Topics in This Issue:

-Migrant Needs

-Plastic Blocks

-Sustainable Tucson

-RTA

-Transit fares

-Garden District Porch Fest

-Tucson Wildlife Center

-Disability Pride Day

-Domestic Violence Awareness Month

-Angel Charities World of Play at the Zoo

-Thanks to Sun Link Workers

-Alamo Wash Renaming

-Pima County Youth One Stop Hiring Event

-Desert Living Home Tour

-COVID

Migrant Needs

Last week our team delivered out to the Alitas Welcome Center the hygiene donations many of you have been bringing. As we pulled up, they were just letting roughly 100 new guests off from a bus. As we were leaving about a half hour later an ICE bus had pulled up and was dropping off another 60-75 people. The staff and volunteers out at Alitas are working hard to accommodate the people in a welcoming and compassionate manner. City staff and volunteers are doing the same at the hotels we have had to stand up to take care of the overflow from Alitas. On a ‘normal’ day about 400 people arrive. Those numbers spike, and occasionally have spiked to the north of 700 recently. All of your donations are going to people who have traveled over some very difficult conditions, leaving life-threatening conditions in their home country, and show up at our southern border. Border Patrol arrests them, processes their paperwork and when they arrive at Alitas they are here legally, pending the outcome of their immigration/asylum process. They show up with nothing more than the clothes on their back.

The majority of the people we’re now seeing at Alitas come from Venezuela, Cuba, and Nicaragua. Of course, other South and Central American countries are also represented.

We continue to need the following:

New and unopened underwear (men’s and women’s and children’s,) new socks, and personal hygiene products. That’s shampoo, sunscreen, lotion, toothpaste, feminine products, soap – that sort of thing. New children’s toys.

One lady came to the office last week and let me know she was ordering some hand puppets. What a great idea. The kids will be on a bus or plane for days or hours, traveling to their next of kin or their sponsor. That’s a perfect way for them to entertain themselves. Other small travel-sized kids toys are also welcome. NO CLOTHING PLEASE. Just the items listed. We’re located at 3202 E. 1^st Street – across Speedway from the Loft. Our office is open until 1pm every weekday. We appreciate the responsiveness of the community.

Plastic Blocks

I know many of you have enjoyed and appreciated my handwritten/scribbled “Plastic Only” signs on the roll-off. Some of the gents over at Environmental Services thought they could give us a better ‘look’ - so you’ll be seeing this baby outside the ward office now. Same size – same rules of the game – plastic only, but let’s continue filling it up. We’re grateful to the staff at E.S. for taking this added chore on.

We have another new partner in the plastic program. That is Vegan Deli located at 5071 E. 5^th. Tanya and her team have copies of our starter kits on their front counter. The program fits with the environmentally sensitive ethic the Deli promotes.

Another thing they’re promoting is their ‘Burger of the Month.” Note the name – and yes, they gave me the opportunity to select the ingredients. Nadia from our Ward 6 team used to make Tempeh from scratch back home in Indonesia. It took her 3 days of prep – she gives the Vegan Deli Tempeh 5 stars.

We continue to expand the reach of the plastic program. If you’ve got a business then you create waste plastic. We want it. We made our first pick-up at the Assistance League last Friday. Caridad Kitchen is now partnering with us. I spoke with Tohono Chul – they're coming on board. The program continues to expand by the week.

Here’s our current progress report. We began this on August 1^st. On October 1^st, we have passed the 13-ton mark. That’s well ahead of what I had anticipated, and it shows how you’ve bought into the program. I know having a single drop-off point in the region is not the most convenient so please know that all of us who are taking part in this pilot phase appreciate the extra effort you invest in showing how much the program is valued. As I write this on the weekend our first full semi-load of plastic is headed over to ByFusion in California. Of note will be the number of blocks they send back, and the contamination rate they find in the bales. We should have the contamination information for me to share by next week’s newsletter.

Here’s the link to sign up for updates on the program. It will also help us keep the zip code information growing and up to date.  

https://www.byfusion.com/pilot-program/

Keep your non-recyclable plastic coming. The driveway area by the roll-off turns into a steady stream of cars. We appreciate you taking the time to come by and do the drops. We’re still giving away clear bags – come grab some if you’d like. We’re open until 1pm every weekday. And when you come by, please take a moment and toss your stuff in the windows on the back side of the roll-off. It’s common for the thing to look jam-packed when in fact there’s room on the rear.

Click here to View the More Information About City Of Tucson A Message from Steve K Newsletter - October 10, 2022