News
Walkup promotes regional solutions
By Jaime Richardson, Green Valley News
Tucson Mayor Bob Walkup spoke Tuesday at the Rotary Club of Green Valley on Tucson’s future and the need for regional unity.
Walkup said that water allocation was the issue that first inspired him to run for mayor in 1999 and is still a major concern for Tucson and surrounding cities.
“I say that Green Valley needs a pipeline that has CAP water. Any organization that has to rely on groundwater is going to be put in a delicate spot in the future,” Walkup said.
“Hopefully, the next thing we’ll be seeing is regional water and regional planning,” he said.
But the mayor said he is optimistic about the benefits of cooperation in the future, citing progress stemming from the Tucson Regional Economic Organization (TREO) and the Regional Transportation Authority (RTA), which was created to improve Southern Arizona roadways and make traveling between cities more convenient.
The Transportation Authority serves Tucson, Pima County, Marana, Oro Valley, Pascua Yaqui Tribe, Sahuarita, South Tucson and the Tohono O’odham Nation, he said, each district in control of one vote. The program has already released 108 transportation projects to the region since its inception in 2004.
Tucson recently adopted the “Smart” Highway Technology program which put 265 four-way cameras at city intersections that interpret the flow of traffic and send information to the next intersection.
“If you have a hard time driving in Tucson these days, just wait. It’ll be a delight.”
He also joked about the recent construction in downtown Tucson. “Just so you know, one of my jobs as mayor is to drive around Tucson and try to find a street that’s not torn up, then say ‘this is the one we’ll tear up next.’”
“I thought I’d say that before you said it.”
Walkup, 70, is a retired engineer and aerospace industry executive who has been Tucson’s mayor since 1999. He was re-elected in 2003 and is running for a third term this November. The Republican’s only challenger is David Croteau, a Green Party member.
If Walkup wins, he would be the second mayor in Tucson’s history to serve a third four-year term.
One Rotary club member asked what future issue most worries the mayor.
“An epidemic in Mexico that might come across the border, that would put us in a position where we would have to evacuate our citizens,” said Walkup, citing the recent wildfires in California that led to an evacuation of at least 500,000 people in San Diego county.
Despite extensive planning with the city’s law enforcement and fire officials, he says, it’s a concern that needs to be addressed.
“The one thing that brings me to a cold sweat is planning for how to serve under adverse conditions like that.”
jrichardson@gvnews.com | 547-9726
Walkup said that water allocation was the issue that first inspired him to run for mayor in 1999 and is still a major concern for Tucson and surrounding cities.
“I say that Green Valley needs a pipeline that has CAP water. Any organization that has to rely on groundwater is going to be put in a delicate spot in the future,” Walkup said.
“Hopefully, the next thing we’ll be seeing is regional water and regional planning,” he said.
But the mayor said he is optimistic about the benefits of cooperation in the future, citing progress stemming from the Tucson Regional Economic Organization (TREO) and the Regional Transportation Authority (RTA), which was created to improve Southern Arizona roadways and make traveling between cities more convenient.
The Transportation Authority serves Tucson, Pima County, Marana, Oro Valley, Pascua Yaqui Tribe, Sahuarita, South Tucson and the Tohono O’odham Nation, he said, each district in control of one vote. The program has already released 108 transportation projects to the region since its inception in 2004.
Tucson recently adopted the “Smart” Highway Technology program which put 265 four-way cameras at city intersections that interpret the flow of traffic and send information to the next intersection.
“If you have a hard time driving in Tucson these days, just wait. It’ll be a delight.”
He also joked about the recent construction in downtown Tucson. “Just so you know, one of my jobs as mayor is to drive around Tucson and try to find a street that’s not torn up, then say ‘this is the one we’ll tear up next.’”
“I thought I’d say that before you said it.”
Walkup, 70, is a retired engineer and aerospace industry executive who has been Tucson’s mayor since 1999. He was re-elected in 2003 and is running for a third term this November. The Republican’s only challenger is David Croteau, a Green Party member.
If Walkup wins, he would be the second mayor in Tucson’s history to serve a third four-year term.
One Rotary club member asked what future issue most worries the mayor.
“An epidemic in Mexico that might come across the border, that would put us in a position where we would have to evacuate our citizens,” said Walkup, citing the recent wildfires in California that led to an evacuation of at least 500,000 people in San Diego county.
Despite extensive planning with the city’s law enforcement and fire officials, he says, it’s a concern that needs to be addressed.
“The one thing that brings me to a cold sweat is planning for how to serve under adverse conditions like that.”
jrichardson@gvnews.com | 547-9726
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