“In 1999 voters approved the creation of the Rio Nuevo Multipurpose Facilities District (District). The District is both a municipal stadium district and a special taxing district. The voters authorized the District to receive an incremental portion of State-shared funds derived from transaction privilege taxes (i.e. sales tax called TIF Funds) collected from within the District boundaries within the City of Tucson city limits. The District is a State municipal district with the powers, privileges and immunities granted to governmental, municipal corporations for District purposes: a planned multi-faceted development project, including cultural and recreational amenities and improvements, unique historic re-creations, mixed-use developments, etc. The District was reorganized by the Arizona State Legislature in the fall of 2009 and the board re-appointed in March 2010. Expenditure of the TIF Funds collected is now disbursed and managed by the reconstituted Rio Nuevo Multipurpose Facilities District Board of Directors who as of 2010 are appointed by the State’s Governor, President of the Senate, and Speaker of the House of Representatives.”

From: http://rionuevo-tucson.org/

For more info on Rio Nuevo also see this City of Tucson webpage, with financial reports: http://cms3.tucsonaz.gov/rionuevo

This 10 year (1999 to 2009) project has received a lot of attention recently due to conflicts between the City of Tucson Council and the new Rio Nuevo board, re-constituted by the State Legislature in March, 2010. Citizens have been asking about who were the Councilmembers (Democrats, Republicans, one Independent) during these 10 years, and beyond. Here’s the list of who was serving (as far as I remember):

Mayor: Robert Walkup (R), 1999 to present (not running for re-election 2011)
Ward 1: Jose Ibarra (D), 1999 to 2007; Regina Romero (D), 2007 to present (up for re-election 2011)
Ward 2: Carol West (D, I), 1999 to 2007; Rodney Glassman (D), 2007 to 2010; Paul Cunningham (D), appointed 2010 to present (up for election 2011)
Ward 3: Jerry Anderson (D), 1999 to 2001; Kathleen Dunbar (R), 2001 to 2005; Karin Uhlich (D), 2005 to present
Ward 4: Shirley Scott (D), 1999 to present (up for re-election 2011)
Ward 5: Steve Leal (D), 1999 to 2009; Richard Fimbres (D), 2009 to present
Ward 6: Fred Ronstadt (R), 1999 to 2005; Nina Trasoff (D), 2005 to 2009; Steve Kozachik (R), 2009 to present

(Some of these Councilmembers were serving before Rio Nuevo began, but I only list the starting point as 1999 when Rio Nuevo was created).

Those who were serving as elected officials during entire Rio Nuevo project: Mayor Bob Walkup, Councilmembers Steve Leal and Shirley Scott.

Those who came on the Council after late 2009: Councilmembers Richard Fimbres, Steve Kozachik, and Paul Cunningham.

And who were the Tucson City Managers during this time: Luis Gutierrez (1999), James Keene (2000 to 2005), and Mike Hein (2005 to 2009). Gutierrez is retired, Keene is now City Manager of Palo Alto, California, and Hein is Director of Pima County Emergency Management & Homeland Security.

Last November, 2010 I reported on the citizen outrage after an audit on Rio Nuevo was released about $230 million allegedly mismanaged:
http://tucsoncitizen.com/community/2010/11/29/citizens-express-outrage-over-rio-nuevo-mismanagement/

Stay tuned as the City Council and the new Rio Nuevo board have recently agreed to mediate their differences.

Hey women (and male friends): “Girl’s night out!”

Sat. Feb. 26, from 7 p.m. ’til we drop @ Preloved Chica Clothing, 102 E. 31st street, next door to Fortin de las Flores, which fellow blogger 3 Sonorans wrote about back in December (click here).

The “Girls Night Out!” event will feature shopping, sipping margaritas, enjoying scrumptious desserts, fabulous door prizes, and “por supesto” (for sure) dancing, plus stand up comedy by Stephanie Howard. Adults only please, with a suggested donation of $5.00.

I dropped by yesterday for a preview of the gently used resale shop and the new advocacy for women “action center” Fortin de las Flores in the same building. The goal of Fortin de las Flores is “supporting families and creating leaders for social justice today.”

The open house/luncheon was attended by Ward 3 Councilmember Karin Uhlich, former Ward 5 Councilmember Steve Leal (now a talk show host on KJLL 1330 AM radio), and representatives from the City of Tucson Office of Equal Opportunity Programs, House of Neighborly Services, Center for Economic Security, CODAC Behavioral Health Services Inc., Sky Island Alliance, and Tucsoncitizen.com.

Mission statement:

Fortín de las Flores is a grassroots membership-based organization dedicated to promoting civil, economic and human rights of women throughout Southern Arizona. As an action center we work to create alternatives to confront the poverty and violence that plagues our families as well as maintaining a commitment to celebrating the positive and healthy accomplishments found within our community

The four program coordinators of this new organization are women activists with diverse backgrounds in student counseling, domestic violence, organizing, politics, and immigrant rights. These four are Lea Tanya Koppa, Lorena Howard, Maritza Broce, and Rosalva Fuentes, who can all be reached at 520-795-3460, or info@fortindelasflores.org. Website: www.fortindelasflores.org (under construction), mailing address is P.O. Box 77096, Tucson 85703. Bilingual services in Spanish/English will be available.

The location of this action center/soon-to-open resale shop is on the SE corner of E. 31st and S. 6th Avenue in South Tucson, five blocks south of the Sam Lena-South Tucson branch library. Lots of free parking in the back parking lot (towards the south).

Donations of new & gently-used items are needed right now – especially working women’s clothing, boys’ clothes, and books for all ages. Memberships are also available starting at $30, plus monetary donations to “directly help women build a better future for themselves and their families.” Please help these women get this agency/resale shop started, to help other sisters in need.

It seems that there are a lot of former politicians on the radio in Tucson (especially KJLL The Jolt, 1330 AM):

Mondays: former Ward 6 Councilmember Nina Trasoff, “Pima Community College Perspective”, 6 p.m.

Tuesdays: former District 1 Pima County Supervisor Ron Asta, “Ron Asta’s Tucson”, 12 noon

Tuesdays: former Ward 6 Councilmember Fred Ronstadt, “The Fred & Jeff Show” (with his younger brother Jeff), 5 p.m.

Thursdays: former Ward 5 Councilmember Steve Leal, “All Things Political“, 12 noon

Daily: former State Senator John C. Scott, “The John C. Scott Show“, 3 to 5 pm. M to Th, 3 to 4 p.m. Fridays.

Incidentally Scott is also the General Manager of KJLL.

Host John C. Scott sometimes appears on Arizona Public Media‘s KUAT Channel 6 TV’s “Friday Roundtable” political discussion at 6:30 p.m., with reporters/editors from the Arizona Daily Star, Tucson Weekly, Arizona Republic, Green Valley News & Sun, and even sometimes our Editor Mark Evans of Tucsoncitizen.com.

J.D. Hayworth in Phoenix was also a radio talk show host (KFYI 550 AM) after he lost his job as CD5 Congressman, and before he resigned to run for U.S. Senate in Arizona this year against incumbent John McCain.

So stay tuned, for more former politicians evolving into radio talk show hosts & hostesses. Anyone else I missed?