Island living in the desert
Island living in the desert may seem an oxymoron, but there are more than 300 islands in Maricopa County.
County islands.
The Arizona Republic's Sasha Hupka explains the term and shares the pros and cons of county island living in this week's Valley 101 podcast.
Think: fewer beaches, more horses.
Listen here or on your favorite podcasting app.
Have a question about life in the Valley? Send it to the podcasting team here.
— Carrie Watters, city and county editor for The Arizona Republic/azcentral.com.
In our communities
You've got 20 days left
That is, if you want to register to vote in the November election. The registration deadline is Oct. 11. If you have your Arizona driver's license or state ID card, you can register online at the Service Arizona portal.
Sasha provides other need-to-know election information, including how to double-check that you are registered.
Homework help for municipal elections
Peoria voters will choose a new mayor. Half of the Phoenix City Council seats are up for grabs. And Mesa, Gilbert and Scottsdale each have council races on the Nov. 8 ballot. Need to figure out where each candidate stands on key issues? We've got you covered.
Shooting at Scottsdale vacation rental heightens concerns
Scottsdale and other communities already have plenty of concerns about short-term rentals, but a shooting earlier this month has some residents and elected officials saying they make neighborhoods less safe and gobble up desperately-needed housing supply, The Republic's Juliette Rihl reports. Scottsdale Mayor David Ortega called the shooting “a tragic illustration of the problems that vacation rental homes are bringing to our neighborhoods,” adding that “the sense of safety in this neighborhood is shattered.”
Today in the archives
Living through the COVID-19 pandemic seemed like unprecedented times, but this front page story from 70 years ago today is a reminder that medicine has come a long way.
In 1952, the contagious epidemic was polio and the hospitalization of three Arizona children was front page news.
Many people in that time would avoid crowds for fear of getting polio, according to Mayo Clinic. In that era, polio outbreaks caused more than 15,000 cases of paralysis each year in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control.
The U.S. authorized use of the polio vaccine in 1955. Polio cases in the U.S. fell to fewer than 10 in the 1970s.
Reach our city-county reporting team
Maritza Dominguez covers Mesa and Gilbert: maritza.dominguez@arizonarepublic.com.
Alexandra Hardle covers the southwest Valley: alexandra.hardle@arizonarepublic.com.
Sasha Hupka covers Maricopa County and Chandler: sasha.hupka@arizonarepublic.com.
Sam Kmack covers Scottsdale and Tempe: sam.kmack@arizonarepublic.com.
Brenda Munoz Murguia covers Glendale, Peoria and Surprise: bmunozmurguia@arizonarepublic.com.
Taylor Seely covers Phoenix: tseely@arizonarepublic.com.
Corina Vanek covers metro Phoenix growth and development: cvanek@arizonarepublic.com.
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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Valley 101 newsletter shares podcasts and stories about metro Phoenix
