City News

Tucson is listed as the fourth best city in the United States to hold a conference, according to SmartAsset.com. The financial website reviewed data from the Hotels.com® Hotel Price Index™ (HPI™) and other sources on the costs and convenience of attending a conference in 25 major U.S. cities. The analysis incorporated nine metrics, including the number of major hotels, the average cost of a hotel room, the violent crime rate, and the distance from the airport to the city center.

A group calling itself Mexican-American Heritage and Preservation in Southern Arizona will hold a panel discussion this Thursday at the University of Arizona's Student Union (Catalina Room). The 6:30 p.m. event will include a number of panelists discussing the Mexican-American community's contributions to Tucson and how to best preserve the history that remains. Pima County Supervisor Richard Elías will moderate the panel.

If you'd like to track the Sun Link streetcar and you have a smartphone, you're in luck. The Tucson Streetcar Tracker, developed by Dallan Porter at the University of Arizona, is useful if you want to figure out how long it will take for the streetcar to show up at the stop where you're waiting. The app was developed using open data provided by Sun Link.

One of Tucson's signature events happens Sunday, as the 26th annual All Souls Procession makes its way through Downtown Tucson to Mercado San Agustin. Thousands of people are expected in costumes and skeleton face paint to honor the dead. The procession will stage at 4 p.m. at Sixth Avenue and Seventh Street. Even though the big event starts Sunday at approximately 6:30 p.m., activities begin tomorrow with the Procession of Little Angels, 3-7 p.m., at Armory Park, 221 S. 6th Ave.

Starting tomorrow at 7 a.m., crews from Union Pacific Railroad will close 22nd Street at the railroad crossing, located just west of Euclid Avenue at Santa Rita Park. The closure is scheduled to be in place until Sunday at 6 p.m. The closure will allow crews to replace track and install new concrete panels.

Message boards are warning motorists of the closure, and delays are expected. Please obey all traffic control signs and watch for construction personnel and equipment in the work zone.

Visit Reid Park Zoo this month for Nature Play Sundays. From 10 a.m.-1 p.m. each Sunday in November, the Zoo will have a play area set up near the Conservation Learning Center for kids to dig, build, splash, and more. Sand pits, water tables, building blocks, and tools will be provided.

Activities are free with regular Zoo admission, and no registration is required. If you’re not familiar with the location of the Conservation Learning Center, ask for a map when you arrive.