Metro Phoenix Relocation Guide 2008 - (Page 95) East Valley The Valley’s backyard peaks are favored by those who like to have fun close to home. empe, Mesa, Chandler and Gilbert are the communities comprising the East Valley, along with Apache Junction. Tempe, home to Arizona State University, has a distinct and vibrant personality. Mesa, Arizona's third-largest city after Phoenix and Tucson, has a reputation for being a good town for families. Chandler is becoming a magnet for both young families and high-tech manufacturing firms. And Gilbert is an outlying farming and residential community. T First among these traits is the feeling that Mesa is a good place to raise a family. With a respected school system, a varied economic base and an active city government, Mesa’s “Welcome” mat is well worn. In the 1980s, the city’s population grew by a phenomenal 89 percent to 288,000 residents, making it the third-largest city in Arizona, behind Phoenix and Tucson. Now its population has climbed to 451,400. By the year 2020, an estimated 538,000 people will call Mesa home. Other factors that are fueling Mesa’s growth are the three A’s: affordability, amenities and the annual migration of “snowbirds," winter-weary retirees from Mesa Although much has changed since Mesa was founded by Mormon missionaries more than 120 years ago, the attributes that attracted those early settlers continue to draw thousands of newcomers each year. 95 Relocation Guide™
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