Press Release: LOCAL NONPROFIT and CENTRAL TUCSON NEIGHBORHOOD WIN AMERICAN PLANNING ASSOCIATION AWARD FOR GREEN PROJECTS
On October 15, the Arizona Chapter of the American Planning Association (APA AZ) will present Tucson-based nonprofit Watershed Management Group (WMG) and the Rincon Heights Neighborhood Association (RHNA) with the first annual “Making Arizona Competitive in the 21st Century” (MAC21) award. WMG and RHNA were chosen for the award based on their collaborative effort to conduct education and install “green infrastructure” practices throughout the historic neighborhood. The practices—including curb cuts, landscaped basins and gravel-filled trenches that collect stormwater from streets and properties (see photo)—improve water quality, reduce flooding, and use stormwater to passively irrigate native trees and shrubs that shade and beautify neighborhood streets.
The MAC21 Award recognizes a program that “goes beyond the typical community plan and focuses on
creating infrastructure components that contribute to livability and long term sustainability,” as well as
“help[ing] the community be economically competitive in the 21st Century.” Hundreds of volunteers from Rincon
Heights, other neighborhoods and the University of Arizona have participated in hands-on workshops to
install green infrastructure practices on ten blocks in the neighborhood. WMG and neighborhood leaders worked
with the UA to install similar features at six of the UA’s parking lots and facilities in the neighborhood. Additional
projects in the neighborhood include traffic mitigation structures incorporating rainwater harvesting features
along two main streets, workshops to train community leaders from 13 other Tucson neighborhoods in green
infrastructure implementation, installation of a natural pocket park within the neighborhood, and an
educational program on non-point source pollution.
Major partners in the project include the City of Tucson (including its popular Trees for Tucson program), the University of Arizona, and the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (who funds WMG’s current work with RHNA).
Watershed Management Group conducts projects that integrate community development and conservation, and seeks to provide local residents and community groups with the knowledge and skills necessary to sustainably manage their natural resources.
To learn more about WMG’s innovative programs, visit www.watershedmg.org. Rincon Heights Neighborhood Association represents a central Tucson neighborhood that has pioneered work in the area of sustainable community development. www.rinconheights.org.
For more information, contact:
James MacAdam, Project Manager
Watershed Management Group
520-780-9416
james@watershedmg.org