It's getting hard to find exciting news to publish for you readers.  All our rooms are still closed...even the library so can't get in to check out a new book.  Fitness center is closed too.  Bummer!  Sure hope this lockdown doesn't last much longer.

Other than the ugly Covid, our summer has been quite pleasant as far as desert summers go.  Monsoon season has brought us "some" rain...not much but some.  We've had some beautiful rain storms but no damaging winds.  The forecast for this coming week doesn't have anything approaching the ugly 110 range.  

Pretty sky:

The daddy long leg spiders are getting restless as they do every late summer to fall.  They tend to gather around our houses...especially around entry ways and doorways.  I definitely carry a good duster brush and use it before entering.  

I'm always fascinated by bugs, insects, etc. so am curious as to what kind of spider builds these cute webs under patios and porches.

I know our landscape crew is hard at work around the park.

But....no one has even started on trimming the palm trees yet nor do I see any sign of progress on cleaning out the ponds.  Several readers have written and asked me for an update but I have nothing to report as of yet.

That's my news for today.  I believe the "boys" are ready for some play time.  

I either need a bigger desk or smaller cats.  😸😺

 The LA Fitness/Esporta building on Florence Boulevard has a new owner and CrossRoads Church has a new home. The church plans to renovate the building into a "mega sanctuary" and a new larger, home for its Charlie's House autism therapy center.

You might be able to follow this link to the full article:  Pinal Central

Rain!

 I have never seen a 10-day forecast like this for Casa Grande!

We awoke to a nice thunderstorm this morning with a light rain continuing till about 10:00.  Total accumulation was .54 of an inch according to our home weather station.

Don and I (as usual) sat out on our covered patio and enjoyed watching the rain at a cool 76 degrees.

The birds were enjoying it also.  It did make them look a little ruffled, however.

It was fun to watch the birds shower and enjoy the cool morning.

 

Covid Strikes Again + Pics from the Past

 It sounds like we've hit another bump in the road with the ugly Covid virus as a couple cases have been reported here among our card players and events.

The Tapas planning crew has decided to cancel all Resident Activities through the first week in August.  Therefore, Tapas for the 26th of July and the 2nd of August is cancelled.  The art class for July 28 and 30 is cancelled.  The educational seminar on Memory Care for July 27 is cancelled.  Other August activities will be reviewed on August 1st.

Card clubs and poker have all canceled for the next two weeks as well.  This includes SWOOP on Mondays and card bingo on Saturdays.  

This seems to be an appropriate place to post this great photo of a stink bug we discovered on our rounds this morning.

Don and I recently celebrated Mouse's 5 year adoption birthday.  Maybe I can cheer you up with a couple pictures from his past.  As I look through these, I totally understand how we fell in love with the little creature.

Have a GREAT day!  Stay safe!

Weather and wildlife

 Awwwww................saw a CUTE family of baby quail this morning!!  Adorable!!

BUT......later mom and dad were running for their lives while a black cat (wearing a collar) was chasing them across the street.  So upsetting to see the tough side of nature.  Hopefully the babies were well hidden while the parents risked their lives to protect them. 

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We had some interesting (almost scary) weather this week when a storm passed by Casa Grande.  The sky looked very ominous!  

Photo copied from Casa Grande Dispatch

Never saw a rainbow on such a greenish black sky with lots of rolling thunder and lightning.  Tried to get a video for you.

We were lucky that the brunt of the storm bypassed Casa Grande as it really knocked out power to Eloy and Arizona City which are just south of us.  They are STILL without power!

Our power flickered for a few brief seconds but luckily stayed on.  When you return to your home here, you'll have to reset all the clocks!  We've found no problems of any other kind.  Refrigerators and AC units all stayed on.

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I had a fun drive up to the card room yesterday.  It has been HOT outside so birds are suffering and trying to cool off too.  I spotted this roadrunner taking a bath in the little creek by the 4-way stop.  He was all wet and fluffed up.  Then just a few feet further I spotted a great blue heron doing the same over by the lake.  Being a bird watcher, I can't help but take photos even if they aren't the best quality.

We drove past the pickleball courts this morning and are amazed that people still play in this heat!  It was already 92 with 40% humidity this morning.  UGH!  Don and I were exhausted after just doing a few housechecks....these folks must be quite fit to endure the heat.

