...Something else to consider...
it's called "Phoenix and Metropolitian area"...there is really no discernible BOUNDARY between the cities...think Los Angeles Metro (urban sprawl)...from an airplane it all looks like one big city...especially if your from a smaller community from somewhere else.

I used to live in a place in NW washington called the Skagit Valley, it consisted of 3 towns situated in a valley of approximatly 50 sq miles, each town was more or less delinated by farm land or woods, so even though the population of the "valley" was 100,000 give or take you could still tell the difference...not so in Phoenix Metro area...

I believe Tucson, Yuma, Flagstaff and Prescott are more autonomus in their geographic structure...

I misqouted the local newspapers in the other thread that 79lariat spoke of...check the web sites for..."east valley tribune" (the mesa paper) or "the arizona republic" (phoenix)...