Gilbert owes its beginnings to William “Bobby” Gilbert, who provided land to the Arizona Eastern Railway in 1902 to construct a rail line between Phoenix and Florence, Arizona. Ayer’s Grocery Store, the first store in Gilbert, opened in 1910 and became the location of the first post office in 1912. The location of the town post office moved several times before settling on the east side of Gilbert Road in downtown, where it still stands today.
Incorporated in July 1920, Gilbert was primarily a farming community fueled by the rail line and construction of the Roosevelt Dam and the Eastern and Consolidated Canals. It remained an agricultural town for many years and was known as the “Hay Capital of the World” from 1911 until the late 1920s.
In 2019, the town featured highly on three national surveys, related to safety, livability and family life; it was named the fourth-safest (of 182 communities), twelfth-most livable town, and seventh-best place to raise a family in the United States.
LINK: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gilbert,_Arizona#History
Things To Do Around Gilbert
Gilbert, Arizona is where the historical past and modern present converge in an interesting mix of town attractions you wouldn’t want to miss.
Hale Centre Theatre – 350-seat theater-in-the-round putting on family-friendly shows throughout the year. LINK: https://www.haletheatrearizona.com/Online/default.asp
Mother Nature’s Farm – family owned and operated which has been farming for 30 years. LINK: https://www.facebook.com/pages/category/Farm/Mother-Natures-Farm-119496743669/
Riparian Preserve at Water Ranch – The preserve was created by the Town of Gilbert in 1999 to combine water resources, wildlife habitat, educational programs, and recreational opportunities.
LINK: https://www.gilbertaz.gov/departments/parks-and-recreation/riparian-preserve-at-water-ranch
Gilbert Historical Museum – brings our community together to grow, learn, & play through the arts, culture, programs & history in one historic location in Gilbert. LINK: https://hdsouth.org/
Freestone Park – A community park on 88 acres with a rec center, fields, mini amusement park, a skate park & fishing. LINK: https://www.gilbertaz.gov/departments/parks-and-recreation/parks-information/parks/freestone-park
Flipside Entertainment– Entertainment venue for all ages with bowling, billiards, laser tag, video games & a casual eatery. LINK: https://placefull.com/flipside
Right on Target Clay Guides– provides an enjoyable and safe shotgun shooting experience. LINK: https://rightontargetclayguides.com/
SanTan Village– Open-air mall with national retailers, big-box stores, sit-down restaurants & fast food. LINK: https://www.shopsantanvillage.com/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=onlinesearch&utm_content=gmp_website_button&utm_campaign=yext
Activities For Kids
BounceU Gilbert Kids Birthdays and More – indoor playground jam-packed with giant bounce house inflatables to out of this world experience like Glow Mania and Balloon Drop, to indoor fun for kids all ages.
LINK: https://www.bounceu.com/gilbert-az/
The Little Gym – offers progressively structured classes and a positive learning environment to create opportunities for your child to try new things and build self-confidence, all with a grin that stretches from ear to ear. Their trained instructors nurture happy, confident kids through a range of classes like parent/child classes and gymnastics, plus fun extra like parties, camps, and more.
LINK: https://www.thelittlegym.com/gilbertaz/
Awesome Toddlers Soft Play Indoor Playground – indoor playground features all-day pass (come and go as you please), comfortable couches for parents to relax and enjoy, enclosed playground for child safety, work station with power and battery charger, complimentary WiFi, complimentary coffee and tea, and variety of snacks and drinks available for purchase.
LINK: https://www.awesometotsparty.com/
Ready, Set, Play! – a fun, safe, and entertaining indoor playground and party center for children starting from 6 months to 6 years old. Their goal is to create a healthy and friendly environment where children can play and interact with their peers, all while continuing to develop and improve social, motor, and learning skills.LINK: https://www.shopsantanvillage.com
Imagine 3D Mini Golf – a family-owned business that features a one of a kind, hand-painted 3D art that looks so real playing black light mini-golf that you’ll feel like you’re trapped in a fantasy world while encountering dragon caves, sunken pirate ships, and unicorns. They also have a 3D mini golf with 3D glasses to see the hand-painted art murals come to life and for your depth perception to be challenged in a fun way.
