OUR COMMUNITY
The Tanque Verde Valley
Tucked between the Santa Catalina and Rincon Mountains on Tucson's northeast side, the Tanque Verde Valley is defined by wide open desert that still stretches between neighborhoods, where horses remain part of everyday life and wildlife moves through the washes. Even as metropolitan Tucson has grown around us, the Valley has kept a strong sense of independence and identity.
OUR WAY OF LIFE
Life here feels different from anywhere else
People choose to live, work, and play in this community because life here feels different and distinct from anywhere else in the world. We're connected to the desert around us, we value having a little room to breathe, and we've built a tight-knit community of neighbors who share our desire to preserve life in the Tanque Verde Valley.
For some, that means hitting the trail before work. For others, it's keeping horses in the backyard, watching wildlife cross the wash behind the house, raising kids in our local schools or simply knowing there's still somewhere you can look toward the mountains and see more desert than development.
TRAILS AND OPEN LAND
Life outside
The Valley sits against an extraordinary network of public lands. The Santa Catalina Mountains rise to the north, the Rincon Mountains and Saguaro National Park define the eastern horizon, and Coronado National Forest opens miles of trails and backcountry.
We hike before work, run and bike our trails, ride horses into the desert and share it all with an extraordinary amount of wildlife. Our washes and open spaces move water through the Valley and create natural corridors that let wildlife keep moving through the community.
HORSES AND RANCHING
Equestrian heritage and lifestyle
Our ranching roots remain visible throughout the Valley in equestrian properties, larger lots, horse trailers on local roads and riders moving through washes and trails. Public trailheads still accommodate horseback access into the surrounding desert.
That way of life shaped the character of Tanque Verde: room between properties, unpaved connections and open land. TVVA's Equine Friendly initiative supports a sustainable, horse-friendly ranch environment and keeps horses central to our identity.
SHARING THE LAND
Where the wild things still are
We share our community with coyotes that move through the washes, bobcats that pass through neighborhoods and javelina that sleep under our bridges. Raptors circle overhead while reptiles, pollinators and countless smaller species depend on the vegetation, waterways and open desert around us.
Living beside wildlife is one of the privileges and responsibilities of life here. Wildlife doesn't recognize property lines, so washes, undeveloped parcels and natural corridors become the pathways that keep habitats connected as growth fragments the landscape.
THE VALLEY'S STATUS
What unincorporated means for Tanque Verde
Is the Tanque Verde Valley still unincorporated?
We don't have a mayor, a city council or a town of Tanque Verde. We are part of greater Tucson, but much of the community lies outside any incorporated city or town, so we are unincorporated Pima County. Services still come through the County and the Sheriff, just not through a Tanque Verde city hall.
What does unincorporated actually mean?
An incorporated community elects its own mayor and council to set local policy and run city services. Tanque Verde has no such layer. We elect County Supervisors and countywide officials who represent areas far larger than the Valley, so we have a strong identity but no single government devoted to it.
Why has Tanque Verde remained unincorporated?
The Valley grew up as ranches, farms and open desert and stayed outside Tucson's boundaries as the city expanded east. Changing that now is not simple: Arizona law sets specific requirements to form a municipality, including population, boundaries, petitions and a public vote. Incorporation is a significant civic decision, not a quick fix.
Quick facts
GET INVOLVED
Add your voice to the Valley
Membership keeps the Valley organized, informed and ready to act. Join us, or lend a hand as a volunteer.