Mayer or Dewey-Humboldt Areas (Phoenix, Flagstaff: house, neighborhood, camp)

[dukefan60]

My husband and I are considering a move to an area that is a little cooler in the summer than Phoenix, but doesn’t have winters as bad as Flagstaff. We have to stay within a reasonable distance to Phoenix as my husband sees a specialist there. We are considering the Mayer/Dewey-Humboldt area. We are retired so a commute for work is not an issue. We want to have a few acres (5-10 would be ideal). Neighbors that aren’t too close. And be able to do occasional target shooting with our pistols on our property without everyone in the neighborhood getting mad at us. Any input on if this area might work for us?

[like-2-hike]

Originally Posted by dukefan60

My husband and I are considering a move to an area that is a little cooler in the summer than Phoenix, but doesn’t have winters as bad as Flagstaff. We have to stay within a reasonable distance to Phoenix as my husband sees a specialist there. We are considering the Mayer/Dewey-Humboldt area. We are retired so a commute for work is not an issue. We want to have a few acres (5-10 would be ideal). Neighbors that aren’t too close. And be able to do occasional target shooting with our pistols on our property without everyone in the neighborhood getting mad at us. Any input on if this area might work for us?

Can't speak to the shooting part, but Dewey or Mayer (or Spring Valley or Cordes Junction) would otherwise seem to fit the bill nicely. From Dewey, it's less than an hour to get to northern Phoenix. The other locations would be even closer.

Obviously (or perhaps not if you're unfamiliar with the area), there are few amenities in those communities - Dewey has a few restaurants (all on the west side?) and Cordes Junction has the next largest collection (but virtually all fast food). Aside from a library in Humboldt, and a few Family Dollar stores, there's not much else between those communities and Phoenix. Nearest full-service grocery will be Prescott Valley (Safeway) or Camp Verde (Basha's).

If that doesn't phase you, the weather is darn near perfect, the views spectacular, and the rest is up to you...

Good luck!

[dukefan60]

Thank you! That does sound about perfect. As long as amenities (grocery store, hardware, church, etc.) are within a 30-40 minute drive, that would be fine. We currently live in Kearny, which is nice, but everything is at least an hour away, usually more. And too hot in the summer for our liking. One of the things we have enjoyed about Kearny is that it isn’t too windy. We last lived in Cody Wyoming where winds in the 20’s was the norm. What is the wind like in the Mayer, Dewey area?

[like-2-hike]

Originally Posted by dukefan60

Thank you! That does sound about perfect. As long as amenities (grocery store, hardware, church, etc.) are within a 30-40 minute drive, that would be fine. We currently live in Kearny, which is nice, but everything is at least an hour away, usually more. And too hot in the summer for our liking. One of the things we have enjoyed about Kearny is that it isn’t too windy. We last lived in Cody Wyoming where winds in the 20’s was the norm. What is the wind like in the Mayer, Dewey area?

As long as you're good with a 15-30 minute drive (each way), you won't have any problem with those amenities. Personally, I like Dewey the best of your options because it's more "central" - 10-15 minutes to PV for most any amenity you could want, and only 15 minutes or so to I-17. The restaurants immediately around there are good IMO too (Leff-T's, Lucky's BBQ, Blue Hill's Cafe, the pizza joint, and Casa Perez or whatever it's called). Sometimes it's nice not to have to cook but also to not have to drive 30 minutes to go have a meal.

As for wind, I suppose it varies depending on where exactly you live, but when I was in Dewey, I don't remember the winds being that bad. Chino Valley can be pretty crazy from my experience (enough that it would frustrate me if I lived there).

[BriansPerspective]

Originally Posted by dukefan60

...One of the things we have enjoyed about Kearny is that it isn’t too windy. We last lived in Cody Wyoming where winds in the 20’s was the norm. What is the wind like in the Mayer, Dewey area?

There is going to be wind. Spring and Fall have the most wind as the season changes. 20 mph is not unusual, especially if you are on a hill (i.e., have a view). If you have a house in a bowl with no view, then you might get less wind. There is less wind in Summer and Winter.

Here's a weather station in Mayer - https://www.wunderground.com/dashboa...20-02-4/weekly. Scroll down to weather history, which will show you wind speeds for that station. You can change to 'Monthly' and pick a few different months to see what the wind is like for that weather station. You can pick a sampling of weather stations if you zoom out on the map.

Regarding your earlier question about target practice, I would suggest calling the Yavapai County Sheriff's Office 928-636-4223. They will be able to tell you the rules as to how far away from your neighbors you need to be. I'm not sure that 5-10 acres is going to be enough.

[Woody01]

Originally Posted by BriansPerspective

They will be able to tell you the rules as to how far away from your neighbors you need to be. I'm not sure that 5-10 acres is going to be enough.

I don't think that is going to be enough.......

But there may be areas (BLM land?) around where you could go and shoot...?

Found this link to a shooters forum. It mentions 1/4 mi from a structure....?

https://www.thehighroad.org/index.ph...-in-az.731236/

[BriansPerspective]

Originally Posted by Woody01

I don't think that is going to be enough.......

But there may be areas (BLM land?) around where you could go and shoot...?

Found this link to a shooters forum. It mentions 1/4 mi from a structure....?

https://www.thehighroad.org/index.ph...-in-az.731236/

1/4 mile = 1,320 feet. In the perfect case where a house is dead-center in a lot and the neighbors are all dead-center, then 1,320 x 1,320 = 1,742,400 sqft = 40 acres.

As you say, nearby BLM land might work depending on the federal rules governing that land.

[dukefan60]

Per AZ House Bill 2483 the minimum requirement is 1/4 mile from an occupied structure unless you have permission from the owner.

[Woody01]

Originally Posted by dukefan60

Per AZ House Bill 2483 the minimum requirement is 1/4 mile from an occupied structure unless you have permission from the owner.

Sounds like you need a big lot then. OR move somewhere where there is State or Federal land backed up against your property...and we did see quite a few of those in our search. But bear in mind, just because you can legally shoot on your property does not mean that you will not have unhappy neighbors because of the noise.....

There are a few areas around Prescott where you can go and shoot outdoors.......

[dukefan60]

There is one house in Mayer on almost 9 acres and bordered on two sides by state land (per the listing).
Do you live in the area? If so, how do you like it?