Tonopah, Arizona
Encyclopedia
Tonopah ˈtoʊnɵpɑː is a census-designated place
Census-designated place
A census-designated place is a concentration of population identified by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes. CDPs are delineated for each decennial census as the statistical counterparts of incorporated places such as cities, towns and villages...

 in western Maricopa County
Maricopa County, Arizona
-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*73.0% White*5.0% Black*2.1% Native American*3.5% Asian*0.2% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*3.5% Two or more races*12.7% Other races*29.6% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...

, Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...

, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, approximately 50 miles west of downtown Phoenix
Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix is the capital, and largest city, of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the sixth most populated city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,445,632 people according to the official 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data...

 off Interstate 10
Interstate 10
Interstate 10 is the fourth-longest Interstate Highway in the United States, after I-90, I-80, and I-40. It is the southernmost east–west, coast-to-coast Interstate Highway, although I-4 and I-8 are further south. It stretches from the Pacific Ocean at State Route 1 in Santa Monica,...

. The community is near the Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station
Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station
The Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station is a nuclear power plant located in Wintersburg, Arizona, about 45 miles west of central Phoenix. It is the largest nuclear generation facility in the United States, averaging over 3.3 gigawatts of electrical power production in 2008 to serve...

, the largest nuclear power plant in the country.

The name Tonopah derives from the Tú Nohwá, meaning "Hot Water Under a Bush", referring to its location in the Harquahala Valley, underneath which there is an extensive subterranean aquifer
Aquifer
An aquifer is a wet underground layer of water-bearing permeable rock or unconsolidated materials from which groundwater can be usefully extracted using a water well. The study of water flow in aquifers and the characterization of aquifers is called hydrogeology...

 so that wells dug in the area never lack water. Prior to being called Tonopah, the settlement was known as Lone Peak.

The area is also known to have been inhabited by the Yavapai
Yavapai people
Yavapai are an indigenous people in Arizona. Historically, the Yavapai were divided into four geographical bands that considered themselves separate peoples: the Tolkapaya, or Western Yavapai, the Yavapé, or Northwestern Yavapai, the Kwevkapaya, or Southeastern Yavapai, and Wipukpa, or Northeastern...

.

Demographics

As of the census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...

 of 2010, there were 60 people residing in the CDP. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...

 was 43.9 people per square mile. The racial makeup of the CDP was 86.67% White
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

, 1.67% Native American
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

, 3.33% Asian
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

, and 8.33% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

. 23.33% of the population were Hispanic
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

 or Latino
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

 of any race.

Schools

  • Ruth Fisher Elementary---approximately 800 students
  • Tonopah Valley High School---approximately 400 students
  • Winter's Well Elementary---approximately 275 students

Incorporation efforts

In 2009, a political action committee
Political action committee
In the United States, a political action committee, or PAC, is the name commonly given to a private group, regardless of size, organized to elect political candidates or to advance the outcome of a political issue or legislation. Legally, what constitutes a "PAC" for purposes of regulation is a...

 named Tonopah United for Our Future (TUFF) filed paperwork with the county, proposing the incorporation of the area into a town. The proposal ran into difficulties when the neighboring town of Buckeye
Buckeye, Arizona
Buckeye is a town in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States and is the westernmost suburb in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The population of the town as of Census 2010 was 50,876, a 678% increase from the 2000 population of 6,537.-Geography:...

 voted to publicly oppose the measure. State law forbids the incorporation of a new city or town within a specified distance of existing municipalities without their approval, and the proposed boundaries for Tonopah would abut the corporate boundaries of Buckeye, essentially giving Buckeye veto power over any incorporation efforts. In 2003, Buckeye had passed a measure approving of any future incorporation effort by Tonopah, but the current town council rescinded the measure, citing concerns that the proposal would extend the new town's boundaries east of the Hassayampa River
Hassayampa River
The Hassayampa River is a mostly underground river, the headwaters of which are just south of Prescott, Arizona, and flows mostly south towards Wickenburg entering the Gila River near Hassayampa, Arizona...

and into area Buckeye intends to annex. Council members did indicate that they were open to future incorporation efforts using the river as a boundary.

Residents also expressed concern that the proposal was too ambitious and that the new town would be incapable of managing the 100 mi2 of land included in the proposal. Geographically it would be among the largest in the state, while estimates placed the population of the proposed town at approximately 6,000.

Ultimately the measure was defeated on March 10, 2009, by a vote of 523 against incorporation versus 356 in support.

Further reading

  • Barnes, Will C., Byrd H. Granger, (ed.), Arizona's Names : X Marks the Place, (Falconer: 1983). ISBN 0-918080-18-5

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK