FOUNTAIN HILLS, ARIZONA

(Redirected from Fountain Hills Observatory)

'Fountain Hills' is a town in Maricopa County, Arizona, USA. It incorporated as an independent municipality in 1989, after spending most of its history as a master planned development on the far northern end of (now neighboring) Scottsdale. For many years the land on which the town sits was a working cattle ranch, and 4,500 acres of it were sold to Robert P. McCulloch in 1968. The town of Fountain Hills is situated on the lower east slopes, of the McDowell Mountains, as they drain into the Verde River
According to 2005 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city is 23,217. Annual Estimates of the Population for All Incorporated Places in Arizona Fountain Hills was the eighth fastest-growing place among all cities and towns in Arizona between the 1990 and 2000 census. In contrast to Scottsdale, homes in Fountain Hills are widely spaced, in a more rural setting. Fountain Hills is home to the world's third tallest fountain, and neighbors the Fort McDowell Indian Reservation. Charles W. Juels' Fountain Hills Observatory is situated nearby.

Contents

Law and government

Geography

The Fountain

Demographics

Media

Public meetings

Sister cities

References

External links

Law and government

Fountain Hills is set up under a Council-Manager system.
The current mayor of Fountain Hills is Wally Nichols and was elected in May of 2003. The current town council consists of the Mayor and six councilmembers: Councilman John Kavanagh, Councilman Keith McMahan, Councilman Edwin Kehe, and Councilman Jay Schlum. Kathleen Nicola served as councilwoman from June 6 2002 until she died in a boating accident on May 19 2005. The current Town Manager is Timothy Pickering. Among other council appointed staff are Town Attorney Andrew McGuire and Town Magistrate Ted Armbruster.
The town does not have its own law enforcement. They are patrolled by the Maricopa County Sheriff's office with the elected Sheriff Joe Arpaio, who also lives within the town.

Geography

Fountain Hills is located at (33.604811, -111.728526).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 47.2 km² (18.2 mi²). 47.1 km² (18.2 mi²) of it is land and 0.1 km² (0.1 mi²) of it (0.27%) is water.

The Fountain

The eponymous fountain was built in 1971 by Robert P. McCulloch, the same year that reconstruction of the London Bridge in Lake Havasu City, another of McCulloch's projects, was completed. The plume of water rises from a concrete water-lily sculpture in the center of a large man-made lake and is driven by three 600-horsepower pumps. When all three pumps are on under zero wind condition, the fountain can reach over 560 feet in height.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 20,235 people, 8,653 households, and 6,515 families residing in the town. The population density was 430.0/km² (1,113.8/mi²). There were 10,491 housing units at an average density of 222.9/km² (577.5/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 96.26% White, 0.59% Black or African American, 0.49% Native American, 0.89% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 0.66% from other races, and 1.06% from two or more races. 3.05% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 8,653 households out of which 23.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 66.7% were married couples living together, 6.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.7% were non-families. 19.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.67.
In the town the population was spread out with 18.5% under the age of 18, 4.4% from 18 to 24, 24.6% from 25 to 44, 33.3% from 45 to 64, and 19.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 46 years. For every 100 females there were 93.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.1 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $61,619, and the median income for a family was $68,185. Males had a median income of $50,324 versus $32,307 for females. The per capita income for the town was $32,230. About 2.2% of families and 4.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.0% of those under age 18 and 3.8% of those age 65 or over.

Media

:''See also: Media in Phoenix, Arizona''
The Fountain Hills Times is a major weekly newspaper in the town, published every Wednesday. The parent company of the Times, Western States Publishers, Inc., also publishes the Fountain Hills/Rio Verde Telephone Directory, Fountain Hills Community Guide, Fountain Hills HOME, and The Arizona Sentinel 'Let's Go!'.

Public meetings

Public meetings are scheduled regularly as follows:
Town Council meets the first and third Thursday of the month at 6:30 p.m. at Town Hall's council chambers (Building B).
Planning and Zoning Commission meets the second and fourth Thursday of the month at 6:30 p.m. at Town Hall.
The Parks and Recreation Commission meets the second Monday of the month at 5:30 p.m. at the Community Center.
The Board of Adjustment meets on an as-needed basis the second Tuesday of the month at 7 p.m., also at Town Hall.
The town also operates a government access channel on Channel 11 and has done so since at least 1998.

Sister cities

Fountain Hills has two sister cities, as designated by Sister Cities International, Inc.:^[1]

★ - Kasterlee (Antwerpen, Belgium)

★ - Dierdorf (Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany)

References

1. Sister Cities information obtained from the Sister Cities International, Inc. (SCI)." Retrieved on November 26, 2006.

External links

★ City website

★ Fountain Hills Times Newspaper

★ Fountain Hills School District