10/27/2009 1:53:00 PM Making history in Cornville: County, Community Assn.
score historical points with Page Springs Road designation
Cornville Community Association President Deanna King explains the bureaucratic hoops jumped through to enable the county to designate Page Springs Road with historic status. VVN/Jon Hutchinson
Supervisor Chip Davis told the gathering of 50-some people that Cornville tends to be on the "cutting edge" and is among the first areas to recognize its history as the Arizona Centennial approaches in 2012. VVN.Jon Hutchinson
CORNVILLE -- Some drove for miles to help celebrate the recognition of Page Springs Road history. The freshly minted signs to designate Yavapai County's first-ever Scenic and Historic Route were unveiled among the shade and bubbling ponds of the Page Springs Fish Hatchery Monday morning.
The effort to gain that recognition was a lengthy road by itself.
For many, local and county officials alike, it was a successful conclusion to a long battle. Supervisor Chip Davis told the gathering of 50-some people that Cornville tends to be on the "cutting edge" and is among the first areas to recognize its history as the Arizona Centennial approaches in 2012.
The audience was filled with pioneer families of the Page Springs area, including the sixth generation of Page Family, the Stewart Family, the Fay Family and Coppel family.
A documentation of the route's proud history was launched by the Cornville Historical Society first in March 2006 when it applied to ADOT's Parkways, Historic and Scenic Roads Advisory Committee seeking to make the road a historic state highway
Cornville Community Association President Deanna King told the crowd, "We were disappointed that it was rejected as 'not historic' in the state's eye." She turned to Transportation Planner Chris Bridges and suggested that the County should recognize it as a historic road. Bridges, at that time, said the county did not have a program for historic and scenic roads. And that's when the concept for a county status was born.
Judy Miller, who had coordinated the research and documentation for the state application, told the ADOT special committee in opening statements, that Page Springs Road "followed the original route since 1840." The formal road was established in 1937.
Chairman for the Parkways, Historic, Scenic Advisory Committee, Leroy Brady advised a crowd gathered at the Cornville Firehouse after the committee turned down the application by a 3 to 4 vote, that "this may open other doors."
Little did Brady realize that he would later be threatening the county with "stealing the identity" of State Historic Roads when the Yavapai created the county's own scenic and historic road system. Brady warned Chip Davis a possible lawsuit could result.
Davis smiled in remembering that that he immediately got on the phone to Phil Bourdon, the County Public Works Director and within 24 hours the verbiage was changed to create a more "unique and better" county designation for scenic and historic roads.
"Today we are making history, by recognizing history," Davis said Monday.
Former Cornville resident, Christine Adams, whose husband Rob is now Sedona's Mayor, recognized the accelerating loss of family diners and Sunday drives to society's fast pace. In a film she produced, she said that "Page Springs Road offers an opportunity to relive those lost times." That was the trigger that prompted the recognition of the historic road.
Bourdon hailed the committee's work, as a document that was "interesting, complete and thoughtful and that is valuable and measurable."
The new historic road stretches from SR 89A on the north to Stewart Hill, near the junction of Purple Sage Road on the south.
Davis suggested the Page Springs Road is the first, but suggested the recognition of other scenic and historic roads will follow.
