4th Annual Salsa Festival draws record crowd
Almost 8000 people filled Pacana Park on Saturday for the 4th Annual Maricopa Salsa Festival.
The Festival, which ran from Noon to 6:00 pm, featured a Kids Zone play area, food court with live music throughout the afternoon, helicopter rides, around 100 vendor booths showcasing local businesses, and the main attraction; 45 different salsas for attendess to taste and then vote on their favorites.
The winners were:
Best Guacamole: San Luis Salsa / Raymond Shaban
Best Hot Salsa: Jalepeno on a Steek / Becky Ellefson
Most Unusual Salsa: The Hendrix Experience / Minerva Hendrix (3rd win in a row for this category)
Best Mild Salsa: Cooper & Rueter Law Firm / Amada Landeros
Best Overall Salsa: Cooper & Rueter Law Firm / Amada Landeros
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Local tot wins Baby Idol contest
The votes are in and Maricopa’s own Reiley Lake has won the 2008 Baby Idol contest sponsored by local radio station KMXP-FM (Mix 96.9)!
Online voting started back in March. Around 400 babies and toddlers entered the first round of the contest. This was narrowed down to 200 for Round 2. Then the top 50 entered the finals. This morning Mix 96.9 DJ Chris Parker called Reiley’s father, John Lake, to tell him the good news!
For those who may not know, Reiley has been, and continues to be, the focus of a major charity effort around Maricopa. After a normal healthy birth, Reiley became inflicted with a number of “mystery ailments” over the past two years which has stopped her growth and left her dependent on a feeding tube.
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City of Maricopa is asking for resident help to recruit business
In an effort to recruit employers and services to the local area, the City of Maricopa is conducting a labor study in order to figure out exactly what work skills are present in the local community. This will help Maricopa target very specific companies and businesses to attract to the area.
Residents who have lived in Maricopa for a few years may be getting accustomed to receiving an annual survey in the mail – a resident survey has been sent out for the past three years in a row, collecting valuable information that is one of the pieces of data most requested by prospective developers and employers. This year, the questions are more in-depth and focus on some critical questions – where do you work and what do you do? Residents can fill out the full survey by mail or online, which will take about ten minutes or less to complete. An abbreviated option is also available.
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Experience MaX: Maricopa’s commuter bus service
On April 28, a new program will begin for the City of Maricopa – the MaricopaXpress bus service will accept its first passengers.
The bus will pick up passengers in Maricopa at 5:50 a.m. and 6:40 a.m., Monday through Friday, and make several stops, including the Central Avenue Bus Station, Phoenix City Hall and the State Capitol Building. The reverse route will begin at the State Capitol Building with pick-ups at 4:10 p.m. and 5:10 p.m.
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Come visit us at the Maricopa Salsa Festival
Maricopa360.com will be in the ShopMaricopa.com booth, this Saturday, April 26th, at the 4th Annual Maricopa Salsa Festival.
Stop by and see us and learn more about Maricopa360.com and its sister-site ShopMaricopa.com. While at the booth, you can enter one or both of the charity raffles we’re hosting.
For $1.00 per ticket, you can register to win a gift card to one of several local businesses, including Secondhand Pages Bookstore.
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Inaugural fast track program project receives permits in record time
Residents soon will be able to enjoy the results of a new City development program in the form of Big Macs, fries and a play area for kids.
McDonald’s USA, the first commercial project to enter into the newly created Fast Track development program, has received its permits, and as a result will be able to open sooner and have a greater economic impact on the community.
Created by the Maricopa City Council in December 2007, the Fast Track program is the City’s first of several economic development tools designed to deliver a more business-friendly environment by allowing businesses to relocate and expand in the community rapidly and efficiently. To qualify for fast track program consideration, a project must meet a series of economic benefit criteria related to positive overall economic impact to the community.
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New date for Maricopa Children’s Expo
The Maricopa Children’s Expo, postponed from earlier this month has been rescheduled for June 14th.
The Childrens’ Expo is an event that is designed to provide parents with a fun trade show environment. While spending the day with the kids, parents can learn about products and services offered at each of the exhibitor’s booths.
For more information, and a list of currently scheduled vendors, visit their website at www.maricopaexpo.com.
Charity golf tournament a go
Registration and sponsorship is now at the “break even” point, meaning plans for a charity golf tournament can now go ahead. The tournament, to be held Saturday, June 14th at The Raven at South Mountain golf club, will benefit 2 year-old Reiley Lake.
Reiley was born full-term in 2006, and everything seemed perfect with her at first, but in the subsequent two years she has been plagued with a number of ailments that have slowed her development and left her relying on a feeding tube for nutrition.
What’s most frustrating for her parents, John and Susan Lake, is that the cause of her condition is still mostly a mystery. Since the doctors in Arizona that have seen Reiley have been unable to clearly diagnose her problems, John and Susan have been trying to raise funds to take Reiley to a specialist in Ohio. After that, the likely next step is a 4 to 10-week stay in an intense feeding therapy program in Richmond, Virginia.
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Local resident attacked by bees
A local resident, and her children, were attacked by a swarm of bees this morning while house-hunting in the Villages.
Ashly Shearer arrived at a home in the 44200 block of West Cydnee Drive, along with her 3 year-old son and infant daughter. The owners of the house had not yet arrived. As Ashly and her family walked up the front walkway, they were instantly swarmed. She immediately grabbed her children and tried to get back in her car, but the bees followed them in. With nowhere else to hide, they began running down the street, knocking on doors, looking for help… to no avail. Finally a passing truck stopped to offer assistance, but by then the bee swarm was dissippating.
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Shuttle service available for the Maricopa Salsa Festival
The City of Maricopa Community Services Department wants to alert all residents to special Park and Ride locations for the Fourth Annual Maricopa Salsa Festival presented by 85239.com. Locations will be set up at Santa Cruz Elementary School, Santa Rosa Elementary School, Maricopa Wells Middle School. Shuttle services will be provided by Arizona Shuttle. Shuttles will begin at 11:45 a.m. at all locations, and the last departure from Pacana Park will be at 6:45 p.m. The City of Maricopa encourages residents to take advantage of this free service.
