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Renting an Apartment in Ahwatukee
What You Should Know
About Ahwatukee
Ahwatukee ("Ahwatukee Foothills Village")
is an "L"-shaped bedroom community bordered on the north by South Mountain Park
and Baseline Road, on the east by Interstate 10 and the cities of Chandler,
Guadalupe, and Tempe, and on the south and west by the Gila River Indian
Community.
Although annexed by the City of Phoenix, Arizona from 1978 to 1987, before
substantial residential growth, many of its residents consider it a separate
city. It is one of the city's 15 urban villages. The 35.8 square-mile (92.7 km�)
village currently has a population of approximately 85,000 people.
History
The Legend goes that in 1921, Dr. and Mrs. W.V.B. Ames built a house on
approximately 2,000 acres (8.1 km�) on the southeast side of the South
Mountains. They gave the area its original name, Casa de Sue�os, which in
Spanish means, "House of Our Dreams." Dr. Ames died within just three months of
moving into the house, and after Mrs. Ames' death in 1933 the house and most of
the land was willed to St. Luke's Hospital, then bought in 1935 by Miss Helen
Brinton, who appeared to have retranslated the name of the house to the Crow
Indian word which now serves as the name of the village. The house was
demolished in 1979, and parts of it were used to build the Our Lady of Guadalupe
church.
As it turns out, the Crow translation for "House of Dreams" (ashe ammeewiawe)
sounds nothing like Ahwatukee. More likely, the town was named after the Crow
words awe chuuke, meaning "land on the other side of the hill," or "land in the
next valley."
In 1971 part of the land was purchased, subdivided, and developed into a
residential community by the Presley Development Company, owned by Elvis
Presley's uncle.
Ahwatukee has grown as the city acquired other parcels leading west, including
land owned by International Harvester, which operated a proving ground for
earth-moving equipment there from 1947 to 1983. The State of Arizona, has
bought, sold, or swapped land several times, including transferring state trust
land to developers in controversial auctions [2], [3], in which residents and
conservationists had lobbied for the space to be converted to parkland.
Neighborhood characteristics
Ahwatukee has been recognized by Money Magazine as one of America's "Best
Places to Live". As of April 2005, the median home price in the community is
$315,000, second only to Scottsdale among cities in the Phoenix Metro area in
terms of housing prices.
The village falls within three zip codes:
* 85044 (population 40,000)- Covers the area north of Chandler Boulevard and
roughly east of 32d Street. It has a median income of approximately $60,000.
* 85045 (5,000)- Covers area roughly west of Central Avenue. It has a median
income of approximately $100,000.
* 85048 (35,000)- Covers the remaining portion of the village. It has a median
income of approximately $85,000.
Schools
Ahwatukee's strong education system adds to its reputation as an excellent
place to live. The area's K-8 Students are served by the Kyrene School District.
The Kyrene Schools in Ahwatukee include Kyrene De La Colina (K-5), Kyrene de las
Lomas(K-5) elementary schools, and Centennial (6-8), Akimel A-al (6-8), and
Altadena (6-8). High School students go to one of two in the area: Desert Vista
and Mountain Pointe. Both schools are operated by the Tempe Union High School
District. There are also a number of private/charter schools, including Horizon
Charter School, and Skyline Technical High School.
Attractions
Ahwatukee enjoys easy access to the South Mountain Park trail system, where
mountain biking, horseback riding, and hiking are allowed. The area also has
four public golf courses, many neighborhood parks and community centers, a
public swimming pool, and a fairly active shopping and nightlife area near the
"village core" at 48th Street and Ray Road. The recently built Pecos Park is
also a favorite spot for many teenagers. When it is completed, it will boast a
mini city center, with a police substation.
Miscellaneous
Surrounded to the northwest by South Mountain Park, blocked to the east by
I-10 and to the south by the Gila River Indian Community, Ahwatukee Foothills is
geographically isolated from the city of which it is part of, Phoenix. Due to
its relatively few access points (mainly through a few bridges across Interstate
10), it has been called The World's Largest Cul-de-sac. This may change,
however, if the planned South Mountain Freeway is built along the south edge;
this freeway would provide a bypass around downtown Phoenix and connect
Ahwatukee to the west valley cities of Laveen, Avondale and Glendale.
Ahwatukee is home to many Arizona Cardinals players and coaches due to its
proximity to the team's Tempe training facility.
Ahwatukee is also home to toy manufacturer and comic book artist Todd McFarlane,
widely known as the creator of Spawn.