The under-construction Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing is seen Oct. 15 over the 101 Freeway in Agoura Hills, Calif.
RTA Next supports wildlife connectivity
RTA Next would unlock a once-in-a-generation $50 million investment in Pima County’s most critical wildlife linkages.
I’m a senior biologist currently working on the world’s largest wildlife crossing project in Los Angeles (the Wallis Annenberg wildlife over-crossing), with more than two decades of experience restoring wildlife movement across the West.
Since moving to Tucson, I’ve seen firsthand what is possible when a community acts. The Ann Day Memorial Wildlife Bridge in Oro Valley, which sits between the Tortolita and Catalina Mountains, shows that publicly funded conservation projects can successfully reconnect habitat that had been severed for decades.
The funding proposed in RTA Next would provide much-needed, and typically difficult, funding to improve wildlife connectivity and habitats. This is a narrow window of opportunity. If we don’t invest now, the cost will be measured in permanent landscape fragmentation and ecological collapse.
Katie Rodriguez
Northeast side
You do the math
So, a few days after the SOTU address, we can bookend the would-be king's time in office with two of his biggest claims. Namely, that Mexico will pay for the wall, and other countries will pay the tariffs. These are more than patently ridiculous and moronic statements; they are lies and not even good ones on top of fleecing everyone in this country.
A child can figure out where the money comes from. So why can't two particularly frequent LTE writers and apologists do the same???
Tim Canny
Oracle
RTA Next good for Marana, region
I’ve been a Marana resident my entire life, with family roots here dating back to 1905. We’ve worked hard, built our lives here, and watched Marana grow from a rural community into one of Arizona’s most successful small towns.
Serving on the Town Council for more than three decades has shown me that progress takes planning and partnership. Growth doesn’t happen by chance — it happens when local leaders, regional partners, and voters work together to invest in infrastructure and prepare for the future.
The Regional Transportation Authority plan approved in 2006 is proof. Improvements like Twin Peaks Road increased safety, expanded capacity, and helped position Marana for responsible growth.
Today, we face that same responsibility. RTA Next is projected to create tens of thousands of jobs while maintaining infrastructure, improving safety, and keeping decisions and accountability local.
To protect Marana’s future and continue planning responsibly, vote yes.
Herb Kai
Marana
Why I'm voting no on RTA Next
The pro-RTA lobby is using fear tactics and false promises to pressure voters into believing this is our only path forward. It’s not. We are told that without the Regional Transportation Authority, critical transportation funding will disappear and progress will stall. That simply isn’t true.
Tucson has a better option: We can fully fund and implement the Move Tucson Plan. By keeping control of our own tax dollars, we can invest directly in the safer, more vibrant city we want. We can still collaborate with neighboring communities when it makes sense — without locking ourselves into another 20-year commitment.
The last two decades under the RTA showed that Tucson too often sends tax revenue outward while other jurisdictions reap disproportionate benefits. We should control all taxes collected here to improve our own streets and neighborhoods.
I’m voting no to protect local control and prioritize real safety improvements for Tucson.
Riley Merline
West side
Prop 411 — city street resurfacing
The Writer of “How soon we forget” in the Feb. 26 paper missed a few facts in her letter. First, the street repaving work of Proposition 411 is under the supervision of the Independent Oversight and Accountability Commission, not the Complete Streets Committee and the sales tax is limited to the neighborhood streets. As of the end of last December, there have been over 90 neighborhoods that have had their streets resurfaced, and there were approximately 40 neighborhoods in process, from engineering the needs to completing the project.
In addition, Prop 411 allocated $15M annually from the City’s General Fund for five years to repaving Collector Streets. Again, as of December 2025, 13 streets have had sections repaved, including Spanish Trail, Tucson Blvd, etc. In addition, there were 3 other projects under construction, and there are six projects in development that require additional engineering and/or have utility work needed under the street before the repaving will be done.
Dale Calvert
East side
RTA Next?
I read all 137 pages of RTA. My educated conclusion: Vote no, no, no. The past 20 years is a failure! Expanding roadways to the suburbs and filling potholes is annihilation. What we really need/want/wish for is transit trains like in SF, Portland, Seattle, LA, and Phoenix, which are reliable, faster, cheaper, and safer from the Tucson Airport with Tucson stops, through Oro Valley, proceeding to the Phoenix Airport on established tracks and reduced fares for the elderly and disabled.
