Dear Sir/Madam:
My husband and I live off of Sandario Road where part of the Interstate 11 Expansion may be routed. Since moving here in 2020, we have seen a great number of wild animals, birds, and reptiles moving about and around our property. One animal in particular, is a Desert Tortoise, which is a threatened species in its native desert habitat. We have seen this tortoise three times as it traverses our property and around our neighborhood. I understand the increasing housing development in the Tucson area is shrinking this creature’s habitat even more than it already is.
In addition to Desert Tortoise, we routinely observe javelinas, coyotes, deer, Jack Rabbits, Gambel’s Quail, lizards of all types, Cooper’s Hawks, Gila Woodpeckers, hummingbirds, and even Gila Monsters.
We don’t want this highway in our backyard or anywhere, frankly, and we definitely are opposed to the Western Option Route that would ruin large sections of desert and create more sprawl.
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Kathryn Rolke
West side
Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.
