Good morning, Queen Creek. The National Weather Service has an Extreme Heat Warning up from this morning through 8 PM Sunday, with afternoon highs of 109 to 118, so anything outdoors is an early-morning or after-dark proposition this weekend.
- 🍽️ Restaurant week dates are set. Queen Creek Restaurant Week runs August 17 through 23.
- 🌵 Ask a Ranger returns Friday. Free drop-in at Queen Creek Library, 2 PM, indoors.
- 💧 Turf conversions are saving the town money. Town council got an update on the water strategy this week.
- 🧸 A new Primrose campus opened in west Queen Creek. The Chamber marked the grand opening July 15.
- 🏠 Homes here are taking about 65 days to sell.
- 🎤 Around the Valley. Jo Koy in Chandler, Grupo Frontera in Phoenix, and Dear Evan Hansen Saturday.
Queen Creek Restaurant Week is back August 17 through 23
Restaurant Week gives Queen Creek a week of specials and limited-time menus at participating spots around town.
Key facts:
- When: Monday, August 17 through Sunday, August 23.
- Who runs it: the town, through Explore Queen Creek.
- What restaurants do: offer specials and limited-time menu items for the week.
- The pitch: spend the week eating at local restaurants instead of the usual rotation.
Three weeks out is early to be planning dinner, but the timing is the point: mid-August is the deadest stretch of the year for restaurants in this part of the Valley, when nobody wants to leave the house and school has just restarted. A week of specials is the town's answer to that.
What to watch: the participating restaurant list. Details.
The weekend
A short slate, and most of it is indoors on purpose.
- 🧩 Playcation at Queen Creek Library, today at 10 AM. All ages, drop-in, no ticket. Details.
- 🌵 Ask a Ranger, Friday at 2 PM. A ranger takes questions at Queen Creek Library. Free, all ages, no registration. Details.
- 🏀 Desert Duel basketball at Arizona Athletic Grounds, Saturday. The Coalition versus Rain City in Fieldhouse B, up in Mesa. Ticketed. Details.
- ⚾ Perfect Game baseball showcase, Saturday. Also at Arizona Athletic Grounds, on the diamonds. Details.
Next week at the library: The Council, a teen craft and discussion group, Tuesday, August 4 at 3:30 PM (ticket required). Healthy Heart, an adult class, Wednesday, August 5 at 9:30 AM (ticket required). Read to Critters, for kids 5 to 12, Saturday, August 8 at 10:30 AM.
Around Queen Creek
- 💧 The town's turf conversion incentives are saving real money. Town council got an update this week on the program, which pays property owners to swap grass for desert landscaping. It is one of the few levers the town controls directly on water. Details.
- 🧸 Primrose School of Queen Creek West is open. The Chamber, town officials, and business partners marked the grand opening of the early education campus on Wednesday, July 15. Details.
- 🎸 The School of Rock Queen Creek house band made the AllStars Tour. The local house band was picked as a supporting act for the 2026 School of Rock AllStars Tour stop in the Valley, sharing a stage with young musicians selected from around the world. Details.
- 🎓 Central Arizona College has an interim president. The college's governing board selected an interim president on July 13. CAC is the Pinal County community college system, which draws students from the south end of town and San Tan Valley. Details.
- 🏠 Homes in Queen Creek are taking about 65 days to sell right now. Details.
From the schools
QCUSD is running alumni features this week, and both land on the same theme: what students did after they left.
- 🐂 Mikayla Askey, Queen Creek High School alumni spotlight. The district's latest profile of a QCHS graduate and the path she took out of the Bulldogs. Details.
- 📊 QCUSD alumni credit DECA for preparing them. Graduates of the district's career and technical education programs talk about what the business and marketing coursework carried into their careers. Details.
Around the Valley
Three picks worth the drive this weekend, closest first.
🎤 Jo Koy, Friday night in Chandler. Gila River Resorts and Casinos at Wild Horse Pass, about 25 minutes west on Hunt Highway and the 202. He is playing a three-night run. Tickets.
🎺 Grupo Frontera, Friday night in Phoenix. The Triste Pero Bien C*bron Tour hits Mortgage Matchup Center downtown. One night only. Tickets.
🎭 Dear Evan Hansen, Saturday afternoon in Phoenix. At the Hormel Theatre at Phoenix Theatre. A matinee is the right call in a heat warning. Tickets.