By establishing the District, the Arizona State Legislature created an entity charged with keeping county residents safe from flood hazards and established an independent funding source for essential projects. The District is a municipal corporation and political subdivision of the State of Arizona. The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors doubles as the District's Board of Directors and receives counsel from the Flood Control Advisory Board comprised of county citizens.

The 2009 Comprehensive Floodplain Management Plan and Program is intended to be used as a general guide for future decision-making in District activities. The Plan aims to present adequate background information to aid District staff in prioritizing areas for future studies and projects. The Plan identifies historic flooding events, reviews the District's efforts to solve flooding problems, and formulates five-year plans to reduce flooding through flood control project construction, floodplain identification, and planning programs throughout the county.

The District's Coordinated, Comprehensive, Collaborative Flood Hazard Mitigation Partnering (C3FHMP) effort addressed Strategic Initiative No.3 of the Flood Control District of Maricopa County 2009 Comprehensive Plan: Increase Collaboration and Partnerships. The District initiated the process to determine how the funding and resources of other entities could be best applied to mitigate flood hazards in Maricopa County, or where mutual benefits would be realized.

The purpose of this document is to provide guidance and detail on implementation of the Flood Control District of Maricopa County Floodplain Regulations and the Maricopa County Drainage Regulations. It presents the County/District philosophy on drainage and floodplain management, and planning for drainage facilities. It contains descriptions of federal, state and county regulations pertaining to such facilities, including links to the various District and County regulations that can be found on the Internet. Most importantly, the policies and minimum standards for implementing the regulations are presented. These policies and standards are based on flood and erosion hazard mitigation strategies that are intended to reduce or eliminate cumulative impacts resulting from development and to enhance public safety.

Artist Wayne Rainey’s Shade magazine is a good sign for the Maricopa region. The bi-monthly publication covers contemporary art and culture, supports downtown redevelopment efforts, and works with many institutions to encourage the arts. However, as promising as Shade and other inventive ventures are, the fact remains that the Maricopa metropolitan region is just waking up to the need to recognize and support arts and culture as a critical contributor to a knowledge economy.

At one time, arts and culture have intrinsic value, economic value, and value as tools to further an all-important “sense of place” as well as to aid in such areas as workforce development, education, and community revitalization. As a result, arts and culture both enrich residents’ lives and give places meaning, identity, and economic opportunity.

This report provides statistics and information that give a sense of local arts and culture resources and challenges in the areas of 1) performing, literary, and visual arts; 2) history and preservation; 3) science and nature; 4) landmarks and events.