Bicentennial Park Softball Field, 15705 N. Nash Street, will close June 8 - 14, to allow for field renovations and maintenance.

The Surprise Tennis and Racquet Complex will help beat the heat with new summer hours, starting June 1.

As summer approaches many students who have an interest in the arts may go unnoticed during their 9 week recess. The West Valley Art Museum is devoted to helping as many youth as possible attend classes through grants and scholarships that we secure with your help.

For the very first time the City of Surprise Special Olympics Track Team competed in the Annual Arizona State Special Olympics Track and Field Meet.

Litchfield Road, between Waddell and Cactus Roads, will be closed in both directions starting Tuesday, May 6.

Trumpeter Jesse McGuire and Pipe and Drum bands from public safety agencies across the Valley will be among those paying tribute to former Surprise Mayor Joan Shafer May 9, according to a program released by the city today.

Surprise will celebrate Building Safety Week, May 5 - 11, recognizing the men and women who work diligently to ensure that our homes and places of work are safe.

In July work will begin on the second and third phases of the Bell Road Reconstruction Project and the public is invited to attend an Open House to get all the details.

The Surprise City Council approved a new PM-10 Dust Control Ordinance Thursday night, in accordance with state law which requires city, county and state agencies to adopt compliance measures.

Are you safe driver? Chances are good you think you are. A new "safe driver quiz" on the city of Surprise Police web site can help you figure out whether it is true.

The Surprise Tennis and Racquet Complex is hosting the 1st Annual Surprise Spring Doubles Championships Friday, April 25 - Sunday, April 27.

As the world prepares to celebrate Earth Day this week, the Surprise Water Services Environmental Division is preparing to host the Going Green Home and Garden Fair, May 3, in the City Hall Courtyard.

The City of Surprise and the Community and Recreation Services Department is currently accepting applications to fill four positions on the Surprise Teen Advisory Board.

The City of Surprise and the Surprise Sundancers will host a Memorial Day Pancake Breakfast prior to the second annual Memorial Day Parade. The breakfast, served by the new Surprise Denny's Restaurant, located at Reems and Grand, will be held on Saturday, May 24, 6 a.m. -8 a.m. at the Surprise Recreation Campus.

The Human Services Division of the Surprise Community Initiatives Department is now accepting applications for the next Surprise City Academy.

Intersection improvement work will begin at Reems Road and Paradise Lane in Surprise on April 21, and a portion of Paradise Lane will be closed during the construction.

Art and the Animal returns to West Valley Art Museum thanks to a generous donation by one of the Museums most steadfast supporters. This years exhibit is being underwritten by the Constance W. McMillin Trust.

A public memorial service is planned for May 9, in honor of former Surprise Mayor Joan Shafer, who passed away on Monday.

The Surprise Community and Recreation Services Department is hosting the Grand Canyon University Baseball Series, April 18-20, at the Surprise Recreation Campus - Surprise Stadium, 15960 N. Bullard Avenue. The Grand Canyon University Lopes will take on the Monterey Bay Sox.

Recently retired Surprise Mayor Joan Shafer, the city's first publicly elected mayor and only woman mayor, died this morning at approximately 7:15.

Crews will begin replacing the top layer of 163rd Avenue, from Grand Avenue to just south of Jomax Road, starting on April 15.

The Surprise Community and Recreation Services Department is gearing up for another season of Youth Girls Volleyball League, which will begin early June. Girls, ages 7-15, will learn the basic fundamentals and skills associated with the game of volleyball in an atmosphere where participation and fun are top priority.

Marley Park residents will join in Saturdays grand opening celebration of the Heritage Pool House, a private recreational facility for residents that offers year-round opportunities for swimming, playing, entertaining and relaxation. The new amenity for Marley Park, a DMB community in Surprise, Ariz., is situated on approximately 2 acres and located adjacent to the communitys Heritage Club. The Heritage Pool House includes a recreational play pool, lap pool, outdoor event lawn, a multi-purpose room, a fire pit, ramadas, barbecues and meeting space.

The City of Surprise will dedicate the Northwest Library Art Mural on Thursday, April 17, and officially thank the many volunteers that helped design and fabricate "Reflections of Surprise."

Looking to get rid of old paint cans, computers, or motor oil? Surprise residents can drop them off at the Surprise Household Hazardous Waste Collection Event on Saturday, April 12.

The Surprise City Council has appointed Sharon Marko to serve on the Surprise Transportation Commission, which advises Council on transportation-related items.

The Surprise City Council will consider new PM-10 dust-control standards for the city at its next regular meeting in accordance with state law which requires city, county and state agencies to adopt compliance measures.

