Fast forward to the near future. What if the trolley ran more? What if it ran through the week at lunch time so the Downtown workers could easily have lunch on the Avenue or at the Main Gate and get back to work in a short period of time without worrying about moving their cars or walking; or the University student with a couple of hours to spare could spend an hour and a half of that shopping and still get to and from campus with no hassle and time to spare?
What if the Trolley ran later at night so the nightlife crowd could ride back to the Marriott or Congress hotels or back to the U of A Main Gate without needing a designated driver or the hassle of finding a cab? How much wear-and-tear would that save on the neighborhoods and business properties in terms of casual vandalism, trash, and unsightly acts? How much more of an icon and an attraction could the Trolley be for the city center if it were a truly viable transportation alternative instead of a part-time oddity? How much more business would it bring to the Avenue, the Main Gate area, and Downtown?
The new 4th Avenue underpass is scheduled to begin construction this year and the trolley tracks will extend into downtown when that is finished two years from now. A trolley that is running on a regular schedule six or seven days a week will make a unique link between the Main Gate area, 4th Avenue, Downtown, and the Rio Nuevo attractions! Wouldn’t it be great to have the foundations laid for a fully functioning trolley operation by the time the tracks are down instead of spending additional years getting up to speed? “Ready and rolling” in 2006 sounds better than “just getting started”.
Given these and other considerations the Fourth Avenue Merchants Association Board has decided that now is the time to apply shoulders firmly to the trolley operation and give it the push start needed to get it truly under way. Areas like fund raising, promotion, PR, recruitment, and advertising are where the Fourth Avenue Merchants Association can make a real difference, and where every business owner and neighborhood resident in the area can help.
In two years the Fourth Avenue Merchants Association would like to see trolley cars running 60 or 70 hours per week and winter visitors seeking the trolley out as an attraction while U of A students and downtown office workers view it as the handiest way to get to and from the multitude of destinations along the tracks.
When Rio Nuevo really starts to pull in visitors, the Fourth Avenue Merchants Association would like to see the trolley ready to bring those visitors on down the tracks to the businesses of the city center area on a regular basis. To make it happen will take more trolleys, more people involved, more maintenance equipment, more funding, and cooperation from the stakeholders.
How can you help? One critical need of the trolley is volunteer hours. Old Pueblo Trolley personnel are currently stretched as thin as is reasonable, so to increase hours of operation the number of volunteers will have to be increased as well.
Conductors and operators are needed to actually run the trolley. Eventually many of these positions will have to become paid positions. Track needs to be laid. Maintenance needs to be performed on a regular basis to keep everything running smoothly. There are dozens of jobs that need to be done in dozens of different fields.
Then there is money. Donations are gladly accepted. Advertising space is available on the sides of the trolley. The trolley is available for charter to enhance special occasions (weddings, parties, murder mystery evenings, and more!) at very reasonable prices.
This is a chance for all those who would benefit from a revitalized city center to take a positive step in the form of a fully functional trolley operation. To find out more about how you can help call the Fourth Avenue Merchants Association at 624.5004.
4th Avenue Street Fair
March 19, 20, 21
he 4th Avenue Street Fair is Tucson’s perennial favorite event. Take 400 artists, mix in 40 food booths, add 3 stages with live entertainment, a dash of face painters, hair braiders, chair massage stations, tarot card readers and a few entertainment attractions for kids, and you have the formula for Tucsons biggest weekend!
One of the best things about it, thanks to major sponsors like KVOA, Budweiser, and Pepsi, is that admission to the Fair continues to be free in spite of significantly rising costs (30% increase in off-duty TPD coverage and 300% increase in insurance, just to name a couple of items!).
The Fair runs from 10am to 6pm all three days, with Friday being the least crowded best day for serious shopping. While the basic framework of the Fair remains constant from Fair to Fair there are numerous changes to look for in this particular edition.
Traditionally there are children’s activities at 4th Street, and that remains true this spring, but look for a second and expanded activities area toward the south end of the Fair at 8th Street on the east side of 4th Avenue.
This new entertainment area is sponsored by Celebrate (a local party organization) and the 4th Avenue Merchants Association and will contain various activites involving inflatable attractions. The area will be balanced with a grouping of new food vendors on the West side of 8th Street to give the non-participants something to do while the kids-of-all-ages play.
Also new this year: the 5th Street Stage will be organized and run by the Arizona Jazz Academy. Look for lots of cool jazz from a mixture of young adults and seasoned pros at this stage location.
Another aspect of the street fair will be The Drawing Studio’s special fund raising art show, “Anything Goes,” to benefit The Art of Summer III, the TDS art program for high school students. The Drawing Studio is located at 214 N. 4th Ave., just north of 9th Street.
Focus On 4th