Phase 2

What We've Heard Most

Preliminary Key Themes

• Desire for fast, reliable, frequent transit service
• Multimodal (bike and pedestrian) connectivity
• Affordable Housing & Gentrification Concern

Top 3 Affordability Goals

• Improve access to affordable services, including childcare, healthcare, and healthy food options
• Preserve existing affordable housing and prevent displacement of existing residents
• Expand affordable housing options within the Tucson Norte-Sur area

Top 3 Mobility Goals

• Improve bicycle connectivity within Tucson Norte-Sur
• Expand walkability within Tucson Norte-Sur
• Increase pedestrian safety

Top 3 Community Goals

• Integrate tree canopy, water harvesting, and native plants in landscape design
• Ensure that new public spaces and development reflect local culture and identity.
• Support and include local artists in design decisions

Top Overall Goals

• Integrate tree canopy, water harvesting, and native plants in landscape design
• Improve bicycle connectivity within Tucson Norte-Sur
• Expand walkability within Tucson Norte-Sur
• Improve access to affordable services, including childcare, healthcare, and healthy food options

Open House #3

October 21, 2023: Sam Lena Library

Open House #2

October 19, 2023: El Pueblo Activity Center

Open House #1

October 17, 2023: Pima Community College Downtown Campus

Pop ups

August 8, 2023: Tohono Tadai Transit Center

August 9, 2023: Roy Laos Transit Center

August 28, 2023: CMS Gunny Park

September 15, 2023: Stone Avenue

September 22, 2023: South Tucson Housing Authority

October 29, 2023: Cyclovia

For a summary of Phase II engagement efforts, click here.

Phase 1

What We've Heard Most

Top Community Engagement Themes

The following themes were stated most often throughout the engagement process for Tucson Norte-Sur. These themes will be the focus of Phase 2 of Tucson Norte-Sur.

The following results came from:

- 6 Open Houses

- 6 Community Dialogues

- 7 Focus Groups

- 14 Pop-ups

- 32 Online Ideas

- 2,417 Survey Responses

Open House #3

South Tucson: November 15, 2022, South Tucson City Council

Central: November 16, 2022, Armory Park Center

South Side: November 17, 2022, La Esquina

North Side: November 19, 2022, Jacinto Park

Pop-ups

September 18, 2022: Mission Manor Park

October 23, 2022: Taqueria Alamos

October 30, 2022: Cyclovia at Pima Community College Activity Hub

November 2, 2022: Ochoa Community School

November 18, 2022: Tucson International Airport

Community Dialogues

June 23, 2022: Literacy Connects

July 6, 2022: Richey Resource Center

July 7, 2022: Sunnyside High School

July 26, 2022: El Pueblo Senior Center

July 28, 2022: South Tucson Housing Authority

August 25, 2022: Tucson House

Focus Groups

Focus group meetings were held with subject-matter experts to discuss topics that were highlighted as important considerations for this project. Below is a summary of key takeaways from those meetings.

Public Transit (full meeting notes can be found here)

• Re-brand public transit and make it more attractive
• Utilize Universal Design principles when designing bus stops for equitable access
• There's a need for education on how the integrated transit system works (bus and streetcar)
• Work with businesses and destinations along the corridor to help them advertise the ability to reach them by transit
• The transit system needs to increase night and weekend bus service to match peoples' work schedules (particularly entry level and service industry jobs)
• Increase the safety of bus stops by installing nighttime lighting
• Maximize the number of bike trays on buses to improve transit access for cyclists
• Make the signage at bus stops more visible and uniform

Housing & Neighborhoods (full meeting notes can be found here)

• Attract service-providing businesses for neighborhood revitalization and job creation
• Build affordable housing to prevent displacement/gentrification
• Work with entities along the corridor to house people experiencing homelessness
• Revitalize South Tucson where there are many vacant lots
• Utilize community benefit agreements to protect existing neighborhoods
• Hold investors and developers to a higher standard
• Build accountability measures and follow-up into community benefit agreements

Land Use & Development (full meeting notes can be found here)

• Overlay zones are an important opportunity to encourage the desired type of development
• Build both affordable and middle-income housing to create mixed-income neighborhoods
• Focus development in the South Side segment which has been neglected in previous redevelopment projects
• Retrofit the Tucson Mall
• Enhance the established historic districts in the Study Area and better understand cultural resources
• Each segment should have unique regulations due to their inherent differences
• The more certainty (such as timeline, allowances, disallowances) the code can give developers, the more likely they are to pursue a project

Economic Development & Jobs (full meeting notes can be found here)

• This project is an opportunity to bring new tourism and economic development to Tucson
• Address the Tourism Master Plan's recommendation for improved transportation, walkability and connectivity
• Enhance transit to major employers in the north and south
• Transit and mixed use development will result in enhanced economic activity
• Mitigate potential displacement of residents and businesses
• The City of Tucson needs a comprehensive approach to combat displacement

Active Mobility (full meeting notes can be found here)

