May 29, 2019
How Scottsdale re-discovered the Desert Foothills Scenic Drive.
By Les Conklin
Recently I was digging through boxes of stuff in the storage room. I was looking for family genealogy information. Instead of finding family history, I found copies of two email letters from long ago. The messages, which appear below, are about an historic landmark that many of us encounter every day.
O: Richard Bowers, 74511.165
DATE: 12/9/94 2:52 PM
Copy of: Scenic Desert Foothills Drive
This drive entry sign, installed in 1964, was located just north of the power line corridor on Scottsdale Road, south of Jomax.
Thank you for giving up an evening to come to last night’s meeting at the Ambrosini’s. I believe that the Desert Foothills Drive is worth preserving and enhancing. I also believe that an enhanced Drive can be an important, relatively low-cost, marketing asset for the City of Scottsdale. How can we work with the City to refurbish the current Drive and also incorporate its concept into the new master plan that the City will be developing?
It does not appear to be a major job to refurbish the current Drive (from Jomax Rd. to Carefree Hwy.). There are approximately 20 plant identification signs on the east side and 17 on the west side of Scottsdale Road. These need to be cleaned up with some paint. There are gaps along the road where the signs are missing, e.g. there is only one sign for the entire frontage of Terravita on Scottsdale Road. There must have been more signs. So, we need to identify plants and add signs to fill the gaps.
A nice enhancement of the Drive would be to add a small exhibit near the large sign that marks its beginning near Jomax Road. The exhibit would describe the history and purpose of the Drive. This is an area where the tour busses stop on their way to Grand Canyon after making pickups at the various hotels. Perhaps we could place a similar exhibit near the Carefree end of the Drive. Incidently, I was very surprised to learn that the small wooden sign that marks the southern end of the Drive by proclaiming – “The Most Beautiful Desert in the World” – is more than 30 years old.
I learned quite quickly that there are jurisdictional challenges regarding the Drive (it was hard to find anybody who knew anything about it). The large sign is on state land and the plant identification signs are on private property.
Scenic Drive plant exhibits have always been maintained by volunteers
I was told that the Mayor’s Office helped with the repair and replacement of signs in the past. Eventually, the people in Cave Creek who were shepherding the Drive lost interest and the Drive began disintegrating.
How can we work together? What can the City do to help? The Drive has a long history of citizen support. However, it is important that the Drive also become “institutionalized” from the City’s standpoint. Perhaps this is only a small stretch of road but this is worth doing.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Les Conklin
PS. While the effort to rezone the 320 acres certainly relates to this, I view this effort as having a life and strategic importance of its own.
Follow-Up Letter
FROM: Les Conklin, 74033,1130
TO: Richard Bowers, 74511.165
DATE: 12/12/94 4:58 PM
Copy of: Desert Foothills Drive
A pleasant surprise! Sunday afternoon the Foothills Drive Homeowner’s Coalition sponsored a cookout. Approximately 150 residents of the area came. I asked for volunteers who were interested in refurbishing the Drive and 36 people signed up! Herb Drinkwater suggested that I follow up with Ed Villa and I will.
Thanks again for your help.
Les Conklin
Friends of the Scenic Drive Helps Maintain and Enhance Scottsdale’s Scenic Drive.
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