A welcomed break and cool down period.

The food court area is still under construction.

I think Mouse might be cooler by sleeping upside down?

He loves to keep me company while I work at the computer.  😃

Monthly Coffee and Donuts

We had a nice turnout for our monthly coffee and donuts session.

Terry Wellman (Activities Supervisor) is working on the schedule for upcoming season events.  So far she has confirmed that the Garth show will becoming back along with a Whitney Houston event.  Contracts for dances and entertainment are still coming in.  Ticket books should be ready by the end of August.

A new texting system has been installed so we will no longer receive park-wide texts from the old 22452 number.  We will now see a full 10 digit number when a message is sent out.  If you have already been a subscriber, there is nothing to change.  A flyer will be available with instructions.  The new number is 844-974-1833.  Sadly this still just works for U.S. numbers only.  I understand there will also be a texting system for Activities should there be any changes to an upcoming event.

Our new Facilities Director, Terry Fosmore, was introduced.  Mark will oversee grounds keeping, maintenance, and hardscapes.  (Hardscapes involves building brick walls, patios, etc.)

Photo by Barb Poole

Dennis Jordan reported on progress of some of the major projects.  Cleaning and maintaining the lakes is a huge issue.  The sediment has been tested and has come back as rancid mud.  An agency will be dropping pellets into the mud to try to clean it without hurting the fish.  This contract should start soon.  Algae will also be addressed and will take a couple months to complete.  The major pump is still down under repair so irrigation to the ponds is an issue.

Photo by Barb Poole

Terry is working with contractors to get the palm tree trimming started.  They're also considering skinning the trees and hope to start within the next 30 days.

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Thank you to Barb Poole, Glo Mason, and the summer residents fun committee that has arranged for some interesting and informative guest speakers.  This week we met with representatives from Compassus which is a hospice and palliative care group here in Casa Grande.  Speakers were very professional and informative!  

This Saturday is the lunch and tour of the SanTan Brewery.  The 21st is free hearing screenings by HearingLife.  Then a lunch and learn seminar presented by American Retirement Institute.    There is also a group going to bingo at Harrah's Ak-Chin.  Check for all events in the Activities office or at Tapas Tuesday.

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If you run out of garden space.......try the roof!  

😃😃😃

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Some cat beds just aren't large enough. 🙀😺

APS electrical outage + more business news

 

Wow!  We had a major electrical outage last night.  I was already in bed while Don was still relaxing in his big recliner watching television.  Suddenly ALL power went out.  I got up to grab the flashlights ....... while Don floundered around trying to get out of his big electric easy chair that was fully reclined.  LOL.  It's hilarious to hear his story about trying to scramble out of that chair.

Anyway......we and our neighbors were all outside to see if it was just us or the whole neighborhood.  Even the street lights were out so we figured something major happened somewhere.  We've never had an outage like that in the 17 years we've lived here.  It was a fun opportunity to chat with the neighbors though.

I used my phone to log onto the APS power outage website and reported our location.  The website said there were three counties affected and they already had troubleshooters in action.  We later received emails saying power went out at 11:18 and was fully restored at 11:39.  We still don't know what happened to cause the outage but we were very happy and relieved with the fast response.  My first thought was about all the refrigerators in the houses we watch!  Yikes!  With that short time of outage though, we certainly don't anticipate any problems.  You'll all have to reset clocks on your microwaves, clocks, stoves, etc. when you return.

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The CG Dispatch reported more housing and businesses that have received approval for construction.  Casa Grande is truly a work in progress!

Freddy's Frozen Custard fast food eatery was given the go-ahead to begin construction at the Commons at Palm Creek located at 2038 E Florence Blvd.  The eatery will also include a drive-thru facility to accommodate 11 cars at a time.  After looking at their website, it's menu includes steakburgers, Vienna Beef hot dogs, and chicken sandwiches.  The company provides frozen custard with a variety of specialty sundaes and concretes.  In other words.....it's a big competitor for our favorite Culvers. 

Nearly 1,300 new homes could be added to Casa Grande.  The largest of the housing projects, Elaine Farms, features 711 single-family lots.  The site is located north of Kortsen Road and CG Avenue between Pinal Ave and Trekell Rd.

