(Photo courtesy of the town of Tusayan)

The Tusayan Town Council from left to right, John Rueter, Vice Mayor Al Montoya, Mayor Greg Bryan, Craig Sanderson and Bill Fitzgerald.

A Northern Arizona town wants to change its name to better reflect its connection to the Grand Canyon. 

The town of Tusayan is only a few minutes away from the Grand Canyon National Park’s South Rim. But it seems to be getting confused with a much larger place in Arizona that sounds similar, the city of Tucson. So, the town of Tusayan wants to become “The Town of Grand Canyon.”

Mayor Greg Bryan, who also manages one of the town’s many hotels, said the name change will set the town a part and align it with the tourist destination nearby.

“Why is our town here? It is a service to customers and visitors who come to visit the Grand Canyon Nation Park,” Bryan said.

The town will do a study with help from the Grand Canyon Chamber of Commerce before moving forward with any name changes. Bryan said he hopes to have the question on the ballot for Tusayan's roughly 500 citizens to decide in August.