It’s hot, humid and storms are on the horizon in the afternoons. The streets of Fountain Hills are quiet. These are the “dog days of summer,” we all love or hate. People love the heat to lay out by the pool, the longer days and the joy of watching a monsoon storm go through. When you have a business in town or work in town you are counting the days for summer to come to an end.

I have been working in the advertising department at The Fountain Hills Times for 20 years and at Phil’s Filling Station for 17 years so I know business in general slows down this time of the year. The seasonal residents are gone, families go on vacation or it’s just too hot to be outside, let alone shop or eat out.

It is nice to see less traffic on the streets but I miss the events and more activities going on in town as well. This town has plenty to offer during the busy season and that is just around the corner as school will be starting and the weather will start to very slowly cool down.

This town, as I stated in a past column, is heading in the right direction. I have seen so many changes over the years but I would say in the past five years I have seen many positive changes.

Years ago I can recall the biggest arguments residents and business owners along the Avenue had was the empty lot in the heart of downtown.

The Park Place project will be a huge upgrade for the downtown, and I look forward to the grand opening of the center and all that follows. Fountain Hills will be a destination for tourists as well as people looking to move from the valley or to Arizona.

The Fountain Hills Times has been a part of Fountain Hills since the beginning and has been your local source for news and upcoming event information around town. Advertisers have used our publications, which we have many, to offer or announce who they are or possibly a sale.

We are your reliable local news source. We publish the weekly newspaper, Business Directory, HOME, Northeast Valley Dining and Events Guide and the Fountain Hills Community Guide. We also have our website at fhtimes.com which you can sign up for the daily 4:30 news update, look up a business through our online business directory or just catch up on a few news postings.

Like our page on Facebook or if you have an Instagram profile you can follow us there. My point to all of this is to remind you that we are your one-stop shop with a staff who knows Fountain Hills. We will always deliver to this town the news and always will be your hometown paper.

Tell a neighbor about us and don’t forget to renew your subscription to stay updated on all that is going on around town.

Speaking of the past, we celebrated the King of Fountain Hills’ 70th birthday party with a surprise gathering for my father, Alan Cruikshank, at Phil’s Filling Station Grill. I want to personally thank Phil Rodakis for all he did for this party that turned out amazing. Phil has always been there for me, and again did not let me down as he made this a night to remember for my father.

We had a good turnout -- about 45 people -- and my wife, Gina, did a great job in making this an Elvis theme party for my dad. He was the town’s Elvis impersonator for many years. Thank you to all who attended as well as my dad’s wife, Diane, for making this happen for him. Happy Birthday, Dad.

One last note on this party: if you’re interested in seeing him walk into the surprise greeting, go to our Facebook page and you can see the video.