San Tan Valley

History

San Tan Valley derives its name from the nearby San Tan Mountains. San Tan Valley was picked as the name for the area based on an informal public poll commissioned by now former Pinal County Supervisor Bryan Martyn. Previously referred to as San Tan Heights, San Tan Foothills, Greater San Tan and simply the San Tan Area, the community lacked any official name and residents used nearby Queen Creek for their mailing addresses. This practice led to confusion, as the Town of Queen Creek is located primarily in neighboring Maricopa County. To coincide with the addition of a new ZIP Code for the community on July 1, 2009, the United States Postal Service was petitioned to provide the area with a new name. As part of the initial request, "Bella Vista" name was submitted to the postal service, drawing the ire of some local residents who opposed the suggested name. In response, the Greater San Tan Area Coalition organized a non-binding vote on June 23, offering residents the opportunity to vote on a name for the community. The area, which had consisted primarily of undeveloped desert and agriculture prior to 2000, experienced considerable growth in the early part of the decade. As early as 2004, attempts to incorporate the area were underway. An initial attempt, which proposed a name of simply "San Tan" for the area, was blocked by the neighboring town of Florence after rural residents there expressed concern that allowing incorporation would accelerate the urbanization of the area. A subsequent effort in 2005 failed to gain traction. Following the renaming of the area in 2009, a renewed effort at incorporation sought to put the issue to a vote in 2010, this time with the support of Pinal County. The Town Council of Florence unanimously rejected a resolution that would…

Geography

San Tan Valley is located in the area between the towns of Queen Creek to the north and west, and Florence to the south. The area is also bound by the San Tan Mountains Regional Park on the west and the Gila River Indian Community on the southwest. The area consists largely of planned communities, such as Pecan Creek South, San Tan Heights, Archer Meadows, and Johnson Ranch. |date = March 14, 2023}}

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  6,372
• Great-tailed Grackle

  Quiscalus mexicanus (Gmelin, 1788) · Aves
  5,856
• Anna's Hummingbird

  Calypte anna (R.Lesson, 1829) · Aves
  5,655
• House Finch

  Haemorhous mexicanus (P.L.Statius Müller, 1776) · Aves
  5,387
• Verdin

  Auriparus flaviceps (Sundevall, 1850) · Aves
  5,267
• Abert's Towhee

  Melozone aberti (S.F.Baird, 1852) · Aves
  5,091
• Gila Woodpecker

  Melanerpes uropygialis (S.F.Baird, 1854) · Aves
  4,688
• Curve-billed Thrasher

  Toxostoma curvirostre (Swainson, 1827) · Aves
  4,533

Largest nearby schools

• American Leadership Academy Ironwood K12
  Other · San Tan Valley · 2,230 students
• Eduprize School
  Elementary · QUEEN CREEK · 1,643 students
• Poston Butte High School
  High · San Tan Valley · 1,393 students · 19.6:1 ratio
• Combs High School
  High · San Tan Valley · 1,356 students · 23:1 ratio
• Legacy Traditional School - Queen Creek
  Elementary · QUEEN CREEK · 1,119 students
• American Leadership Academy Anthem K-6
  Other · Florence · 959 students
• San Tan Foothills High School
  High · QUEEN CREEK · 824 students · 17.2:1 ratio
• Walker Butte K-8
  Elementary · San Tan Valley · 813 students · 17.7:1 ratio

Most recent

• M 2.5 — 2026-03-15
  9 km SSE of Tat Momoli, Arizona
• M 2.6 — 2022-02-25
  1 km S of Roosevelt, Arizona
• M 2.5 — 2022-02-15
  6 km S of Roosevelt, Arizona
• M 2.5 — 2022-02-12
  2 km ESE of Roosevelt, Arizona
• M 3.2 — 2016-12-10
  11 km ENE of Rio Verde, Arizona
• M 3.2 — 2014-09-20
  6 km WNW of Rock House, Arizona