“It’s hurting economic development,” said Willcox City Manager, Caleb Blaschke. “It’s hurting our ability to grow.” Blaschke and Willcox residents are concerned about the amount of water being used and pumped from the Willcox Playa Basin. Roughly 5,000 people rely on the City of Willcox for water.  ”In the Willcox basin, you can pump as much water as you want, and there’s no protections for residents. There’s no protections for the city,” Blaschke. He says there are over 1,600 water connections to the city waterlines, which includes businesses and residences. “I think that’s a big issue right now, is the water is not being recharged as quickly as the water is being taken out of the aquifer,” he said.