A former Tucson fire station will be converted into a housing resource center under a plan recently approved by the city council.
The Housing First Resource Center will include a shelter and provide transitional and emergency housing for Tucsonans experiencing homelessness. It will be located in the Amphitheater neighborhood near North Oracle and West Prince roads.
“We have so many unsheltered folks, not just in this neighborhood, but throughout the city,” said Councilman Kevin Dahl. “We need to provide more of this low barrier, highly resourced shelter for folks so they can come and have a roof over their head.”
“We got almost a million dollars of congressionally directed funding from senators Kelly and Sinema and the former representative Kirkpatrick,” Dahl said. “And the city has some other funds that they’re going to bring.”
The extra money includes community development block grants and funds from the American Rescue Plan Act, he said.
The council voted unanimously on June 18 to rezone the property to allow the city to convert the property for the resource center.
“The building itself will be the resource center where people can come and get information about housing and resources,” Dahl said. “And there is a day shelter as part of that, and also a congregate shelter where people can sleep.”
In addition to the existing building, the new resource center will also install up to 35 micro shelters in the back of the property. Each unit will be secure, and equipped with electricity, air conditioning and heat. Residents also will have access to communal bathrooms, showers, laundry and storage areas.
“We have a couple of others of these housing first, low barrier situations,” Dahl said. “They are the most productive ways of getting people off the streets and into permanent housing.”
“If you’re living on the street, it’s hard to get out of that cycle,” he said. “It’s hard to take the steps necessary to find a job, to find services.”
The new shelter facility will also accommodate companion animals, removing another major barrier for unhoused individuals seeking shelter.
“Once the micro-shelters are up, those will be pet friendly. So you don’t have to give up your dog to get into services,” Dahl said.
While reaction to the project from neighbors has been mixed, the plan has received wider community support, said Ann Chanecka, director of the city’s Housing and Community Development.
“We’re in a housing crisis and homelessness is through the roof, and people need resources so desperately,” said Kate Saunders, a resident of the area and community engagement specialist at Living Streets Alliance. “It’ll relieve that pressure of the community and allow them to continue to support people, but with city infrastructure in there.”
Despite broad community approval, Chanecka and Dahl both said that residents in the immediate area have repeatedly voiced concerns about the development.
Multiple neighbors who spoke at a county examiners meeting said they are against locating the project in a residential neighborhood. Personal safety, security and privacy, as well as decreased property value, were among their concerns.
City officials will continue to work to address issues raised by residents, employing measures they have enacted at other Housing First projects like the Wildcat Inn, which Chanecka said have been successful.
“The facility will have 24/7 staff and or security and so there will be a number at all times that anyone can call if they see anything that worries them. And then there will be additional safety measures such as cameras,” Chanecka said. “There is a curfew in terms of when guests can come in and we always create community rules that need to be adhered to.”
Now that the property is rezoned, Chanecka said she looks forward to seeing the benefits the facility will bring to the community.
“We need a lot more projects like this, but I think that this is a step,” Chanecka said.
