Police Were Already Stationed Downtown When Sunday's Shooting Erupted, Tucson Council Told

TUCSON — Twenty Tucson police officers, two community service officers, five sergeants and a force commander were already stationed in downtown Tucson when a shooting erupted there last Sunday, City Manager Timothy Thomure told the City Council on Tuesday, as Mayor Regina Romero opened the meeting condemning "another serious and senseless act of gun violence" and council members renewed calls for state and federal action on guns. In its regular business, the council also unanimously denied a contentious rezoning in the Tanque Verde Valley, backed the Tohono O'odham Nation's lawsuit against border wall construction, and approved a $7 million federal housing grant.

Officers Were Already Downtown When the Shooting Began

Mayor Romero opened the meeting with a statement condemning the [downtown Tucson shooting](../news-reports/downtown-shooting-2026-07-20.html) the previous Sunday, calling it "another serious and senseless act of gun violence." She said she was "horrified, sad, and mad" and thanked Tucson Police Department officers, firefighters, 911 call takers, and medical personnel. City Manager Timothy Thomure read into the record the full roster of responding units: 27 Tucson Fire Department units from 12 stations, supplemented by one Northwest Fire unit and four AMR private ambulance units, along with officers drawn from every TPD patrol division.

Thomure said that at the time of the shooting, 20 TPD officers, two community service officers, and five sergeants plus a force commander from Operations Division West were already on-site downtown — a pre-positioned presence funded in part through the downtown violence reduction program and the Ronstadt Transit Center program. Council Member Miranda Schubert read a joint statement from her office and Vice Mayor Lane Santa Cruz's office calling on state and federal lawmakers to act on gun safety, saying "the state legislature has preempted us, stripping cities of the power to protect our own residents." Council Member Barajas offered condolences separately to the family of 29-year-old Ernesto Ojeda, who died July 17 after being swept away by monsoon floodwaters.

Tanque Verde Rezoning Denied

The council rejected on a unanimous voice vote a request by property owner Carolyn Larrabee to rezone 8800 East Jacaranda Way from Suburban Ranch to RX-1 Residential, which would have allowed subdivision of the site into 12 lots — six containing existing dwellings and six new home sites. More than a dozen neighbors testified in opposition over the course of the public hearing, raising concerns about flooding between the Faringer Wash to the north and Tanque Verde Creek to the south, sewer system deficiencies, limited emergency egress, and threats to equine and agricultural uses in the valley.

Council Member Paul Cunningham, whose ward includes the area, moved to deny the rezoning after noting unresolved uncertainty from four concurrent nearby development projects, including Mason Ranch apartments and Casitas on Catalina. He said those projects had already strained sewer infrastructure — the Mason Ranch sewer expansion took five months longer than planned and repeatedly disrupted traffic on Tanque Verde Road — and that adding this rezoning to the mix was premature. Cunningham also said the absence of an identified developer and a functioning homeowners association left critical flood retention basin maintenance obligations unresolved. Council Member Kevin Dahl seconded the motion, citing the area's ecological significance and the permanence of rezoning decisions. Mayor Regina Romero joined in opposition, saying flooding and sewer capacity concerns "need to be resolved further" before any development moves forward.

Larrabee, who said she has owned and renovated the property since 2007, told the council she was not an outside developer but a neighbor seeking to bring her undeveloped acreage into conformity with surrounding RX-1 zoning at a density of one home per acre. One neighbor, Paul Delagati of 8725 East Bear's Path Road, spoke in her favor, calling her efforts commendable and suggesting city hydrologists could work with her to address drainage concerns.

Council Backs Tohono O'odham Nation's Border Wall Lawsuit

The council voted unanimously to adopt a resolution formally supporting the Tohono O'odham Nation's legal challenge to federal border wall construction in Southern Arizona. Mayor Romero said she introduced the resolution after Tohono O'odham Nation Chairman Verlon Jose personally called her when the lawsuit was filed. She noted the council had passed a similar resolution in 2017 opposing border wall construction on comparable grounds.

Council Member Selina Barajas said she visited the Nation alongside Chairman Jose last year and witnessed firsthand "the history, beauty, and significance of this region, including the lands along the border." Council Member Dahl said the wall fails on both practical and moral grounds, noting that a "$100 skill saw from Home Depot" can defeat the barrier and that the wall bisects traditional Tohono O'odham lands that extend across the international boundary. He described witnessing bulldozers operating adjacent to Quitobaquito Springs during earlier wall construction and said a sacred intaglio figure in Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge had recently been bulldozed without required archaeological protections.

$7 Million Pro-Housing IGA Approved

The council unanimously approved an intergovernmental agreement with Pima County for the Tucson-Pima Pathways to Removing Obstacles (PRO) Housing Initiative, a $7 million grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Council Member Schubert pulled the item from the consent agenda to highlight that Tucson was one of only 18 communities nationally to receive a pro-housing grant out of more than 200 applicants. The funds will support gap financing for affordable housing, impact fee subsidies, development on city-owned parcels, and zoning code changes to facilitate middle housing construction.

Mayor Romero said the grant was applied for in 2024 and awarded under the Biden administration, with the city notified in January 2025. She credited the broader housing affordability strategy the council has pursued for more than six years, saying it has produced more than 1,200 affordable housing units that "otherwise six, seven, eight years ago would not exist." City Attorney Mike Rankin read a corrective language clarification into the record for the intergovernmental agreement before the vote.

Near-Campbell Avenue Rezoning Approved

The council unanimously passed Ordinance No. 12264, rezoning a 0.51-acre parcel at approximately 850 feet west of Campbell Avenue on the north side of Prince Road from Office O-3 to Commercial C-1 zoning. The change will allow personal service businesses — including barber shops, beauty salons, nail salons, and massage therapists — to operate in an existing approximately 3,000-square-foot building. Both the city manager and the zoning examiner recommended approval. The applicant's representative, Brian Underwood of The Planning Center, confirmed agreement with all proposed conditions.

Also discussed:

Tucson Electric Power reported monsoon storms caused outages affecting 11,000 customers on one Saturday, 4,400 on the following Sunday, and 6,400 on Monday; all were restored within roughly 24 hours each event. TEP also noted approximately 55,000 customers citywide have private solar systems.
The council approved board and commission appointments, including Elaine McPherson to the Commission on Equitable Housing and Development and Lucy Howell to the Pima County-Tucson Women's Commission.
The council approved five new liquor license applications and seven special event applications, forwarding all to the state liquor board with a recommendation of approval.
Council Member Barajas noted the July 8 ribbon cutting of the new South Side Public Safety Complex, which consolidates TPD's Southside Substation and Tucson Fire Station 10 under one roof.
Council Member Cunningham noted the Tucson Sugar Skulls made the playoffs for the third time in six years and that Tucson will host the Indoor Football League bowl game Aug. 16.
Two environmental services employees spoke during public comment to praise outgoing Environmental Services Director Carlos de la Torre, whose last day was July 17.