TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — A collection of historic casitas along Broadway Boulevard is finally poised to become a culinary destination after years of planning and redevelopment.
Rio Nuevo voted Tuesday to transfer the deeds for the seven historic structures that make up Tucson Gastro Park, clearing the way for businesses that have signed leases to begin improvements and prepare to move in.
“So we’re standing at a very historic place on the Sunshine Mile,” developer Peter Anadranistakis said.
The casitas, located on the north side of Broadway between Cherry and Warren avenues, were relocated in 2019 to preserve them during the Broadway widening project. Rio Nuevo said it invested up to $2 million to move the seven historic bungalow buildings as part of its Sunshine Mile redevelopment efforts.
“All of these beautiful structures have been saved,” Anadranistakis said. “And will turn into coffee shops, restaurants, places to buy pizza by the slice…”
The project originally was known as the Tucson Gastronomy Collective before being rebranded as Tucson Gastro Park. The concept is intended to highlight Tucson's designation as the first U.S. city named a UNESCO City of Gastronomy in 2015.
The casitas themselves are relatively small and were not designed to accommodate full commercial kitchens. Earlier plans called for shared kitchen and food-preparation space to support the businesses operating in the historic structures.
Tuesday's deed transfer followed the completion of project milestones, including infrastructure improvements and requirements intended to ensure the development showcases Tucson's culinary identity.
“And now we are handing over the keys to the tenants that have signed leases to start their improvements to start moving in and setting up their concepts,” Anadranistakis said.
Among the businesses involved is Talega Coffee Co., a downtown Tucson coffee shop and roaster. Anadranistakis said its Gastro Park concept will combine coffee service during the day with an agave-spirit-focused offering at night.
“One of my favorite coffee shops, Telega Coffee,” Anadranistakis said. “They’re gonna do coffee by day and agave based spirits by night.”
Another tenant will be Barrio Bread, the Tucson bakery founded by James Beard Award-winning baker Don Guerra.
“He’s gonna do a new concept here called Barrio Birote,” Anadranistakis said.
The project has evolved considerably since the original plans were announced in 2021, but the central goal of using the preserved Broadway bungalows to showcase Tucson's food culture remains. The development's website lists spring 2026 as its planned opening period, while the site is already being used for culinary and community events.
With the deeds now transferred and tenants preparing their spaces, the long-planned Sunshine Mile project is moving from preservation and construction into its next phase: getting Tucson's food businesses into the casitas.
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Eddie Celaya is a multimedia journalist at KGUN 9. Born in Tucson and raised in the Phoenix area, Eddie is a life-long Arizonan and graduate of the University of Arizona who loves the desert and mountains and hates the cold. Previously, Eddie worked in print media at the Arizona Daily Star. Share your story ideas with Eddie at edward.celaya@kgun9.com, or by connecting on Facebook or Instagram.
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