Drive to West Side

Another area that has had some appeal to us over the years is Tonopah, AZ. It is, basically, the last town of significance as you leave the Phoenix area to go west. There is nothing but hills and desert beyond Tonopah. It is the town where the projected population explosion was to take place before the economic downturn and before the real estate bubble burst. I did some business out there selling lots, including a 5 acre tract to Patty's friends, Mike and Angel from Naperville, IL.

Needless to say, the property looks almost the same as it did back in 2005 or 2006 when they purchased the property. It is frozen in time. We stopped by the real estate office in downtown Tonopah on the way back, and picked up a flyer on properties that were available in that area. Wow! The real estate in that area has taken a big hit in this downturn. The same properties are selling for about 1/3 of the price before the economy went south. I'm sure they will all bounce back, but for now, there are some great deals there. It will take many years - perhaps 5 to 7 - to rebound to the prices of 6 or 7 years ago.

On the way home we wanted to stop in Goodyear to visit the Cotton Lane RV Resort where we stayed for a year back in 2003-4:

The Resort has changed some since we were last there and they have added many homes and improved the overall appearance of the Resort:

The golf course is the biggest change as it was closed for renovation. It is going to be a very nice little course when they are finished with the improvements. You can also see the old Harness Race Track that is still standing behind the Resort on I-10. It was a nostalgic visit, to be sure.

The trip home from there was totally different as the construction on the new Loop 303 is taking place on the entire stretch from Goodyear to Surprise. It is going to be one beautiful highway when it is all done, but it will be several more years before that happens. In the meantime, it is a good area to avoid. Bridges are being constructed over every cross street on that stretch, and there are many.

It was fun visiting these old areas that were very familiar to us. We also drove past the development in the desert called Sun City Festival, and, although it has grown, it looks like the economical impact has slowed its growth tremendously. It still requires a 20 mile round trip to do any grocery shopping from where it is located. The only thing that has been added is a Shell gas station with a mini mart that is located at the entrance.

Today will be one where, if we don't do anything else, we are going to update our resumes for some serious job hunting. It would be real easy to stay in this mode of relaxing every day but there are other priorities. Also, we will begin thinking about the details for consolidating our 2 storage locations. That will not be a pleasant task...