Community Facilities

The town of Thatcher offers community facilities including a park, four tennis courts, one swimming pool, two handball courts, soccer fields, and Little League and softball diamonds. Eastern Arizona College has athletic facilities winch are used by Thatcher schools and residents.

Communication. In addition to communication resources from the rest of the state, Thatcher receives several radio stations from Safford and 24 television channels via cable.

Educational. There is one public elementary school, one middle school, one high school, one private elementary school, and Eastern Arizona College (EAC) in Thatcher. Eastern Arizona College is a two-year institution offering vocational courses to prepare individuals for immediate employment and transferable college-credit courses to provide the first two years of college. Vocational courses include production agriculture, auto business and auto mechanics, computers, general business, and courses in automotive drafting, electronics, and in mechanical and mining technology. Northern Arizona University, in partnership with EAC, offers undergraduate and graduate programs; for information, call (520) 428-8344.

Medical. Thatcher has no medical facilities of its own, but uses the complete facilities available in Safford, less than two miles away. These include one hospital with 42 beds, a counseling center, a convalescent home, physicians, dentists, chiropractors, optometrists, and osteopaths.

Financial. There is one financial institution branch office in Thatcher, Additional financial services are available in Safford. Further, Graham County businesses are eligible for assistance in financing fixed assets through the Finance Division, Arizona Department of Commerce. Information on private activity bonds within the county may be obtained from the same source or from the Industrial Development Authority of Graham County: P.O. Box 32: Safford, Arizona 85548.

Governmental. The town of Thatcher is governed by a mayor, six council members and a town manager. There is a local police department and the fire department has 28 volunteers.

Airport. Residents of Thatcher have access to the Safford Airport which has one 6,800-foot and one 4,800-foot paved lighted runways with UNICOM radio. Car rental and charter plane services are available, as are full aircraft service and repair.

Utilities

Lodging and Meeting Facilities. There is one motel in Thatcher with 50 rooms and eight motels with more than 350 units in Safford. Meeting facilities include an auditorium seating 1,000 people.