TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Whether you drive, walk, bike, or take a bus, bad roads affect you. City of Tucson voters approved more money for streets and it’s beginning to flow into neighborhoods.
When you’ve been putting up with Tucson streets, a steaming load of asphalt can be curiously refreshing.
Cindy Doklan says, “Yeah, so it's smelly and it's hot, but it's awesome.”
Doklan has been waiting years for a smoother way to drive or bike through her Jefferson Park Neighborhood.
“You need dental work and a chiropractor afterwards. I mean, it's been that bad for years and years. And, you know, we were always a little bit surprised but when we see the road getting done, but when we do, it's just fantastic.”
Jefferson Park is one of ten neighborhoods with streets bad enough that they are first in line for money Tucson voters approved a year ago. Prop 411 adds ten years to a half cent sales tax to fix Tucson streets—with an emphasis on neighborhood streets versus major thoroughfares.
These neighborhood street projects are anticipated to begin this summer/fall:
* Jefferson Park/Desert Highlands/Meadow West Condos – mill and pave
* Flowing Wells/Shalmar Subdivision – mill and pave
* Harold Bell Wright – mill and pave
* Hermosa Hills & Halcyon Acres – mill and pave
* Julia Keen – mill and pave
* Barrio Kroeger & Menlo Park – mill and pave
* Doolen Fruitvale – mill and pave
* Bonanza Avenue – reconstruction
* Rodeo Addition – reconstruction
* Western Hills/Las Vistas – reconstruction
(Source: City of Tucson)
The Garden District is set for fresh pavement this summer or fall. Neighborhood Association President Lois Pawlik says she’s been waiting twenty years to see some action on these streets.
“And we're excited. Can't wait for it. We had one of our other quarter quadrants, we call them in our neighborhood, paved about a year ago, and it makes an enormous difference. It also helps to clean up the streets, because they cut all the vegetation out of the street that shouldn't be there. And so for quite a while, they are fairly nice streets.”
Some of the streets in Flowing Wells are on the list for the first round of Prop 411 pavement but Bonny Bass with the Flowing Wells Neighborhood Association says Flowing Wells waited far too long for better streets.
“Compared to what the county has done over the last couple of years, we feel like we're well overdue in Flowing Wells to get our streets repaved and we haven't seen any or much of any improvement.”
And Pima County just sent a reminder that the new county budget calls for paving almost 108 miles of road in the fiscal year that just began.
