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Housing & Community Development is excited to announce that our director, Liz Morales, has been appointed Assistant City Manager by City Manager Mike Ortega. In her past four years as director, Liz has expanded Tucson’s affordable housing portfolio, implemented the Housing Affordability Strategy for Tucson (HAST), and led a Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) project initiated by the City of Tucson. Liz brings a wealth of knowledge on housing that will be an asset to the City Manager’s Office.
We will miss Liz as our director, but she will still be close, as she is overseeing our department along with the other public works departments (Planning & Development, Transportation, Water, Parks & Recreation, and Environmental & General Services).
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Ann Chanecka, our current deputy director, will serve as interim director of Housing & Community Development. Ann brings over 10 years of experience working within the City of Tucson. Before she was deputy director, Ann held positions in the City Manager's Office and the Department of Transportation and Mobility. While deputy director, Ann assisted in the establishment of El Pueblo Housing Development, the City of Tucson’s development arm, and played a major role in the submittal of a Choice Neighborhoods Implementation Grant for the Thrive in the 05 area.
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Housing & Community Development will receive $2.7 million in state funds from Governor Katie Hobs and the Arizona Department of Housing to preserve existing emergency beds for people experiencing homelessness and to expand shelter services. The new funding will be directed towards the purchase of a new hotel to help stabilize the City’s Housing First and emergency shelter services.
This is part of $20 million in grants to local communities from the newly created Homeless Shelter and Services fund. The money was included in the new state budget signed by Governor Katie Hobbs. The new budget included $60 million for the homeless service fund with $20 million allocated immediately.
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At the June 6 Mayor and Council Study Session, Brandi Champion, Housing First program director, provided updates on the first 18 months of the Housing First program. Liz Morales, Assistant City Manager, also provided updates on the Point In Time (PIT) Count, Housing Choice Vouchers (Section 8), and affordable housing development in Tucson.
In the first 18 months of the City of Tucson’s Housing First Program began:
- 1,017 people served through Housing First’s Outreach Team
- 163 people housed through Housing First’s Outreach Team
- 651 people served through Coordinated Entry Navigation
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197 people housed through Coordinated Entry Navigation
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Homeless? Need to get out of the heat? The summer sun is dangerous for people living outdoors. Visit any of these cooling stations to get out of the sun and cool off.
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Salvation Army Hospitality House
1002 N Main Ave., noon to 5 p.m. 7 days a week
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Primavera Foundation
702 S. 6th Ave., 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m., Monday, Wednesday – Friday
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Sister Jose Women’s Center
1050 S. Park Ave., noon - 4 p.m., Monday – Saturday
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La Frontera RAPP
4554 S. Palo Verde Rd. Suite 2, 8 a.m. - 4 p.m., Monday – Friday
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Kino Service Center
2797 E. Ajo Way, 8 a.m. - 5 p.m., Monday – Friday, closed on holidays
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Rio Nuevo One Stop
320 N. Commerce Center Loop, 8 a.m. - 5 p.m., Monday - Friday, closed on holidays
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Grace St Paul’s Episcopalian Church
2331 E. Adams St., 12:30 - 4 p.m., Monday, Wednesday, Friday, when temperatures reach 105 degrees.
The City of Tucson has cooling centers open seven days a week, from noon-4 p.m. (closed for holidays on June 19 and July 4). The locations are listed below.
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Donna Liggins Center, 2160 N. 6th Ave, Tucson, AZ 85705
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El Pueblo Center, 101 W. Irvington Road, Tucson, AZ 85714
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El Rio Center, 1390 W. Speedway Blvd, Tucson, AZ 85745
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Morris K. Udall Center, 7200 E. Tanque Verde Road, Tucson, AZ 85715
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Randolph Center, 200 S. Alvernon Way, Tucson, AZ 85711
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Clements Center, 8155 E. Poinciana Drive, Tucson, AZ 85730
The cooling centers will be operational and stay accessible based on usage. Resources will be allocated to locations that demonstrate serving the highest level of need.
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Did you know that you can still apply for the housing waitlist? Lottery drawings take place monthly to determine eligibility.
Housing Waitlist, Lista de Espera de Vivienda, قائمة انتظار التسكين, 住房等候名单, 住房等候名單, 주택 대기자 명단, Danh sách chờ nhà ở, Orodha ya kusubiri ya makazi.
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Did you know Tucson Water offers bill assistance? A monthly discount is available for qualified Tucson Water customers. Call (520) 791-5443 to make an appointment or visit the website below for more information.
Additionally, the City of Tucson and Arizona Department of Economic Security are partnering to provide additional payment assistance for qualifying Tucson Water customers. Households currently enrolled in a Low-Income Assistance Program are now eligible to receive $3,000 in additional credit to be applied to past-due bills or future bills. You must register to claim your credit before Sept. 30 or you will lose this opportunity. If you're already on the assistance program, call (520) 791-3253 to learn more and register.
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