Jan.
1, 2001
,
including a record 115 in May and another 96 in June that do not yet
count in population estimates, town building official Andy Kelley
said. The current estimates for the other towns and cities in
the county are: Marana, 20,080;
Oro
Valley
,
35,072, and
Tucson
,
515,452.
The county total grew to 910,137 from 890,545, and the total in the
unincorporated area grew to 326,768 from 320,665. PAG's estimates
for last year were: 5,445 for Sahuarita, and 5,520 in
South
Tucson
.
pfranchine@gvnews.com |
625
Back
To News Articles
|
