Rural Red Rock is turning urban village after Pulte Homes closed a deal Friday to buy more than 1,000 acres of land in southern Pinal County and build up to 3,964 homes there. Houses in Red Rock Village will be $20,000 to $40,000 less expensive than comparable homes in northwestern Pima County, said Shawn Chlarson, Pulte's Tucson division president. "It will be a terrific value compared to anything you'll find in Northwest Tucson and arguably maybe even in Tucson," Chlarson said. The median price of a new home in Pima County in August was $223,253, according to Bright Future Business Consultants. The average price of a home sold on the Northwest Side in August was $286,010, according to the Tucson Association of Realtors Multiple Listing Service, which primarily tracks resale homes. The project, in an area just west of Interstate 10 and about 13 miles north of Marana, will be the largest built in Pulte's Tucson division, Chlarson said. The master-planned community may be just the first in what planners predict will be a boom in the growth of Pinal County between Tucson and Phoenix. Development plans suggest as many as a half-million people could move into southern Pinal County in the next two decades. What may draw them are projects like Red Rock Village, which Chlarson described as a smaller-scale version of Rancho Sahuarita when it first opened. "It will have some of the similar things that they had and will fill that affordability gap. We'll just be on the other end of town," Chlarson said. The prospect of thousands of new neighbors is somewhat frightening, said Mary Aguirre-Vogler, a lifelong Red Rock resident and member of the county's Planning Commission. "I've been here all my life, fourth generation. I guess we have to see the development come and we wouldn't want anyone other than Pulte," Aguirre-Vogler said. "It's just been rapidly growing, and there's nothing you can do about it. People want to come to Arizona, and I don't blame them." That doesn't mean she's content with the plan. "I don't want to really live in a community that has such high density. It will spoil my view," Aguirre-Vogler said. Aguirre-Vogler said she'll be sandwiched between Interstate 10 and Red Rock Village. Pulte is planning to donate 26 acres for two new K-8 schools. The first, on a 16-acre site, is scheduled to open in August 2007. The Red Rock Elementary School District is preparing for the growth by bringing in an architect to help determine how the new schools should be designed, said Mark Brauner, Red Rock Elementary's principal. The school needs to prepare for change. "Right now we're a whopping 93 students. We're a one school, K-8 with 93 students. Of course, you can imagine with the potential of 4,000 houses, it's going to change us dramatically," Brauner said. House designs and prices have not been finalized. The development is to include single-story and two-story homes ranging from 1,200 to 4,000 square feet. Sales are scheduled to begin early next summer, with the first home closings planned for early 2007. Pulte bought the 1,013 acres from Diamond Ventures in a deal that closed Friday. Neither company was willing to release the sale price, and Pinal County's chief deputy recorder, Barbara Kelly, said Friday she could not determine when closing documents were filed. Plans for the development also include: ● A 25-acre community park including picnic areas, baseball and soccer fields, and a basketball court. Smaller parks will be located in other areas. ● An 8,000-square-foot swimming complex with a beach-entry pool, a water park for children and a lap pool for adults. ● More than 150 acres of open space, including nine miles of paths and trails linking the community. Natural washes will be preserved. ● 43 acres of commercial property.