LACK OF WATER IN MARICOPA COUNTY
Over the past month, the news cycle has been focused on the lack of water in Rio Verde, an unincorporated area of Maricopa County, northeast of Scottsdale. This area consists of parcels no smaller than an acre and is mainly horse property. There has never been a municipal water source there, however many of the properties have wells, or a shared well.
Some homes in Rio Verde were built on parcels that do not have a well, and those homes have been relying on water that, up until now, has been trucked in from the City of Scottsdale. In August of 2021, Scottsdale imposed Tier 1 water restrictions, announcing that no water from its municipality would leave the city limits, hence the Rio Verde water trucks would no longer be able to fill up in Scottsdale. While the trucks are now filling up elsewhere, this has increased the cost of bringing water to those homes in Rio Verde.
WHO IS EPCOR?
Epcor is a private water company that was contracted by the developers of Tonto Verde and Trilogy at Verde River, two master-planned active adult communities east of the city, to assist with the lack of water in Rio Verde. Epcor has stepped up, providing an infrastructure plan to the neighboring horse properties, which is working through governmental approval.
Indeed, the summer of 2020 was one of the hottest and driest ever recorded for Arizona. That summer was the crowning jewel to a series of extremely anemic Northern Arizona snowpack seasons, and statewide monsoon seasons, spanning nearly two decades.
MONSOONS AFFECTING DROUGHT MAPS
We have been very fortunate to have extremely active monsoon seasons in 2021 and 2022, and the winter of 2023 has seen record snowfall in some areas of Northern Arizona. The most current drought map, seen below, shows no drought in over 42% of the state. None of the state is in exceptional or extreme drought, which is remarkable when compared to the drought map from June 2021, also seen below. Just over 1% of the state is in severe drought, just over 21% of the state is in moderate drought, and 35% of the state is abnormally dry.
The real fun though is when you look at the national drought map and compare Arizona to other parts of the country. Compared to the Midwest and parts of Texas, we’re looking pretty good.
If you have any questions about the current drought situation in Arizona, and how it affects the housing in your community, or are looking to start the home buying process, give us a call today and we will be happy to answer any questions and help you build a plan that fits your needs. Contact us today at 480-759-1576, or visit us at Cusickgroupre.com. We look forward to talking to you.
