Hassayampa River Preserve

About the Program

Category: Parks and Recreation (Best in Category)

Year: 2018

The Nature Conservancy has been the property manager for the Hassayampa River Preserve for the past 30 years. However, the Conservancy’s mission is to conserve the lands and waters on which all life depends, not manage individual properties. In 2006, the Conservancy approached Maricopa County about managing the Preserve. As the manager of several conservation areas and thousands of acres of park land, the Maricopa County Parks and Recreation Department was honored that the Conservancy would put their trust in them to manage the Preserve. By April 2017, the Agreements were in place, and Conservancy transferred management of the Preserve over to the department. The addition of the Preserve marks the first new major acquisition of parkland in nearly 20 years for the department. In addition to enabling the department to bring a regional park to the northwest valley, the Preserve will serve as the gateway to the Vulture Mountains Recreation Area, a property the department has entered into a Cooperative Management Agreement with the Arizona Bureau of Land Management to manage. Since the transition, staff have made structural and cosmetic improvements around the Preserve, while protecting the natural and historical features, to expand services and enhance park visitor experiences.