Indulge Me! — These Are the Views That Brought Me to Flagstaff AZ
In October 1993, our car broke down while vacationing in Northern Arizona. We ended up spending more time in Flagstaff than anticipated. (We had planned only to have breakfast in Flagstaff on our way from Sedona to Canyon de Chelly for a day-hike and tour.) While killing time, I picked up a newspaper, saw an ad for land for sale, and we decided to stop by to take a look.
Here’s what I saw: (1) a red cliff reminiscent of the Sedona Red Rocks, which I’d been hiking in all week, (2) a green forest with more hiking trails than I could hope to cover in a lifetime, (3) a piece of land that I could afford and maybe retire to someday. Of course, I later decided not to wait too many more years and, instead of retiring, I changed careers and created a life in Flagstaff.
This region of Flagstaff is known to Realtors® as the Northeast Rural Region. It is north and east of the city limits of Flagstaff. Homes are on larger parcels of land than is typical inside the city, but do not have city services like sewer and water. The lack of city services is imperceptible for most homes because the area is well-served by private and county services.
Water is provided by the Doney Park Water Company. The company has deep wells that reach the same aquifer as those of the City of Flagstaff. Doney Park Water Company serves over 3000 homes and businesses and is regulated by the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality and the Arizona Corporation Commission.
A variety of high-speed broadband internet services are available. Homes have standard septic systems in lieu of sewer connections. Trash and curbside recycling pickup is available. Cellular phone service and landline phone service is readily available as well as cable or satellite TV. Most roads are paved and are maintained by Coconino County.
The area has emergency and fire protection via the Summit Fire Department, which has three stations. The newest station is at the corner of Cosnino and Townsend/Winona Road. The original station is on Highway 89 near the Timberline and Fernwood neighborhoods. The third station is on Koch Field Road in the middle of the Doney Park neighborhood. Each station has a community meeting room available for neighborhood events.
Because of all of these advantages, the Northeast Rural Region has developed rapidly in the last decade. There are few vacant parcels of land for sale and most of the open space to be seen in the area is National Forest. There is a County Park near the Cromer Elementary School on Silver Saddle Road – Peaks View County Park.
While the housing prices in the area nearly matched the price per square foot of homes in the city during the peak of our market in 2005, homes now tend to be less expensive in the Northeast Rural Region compared to similar homes on smaller lots in town.