The Sun City, Arizona Community Profile

Community Profile
Sun City, Arizona

Sun City is the quintessential retirement community in the nation. Located 12 miles northwest of Phoenix, Sun City is known for the active lifestyle of its senior citizens. There are more than 350 clubs and civic organizations and seven recreation centers. Sun City is not incorporated and taxes are one-half to two-thirds lower than in most other area communities.

Sun City began as a partnership between builder Del Webb and cotton farmer J.G. Boswell who owned the land. It opened on New Year's Day 1960 with a three-bedroom, two-bath house selling for $11,300. It was an instant success and 237 homes were sold in the first three days. Sun City deed restrictions require at least one resident per household to be 55 years or older.

Sun City encompasses 8,900 acres of which 1,200 acres are golf courses. It has been called a ìgolfers paradise.î Golf links wind throughout the community creating large green open spaces. The electric golf cart, a non-polluting vehicle, is a favorite form of transportation.

PRINCIPAL ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES
Sun City residents are almost all retired and income derives from Social Security, stocks and bonds, investments and savings. Annual income is estimated at $1 billion and net worth at $8 billion. Some $300 million is spent annually by Sun City residents for local goods and services creating about 11,000 jobs. State and county taxes paid by Sun City is approximately $32 million each year.

Sun Health is the largest employer with 2,000 jobs. Other employment is found in several shopping centers, numerous restaurants, service centers and real estate companies. Most Sun City employees live in the surrounding towns of El Mirage, Surprise, Glendale and Peoria.

SCENIC ATTRACTIONS
Lake Pleasant Regional Park is north of Sun City and offers boating, fishing, swimming and other water sports. Camping and picnic facilities are also available. The lake has recently been expanded to 10,000 acres making it one of the largest lakes in the Southwest.

White Tanks Regional Park is west of Sun City and features unusual Indian petroglyphs or rock carvings in its 26,000 acres. Camping, hiking and picnicking are popular activities here.

Gold Country is located northwest of Sun City in the Hieroglyphic and Bradshaw Mountains, has many interesting ghost towns. Vulture, Bumblebee, Constellation, Octave, Tip Top and Crown King are just some of the old mining towns found in the area.

Pioneer Arizona Living History Museum is northeast of Sun City. It is a faithful replica of an 1880s Arizona village with many historic buildings from original townsites. Costumed volunteers put on demonstrations including quilting and blacksmithing. Pioneer is closed in the summer.

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Preview the United States Census Bureau Information for Sun City and Sun City West, Arizona

COMMUNITY FACILITIES

Sun City offers a broad range of community facilities including seven recreation centers that provide swimming, tennis, arts and crafts, two libraries, two bowling centers, eight golf courses, three country clubs, an art museum, a symphony orchestra. The Sun Bowl Outdoor Amphitheater, and the Sundome Center for Performing Arts, which seats 7,000, also are located in the Sun City area.

Communication.
Sun City is served by daily newspapers from Phoenix. It also has one local daily, the Daily News Sun and two weekly papers, The Sun City Independent and The Sun City Wester News. Numerous radio and television stations are received from Phoenix. Cable TV is also available.

Educational.
Rio Salado Community College offers continuing adult education courses. Glendale Community College, eight miles away in Glendale, offers an Associate of Arts degree. The American Graduate School of International Management, six miles east of Sun City, offers a Masters degree program. ASU West Campus is eight miles away.

Medical.
There is one local hospital with 355 beds and three area hospitals within an eight-mile radius, numerous nursing care centers within a 13-mile radius, and approximately 200 physicians and dentists available.

Financial.
Sun City has 15 financial institutions with more than 30 local offices in the area.

Governmental.
The community of Sun City is governed by the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors and served by the Maricopa County Sheriffs Office, the Volunteer Sun City Posse (168 members) and the local fire department.

Airport.
Residents of Sun City have access to Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (a 28-minute drive), served by all major airlines; Glendale Municipal Airport, five miles away, and the Phoenix-Goodyear Airport, seven miles away.

UTILITIES

Electricity: Arizona Public Service (623) 371-7171
Natural Gas: Southwest Gas Corporation (623) 861-1999
Telephone: Qwest (623) 490-2355
Water&Sewer: Citizens Utilities (623) 974-2521
Refuse: Parks & Sons of Sun City (623) 974-4791

Lodging And Meeting Facilities.

Four motels and three RV parks are within a five-mile radius of Sun City. There are two meeting facilities, with the largest seating 600 persons.

Northwest Valley Chamber of Commerce
12211 W. Bell Rd., Ste. 204, Surprise, AZ 85374
(602) 583-0692

Bulk orders and complete sets of profiles may be obtained at moderate cost from the Arizona Department of Commerce by calling (602) 280-1321.

Arizona Department of Commerce
3800 N. Central Ave., Ste. 1400, Phoenix, AZ 85012
(602) 280-1321
FAX: (602) 280-1305

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