April 2008

Ahhhhh….Spring time in Arizona. 80s by day, 50s by night and LOTS of sunshine. I love it here and April is the best month of the whole year.

The resort has really emptied out as snowbirds head for distant places or scurry on home. The organized activities have all but ceased. Still there are folks up in the card rooms at night and the courts are still active during the day but the big crowds are definitely gone.

Spring time brings the cactus plants into blossom … especially the famous Argentine cactus with its huge 8” diameter flowers. Attached is a photo from Jan Waters’ “little guy” plant that is in its first year of bloom. This little plant is quite a show off for its size! Seven blossoms! Congratulations, Jan and George.
My big news! Don and I went to the Ak-Chin casino Sunday to check out their rebuilt Bingotainment center. The building was shut down all season due to a fire and just reopened last week. Since Bingo is done here at the park for the season, I was eager to hit the casino. Lo and Behold….I got to yell BINGO and I won $1,000 jackpot!! Yahoo!!! I am still sooooo excited.

The Promenade Mall is still prospering and opening new stores. This week’s Casa Grande Dispatch lists the following to open in May: Aeropostale, Bath & Body Works, Tilly’s, and Victoria’s Secret. Fashion Bug, Lane Bryant, Dress Barn, Famous Footwear, Cost Plus World Market, Ah-So Steak & Sushi. Aeropostale is a specialty retailer selling casual apparel for young people. Tilly’s sells surf, skate and motocross clothing. Red Brick Pizza will likely have a summer opening and Olive Garden is well under construction but an opening date hasn’t been announced yet. You can monitor progress of the stores at this website: http://www.promenadeatcasagrande.com/.

Since this site is now linked to the Palm Creek blog, I will try to keep my personal happenings on another link called “Sue's Journal”. Friends and family can check there for “Hepler” news and I’ll keep this site strictly for any summer Palm Creek updates. I’ll be sure to have my camera battery charged and ready for the summer storms to come. Hope you’re having safe and happy travels. For those of you who haven’t yet heard about the Palm Creek blogspot, be sure to check it out. There are some great photos from this past season’s events. http://www.palmcreek.blogspot.com/

On the Road Again

Our park is slowly emptying out as folks head home or on the road to their next adventure. Every year we question "why" they leave so soon because April seems to be the best month to be in Arizona. The weather is just perfect! 80 by day and cool 50s at night. Awesome! I've already heard from one friend who made it back to Wisconsin just in time for a spring snow storm. Ha!!

Rapid progress is being made for the new LA Fitness Center being built in the once open field on Florence Boulevard in front of Palm Creek. Since I happen to work at a very busy printing company here in Casa Grande, I get to see blueprints for almost all the new structures coming to town. The Fitness Center will host 45,000 square feet of space! That's big. Plans are to have it completed by October. The contractor is also completing underground work for other potential occupants in that area. The plans look like there could be about 5-6 other buildings. No one has announced any plans yet, but the sewer, drainage, etc. will be in place for other stores or businesses should they decide to move in.

The new Sports Authority store opened in the promenade mall this week. They had some great bargains and there was a $25 coupon in the weekend newspaper. Don was among those that hurried down there, coupon in hand, and bought some new golf irons. We'll add that store to our favorite "toy" purchasing list. On Sunday, Sports Authority invited one of the Phoenix Suns basketball players to be present for autograph signing. WOW!! We drove by and saw hundreds of people lined up along the street just waiting for that autograph. The line stretched from Sports Authority....all the way down and around the corner to Bed Bath & Beyond. For those who don't know the layout of the mall.....that's the equivalent of several city blocks. Quite a turnout!

Many of you have noticed the big yellow "zoning" signs that are posted across the street from our Palm Creek entrance on Henness Road. Plans are in place for a developer to build a 400 unit senior care center there. I believe about 200 units will be independent living units, another section for assisted living, and a separate alzheimer's unit. The drawings look like it will be a very attractive building.

The part I'm most interested in......is watching out for the burrowing owls that currently reside on that acreage. I've been in touch with the Wild At Heart agency that will probably be contracted to move the owls. They assure me they will notify me when "moving day" occurs so I can be present with camera in hand to witness the capture. I promise to keep everyone posted on the outcome. I have links to some great websites that show how the owls are moved and how the new nest sites are built for the owls. Just scroll down through my previous blog updates to view them.