Tucson Standard

A new mural celebrating the Sugar Hill Neighborhood in Tucson was completed last weekend. This mural is part of the Thrive in the 05 initiative, a neighborhood-enrichment program by the City of Tucson’s Housing and Community Development Department. The project was carried out in collaboration with the Arts Foundation for Tucson and Southern Arizona and the Sugar Hill Neighborhood Association.

The mural, designed by Ndubisi Okoye from Detroit, features bright colors with "Sugar Hill" prominently displayed at its center. A community painting event took place on November 16 at Max’s Center Attractions, where residents joined Okoye and local artists Allison Miller and Jessi Moreno to complete the artwork.

This mural marks the final Action Activity under Thrive in the 05, which has been supported by a $1.5 million investment from Choice Neighborhoods, Community Development Block Grant, and City General funds. These activities have aimed to revitalize the area through various projects such as tree planting, traffic calming measures, park beautification, public art installations, business façade improvements, and street signage updates.

Thrive in the 05 targets a specific area within Tucson's 85705 zip code, bounded by Miracle Mile to Speedway from north to south and Stone Avenue to Interstate-10 from east to west. The transformation plan associated with these activities was adopted by Tucson's Mayor and Council on March 9, 2022.

For more information about Thrive in the 05 initiatives or to report issues or suggestions related to this program, residents can visit thriveinthe05.tucsonaz.gov or contact Tucson’s city services via phone or online request forms.