As a designated City District Park site, the Cave Buttes Recreation Area will most likely provide a combination of passive and active recreation opportunities to residents within a five-mile radius or service area. Ball fields, swimming pools, and golf courses are some examples of active recreation facilities. Passive facilities could include multi-use trails, group picnic areas, playgrounds, or educational centers. The demands on this site will be very high, as the area's population is expected to swell almost 90% from approximately 147,700 today to 279,000 in 2020.

The City of Phoenix's (City) Parks, Recreation and Library Department, in association with its Water Services Department and the Flood Control District of Maricopa County (FCD), have completed Phase 1 of the Cave Buttes Area Recreation Master Plan. The goal of the Master Plan is to develop a multi-use program for regional recreation facilities and allow the beneficial use of available reclaimed water through recharge. The Cave Buttes Recreation Area is a 3,000-acre, FCD-owned property near the Cave Creek and Cave Buttes Dams.

The Recreation Needs Assessment, summarized in this newsletter, is a result of taking an inventory of the existing natural and built features at the site, as well as the existing and proposed recreation facilities within a five-mile radius. Extensive public input is reflected in the conclusions. The consultant is analyzing the feasibility of using the Cave Buttes site to recharge the aquifer with excess reclaimed water from the new Cave Creek Water Reclamation Facility. During the winter or wet periods, the City may produce up to 12 million gallons per day of excess reclaimed water.

The result of the inventories, the public involvement efforts, and the conclusions presented in this newsletter are taken from the Draft June 27, 2001 Recreation Needs Assessment, prepared by Logan Simpson Design, Inc. in association with Wilson & Company and Todd & Associates.