Navigating Rio Nuevo
By Karen Thoreson
he New Year is a time to reflect on our accomplishments and look ahead to new goals and plans. The Río Nuevo team has just completed this annual rite, celebrating our achievements of 2004 and getting a running start into what will be a whirlwind of a 2005.
Last year was the most exciting one yet in our work to create great places Downtown and strengthen the Heart of the City. The on-going support of many Downtown stakeholders, robust investment from private sector partners, and the hard work of our Río Nuevo team helped turn our goals of 2003 into the proud accomplishments of 2004.
- We broke ground and began construction of the Pennington Street Garage, a 750-space facility at the corner of Sixth Avenue and Pennington Street that will also house ground-floor retail and commercial space.
- We completed plans and approved the funding for the first phase of Tucson Origins Heritage Park, Río Nuevo’s signature cultural attraction.
- Rio Development Company, a private sector firm, broke ground on the Mercado District of Menlo Park, a beautiful mixed-use development on Congress Street, west of the Santa Cruz River.
- We selected Hargreaves and Associates, a nationally recognized design and planning firm, to begin work on the Civic Plaza.
- Team Zocalo, a group of the nation’s most experienced and successful arena planners, developers and operators, was selected from among four applicants to develop plans for the proposed new arena.
- The University of Arizona chose internationally renowned architect Rafael Viñoly to design the UA Science Center. Design concepts were also presented to the public including the phenomenal Rainbow Bridge concept.
- A number of new businesses opened Downtown, including the Monkey Box restaurant on Stone Avenue, Saelon Bianca on Congress Street, and Little Poca Cosa Café, which relocated to the southwest corner of Stone Avenue and Alameda Street.
- The renovation of the Historic Depot on Toole was completed and tenants have begun moving in.
- The buildings on the Thrifty Block of Congress were demolished (retaining the historic Bank One Annex and Indian Village Trading Post) and we moved forward with ‘The Post,’ a residential/retail development being planned by Bourn/Fina Partners.
- The Congress Street Master Plan began, with a team that includes Project for Public Spaces, a nationally recognized firm that helps communities plan their main streets and urban spaces.
- We located a temporary site for the Greyhound bus station and began the process of relocating the facility so construction can begin on a new 4th Avenue Underpass.
- We welcomed Greg Shelko as Director of Rio Nuevo, and Randy Emerson, our new Development Director, as the newest members of the Río Nuevo team.
The coming year will be busy and exciting as we complete a number of these projects and start new ones. Top priorities for Downtown in 2005 include:
- The decision about whether to build a new Downtown arena.
- Completion of the Pennington Street Garage.
- Downtown Destinations signage and banners placed throughout the City Center.
- Completing the Congress Street Master Plan and beginning to implement it.
- Celebrating with the first annual Fiesta de Río Nuevo Downtown block party.
- Completing design of the Civic Plaza.
- Beginning construction of Presidio Terrace residential mixed-use development on Paseo Redondo.
We’ve got a lot of work ahead of us, but it’s exciting to have arrived at the beginning of Río Nuevo’s busiest phase. I’m already looking forward to this time next year when our Downtown will be much closer to becoming a place we’ll all marvel at – a place that combines the best of what’s here today with the wonderful new additions that will be taking shape in the coming year. I hope you are as excited as we are as the Downtown we’ve all been working for and dreaming of begins to become a reality.
Karen Thoreson is a Downtown enthusiast and City of Tucson Assistant City Manager. Her primary responsibilities are the Río Nuevo project and Downtown. If you have questions about Río Nuevo or suggestions on topics for this column, please contact Ms. Thoreson at Karen.Thoreson@tucsonaz.gov
