$750-Mil Cultural and Entertainment Project on Verge of Approval

TUCSON-Even though the costs of a wide ranging cultural and entertainment project for downtown Tucson have more than doubled to $750 million, the public seems to be in full support of moving forward.

The city of Tucson is moving forward on development of Rio Nuevo, a wide-ranging development centered on waterways, open space and cultural attractions that would run from one side of Tucson’s downtown to the other. As envisioned, the project will include a 20-acre cultural park, two hotels, up to 3,000 parking spaces, a 125,000-sf amphitheater, a 60,000-sf aquarium, 1,750 residential units, up to 500,000 sf of office space and 750,000 sf of retail space.

The project, which was approved by voters in 1999, has more than doubled in cost from an original estimate of $320 million. Design plans and studies have been conducted since then, and now the city is on the verge of approving a final plan. The city council said earlier this week that it would vote only after it heard from a citizens advisory committee and the project’s governing board.