Carefree, Arizona | |
|---|---|
 Welcome marker | |
 Seal | |
 Location in Maricopa County, Arizona | |
  Carefree  Carefree | |
| Coordinates:33°49′24″N111°54′58″W / 33.82333°N 111.91611°W /33.82333; -111.91611 | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Arizona |
| County | Maricopa |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | John Crane |
| Area | |
• Total | 8.81 sq mi (22.83 km2) |
| • Land | 8.81 sq mi (22.82 km2) |
| • Water | 0.0039 sq mi (0.01 km2) |
| Elevation | 2,402 ft (732 m) |
| Population | |
• Total | 3,690 |
| • Density | 418.9/sq mi (161.73/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−7 (MST (noDST)) |
| ZIP code | 85377 |
| Area code | 480 |
| FIPS code | 04-10180 |
| GNIS feature ID | 2413168[2] |
| Website | www |
Carefree is a town inMaricopa County,Arizona, United States. It is located north of bothPhoenix andScottsdale in the far northeast area of thePhoenix metropolitan area. As of the2020 United States census, the population of the town was 3,690.[3]
Characterized as an upscale residential area,[4] Carefree was conceived in the mid-1950s by business partners K.T. Palmer and Tom Darlington as amaster-planned community. Land sales commenced in 1955 and homebuilding started in 1958. Carefree was incorporated in 1984 to avoid annexation by neighboringScottsdale.[5]
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 964 | — | |
| 1990 | 1,657 | 71.9% | |
| 2000 | 2,927 | 76.6% | |
| 2010 | 3,363 | 14.9% | |
| 2020 | 3,690 | 9.7% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census[6] | |||
As of thecensus of 2000, there were 2,927 people, 1,389 households, and 995 families residing in the town.[7] The population density was 330.8 inhabitants per square mile (127.7/km2). There were 1,769 housing units at an average density of 200.0 per square mile (77.2/km2). The racial makeup of the town was 98%White, <1%Black orAfrican American, <1%Native American, <1%Asian, <1% fromother races, and 1% from two or more races.Hispanic orLatino of any race were 3% of the population.
There were 1,389 households, out of which 14.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 66.5% were married couples, 3.2% had a single owner, and 28.3% were non-families. 23.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.11 and the average family size was 2.44.
In the town, the population was spread out, with 12.7% under the age of 18, 2.0% from 18 to 24, 15.4% from 25 to 44, 40.5% from 45 to 64, and 29.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 55 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.2 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $88,702, and the median income for a family was $105,699. Males had a median income of $61,050 versus $38,750 for females. The per capita income for the town was $62,433. About 2.0% of families and 3.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.2% of those under the age of 18 and 3.2% of those 65 and older.
Carefree is in northeastern Maricopa County, bordered by the city ofScottsdale to the south and east and by the town ofCave Creek to the west. Carefree and Cave Creek are sometimes thought of as a single community.[8] The two towns share the local landmarkBlack Mountain, which rises more than 1,000 feet (300 m) above them, to an elevation of 3,398 feet (1,036 m).
According to theUnited States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 8.8 square miles (23 km2), of which 0.004 square miles (0.010 km2), or 0.05%, are listed as water.[1]
Carefree has ahot semi-arid climate (KöppenBSh) with hot summers and mild winters, avoiding a designation of arid by being located closer to the rain-catching central mountains of Arizona, so that it receives about 70 percent (around 5.3 inches or 135 millimetres) more rainfall annually than does Phoenix. There are 141 afternoons annually with highs of at least 90 °F or 32.2 °C, 63.4 afternoons of at least 100 °F or 37.8 °C, and three afternoons that exceed 110 °F or 43.3 °C. During the winter, 8.3 mornings will fall below freezing; the coldest temperature reported in Carefree is 15 °F or −9.4 °C, which occurred on January 13, 1963, and January 7, 1971. Snowfall, although infrequent, can occur. The last measurable snow was February 22, 2019, accumulating 3–6" depending upon the elevation.Rainfall is sometimes heavy during winter fronts or monsoonal storms; the wettest month on record is January 1993 with 9.37 inches (238.0 mm), which helped produce a record "rain year" total of 26.20 inches (665.5 mm) between July 1992 and June 1993; in contrast between July 1962 and June 1963, only 6.98 inches (177.3 mm) was recorded.
