News and Updates
Ward 3 Neighborhood Association/Coalition Meetings
Ward 3 Events
City Wide Events
Did You Know?

A personal note: I have cancer

I have throat cancer. I will undergo aggressive treatment in the next few months – radiation and chemo. My doctors say I have a 97 percent chance of a complete cure. I take those odds as very good news!

I will continue to work and attend council meetings. My hardworking staff at Ward 3 will fill in the gaps when I need to take off a day or two. I also have a great support team: my wife, son, other family members, and close friends.

I have never been a smoker. My cancer is caused by HPV (human papillomavirus), which infected me years ago. HPV can now be prevented by vaccines that are given when 11-12 years old. The vaccines are also effective up to age 26 for any who missed that window. More information at: https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vpd/hpv/hcp/recommendations.html

-Kevin

Keeling Neighborhood by Marlene Avelino

The Keeling neighborhood is bordered by Fort Lowell to the north, 1st Ave to the east, Grant to the south, and Stone Ave to the west. The neighborhood is named after Helen Brown Keeling, an educator of many years and the first woman to head the Arizona Education Association in 1922. She went on to become principal of Amphitheater School in 1933 and in 1938, Keeling Elementary was opened and named after her. In 1955, the first Gem and Mineral Show was hosted in the Keeling cafeteria!

Keeling Elementary, Grade 2, 1953-54

Keeling Desert Park is located at 245 E Glenn St. It is a small, .4 acre parklet with a couple picnic tables, a small play area, a bike rack, and a walking path. The park also features public art sculptures scattered throughout. Earlier this month, a much beloved Lizard Cowboy was stolen from the park and neighbors immediately took notice. Please keep your eyes peeled and let us know if you see the cowboy pop up anywhere.

Lizard Cowboy statue recently stolen from Keeling Desert Park.

The Keeling Neighborhood Association was started in 1993 by JJ Moats who sent out a postcard to the neighborhood that read “Are you tired of seeing your property values go to potk? Join me for a meeting to start the Keeling Neighborhood Association.” Today they meet every other month, on zoom for the last two years. Jane Evans is the current President and she has lived in Keeling for 34 years. She and her husband Gene built their house on Fontana between Laguna and Blacklidge the summer of 1988. “I have always liked living in Keeling because so many good people live here. We have wonderful neighbors. One thing that always strikes me as unique is just how so many people in Keeling know their neighbors. As far as a place to live, this is one of the most convenient places in town to live. We are close to downtown. We are close to the River park. We can get on to major streets with little traffic impediment. I really have everything I need and want within a 3 mile radius. It is a perfect neighborhood to walk and bike to great places.” Jane also shared that her mother was the first teacher allowed to teach while showing her pregnancy in the Amphi school district 68 years ago! To connect with the Keeling Neighborhood Association email Jane: [email protected]

Gene Joseph and Jane Evans at Plants of the Southwest. Photo by Andrew Brown for Arizona Illustrated.

Jane and her husband Gene also own Plants of the Southwest, located at 50 E Blacklidge Drive. The nursery has been in the neighborhood since 1933, owned by Jane since 1978. Kristin Woodall wrote a sweet article about it for this newsletter only a few weeks ago, if you missed it, please check it out. Arizona Illustrated also produced a great piece about them in early February, you can watch it here: https://www.azpm.org/p/video/2022/2/10/206826-plants-for-the-southwest/

Tucson Food Share has also been written about in the newsletter but they are worth a quick mentioning again. Located at 2500 N Stone, they are a mutual aid group that provide free groceries and some prepared meals to anyone that asks. They are funded through donations and run on volunteer efforts. They host a public refrigerator on the southside of their building, anyone can contribute what they can and anyone can take what they need. Check them out at: https://tucsonfoodshare.org/

My last shout outs in Keeling go out to Mario’s Pizza on Fort Lowell and First Ave and to Raspados Tropical on Stone Ave and Jacinto, both are neighborhood treasures!

Traffic Calming by CJ Boyd

The Ward 3 office gets requests for neighborhood traffic calming features every week. Here is an overview of what traffic calming infrastructure is available, and the process to go about getting it.

A “slow down” sign and a speed hump on E. Alta Vista in Country Glenn neighborhood.

The most requested traffic calming feature is speed bumps. When people call with concerns about speeding in their neighborhood, they overwhelmingly request speed bumps (or humps). The majority of people assume that the city builds these where they are most needed. That’s not exactly the case. Almost without exception, the vast majority of speed bumps on residential streets are there because a neighbor or group of neighbors gathered signatures and funded them.

The first step in the process is to make a request through the Department of Transportation and Mobility. DTM will provide a packet with basic information and a signature sheet (petition). The petition must be signed by 60% of the residents (home owner or renter) on the street where the speed humps are requested.

