The Valley Now archive
746 dated briefs from across the Phoenix Valley. Older stories preserve what was reported at the time; opening details can change.
Apache Junction ·
Lost Dutchman State Park runs its Bioblitz 2026 from 7 to 9 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 19: help the park record as many plants and animals as you can find this fall. Park entry is $20 per vehicle for 2 to 4 people, $10 for one, $5 by bike, cash or card with a stripe. Then the Wildlife of the Sonoran Desert guided hikes start Oct. 2 at 10 a.m., repeating Oct. 16 and 30.
Source: Arizona State Parks
Avondale ·
The family-owned bakery behind two Glendale shops and one on Main Street in Mesa is opening its fourth location in Avondale, targeting mid-October, What Now Phoenix reports. Expect pastries, artisan sourdough, locally roasted coffee and a rotating fresh menu, with a ribbon cutting that hands out muffins, gift cards and prizes. The exact address is still to be announced.
Source: What Now Phoenix
Buckeye ·
EMERSA plans an immersive cocktail bar at Suite 101, 1503 N. Verrado Way in Verrado Marketplace, with 4K displays and projection mapping that shift the room from celestial skies to deep oceans, InBuckeye reports. The target is late 2026. Its bar liquor license sits on the City Council's Sept. 15 consent agenda after every required city department signed off.
Source: InBuckeye
Gilbert ·
¡Viva! A Celebration of Hispanic Heritage runs 6 to 8:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 25 at the Water Tower Plaza in the Heritage District, and it is free. The town's schedule: Ballet Folklorico Amistad at 6:15, Mariachi Chapala AZ at 7, Ballet Folklorico La Llorona at 8, plus crafts, an inflatable ring toss and food booths with tacos, horchata and churros. N. Ash St. closes west of the plaza during the event; leashed pets are welcome.
Source: Town of Gilbert
Glendale ·
Ballet Arizona brings Ballet Under the Stars to Sahuaro Ranch Historic Park, 9802 N. 59th Ave., at 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 1, and it is free and open to the public. Pre-show fun starts at 5 p.m. with live music, games and food vendors selling burgers, popcorn and desserts. The city says bring lawn chairs and blankets.
Source: City of Glendale
Maricopa ·
Elicia Gabriela Estrada imported a truck from Japan, painted it pink, lined it with shelves and launched Graciela's Mobile Books in May, InMaricopa reports. It carries new and used English, Spanish and bilingual books from publishers, indie authors and Marketplace finds, plus a free book box, and it rolls up to the Copa Farmers Market and Maricopa Night Market. Next: Graciela's Booktober on Oct. 18, an 18-and-up night with local vendors and authors.
Source: InMaricopa
Mesa ·
The Arizona-born seafood boil chain opens at 1927 N. Gilbert Road on Thursday, Sept. 24, its 19th Valley location, What Now Phoenix reports. Opening-day festivities include a spicy wing eating competition, a live DJ, a balloon artist for kids and a spin-to-win table with a TV as the grand prize. Expect shrimp, crab, lobster and crawfish with the house seasoning blends.
Source: What Now Phoenix
Phoenix ·
Eggbred, a breakfast-sandwich shop, opened its first Arizona location at 544 W. McDowell Road, per Copper Courier's Sept. 10 roundup of 28 new metro Phoenix restaurants, cafes and bars. The same list has Bagelfeld's back open at 2940 E. Thomas Road, Better Buzz Coffee Roasters pouring at 4626 E. Shea Blvd., and Transfer Station Food Stand open at 2417 E. Indian School Road.
Source: Copper Courier
San Tan Valley ·
SanTanValley.com's What's Building tracker, updated Sept. 10, lists Rack Room Shoes opening Saturday, Sept. 12 at Skyline Ranch Marketplace, Hunt Highway and Gary Road. Behind it: EOS Fitness with an estimated Sept. 21 opening, Cold Beers & Cheeseburgers in 2026, PetSmart in late 2026 and Chick-fil-A in summer 2027, while In-N-Out and Michaels are under construction.
Source: SanTanValley.com
Scottsdale ·
Scottsdale Arts' free public-art event returns to the Scottsdale Waterfront Nov. 6 to 15, 2026, its 15th year, with large-scale artworks, workshops and performances along the Arizona Canal. This year's theme is "Western Nature," exploring the elements of Arizona and the Southwest through art and community. Admission is free.
Source: Scottsdale Arts
Surprise ·
Surprise is opening Spark Surprise, an innovation hub at the Elm Street development in City Center that connects entrepreneurs with peers, marketing support, financial literacy training, AI tools and help navigating permits, ABC15 reports, with a grand opening planned for October. A grand opening market with local vendors is listed for Thursday, Oct. 1 at Elm Street on Eventeny.
Source: ABC15
Tempe ·
Urban Hip-E, a healthy eatery, made its Arizona debut at 950 S. Mill Ave., per Copper Courier's Sept. 10 list of new metro Phoenix restaurants. Tempe landed seven spots on that list, including Motherboard, a vegan deli at 2240 N. Scottsdale Road, Suite 113; Daydreamer Coffee at 1020 E. Apache Blvd.; Social Bean at 715 S. McClintock Drive; and French Toast Cafe at 1245 W. Elliot Road.
