The following op-ed was written by the Arizona Republic’s Southeast Valley editorial board and was originally published in the Arizona Republic’s community edition on Friday, June 21, 2013.
The concept of the “East Valley” hasn’t penetrated anyone’s consciousness outside of Arizona. So, the East Valley Partnership’s quest to rebrand the region was both wise and necessary.
The group, an assortment of business, government and education leaders, realized that the name “Phoenix” was necessary to include in the region’s identity.
After all, the city is the nation’s sixth largest and is the country’s largest state-capital city. And despite Arizona’s regrettable political follies in recent years, the city has retained a positive image with business leaders around the country.
So, now it’s “Phoenix East Valley,” a concept that is as simple and compact as it is easy to remember.
A consultant’s study showed that Phoenix is associated with relatively low real-estate costs and a young, affordable workforce. More than any other city in the West, Phoenix makes the business leaders’ first or second cuts when it comes to plans for expansion, the study found.
The East Valley alone? Didn’t ring a bell.
Roc Arnett, the partnership’s leader, compared the move to baseball’s Anaheim Angels changing their name to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.
The use of Phoenix has been crucial in the miraculous boom of Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport, which has gone from zero to about 1.4 million passengers in roughly six years. There’s every reason to think the name will help here, too.
The goal of all this is to attract companies and high-paying jobs to the region. The study found that enormous growth opportunities exist in education technology and global trade.
The region’s resources, led by Arizona State University and Intel (which has made a $20 billion investment since the mid-1990s), are obviously enormous.
Now, more people will know about them.