Citizen Staff Writer
WEEK IN REVIEW
1 “Extreme Makeover”: The family of a 14-year-old Tucson girl with a rare congenital blood disorder will receive a new home, thanks to the dreams-come-true TV show, “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.” The Citizen’s online community manages to find the cloud in the story’s silver lining, however.
2Cop admits embezzling: A former South Tucson police lieutenant pleads guilty to embezzling more than $500,000 from the police department. Richard Robles Garcia, 47, admitted to stealing to pay for a gambling habit.
3Look, up in the sky: It’s a 180-foot-tall crane, a very large indication that Rio Nuevo and other private sector construction projects are making progress downtown. The crane went up Dec. 29 to help complete the Depot Plaza garage.
4Speaking of downtown: There’s nothing bold in the proposed design for the Sheraton hotel near the Tucson Convention Center. Architects envision two 23-story towers whose charms are subtle. This, according to one person who attended this week’s design forum, is as it should be: “It should not say, wow, it’s Tucson! All it is is a hotel.” But another attendee suggested that the hotel be designed to resemble a saguaro.
5Thrift store rules: Local thrift store managers are scrambling to comply with new federal product safety rules that could hold them open to prosecution and lawsuits if children are harmed by items they sell. The biggest worries: Toys tainted by lead paint or a chemical, possibly carcinogenic, found in some plastics.
Compiled by PAUL SCHWALBACH
pschwalb@tucsoncitizen.com