Urban Renewal, Part II ?
In the 1960s, dark forces of money & power converged on our historic Downtown–a 150-year-old neighborhood of homes and small businesses–and bulldozed the homes of thousands of people who had lived there for generations. What did we get there in return? TCC and La Placita, which have limped along for decades, weighed down by the legacy they destroyed.
Those dark forces are on the move again. This time they are targeting Downtown’s historic commercial district along Congress Street from the Hotel Congress to the Fox Theatre. Watch developments carefully; it’s almost time for us to lie down in front of the bulldozers…
When we voters approved the Rio Nuevo funding in 1999, the watchwords were History, Culture and Tradition, and the talk was of Downtown as “Everybody’s Neighborhood”. Fred Ronstadt and his financial backers are now changing those watchwords to Destruction, Exclusion, and Greed.
How is this happening? Good developers and small-business owners–who are restoring and preserving their historic buildings as they make money–are being fought by the City Rio Nuevo staff. Powerful newcomers who care nothing for our historic and public downtown are being embraced by the same Rio Nuevo staff as they devise plans to use taxpayer money to level historic buildings along Congress, and to build a hideous erection of exclusive half-million-dollar condos on the last remaining public open space in town while blocking our view of the historic County Courthouse.
If Fred is allowed to continue his reign of error, and he funnels these sweetheart deals to his bulldozing financial backers, we’re heading toward another painful & destructive mistake. Once our heritage is bulldozed, it cannot be built again, no matter how “authentic” is the stick-and-stucco substitute.
And, ironically, there is ample evidence from successful downtowns around the country that developers can actually make more money by preserving historic buildings. Fort Worth has preserved many of its downtown buildings constructed between 1880 and 1930; downtown office occupancy rates are about 98%. Denver, Portland, Salt Lake City, and many other communities share similar success stories.
Rio Nuevo once held, and can once again hold great promise to help reclaim our History, Culture, and Tradition to renew Downtown as a truly public treasure and help heal the still-raw wounds of 1960s urban renewal. But it needs to be done right–with committed, caring, and visionary leadership.
I have spent the last five years helping to provide that leadership as an active friend of Downtown, helping the existing small businesses and developers who care, while rejecting those who simply smell some shortsighted money to add to their stash. As a Councilmember, I will have the power to continue our work at the next level and return Rio Nuevo to “Everybody’s Neighborhood”. That’s what we voted for in the first place.
May 22nd, 2005 at 9:43 pm
There are many issues around downtown development, but perhaps the highest ticket item, which could impact Tucson taxpayer for decades, is redevelopment and expansion of convention facilities and a new professional-class arena. If we overestimate demand, we could be stuck with a very large operating deficit on top of construction. If we are too conservative, we could be throwing away a lot of positive growth and income for Tucsonans. I know the plans for this are still fairly preliminary, but I would be interested in knowing what your concerns and priorities would be in making decisions around this issue.
May 23rd, 2005 at 12:24 pm
I am aware of the arena pors & cons, but I am generally wary of “big-box” redevelopment–the idea that large expensive public projects are the only way to revitalize a downtown. I think we could all get a much better bang for our buck by investing in a lot of little projects rather than a few big projects with no connective tissue. A vital downtown is about connectivity, diversity, and choices, all interlinked in a web of common and differing interests. It should not simply be a place where people drive to a big event, then drive home. It must be a place where people encounter unexpected and wonderful places and people around every corner. It cannot be a sanitized mall environment, it must be radically public, pedestrian dominated, and nearly unmanageable.
That all sounds very theoretical, but there are many specific things a city can do to encourage that result. One of the best things would be a small–say $5 million–loan fund for downtown businesses & organizations to borrow money at no interest to improve a facade, upgrade electrical, expand a cafe onto the sidewalk, add canopies or landscaping, restore historic neon signage, etc. Public transit (specifically the streetcar through Downtown) needs to be prioritized to bring people to, from and around downtown on foot. Shade and cool areas need to be everywhere in Tucson. Clean public restrooms. Public art projects. Rooftop restaurants & ballrooms. Restoration of historic buildings. Street furniture in gathering places. Street vendors. Consistent and occupied retail and restaurant space along all key commercial streets, with no driveway or parking lot cuts to create dead space for pedestrians.
Do all this, and the people and shops and residents and visitors and jobs will come. Simply plop down an arena, and you’re taking a gamble–maybe you win, maybe you lose. In either case, you need to connect that arena with the whole fabric of Downtown if you want any effect.
June 17th, 2005 at 4:04 pm
Great post, as usual. I have to say that because I’m going to pick on the one part I disagree with (you’ll get used to that from the press as the campaign heats up): your opposition to the proposed skyscraper across from the library. While it’s not ideal placement and the green space will be missed, I think this project would do Downtown more good than harm. This seems to me like the kind of high-density infill that we need. And while half-million-dollar condos are extravagant, having high-income people living Downtown and thus spending more of their evenings there seems like it could be nothing but good for the area businesses. What am I missing?
June 19th, 2005 at 8:32 am
I certainly aggee that this Century Tower project would be a great benefit to downtown if it was built on any other site! (one that doesn’t require the bulldozing of any historic buildings, that is.)
This is a classic and sad example of how we too often in Tucson make lemons out of lemonade. If, for instance, this project was proposed on the vacant stump of the never-built second tower next to the Unisource Building at Stone & Broadway (or across Broadway on that parking lot, or on any other parking lot in Downtown), this would receive nearly-universal approval. What a missed opportunity to choose the one site that would create a firestorm!
July 6th, 2005 at 10:26 pm
what is needed here is housing first !!! then the need for all the retail comes later. i started buying houses in 1982 in tucson. but..i had my work in nyc. so i finally got here in december 2002. i never realized the problem..just like in nyc..housing first…then retail comes later !!!!! thanks