City News

HOUGHTON ROAD CORRIDOR OPEN HOUSE NEXT WEEK - The public is invited to attend an open house for the Houghton Road Corridor Project, part of the overall Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) plan to improve Houghton Road from Tanque Verde Road to Interstate 10. The open house will be held Monday, from 6-7:30 p.m. at Pantano Christian Church, 1755 S. Houghton Road. At the meeting, the status of street lighting planned along the Houghton Road Corridor will be reviewed, and Tucson Department of Transportation (TDOT) staff will be available to answer questions about City policy and plans. A general update on the Houghton Road Corridor also will be discussed. Read the news release.
 
TODAY'S WEATHER IDEAL FOR RAINWATER HARVESTING - Today's rainfall will provide an ample supply of water for those who practice rainwater harvesting. Capturing the rain for outdoor water irrigation minimizes potable water use. Tucson 12 shows you the harvesting process and the rebates to help you along. Contact Tucson Water at (520) 791-4331.
 
REID PARK ZOO TO BE ADORNED WITH CHRISTMAS LIGHTS - Reid Park Zoo tomorrow opens it annual display of Christmas lights. Zoo Lights will help put you in the holiday spirit, with jingle bells, twinkling lights, falling snow, and Santa. Light displays, animal-themed light sculptures, and thousands of sparkling bulbs are part of the annual holiday tradition. Free cookies will be provided each night, and hot cocoa is available for $1. Zoo officials say animals will have access to heated night houses for this event, and will likely choose to be off exhibit. Starting tomorrow, Zoo Lights will be open from 6 p.m. - 8 p.m. every night, with an encore Dec. 26-28. Admission is $6 for adults and $4 for children under the age of 14. Zoo members receive special discounts, including 50 percent off from Dec. 5-11.
 
JOB OPPORTUNITY: TUCSON POLICE OFFICER RECRUIT - The Tucson Police Department (TPD) is accepting applications for the position of Police Officer Recruit. Successful candidates from this testing period will be considered for any funded academy class(es) within the next six months. The earliest academy that will be filled from this list is April 2015, but the date may be adjusted if necessary. The application deadline is Dec. 18. Read the official job description from City of Tucson, and ride along with an officer who gives advice about joining TPD, from Tucson 12 archives.
 
COMMEMORATIVE TREE DEDICATION FRIDAY - Tucson Clean & Beautiful, in cooperation with the City of Tucson and Pima County, will dedicate commemorative trees along the Pantano River Park. Each tree to be dedicated has been purchased by Tucson area residents, honoring friends and family. The dedication ceremony will include a reading of the names for whom trees have been dedicated, along with names inscribed at the nearby Children’s Memorial Garden. At the conclusion of the ceremony, attendees are invited for a brief walking tour of the newly-dedicated trees. The dedication will be held from 11 a.m. - noon tomorrow at Pantano River - Garden of the Families, 2500 S. Pantano Parkway (west side of Pantano Parkway, south of Golf Links Road). Read the news release from Tucson Parks and Recreation.

TUCSON'S STREETCAR GETS NATIONAL ATTENTION - The Sun Link Tucson Streetcar is a little more than four months old, but it's serving as an example for cities and others interested in that mode of travel. Shellie Ginn, who manages the streetcar project for the City of Tucson, appeared yesterday on the national radio show Here & Now, a two-hour public radio production of NPR and WBUR in Boston. She said the streetcar created more than $1 billion in public and private investment, and ridership along the nearly 4-mile route is higher than expected. “So, typically where you have transit streetcar stops or light rail stops, those are areas where you’ll have a lot more businesses and developers interested in developing along that line because they know it’s an infrastructure that’s a permanent infrastructure and it’s not easily removed," she said. "When you have rail on the line and you’ve got stops, you’ve got a lot of banks and businesses that want to take the chance on opening a business on something that they know is going to stay there permanently.” Listen to the full interview from WBUR.
 
