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Public transit riders in ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ will no longer be required to wear masks, according to a statement released by Sun Tran on Tuesday that said its employees no longer have to “enforce mask wearing.â€�

The policy change applies to the city’s entire transit system — including buses, the downtown streetcar, Sun Van and Sun Shuttle — and comes one day after the national mask mandate for airplanes and public transportation was struck down by a federal judge in Florida.

It marks the end of nearly two years of mask requirements on ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ buses, one of the few COVID-19 mitigation measures that have persisted as local governments across the country have relaxed pandemic-related restrictions.

“Sun Tran has been notified that the federal mask requirement is no longer in effect for the public transit industry,� Sun Tran wrote in Tuesday’s statement. “As a result, Sun Tran, Sun Van, Sun Link and Sun Shuttle employees are not required to enforce mask wearing.�

The number of new weekly COVID-19 cases in Pima County has consistently been below 1,000 since late-February and weekly hospitalizations also remained under 500 throughout that same timeframe.

The end of the mandate may help city officials combat a spike in incidents of assault, which tripled between 2019 and 2021 — from 21 to 64 — and were primarily driven by outbursts over mask requirements, according to city staffers.

ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s transit riders can still wear masks if they choose to, which is recommended by the CDC. Sun Tran will also continue to provide face coverings for riders despite the mandate being at an end.

“Please respect those who choose to continue wearing masks,� Sun Tran’s statement read.

A newly released of the Regional Transportation Authority shows that its projects still face a massive funding shortage, and officials seem no closer to having a specific solution to fix the problem than they were last summer.

The RTA is a road work program that uses a voter-approved sales tax to upgrade the region’s transportation network, implementing projects like street widening to reduce congestion and installing bike lanes to boost pedestrian safety.

Hundreds of millions of tax dollars have poured into the program since 2006, though the recent audit shows its work has had “mixed� success. Car crashes in Pima County have decreased by thousands under the RTA, for instance, but the rate of biker deaths increased by 35% — a higher rate than all but one of the comparison cities cited in the report.

Those are just some of many RTA successes and shortcomings listed in the audit, though all are overshadowed by one major problem: a $150 million gap in funding that continues to threaten the future of 11 major projects, the vast majority of which are located in ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥.

“We have as much stake as the RTA does in the completion and delivery of the program,â€� said ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ City Manager Michael Ortega about the shortage. “It’s really about delivery of the program as a whole as was promised to the voters. How we do that is a function of putting some more money into it (and) putting partnerships together.â€�

Auditors found that each of the underfunded projects require an extra $2 million to $64 million before they can be completed, blaming the “cost overruns� on factors that include rising construction expenses and unforeseen challenges like large-scale drainage problems.

This is not a new issue, however. ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s RTA projects — including one on First Avenue that’s meant to fix one of the city’s deadliest roads — have been in peril for over a year, with no clear solution in sight.

It played a central role in the city’s monthslong battle with the RTA earlier this year that nearly ended with the county’s largest jurisdiction withdrawing support for the regional initiative, which could have spelled the end of the RTA when it goes up for voter renewal in 2026.

Ortega and the RTA gave few specifics about how the gap will be closed, with both saying they will work with each other to come up with the money. The RTA’s governing board also vowed to complete the projects, though the motion was similarly light on details.

“I’m confident that the RTA Board has made a commitment to deliver the program. A couple of meetings ago, a motion was made and approved that reestablished their commitment to deliver the program,� Ortega said. “Based on that motion, I’m very confident that the program will be delivered. What the configuration and the time frame of that delivery looks like, I can’t tell you because those details were not worked out.�

The RTA is only required to meet the funding amount that was listed on the 2006 ballot. With increased construction costs and inflation, that’s not enough, however, but program officials said it’s ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s responsibility to cover the gap.

“The RTA will coordinate with local governments to identify non-RTA funds to complete the cost of constructing RTA projects,� a program spokesperson said. “It is the responsibility of the local government agency constructing a project to identify and provide funding for cost overruns beyond the RTA voter-approved ballot amount.�

One potential solution is decreasing the scope of some projects. It’s been proposed for First Avenue, where the change would close the funding gap for that project by focusing on safety improvements and nixing the roadway widening that was originally planned.

City officials said extra lanes on First Avenue are no longer necessary because traffic there has not increased as much as staffers predicted in 2006, though the RTA has been hesitant to change any voter-approved projects so late in the game.

Ortega also mentioned using federal grants to secure the needed funds, but that solution could be messier than it seems.

ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ has big transportation goals outside of the RTA that require a 50% increase in the city’s annual road work budget. Officials have said federal funding will be a major part of those efforts, as well.

It’s unclear if using federal grants to pay for RTA projects would drain those resources for city-specific goals. Such a scenario could close the funding gap, but also cripple ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s other transportation efforts over the next decade.

“I don’t know about that. That would be a question for the feds,â€� Ortega said about whether using federal funds for ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s RTA projects would conflict with funding city-specific initiatives. He added that the needs of the different transportation initiatives in the region are “independent,â€� but there’s “an opportunity to bring in federal dollars to help the region as a whole.â€�

Discussions about the funding gap will be ongoing among RTA Board members for the foreseeable future. Officials from across the region remain confident that they will find the money, despite having made little progress toward a solution over the past year.

Longtime city staffer Sam Credio has been chosen to lead the transportation department, a highly consequential appointment that could determine the fate of ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s largest road work initiatives in recent memory.

Credio has worked for the city since 2012 in roles ranging from engineering manager to deputy director of transportation. Most recently he worked in the city manager’s office, where he helped develop a plan to incentivize the use of electric vehicles.

His new role as director carries a salary of $175,000, as well as a long list of critical projects that Credio will have to tackle in the first few months: hundreds of miles of road still have to be repaved under the Proposition 101 program, for example, and efforts to fix every residential street in ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ will need to begin if Proposition 411 is passed by voters in May.

Credio will also be tasked with boosting the department’s road work budget by about 50% — or more than $120 million in extra funding annually — and electrifying ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s bus fleet, an initiative that could cost another $200 million to fully implement.

“Right off the bat, I think we need to recognize that this is a historic time for federal funding, especially as it relates to infrastructure,� Credio said about meeting those massive funding goals, one of his biggest priorities for the coming year. “We as a department are really going to put ourselves into a position to aggressively pursue federal funding.�

The new director singled-out the “Low or No Emission Vehicle Program,â€� a federal grant that could provide millions for new electric buses, and mentioned two other tranches of federal money that could be used to expand ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s electric vehicle resources over the next year.

