Since its incorporation on Sept. 5, 1989, the Town of Queen Creek has grown from rich rural roots to what is one of the most innovatively planned family friendly home towns in Arizona. The incorporation preserved the benefits of rural life while providing an avenue for managed change.
One of Queen Creek's three founding fathers and its first mayor, Mark Schnepf, said incorporating the town was a no-brainer when "Gilbert and Chandler started encroaching on our community and we didn't want to be divided between Gilbert and Mesa, so we got Gilbert's permission to incorporate and deannex."
Before the scattered farm community was called Queen Creek, it had a different name. The area was known as Rittenhouse because of the railroad spur located near Rittenhouse and Ellsworth roads. People used to flag down the train to get a ride into Phoenix. As the community grew, and the use of the railroad stop diminished, the community changed its name.
Agriculture and the bounty of the land continue to support the foundation upon which Queen Creek plans and builds its future, which now includes a current population of 68,500, according to the town. In 1990, just after incorporation, Queen Creek’s population was just over 2,500. The next 10 years experienced a relatively rapid growth rate, with the population escalating significantly by 2010. The Great Recession tempered growth for several years, but by 2015, Queen Creek was one of the fastest growing communities in Arizona. The town’s population continued to increase at a steady, manageable pace, with an estimated population of 41,980 in 2017.
"In 1941, my parents bought 640 acres here in the desert and built a one-room shack on the property and turned it into a farm," Schnepf said. "My father expanded the northern half of the farm to 5,000 acres by the 1970s and my grandfather kept the southern half. My dad started consolidating part of the original farm to less than 300 acres and that's a big piece of property these days, but not when I was a kid growing up here."
Schnepf said growing up on the farm, they were actually known for the grapes they produced and while "we're the largest peach grower in Arizona, our orchards are always in different phases. We're a chemical-free garden now for the public to pick their own vegetables and we're open all the time except in August when it's so hot," Schnepf continued. "You can pick just about anything here that you would get in the grocery store like tomatoes, peppers, peaches, squash and more."
Schnepf's father, Raymond, died in 1995 and his mother, Thora, passed away in 2004. The local farming couple made a name for themselves in the community in 1946 when they invited family and friends to celebrate the Fourth of July holiday that year with swimming, a barbecue and fireworks at their home on the farm. Raymond flew to Texas to purchase the fireworks, which were unavailable in Arizona, and the event was later taken over by other community groups.
"My parents' first house is now our museum that they moved into in 1942. In the 1950s, they built the home I grew up in on the farm and now that's our main wedding venue we converted in 2008. We had already relocated off the farm to a new home," Schnepf said, adding that even after an electrical fire they used part of the damaged home as a unique wedding photo shoot area. Then there's the meadow on the farm that also serve as a nice wedding venue. "It's where we used to grow pine trees and when we got out of that business we thought, what a beautiful place for weddings, so that was born."
Before hosting weddings, Schnepf Farms was the original host to Country Thunder in Arizona for nine years before it moved to Florence. They have also taken the original cold storage building Schnepf remembers working in as a kid to cool off during hot summers and have turned it into a charming events building on the farm.
"We hosted 165 events in 2021," Schnepf noted. He's most proud though of the creation of San Tan Memorial Gardens at Schnepf Farms.
"In the 1970s, my father talked about building a cemetery on the farm and we incorporated as a town in 1989, we always said as a family we needed a cemetery, and the land had appreciated in value and I know nobody would build one, so I decided to come out five acres and start it (San Tan Memorial Gardens at Schnepf Farms). We're up to seven acres now for the cemetery and people have been so appreciative that we did it and that it's affordable. Starting in January 2021, we began construction on a mausoleum and ours is going to look like a barn."
Agriculture + Entertainment = Agritainment
The Town of Queen Creek has coined the "Agritainment" phrase to explain the unique agriculture entertainment options available in the community. The Town Council approved the Agritainment General Plan Land Use designation in the 2018 General Plan Update. The designation is intended to offer flexibility and support agriculture-oriented activities. Agritainment destinations in town include Schnepf Farms, Hayden Flour Mill at Sossaman Farms and the Queen Creek Olive Mill was approved for the designation in November 2019.
"We've been doing 'Agritainment' since the early '90s. We have two trains that run and the oldest operating carousel in Arizona. All our rides on the farm are vintage rides we've purchased over the years that fit into our agritainment plan," Schnepf said, adding that he's most proud of the old carousel he purchased and restored from Coney Island in 2019.
"If we hear of any area homes or items from local farms being demolished we buy the buildings and houses and relocate them here, like the one recently from Neely Farm in Gilbert, so we can share the history of not only Queen Creek but of other communities nearby," Schnepf continued. "We started a drive-in movie theater on the farm when COVID had everything closed and it has become such a hit that we've kept it. During the height of the pandemic we were booked weeks in advance and never even announced what movies were playing. In the summer, we'll be showing movies to the public again."
His wife, Carrie, is instrumental in bringing the various agricultural entertainment, or agritainment, options to the farm like its country store and bakery, garden, train rides, three wedding venues, event venues, the Cozy Peach with nine vintage (mostly Airstream) trailers that are ready for you to escape for a night of comfortable "glamping," complete with flat-screen TVs, plush bedding and robes (four more trailers are planned).
"We have hosted bridal parties, corporate retreats, anniversaries, family reunions, or just an escape," said Carrie Schnepf. "We recommend people buy tickets online ahead of time so they don't drive out here and can't get in because of advanced bookings."
Mark Schnepf added: "They're old trailers so they're not insulated, so we take them apart and put them back together whenever Carrie finds one."
The couple raised their four kids, two boys and two girls who are all in their 20's now, on the farm and "they all have something on the farm that they do to keep it going," Schnepf said. "Our land here is extremely valuable and we really love what we're doing. We want to leave this farm legacy for the Queen Creek community and generations to come because people need a place to go that is an authentic, real working farm. Agriculture and entertainment is a wonderful combination."