By 2030, we will already have electric driverless cars and drone autos, reducing auto emissions. RTA promises more climate chaos, rush hour conflagrations, accidents, injuries, deaths, and speeders. RTA is not the future, but repeating past mistakes. Vote no.
Who supports RTA now: Self-interested money makers like General Contractors and Transportation Builders. This is a repeat of past disasters. Filling potholes is so old-fashioned.
Lawrence Quilici
Midtown
Praise for Tucson Symphony Orchestra
This is an open letter to those in our community who have not yet had the opportunity to experience the Tucson Symphony Orchestra. It is truly one of our city’s cultural treasures, and if you have never attended a performance, I encourage you to consider doing so.
The strength of any orchestra depends on the support of its community. The more support we give, the greater the music we are able to enjoy.
This season alone has demonstrated the remarkable talent of our symphony. Audiences were treated to a powerful performance of Mahler’s works, moving and masterful works that showcased the depth and precision of the ensemble. We also experienced Mahler’s Symphony No. 6, performed with an orchestra and percussion. It was nothing short of magnificent.
For anyone who missed these programs, you truly missed extraordinary musical experiences. We are fortunate to have such artistry here in Tucson, with leadership and conducting by Jose Luis Gomez. It deserves to be celebrated and supported.
John Pasalis
Oro Valley
I want a President I admire
Was the State of the Union address truthful? Did President Trump inherit "a nation in crisis?”
DHS statistics show border crossings declined by over 80% during the final year of the Biden administration. In November 2024, inflation was 2.7% according to the Department of Labor. In November 2025, it was the same. He claimed that he had “lifted” 2.4 million people off food stamps.” Food assistance was dramatically cut by Republicans in the One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB) so millions are not getting food stamps but denying food assistance is not “lifting.” It’s denying. He said the skyrocketing national debt was caused by immigrant fraud. In fact, the Congressional Budget Office estimates the tax cuts in the OBBB will 4 trillion to the national debt. Those tax cuts will go largely to the top 1% of earners.
I so want a new president I can admire, not this one who lies, scapegoats, fear-mongers and whines.
Mike Carran
West side
Attacks on justices condemned
The American College of Trial Lawyers condemned Donald Trump's February 2026 attacks on Supreme Court Justices, calling them a dangerous assault on the rule of law. The ACTL emphasized that while legal disagreement is acceptable, demeaning justices and accusing them of constitutional violations for ruling against his tariffs is unacceptable.
Do your fact checks, please.
Pat Bannon
Midtown
State of the Union address
I chose not to watch the long harangue Tuesday night, but did watch the PBS News Hour the following night. In it they fact checked some of Trump's incredible lies. For example, he said that in the 2024 election, there was "rampant fraud". They brought out the fact that in Georgia, a swing state, there were 20 fraudulent votes of the 8 million votes cast. Also, the present price of gasoline is well over two dollars a gallon, as claimed. More refreshing were interviews of Andy Beshear, the Democratic governor of Kentucky who gave his views of the political thinking present in the our country and a segment called "America at a Crossroads" in which Judy Woodruff interviewed patrons of a restaurant in a small town in Vermont and a historian, asking them what they thought was wrong in this country and what was needed to fix it. This program was well worth watching if you can catch a rebroadcast.
Tom Henderson
West side
Fraud czar?
Our fraudster in chief, Donald J Trump, just appointed JD Vance our Fraud Czar. What a mockery to honest Americans. Trump is the poster boy of fraud — from his fraudulent Trump University, promotion of his fraudulent scheme to overturn the 2020 election, or to the Trump Organization’s conviction of tax fraud and falsifying business records. Trump has been handing out get-out-of-jail-free cards to all of his rich convicted fraudster friends. Innocent victims have lost hundreds of millions in restitution.
If he were serious about fraud, JD Vance should look at his own administration. The list of Trump pardons and commutations includes individuals convicted of bank fraud, wire fraud, Medicare and Medicaid fraud, tax fraud, securities fraud, and public corruption.
And the morally bankrupt GOP simply turns a blind eye to Trump’s egregious pardons and commutations of convicted fraudsters, corrupt political operatives, and campaign finance criminals. Trump has turned our beloved country into a corrupt clown show in so many areas.
Kathy Krucker
Midtown
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