Block Talk is a weekly feature that tells about a neighborhood as seen through a resident's eyes. Today we're talking to Jack Pollin, who in 1998 was instrumental in activating the Neighborhood Watch program in Casas Adobes Estates.
Name and occupation: Jack Pollin, retired brigadier general in the U.S. Army.
Neighborhood: Casas Adobes Estates.
How long he's lived in Tucson: About 22 years.
How long he's lived in this neighborhood: The same — 22 years. Pollin and his wife, Jinnie, moved into their current home in 1985 after Pollin retired from the Army.
His involvement with the neighbors: There were six break-ins on Pollin's street the year he moved in. Though the number dropped and stayed level for some years, in 1998 his neighbor Kimber DeLorenzo saw a man and woman having an altercation down the street. DeLorenzo approached Pollin about starting a Neighborhood Watch group. He did, and he stayed on as its head until last year, when DeLorenzo's husband took over.
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How old is the neighborhood: Sam Nanini and his wife, Giaconda, laid out the area in 1952. Nanini and Giaconda are also the names of two major roads running through the neighborhood.
Why he chose to live there: The Pollins originally lived in Tucson from 1966 until 1968, while Jack was doing graduate work at the University of Arizona. A Realtor friend found a home for them in Midtown, and when they came back in the 1980s, that friend introduced them to another Realtor who lived in Casas Adobes Estates.
When they initially looked at their home, it was out of their price range, Pollin said. The sellers soon lowered the price, however, and they bought it.
They didn't live in it right away, but rented it out. In 1985 they moved into it themselves.
What sets the neighborhood apart: It backs up to North Oracle Road, yet it's quiet in the neighborhood itself.
Notable people who grew up here or who live here now: At one time, former Tucson Police Department Chief Peter Ronstadt — of the locally prominent Ronstadt family that includes Peter's singing sister Linda — lived at one end of the Pollins' street while the Ronstadts' mother lived at the other end.
Herb Bloom, who died last year and was one of three sons at longtime Tucson men's clothier Dave Bloom & Sons, lived in the neighborhood.
And former UA President Henry Koffler lived just one street outside the neighborhood boundaries.
One improvement that could be made: Pollin would like to see the neighbors agree to install speed bumps. When he first moved in more than 20 years ago, traffic wasn't an issue, but now with big shopping centers at both ends of the subdivision, there's more cut-through traffic.
Something that has changed since he has lived here: "What's changed is improvements," he said.
When the Pollins moved in, they were still pretty much out in the boonies. Since then, a Safeway and Walgreens have been built at Oracle and West Ina Road, and they love the convenience, Pollin said.
Favorite neighborhood tradition: In lieu of regular Neighborhood Watch meetings, the neighbors get together every October for a big neighborhood picnic, where they all have the chance to get to know each other better.
"These lots are kind of separated, and people don't know each other," Pollin said.
DeLorenzo has agreed to host the party each year at her house, where 120 to 200 people gather with their families for food and fun.
One or two times each year, a couple of women on the street organize neighborhood walks for the people who live there.
BLOCK TALK: casas adobes estates
Name: Casas Adobes Estates.
Founded: 1952.
Boundaries: North Oracle Road on the west, West Ina Road on the north, and Casas Adobes Drive around the east and south.
Number of homes: About 50.
Jurisdiction: Pima County.
