Grand Canal discussed as historic waterway and growing urban trail
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Summary
A meeting speaker described Phoenix’s Grand Canal as an ancient Hohokam irrigation work revived by 19th‑century pioneers and noted the Grand Canalscape and Salt River Project network have turned the canal into a 23.6‑mile urban trail used for recreation.
Speaker 1, a meeting speaker, described the Grand Canal in Phoenix as both a historic waterway and a developing urban trail. The speaker said the canal was “originally built by the Hohokam over a thousand years ago and revived by pioneers in the 18 hundreds,” and added, “We're not only talking about water here, we're talking about our history.”
The speaker said the canal is part of the Salt River Project network and noted an ongoing effort called the Grand Canalscape that is turning stretches of the canal into urban trails and community pathways. The speaker reported the canal’s total length as 23.6 miles and added that hikers typically take close to seven hours to complete the corridor.
The comments framed the canal as serving multiple roles: historic infrastructure, an element of regional water distribution through the Salt River Project, and a recreational corridor. No formal actions, funding decisions, or legal citations were presented during the remarks.
Visitors and residents were reminded to consider the canal’s historical significance when using the trail. The speaker concluded that the Grand Canal has evolved from an irrigation feature into a community asset that supports outdoor life and connectivity across the valley.