TRAFFIC ALERT: WRIGHTSTOWN ROAD LANE CLOSURE THIS WEEK - Crews from the City of Tucson Department of Transportation Streets and Traffic Maintenance Division will be conducting bank protection work Friday (9 a.m. - 4 p.m.) on the south side of East Wrightstown Road, between Sarnoff Drive and Camino Seco. The eastbound lane on Wrightstown will be closed to travel in the area. Since Wrightstown is one travel lane in each direction at that location, motorists will be sharing one lane for both eastbound and westbound travel. Flaggers will help direct traffic through the work zone. The project is scheduled to be completed in one day. Read the news release.
 
HOCKEY RETURNS TO TCC THIS WEEKEND - Arizona Wildcat Hockey takes to the ice this Friday and Saturday at the Tucson Convention Center (TCC). The games begin at 7:30 p.m. Both games are against ASU D1. Tickets are available at the TCC Ticket Office and Ticketmaster.
 
REGISTRATION DEADLINE APPROACHING FOR 'SANTA'S HOLIDAY EXPERIENCE' - Monday is the last day to register for "Santa's Holiday Experience" for kids. Participants will create an art project featuring a snowman, play reindeer games, bake with Mrs. Claus, have storytime with elves, and have their picture taken with Santa (bring your own camera). The event will be held Dec. 13 at the William Clements Regional Center, 8155 E. Poinciana Dr. Walk-in registration is required, as is a cash-only payment of $5 per person.
 
DOWNLOAD APP TO REPORT GRAFFITI IN TUCSON - Graffiti Protective Coatings and the City of Tucson have a smartphone application for reporting graffiti. MyTucson is a free download on the iPhone App Store and Google Play for Android.
Watch a University of Arizona Athletics PSA about the app.

On Friday, December 5, 2014, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., crews from the City of Tucson Department of Transportation Streets and Traffic Maintenance Division will be conducting bank protection work on the south side of East Wrightstown Road between Sarnoff Drive and Camino Seco.

GET A FREE BIKE LIGHT TONIGHT AT 'LIGHT THE NIGHT'  - Living Streets Alliance is partnering with the City of Tucson Bicycle & Pedestrian Program and the Pima Association of Governments to give away bike lights to people without them. Not only do bike lights improve visibility for both cyclists and others on the street – it's the law that bicyclists have them. Starting tonight at 5 o'clock, Tucson Mayor Jonathan Rothschild and Pima Association of Governments’ (PAG) Executive Director Farhad Moghimi will give away light sets, helmets, maps, and safety literature at the intersection of North Campbell Avenue and East 3rd Street, one of the most popular bikeways in the region. Since October, more than 400 light sets and 65 free helmets for youth have been distributed to promote bicycle and pedestrian safety.
 
CITY SUBMITS PROMISE ZONE APPLICATION - The City of Tucson, in collaboration with Pima County and the City of South Tucson, has submitted an application for the Obama Administration's Promise Zone competition. Promise Zone communities work together with the federal government to promote economic opportunity and accelerate economic growth in high-poverty areas by receiving preferred access to certain competitive federal investments, federal staff to help implement goals, and five full-time AmeriCorps VISTA members to recruit and manage volunteers. At least eight urban, rural, or tribal communities are expected to be named Promise Zones from this second round of designees. Read the White House news release.
 
CITY OFFERS HOLIDAY SHOPPING DEALS ON SURPLUS ITEMS - Need some jewelry for a Christmas gift? How about a Xbox or an iPod to keep your kids busy? Maybe a motorcycle is a better fit for someone on your list? You can find these items and more on the City of Tucson's surplus auction website. This holiday season the City will auction Rolexes, a Gibson Les Paul guitar, Louis Vuitton shoes, bikes, car stereos, and more. Most of the auctioned items come from unclaimed merchandise confiscated by the Tucson Police Department, with the rest comprised of City surplus equipment and unclaimed lost-and-found items. Read more from the Arizona Daily Star.
 
ELEPHANT BABY PHOTO CONTEST ENDS THIS WEEK - The Reid Park Zoo's Facebook photo contest to find the best picture of Nandi, the baby African elephant, ends Thursday. Enter your photo for a chance to win a behind-the-scenes tour of the Zoo. On a related note, the BuzzFeed website ranks Nandi 34th in its "37 Cutest Baby Animals Photos of 2014."
 
