SHRP’s May 13, 2021 Email to Mayor and City Council

Dear Mayor Romero and City Council Members,

We are writing to express our most sincere thanks for the motion you approved on May 4th preserving Barnum Hill and the south duck pond for generations of Tucsonans to enjoy. We also thank you for making it possible for the people of Tucson to participate in developing a win-win-win solution for Reid Park, Reid Park Zoo and all of Tucson. You acknowledged that you heard the community and that you welcome community participation in planning and implementing community projects. That is so important.

With regard to the future expanded footprint of the zoo, everyone is excited about the prospect of implementing G-Minor, the win-win-win for Tucson.

The City Manager noted in his May 4th memo that the community needs to stay involved in the design phase for the zoo expansion. And we agree. We look forward being part of this public engagement process. Please let us know as soon as possible when and how this public process will take shape.

We are fortunate to have a Mayor and Council who understand the importance of public participation and who value open green space the way you do. We are also lucky to have a community that cares deeply about its public parks. And, finally, we are really blessed to have a nationally renowned zoo architect who has contributed his time and attention to perfecting a plan—developed by the community through the process you convened—that makes it possible to expand the zoo while preserving all green space for the public’s use.

We look forward to participating actively in the Master Plan processes for both the Reid Park Zoo and for Reid Park.

Sincerely,