Building Community in 85705
THRIVE in the 05
A collaboration of Innovations in Community-Based Crime Reduction, Choice Neighborhoods, and Workforce & Economic Development in the 85705 zip code.
HCD Seeks Proposals to Build Community Facilities in Thrive in the 05
The City of Tucson’s Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) is seeking proposals from organizations to build and operate Community Serving Facilities in Thrive in the 05 in support of the impactful Choice Neighborhoods Implementation (CNI) grant.
As part of the CNI initiative, the City seeks proposals from qualified organizations, developers, nonprofits, health care providers, and operators of community-serving facilities to develop one or more of the following:
A Community Food Hub with the potential for kitchen incubator space, culinary training, food-related entrepreneurship opportunities, emergency food or meal distribution, food pantry services, and/or a market or cafe.
A Health Station to provide primary care navigation, behavioral health services, preventative care, health screenings, wellness programming, or other service models.
Neighborhood-serving retail and community services such as a grocery/market, coffee shop, and/or food retail.
The City is not seeking to operate these facilities directly, but rather to invest in the development or renovation of facilities and the purchase of equipment needed to support new, robust community services. Applicants responding to this Request for Proposals (RFP) will be responsible for operations and sustaining community services.
All RFPs are due July 15, 2026. Proposals will be selected by August. The City is accepting electronic submissions via email to Denisse Ortega-Loroña at denisse.ortega-lorona@tucsonaz.gov. Please submit all documents as PDF files.
Thrive in the 05 is an initiative created by the City in 2018 with initial funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The initiative focuses on an area with historical disinvestment north of downtown, roughly bound by Interstate 10, Speedway Boulevard, Stone Avenue and Miracle Mile. After extensive community engagement and collaborative partnerships, HCD drafted the Thrive in the 05 Transformation Plan to guide a decade of investment across multiple sectors in the neighborhood. In 2023, the City applied for and received a $50 million CNI grant from HUD to fulfill key components of the Transformation Plan. The Transformation Plan can be found at thriveinthe05.tucsonaz.gov.
A major component of the CNI grant is the renovation and preservation of 358 units of affordable housing for older adults at Tucson House, as well as new affordable and mixed-income developments including 66 units at Sugar Hill on Stone, 59 units at Amazon Flats, and 120 units at Stone and Speedway. In addition to investments in housing, the CNI grant provides funding for case management and wrap-around services for Tucson House residents.
Another critical facet of the CNI focused on neighborhood improvement projects. Thrive in the 05 residents and stakeholders have identified gaps in access to food and health services in the area. To close those gaps, the City has allotted up to $3.5 million of CNI funds to create projects outlined in this RFP.
Funds awarded through the RFP can be used for the renovation of physical spaces, purchase of equipment, interior improvements, exterior façade improvements, green infrastructure, and signage. Funds are not available for ongoing administration and operations. Sustainable funding for operations must be identified in submitted proposals.
All submissions must be received by July 15, 2026, 5:00 PM MST. Applicants are encouraged to submit their proposals well in advance of the deadline. The City will email confirmation upon receipt of submissions. For questions regarding the receipt of a proposal, contact Denisse Ortega-Loroña at denisse.ortega-lorona@tucsonaz.gov
A virtual pre-proposal conference will be held from 10 to 11:30 AM on June 5, 2026, via Zoom. This is an opportunity to ask questions, discuss ideas, and received feedback on proposal concepts to ensure alignment with the priorities of this funding opportunity.
Zoom link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/84444560510
Meeting ID: 844 4456 0510
The full RFP for the Thrive in the 05 Food Hub/Community Serving Facilities can be found here(PDF, 479KB).
The Place
The Oracle/Miracle Mile area, in the 85705 zip code, was once a vital automobile gateway into Tucson. Filled with historic structures, it was the site of booming tourism, and dubbed “Miracle Mile” by Arizona Highways magazine. The area remained vital through the 1960s, even after the construction of Interstate 10 in 1958, which replaced Miracle Mile as the main thoroughfare in Tucson. In 1963, Tucson House was built as a 17-story luxury apartment complex. By the 1970s, the area began a steady decline as travelers started using alternative routes, and numerous motels in the area became a magnet for prostitution, drugs, and crime. The abandoned Tucson House became Section 8 Public Housing in the 1980s. Despite its unique historical character, the Oracle area currently faces many challenges that limit opportunities for community and economic development.
In 2018, based on input from residents and community partners through a series of community meetings, the Leadership Alliance (the decision-making body comprised of a core group of residents and other key community partners) formally adopted “THRIVE in the 05” as the initiative name. The community felt this name reflected the primary goal of the initiative – to promote safety and well-being, in order to ensure all community members have access to opportunities that would empower them to achieve their full potential, to *thrive* - and represented its place-based focus, located within the 85705 zip code.
The Projects
Building on over a decade of work on projects like the Oracle Area Revitalization Plan (OARP), The Oracle Project (TOP), and the Oracle Area Task Force, these current initiatives are teaming up to build community and invest resources in this area. Together, these projects are called
THRIVE in the 05!
Community-Based Crime Reduction
An initiative which seeks to work with the community to identify and address root causes of crime to help build sustainable communities of opportunity through the implementation of communities strategies.
Grant funded from the US Department of Justice (DOJ) through the ASU School of Social Work.
Choice Neighborhoods
Leverages significant public and private dollars to support locally driven strategies that address struggling neighborhoods with distressed public housing through a comprehensive approach to neighborhood transformation.
Grant funded from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) through the City of Tucson's Housing and Community Development Department (HCD).
WORKFORCE & ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
The City of Tucson Office of Economic Initiatives and partners work with business and nonprofit stakeholders in the Thrive in the 05 corridor to support ongoing economic growth and vitality. A Thrive in the 05 Business Coalition meets quarterly to discuss strategies for continued success.
TUCSON C.A.R.E.S
Tucson C.A.R.E.S. (Community Access, Referral, Education, and Service) is a comprehensive and strategic approach to address health and wellness inequities at Tucson House, Tucson’s largest public housing community.