The part of Tempe the city runs as the Downtown Tempe Enhanced Services Improvement District: how it was set up, what sits in and around it, the historic buildings on the city's Mill Avenue tour, how far it sits from the other places in these guides, and what kind of housing the county's parcel records show inside it.
The City of Tempe established the Downtown Tempe Enhanced Services Improvement District in 1993, under Section 48-575 of the Arizona Revised Statutes. The city's notice for the district cites Resolutions Nos. 93.35, 98.68, 2003.30, 2008.38 and 2009.52 of the Mayor and Council. Each year the land inside the district is assessed to pay for its services, and the city publishes the district map with the assessments. This guide uses that district.
The Downtown Tempe Authority, a nonprofit formed the same year, carries out the work: maintenance, parking, events and marketing for the district. It works from 1 W. Rio Salado Pkwy.
District zone map, 2026 to 2027 · Assessments and district documents
The City of Tempe's historic walking tour takes a Mill Avenue Downtown route. These buildings are on it, with the year built where the tour and the city's historic property map agree.
Tempe keeps a directory of its historic buildings, searchable by the Tempe Historic Register, the National Register and Historic Eligible properties. Tempe Directory of Historic Buildings
Without a car. Valley Metro light rail stops downtown at Mill Avenue/Third Street and at Veterans Way/College Avenue, the Transportation Center stop. Valley Metro also runs the Tempe Streetcar. Schedules and fares: Valley Metro. Parking options: Downtown Tempe parking.
Distance to the other guides. Straight-line miles from Tempe City Hall, 31 E. Fifth St., to each address, using the Maricopa County Assessor's address locator. Road miles and drive times run longer and change with traffic.
Counted from the Maricopa County Assessor's parcel records: every parcel whose published point falls inside the parcels on the district's 2026 to 2027 assessment list, each typed the way the Assessor's own parcel pages type it. A condo parcel is one unit. An apartment parcel can hold a whole building, so its count is buildings, not units. The year is the construction year in the Assessor's records.
Construction year, the condo association and whether a parcel sits in the district are all in the county and city records. Send me the addresses and I will pull them.
District, resolutions and statute: City of Tempe, Notice of Opportunity to Protest, Downtown Tempe Enhanced Services Improvement District Assessments (2026), and the district's Exhibit B assessment list and Exhibit D zone map for 2026 to 2027, published with the district assessment documents. Formation year and zones also in the Downtown Tempe Authority's assessment formula and About page. Hayden Butte: City of Tempe Hayden Butte Preserve and Tempe History Museum pages, which agree on 1973 and 2002. Town Lake: City of Tempe Town Lake Fast Facts and the city's Guide to Tempe Town Lake (November 2017), which agree on length, surface acres and the opening date; paths also on the Downtown Tempe Authority's Town Lake page. Historic buildings: City of Tempe historic walking and driving tour (Mill Avenue Downtown Tour, 2012) and the Historic Preservation layer of the city's public GIS, which agree on every year used here; the Mill Avenue Bridge's 1931 is in both as well, and the Andre Building's listing date is in the city's Directory of Historic Buildings and the tour. Tempe Beach Park: Town Lake Fast Facts. Light rail stations: the city's Light Rail Stations layer and the Downtown Tempe Authority's public transit page. Events: Downtown Tempe Authority. Distances: Maricopa County Assessor address locator, straight-line from Tempe City Hall. Housing stock: Maricopa County Assessor parcel map service (construction year) and parcel pages (parcel type). All checked 17 October 2026. Hours, routes and event dates change, so confirm before you go.