Development Timeline
1992 - The Herberger family sells its 3,200-acre
ranch to Newhall Land & Farming Company.
1994 - Nearly 900 acres are donated to the City of Scottsdale as part of the McDowell
Sonoran Preserve
1994 - McDowell Mountain Ranch wins unanimous support of the Scottsdale Planning
Commission and the City Council.
1995 - Sales begin (prices range from the mid-$120's to more than $500,000).
1995 - The McDowell Mountain Ranch Information Center is opened.
1996 - McDowell Mountain Ranch is sold by Newhall Land & Farming Company to
a joint venture partnership of Haas & Haynie Corporation, San Francisco, Calif.,
and Sunbelt Holdings, based in Scottsdale.
1996 - A 70-acre campus is donated to the City of Scottsdale for the Desert Canyon
School and Arabian Library
1997 - McDowell Mountain Ranch is ranked among the top 10 master-planned communities
in the nation for sales volume
1998 - Construction begins on Thompson Peak Parkway Bridge
1998 - The Alltel Ice Den opens on Bell Road
1998 - The Desert Canyon elementary school opens
1998 - The Thompson Peak Parkway Bridge opens
1999 - The National Association of Home Builders honors McDowell Mountain Ranch
as one of the top five master-planned communities in the country.
1999 - The Desert Canyon Shopping Center opens
2000 - The McDowell Mountain Ranch Community Association takes over the management
of the community from the developer, Sunbelt Holdings.
2001 - Community Association purchases the former Information Center (later to be
renamed "The McDowell Center") from Sunbelt Holdings
2002 - McDowell Mountain Marketplace shopping center opens with Bashas as the anchor
tenant.
2003 – McDowell Mountain Ranch is officially Sold Out.
Feb, 2003 – Allstate Insurance office opens at McDowell Mountain Marketplace.
April, 2003 – Holland Boone opens at 90th St & Bell Rd. Status Salon & Spa opens
at Desert Canyon Center. Mountainside Fitness Express opens near the Alltel Ice
Den.
April, 2003 – Woodside Homes announces plans for their new community, Trails North.
May, 2003 – Amore Pizza, Curves, and The Front, a computer gaming venue, open at
Desert Canyon Center. La Villa Caffe opens at McDowell Mountain Marketplace. The
fire station opens.
July, 2003 – Community Bank of Arizona purchases Valley Bank at Desert Canyon Center.
July, 2003 – Karate USA opens at Desert Canyon Center
July, 2003 – Trails North begins construction
July, 2003 – The budget for McDowell Mountain Ranch Park & Aquatic Center is approved.
July, 2003 – WestWorld Trail Head opens.
Sep, 2003 – Desert Canyon Center is sold.
Sep, 2003 – DC Ranch receives approval for subdivision off of 94th St.
Sep, 2003 – McDowell Mountain Yankees are the Little League State Champions --10
years of age and under.
Nov, 2003 – Chicago Pizza Works and Chiropractor, David Sipes, open at the McDowell
Mountain Marketplace
Nov, 2003 – Dr. Glenn Hanf purchases McDowell Mountain Dentistry.
Jan, 2004 – McDowell Mountain Alliance, a community watchdog group, is formed.
Jan, 2004 – Open House is held to introduce designs for McDowell Mountain Ranch
Park & Aquatic Center.
Feb, 2004 – The McDowell Mountain Ranch Homeowners Association votes to proceed
with improvements to the McDowell Center.
March, 2004 – Bar Stool Connection opens at the Desert Canyon Center. Pump It Up
opens at Horseman’s Park.
April, 2004 – The 1st Annual McDowell Mountain Music Festival is held.
June, 2004 – The Preserve Initiative passes, securing funds for the Gateway Center
Development.
July, 2004 – Artist, Norie Sato, is named the winner of national competition to
design public art for the new Aquatic Center.
Sep, 2004 – Woodside Homes begins sales for Trails North community.
Sep, 2004 – Oggi’s Opens at 87th St & Bell Rd.
Sep, 2004 – Volunteers dismantle Toll fence that blocks access to The Preserve.
Nov, 2004 – The $217 Million school bond referendum passes. The referendum upgrades
existing schools but makes no allowance for a 6th Scottsdale high school.
Jan, 2005 – The Arizona State Land Department announces plans to auction properties
in and around West World.
Feb, 2005 – Rosemary Thyme Café opens at the Desert Canyon Center.
Feb, 2005 – McDowell Mountain Storage opens at Horseman’s Park.
Feb, 2005 – The newly renovated McDowell enter opens
March, 2005 – ALLTEL joins Sprint at the Desert Canyon cell tower.
March, 2005 – Byxbee Development begins seeking tenants for Windgate Crossing, its
commercial center at the northwest corner of Thompson Peak Parkway & Bell Rd. Plans
call for the center to be anchored by CVS and Bank of America.
May, 2005 – John Fern, proprietor of Caffe Portobello, announces that he’ll be opening
Satori Sushi at the McDowell Mountain Marketplace.
May, 2005 – City breaks ground on the Aquatic Center.