On the manufacturing side, Taiwanese semiconductor company Chang Chun was given the go-ahead by the commission to build a manufacturing plant.

High-grade chemicals will be produced at the plant that will be used in the production of semiconductors. The commission was told that the Phoenix-based Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company plant would be sourcing Chang Chun chemical products for its semiconductors.

The facility will be located at the Pinal County Technology Park, which is located on 84 acres on the northwest corner of Clayton and Burris roads on the west side of town.

John McGuire Presentation

 Congratulations to our Summer Activities people who scheduled John McGuire as a guest speaker for us this past Friday.  John is a private citizen (living in Robson) who regularly attends City Council sessions and is very up-to-date about economic and community development.  He first presented new businesses that are or "will be" nearby to Palm Creek.

Photo by Barb Poole

Texas Roadhouse is already here and we LOVE it!

Empire will definitely be a new neighbor as it is coming in directly across from Texas Roadhouse and LA Fitness on the corner lot on the SOUTH side of the road next to Segal Suites.  This will be a "build to rent" complex which is just like single family apartment rentals.  Empire now owns the land but probably won't be able to "turn dirt" until 6 to 12 months due to supply/demand on materials.  These build to rent complexes are the new upcoming trend for family housing with at least three of these communities already approved.  (I didn't get a number of how many buildings will be constructed at this corner.)

A new regular rental apartment complex has been approved and ready for construction behind the new QT gas station.  Site will be called Solace.

Sun Life Medical has purchased the SW corner of Henness and Florence.  Henness Road will continue south of Florence Blvd in near future all the way to Selma Highway and is already in the process of being platted and zoned.  The new Sun Life building will be 10-20 acres for a new training facility.  They have received a federal grant for training due to a lack of trained medical personnel.

A new Hampton Inn site has been purchased and approved on the north side of Florence near the Circle K and Clean Freak car wash.  It is scheduled to have 150 rooms. 

A five story Marriott hotel is scheduled in the Promenade Mall area in front of Pet Smart.

An RV storage facility has been approved for construction near the U-Haul lot and Border Patrol.  RVers never seem to have enough storage area for their rigs.  (John didn't specify if this was north or south of the U-Haul site.)

What about the old Sam's Club building??  It is owned by Walmart and they have a very restrictive contract over who can purchase that site and property.  Whoever moves in there can NOT compete with sales of anything sold at Walmart.  So far Walmart doesn't sell cars so the site is reserved for an Auto Plex with at least 4 dealers wanting to move to that location.  

The Golden Corral has been sold to a group of eye doctors and will probably become some sort of medical office facility.

The old LA Fitness or Esporta building?  No news as of yet.  This will be a difficult building to sell and all options have been discussed.  It would need major renovations because of the indoor pool and basketball court so it is not easy to convert.  It's not big enough for a stadium and it won't be a city building because it is located on retail property which is very expensive.

Phoenix Mart:  It started in 2009 and was intended to be a giant "swap meet" type of facility with 3000 10 x 10 booths for vendors to display their wares and conduct a giant trade show.  The middle area was to be 200,000 sq ft meeting /convention center.  Surrounding area was to be hotels, restaurants, warehouses, etc.  Two facilities of this nature successfully operate in China and Dubai but unfortunately the Phoenix Mart collapsed due to financing.  They do still own the building.  Google "Phoenix Mart" for a full detailed history if you are interested.

The old City Mall on Florence Blvd where previous Kmart was located:  From the end, Kmart up to the Dollar store has been purchased by U-Haul.  U-Haul has a program to repurpose old sites and convert to useable areas.  They are planning to create more storage units and spruce up the area.  They own the building, but plans are still in process.

Aldis:  The new Aldis store will be west of Denny's on the south side of East Florence Blvd next to Whataburger.  The store will be ~20,000 sq ft with 95 parking spots. 

A new Monastery?  Yes.  Out on Highway 10 toward Val Vista.  John didn't give exact location.  Owned by a group of mixed Greek Orthodox nuns and priests.  It was approved several years ago but is just starting details now.

Lastly, John gave some details about the upcoming November voting ballots.  He maintains a Facebook page where you can read his comments and join discussions on the various topics.

Casa Grande Local Government & Economic Improvement Discussion

You can go to his Facebook discussion page but must first apply for admission.