The Tucson City Council on Tuesday approved the final alignment for Barraza-Aviation Parkway and continued plans to build quickly on the west side of Rio Nuevo, while contending that expiring federal subsidies imperil the city's progress on solar energy.
Barraza-Aviation
Moving forward with a project that has been in planning for nearly 30 years, the council voted unanimously for a final alignment for the extension of the Barraza-Aviation Parkway from Broadway to the Interstate 10 frontage road.
The $84.6 million project will be largely paid for with Regional Transportation Authority funding, as well as some federal funding.
The council originally approved a Downtown leg for the parkway in 1985 that would have required demolition of what was then the Tucson Electric Power Co. building to avoid intruding on the neighborhoods to the north and south. That plan, and a succession of others, ended up scrapped because of concerns about neighbors and the nearby historic warehouse district.
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Residents of the nearby Dunbar/Spring Neighborhood protested the newest alignment.
Solar setback?
The city is moving forward with two large public solar projects, but the city's solar progress could be stunted by the possible loss of federal tax credits and utility company rebates.
The city plans for either rooftop and ground-mounted solar panels on seven city-owned sites. They will be financed by Clean Renewable Energy Bonds that are allocated by the Internal Revenue Service, the city staff said.
Bids are due this week, the staff said, along with competitive proposals to build a solar farm in Avra Valley that could generate 100 megawatts of power — enough to provide electricity to more than 20,000 homes.
But plans are imperiled by the potential loss of federal tax credits and utility company rebates from the Arizona Corporation Commission, the staff said.
West Side Rio Nuevo
The council continued with plans to move quickly to build on the west side of Rio Nuevo, reaffirming plans to spend more than $40 million to jump-start construction there.
The $40 million will be included with other Rio Nuevo and city projects as part of more than $100 million in certificates of participation — bonds that don't require voter approval — to be considered in August.
The city is finalizing construction documents for the Mission Gardens, the West Side plaza and the road that will go through the area. It also is applying for the building permits for the Mission Gardens, finalizing a master construction schedule and setting up a foundation to help fund West Side museums such as the Science Center and the Arizona Historical Society. The foundation will be similar to the one that helps fund the Reid Park Zoo.
Did you know?
Barraza-Aviation Parkway was originally named for the old Aviation Highway that followed the same route southeast from town toward Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, a former site of Tucson's municipal airport. In 1994, the name was amended to recognize Maclovio Barraza, a union leader for copper miners in Arizona and New Mexico, who died in 1980. Barraza helped form the Mexican-American Legal Defense and Education Fund, the National Council of La Raza and Chicanos por la Causa.