The city is also “well positioned� to get a big chunk of cash from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Plan. Mayor Regina Romero attended the signing of the $1.2 trillion law in Washington D.C. last year, and it’s expected to fund a wide range of local projects that Credio’s department will help implement.

“The bill represents a historic investment in our nation’s infrastructure, supporting a number of potential projects locally, ranging from a state-of-the-art Bus Rapid Transit system and a new ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥-Phoenix passenger rail line, to building a grid of electric-vehicle charging stations,â€� Romero said about the federal bill.

Voters to decide Prop. 411

Credio’s other priorities include getting Prop. 411 passed by voters on May 17, something that will make or break ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s overall road work efforts.

The ballot initiative will generate $740 million through a half-cent sales tax, which will go toward repaving roads and installing new safety features like upgraded traffic signals. It’s a crucial funding source and would generate enough cash to fix every local street in ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ over the next ten years.

Resident taxes also won’t go up if the initiative is passed. It’s an extension of Prop. 101, an earlier initiative approved by voters in 2017, which has already funded hundreds of miles of road repair using the same sales tax.

But about half of the 900 miles of road work promised under Prop. 101 still isn’t completed. Credio will have to oversee those projects as well, and the goal is to get that done by next summer.

“We want to finish strong with the Proposition 101, ‘ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Delivers’ program. We’re nearing the finish line there and we’re really excited to get that program wrapped up,â€� The new transportation director said. “It’s (also) a really exciting time to be the transportation director because with Prop. 411 on the ballot in May, if that’s successful, it’s really going to infuse our department with a lot of money to be able to fix the roads in ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥.â€�

Projects face funding gaps

The Prop. 411 sales tax will be collected over the next ten years if it passes, so it will be a long-term focus for Credio in addition to other city projects under the Regional Transportation Authority, a program that uses a similar half-cent sales tax to fund road work across Pima County.

The RTA has generated hundreds-of-millions for ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s projects since 2006 and will expire in four years if it isn’t renewed by voters, another scenario that could throw a wrench in Credio’s ability to fulfill ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s transportation goals.

The city’s current RTA projects are also facing multi-million-dollar funding gaps — including the project on First Avenue, one of the most dangerous streets in ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ — which Credio will have to work to address within his first few years as director.

“Funding is always the challenge, but I also think there’s also a lot of opportunity there,â€� said Credio, who added that he’s confident the city can pull “together different pots of moneyâ€� to address ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s many transportation needs.

City council members all voiced their support for the appointee before unanimously voting to appoint him as director on April 5, saying he is the best person to “juggleâ€� all of the initiatives ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ is hoping to execute in the near future.

“In the last 12 years, it’s probably the most important time with all of the different balls we’re juggling simultaneously,� Councilman Steve Kozachik said ahead of Credio’s appointment. “I’m glad to have you in the saddle.�

ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ has failed to enforce a policy meant to preserve native plants like saguaros for at least the past 20 years, a shortcoming that officials said saps limited groundwater, hinders the city’s climate goals and wreaks havoc on the area’s iconic Southwestern landscape.

The 1997 law requires developers to preserve at least half of the native plants growing on the lots where they want to build. It covers 29 species and includes special protections for saguaros and ironwoods, only allowing 30% to be bladed rather than the 50% rule applied to the other plants.

It touts big environmental and economic perks, promoting native landscaping that requires little water and protecting the cactuses that draw millions of tourists to the area each year. Some of the protected plants, such as saguaros, also suck massive amounts of carbon out of the air and could be an important piece of the city’s plan to become carbon neutral by 2030.

But despite the potential benefits, ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ has all but forgotten the ordinance even exists: staffers rarely confirm that the rules are being followed, developers are free to skirt reporting requirements and the city doesn’t inspect the sites after construction to make sure some plants were spared.

“We’ve got this ordinance in place and we’re simply not enforcing it,� said Councilman Steve Kozachik, who raised the issue at Tuesday’s council meeting along with Councilman Kevin Dahl. “If we’re going to be focused on climate (and) this whole climate action plan, and we have ordinances in place that are specifically intended to address that, then we need to walk the talk.�

The policy’s failure isn’t a recent discovery. Troy Goodwin, a University of ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ master’s candidate, sounded the alarm in a 2001 study that showed 100% of the developments he reviewed failed to meet the policy requirements.

It’s unclear why the ordinance remained unenforced over the next 21 years, though officials said staffing issues in ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s Planning and Development Services Department is the largest barrier to implementing the policy today.

The city department is one of the offices that still faces a staffing shortage after ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s recent hiring efforts, which brought the city’s overall job vacancy rate down significantly over the past few months.

Officials said the department is struggling to carry out its basic functions, like issuing construction permits, so making the time to count the number of native plants on a lot hasn’t been easy.

Still, it doesn’t appear that anyone in the department raised the issue. Council members said they weren’t aware that the policy was failing and that they “assume that when an ordinance is passed that staff is going to implement it,� which proved wrong in this case.

“How do we make sure that when the mayor and council request policy and require certain things to be done in a department, how do we make sure they’re being done?� Mayor Regina Romero said. “I believe it is the responsibility of the directors of our departments to call attention when something is not working. When something is not being instituted because of lack of staff or (just) because it’s not working.�

Council members recently voted to spend about $300,000 on three new positions at the planning department — one landscape architect and two city inspectors — in an effort to better implement another policy called the Commercial Rainwater Harvesting Ordinance, which has also gone unenforced for years.

The new staffers might be tasked with enforcing the native plant ordinance as well, though officials doubt that’s enough to turn things around. Future positions might also be hard to fill because the highly-skilled roles require expertise about local plants and landscaping.

“I don’t have a number (for how many staffers are needed), but three is not going to get it done. Especially if they’re also required to enforce the rainwater harvesting ordinance,� Kozachik said. “We’ve been waiving the flag about the whole climate program, if that’s going to be our mantra we need to make sure we have staffed up appropriately.�

It’s not clear what extra steps the city might take to increase staffing levels at the planning department, but experts said the clock is ticking and the impact of blading more saguaros could be felt for centuries.

Experts said the cactuses aren’t able to reproduce for the first 60 years of their lives and their reproductive cycle isn’t consistent, meaning it’s impossible to know how many will crop up in a given season — though that number has been consistently decreasing since the 1990s.

“We had a really nice cooler, wetter period during the 1980s that lasted until the early 1990s. Since then, the number of new saguaros coming into the population has really declined dramatically,� said Don Swann, a Park Service biologist at Saguaro National Park. “That’s probably because we’ve been in this extended drought since the mid-1990s. We hope that changes, but that’s the current situation.�

Saguaros also grow very slowly, requiring nearly 30 years to grow a single foot in some instances, so it can take an entire human lifetime to replace even one mature cactus that’s bladed.

