This fall marks a new beginning for Anza Park on
Speedway Boulevard, north of downtown Tucson.
A dog park with grass
is a draw for pet owners like Jaylyla Buchanan.
She adopted Koko the day before we met.
I saw it on the Internet and it says small dogs and big dogs.
I was like, OK, why not? So we had to get out of the house.
Today is also a first for Marco Celeya and Pluto.
I think this is my my new park of choice.
Yeah, stories like that are welcome news for Tom Fisher,
a project manager
for the city of Tucson Parks and Recreation Department.
In 2018, voters approved Proposition 407, a 10 year
program earmarking
one hundred and thirty three million dollars
for improvements throughout the city.
One of the first priorities
Anza Park, a Tucson mainstay since 1917.
This is the gateway, one of the gateways to Tucson.
So it's very visible.
It is it does have its issues because it is close to downtown.
And just like a lot of big
cities in the United States, it's a magnet for trouble
and homeless folks
that don't have a better place to hang out during the day.
Fisher was on task to work with the West University
Neighborhood Association and Tucson Police
to revamp this historic park and its checkered past.
One of the things that we heard loud and clear
during the master planning process,
were concerns about crime and about cleanliness of the park.
And it wasn't just homeless folks. There were
some serious troublemakers.
There was a drug ring that was here
that got broken up thankfully.
In the last six months,
there was a prostitution ring that was broken up.
And once those elements were out of the park,
then it got a lot more peaceful and safe at the park.
And so the residents were very appreciative of that effort.
But the second thing was for the Parks Department
to activate the park with physical improvements.
One of the first fixes was the dog park.
Second on the list, plans for a new restroom,
replacing the one that's been here since the 1950s.
The rough type, it's going to be a corrugated metal roof.
That's part of the historical character of this neighborhood.
We don't do solid doors on restrooms anymore
because we want to have visibility over time.
Fisher says the city expects
to improve walkways and out of basketball court.
And the homeless people continue
to frequent the park every day.
It seems there are other new visitors,
and that's exactly what Judy Sensibar had hoped would happen.
She's the president of the West
University Neighborhood
Association and has lived in the area for more than 20 years.
It wasn't just that the drugs, it was the illegal activity
that comes with the drugs.
And so people were being preyed on, people who just
wanted to be in the park.
Even our homeless population couldn't be here safely because
of all the criminal activity.
A community effort
that included Pima Community College and nearby businesses.
The hotels here were really instrumental to helping us
get this project through the university
in in the best western, attend all the meetings.
And they were very supportive because their quality of life,
their gas, their their clientele would say
that was the biggest complaint
about people staying there was the park
and how you could had to avoid it.
And with the bus stop right here,
it really needed to be a safer spot.
And it's very high visibility
for the area with a sort of a gateway right into town
from the highway.
Still to come, improving the playground that's been here
for 16 years and maintaining the sand volleyball destination.
Though growing pains are part
of any development, Fisher is convinced
this one is well worth it for the community.
Well, I want them to understand that
when they vote on a particular
ballot measure, that that it's going to get delivered
on by the city workers, on the mayor and council.
That's our job, is to manage their their money
and deliver on those facilities.
And I would like people to understand that this is one of
our one hundred and thirty one parks throughout the city.
And it's actually a very beautiful park.
Just because you drive by,
going 30, 40 miles an hour on the way to work doesn't mean
that you can't stop here and enjoy what's here.