The Mexican American Chicano Cultural Center will celebrate our Sonoran Borderlands Community.
The City of Tucson is exploring the vision for a Mexican American Chicano Cultural Center—an inclusive, community-rooted space that honors Tucson’s deep Mexican American and Chicano history while looking toward the future. Grounded in the City’s Somos Uno strategy, the center is envisioned as a place that welcomes all Tucsonans, strengthening belonging while advancing shared civic goals such as cultural preservation, creative opportunity, education, and economic vitality.
This page will serve as a hub for updates, engagement opportunities, and background information as planning continues. As the vision develops, we invite residents, artists, culture bearers, and partners to stay connected and be part of shaping a cultural center that reflects Tucson’s identity, history, and aspirations.
The City of Tucson has commissioned a Feasibility Study from Lord Cultural Resources exploring the creation of an inclusive cultural space that honors Tucson’s Mexican American and Chicano heritage while supporting community connection, education, and economic vitality in alignment with the City’s Somos Uno strategy.
Read Phase 1 Report of the Feasibility Study(PDF, 45MB).
The project is currently in an exploration phase which began in fall 2025. No final decisions have been made regarding location, design, funding, or operations.
No. Some potential sites have been identified and are being considered as part of the larger Feasibility Study.
Community voices are central to this effort. Stakeholder and public engagement inform the cultural center concept. Engagement opportunities will be shared as planning continues.
The City’s strategy,Somos Uno, identifies arts and culture as essential civic infrastructure that strengthens belonging, preserves heritage, and supports a resilient local economy.
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This recording below features a Show & Tell, hosted by the Confluencenter for Creative Inquiry at the University of Arizona. The program brought together community voices to reflect on the history, purpose, and future vision of a Mexican American Chicano Cultural Center in Tucson.
We are grateful to the Confluencenter for helping create space for this important public dialogue and for advancing community understanding of the cultural center’s significance.