The timeline raised additional concerns about the city’s policy for Kozachik and Dahl, who also spearheaded the discussion of the ordinance Tuesday.

Both officials think ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ should reduce the number of plants that are allowed to be bladed under the current rules, but that will be an admittedly pointless change until the city is able to provide some sort of enforcement.

“The time it takes to regenerate what we’re allowed to be bladed right now, we’re talking about generations beyond when anybody sitting on this call right now will be around to enjoy it,� Kozachik said. “That’s the reason why the enforcement of the (policy) is so important. Because the enforcement of this policy will affect generations beyond us.�

Council members didn’t take any votes to adjust the policy on Tuesday, but are expected to continue discussing potential changes in the coming months.

Few ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ans are reusing household water to irrigate their landscaping, an indication that ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s 12-year-old “gray waterâ€� ordinance is failing to help conserve the region’s dwindling resources.

Gray water, or any used water that’s not contaminated with fecal matter, comes from appliances such as the kitchen sink or the shower. If it’s captured going down the drain using a gray water system, it can be reused outside to save upward of 30,000 gallons of water each year in the typical household.

ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ gained national attention for incentivizing its use through a 2010 policy that requires all new homes to have a special “stub outâ€� — or three-way pipe that allows a gray water system to be easily installed without extra plumbing work — and offers residents $1,000 to buy the needed equipment.

But a recent city survey of residents whose homes were subject to that policy shows the initiative has had virtually no impact in the community.

Only 28 of the nearly 500 ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ans surveyed said they use gray water, for example, and less than 1% have taken advantage of the $1,000 rebate. About a third hadn’t even heard of gray water before taking part in the study.

“I was around when this particular ordinance was discussed, put forward and passed, and I too am a bit disappointed that we haven’t had much more success with it,� said Mayor Regina Romero, who was a City Council member when the policy was adopted. “I want to make sure we’re exploring any shortcomings that are possibly not allowing for this program to grow.�

City staff said they had a sense the ordinance was failing, but the recent survey marks the first time ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s gray water policy has been reviewed since it was passed 12 years ago.

It’s one of multiple studies that have exposed major flaws in ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s water policies over the past six months: A recently published review of a separate 2010 ordinance, which requires businesses to use rainwater for at least 50% of their landscaping needs, showed the city had failed to enforce that policy for years.

Because the gray water ordinance is an incentive rather than a requirement for homeowners, city staff said its failure is the result of ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ans not being aware that the policy exists — despite it being in place for over a decade.

“It was pretty stark for us that a barrier to the success of the ordinance is the lack of awareness and information about gray water — their homes’ capabilities and the resources, the rebates, the workshops, etc. — that we have available for them,â€� said James MacAdam, an administrator for ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Water.

MacAdam’s plan to fix the issue isn’t fully fleshed out, but he said it will include outreach to over 6,000 homes built after 2010 in order to let owners know their houses have gray water plumbing and that they can receive cash to have a system installed.

ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ might also work with homebuilders to get the word out and address some other more technical issues with the ordinance, like gray water piping being hard to access on some properties.

The policy doesn’t dictate where homebuilders should install the gray water outlet, for example, so if it’s placed far away from the landscaping or underground — where residents will need a pump to access it — it’s less likely ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ans will go through the trouble of using the system.

“Ideally it’s set up for gravity feed. For instance, when you’re washing dishes you could switch the water to the regular sewage system or to the gray water system, which lets it flow outside of your house where you can apply it to plants,� said Councilman Kevin Dahl. “I think it’s important that we try to get people doing this because 30% of our drinking water goes directly into landscape use. If we can use it functionally in our homes or businesses, that’s a win.�

If MacAdam convinces even a third of ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ homeowners with gray water plumbing to start using it, the effort could save more than 60 million gallons of drinking water annually in homes built after 2010 alone.

Owners of older homes can also take advantage of the policy. Any house connected to ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Water can get the $1,000 rebate to install their own equipment, so the city’s outreach initiative could have an even broader water-saving impact if it’s successful.

It might also be an easy sell for ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ans who are hoping to save money. Residents like Cyndi Tuell, who already collect gray water, said the practice has slashed their monthly water bills and made landscaping more affordable.

“We moved into a house that didn’t have any vegetation in the yard, so all of our plants needed to be established, which was a huge water use and expense for us to consider,� said Tuell, who lives in a century-old home and wasn’t aware of the gray water rebate, so she built a homemade system that collects water from her washing machine. “When we realized how simple it was to use a washer, we could water almost everything in our yard without having to use any fresh water.�

Chris Wendel, a midtown resident and epidemiologist at the University of ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥, echoed Tuell’s point about affordability.

He said the only financial drawback is the cost of special laundry detergent that’s formulated to be safe for plants, which is about 50% more expensive than typical detergent, though he added that even the installation of gray water plumbing in his 1940’s home was low-cost.

“Literally, it was so cheap what (the plumber) did. We’re just talking about cutting and putting in the three-way valve, and laying a bit of pipe to a logical outflow place,� Wendel said. “(The system) supports plants that we might have tried to grow anyway, but they’re really healthy, including two bamboo plants that would cost a lot to water with straight city water.�

City officials admit the gray water ordinance is one small piece of the conservation efforts that need to take place in the coming years, despite the massive amounts of water the policy could potentially save.

Still, they said it’s an important step toward meeting more ambitious goals such as becoming a carbon-neutral city by 2030, as well as addressing the ever-shrinking supply of fresh water from the Colorado River.

“We need to be doing everything we possibly can on climate change because there’s no silver bullet, there’s no one magic item,� said Dahl, whose campaign centered on climate initiatives. “(The gray water ordinance) is a drop in the bucket, both literally and figuratively, but we need to fill our bucket with lots of drops.�

City staff will update council members on the gray water ordinance within the next year. Depending on how much progress is made, officials may revise the ordinance or adopt new strategies to help revive the failing policy.

Photos: Central ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Project canal construction in 1979

ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ hasn’t been able to allocate all of the $10.1 million in federal relief money that was set aside to fund grants for local organizations, an initiative that was — in part — meant to bolster city efforts on issues such as housing and community safety.

The money represents the first of two tranches of American Rescue Plan Act grant funds expected to be released this year. The overarching goal of the grants is to help address long standing needs in ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ by making a “transformative and sustainable impact in the community.â€�

In addition to local groups whose work will supplement city programs, grants were also opened up to organizations that provide services ranging from small business assistance to cultural development.

But no local groups applied under three of the 14 grant categories — volunteer management, city trade and skill development and transitional workforce — that represented a combined $350,000 of funding.

