In the far northwest Valley, where Lake Pleasant Parkway intersects the Carefree Highway, dozens of tents, campers and trailers have taken up camping on Arizona State Trust Land.
It’s not an uncommon place to camp and it is allowed with a permit, but officials are seeing more activity up there than in past years, and with it has come littering and dumping.
Officials said Peoria and Phoenix police departments, as well as code enforcement are working to collaborate on the tracking problematic areas.
Peoria spokeswoman Diane Arthur said the city council is committed to making sure the current city limits and land that will be part of the city in the future remain a safe space for all.
“As such, we have engaged with many partners including State Land (ASLD), city of Phoenix and our local law and code enforcement teams to explore how to cut down on illegal activities in our planning area,” she said.
Councilmembers Brad Shafer and Jon Edwards have created a task force to address the issue.
Shafer said the task force is in the early stages and the city is still examining the issues and trying to see what options are available.
“I want to implement long term solutions, not just a bandaid. I am excited about the collaboration between Peoria and Phoenix and I am optimistic that through internal departments and external municipalities working together we will find solutions,” Shafer said. “I praise the hard work by the Peoria and Phoenix police departments, code enforcement, and planning departments for their efforts thus far and look forward to good things happening in the future for this project.”
Camping is permitted on ASLD land with a proper permit, which is good for 14 days. A 14-day permit is inclusive of the calendar year, meaning the campers can only obtain a permit for a total of 14 days for the year.
According to the most recent numbers, the ASLD inspector inspected 24 sites and only one did not have a permit. Officials said that person went online at the time of inspection and secured a permit.
Officials said ASLD typically inspects for permits and abandoned camp sites once a week in this area as time permits; however, there are only four investigators for the entire state.
State investigators are not authorized to trespass people, so when a trespass determination is made, Peoria Police Department is notified to cite individuals.
Philip Haldiman can be reached at phaldiman@iniusa.org, or on Twitter @philiphaldiman. We’d like to invite our readers to submit their civil comments, pro or con, on this issue. Email AZOpinions@iniusa.org.
Meet Philip Haldiman is an award-winning journalist who most recently took first place for investigative reporting in 2023 from Arizona Newspapers Association. He joined Independent Newsmedia, Inc., USA, in 2015, covering Sun City West his first year. Since 2016, he has covered the city of Peoria. Prior to coming to INI, he was a reporter with The Arizona Republic for seven years, covering numerous cities throughout the Valley. Before that, he was a freelance writer.
Community: Haldiman spearheads the Peoria Independent Hometown Heroes Awards program, honoring local individuals and businesses that give back to the community. He has hosted local candidate forums over the years and is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists. Haldiman also served as a member of the Journalism Program Community Advisory Board at Glendale Community College. Outside journalism, Haldiman served as a member of the city of Peoria Complete Count Committee for the Census, 2019-2020. Lastly, he has served as a member of his HOA governing board since 2021.
Education: Arizona State University with a BA in Journalism and Mass Communications and a BA in Theater.
Random Fact: Haldiman is a fourth-generation Arizonan as well as wrote and produced an autobiographical comic book about his time spent in Hollywood and his life as a cult film star.
Hobbies: He enjoys hiking Arizona’s mountainous landscapes and is currently working on a play for the stage.
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