| Climate data for Carefree, Arizona, 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1961–present | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 84 (29) | 86 (30) | 97 (36) | 102 (39) | 109 (43) | 118 (48) | 118 (48) | 114 (46) | 111 (44) | 107 (42) | 92 (33) | 82 (28) | 118 (48) |
| Mean maximum °F (°C) | 74.5 (23.6) | 78.0 (25.6) | 85.6 (29.8) | 94.0 (34.4) | 101.5 (38.6) | 108.5 (42.5) | 110.6 (43.7) | 109.4 (43.0) | 105.1 (40.6) | 96.5 (35.8) | 85.0 (29.4) | 74.7 (23.7) | 111.8 (44.3) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 64.6 (18.1) | 67.5 (19.7) | 74.1 (23.4) | 81.6 (27.6) | 91.0 (32.8) | 100.6 (38.1) | 103.4 (39.7) | 102.3 (39.1) | 97.0 (36.1) | 85.5 (29.7) | 73.5 (23.1) | 63.6 (17.6) | 83.7 (28.7) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 53.1 (11.7) | 55.6 (13.1) | 61.0 (16.1) | 67.2 (19.6) | 76.1 (24.5) | 85.4 (29.7) | 89.7 (32.1) | 89.1 (31.7) | 83.7 (28.7) | 72.8 (22.7) | 61.5 (16.4) | 52.5 (11.4) | 70.6 (21.4) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 41.6 (5.3) | 43.8 (6.6) | 47.9 (8.8) | 52.8 (11.6) | 61.2 (16.2) | 70.1 (21.2) | 75.9 (24.4) | 75.9 (24.4) | 70.4 (21.3) | 60.1 (15.6) | 49.4 (9.7) | 41.3 (5.2) | 57.5 (14.2) |
| Mean minimum °F (°C) | 30.5 (−0.8) | 33.2 (0.7) | 36.2 (2.3) | 41.9 (5.5) | 49.9 (9.9) | 60.7 (15.9) | 68.4 (20.2) | 67.4 (19.7) | 61.8 (16.6) | 47.4 (8.6) | 35.7 (2.1) | 29.8 (−1.2) | 27.6 (−2.4) |
| Record low °F (°C) | 15 (−9) | 19 (−7) | 24 (−4) | 32 (0) | 37 (3) | 49 (9) | 56 (13) | 59 (15) | 44 (7) | 32 (0) | 28 (−2) | 20 (−7) | 15 (−9) |
| Averageprecipitation inches (mm) | 1.80 (46) | 1.60 (41) | 1.64 (42) | 0.50 (13) | 0.15 (3.8) | 0.12 (3.0) | 1.27 (32) | 1.30 (33) | 1.15 (29) | 0.97 (25) | 0.77 (20) | 1.31 (33) | 12.58 (320) |
| Average precipitation days(≥ 0.01 in) | 4.5 | 4.7 | 3.8 | 1.9 | 1.5 | 0.6 | 3.8 | 4.9 | 3.3 | 2.7 | 2.7 | 3.9 | 38.3 |
| Source:National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration[9][10] | |||||||||||||
TheCarefree sundial, designed byarchitect Joe Wong and solar engineerJohn I. Yellott,[11] was erected in the Sundial Circle plaza in 1959 and claims to be the "third largestsundial in theWestern Hemisphere". The sundial, which points to theNorth Star, is made from a steel frame and covered in anodized copper. It measures 90 feet (27 m) in diameter. The metalgnomon, the shadow-casting portion of the dial, stands 35 feet (11 m) above the plaza and extends 72 feet (22 m).[12]
Carefree was the long-time home of Southwestern Studios, originally built in 1968 as Fred Graham Studios by actor, stunt man, and Arizona Film CommissionerFred Graham. The sprawling 160-acre (0.65 km2) desert property adjacent to North Scottsdale featured three state-of-the-art soundstages, edit bays, 35mm screening room, make-up, production facilities, western street andbacklot. In the early 1970s, Stage 1 of the studio was used forThe New Dick Van Dyke Show starringDick Van Dyke,Hope Lange,Fannie Flagg, andMarty Brill. Stage 1 also was used for the filming ofThe Other Side of the Wind, starringJohn Huston,Oja Kodar,Susan Strasberg,Bob Random andPeter Bogdanovich.[13]
The studio was used for the filming ofBob Hope's last feature film,Cancel My Reservation,[14] withEva Marie Saint,Ralph Bellamy, andForrest Tucker. Scenes were also shot in Carefree and at the studio forMichelangelo Antonioni'sZabriskie Point, on the back lot, where a mock-up of the Carefree mansion was built and then exploded. The studio was also used forPaul Newman's scenes inPocket Money; forBill Cosby's feature debut,Man and Boy, for which the western street was built; and forBill and Ted's Excellent Adventure, again the western street. Theshort,silent featureTime River was shot on Stages 2 and 3 and extensively on the back lot and western street sets.[15]
Southwestern Studios was also used in television productions. In 1973–74, local residentHugh Downs produced and hosted two pilot episodes for a unique show,Foursome, that was both a game show and talk show, where four celebrities came together to play various games and interact with each other. In one episode, actorsJanet Leigh andRobert Culp and comediansJo Anne Worley andAlan Sues played a game of tennis. In another episode filmed on Stage 3, Culp, Worley, Sues, andAnn Miller played a popular board game. In 1974, Southwestern Studios was the location on Stage 2 and the back lot for the filming of the television filmMcMasters of Sweetwater, starringJack Cassidy and Loretta Ball and directed byRobert Butler.
Later renamed Carefree Studios, the studio was razed in 1999. The studio, western street, and pristine desert back lot property was developed into retail space andresidential development.
Gordon Lightfoot wrote and sang a song named "Carefree Highway". He took the name from a section ofArizona State Route 74 in north Phoenix, to explain his mood at that time. The highway runs from the foot of (North) Tom Darlington Drive at the South-West corner of Carefree about 30 miles westward to Lake Pleasant Parkway inPeoria, Arizona.
The town is served byCave Creek Unified School District.[16]
Arizona State Route 74 runs along the south border of Carefree.Cave Creek Road runs along the east edge of Carefree, then curves and becomes an east-west road through Carefree.
Cave Creek is not a member ofValley Metro and does not have local bus service.
SkyRanch is a private airport located in Carefree.[17]
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
Municipalities and communities ofMaricopa County, Arizona,United States | ||
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| Footnotes | ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties | |
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