A good portion of Bell Road, west of Grand Avenue, in Surprise will undergo slurry patching from April 8 - 10, and lane restrictions will be enacted during the work.

Surprise is committed to growing a community that is sensitive to the environment, from improving air quality to conserving the desert's most precious resource- water. At the newly-launched Green Surprise Web page you can learn more about what the city is doing to build a Sustainable Surprise.

The City of Surprise took another step forward in expanding its recreation opportunities for adults by competing in the West Valley Special Olympics Track and Field Meet on Friday, March 21. Four athletes from Surprise participated in the event which consisted of over 130 special needs athletes from the West Valley.

The public is welcome to attend the Leadership West "West Valley Summit: Spotlight on Livability" event on Friday April 11 at Peoria's Rio Vista Recreation Center.

Surprise residents and those living within the city's 300 square mile General Planning Area have been sharing their thoughts about the city's future and you can read their ideas online.

Two Streets Division employees from the Surprise Public Works Department rounded up some awards at the Tom Sheetz Memorial Roads & Streets Maintenance Rodeo in Mesa.

Traffic is a fact of life in this city of more than 100,000. Now, the Surprise is using the internet and cellular technology to give residents real time alerts on fender benders and tie-ups.

If you have internet access, you can now view live city council meetings and other Surprise-oriented programs as the city's award winning cable TV channel debuts live on www.surpriseaz.com

The City of Surprise Community and Recreation Services Advisory Board and the Teen Advisory Board will host a joint meeting to discuss and present the proposed operation policies for Surprise's first skate park.

This year marks the 18th year for the annual VASA exhibition of students work from high schools and middle schools from around Arizona at West Valley Art Museum. The 2008 version of the show features 130 paintings, drawings, collages, photos and sculptures from 19 schools.

The Dysart Education Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting students and teachers in the Dysart Unified School District, is hosting a golf tournament in Surprise to fund teacher grants and student scholarships.

SURPRISE, AZ ( March 21, 2008 ) The playground at Surprise Community Park, 15953 N. Bullard Avenue, will be closed April 7 - 11 for resurfacing.

SURPRISE, AZ ( March 21, 2008 ) Bargain shoppers will want to make plans to attend the Surprise Super Outdoor Swap Meet on April 12, at the Surprise Aquatics Center Parking Lot, 15831 N. Bullard Avenue.

Surprise Water Services will host a "Going Green Home and Garden Fair," May 3, at City Hall and vendors with environmentally-friendly products and services are invited to participate, at no cost.

Keeping children safe around water is why the Surprise Community and Recreation Services Department and the Surprise Fire Department are hosting "April Pool Days," on April 1 and 2.

With so many great things to do in Surprise, from touring local museums, to catching a Spring Training game at Surprise Stadium, or hiking the White Tank Mountains, it is time to share with the world all the great offerings here. Welcome to www.surpriseaz.com, a new Web page dedicated to Surprise tourism.

Hoping to add to last year's success, the Public Works' Streets Division will participate once again compete in the Tom Sheetz Memorial Roads & Streets Maintenance Rodeo, on March 27.

This Saturday's Cal Ripken Baseball / Babe Ruth Softball Day at Surprise Stadium will include a special guest appearance by Mrs. Julia Ruth Stevens, the last-surviving daughter of the late Babe Ruth.

District 3 City Council member John Williams has joined three other elected officials in blogging about life as a city council member on his web site.

On April 1, the Surprise Street Sweeping times will change to the spring and summer hours of 6 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.

Preserving open space, launching commuter rail, attracting resorts and building additional east-west road choices along the city's eastern border- just a few of the ideas Surprise residents want to see in the future.

Robert Miley is not exactly an artist you would ask to do something for over your sofa. His mission is to use his art to foster change; change in his community, change in his country and change around the world. To effect this change Robert uses empathy as a medium and utilizes various elements to express that medium. Whether the element is paint on canvas or stone or metal, the materials serve to do more than decorate and more than even the clichd express an idea. Robert expects the spectator to take part in the art. You are not expected to be a casual observer. It doesnt matter if the observer overtly reacts, there is always a visceral reaction going on that someone looking at his work experiences. Human Inertia presents just such an opportunity. With music and rhythm accompanying the huge paintings, one cannot remain unaffected. Miley talks about the phenomenon of inertia itself: how when waiting for a light to change people automatically step off the curb when the first person does so. Kind of the Lemming Effect. . .

