Interactive Map Rules & Regulations City of Scottsdale Know Before You Go

The McDowell Sonoran Preserve The Arizona Game and Fish Department considers the McDowell Mountains and surrounding Sonoran desert the most significant wildlife habitat in the Valley outside the Tonto National Forest.  Completion of the Preserve is important because it will provide an uninterrupted wildlife corridor from the McDowell Mountains to the Tonto National Forest, and is key to the survival of many of our diverse desert species.

The Preserve was established by the City of Scottsdale in 1995. Currently, 16,000 acres are preserved while another 20,000 acres remain within the recommended boundary that voters approved for inclusion within the McDowell Sonoran Preserve. When complete, the Preserve will total more than 36,000 acres of permanently protected desert.

The McDowell Sonoran Conservancy works side-by-side with the City of Scottsdale to complete, manage and facilitate the use of McDowell Sonoran Preserve.

Land within the Preserve is owned by the City of Scottsdale, or is permanently protected by zoning. In 1995, Scottsdale voters approved a two-tenths of one percent sales tax increase to purchase land in what was then called the "Recommended Study Boundary" or RSB. In 1998, voters approved expanding the RSB by 19,940 acre and again, to use sales tax revenue to purchase the additional land.

Much of the expanded RSB is State Trust Land. To read about the current standing of state land reform efforts that would allow for the completion of the Preserve, click here.

When completed, the McDowell Sonoran Preserve will be one of the largest urban preserves. The Preserve will be larger than Tempe and Paradise Valley combined.

Watch This Video To Learn More