Star Valley is a town in

Gila County, Arizona Gila County ( ) is a county in the central part of the U.S. state of Arizona. As of the 2020 census, the population was 53,272. The county seat is Globe. Gila County comprises the Payson, Arizona micropolitan statistical area which is inclu ...

, United States, incorporated in 2005. Before incorporation, it was a

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...

(CDP). As of the 2020 census the population of the town was 2,484.

Geography

Star Valley is located in northern Gila County and is bordered to the west by the town of Payson.

Arizona State Route 260 State Route 260, also known as SR 260, is a long east–west major state highway in the north-central part of the U.S. state of Arizona. It connects State Route 89A in Cottonwood to U.S. Route 180 and U.S. Route 191 in Eagar. The hig ...

passes through Star Valley, leading west into Payson and east to Show Low. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the town has a total area of , of which , or 0.03%, is water. Star Valley sits at an elevation of and takes its name from the valley in which it is located, formed by Houston Creek, which descends to the south through

Tonto National Forest The Tonto National Forest, encompassing , is the largest of the six national forests in Arizona and is the ninth largest national forest in the United States. The forest has diverse scenery, with elevations ranging from 1,400 feet (427 m) in ...

to Tonto Creek, a tributary of the Salt River. The town was incorporated as the Town of Diamond Star, but changed its name to Star Valley in 2006. Ponderosa Pine

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 1,536 people, 677 households, and 421 families residing in the CDP. The population density was . There were 1,017 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the CDP was 93.6%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.1%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.7% Native American, 0.3% Asian, 0.1%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 3.8% from other races, and 1.6% from two or more races. 10.3% of the population were

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race. There were 677 households, out of which 24.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.1% were married couples living together, 7.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.8% were non-families. 32.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.27 and the average family size was 2.86. In the CDP, the population was spread out, with 22.9% under the age of 18, 6.0% from 18 to 24, 21.9% from 25 to 44, 28.1% from 45 to 64, and 21.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.2 males. The median income for a household in the CDP was $27,375, and the median income for a family was $32,045. Males had a median income of $30,966 versus $20,729 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the CDP was $19,414. About 4.7% of families and 9.7% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 7.4% of those under age 18 and 6.5% of those age 65 or over.

Transportation

The Payson Senior Center operates the Beeline Bus, which provides local bus service between Payson and Star Valley.

Government

Star Valley uses a council-manager government form with a town council. As of February 2020, the mayor was Gary Coon and the current town manager was Timothy Grier.

Education

It is in the

Payson Unified School District Payson Unified School District #10 (PUSD) is a school district in Gila County, Arizona. The district serves Payson, Star Valley, and the Oxbow Estates area. The district consists of six schools; all are title 1 schools. Area The district i ...

.
Text list
/ref> Payson High School is the zoned comprehensive high school.

Gallery

File:Star Valley, Arizona Town Hall.jpg, Star Valley Town Hall File:Star Valley Jail 1895 - 1902.jpg, Star Valley Jail 1895–1902 File:Star Valley is bisected by Highway 260.jpg, Star Valley is bisected by Highway 260. Local businesses line both sides of the highway.

References

External links

Town of Star Valley official website
{{authority control Towns in Gila County, Arizona Populated places of the Mogollon Rim Former census-designated places in Arizona Populated places established in 2005