Anthem, Arizona

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Coordinates: 33° N 112° W
Anthem, Arizona
Location in Maricopa County and the state of Arizona
Country	United States
State	Arizona
Counties	Maricopa
Time zone	MST (UTC-7)

Anthem, Arizona is the result of a Del Webb development on a large parcel of land adjacent to New River, Arizona. It is a planned suburb 34 miles north of downtown Phoenix that opened in 1998. Although Anthem is currently unincorporated, Phoenix is slated to annex the community by 2020 as documented in the City of Phoenix General Plan. Anthem has grown substantially since its founding and now has an estimated population of about 40,000 people.

Featuring sweeping mountain vistas, golf, hiking and other recreational opportunities, Anthem has been described as one of the best places to live in Arizona by Phoenix Magazine and the best place to raise a family by Parenting Magazine in November of 2003.

The community now has a high school, Boulder Creek High School, serving the area. Interstate 17 connects the area to the rest of the Phoenix metropolitan area.

The Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT) has plans to widen I-17 from Loop 101 to Anthem Way. Construction starts in 2007 to widen I-17 from 2 lanes to 4 General Purpose lanes and a HOV lane from Loop 101 to Carefree Highway and in 2009 I-17 will have 3 lanes in each direction from Carefree Highway to Anthem Way.

Anthem, Arizona can also refer to Anthem at Merril Ranch, a similarly master-planned community being developed by Del Webb near Queen Creek, southeast of Phoenix. Modelled after the success with the original Anthem, it is designed to be a largely self-sufficient community with a mix of residential and commercial development along with recreational amenities. It builds upon the successful Anthem name brand that Del Webb has developed, along with an Anthem community in Colorado.

Anthem at Merril Ranch will also be home to Sun City Anthem, an age-restricted retirement community and another addition to Del Webb's growing lineup of highly successful Sun City communities.