Something for Everyone
The City of Casa Grande, ArizonaBy Jessica Ferlaino
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Strategically located in Arizona’s Golden Corridor, the City of Casa Grande has grown from a small town into a regional hub, boasting strong economic and social values as it develops a vision for the future. The city is conveniently positioned halfway between the metropolitan areas of Phoenix and Tucson, with easy access to Interstate 8 and Interstate 10 as well as the proposed Interstate 11.
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Originally built as a stoppage point for railroad construction in the late 1800s, the City of Casa Grande, under the strong leadership of its political leaders and business trailblazers, has flourished from a small town into a bustling community. The forward thinking city has access to all of the amenities of the metro areas – without the congestion – and a future outlook as bright as its weather forecast!
Casa Grande enjoys over three hundred and fifty days of sun a year, which sets the foundation for a strong tourism base. To its population of approximately 55 000 people, the city can see an additional ten (or more) thousand residents in the winter months, as the wintery, cold climates of the north are traded for the sun, warmth and amenities that Casa Grande has to offer.
With the availability of many retail options, Casa Grande serves as a retail hub for a market of 91 000 consumers. Shopping centres include the Promenade Mall, a full sized shopping centre with an area of approximately one million square feet, as well as a number of mini malls and grocery retailers.
There are seven golf courses in the Casa Grande area, as well as an aggressive trail and bike program for outdoor enthusiasts. Grande Sports World, a pre-eminent soccer academy in the United States, helps the city serve as the unofficial home of major league soccer spring training. Soccer has helped youth development and the community culture to grow substantially.
Special events such as the week-long Cowboy and Indian Days (rodeo), Arizona State Chili Cook Off and the Copperstate and Cactus Fly-Ins (featuring experimental and antique aircraft respectively), bring in thousands of locals and tourists alike. Consciously shaping the identity of Casa Grande, the events help create a local culture that is active, family friendly and poised for growth.
Not only does Casa Grande have great amenities, it also boasts significant infrastructure capabilities, developed in accordance with a working master plan. The city has made the necessary investment in its infrastructure to accommodate current and future growth and improved the efficiency of the permitting process to create a friendly business environment for businesses already operating in Casa Grande and for future investments.
Astonishingly, the City of Casa Grande was able to turn a B+ bond rating into AA bond rating at the downturn of the economy, investing in a major treatment plant expansion at the same time. Smart business decisions made in the interest of the operability and overall value of Casa Grande prove why it is a great place to invest and do business.
By setting aside and appreciating its assets, the city has been able to invest in its own capacity by providing for the replacement of stock and equipment when necessary. The city maintains a fund balance of six months worth of expenses, financially setting it apart from other jurisdictions of its size and economic composition.
Casa Grande enjoys a diverse economy comprised of manufacturing, industrial, agricultural, retail, education, government and medical and health related sectors. Its location, accessible and inexpensive land, as well as a solution oriented approach to economic development and community partnerships, facilitates business retention and expansion.
Among its businesses, the city is home to: ACO Polymer (a German company which located its international headquarters in Casa Grande), a Walmart distribution centre, Frito Lay (which implemented strategies to retrofit an existing facility to achieve carbon neutral operations), Abbott Nutrition (which has been in the community for over thirty years), composite materials manufacturer Hexcel (which recently finished an expansion and hired over 100 new employees), National Vitamin Company, Ehrmann Arizona Dairy and Franklin Foods.
As a direct result of a strong sales pitch, Casa Grande was able to secure Tractor Supply Company’s newest distribution centre that will service their expanding operations in the western United States, which will include a new retail store in Casa Grande. The city has asserted itself as a leading community in which to do business and invest within Arizona and the United States.
Not only are the leaders of Casa Grande interested in innovation, so too are the companies that reside here. Casa Grande serves as the regional medical hub of Pinal County, providing upwards of twenty-five medical specialties, including a number of cancer and dialysis centers. As a result, the medical and health care fields have become one of the city’s strongest industries over the last six to seven years. As a testament to this growth, Banner Health, recognized as one of the top 15 Health Care Systems in the nation, recently acquired the Casa Grande Regional Medical Centre.
Casa Grande is blessed with room to grow – at a cost less than the national and state average – with the necessary infrastructure to support that growth. The Casa Grande Municipal Airport, whose infrastructure is unparalleled outside of the Phoenix and Tucson metro areas, can support jet aircraft (up to the G-5 class) and all general aviation propeller aircraft, and is used by international flight schools for training.
Adjacent to the airport is the Airport Industrial Park that boasts fifty-two acres of shovel ready industrial land. The city officials are currently working with the FAA to establish access points that allow for through-the-fence access to the taxiway, ramps and runways. All enhancements will be updated by next year and the city believes this will attract additional aviation related businesses and the accompanying high skilled, high paying jobs.
Apart from the airport industrial park, Casa Grande has a number of commerce and industrial parks. Several hundred acres of land are available for development, zoned as light industrial to heavy industrial, including a rail serviced industrial park with the foundation for strong distribution networks.
These available lands have access to the major interstates, all within a three mile drive, connecting them to markets in the rest of Arizona, New Mexico, Texas and Mexico. The busy ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are also within a day’s drive.
Another major benefit for new and existing businesses in Casa Grande is access to a skilled, knowledgeable workforce. Major initiatives have been taken in the area of workforce development, working with industry and education bodies to ensure that a trained workforce is on the ground, ready to go. The city is within an hour drive to forty universities, colleges and trade schools.
Not only have the visionary leaders poised the city for success over the next several decades, but they have provided a strong financial example of how a city is supposed to be run. The next stage of growth is focused on the international market and creating a blueprint for success rooted in the youth of Casa Grande.
PhoenixMart is a proposed business-to-business sourcing center for high quality items from a variety of departments. An estimated 1.7 million square feet on 585 acres, PhoenixMart will mirror similar developments in China and Dubai – both of which have experienced great success. As one of three of these facilities in the world, PhoenixMart is estimated to house over 1,700 vendors attracting buyers and business from around the world. The PhoenixMart will create 3,000 direct jobs and is expected to lead to the creation of another 5,000 to 6,000 indirect and induced jobs.
Projects like PhoenixMart are opening up and facilitating new markets and new relationships with international investors. The holding company for PhoenixMart is also committed to working with local youth, creating interfaces with other countries and business opportunities that would not have otherwise existed.
Casa Grande has invested in a number of youth based programs, ensuring that education programs are geared to meet every student’s needs. Focusing on youth and creating an empowered, educated and skilled workforce has helped the city to become both nationally and internationally competitive.
Moving forward, the leadership team in Casa Grande is committed to maintaining a balance between amenities, infrastructure and the number of jobs, to continue to support the population, ensuring that people can live, work and play in the same place, in accordance with a high standard of living.
By continuing to increase capacities and by taking advantage of local and international opportunities, Casa Grande is creating and maintaining a strong economy that will carry it for the next several decades as its smart business decisions build upon what it already does so well.