Higley Groves History

Entry Sign

I know that the residents don’t like to be called Higley Groves East, but I find that I do that because of the major differences in the two projects, both in product and in timing. I am specifically referring to the eastern side of the community as I reminisce about its beginning. Higley Groves began construction in late 1998, and this 200 acre parcel is the very first Morrison Ranch community. We were putting up the monuments in April 2000, so it wasn’t finished yet, but it wasn’t long after that. The lot sizes range from 6,000 square feet to 20,000 square feet, and there are three builders (Shea, Trend, and Richmond America) who have product throughout the community. We were quite heartened that the largest homebuilder in Phoenix – Shea Homes – was willing to commit to our project, especially because we were asking for something different than most homebuilders were doing. We wanted to approve the elevations of the houses; we wanted them to put porches on the houses, and we wanted open space and trails and turf. Even though Neely Ranch had done well, we weren’t really proven to the homebuilders yet, and they were skeptical and concerned about their profits (as we would expect; we just felt that the pace of sales would more than make up for the open space – translation: home sales sacrificed for grass– once people saw the community). The Mister is both winsome and tenacious, and these are qualities that are very helpful in negotiating such things. Bias For Action had been part of the office team for some time by that point, and he managed the complex scheduling and deadline requirements. Together they crafted an agreement between the homebuilders and the family.

Shea agreed to develop unique product for us, and though it didn’t quite reflect the ranch houses of our dreams, they did provide some porches and some ranch style elevations, and so the project was up and running.

Bias For Action on the left holding monument sign, April 2000

Higley Groves proved to be successful; it didn’t have the blistering rate of sales that I’d hoped for, but it was steady even as prices rose. To this day, we are very pleased with how this community turned out. It was the first execution of the Morrison Ranch vision, and it was gratifying to watch it become real. It isn’t everything we’d dreamed of, and we learned some things about making the next community come closer to our dreams; and we hope to keep learning and keep improving. One disappointment that remains is the gravel under the power lines on the north side. We really intended that to be grass; the homebuilder felt it was unnecessary to put grass there because it wouldn’t be used very much. The homebuilder turned out to be right, I guess. I haven’t seen that trail used that much; but I think it’s because it’s gravel, since I often see folks on the trail in Higley Groves West.

About midway through the construction period, some vandals drove a vehicle down the park lane and took out about 15 of the young trees. I was so mad I could spit. I tried to figure out a gracious way to place “stop sticks” throughout the grass for those kids (surely no adult would be so reckless!) who couldn’t control their impulse to drive through the grass and leave huge ruts and damaged or dead trees in their wake. But I calmed down, and the trees were replaced, and the ruts grew over, and today you can’t tell that those trees are any younger than those adjacent.

The Parkway with thriving trees

I remember one incident when the Mister and I were driving down Higley Road, and we were flagged down by a pedestrian. It turned out to be the gal who had given our eldest daughter voice lessons a few years prior. She bubbled enthusiasm for Higley Groves and told us that the moment she saw the grass and the white fences, she knew she had to move in there and she just wanted to thank us. That was a surprising, and pleasant, encounter. We had several similar chance encounters, from our next door neighbors moving there (she was a real estate agent) to friends, to friends of friends.

There are more Higley Groves stories, but they will wait for another day. Suffice it to say that this community is the starting point for the dream of Morrison Ranch.