Clarkdale is a small community in north-central Arizona, nestled in the Coconino forest, along the southwest banks of the Verde River. Clarkdale
was founded in 1912 as a company town to serve the United Verde Copper Company and was offi cially incorporated in 1957. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the Town of Clarkdale was Arizona’s first master-planned community that still serves as a model of urban planning. With Spanish Colonial style facades and original brick exposed on most buildings, the historic downtown district is poised to capitalize on its quaint charm. Despite a regional economic grow th trend that has benefited its neighbors, the Town of Clarkdale has not seen the same significant growth in recent years. Rather, the community has struggled to keep pace with the Towns of Jerome and Cottonwood; both have developed a unique character and identity, attracting both tourists and businesses alike, sometimes at Clarkdale’s loss. However, Clarkdale is well-positioned to tell a compelling story that celebrates the town’s history and positions it as a destination for tourists across Arizona.
Students with the School of Geographic Sciences and Urban Planning (SGSUP) conducted a brainstorming exercise, as a culminating assignment for their urban and regional economics class. For the project, the students tapped into all of the semester’s lessons to address a very open-ended prompt: explore a planning strategy or concept that Clarkdale could leverage to enhance its downtown. Students split into seven groups, each exploring a different strategy of interest. Over just a few weeks, students conducted virtual visits, met virtually with city staff, and studied literature for evidence of past successes of their topic.
Residents have expressed a clear desire for place-based branding and identity. The students’ analyses also support the need to establish anchor attractions in Clarkdale and solidify its brand awareness as a destination that complements the draw of neighboring Jerome and Cottonwood. The comprehensive design guidelines detailed in the latter part of this report help paint a vivid picture of what that could look like for the Town of Clarkdale, by capitalizing on existing attractions and untapped potential.