FOOD NETWORK PERSONALITY HEADING TO TUCSON - Alton Brown is coming to Tucson next March for his traveling culinary variety show called "The Edible Inevitable Tour." As part of his travels across the United States, Brown is asking Twitter and Facebook users to use special hashtags to make suggestions about the best places to eat. For Tucson, he's asking people to use the hashtag #ABRoadEatsTucson. Brown will be appearing at Centennial Hall on March 22, 2015. 

Tucson, AZ (November 25, 2014) - In support of safe, visible and lawful bicycle riding, the City of Tucson Bicycle and Pedestrian Program and Pima Association of Governments will partner with Living Streets Alliance to put on “Light the Night,” a bike light distribution and bicycle safety education campaign. Each month at different locations across the region, teams of volunteers distribute free front and rear light sets to people on bikes spotted riding without them.

In support of safe, visible and lawful bicycle riding, the City of Tucson Bicycle and Pedestrian Program and Pima Association of Governments will partner with Living Streets Alliance to put on “Light the Night,” a bike light distribution and bicycle safety education campaign. Each month at different locations across the region, teams of volunteers distribute free front and rear light sets to people on bikes spotted riding without them.

Since October, more than 400 light sets and 65 free helmets for youth have been distributed to promote bicycle and pedestrian safety.

TUCSON WATER RECEIVES DESIGNATION OF ASSURED WATER SUPPLY - The Assured Water Supply (AWS) program is designed to sustain Arizona's economic health by preserving groundwater resources and promoting long-term water supply planning. Before developers in the Tucson Water service area can record plats or sell parcels, the City must demonstrate a 100 year supply of water to meet current and future growth water demands. The State of Arizona recently issued the City a Designation of Assured Supply for approximately 183,000 acre-feet/year of available water supply through 2025. That exceeds Tucson's projected demands of approximately 155,000 acre-feet/year, which puts the City in a strong position to support future population growth and economic development.
 
RECYCLE YOUR TURKEY GREASE TO HELP KEEP THE ENVIRONMENT CLEAN - The Day-After-Thanksgiving Grease Collection and Recycling event will be held this Friday. The annual event benefits the community by keeping grease out of our sewers. The collected grease is recycled into biodiesel, a cleaner burning fuel for the environment. The Pima County Regional Wastewater Reclamation Department and its partners will collect grease from 9 a.m. - 1 p.m. at five drop-off locations.
 
HOLIDAY ARTS & CRAFTS FAIR THIS WEEKEND - As the holiday shopping season is about to begin, the Tucson Parks and Recreation Department is offering an alternative to the busy stores. The annual Holiday Arts & Crafts Fair will be held this Saturday and Sunday in Reid Park, 22nd Street and Country Club Road. The free event will be held west of the DeMeester Outdoor Performance Center from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. each day. More than 100 vendors will be on hand from all over the Southwest, ranging from artists, crafters, photographers, painters, potters, jewelers and more. The Thanksgiving weekend fair has become a tradition for many holiday shoppers for more than 20 years. See artists' original designs, including delicate beading, steampunk jewelry, teapot wind chimes, handcrafted masks, colorful mosaics, sun catchers, and one-of-a-kind ceramics. Food and refreshments from local vendors will be available for purchase.
 
TUCSON COMMUNITY BUILDS NEW PARK PLAYGROUND IN ONE DAY (VIDEO) - La Madera Park is sporting a new playground today, thanks to neighbors, volunteers, The City of Tucson, KaBOOM!, Humana, and Lend a Hand Senior Assistance. The all-ages redesign of the park at 2700 E. La Madera Drive was finished earlier this month. The one-of-a-kind, multi-generational playground was created using drawings and other input from community members, including children and seniors. The new design is senior-focused with adult elements, including fitness stations and walking paths to promote good posture, balance, and flexibility. There also is traditional, kid-friendly equipment that creates a multi-generational space. Tucson 12 captured some of the sights and sounds of the design phase and construction.
 
HAPPY THANKSGIVING FROM NEWSNET - The staff at NewsNet wishes all of our readers a happy Thanksgiving! We wish you all the best this upcoming holiday season. We'll be off tomorrow, but will be back Friday with a special edition highlighting some of the great stories that happened this year at Reid Park Zoo. You'll learn more about a big baby that's capturing the hearts of Tucson (and the nation), and we'll even tell you about a little baby...the newest resident of the Zoo.