The City of Maricopa is adding something new to Heritage Park: a historic walkway that celebrates the history and explosive growth of the community.  

The project has been made possible through part of a $100,000 grant from El Dorado Holdings founder Mike Ingram and Heritage Park will be renamed for the developer. EDH, based in Scottsdale, developed Rancho El Dorado as the city’s first neighborhood. 

The walkway is a piece of the park, which will be landscaped sometime in the future. 

A city crew was putting the finishing touches on the shade structures today and the history plaques will be added to the pillars next. 

A ribbon-cutting ceremony will dedicate the park sometime next month, said city spokesperson Quinn Konold. The ceremony’s time and date will be later announced. 

“This event marks a landmark occasion for our city as we honor our past while looking forward to a bright future,” Konold said.  

Parking at the park is available in the school district administrative offices parking lot adjacent to the park. 

The new heritage walkway offers residents and visitors a unique opportunity to journey through time, tracing Maricopa’s path from its early days to its current status as one of the fastest-growing cities in the nation, Konold said. Each of the nine pillars will exhibit a different chapter in Maricopa’s history. 

The city is contributing $93,000 to the shade structures. 

Mayor Nancy Smith said Mike Ingram Heritage Park will stand as “a lasting tribute to the spirit of Maricopa,” honoring the people and milestones that shaped the community. 

“We are deeply grateful to Mike Ingram for his generosity and commitment to preserving our city’s heritage,” Smith said. 

Mike Ingram Heritage Park is at 44240 W. Maricopa-Casa Grande Highway, near the Maricopa Historical Society’s headquarters. 

History from the late Maricopa historian Patricia Brock’s books, “Reflections on a Desert Town” and “Images of America: Maricopa,” was used as content in the plaques’ design. Brock was a former Maricopa Historical Society president and a Maricopa Elementary School third-grade teacher, who with her students put together the book. 

Brenda Campbell, a historical society member and the city’s events and arts coordinator, said the walkway will portray the city’s bombastic growth. 

“In the year 2000 the city’s population was 1,200 and the Heritage District was primarily the center of town,” said Campbell. “That’s basically where the community lived except for all the farmers who had homes in the outlying area.” 

Today, Maricopa’s estimated population is at about 75,000.