As always, Long’s innovations had one ultimate goal: to give the public the
right product at a fair price. Long acknowledged as much at his 1984 induction
into the National Housing Hall of Fame. He noticed that the other honorees were
acting like they had just received Academy Awards. "Everyone was getting up and
thanking everyone from their grandmother on down. I just got up and said, ‘I
just want to thank 30,000 homebuyers, without whom none of this would be
possible.’”
His achievements as Arizona’s most prolific, innovative, and visionary builder
were recognized by being chosen as one of the inaugural inductees into the
Arizona Business Hall of Fame.
Some of John F. Long’s most
significant contributions to Arizona have stemmed from his sense of civic
responsibility and concern for the quality of life in the Valley. He has served
on the Phoenix City Council, Maricopa County Board of Health, as a trustee for
the Glendale Union High School District, and on numerous
other boards and committees. His community philanthropy dates from the early
1950s. He was named Citizen of the Year in 1957 for donating land, money, and
construction costs toward a variety of causes. Over the years, his generosity
has taken many forms. When, due to downtown redevelopment, it became necessary
to relocate the Alcoholism Rehabilitation Center, Long
built new short-term and long-term facilities, at cost. He donated the labor
and material to fill potholes on 550 miles of West Phoenix streets. He built
and donated 21 townhouses to the city’s Affordable Housing Program. Concerned
by the strain that their work puts on the personal life of police officers, Long
spent $200,000 remodeling a space at one of his shopping centers, which now
serves as a police ministry. Officers can be counseled by a Chaplain, unwind in
a relaxed atmosphere, or just find a quiet place for lunch. When Glendale
didn’t have the money to build its airport, Long sold the city 160 acres of land
at one-half its appraised value, and donated an additional 240 acres. As a
result, Glendale was able to get Federal funding and begin construction.
Because of his
history
of donating land for community parks and recreation, in 1980 Long received the
Heritage Conservation and Recreation Service Achievement Award from the U.S.
Department of Interior. In the same spirit, in 1999 he offered the City of
Phoenix the grazing lease on 37,000 acres of state trust land toward a planned
Sonoran Desert Preserve in the North Valley.
When the Milwaukee Brewers
were looking for a new Spring Training home, Long donated 60 acres of land for
the Maryvale Baseball Park, one of the Cactus
League’s nicest facilities. The ballpark has also hosted High School
Championships and the Fall Instructional League.
For his many community
efforts, in December 1996, Arizona State University awarded John F.
Long an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters – for 50 years of public service.
In the spring of that year he had been chosen to carry the Olympic Torch as it
passed through Phoenix, en route to Atlanta. In November 2000 he received the
first Lifetime Achievement Award from WESTMARC, honoring him for exemplary
service through his contributions to the lifestyle of Western
Maricopa County. In the spring
of 2001, he was honored as a Historymaker by the Historical League, Inc., of the
Arizona Historical Society.