West Valley Art Museum in Surprise is sponsoring deluxe motorcoach tour to San Francisco Wine Country this fall from September 14 to 18. This five day tour starts out with the first night in historic Santa Maria Inn en route to San Francisco and the Holiday Inn Fisherman's Wharf. After a city tour participants will visit the De Young Memorial Museum for a special Dale Chihuly exhibit. He is the most famous craft and glass artist living today.

If you have ever been interested in doing business with the city of Surprise, then you'll want to make plans to attend a Purchasing Open House on March 14.

The city of Surprise encourages a healthy lifestyle for residents and is proud to promote a Spring Training Walking Club.

The Surprise Water Services Department has learned that the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) will award the city a $50,000 Brownfields grant to perform an environmental site assessment of city-owned land near Cactus and Litchfield Roads.

The Surprise city council approved an innovative partnership Thursday that will see a portion of the new City Hall complex open as a campus for Rio Salado Community College.

The Surprise City Council Thursday selected former Peoria Deputy City Manager Prisila Ferreira to serve as Interim Surprise City Manager.

The city of Surprise is gearing up for a Spring Clean-Up Event, March 15, where Surprise residents can drop off their excess residential waste free of charge.

In an effort to help Northern Illinois University recover from the tragic shootings on their campus earlier this month, the city of Surprise is pleased to welcome the men's baseball team to participate in the 6th Annual Coca-Cola Baseball Classic at Surprise Stadium, Thursday, February 28.

West Valley Art Museum presents the work of Joan Koemptgen (Yuriko) opening February 29 in the Heffernon Gallery.

Surprise residents can attend meetings or go online to comment on a General Plan Update calling for nine urban villages in the city and its Planning Area.

The Surprise Police Department will take their message of traffic safety to the streets tonight- Friday, February 22. Additional officers will be patrolling high-traffic areas in an effort to educate the public and make the streets safer for the motoring public.

Heard Museum West in Surprise has received generous gifts from residents in Surprise and the Sun Cities, and the museum will recognize these donations in its newest exhibition, Gifts From the Community. The exhibition opens on April 12, 2008, and will continue through October 12, 2008.

Surprise City Council members John Longabaugh and Richard Alton have joined Mayor Lyn Truitt in blogging about life as an elected official on their city council web sites.

West Valley Art Museum will open the second sculpture show of the new year with Mike Medows The Second Life of Wood. The Surprise Museum will show Medows sculptures ranging from figures life-sized to small fit in your hand pieces.

Bring your dog to Surprise Stadium on Sunday, March 2, and enjoy Spring Training action as the Texas Rangers host the Kansas City Royals in a 1:05 p.m. first pitch.

Arizona is number one in the nation for identity theft, and that's why the city of Surprise is offering an Identity Theft Prevention class on February 28, that is free for residents and city employees.

Do you have a disability and would like to make a reservation for the city's Dial-A-Ride service? Perhaps you want to know when the Disability Advisory Commission meets, or learn more about the many adaptive recreation opportunities here in Surprise? Then you will want to visit the city's new Disability Information Web page.

Walking through the Desert Botanical Garden is a breathtaking experience and you can find out how to create similar landscapes at your home during the "Landscaping in the Desert" presentation on February 21, at the Northwest Regional Library in Surprise.

Waddell Road between the Loop 303 and Cotton Lane will be restricted to westbound traffic only starting at 7 a.m. on Monday, February 11.

Managing capital improvement projects, assuring that new developments in the city are in compliance with building standards and designing and planning the city's traffic engineering needs are just a few of the many responsibilities of the Surprise Engineering Department. Want to know more? Then check out the newly-designed Surprise Engineering Web site.

The City of Surprise announced today, that they will host the Cancer Treatment Centers of America Championships at Surprise, to be held November 5-9th at the Surprise Tennis and Racquet Complex in Surprise, Arizona. The tournament will be an official tour stop on the Outback Champions Series (OCS), a circuit founded in 2005 for the world's best male tennis players 30 and over featuring players such as Pete Sampras, Todd Martin, Wayne Ferreira and Series founding partner Jim Courier.

With a need to hire approximately 200 teachers for the

Plaques of Appreciation were awarded to recognize the following District

As the Valley was caught up in a football frenzy last weekend, residents of Surprise were swelling with pride in their community as 540 volunteer residents and city employees partnered for the 6th Annual Surprise Pride Day.

SURPRISE, AZ (February 04, 2008) The city of Surprise will save nearly eight million gallons of water a year by replacing water-guzzling grass with new synthetic turf at City Hall.

SURPRISE, AZ (February 4, 2008) Getting from here to there just got easier for Surprise residents, thanks to the launch of the city's new "Surprise Transportation" Web site.