Another $1.4 million hasn’t been committed because ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ didn’t receive enough applicants that met the federal grant requirements under four other categories, which included housing and “community health and safety,â€� bringing the total amount of unused funds to around $1.8 million.

“I really just want to acknowledge that we have a lot of great organizations within our community that provide services and programs that we’re all very familiar with. There’s a lot of need,� said Deputy City Manager Liana Perez. “We have a lot (of local groups) that we were surprised did not apply under this particular process, and we hope that we will continue to work with them within the framework, of course, and our other community partners to develop future opportunities or to fill that gap.�

Perez believes some community organizations didn’t apply because of staffing shortages, a national problem that she said has particularly rocked local programs that provide mental health services.

The deputy city manager is still confident that ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ will find candidates to qualify for the unallocated funds in the coming months, however, but officials will have to take a different tact to make it happen.

Staffers plan to reach out directly to groups that didn’t submit grant requests during the application process, for example, though they haven’t figured out exactly what that will look like.

“We’re still working on that because we’re going through identifying those particular areas and what programs exist in the community as we go out and look at those possible partnerships,� she said. “We don’t have actual (next) steps, in other words, other than we are exploring them to see if those are viable programs that we can partner with for these funds.�

It’s unlikely ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ will reopen applications for this round of grants, according to Perez who expects the direct outreach approach to help the city identify community partners who will be able to take the remaining $1.8 million within the next 60 days.

Even if the city continues to have a hard time finding local groups to fund, it’s unlikely that the federal government will take the money back. There’s no set deadline for ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ to use the cash and no rule that allows the feds to reclaim any extra funds.

Still, the ballooning of issues like homelessness and crime in ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ make it apparent that officials need all the help they can get to combat those problems. The sooner the grant funds are awarded, the sooner the new organizations will be able to join the city’s existing efforts.

“I really hope that the announcement of who is receiving the grants this year can be made soon so that we can put that money to work,� Mayor Regina Romero said.

The $8.3 million in grant funds that has been allocated to specific community groups is expected to be awarded within the coming weeks.

Perez said the city will reevaluate its process ahead of the second tranche of ARPA grants later this year, though it’s not yet clear what changes might be made to increase the initiative’s effectiveness.

A new study shows ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ can use natural gas from a local landfill to power its buses, an approach that would allow the city to slash greenhouse gas emissions without having to buy costly electric vehicles — but officials have done little to get it done despite knowing about the option for two years.

The natural gas would come from Los Reales Sustainability Campus, a landfill situated northeast of the airport where methane is currently just being burned off and released into the air. If it’s instead captured and cleaned, the city could use it to fuel the 106 “compressed natural gasâ€� buses that already represent nearly half of ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s fleet.

CNG vehicles also release far fewer emissions than the city’s 121 diesel buses and only cost about $575,000, nearly 40% less than the electric buses officials have been buying in an effort to reach carbon neutrality by 2030.

Natural reuse could represent a major piece of progress for ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s overall climate efforts, but it’s not a new concept: Officials have been aware of the opportunity since at least summer 2020, when they hired a local consultant company called GHD to complete the $141,000 study.

City staffers said that despite the time and money, the research brought few revelations and that ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ is still “in the same situationâ€� with the initiative despite nearly two years of waiting.

“The bottom line is that we’re just not getting the movement I was looking for,“ said Councilman Paul Cunningham. “We’ve done three different studies (and) we have not made a decision. We’re still at the starting block.�

The report recommends that ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ partner with Southwest Gas to build the facilities needed to process the methane, but the private utility company had already been singled-out for that partnership before the study began, for example.

Southwest Gas also offered to work with the city two years ago, though a company spokesman said negotiations never even reached “a point where a specific scope of work or timeline could be developed.�

The slow progress was also a concern for Councilman Steve Kozachik, who said it “makes the point that we talk solutions to death instead of actually acting.�

Officials have expressed similar sentiments about multiple other climate initiatives recently, some of which — like ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s glass and plastic reuse programs — are also based at Los Reales and are just as slow-moving as the natural gas efforts, according to the city staff.

“I think council member Kozachik and Cunningham’s opinion was that we went through the study, the original proposal from Southwest Gas to build the facility — we went through all of this time and effort, and the primary recommendation out of this is to work with (Southwest Gas) to get it going,â€� said Carlos De La Torre, ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s director of environmental services who is overseeing the Los Reales initiatives. “We ended up basically in the same situation.â€�

ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ also bought 10 electric buses while GHD was completing the study, which typically cost around $1 million each and may no longer be necessary if officials choose to focus on using natural-gas-powered buses instead.

Still, fueling CNG buses with recaptured natural gas won’t even be an option for at least another three years, according to De La Torre. He said officials still need to do tasks such as choosing whether to partner with a private company, making design plans and actually building the needed facilities.

The environmental services director said council members made “fair� criticisms of the program but cited a number of reasons for the slow progress that range from understaffing to lengthy contract processes that city staffers have to go through before partnering with outside firms.

“I certainly concur with the council’s concern about timing. We want to do our best to get things moving, but sometimes our own internal requirements and regulations require us to do our due diligence on moving those projects forward,� he said. “We’re facing (low) staffing levels, same thing with our consultants and our contractors. There’s a lot of that stuff and we’re still continuing to maneuver through that.�

Mayor Regina Romero argued that the study was necessary and that the “highly technical� aspects of the research, like certain in-depth environmental analyses, justified the time frame. She also stressed that the city had to consider all potential private partners, rather than just going with one particular company right off the bat.

A tense back-and-forth between her and Cunningham followed the conversation at a council meeting earlier this month, when the mayor pushed back against the Ward 2 councilman’s criticisms and implied that his expectations were out of whack.

“I have no idea what you’re looking at and I have no idea what the expectations are that you have in terms of how processes are conducted within city business, but there has to be certain steps followed,� Romero said to Cunningham. “Before there’s commentary without fully knowing what has happened, I would suggest that you read the material and that you ask questions about what has been done so far.�

Staffers are expected to provide updates to the council on a regular basis over the next few months so that officials can better monitor the progress of Los Reales initiatives.

ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ has also applied for federal grants that could provide up to $75 million in funding in the near future, some of which would go toward bolstering efforts at the sustainability campus.

City officials are considering a permanent fare-free transit system, an initiative that is intended to keep money in the pockets of those who rely on bus, streetcar and Sun Van rides to get around — but the money typical riders could save each month is about the cost of a tank of gas.

Free transit is not an entirely new idea: Rides have been free in ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ since early 2020 as a COVID-19 mitigation measure, and the City Council later extended that moratorium until June using federal relief funds.

