Town file
Catalina Foothills, Arizona
Catalina Foothills, Arizona (Pima County, Arizona) is the town in one episode of Small Town Murder, the comedy true-crime podcast: episode 455, "An Explosive & Terrible Mystery" (4 January 2024). Gary Lee Triano was born on 6 November 1943 and grew up in Tucson, Arizona.
- Town
- Catalina Foothills
- County
- Pima County
- State
- Arizona
- Country
- USA
- Episodes
- 455
- Approximate location
- 32.302, -110.885
Episode 455 / 4 January 2024 / 171 min / full
An Explosive & Terrible Mystery
"This week, in Catalina Foothills, Arizona; a wealthy Tucson suburb about 15 minutes outside Tucson, in Pima County, area code 520." about 0:00:01
The case: Murder of Gary Triano (November 1996). Read the case file.
The figures, as told in 2024
- Population
- 50,096
- Median age
- 54.2
- Median household income
- $102,171
- Median home value
- $521,100
- Two-bedroom rent
- about $1,300
- Religious
- 40.5%
- Property crime
- right about average
- Violent crime
- ▼ about a third under
History, in brief
- Catalina Foothills began in the early 1920s, not in a nineteenth-century mining boom. about 0:07:00
- The land was originally federal trust land, open range for cattle grazing and not available for houses. about 0:07:14
- John Murphy began buying property north of River Road in the foothills. about 0:07:24
- He wanted ten housing subdivisions with large lots, an early gated community. about 0:07:36
- He bought 7,000 acres north of River Road between North Oracle Road and Sabino Canyon at a federal land auction. about 0:08:05
- A Swiss architect was brought in to design the development. about 0:08:18
- The Skyline Country Club was established in 1963. about 0:08:22
- In the 1980s the Ventana Canyon Resort and the La Paloma Resort opened. about 0:08:28
The reviews read out
5 stars
"The prettiest location in all of Arizona, with perfect views and weather, great restaurants, culture and schools; a Scottsdale resident never wants to leave."about 0:08:46
4 stars
"Feels very safe because of the gated community, but some speeding on a nearby street costs a star; police often set up a speed trap."about 0:09:57
3 stars
"It depends on the area of town you live in."about 0:11:54
3 stars
"You barely know they exist - a review so vague the hosts cannot tell what it refers to."about 0:12:17
2 stars
"Do not confuse it with the South: you will not find anyone on their porch cooking barbecue."about 0:12:41
Nearest Small Town Murder towns
- Oro Valley, Arizona9.8 miles
- Three Points, Arizona29 miles
- Florence, Arizona61 miles
- Casa Grande, Arizona66 miles
- Maricopa, Arizona83 miles
- Apache Junction, Arizona84 miles
Everything here is as told in the episode, on the date it went out; figures and places may have changed since. Endings are covered: open an episode and use the spoiler switch to read them.