• Expand transportation opportunities, improve walkability, and locate goods and services closer to housing, particularly for Tucson's growing population of older adults
• Increased mobility options are directly linked to improved safety, equity, and decreasing environmental impacts
• For older adults, barriers to active mobility include: uneven/broken sidewalks, a lack of shade and benches, signage with small font and low contrast
• Large arterial streets with high speed limits are dangerous to cross
• There are large gaps in the bicycle infrastructure in the South Side segment
• Need to invest in housing/land before property values increase
• Consider adaptive reuse for existing, underutilized structures along the corridor
• Bring tribal party representatives to the table when considering tribal lands in the Study Area

Equity (full meeting notes can be found here)

• Getting people out of cars and into transit is advantageous
• Concern about residents and businesses getting priced out of the Study Area
• Great opportunity for residents to be able to travel by transit the length of the corridor without multiple transfers
• Include passive rainwater harvesting techniques in new development to combat flooding
• North Oracle is highly congested with traffic, increased transit should help alleviate some of it
• Need to consider environmental justice, public safety, access to housing, and employment alongside transportation

Parks, Public Spaces, Arts & Culture (full meeting notes can be found here)

• Iconic public and/or cultural spaces along the corridor:
  • Sam Lena Library and John Valenzuela Youth Center in South Tucson
  • Both high schools along South 12th Ave and places of worship
• Ensure that City-owned parcels along the route are transformed into civic uses or green spaces that benefit surrounding neighborhoods
• Utilize development incentives to encourage the development of widespread vacant lots (especially on the South Side)
• Partner with local artists during the design phase and incorporate public art into public spaces
• Prioritize access to green spaces and parks
• There are no public green spaces in the City of South Tucson and this is a huge community need
• South Tucson needs street lighting and proper signage for biking and walking to improve wayfinding

Survey

The survey ran from March 18 to June 15, receiving 2,417 entries. The infographic below highlights the summarized results of the multiple-choice questions, while the word clouds represent the responses to some of the open-ended questions.

What do you love about neighborhoods in the Study Area?

What key words come to mind when you think about change in the Study Area?

Open House #2

North Side: May 16, 2022, Literacy Connects

South Tucson: May 17, 2022, YWCA House of Neighborly Services

South Side: May 18, 2022, Sunnyside High School

What We Heard

Investment on the North Side could look like:

• Generally, folks could see higher density development in the North Side:
  • 3-5 story mixed use development along N. Stone Avenue
  • 6+ story mixed use development along N. Oracle Road
  • 6+ story mixed use development at the Tucson Mall with river access
• Pocket parks along N Stone Avenue in Balboa and Keeling neighborhoods
• Protected bike lanes along N Stone Avenue
• Sidewalk repair on N Oracle by the Tucson Mall
• Services needed:
  • Harm reduction clinic

Investment in the Central subarea could look like:

• Park at the SE corner of N Stone and E 6th St
• Park at the SE corner of W St Mary's Rd and N Church Ave
• Protected bike lanes along Speedway

Investment in South Tucson could look like:

• There was less desire for new housing in South Tucson and more desire for new small businesses, needed services, and neighborhood enhancements
• New small businesses between South 6th and South 4th Avenues
• Mixed use just north of I-10 between S 6th and S 4th Avenues (to include public space or a park)
• No change (single family homes) on E 39th St between S 6th and S 4th Avenues
• Single family (no change) in established low-density neighborhoods
• Art gallery for South Tucson artists on S 6th Ave
• Needed services:
  • Emergency housing shelter
  • Harm reduction clinic (other input indicated these services are not wanted by some in South Tucson)
  • Assisted living

Investment on the South Side could look like:

• Generally, input indicated a desire for more parks and housing on the South Side, and fewer industrial uses
• More trees for shade along South 6th Ave
• Redevelop or renovate existing (vacant) commercial properties along South 6th to be small businesses
• No change in special food areas
• 6+ story mixed use development at/near the Rodeo Grounds (which are underutilized)
• Laos Transit Center and El Pueblo Center need improvements
• Parks in the following neighborhoods: Fairgrounds, Bravo Park Lane, Cherry Avenue and by the Airport
• 3-5 story and 6+ story residential development along the proposed high-capacity transit line (S Park Ave, E Drexel Rd)

You can view individual comments here.

Key Themes

What is important to preserve and uplift?

• Culture, people, and the community
• Home ownership/affordability/anti-displacement
• Small and local businesses

What would you like to see more of in your neighborhood?

• Trees/green space
• Affordable housing
• Clean streets and neighborhoods
• Parks
• Conveniently located and inviting transit stops/stations

Do you have any concerns about the project?

• Gentrification, displacement, increased housing costs, predatory development tactics
• [Need for] Community involvement in future projects and development (3)

Would additional transit be beneficial to you and your family? How?

• Cost-savings /free transit/ equitable pricing

The board below summarizes completed and planned engagement opportunities and what the engagement process looks like.

Pop-ups:

April 24, 2022: South Tucson Earth Day Celebration

May 4, 2022: Apollo Middle School

May 13, 2022: Ochoa Community School

May 14, 2022: Laos Transit Center

May 20, 2022: Ronstadt Transit Center

May 30, 2022: Literacy Connects

June 4, 2022: Richey Resource Center

Open House #1

Downtown: March 18, 2022, Armory Park

North Side: March 18, 2022, Limberlost Park

South Side: March 19, 2022, Frank De La Cruz Library

What We Heard