After the required signatures are gathered, DTM clears the request with other city departments such as police and fire to ensure there is access for emergency vehicles. Other considerations include proximity to hospitals and ambulance routes. Flooding is also considered, and some streets are denied speed bumps because of how it would affect the flow of rainwater and drainage.

Once the necessary city departments have signed off on the location requests, DTM will approve the speed bump request. At that point, the interested parties are free to hire a private contractor and have a speed bump built in the requested location. The average cost for a speed bump installed by a private contractor can be from $5,000-$6,000

A chicane (or "bumpout") on N. Warren Ave in Samos neighborhood

This same process also applies to roundabouts and chicanes. Roundabouts, or traffic circles, are in the middle of an intersection in order to slow down traffic. These can be landscaped circles or simple bollards, Chicanes, aka “bumpouts,” are the same sort of structure, but along the side of the street, narrowing it and slowing traffic. Currently with labor and materials, chicanes tend to cost around $10,000 and roundabouts are around $15,000.

A roundabout at the intersection of E. Edison St and N. Vine Ave in Jefferson Park neighborhood

While all of these safety features cost money, there are some traffic calming options that are free to the public. You may have seen that an increasing number of neighborhoods lately have signs that say “Slow Down” or “Despacio”. Of course, this will not deter speeders who are committed to speeding. But we have heard from neighbors that the use of these signs can help remind drivers to keep it slower on neighborhood streets.

These signs are available through our ward office, so please feel free to contact us if you’d like some signs to put around your neighborhood.

Ward 3 Neighborhood and Coalition Meetings

Mountain/First
Saturday
July 9
8-9 am
Mitchell Park

Alvernon Grant Initiative
Tuesday
July 12
6-7 pm
Emmanuel Baptist Church

CGNA
Wednesday
July 13
7 pm
at the pocket park

The Ward 3 office is open. Staff will answer phone messages, emails and requests for meetings by the next business day. Leave your message at 520-791-4711 or email at [email protected].

Ward 3 Events

Sun Tran Public Input Open House at  Flowing Wells Library

City Wide Events
FREE SUMMER POOL PARTIES CONTINUE AT CITY POOLS

This month, Tucson Parks and Recreation is hosting "Summer Poolooza," free pool parties across the city in celebration of National Parks and Recreation Month. Events include Ready, Set, Rec! vans with games and activities (see story below), food, music, inflatables, pool fun, and more. Come and enjoy some fun in the sun. Pool parties will be held every Wednesday in July, from 5-7 p.m. (unless otherwise noted). To see a list of dates and locations, follow the link below. The next pool party is tonight, July 6, at Purple Heart Pool, 10050 E. Rita Road. Summer Poolooza Read the news release

Did You Know?

Raising Highly Capable Kids Facilitator Training

KIDCO AFTERSCHOOL REGISTRATION BEGINS SOON

Registration opens soon for KIDCO Afterschool for the 2022-2023 school year. This program, from Tucson Parks and Recreation, offers safe and structured activities for youth from school dismissal to 6 p.m. Planned activities may include sports, games, nutrition, fitness, arts and crafts, performing arts, and special events.

View locations and register online at EZEEreg.com beginning on the dates and times listed below. The fee is $500/school year for City residents or $625/school year for non-City residents.

KIDCO Year-round Afterschool (Vail School District)

Wednesday, July 6, 8 a.m.  
KIDCO Afterschool (viewable beginning July 6)

Saturday, July 16, 6 a.m. (City residents)
Saturday, July 16, 8 a.m. (Non-city residents)

Heat Relief Centers

The City of Tucson has opened six cooling centers, one in each city council ward, open from noon-6 p.m. The centers are located at Donna Liggins Center, 2160 N. 6th Ave.; El Pueblo Center, 101 W. Irvington Road; El Rio Center, 1390 W. Speedway Blvd; Morris K. Udall Center, 7200 E. Tanque Verde Road; Randolph Center, 200 S. Alvernon Way; and William M. Clements Center, 8155 E. Poinciana Drive. Additionally, the Tucson Pima Collaboration to End Homelessness has compiled a list of additional cooling stations and locations for water and supplies. Follow the link below for more information and locations.

Cooling centers

Tucson Water Discounts

Call 520-791-5443 to make an appointment or visit this site for more information: https://www.tucsonaz.gov/water/low-income-assistance-program

COVID-19 Emergency Rental and Utility Assistance

Funding requests for unpaid rent and utilities are available for up to 12 months in arrears and three months in advance. Those without internet access can call (520) 447-4423 to apply, and bilingual case managers are available. Go to this site for more information.