Downtown Tucsonan - November 2007 - (Page 7)

t h e r i a l t o ’s b o a r d e d - u p f a ç a d e n o w s e r v e s a s giant canvases for local artists. photo: David Olsen DYNAMIC DOWNTOWN DUO Downtown dowager Cele Peterson’s presence lingers in her historic store at 48 E. Pennington Street, once a fashion headquarters and now a focal point for artistic, social, educational and recreational opportunities. Called Partnership 48, the strategic collaboration of City High School and VOICES: Community Stories Past and Present will use the renovated 6,200 square feet in the building’s lower level to both in-school and out-of-school programs. The refurbished footage offers classrooms, a library, offices, and a multi-media lab/newsroom for programs such as the 110 degrees After School magazine program. Opening of the facility also signals kickoff of the joint capital campaign, Building OUR Future, a $1.5 million effort to fund further renovations and establish operating endowments for both organizations. PRESIDIO TERRACE, WHITHER ART THOU? Deadlines for monthly publications are tough because things sometimes change after stories have been written and are in the process of being printed. At press deadline time, the proposed developer for Presidio Terrace downtown had yet to reply to a 30-day default notice dated September 28th. “We provided a notice to cure default. We await her response,” was how Downtown Development Director Greg Shelko summarized the status. Peggy Noonan (Reliance Commercial Construction) was given the time to come up with a more definitive financing plan for the seven-story condominium project on cityowned land north and east of the Tucson Water building. Telephone attempts to reach Ms. Noonan through her business partner, local mortgage broker Spitzer Financial, were not returned. Noonan has been quoted as believing she is in compliance with the city’s right to buy and develop terms and insists her estimated $43 million project of lofts, townhouses, café, and neighborhood store will eventually be built. Shelko says if Noonan does not comply with development agreement terms, rights to the project (which she won in a competitive process against three other developers) would likely be put up for sale to other developers. DOWNTOWN DOERS Polls are open from 6:00am until 7:00pm for the November 6th General Election with a portion of downtown directly affected by the results. While downtown’s geographic area primarily falls in Ward 6, the purview of City Council member Nina Trasoff, Ward 1 (currently represented by Jose Ibarra who decided to not seek re-election) covers lots of downtown’s western flank on both sides of a good portion of Interstate 10. Ward 1 candidates are Democrat Regina Romero and Green Party member Beryl Baker. Incumbent Republican Mayor Bob Walkup is opposed by Dave Croteau of the Green Party in Walkup’s bid for a third term. Polling place locations can be found at www.pima.gov/elections, click “Where to Vote”. MISSED ONE, CATCH ANOTHER Runway ‘07, a TCC showcase of design talent from the Art Institute of Tucson, slipped under the publicity radar on October 23, as a scholarship fundraiser featuring studentdesigned and crafted clothing styles from sophisticated and formal to hip-hop and casual. Not to be bummed however “We’ll do a Runway for Research show to benefit the pediatric oncology unit at UMC’s Steele Children’s Research Center on November 9th,” says designer/coordinator Elizabeth Heuisler. Get tickets (adults $15) and further information by calling 690 8850. DO-RE-MI-FA-SO-LA-TI-DO… La Placita Village is hosting live music at its lovely plaza during the “winter” months with a free Thursday lunch time series, 11:30am-1:00pm, through November 15 and a $10 Saturday early evening Jazz series, 4:00pm-6:00pm, starting November 10 and running through December 8. Visit www.tucsonjazzradio.org for more information on the jazz series. See the DT music listings for the line-up of notable musicians performing. Both music series are cosponsored by Bourn Partners and the Downtown Tucson Partnership. SPEAKING OF PARTNERSHIPS The Downtown Tucson Partnership, publisher of the Downtown Tucsonan, kicked off its 2007-2008 Downtown Saturdays event series with a Music & Art Festival on Saturday, September 22 at the Main Library Plaza – 101 N. Stone Ave. The event, which ran from 6:00pm to midnight, featured performances by Salvador Durán, Leila Lopez, Mitzi Cowell, The Swim, Bread & Circus, and Greyhound Soul, with KXCI’s Laurie Starr doing a fabulous job as emcee. Local non-profits included: KXCI, Southern Arizona Roadrunners, Defenders of Wildlife, The Drawing Studio, Tucson Museum of Art, City High School, Tucson Department of Transportation, Tucson Office of Conservation & Sustainable Development, Flandrau Science Center, The Physics Factory, BICAS, Tucson Artists & Musicians Health Alliance, and Tucson Taiko Kyokai. Big thanks to Nimbus Brewing for being the beer sponsor and to Tucson Parks and Recreation for providing the space and other necessities. KXCI was a huge part of the event’s promotion by providing a ton of public service announcements and local print media, and also partially sponsored ad space. Saturday, October 20 saw the next Downtown Saturdays with Fools’ Hollow, also at the Main Library Plaza. The backbone of the event’s activities were performances by Tucson Puppet Works, Flam Chen, and Odaiko Sonora – all who deferred their performance payment to Many Mouths One Stomach to help support the All Souls Procession on Sunday, November 4. The Drawing Studio and Tucson Museum of Art contributed to the event by coordinating art stations for the kids. Other event activities included Halloween games, tours of Fools’ Hollow, face paintings, fun with fabrics (donated by Preen), pumpkin carvings and mask-making. Carl from the Scratchy Records Show DJ’ed and emceed between the live bands that got the kids dancing: Beatnik Dream Vacation, The Carnivaleros, Al Foul, and The Mission Creeps. CITY APPROVES ASSIGNMENT OF DEPOT RESTAURANT LEASE With the closure of Central Bistro over the summer, Hotel Congress’ owner Richard Oseran wasted no time in investigating options for salvaging opportunity from the jaws of failure. Oseran and partner Ross Rulney agreed to step in and assume the balance of the lease from Mark and Sonia Economou, operators of Central Bistro, with the intent to create a lively market and “ grab-and-go” eatery in the space at the historic Depot on Toole Avenue. On October 23, the Tucson City Council agreed to assign the lease and provide free rent to Oseran and Rulney, aka Depot Partners. Depot Partners intends to invest several hundred thousand dollars on tenant improvements to create a unique destination market and restaurant, opening sometime in 2008. Oseran said that he’s traveled to other cities searching for inspiration, including New York, Los Angeles, and even Phoenix. A place called Le Grand Orange in Phoenix’s Arcadia District caught his eye, as an impressive combination of a unique market and restaurant. november.07. downtown tucsonan 7 http://www.pima.gov/elections http://www.tucsonjazzradio.org

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Downtown Tucsonan - November 2007

Downtown Tucsonan - November 2007 Contents From the Editor Downtown Lowdown Vital Signs Downtown Live Arts Galleries Guide Yourself Through Open Studios Performance and Film Events Museums Historic Downtown Billboard Classifieds

Downtown Tucsonan - November 2007

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