Navigating Rio Nuevo
By Karen Thoreson
e’ve been on a walk around Rio Nuevo, taking a look at the plans for the Downtown of the near future. We’ve strolled along the west bank of the Santa Cruz River and around the Convention Center to see the Civic Plaza area. This month we wrap up our tour with a visit to The East End.
Sidewalks full of people on a Saturday night moving along under neon signs, past theaters, restaurants and nightclubs. Music pours into the street from open doorways and sidewalk performers. People stand in line to buy tickets at the Fox and Rialto Theatres or to add their names to waiting lists at restaurants while others choose which shops to visit. In the next few years, The East End at Congress Street will, without doubt, be Tucson’s Downtown hot spot.
Walk east along Congress Street from Church to Toole today and you’ll feel Downtown’s retail and entertainment heart beating stronger than it has in decades. From the earliest discussions of Rio Nuevo, entertainment venues, restaurants and shopping have been planned as Parts of the Heart of the City. A journey down Congress takes us right through The East End where that vision is becoming a reality.
Wining and Dining
Congress Street and the areas around it in the East End already have an eclectic mix of grilles, cafes and restaurants and are celebrating the opening of Enoteca, a new Italian ‘ristorante’ and wine bar just west of the Fox. The future holds even more reasons to look at Downtown as a dining destination. The Monkey Box, a restaurant and bar, will start construction soon at the Pioneer Building, on Stone Avenue. A new restaurant is also planned as one of several future tenants in the Historic Depot on Toole and the restaurateur may be announced soon after the restoration of that landmark is complete.
Give My Regards to Congress!
In 2004, Congress Street is already a hot spot for music with Club Congress and several other venues. In the next couple of years, though, we’ll be adding more live theater, dance, and movies to the list of entertainment available in The East End. When both the Fox and the Rialto Theatres complete renovation the plans are to offer a variety of live shows, film festivals, and other programs on their stages. The arts community and Tucson Downtown Alliance are also planning to sponsor more special events in and around the East End that should add to the atmosphere of excitement on Congress Street.
Talking Shop
New retail and specialty shops will soon start to fill up The East End. Congress Street Redevelopment, LLC is planning retail on the ground floor of their Rialto Block renovation, west of the theater. The Depot Plaza will include stores and shopping, especially ones catering to the many new residents of that development. Even the Pennington Street Parking Garage, being developed in partnership between the City and the Colton Company, will have space available for a retail area on its north façade.
Living that Urban Lifestyle
The excitement of The East End ‘scene’ will also make it attractive to people who enjoy living in an urban environment. So plans are also underway to make this home to hundreds of new Downtown residents. We’ll see loft-style apartments or condos on Congress in the Thrifty Block between Stone and Scott and on Broadway in the Rialto Block between 5th Avenue and Toole. Depot Plaza, the mixed use retail and residential project on Toole across from the Historic Depot will also feature a number of residences of varying types including both market rate and affordable housing. The Warehouse District, just north of Congress, could include live/work spaces for offices, art studios, and galleries in the future if current visions for this area turn out to be feasible.
So The East End at Congress Street is becoming exactly what the architects of Rio Nuevo intended – the restaurant, shopping, and entertainment center of our new Downtown. It’s not all there yet – a lot of things are still on the drawing board. But the plans, the investments, and, most important, the excitement and confidence, are here today. Tomorrow will bring us a vibrant, exhilarating, and very real Downtown entertainment district. I’ll see you there.
Karen Thoreson is a Downtown enthusiast and City of Tucson Assistant City Manager. Her primary responsibility is the Rio Nuevo Project and Downtown. If you have questions about Rio Nuevo or suggestions on topics for this column, please contact Ms. Thoreson at kthores1@ci.tucson.az.us.
