Wonderful scenery, a near-perfect climate, top cultural and recreational opportunities, and a vibrant economy have all helped make Marana one of the nation’s fastest-growing small cities. Its population of around 30,000 is up from 13,500 five years ago, yet careful planning and a commitment to providing the best quality of life have made this town one of the state’s most desirable places to live.
Location
Located 22 miles northwest of Tucson, Arizona, Marana extends along Interstate 10 from the border between Pinal and Pima County to the Tucson city line. The city is bisected by the Union Pacific Railroad.
Geography/Terrain
Marana comes from the Spanish word for “thicket”, after the dense growth of mesquite, cat claw, and other desert vegetation that abounds in the area. The town is almost 2000 feet above sea level, and is located at the confluence of three significant tributaries of the Santa Cruz River with the Tucson Mountains and the western half of Saguaro National Park to the west.
Distance to 3 closest major cities
Marana is 8 miles from Casas Adobes, 22 miles from Tucson, and about 100 miles from Phoenix.
Jobs
Agriculture, construction, manufacturing, wholesale and retail trade, transportation and information systems are among the industries sustaining Marana’s employment base. Many of the Tucson area's big box stores are located in the Marana area, and clusters of hotels and restaurants have been built along I-10, bringing employment to the town, which has an average household income significantly higher than most of Arizona. Major employers in the Marana area include Evergreen Air, Arizona Portland Cement, CTI Transportation and Marana Unified School District.
Housing
Marana is Arizona’s fastest-growing community, with thousands of homes planned for the next decade and beyond. Currently the housing market is strong and there is something for everyone, from modern single-family homes in developments to luxury custom-built mansions in master-planned communities. Many people own winter homes in Marana, and there are excellent retirement communities, like Heritage Highlands in the Dove Mountain, which has its own golf course.
Parks/Sports/Recreation/Golf
With an area of 118 sq. miles, Marana has seven town parks and a network of trails that follow the Santa Cruz River and cross the Tortolita Reserve and other State lands, and is surrounded by large tracts of protected open space, including Ironwood National Monument to the west, Saguaro National Park to the south, and Tortolita Mountain Park to the east.
Inside the town limits, the 2400 acre Tortolita Preserve was created to protect the endangered cactus ferruginous pygmy owl from the destruction of its habitat by residential development. This marvelous wild area contains walking trails and a rich abundance of desert flora and fauna.
Tohono Chul Park is a 49 acre park that provides a wonderful mix of natural desert trails, beautiful cultivated gardens, and a program of art and cultural exhibits that focus on the desert environment and reflect the Southwest’s rich ethnic legacy.
Saguaro National Monument is the area’s premier tourist attraction. Covering almost 80,000 acres, it has the world's largest forests of the magnificent saguaro cactus, the iconic symbol of the American West. With plenty of trails for hiking and mountain bikes, this marvelous park provides sublime outdoor recreation and wonderful opportunities to see the amazing desert plants and wildlife.
Renowned internationally as one of the world’s premier golfing destinations, the Tucson area is home to over 30 superb golf courses and hosts some of the sport’s most prestigious events, including the Tucson Open, the 9th oldest tournament of the PGA tour. Beginning in 2007 the PGA’s Accenture World Match Play Tournament will be played at the South Course at Marana’s Gallery Golf Club, a stunning 7,351 yard par-72 layout that opened in December 2003.
Special Attractions/Events
One of the most popular attractions in the Tucson area, the 17-acre Reid Park Zoo houses more than 500 mammals, fish, reptiles and birds in carefully designed enclosures that closely replicate their natural habitats. Trained docents are available to help and inform visitors and the zoo offers classes and education programs to deepen your knowledge of the natural world.
A short drive southeast of Marana, Colossal Cave is thought to be the world's largest dry cave. A refuge for native American people since pre-historic times, it has attracted spellbound visitors and, according to local legend, the occasional train-robber and outlaw on the run. Guided tours descend six and a half stories to reveal amazing rock and crystal formations, stalactites, and stalagmites. Outside a beautiful butterfly park and trails for hiking and horse riding ensure a fascinating and enjoyable family outing.
For a truly unusual setting, it is hard to beat the International Wildlife Museum, just a few miles south of Marana. Housed in a replica of an ancient adobe French Foreign Legion fort in Chad, Africa, the museum contains collections, some over a century old, of more than 400 kinds of mammals, insects, and birds from across the world. A modern 100-seat cinema screens wildlife films, and participatory exhibits and interactive computer displays educate and entertain.
Lovers of art and culture will find plenty to enjoy in the Marana area too, from local ballet, opera and symphony orchestra to some of the world’s finest art collections. The University of Arizona Museum of Art features a marvelous collection of over 4500 paintings, sculptures, and other graphic works of classic and modern art with an emphasis on American and European art including the stunning historical panorama provided by the 26 panels of the 15th century Retablo of Ciudad Rodrigo, the iconic American paintings of Georgia O'Keeffe, and much more.
Interesting Facts/Historic Buildings and Places
The prehistoric inhabitants of Marana and the surrounding middle Santa Cruz Valley were the first farmers, potters, canal builders, and villagers in the Southwest. Archaeologists have documented evidence of over 4200 years of continuous human occupation and the area contains some of the most important archaeological sites in the nation. Corn arrived from Mexico about 4000 years ago, and cotton- in recent decades the area’s main agricultural crop- has been cultivated here for perhaps 3500 years. Remains of canals for the irrigation of cotton, corn, squash, beans, and tobacco have been found, along with stone smoking pipes containing tobacco residues- the oldest tobacco pipes found anywhere. One site near Marana shows evidence of an advanced prehistoric culture, with tens of thousands of artifacts having been unearthed in the remains of a settlement that included 349 houses, an adobe-walled compound, and 5 separate cemeteries.
Following the Spanish and Mexican control of the area, beginning with the arrival of the first Spanish missionary-explorers around 1700, the lands of Arizona south of the Gila River were purchased from Mexico for $10million, or about 53 cents an acre, in the Gadsen Purchase of 1854. Eight years previously, the American flag had come to the Marana area for the first time as 350 troops of the Mormon Battalion passed through on their way to San Diego, California. These intrepid soldiers cut the first wagon road along the Anza Trail, which was later to become part of the route for a stagecoach road, railroad, and finally, the corridor for the present-day Interstate 10.
Marana served a vital role during World War II when the historic Aguirre Ranch was bought for the construction of the Marana airfield, quickly becoming the largest pilot-training center in the world, training over 10,000 aviators. A modern highway was built to run through the town and inmates of a nearby German and Italian prisoner-of-war camp helped harvest crops. These developments, along with the arrival of electricity quickly modernized Marana, and the town grew steadily after the war, becoming incorporated in March 1977.
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