"My office received a lot of phone calls from Ward 5 constituents about them losing their jobs, losing their homes, getting their water, gas and electricity shut off and those losing their businesses,� Councilman Richard Fimbres said about his push to pause fares in 2020.

But as the pandemic wanes, those federal dollars will dry up. When that happens, city officials will have to spend an extra $800,000 to $1 million of general fund money each month to run the transit system if they choose to nix fares permanently.

The monthly savings for a typical transit user? About $40.

“It really is a policy decision based on where (the council’s) priorities are going forward,� City Manager Michael Ortega said. “There are a variety of areas that are in need of dollars, but it’s a function of where that is in terms of priority for the community, those partners, but also for the mayor and City Council.�

Brian Flagg, a founding member of the ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Bus Riders Union, believes eliminating fares is worth the cost to city taxpayers. He said $40 in monthly savings, while relatively small, could make a significant difference to some of the city's poorest transit users.

"It's a matter of equity and what might not seem like a lot to some people is a big deal to other people who are struggling to survive," Flagg said. "Transportation to your job and other essential things is an absolute necessity. It's not a luxury, it's a necessity. It will really help people out. It's worth it."

ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s pre-COVID transit fares were already inexpensive, however. The “low incomeâ€� or economy rates for qualifying residents were the single lowest in the country, for example, and the city didn’t even collect enough fare money to cover its transit system costs.

But breaking even was never the goal, according to Councilman Steve Kozachik, who said the transit system was always more of a “social service� than a “revenue generator.� He added that money will always need to be pulled from the general fund to subsidize public transit; now it's just a question of "how much should be coming out of the general fund?�

Before the pandemic, the City Council's goal was to reduce that general fund loss by attracting more transit customers who would, in turn, generate more fare revenue. Officials have yet to refocus on that goal, but appealing to more riders at this point might be trickier than it was.

“We have had reports from some of our operators that we have people who are just kind of hanging out, and I don’t want to lose ridership because it turns into an unsafe environment,� said Kozachik. “I don’t want to sound heartless, but I don’t want to turn it into a taxi for the homeless who are kind of hanging out on buses and making people who would otherwise be riding feel uncomfortable riding it.�

Assaults (against riders and drivers) on city buses also tripled between 2019 and 2021 — from 21 to 64 — despite ridership decreasing by 12% in that same timeframe. The number of incidents is still low considering Sun Tran operates over 12 million bus rides each year, but the trend has consistently been on the rise since fares were paused.

Rhett Crowninshield, the city’s transit administrator, said he believes the rise in violent incidents is driven more by mask mandate outbursts and mental health issues than it is by increased homeless activity in the transit system. 

“Do we see homeless people on our system? Of course. I think that’s part of what our mayor and council are trying to do, they’re trying to help them get to health care appointments, to employment opportunities, I think that’s kind of where they wanted to go with this,� Crowninshield said. “We’re trying to allow them to have some opportunities to get where they need to go.�

Kozachik said he could support the fare-free transit system if the city “can put protocols in place to make it a safe environment and welcoming to anybody who wants to get on,� though he admits he’s “not sure how you do that.�

Both Crowninshield and Steve Spade, Sun Tran’s general manager, said they’re working to improve security but did not provide specifics on what’s being done. Councilman Fimbres said he also has been working to address the problem.

“These issues have been pre-pandemic and post-pandemic so that can’t be linked to just one factor,� Fimbres said. “I am working to get more security measures at the bus stops, transit centers and other items for buses.�

Ortega will make a recommendation about whether to pursue a fare-free system after considering the financial cost-benefit, the impact on community partners such as school districts, and how the level of service might be affected.

That process will be ongoing until the city's budget discussions, when council members are expected to vote on whether to eliminate transit fares indefinitely.

“My responsibility is to provide them with that information, those data sets. I’ll give them options, provide them a recommendation, and then they ultimately make a call on it,� the city manager said. “When I scrub all of that data, then I’ll have some recommendations.�

Photos: Archive photos of transit strikes in ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥

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ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s road-widening project on East Broadway has been delayed for the third time since it began two years ago, according to officials who said it’s now more than six months behind schedule.

The goal of the project is to widen Broadway from four to six lanes between Euclid Avenue and Country Club Road, as well as install other upgrades like new sidewalks and traffic lights. It was originally scheduled to wrap up last September and the construction has already cost ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ more than $23 million.

Officials weren’t aware of the most recent delay until they were contacted by the ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥, though they said the constant setbacks are driven by issues ranging from a shortage of asphalt to miles of underground piping that had to be replaced. They have vowed to work with the construction company tasked with completing the roadwork, Ashton Contractors and Engineers, to avoid any more delays.

But business owners along that stretch said they’ve been left in the dark about the delays over the past two years and are still struggling to get customers in the door as the “major� street improvement project drags on.

“I’m just sick of shaking my fist at the sky at this point,� said Rocco DiGrazia, the owner of Rocco’s Little Chicago, a pizza restaurant that’s been caught in the middle of the road work since 2020. “It’s frustrating, I don’t know what to do. What do I do except come to work, open the doors and hope somebody comes in to eat today?�

Rocco’s Little Chicago is situated along the stretch of Broadway between Campbell and Country Club, one of two major pieces of the project that’s not expected to be wrapped up until June. The other section of road work, from Euclid to Campbell Avenue, should now be finished in late April.

Michael Graham, a spokesman for ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s Department of Transportation and Mobility, said the main cause of the three delays has been miles of underground utilities that “changed the scope of the projectâ€� significantly.

Construction workers found 20 miles of piping called “home connection sewersâ€� that they didn’t know were there, for example. The pipes connect buildings along the road to ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s main sewer line and are considered “private,â€� so officials only realized they were buried beneath Broadway after they were dug up.

On top of that, the city had to replace about three miles of storm drain before repaving could begin, the pandemic caused construction staffing shortages and road work was nearly impossible to do during parts of last year’s heavy monsoon season.

“Keep in mind that this was a major, major improvement project,� Graham said. “Everything has to fit together like a puzzle — grading, curb (construction), paving — everything is like a puzzle, and if the pieces don’t line up then it affects the schedule down the road. You have to reschedule and balance all of the other activities when one of the pieces doesn’t fit or it’s delayed.�

Graham said the “biggest thingâ€� ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ has done on the project so far is replacing the three miles of 90-inch-thick storm drain, but some like DiGrazia are frustrated that the city is still “goofing aroundâ€� with the utility issues two years in.

