Tucson, Arizona

====Downtown and Central Tucson====
[[File:TucsonDowntownView1.jpg|thumb|Downtown Tucson viewed from the Tucson Mountains]]
[[File:Tuscon 19thCentury Adobe.jpg|thumb|right|A 19th-century adobe house in the Armory Park neighborhood]]

Similar to many other cities in the Western US, Tucson was developed by European Americans on a [[grid plan]] starting in the late 19th century, with the city center at Stone Avenue and Broadway Boulevard. While this intersection was initially near the [[Centroid|geographic center]] of Tucson, the center has shifted as the city has expanded far to the east. Development to the west was effectively blocked by the Tucson Mountains. Covering a large geographic area, Tucson has many distinct neighborhoods.

Tucson's earliest neighborhoods, some of which were redeveloped and covered by the [[Tucson Convention Center]] (TCC), include:
* El Presidio,<ref>{{cite web |url-status=dead |url=http://www.tucsonpresidiotrust.org/PDF/Presidio_map.pdf |title=The Presidio Trail |website= Tucson Presidio Trust for Historic Preservation |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090704082402/http://tucsonpresidiotrust.org/PDF/Presidio_map.pdf |archive-date=July 4, 2009 }}</ref> Tucson's oldest neighborhood.
* Barrio Histórico,<ref>{{cite web |url-status=dead |url=http://southwest.library.arizona.edu/barr/index.html |title=Barrio historico Tucson |website=The University of Arizona Library's Southwest Electronic Text Center |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100703102438/http://southwest.library.arizona.edu/barr/index.html |archive-date=July 3, 2010 |access-date=March 12, 2010 }}</ref> also known as Barrio Libre.
* [[Armory Park Historic Residential District|Armory Park]] is directly south of downtown.
* Barrio Anita,<ref>{{cite news|url=http://tucson.com/news/local/street-smarts-well-i-hardly-knew-what-to-think-of/article_1887ad66-9cb1-5830-be34-ea2caa21be1d.html |date=April 15, 2014 |title=Street Smarts: 'Well, I hardly knew what to think of the place' was Tucsonan's first impression|first=David |last=Leighton|newspaper=Arizona Daily Star|access-date=July 7, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180620001802/https://tucson.com/news/local/street-smarts-well-i-hardly-knew-what-to-think-of/article_1887ad66-9cb1-5830-be34-ea2caa21be1d.html|archive-date=June 20, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> named for an early settler, is located between Granada Avenue and Interstate 10.
* Barrio Tiburón, now known as the Fourth Avenue arts district, was designated in territorial times as a [[red-light district]].
* Barrio El Jardín is named for an early recreational site, Levin's Gardens.
* Barrio El Hoyo is named for a lake that was part of the gardens. Before the convention center was built, the term ''El Hoyo'' (Spanish for 'pit' or 'hole') referred to this part of the city. Residents were mostly Mexican-American citizens and Mexican immigrants.
* [[Barrio Santa Rosa (Tucson, Arizona)|Barrio Santa Rosa]], dating from the 1890s, is now listed as a historic district on the [[National Register of Historic Places]].

Other historical neighborhoods near downtown include:
* Feldman's, just north and northwest of the University of Arizona, the neighborhood is named for Alther M. Feldman (1833–1906), an Eastern European immigrant who arrived in Tucson ''circa'' 1878. Neighborhood streets Helen and Mabel are named for his daughters.<ref>''Images of America: Early Tucson,'' by Anne I. Woosley and the Arizona Historical Society; (c) 2008 Arcadia Publishing; {{ISBN|0-7385-5646-7}}</ref> Feldman owned a photographic studio known as the Arizona Tent Gallery.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://tucson.com/news/local/street-smarts-feldman-brought-family-to-tucson-after-s-economic/article_4451d045-997a-5c77-a892-5ef7f44ba36d.html|title=Street Smarts: Feldman brought family to Tucson after 1870s economic crash|first=David |last=Leighton|newspaper=Arizona Daily Star|access-date=September 14, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160913043440/http://tucson.com/news/local/street-smarts-feldman-brought-family-to-tucson-after-s-economic/article_4451d045-997a-5c77-a892-5ef7f44ba36d.html|archive-date=September 13, 2016|url-status=live}}</ref>
* Menlo Park, situated west of downtown, is adjacent to Sentinel Peak.
* Iron Horse, east of Fourth Avenue and north of the railroad tracks, is named for its proximity to the railroad, informally known by that term.
* West University is between the University of Arizona and downtown.
* Dunbar Spring is west of West University.
* Pie Allen, west and south of the university near [[Tucson High School]], is named for [[Pie Allen|John Brackett "Pie" Allen]], a local entrepreneur and early mayor of Tucson.
* Sam Hughes, east of the University of Arizona, is named after a European-American pioneer in Tucson.
[[File:DTTucsonCongressSt.jpg|thumb|right|Bikes along Congress Street near Fifth Avenue]]