Sep, 2005 – Circle K submits application to construct 2,500 square foot convenience
store with ten fueling stations at the corner of Thompson Peak Parkway & Bell Rd
in McDowell Mountain Ranch.
Sep, 2005 – Scottsdale City Council awards a contract to Weddle-Gilmore Architects
to design and prepare construction plans for Gateway Center.
Sep, 2005 – City of Scottsdale outbids builders for the 80-acre parcel at the north
side of 94th St & Bell Rd.
Nov, 2005 – The Family Zone is created.
Nov, 2005 – The Offices at McDowell Mountain welcome its first tenant, Edward Jones.
Feb, 2006 – Gateway Center plans are unveiled at a public presentation
March, 2006 – Voices, a music and arts studio opens at 91st St & Bell Road
March, 2006 – The 3rd annual McDowell Mountain Music Festival is held.
May, 2006 - City of Scottsdale completes the construction of an unpaved trail in
the wash that runs north between Castle Chase, Trovas and 100 Hills communities,
connecting to the existing Quartz Trail which begins at the edge of the Desert Canyon
School.
August 2006 – The SUSD Math and Science Academy at Copper Ridge opens
August, 2006 – Formal groundbreaking for the Arabian Library is held. Nori Sato
will design the entrance to the library to resemble a canyon.
October, 2006 – Retail Assistance Corporation opens at The Office at McDowell Mountain
on Thompson Peak Parkway.
October, 2006 – The Grand Opening is held for the completion of Thompson Peak Parkway.
November, 2006 – BNC Bank opens its second Scottsdale branch in the Alltel Ice Den.
January, 2007 – McDowell Mountain Park and Aquatic Center opens
January, 2007 – McDowell Mountain Counseling opens at Aquila Office Center.
February, 2007 – City Council votes to approve a new marketing study for the Desert
Discovery Center.
February, 2007 – Cena to Go and Classic Cooking open at Desert Canyon Center. Hart
West Financial opens at Aquila Office Center. Smoothie King opens at McDowell Mountain
Village. Quicken Loans opens in the McDowell Mountain Business Park located at Pima
and Bell.
February, 2007 – Windgate Ranch introduces their model homes by hosting a benefit
for the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Scottsdale.
April, 2007 – University of Arizona’s Eller College of Management offers the first
degree program outside its Tucson home campus at McDowell Mountain Business Park.
April, 2007 – Just Juvenile Baby Store opens at Desert Canyon Center.
May, 2007 – US Postal Service opens a substation in the Paper Chase store located
at 91st St and Bell Road. T’s Accessories opens in the McDowell Mountain Village.
July, 2007 - My Gym and Chef’s Academy open in the Horseman’s Park area.
August, 2007 – Chase Bank opens in the McDowell Mountain Marketplace.
September, 2007 – The Arabian Library opens.
September, 2007 – McDowell Mountain Little League 9-10 year old All Stars win Scottsdale
District Championship.
September, 2007 – The 71 acre state of the art CAP Basin sports complex on Bell
Road and 82nd Street is selected by the American Public Works Association as their
Project of the Year.
October, 2007 – Bounce-U opens in the Horseman’s Park area.
November, 2007 – The Bison Museum opens in the Horseman’s Park area.
November, 2007 – Aquila Dental Design opens at Aquila Office Center.
January, 2008 – Toll Brothers versus City of Scottsdale case is decided. The ruling
requires the City to pay Toll $82 million to acquire the 383 acre parcel that they
bought at auction from the state for approximately $34 million…
January, 2008 – Bank of America, Temple Sports Grill and CVS Drugstore open at Windgate
Crossing.
January, 2008 – Saguaro Sabercats of Saguaro High School win their second straight
Class 4A Division 1 Championship, and the Saints of Notre Dame Preparatory win their
first Class 4A Division Crown.
March, 2008 – Viking Cleaners opens at Windgate Crossing Shopping Center.
March, 2008 – Bagel Nosh opens on the SW corner of Pima & Bell Roads.
May, 2008 – Taylor’s Sports Cards opens at Desert Canyon Center.
May, 2008 – Classic Cooking Academy opens
June, 2008 - The 3,914 foot mountain peak over the Gateway Center is designated
as “Drinkwater Peak”, named after the former mayor, Herb Drinkwater.
June, 2008 – Formal Groundbreaking Ceremony is held for the Gateway Center.
September, 2008 – Classic Cooking’s Wine and Coffee Café opens at Desert Canyon
Center.
September, 2008 – The Arabian Horse Show, held at WestWorld, wins the 2008 award
for Urban Special Events at the Governor’s Conference on tourism.
October, 2008 – Alltel Ice Den celebrates its 10 year anniversary
October, 2008 – The Hampton Group is granted a zoning change by the Planning Commission
for the Scottsdale Epicenter (NE corner of Pima and Bell Roads) to construct two
5-story hotels.
January, 2009 – McDowell Mountain Animal Hospital opens at Windgate Crossing Center
May, 2009 – The Gateway Access Area to the McDowell Sonoran Preserve holds its grand
opening on May 2nd.