Councilman Steve Kozachik, whose ward encompasses the area where the project is taking place, echoed the restaurant owner’s concerns, saying the city should have figured out the piping issues sooner than it did.

“My sense is that the civil engineering pieces — the below-grade stuff, the piping, the utilities — should have been determined early on,� he said. “So, I’m not buying that one because from a construction management standpoint that’s stuff that you don’t learn in the top of the eighth inning. You learn that in the second or third inning when you’re doing your due diligence.�

Another major reason for the delays are shortages of asphalt, which Kozachik described as a “legit� reason the project has been pushed back.

Only a limited number of companies make the material in the region, so resources are spread thin. It’s also hard to make enough asphalt ahead of time to meet future needs because it has to be used soon after it’s produced.

“Everybody in the region is essentially relying on the same producers of this and it has to be made, actually produced very close in time to when you’re going to lay it just like concrete,� the Ward 6 councilman said. “You can’t roll the concrete truck up and have it sit there for six hours or this stuff will congeal inside the machinery.�

Regardless of the reasons for the delays, the timing couldn’t be worse for restaurants like Rocco’s Little Chicago that took financial hits during the pandemic that they’re still recovering from. DiGrazia said he doesn’t know how some of the more affected businesses in the area are “even paying their bills,� for instance.

The restaurant owner added that some paving progress in the area has improved things in recent months, but that business is still down for the pizza restaurant because of the never ending construction.

“When there was dirt in front of our place for like a year, it was really bad. I knew anybody who showed up here was making a B-line for my restaurant, there was no incidental traffic at all,� he said. “I think things are getting better, but I still hear from customers and old regulars that they just won’t come because it’s difficult — especially at night, for older folks — to see where the cones are and how the traffic snakes through the new road and stuff like that.�

City officials said they plan to discuss the Broadway project “master plan� with the construction company tasked with completing the work in order to figure out how they can avoid any future delays

Those conversations are expected to take place in the coming weeks and could involve steps such as increasing work hours or doing construction on weekends.

“We’re going to sit down and have a conversation with the contractor to see what we can do to expedite their updated schedule and try to get this done as quickly as possible,� Graham said. “We want people to know that the businesses are open and they’re accessible and to continue to support small businesses along the route because they are open and they are accessible.�

ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ has emerged from nearly two years of financial uncertainty with full coffers, according to staffers who said the city collected nearly $70 million more in 2021 than it spent on general fund programs.

General fund dollars mainly come from resident taxes and go toward essential city expenses such as worker salaries and running the transit system. ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s surplus happened because officials were able to pay for all of those initiatives using millions of dollars less than the city gained in revenue.

The extra cash means ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ will be able to follow through with its commitment to provide somewhere between $18 million and $33 million in general fund money for public safety resources and certain road improvements — an important provision in the Proposition 411 sales tax initiative that’s on the ballot in May.

The remaining millions could be enough to pay for some small-to-medium-sized initiatives like free bus fares or raising salaries for hard-to-recruit city positions — like those in information technology — though officials haven’t yet decided how they will spend that money.

ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ is also on track to have another multi-million-dollar surplus by the end of 2022, something that staffers said will help prevent city services from being impacted by “economic headwindsâ€� such as increasing oil prices and historic rates of inflation.

“I’m very happy with the financial picture that our city manager, my colleagues on the council and I have been working very hard for years to (achieve),� Mayor Regina Romero said. “We’ve definitely got to have a fund that will help us weather that storm because of the imbalance and the changes around the world.�

The financial success — both in 2021 and what’s predicted for 2022 — is especially notable because of extra staffing costs the city took on recently in order to address it’s severe shortage of workers, which has impacted offices ranging from the 911 call center to code enforcement for at least a year.

City Manager Michael Ortega said beefed-up recruitment efforts have cut the overall vacancy rate by about 5%, bringing it into the “normal� range of around 10%. It represents major progress toward tackling the shortage, but means the city has more salaries to pay in the coming year.

Council members also voted to increase worker salaries last year using money that was saved when officials didn’t fill the then-empty positions, so when Ortega announced his recruitment “blitz� over the winter it wasn’t totally clear how much of an impact it would have on the city’s pocket book.

Now that the dust has settled, staffers said ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ had successfully “absorbedâ€� those costs and will still have a $43 million surplus by the end of 2022.

“We are right on track and we were able to absorb those adjustments,â€� said Jeff Yates, ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s Business Services director. “Everything we thought would happen has happened for the most part.â€�

It will still be a few years until the full impact of his staffing plan becomes clear, however.

Ortega expects to pay less overtime as more positions are filled in key departments, a money-saving factor in the long-run, but the plan also involves hiring more workers than there are vacancies so positions can be quickly filled when workers retire or leave.

City staff have to predict how many employees they will lose each year based on historical rates, so an overestimation could leave the city with more workers–and costs– than it can afford.

Still, the expected budget surplus for 2022 suggests staffing costs won’t be a big issue in the future. Officials are more concerned about funding other initiatives and said that while the surplus represents a lot of money, it’s not nearly enough to meet the overall need.

The extra $70 million for 2021 is only about 4% of that year's approved budget, for example, and the cost of providing city services has increased by nearly 11% since the last fiscal year. Sales tax revenues, meanwhile, grew at a much slower rate of only about 2%.

“(The surplus) almost gives the impression that we’re rolling in dough, that we’ve got all of this money. I hate to be the one to be the bearer of bad news, but we really aren’t,� Ortega said. “The needs are far greater than what those revenues look like.�

The surplus will at least be a financial cushion for ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ in the near-term. Officials decided to hold-off on making spending plans until later this year when they have a better idea of where the cash is needed most.

Council members will make those decisions during their budget discussions this spring.

City officials recently appointed Sharon McDonough to be the director of ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s historically troubled Public Safety Communications Department, the office that houses the city’s 911 call center.

McDonough has over three decades of experience working for the city, having first started her career in 1990 as an EMT for the ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Fire Department. She most recently served as the interim deputy director of the 911 center under Chad Kasmar, who was promoted to chief of police in late December.

Officials and staffers describe McDonough as an “absolute team playerâ€� who has had a central role in repairing ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s 911 center after entering the Public Safety Communications Department in 2021 — one of the most turbulent times for the department because of issues such as inadequate training and supervision, and general gaps in service.

She officially stepped into the director’s role just over a week ago and will make $170,000 a year, slightly less than some of her predecessors in the 911 office.

“I am so happy to see that this amazing public servant with so many years of experience — so talented, so committed to this city of ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ and so knowledgeable — is taking the lead in our public safety communications department,â€� Mayor Regina Romero said. “I’m really happy to have this opportunity to move forward with a person who has been serving the city of ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ for so many years.â€�

McDonough’s arrival at the department in April 2021 came just months after a damning study was released that showed then-director Jamie O’Leary’s leadership style consisted of “dominance, anger (and) sarcasm,� according to employee accounts.

