Its first regional mall is still vacant farmland, but the population boost could speed it up, Dunham said. On the down side, Gilbert's growing population drives on roads full of cracks and potholes. Rapid construction has left the town's maintenance budget strapped for funds. Throughout the Valley, jobs drive growth, said Dan Anderson of the Arizona Department of Economic Security. From high technology to medical centers to insurance, Arizona ranked among the top states in creating jobs during the 1990s.
Location gives population another boost.
California's high real estate prices are prompting more companies, such as Fleming Foods, to put wholesale operations in Arizona. At the same time, Arizona is a logical move for people fleeing the high home prices, power blackouts and other woes of the Golden State. Freeways determine where many of them will move. The Superstition Freeway extends 10 miles farther east than in 1990, opening the East Valley to new crops of subdivisions. Chandler's population doubled, to almost 177,000, while Apache Junction jumped from 18,000 residents to almost 32,000.