The spotlight was on northwest Arizona and the Colorado River Valley during the recent Local First Annual 19th Annual Rural Policy Forum in Kingman, Arizona. The forum highlighted the growing national and international focus on this region. The annual Arizona Rural Policy Forum is designed to bring together Main Street members, tribal leaders, economic development and tourism directors, business owners, government officials, and chambers of commerce to discuss problems facing the state as well as possible solutions. Speakers at this years Rural Policy Forum included Governor Katie Hobbs, Travis Lingenfelter, Chairman, Mohave County Board of Supervisor District 1, Nikki Terlesky, Director of Operations at the Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona, and Michelle Loeber, Economic Development Specialist, Mohave County Economic Development.

A wide array of topics were discussed by speakers from throughout the state. Tim Carter, Director, Coconino County Emergency Management, spoke on the subject of redevelopment on the North Rim after the recent devestating fires. Eric Vondy, Preservation Program Coordinator, State Historic Preservation Office, and Kevin Davidson, Planning & Economic Development Director, Hualapai Tribe, spoke on the importance of public/private partnerships in historic district revitalization and fostering awareness of local history. Rural groundwater, the Gila County floods and long term recovery, rural land use, and updates on rural collaboration in workforce development were also discussed.

A  program about the history of Route 66 and related tourism in the southwest, and how communities can capitalize on the international popularity of Route 66 Author, was provided by author, humorist and historian Jim Hinckley, creator of the Jim Hinckley’s America network. Also presented during this program was information about Kingman Tours, and recent updates to the innovative community development project. The brainchild of Kingman Main Street, Kingman Tours, a narrated self guided historic district walking tour using QR code technology was developed by Talisman Magic Marketing.

Spotlight on Northwest Arizona

The Rural Policy Forum was a high profile event that put the spotlight on northwest Arizona. But the Route 66 centennial has magnified interest in this storied roady and the communities along the highway corridor. This has resulted in extensive media focus on Route 66 in the southwest and regional attractions. Journalists from an array of media outlets and interviews have appeared in the New York Times, Christian Science Monitor, ABC Chicago, Fox News, CBS Sunday Morning, Richard Quest, CNN International, Chicago Tribune, Rick Steves, History Channel, Cowboys & Indians magazine, BBC travel programs, AAA Via, 2 Lane Life, Arizona Unscripted podcast, Every Day Is A Story, and UK based Magneto magazine.

For clients traveling Route 66 or in the southwest, UK based RouteTrip USA offers a Kingman historic district walking tour with author Jim Hinckley. Several Two Lane America tours on Route 66 spend an evening in Lake Havasu City, and all tours include a lunch program in Kingman. The Kingman Tours walking tour has become popular with Route 66 travelers, and Talisman Magic Marketing has recently improved the website to serve as a travel planning portal. A linked project that will provide expansive information about Kingman area and regional attractions, lodging, hiking trails, and dining is under development.

At the 2026 AAA Route 66 Road fest in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Nikki Terlesky and Katie Barthlow of the Histroic Route 66 Association of Arizona presented information about Kingman and Route 66 in Arizona. At this event author Jim Hinckley spoke on the history of the southwest, and demonstrated Kingman Tours.

The Route 66 Centennial

Aside from the media focus, the Route 66 centennial has provided unprecedented opportunities for marketing and promotion of communities in northwest Arizona. A documentary film crew followed Irish ultra cyclist Joe Barr on his record setting ride along the length of Route 66.

The Route 66 Centennial Caravan organized by the Road Ahead Partnership with support from the National Trust for Historic Preservation was spearheaded by Rhys Martin, president of the Oklahoma Route 66 Association. Participants included founding members of the Dutch Route 66 Association, and media from throughout the country.

In coming months there will be an increased focus on Route 66. The 2026 All Thunderbird Convention takes place in Flagstaff, Arizona, and there will be a program about Route 66 in Arizona. A similar program is scheduled for the Model A Ford Club of Tulsa, and at an upcoming celebration of the great American road trip event in Twenty Nine Palms, California.

A Destination

This extensive and diverse array of Northwest Arizona and Colorado River Valley exposure has provided a foundation for futher development of marketing that presents the area as a destination. But tourism is only one aspect of the potential for development.

A community that is transformed into a destination for visitors becomes a place where people want to live, to retire, to raise families and to open businesses.