At the end of the 2010s, city planners and the business community worked to redevelop downtown Tucson. The primary project was Rio Nuevo, a large retail and community center that had been stalled in planning for more than a decade.<ref>{{cite news |author=Rob O'Dell |work=Arizona Daily Star |url=http://azstarnet.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/article_b255ce66-e3a3-11df-aefc-001cc4c03286.html |title=Azstarnet.com |date=October 29, 2010 |access-date=January 22, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110101210259/http://azstarnet.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/article_b255ce66-e3a3-11df-aefc-001cc4c03286.html |archive-date=January 1, 2011 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.kvoa.com/news/rio-nuevo-town-hall-packed/ |title=Kvoa.com |website=Kvoa.com |date=June 23, 2010 |access-date=January 22, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111227040633/http://www.kvoa.com/news/rio-nuevo-town-hall-packed/ |archive-date=December 27, 2011}}</ref> Downtown is generally regarded as the area bordered by 17th Street to the south, I-10 to the west, and 6th Street to the north, and Toole Avenue and the [[Union Pacific Railroad|Union Pacific]] (formerly [[Southern Pacific Transportation Company|Southern Pacific]]) railroad tracks, site of the historic train depot<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tucsonhistoricdepot.org/1673/timeline/index.htm|title=Arrival of the Southern Pacific Railroad in Tucson|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110126134917/http://www.tucsonhistoricdepot.org/1673/timeline/index.htm|archive-date=January 26, 2011|access-date=March 12, 2012}}</ref> on the east side. Downtown is divided into the Presidio District, the Barrio Viejo, and the Congress Street Arts and Entertainment District.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tucson.world-guides.com/tucson_districts.html |title=Tucson Neighbourhoods, Locations and Districts: Locations in Tucson Area, AZ, USA |website=Tucson.world-guides.com |access-date=October 27, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110415105009/http://www.tucson.world-guides.com/tucson_districts.html |archive-date=April 15, 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Some authorities include the 4th Avenue shopping district, northeast of the rest of downtown and connected by an underpass beneath the [[Union Pacific Railroad|UPRR]] tracks.

[[File:Fox theater Tucson.jpg|thumb|left|upright|The recently restored [[Fox Tucson Theatre|Fox Theatre]] is in downtown Tucson.]]
Historic attractions downtown with rich architecture include the [[Hotel Congress]] designed in 1919, the Art Deco [[Fox Tucson Theatre|Fox Theatre]] designed in 1929, the [[Rialto Theatre (Arizona)|Rialto Theatre]] opened in 1920, and [[Augustine of Hippo|St. Augustine Cathedral]] completed in 1896.<ref>[http://www.emporis.com/en/wm/ci/?id=102386 Tucson, U.S.A. | Emporis.com] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061026052349/http://www.emporis.com/en/wm/ci/?id=102386 |date=October 26, 2006 }}. Retrieved March 12, 2010.</ref> Included on the National Register of Historic Places is the old [[Pima County Courthouse]], designed by [[Roy Place]] in 1928.<ref>[http://www.azhistorytraveler.org/templates/content-view.php?nid=2&sid=546 Public Buildings – Pima County Courthouse], Arizona Heritage Traveler {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150201035639/http://www.azhistorytraveler.org/templates/content-view.php?nid=2&sid=546 |date=February 1, 2015 }}</ref> The El Charro Café, Tucson's oldest restaurant, operates its main location downtown.<ref>[http://www.elcharrocafe.com/ El Charro Café] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090524002650/http://www.elcharrocafe.com/ |date=May 24, 2009 }}. Retrieved March 12, 2010.</ref>

As one of the oldest parts of town, Central Tucson is anchored by the Broadway Village shopping center, designed by local architect [[Josias Joesler]] at the intersection of Broadway Boulevard and Country Club Road. The 4th Avenue Shopping District between downtown, the university, and the Lost Barrio just east of downtown, also has many unique and popular stores. Local retail business in Central Tucson is densely concentrated along Fourth Avenue and the Main Gate Square on University Boulevard near the UA campus. The [[El Con Mall]] is also in the eastern part of midtown.

