Desert Hills, Maricopa County, Arizona

For the census-designated place in Mohave County, see Desert Hills, Arizona.

Desert Hills, Arizona
Populated place
Desert Hills as seen from Roland Peak (2025)
Desert Hills Show map of Maricopa County, Arizona Desert Hills Show map of Arizona Desert Hills Show map of the United States
Coordinates: 33°50′35″N112°05′17″W / 33.84306°N 112.08806°W / 33.84306; -112.08806
Country	United States
State	Arizona
County	Maricopa
Elevation	1,696 ft (517 m)
Population  (2019) [1]
• Total	≈ 3,000
Time zone	UTC-7 (MST)
ZIP codes	85086
Area code	623

Desert Hills is an unincorporated community located in Maricopa County, in the U.S. state of Arizona which forms the southern portion of the New River census-designated place. The population of the community was estimated to be slightly below 3,000 residents as of 2019. ^[1]

History

Desert Hills is named after the foothills situated in the area, such as those found in Cave Creek Regional Park and the Phoenix Sonoran Preserve, which are directly adjacent to the community. The modern community of Desert Hills began to take shape in 1955, when a land development corporation purchased 4,280 acres of the Sam Joy Ranch approximately 16 miles north of the Phoenix city limit and subdivided it into 10 acre lots for sale. ^[2]

In 2017, residents formed a committee to investigate the feasibility of making Desert Hills and the neighboring community of New River into an incorporated municipality. ^{[3] [4] [5]} A campaign supporting such an incorporation aimed to collect the signatures of ten percent of the community's registered voters needed to force a ballot measure in November 2019. ^{[6] [7]} The Arizona State Land Department expressed opposition to the incorporation effort in April 2019, noting that nearly half of the land which would make up the proposed municipality was state trust land and expressing a concern that the proposed municipality would not be able to independently provide necessary municipal services. ^{[8] [9]} In June 2019, it was reported that the campaign had failed to win the necessary approval of the City of Phoenix to permit a vote on the issue of incorporation. ^[10]

In 2024, the Arizona State Land Department's plan to auction 6,400 acres of state trust land in Desert Hills became a topic of debate during Town Council elections in neighboring Cave Creek, with some candidates expressing concerns that new development in the area would increase strain on the Desert Hills aquifer. ^[11] A referendum to purchase and append the area into a protected municipal park in Cave Creek was proposed to safeguard the aquifer.

Geography

The Desert Hills area is generally bounded by Desert Hills Drive to the north, 35th Avenue to the west, Dove Valley Road to the south, and 28th Street to the east. ^[12] The community is bordered by the City of Phoenix to the south, the Town of Cave Creek to the east, and the community of Anthem to the north. The area is predominantly rural in nature with large lot single family residential homes nestled between surrounding mountains and buttes.

Government

Desert Hills is served by Deer Valley Unified School District.

Fire and emergency service is provided through the Daisy Mountain Fire District. ^[13]

Many residents previously relied on water delivered by state-licensed water haulers from fire hydrants located in Phoenix. As of August 2018, water is hauled from a filling station operated by Epcor. ^{[14] [15]}

References

1. "New River residents feud over whether to become a city". AZ Central. Retrieved April 11, 2025.
2. "Ackerman v. United States, 20511". United States Court of Appeals Fifth Circuit. Retrieved March 30, 2025.
3. "NRDHIC". nrdhic.org. Retrieved November 24, 2018.
4. "NRDHIC". www.savenewriver.com. Retrieved November 24, 2018.
5. "NRDHIC Press". www.nrdhic.org. Retrieved November 24, 2018.
6. Jessica Boehm (May 1, 2019). "New River residents feud over whether to become a city". The Arizona Republic . Supporters of the New River Desert Hills incorporation are hoping to get the question on the ballot in November. The last town to incorporate in Arizona was Tusayan in 2010, according to Ken Strobeck, executive director of the Arizona League of Cities and Towns. In order to get incorporation on the ballot, incorporation supporters must collect signatures from at least 10 percent of registered voters in the proposed city limits.
7. Ali Vetnar (April 9, 2019). "Some residents want North Valley community to become its own town". KTAR-FM. The group also needs to collect signatures from 10% of registered voters in the area to put the measure on the November ballot. Ricci said this effort has been going on for three decades, but they've never been able to bring issue to a vote.
8. "Incorporation efforts halt – The Foothills Focus".
9. "ASLD entire letter.PNG". Archived from the original on August 3, 2019.
10. Robert Roy Britt (June 3, 2019). "Plan to Incorporate New River & Desert Hills Dies". North Phoenix News. Retrieved June 5, 2019.
11. "What would Cave Creek Town Council candidates do about growth, budget?". AZ Central. Retrieved April 15, 2025.
12. "Desert Hills Area Transportation Study FAQ". Maricopa County Department of Transportation. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
13. "daisymountainfire.org". daisymountainfire.
14. "New River & Desert Hills Water Filling Station". www.epcor.com.
15. "New River to get new water supply | Cronkite News". May 29, 2018.

External links

• Maricopa County General Plan