TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — As the city of Tucson is laying the groundwork for STAR Village—the city's first safe outdoor sleep area or city-sanctioned encampment—some neighbors are organizing in opposition.
Tucson leaders announced plans for STAR village on Aug. 22, saying first residents of the transitional tent city are expected to move in on Oct. 1.
That conference was the first time many neighbors living just blocks from the city-owned site learned of it's existence.
“I was furious," said Ward Three resident Jessica Allen. “I have worked so hard to make this a better neighborhood for everyone.”
She bought her home about two years ago, and says as a first-time home-owner, she chose her neighborhood specifically to feel secure.
She says that feeling disappeared within the first few weeks of living in her new home.
“A homeless man approached my autistic daughter in our backyard, while she was in our backyard, trying to talk to her," Allen said. "So I started paying more attention in our neighborhood.”
She says still, every neighbor she talked to— and she only spoke to six out of nine— had no idea Star Village was coming.
When Tucson leaders announced the plans, Mayor Regina Romero said this was a community effort, something "the city of Tucson is not doing this to the community." Instead, she says it's something "we want to do with the community."
Allen says she and her neighbors don't feel like they're part of the process.
“Nobody else in the neighborhood knew anything about it either until these news stories came out,” she said.
Now, Allen says she's rallying neighbors to oppose the project, saying it could add to litter and public drug use in the area.
City officials have emphasized from the beginning that Star Village is a pilot program with Mayor Romero saying, "we will be learning from it and that’s OK, and we will be hearing from the community and the neighbors."
Tucson officials say they'll be holding a community dialogue about neighborhood concerns in Mid-September.
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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.