[[File:UAmainlibr 1008.jpg|thumb|right|[[University of Arizona]] Main Library]]

The [[University of Arizona]], chartered in 1885, is in midtown and includes [[Arizona Stadium]] and [[McKale Center]] (named for [[Pop McKale|J.F. "Pop" McKale]], a prominent coach and athletics administrator at the university).<ref>{{cite news|url=http://tucson.com/news/local/street-smarts-before-arena-road-named-for-pop-mckale/article_cd1caeba-795d-57cf-9442-337adfa391ad.html|title=Street Smarts: Before arena, road named for "Pop" McKale|first=David |last=Leighton|newspaper=Arizona Daily Star|access-date=September 14, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160912165211/http://tucson.com/news/local/street-smarts-before-arena-road-named-for-pop-mckale/article_cd1caeba-795d-57cf-9442-337adfa391ad.html|archive-date=September 12, 2016|url-status=live}}</ref>

The historic [[Tucson High Magnet School|Tucson High School]] (designed by Roy Place in 1924) was featured in the 1987 film ''Can't Buy Me Love''. The Arizona Inn (built in 1930) and the [[Tucson Botanical Gardens]] are also in Central Tucson.

Tucson's largest park, [[Reid Park]], is in midtown and includes [[Reid Park Zoo]] and [[Hi Corbett Field]]. Speedway Boulevard, a major east–west arterial road in central Tucson, was named the "ugliest street in America" by [[Life (magazine)|''Life'']] in the early 1970s, quoting Tucson Mayor [[Jim Corbett (politician)|James Corbett]].

In the late 1990s, Speedway Boulevard was awarded "Street of the Year" by ''[[Arizona Highways]].''<!-- based on what criteria? --> Speedway Boulevard was named after an historic horse racetrack, known as the [[Harlem River Drive#History|Harlem River Speedway]], and more commonly called "The Speedway", in New York City. The Tucson street was called "The Speedway" from 1904 to about 1906, when "The" was removed from the title.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://tucson.com/news/local/street-smarts-speedway-s-sports-racing-roots/article_f7b451ec-214a-5017-818c-ef3c6dae3dd5.html|title=Street Smarts: Speedway's sports racing roots|first=David |last=Leighton|newspaper=Arizona Daily Star|access-date=July 7, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180707201909/https://tucson.com/news/local/street-smarts-speedway-s-sports-racing-roots/article_f7b451ec-214a-5017-818c-ef3c6dae3dd5.html|archive-date=July 7, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

As of the early 21st century, Central Tucson is considered [[bicycle-friendly]]. To the east of the University of Arizona, Third Street is bike-only except for local traffic; it passes by the historic homes of the Sam Hughes neighborhood. To the west, East University Boulevard leads to the Fourth Avenue Shopping District. To the North, North Mountain Avenue has a full bike-only lane for half of the {{convert|3.5|mi|km}} to the [[Rillito River Park]] bike and walk multi-use path. To the south, North Highland Avenue leads to the Barraza-Aviation Parkway bicycle path.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://tucson.com/news/blogs/streetsmarts/street-smarts-barraza-worked-to-unify-arizona-miners/article_dd19cc84-c0ef-5bff-be21-d0db8eb2d216.html|title=Street Smarts: Barraza worked to unify Arizona miners|first=David |last=Leighton|newspaper=Arizona Daily Star|access-date=September 14, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160829090330/http://tucson.com/news/blogs/streetsmarts/street-smarts-barraza-worked-to-unify-arizona-miners/article_dd19cc84-c0ef-5bff-be21-d0db8eb2d216.html|archive-date=August 29, 2016|url-status=live}}</ref>