ajo town plaza

In the summer of 2008, ISDA purchased Ajo’s town plaza and began what will be a long and rewarding process of restoration and revitalization. The historic plaza was built in phases beginning in 1917 with completion in 1947.

At the point of purchase, two-thirds of the plaza’s 90,000 square feet of commercial space was vacant. Since then, three new businesses have opened: a restaurant, a cafe, and a gift shop featuring arts and crafts. In addition, second-floor studio space has been leased to artists.

The plaza with its beautiful center park is truly Ajo’s town center—a place for festivals and celebrations, morning walks, and meeting friends for coffee. When restored, it will once again be a thriving economic center, a perfect stopping place for many of the more than a million cars that drive right by each year en route to Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument and the sea coast in Mexico.