TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Just after sunset Wednesday evening, a group of Tucsonans set up a line of small tables with food, water bottles and basic medical supplies.
Across the street, another group of over a hundred people, made up of mutual aid groups and community members held signs reading "mutual aid is not a crime."
The group— known as Community Care Tucson or CCT— has held these picnics in Armory Park every Wednesday for about five years now.
Between 100 and 200 people line up beside the park in anticipation up to an hour before the folding tables even come out.
But those community picnics changed after Armory Park closed for renovations Sept. 2, part of the city of Tucson's voter-approved Proposition 407.
That threw a wrench into the mutual aid groups regular distributions
“Before this was fenced off, we’d have folks spread out across the grass, enjoying one another’s company while they’re enjoying their food,” said Jamie Cerretti, one of CCT's organizers.
Cerretti said she and her husband live near Armory Park. She calls the people who join them each week for the community picnic are her literal neighbors.
"We've built relationships with these folks," she said, "and we trust each other."
With a fenced off Armory Park, Community Care Tucson organizers moved a few feet over to the sidewalk. However, on their first distribution after the park closed, they were approach by city officials, asking them to get a permit.
In a video CCT shared with KGUN 9, a Tucson Police Department officer is seen saying "So today, we’re going to continue what you’re doing, you’re going to be allowed to feed and stuff like that. But afterwards, I obviously have a gentleman here from the city with me who says you’re going to have to be permitted."
That incident served as a rallying cry for mutual aid groups across Tucson, with over a hundred showing up across the street from CCT's Wednesday distribution.
"Immediately, we just acted in a form of just resistance to it in any kind of way,” said Xavier Martinez, an organizer with Amphi Liberation Mutual Aid on Tucson's Northside.
Tucson does have a statute regulating food distribution and large gatherings in city parks in the city code. The code requires anyone selling or giving out food or drinks to more than ten people to get a permit from the Pima County Health Department and an additional distribution permit from Tucson Parks and Recreation. The distribution permit is free.
The city says the system is designed to spread resources evenly throughout the city and to avoid overburdening certain parks. Tucson only offers permits for four locations:
- Mission Manor (6100 S 12th Ave.) seven days a week, mornings and evenings
- Mansfield Park (2000 N 4th Ave.) weekdays, mornings
- Todd Harris Sportsplex (2400 S Craycroft Rd.) weekdays, mornings
- Reid Park (22nd St. and Country Club Rd.) seven days a week, mornings and evenings
In March, Tucson Parks and Recreation held a series of community dialogues on their permitting system, with attendees overwhelmingly asking for the system to be dismantled. No changes have been made since those meetings.
In Tuesday's city council meeting City Manager Tim Thomure restated the city's policy, saying, "We do deeply appreciate the mutual aid groups, service providers and volunteers who continue to serve our most vulnerable neighbors, and we’re committed to supporting these efforts by offering alternate locations for food distribution and ensuring the process is safe and accessible for those in need.”
The city has reached out to CCT asking for in-person or video meetings to help them find a new spot to hold their distributions or help them get a permit.
They also directed Tucsonans in need of food resources to a guide on their website, listing places near Armory Park. However, none of those places are regularly available at the same time as CCT's distribution.
Community Care Tucson organizers argue that they don't need a permit or any city involvement at all, and they want to stay where people know how to find them.
"We don’t want to meet with the city about that," said Cerretti. "We’re expressing our political right to feed our neighbors and provide care to our community."
The group is being represented by the ACLU of Arizona on permitting issues.
No representatives from the city of Tucson or from Tucson Police Department came out to Armory Wednesday and no citations were handed out.
Rally organizers say they shared the message they wanted to send.
“Our attempt to build our base of concerned community members wanting change in Tucson, just [continues] to increase," Martinez said. "We just want to continue to build that.”
He added that any members of the city council paying attention to this rally should take it as a sign that the community supports investment in solutions like STAR village.
The city says Armory Park will be closed through summer 2026. In the meantime, CCT says they plan to continue their distributions from the sidewalk, always keeping a presence at Armory park.
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Alex Dowd is a multimedia journalist at KGUN 9, where her work combines her two favorite hobbies: talking to new people and learning about the community around her. Her goal is to eventually meet every single person in Tucson. Share your story ideas with Alex via email, alex.dowd@kgun9.com, or connecting on Instagram or X.