In addition to “inadequate training,� the 911 center was plagued by low morale, high employee turnover and chronic understaffing that impacted answer times.

O’Leary resigned in early 2021, leaving Kasmar and McDonough to pick up the pieces at the 911 center that was in “critical but stable condition� at the time. The department had less than half of the 219 employees needed to fully staff the call center, for example, and that figure was constantly dwindling.

McDonough spearheaded efforts to improve the workplace culture and retain employees by creating room for advancement within the department, meaning there was a clear path toward promotions for staffers who could also get guidance from supervisors about how to move forward.

“Instead of us thinking of them as a side business, we’re trying to help them re-label themselves as a true community safety partner of great importance to the system,� McDonough said about her efforts last year. “Our hope is that they feel that way, they want to stay, and that our numbers go up and we get our staffing more stabilized. �

Beefed-up recruitment efforts under McDonough’s leadership — along with city officials approving a bump in pay for 911 operators — slashed the department’s vacancy rate by about 10% last year, as well as attracted over 30 new trainees to bolster the staff.

McDonough called the influx in recruits a “blessing and a curseâ€� because existing staffers have to spend time training them, which was one of the factors that caused ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s 911 answer times to be slower than the national standard for most of 2021.

The slowdown is temporary, however, and the increased staffing level that has resulted from McDonough’s efforts is expected to ultimately improve the city’s 911 services. Staffers said employee turnover also decreased during McDonough’s time as interim deputy director.

“If we keep doing these things and keep improving these things, next year we will end up with more (staffers) than we had and eventually get to a really stable level that allows us to sustain, keep people and promote them,� McDonough said in November. “It started with a good pay raise, and it continues with some level of acknowledgement about how important these people are to the system.�

Recruitment efforts will likely remain a priority for the new 911 director as she settles into her new role in the coming months. The department still only had about 90 fully trained employees at the end of last year, which is just over 40% of the staffers needed.

The department will also have to improve its 911 answer times in order to meet the national standards, though council members all voiced their confidence in McDonough’s ability to achieve those goals before unanimously confirming her appointment Feb. 23.

“I love the city of ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥, I love the work that we do, and I know how important it is that we collaborate to get things done,â€� McDonough said about her appointment. “I’m so proud to have the good fortune and opportunity to be part of this dynamic (and) forward-thinking leadership team, and I’m excited to be here. I really look forward to the work. Thank you for your faith in me.â€�

ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ is moving forward with the construction of a new fire station just northwest of ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ International Airport, a project officials said is critical to the health and safety of first responders.

Council members recently approved the purchase of about 3 acres of land near South Nogales Highway and East Drexel Road to house the new station. It will allow for the construction of a much larger facility to replace fire Station 14, a tiny fire house situated in a residential neighborhood less than half-mile from the new location.

The city is still negotiating with Sunnyside School District — which owns the property where the new facility will be built — though ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ staffers expect to pay around $400,000 for the land once they close the deal in the coming weeks.

Officials said the lot is in an “optimal location� because it provides easy access to a main roadway so firefighters will no longer have to contend with the neighborhood’s many speed bumps, sharp turns and residents who may be walking on the street during responses.

The larger facility will also prevent first responders from being exposed to toxic contaminants, such as diesel exhaust and chemical-riddled smoke residue, which are stored near living areas at the current Station 14 fire house.

“When you go to a fire, there are thousands of different chemicals burning and turning into this toxic soup of smoke. If we don’t have a mechanism for separating it and getting it off our bodies, we contaminate the station and then we’re absorbing all of these toxins into our bodies,� said TFD Assistant Chief Joe Gulotta, the head of the department’s capital projects. “We’re really doing a good job of designing safety and health into our (new) facilities, which is exactly what we promised the community we would do for our firefighters.

The facility will have features such as airlocked doors that prevent toxins from entering areas like the kitchen and living quarters where firefighters sleep during 24-hour shifts. It will also include “wash stations� where they can clean up so they don’t track chemicals into other parts of the station.

The design is in stark contrast to the current Station 14 facility, which houses eight employees every day despite being built for no more than six. Firefighters there use workout equipment located next to diesel exhaust and are “breathing in all of that junk� during their shifts.

“A lot of this is cancer-causing. Firefighters are dying of cancer at a rate much higher than any fire-related injuries,� said Gulotta. “We’re dying of cancer. Sometimes we’re not getting cancer until 10 years after we retire.�

The assistant chief said the new facility will reduce that risk significantly and create a far safer environment for ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s first responders. He added that the extra space will also help TFD take on additional resources down the road, such as more EMS teams or fire engines.

Station 14 is just one piece of a larger city effort to improve the health, safety and functionality of ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s emergency service facilities: There are four other new fire stations in various phases of development, four that are being renovated and another five have already been upgraded, Gulotta said.

All of that work is funded through Proposition 101, a sales tax approved by voters in 2017 that has generated $160 million to pay for the projects — about $10 million more than officials thought would be generated when the initiative passed five years ago.

The 2017 sales tax has also funded resources like new police vehicles and equipment for the 911 center. Gulotta said the program has been “very successful� in creating safer conditions for TFD personnel so far.

“The city has been very responsible with the community’s money as it develops and meets the obligation of the Prop. 101 language,� he said. “We have done exactly what we said we were going to do, and the community can rest assured that their fire stations and their firefighters are going to be state of the art, and they’re going to be safe.�

It will be about another two years before TFD can move into the station because it will have to be designed and built after ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ buys the land. It’s not yet clear how much the actual construction will cost, but officials said it will all be covered with Prop. 101 funds.

ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ recently hired a big-name consulting firm at a cost of $400,000 to craft its Climate Action Plan, a strategy to make the city more environmentally friendly that includes goals such as reaching carbon neutrality by 2030 and becoming “zero wasteâ€� by 2050.

Officials are largely aligned in their desire to combat climate change through efforts like planting more trees and making city buses electric. But while they share similar end goals, council members are divided on ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s most recent move.

Mayor Regina Romero said the new consultant was needed to create an all-encompassing climate strategy and move away from the “piecemealâ€� approach the city has been taking. The United Kingdom-based firm, called Buro Happold, has done similar work in major cities like New York and is expected to craft a detailed action plan for ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ in nine months.