Source: Copper Courier
Waddell ·
White Tank Mountain Regional Park hosts Butterfly Monitoring from 8:30 a.m. to noon Saturday, Sept. 19 at Parking Area 4, part of the Parks for Pollinators Bioblitz: learn to identify butterflies while logging population data for Maricopa County. Ages 18 and up (13 and up with a parent), bring water, a hat and closed-toe shoes, register at signup.com. Then Ranger Derik leads a 3-mile Morning Cactus Hike on the Grey Fox trail at 7 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 22, capped at 30; call (602) 506-2930 ext. 5 by Sept. 21.
Source: Maricopa County ParksBuckeye ·
Buckeye's 86th Annual Halloween Carnival takes over downtown on Saturday, Oct. 24 from 5 to 9 p.m. with carnival-style games, food vendors and nonprofit booths, a tradition the city says dates back more than 80 years. Costume contests run every half hour from 5 to 8:30 p.m. in scariest, cutest, most original and homemade categories, with sign-ups on the day. The city calendar also starts Movie in the Park on Oct. 3, with more dates on Oct. 9, 14 and 30.
Source: City of Buckeye
Chandler ·
Lomos Cocina de Mexico opened inside Padeland, the padel and pickleball club at 1 W. Chandler Blvd., per Copper Courier's Sept. 10 roundup of August openings. The menu it lists includes salmon al limon, chile relleno, pork belly guacamole, shrimp tostadas and ribeye steak tacos. Cien Agaves also opened a Chandler location at 900 N. 54th St. the same month.
Source: Copper Courier
Florence ·
Florence Fright Fest returns to Historic Downtown Florence on Saturday, Oct. 31 from 5 to 8 p.m., per the Town of Florence calendar, which promises a family evening packed with activities, food and entertainment. The town's fall list also has Florence Make a Difference Day on Oct. 17 and the Junior Parada Parade on Nov. 28.
Source: Town of FlorenceGilbert ·
UnderTow, the bar at 3150 E. Ray Road in Gilbert, becomes the Black Lagoon from Sept. 15 through Nov. 4: a darkly lit witch's apothecary surrounded by coffins and gravestones, with drinks from award-winning bartenders Kelsey Ramage and Erin Hayes, per the Discover Gilbert listing. Hours and reservation details are not on the listing, so check before you go. Same calendar, same week: Agritopia Farm Night runs 5 to 8 p.m. on Sept. 16 on the west side of Barnone.
Source: Discover GilbertGlendale ·
Historic Downtown Glendale's 32nd Annual Front Porch Festival is set for Saturday, Oct. 10 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., per the downtown events calendar. The same calendar lists the Sunday Brunch Art Crawl on the last Sunday of every month from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., which puts the next one on Sept. 27, and a Halloween Hometown Happening in October with the date still to be posted. The calendar notes dates and times are subject to change.
Source: Historic Downtown Glendale
Goodyear ·
Ballet Arizona performs at the Estrella Lakeside Amphitheater on Friday, Sept. 25 from 5 to 9 p.m. for Goodyear's Ballet Under the Stars. The city says to arrive early for food trucks, crafts and giveaways. Next on the city's fall list: Rock the BBQ at Goodyear Civic Square on Oct. 3 with live music, barbecue vendors and Saddle Mountain Brewing beer, then Ritmos y Raices with Lucha Libre wrestling at Goodyear Ballpark on Oct. 10.
Source: City of Goodyear
Mesa ·
Mesa Feastival's Saturday in the Park runs every second Saturday at Pioneer Park, 526 E. Main St., from 5:30 to 9 p.m. with free admission, gourmet food trucks, live music and boutique vendors. Visit Mesa's listing has the series running from September 2026 through September 2027, which puts the next one on Oct. 10.
Source: Visit Mesa
Peoria ·
The Desert West Night Market, put on by PS I Love AZ, runs every Saturday from May through October 2026 at the Peoria Sports Complex, 16101 N. 83rd Ave., from 6 to 9 p.m., with local food trucks, artisan vendors and after-dark shopping. Entry is free on nights without a Desert Dreams FC match, parking is free, leashed dogs are welcome, and the complex is cashless with no ATMs on site.
Source: Peoria Sports Complex
Phoenix ·
Stray Cafe opened in August at 710 E. Virginia Ave., and Copper Courier calls it Arizona's first dog cafe: guests reserve an hour to hang out with adoptable dogs from Rockstar Rescue while they have a drink. It made the paper's Sept. 10 list of 28 new metro Phoenix restaurants, cafes and bars, alongside Tipsy Scoop's alcohol-infused ice cream downtown at 355 N. Central Ave. and Showtime Cafe, a film-themed coffee shop at 2431 E. Van Buren St.
Source: Copper Courier
Scottsdale ·
The Rusty Spur Saloon, 7245 E. Main St., celebrates 75 years on Saturday, Sept. 26 starting at 11 a.m. with live music from local performers, 75-cent Coors Banquet beers and free commemorative koozies while supplies last, plus limited-edition anniversary T-shirts. Guests can help fill a custom 75 display on the west wall with dollar bills for the Phoenix Children's Foundation Hope Fund. The saloon opened in 1951 in the former Farmer's Bank of Scottsdale building, per In Business Magazine.
Source: In Business MagazineTempe ·
Roman God of Fire, the newest project from Pretty Decent Concepts and chef Scott Conant, is open at 52 E. Rio Salado Parkway with woodfired Italian cooking. Copper Courier's Sept. 10 roundup of August openings lists rigatoni alla carbonara, pizza bianca and a 12-ounce New York strip on the menu. It shares the list with six other new Tempe spots, including Culinary Gangster and Urban Hip-E on Mill Avenue and Daydreamer Coffee on Apache Boulevard.
Source: Copper Courier
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