To the editor,

Federal dollars do not come back to Maricopa by accident. They come back because our council and city staff build relationships, make the case, and keep pushing.

Last week, during a meeting with Nexxus, our federal lobbying team shared the amount of dedicated federal funding Maricopa has secured since fiscal year 2009. The total is nearly $30 million. That is real money for real projects.

Maricopa secured:

• $143,000 through the Energy Efficiency Community Block Grant Program in 2009
• $2.42 million for the Lower Santa Cruz River Watershed
• $15 million TIGER grant in 2015 for the State Route 347 Grade Separation Project 
• $3.5 million for the West Maricopa Transmission Waterline 
• $3 million for aquifer recharge
• $3.5 million for the Union Pacific pedestrian bridge 
• $1.383 million in FEMA funding for the Desert Sunrise High School box culvert
• $867,000 in federal HRSA funding for ambulances in fiscal year 2026 

This list tells a clear story. Maricopa fights for its share.

How do we get it done? 

• We do not sit back and hope someone remembers us
• We go to Washington, D.C. 
• We meet with federal partners
• We explain our needs. We make the case for our residents

That work does not always make headlines. Sometimes it is a meeting, or a phone call. Sometimes it is a grant application, a follow-up email, or years of quiet work before the funding comes through. But that is how cities win.

When all of that lines up, Maricopa benefits. Some people like to say nothing gets done and I hear that often, but the facts say something different.

Nearly $30 million in dedicated federal funding has come back to Maricopa for transportation, water infrastructure, flood control, pedestrian safety, public safety, and community improvements. That did not happen by luck. It happened because Maricopa earned a seat at the table and used it.

We still have work to do. A lot of it. Anyone who lives here knows our infrastructure needs to keep catching up.

But we should also be honest about the progress. Maricopa is no longer a small city hoping someone notices us. We are a growing city that must keep fighting for roads, water, public safety, jobs, and infrastructure.

That is what our residents deserve. That is what our staff works for every day. And that is what I will keep fighting for.

Vincent Manfredi owns InMaricopa and this is a letter written to the editor. 

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