LINK: https://imagine3dminigolf.com/
Gilbert’s Food Scene and Night Life
Whether you’re heading out for a date night, girls’ lunch, or family night this weekend, Gilbert has a unique food scene with plenty to offer.
Joe’s Real BBQ
This restaurant is created from the same family behind Joe’s Farm Grill. They serve the best barbecue and down-home cooking around. The meat is smoked to perfection over Arizona pecan wood and no gas, electricity, or shortcuts. Along with their mouthwatering meats, they make 12 side dishes from scratch to accompany them. Check out them out here.
Joyride Taco House
Joyride Central is located in the Medlock neighborhood in Phoenix just north of Colter Street on Central Avenue. Their menu offers a wide range of traditional Mexican dishes such as Street Tacos, burritos, delicious shareable dishes like their corn fries or sea bass ceviche. Check out their menu here
Liberty Market
Liberty Market has been serving the community of Gilbert for over a decade. Their urban bistro offers a wide variety of American food, breakfast, pizzas, burgers, along with an espresso bar beverages.
Gilberts Night Life!
GILBERT’S ECONOMY & REAL ESTATE
Gilbert has an unemployment rate of 3.4%. The US average is 3.9%.
Gilbert has seen the job market increase by 3.3% over the last year. Future job growth over the next ten years is predicted to be 33.1%, which is lower than the US average of 33.5%.
Tax Rates for Gilbert
– The Sales Tax Rate for Gilbert is 7.8%. The US average is 7.3%.
– The Income Tax Rate for Gilbert is 4.2%. The US average is 4.6%.
LINK: https://www.bestplaces.net/economy/city/arizona/gilbert
Gilbert home values have gone up 6.1% over the past year and Zillow predicts they will rise 4.4% within the next year. The median list price per square foot in Gilbert is $181.00.
The median price of homes currently listed in Gilbert is $360,000 while the median price of homes that sold is $330,500. The median rent price in Gilbert is $1,745.
Foreclosures will be a factor impacting home values in the next several years. In Gilbert 0.1 homes are foreclosed (per 10,000). This is lower than the Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale Metro value of 0.5 and also lower than the national value of 1.2. The percent of Gilbert homeowners underwater on their mortgage is 6.8%, which is lower than Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale Metro at 7.1%. LINK: https://www.zillow.com/gilbert-az/home-values/
Most Desirable Neighborhoods in Gilbert:
Power Ranch – Power Ranch is a multi-award winning community. It was selected as the Best Masterplanned Community 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2010 by Ranking Arizona and ranked in the top five communities since 2003. It was recognized as one of the five Best Master Planned Communities the Nation by the National Association of Home Builders in 2002. Learn more here
Stone Creek – a highly sought after neighborhood situated within the borders of E Guadalupe Rd and N Val Vista Drive in Gilbert, just east of Freestone Park.
Seville – a luxury neighborhood lies between S.Recker Rd. and E. Good Gilbert Rd. Seville offers a unique world of unparalleled elegance-relaxed and elegant.
Finley Farms – A friendly, family-oriented community in Gilbert, in the southwest corner of Elliot Road and Greenfield Road.
Val Vista Lakes – A waterfront real estate in Gilbert, AZ and Multiple subdivisions exist within this large neighborhood. In addition to breathtaking views of the water, Val Vista Lakes also offers a number of other amenities, including a well-appointed clubhouse and easy access to nature trail
School Districts in Gilbert
Gilbert Public Schools: https://www.gilbertschools.net/
Chandler Unified School district: https://www.cusd80.com/
Mesa Public Schools: http://www.mpsaz.org/
Higley Unified School District: https://www.husd.org/
Eduprize (First Charter School in Arizona): https://www.eduprizeschools.net/gilbert-campus/
American Leadership Academy: https://www.alaschools.org/gilbert-north-7-12
Legacy Traditional School: https://legacytraditional.org/
Gilbert Christian Schools: https://gilbertchristianschools.org/
LINK: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gilbert,_Arizona
Top Employers in Gilbert:
Gilbert Unified School District – 2,875 employees.
Banner Health – 1,756 employees.
Go Daddy Software Inc. – 1,430 employees.
The Town of Gilbert – 1,349 employees.
Fry’s – 1,142 employees.