PLANS FOR PARK TO SANTA RITA
The two blocks east of Park are scheduled now for acquisition and demolition--and some has begun. All demolitions will be completed by January 2016. At that time, the City of Tucson will hire a contractor who will begin the construction of the new Grant Road (from Castro to Santa Rita). The contractor will decide whether to proceed from east to west or from west to east. The realignment shown in this map brings Grant road back to four lanes at Santa Rita while it awaits Phase 5 which will then remove three more blocks (per plans on City website) before it crosses over to SAMOS to take the north side to Campbell. Completion of Phase II is projected to be January 2018. Phase 5 is scheduled for as much as 8 years from today.
WHAT IS THE FATE OF THE LOTS FROM PARK TO SANTA RITA?
These two blocks have less definite plans. Neighbors at the JPNA meeting remembered a promise initially for a treatment similar to Campbell Avenue. Recent documents show "remnant parcels" being redrawn and how those will be used remains to be seen. The JPNA Board and Office of Integrated Planning are working together to evaluate the options.
The "remnant" lots remain within the neighborhood as R-1 (single family homes) and under the NPZ (Neighborhood Preservation Zone). The NPZ has stricter building codes to make homes compatible with the neighborhood. Additionally, twenty three of the homes from Hampton to Santa Rita will be demolished which are contributing to the Historic status of Jefferson Park.
A BIGGER QUESTION MANY KEEP ASKING - Why does Phase II stop in the middle of the only truly residential strip along the entire corridor - the most sensitive, displacing the most homeowners, and destroying historic homes. Its a break which covers, at the most 8 years of time, keeping the area in transition for 8 YEARS!
OPTIONS BEING CONSIDERED? Will the city create an "overlay" in order to change the zoning? Will the project create the buffers and green space for which many of the neighbors have asked? Will the Grant Road treatment facilitate a neighborhood loop for a greenway for walking and biking? Loop = Lester-Park-Grant-Campbell. Will the scalped lots be landscaped/treated/bermed to preserve the vegetation and abate the dust and noise until their fates are determined? It is possible that the work on the most eastern lot could be as late as 2018.