“Everything put together is much more comprehensive than piecemealing. That’s why we haven’t been able to advance,� Romero said. “Now that we have selected (a firm) that’s nationally known for their work, they’re going to be able to move as quickly as possible.�

Other officials, like Councilman Steve Kozachik, are questioning why ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ would hire an expensive consultant to identify more initiatives when earlier efforts — like natural gas and glass reuse programs — have yet to get off the ground.

“My sense is, why don’t we start doing some of the things that we’ve already identified before we pay these guys $400,000 to come in and tell us what they think we ought to be doing?� Kozachik said. “We’re just operating at the pace of government.�

Regardless of the divisions, it won’t be clear whether the plan is an expensive “coffee table bookâ€� or a workable blueprint for the city’s climate efforts until it’s finalized in December. ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ will still have to execute the plan after that, so it will likely be a while before residents know if they got their money’s worth.

The plan and its price tag

The council vowed to create the action plan two years ago after declaring a climate emergency and setting aside about $250,000 to fund its development.

Last week, officials announced they will instead spend about $400,000 — or 60% more than was allocated — for Buro Happold to put the strategy together.

Kozachik said the spending hike was one of his concerns and that the council wasn’t aware of the cost until after the firm was hired. Other council members like Paul Cunningham were also worried that it may not be worth the price tag given lackluster results from consultants in the past.

“They walk in the door $150,000 over budget,� Kozachik said. “I’m not inclined to pay $400,000 for some coffee table book.�

Still, Cunningham said he is “cautiously optimistic� about hiring the firm because of its national experience. He and Romero both believe the cost — while expensive — is not too high considering the broad scope of work required, which was underestimated in 2020.

The plan’s development will involve emissions data and economic analyses, as well as extensive public outreach to choose the most “cost-effectiveâ€� climate route for ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥. Officials said it will focus on equity, meaning the costs and benefits will be distributed so they positively impact vulnerable residents — like those who work outdoors and are most affected by climate change.

is teaming up with local groups, like Living Streets Alliance, to conduct public surveys in Spanish and open “pop-upâ€� stands in the community where busy ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ans can quickly give input.

The University of ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ is also working with the firm to look at emissions data and identify where ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ can cut down, and Autocase — an economic consultant — will be on the development team to study the economic impact of the plan before it’s drafted this fall.

“If we wanted to do something like this, we would need to hire about six people and spend more than a year putting it together to be able to get the same product that we’re receiving with the ($400,000) by the end of this year.,� Romero said about why the plan wasn’t developed in-house. “It’s about time and expertise.�

Past efforts slow to work

While the price hike raised eyebrows, the city’s past inaction on earlier climate efforts created the bulk of the concern for Kozachik who mentioned ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s 2-year-old glass reuse program that “hasn’t moved down the field,â€� a renewable fuel effort that the city has “done nothing about,â€� and three other similar initiatives that he said have yet to get off the ground.

“We hire a landscape person and continue to butcher more trees than we’re planting out in the community and our rainwater harvesting ordinance is an admitted embarrassment because we’re not enforcing it,� he said. “So, if we spend $400,000 it better be more than a coffee table book because those are very specific examples of things we should have been doing all along and we haven’t advanced the ball down the field a bit.�

ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s completed efforts include policies that incentivize electric cars and generate money for new stormwater infrastructure, though much of the city’s climate action to date has involved public outreach and planning rather than executing specific initiatives.

Natural gas recapturing at the Los Reales Sustainability Campus — a landfill where the city plans to use emitted methane as renewable fuel — still only consists of a “conceptual framework� after more than eight months, for example.

Other efforts like “ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Million Trees,â€� an initiative to plant that many trees by 2030, have inched along slowly. About 40,000 trees have been planted since April 2020, a rate that suggests ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ won’t reach its goal until the year 2068.

“We all want to move to the speed of light. But what I do want to say is that it takes time,� Romero said. “As fast as we want to move, there are processes that have to be taken. For example, even though we budgeted for our climate action plan in 2020, we have to go through processes like requests for proposals, (as well as) the process of selection that is made up of city employees and citizens who contribute. It takes time to get something done right.�

City officials and experts said the pandemic was a major barrier to climate action over the past two years. Romero added that the city had to internally shift priorities to prepare for future climate initiatives during that time, as well.

“In the last two years, the mentality and culture have had to shift on the part of department directors and their administrators because now they have a climate mayor,� said Romero, who is part of a national network of mayors who have committed to climate change reforms. “They have a mayor who believes in this and a council that is 100% ready to go, champing at the bit to get things done, so the priorities have had to shift.�

It’s unclear whether the pace will pick up now that the pandemic is waning and city departments have reorganized to focus on climate efforts, however.

The lack of widespread success with earlier initiatives — which Romero called “tinyâ€� compared to what’s expected from the action plan — leaves residents with no solid track record to show that ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ will be able to fully implement the pricey new strategy, assuming it proves to be as workable as officials hope.

“I’m cautiously optimistic (Buro Happold) is going to give us something tangible and there is some value here, but the value doesn’t come automatically. They have to earn it,� Cunningham said. “I’m very concerned about whether we’re going to get tangible results, but the qualifications of the consultant check out and we do need some assistance in focusing our efforts so these initiatives we’ve been working on actually get done.�

Grant money

Romero echoed Cunningham’s sentiment that the new plan might help ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ follow through on some of the earlier initiatives. The idea is that it might pull the pieces together and create a step-by-step guide that will make the overall climate approach more cohesive.

The plan may also open the door for extra money to fund certain high-dollar initiatives, according to Diana Liverman, a regents’ professor at the UA who specializes in climate solutions and sits on the mayor’s climate action committee

“In a couple of California (cities), because they had a strong climate action plan, they were able to use that to request federal funds to help implement it or funds from the state,� said Liverman, whose focus has been on climate change policy nationally. “So, sometimes, you’re not going to get help if you don’t have a pretty good plan.�

ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s plan to transition its bus fleet to electric vehicles is one example of an initiative in need of outside funding.

So far, the city has only purchased nine “e-busesâ€� for the transit system, which is about 4% of ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s 237 bus fleet. Romero admits that figure is small and said it’s just the beginning, but added that the city needs money to make it happen.

“We’ve started with the nine buses, but it is the beginning of what we feel is going to be very impactful because transportation vehicles are 30% of greenhouse gas emissions in our city,â€� Romero said. “The responsibility of the city of ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ is to make sure that we find the funding to make all of those recommendations possible. When it comes to funding initiatives we have to make sure that we do it in the context of our budget and any grants we can apply for.â€�

The answer to whether the climate action plan is a worthwhile investment for ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ans will become clear once it’s finalized in December.

In addition to giving feedback during the development process, residents will be able to give input during public hearings before the council votes to adopt the strategy.