The Grand Opening of the completed San Xavier Cooperative Association Farm, also known as the Co-Op Farm, will take place on Saturday, April 26.

Farming in the San Xavier area has existed since the time of the Hohokam, but starting in the 1960’s the groundwater table was depleted due to pumping by the city of Tucson and nearby mines. A lawsuit filed in 1975 on behalf of the Tohono O’odham Nation was settled out of court. The settlement led to Congress enacting the Southern Arizona Water Rights Settlement Act (SAWRSA) of 1982.

SAWRSA provides for the improvement and rehabilitation of the existing irrigation system on the San Xavier Reservation so that CAP water can be delivered to the area. CAP water was first delivered in March of 2001 and farm rehabilitation was completed in February of 2007 at a cost of $54 million. The farm now has 880 acres for farming of hay crops and traditional O’odham and other crops.